Here's a contest to win a kindle!

Enter to win a kindle ereader. http://www.noobie.com/kindle-giveaway?ref=567823767

Enter the countdown to temptation contest here

Hello, author Michelle Lauren is having a contest to celebrate the November 2009 release of Temptation Eve, and she's giving away some great prizes. Her contest runs from October 1st to November 30. Check it out if you're interested.
Enter the Countdown to Temptation contest here:
http://michellelaurenbooks.com/blog/archives/2251
For 18 and above. :)

Please welcome author J.A. Saare

Hello, Jaime, I love your work and am happy to have you here. Thanks for doing the interview.

Hey Laura!
Thank you for having me on your blog today to talk about my newest novella. I always enjoy chatting with you. *smile* You asked for a little mini bio, but honestly, I’m not sure what to say. Nothing ruins the illustrious illusion of grandeur faster than the truth. But I suppose there’s no help for it. The simple answer is that I’m a mom to four. I have a husband that rocks my socks. And I write when I can find the time. I know, I know. Exciting, right?
Now, to something that is vastly more interesting, Soft As Moonlight, an erotic paranormal romance, with werewolves, vampires, and a bit of magic! I wanted to write something that bordered on urban fantasy, while forcing myself to write in a third person narrative. It was an amazing experience, and really helped me get inside the minds of the characters.
I’ve included two excerpts for you today, naughty and nice. I hope you enjoy them!
Blurb:
Lycae Wolfe Trevlian returns to New Orleans after a lengthy self imposed absence with one goal–to appease the vampyren harboring a grudge against his kin so he can leave as soon as possible. Bitter memories linger in the Big Easy, memories best left in the past. Fortunately, the agreement with the vampyren is simple–destroy the creature killing off their brethren, and the death of their Master is forgiven.
Dhampir Arden Moran has waited two decades to avenge the murder of her friend by destroying the vampyren King Lucius Mercoix, and years of dedication and patience are about to pay off. She tracks down the human slave to the King, intending to uncover where Lucius rests. There is just one enormous problem she wasn't prepared for–the breathtakingly gorgeous Lycae sent to intercept her.
One touch is all it takes for Wolfe to ascertain that Arden is his mate, and he vows to kill anyone or anything that attempts to harm the beautiful half-human, half-vampire female. When the vampyren hire assassins to finish the job he didn't complete, he is forced to face and overcome the devastating scars of a past betrayal in order to become an Alpha Lycae strong enough to protect his mate - as well as the pack that needs him.
Excerpt #1:
Wolfe turned and watched the battle unfold. One of the vampyren moved close and the female seized the opportunity, lurching into him and then whipping behind his back. Her hand latched onto his jaw, and she forced his head up and back. The dagger severed the tissue and muscle easily. She released the body, dropped the head, and crouching down and breathing shallow, went back to work.
The two remaining vampyren went for guns in their jackets, but she interrupted them with gunfire of her own, sliding the daggers into the sheaths on her legs and retrieving the guns tucked against her ribs in the same smooth motion. She stood tall to unleash hell’s fury into thick heads and spongy torso’s.
Bullets whizzed past her and she ducked behind an alley for cover, reappearing in seconds with fresh clips and more gunfire.
“What the hell is she?” he whispered, awestruck and fascinated.
Taylor removed a handkerchief from his pocket, padded his nose, and spoke scathingly through the thin material. “She’s an outcast, unwanted by either race that bore her.”
Wolfe’s jaw clenched and he stared at the vampyren slave through narrowed eyes. “She moves like a vampire and fights like the Thymeria.”
“That’s probably because she was a member of the human faction. But that was years ago. As for being vampire—”
Wolfe stopped listening as he was forced to intercept the oncoming female in question. The remaining vampyren were down and squirming weakly atop the blocked concrete, and she was homed in on one person he didn’t particularly care for himself —Taylor.
Damn it. Subduing an unwilling female wasn’t how he envisioned his first night back in New Orleans. He had wanted to relax with decent food and even better music. Not engage in a scuffle with a tiny girl that just put the beat down on four vampyren.
Should be thanking her for the community fucking service.
“Get the hell out of here,” he snarled at Taylor and stepped forward.
If she was intimidated by his much larger size, it didn’t show. She never slowed in her trek, releasing the clip in her sidearm with a flick of her thumb and sending it dancing along the asphalt. Her free hand wound behind her back in the same motion and returned with a new, fully loaded clip. She swiftly slammed the cartridge into the gun and locked it in place with her palm.
She was forced to peer up as she moved forward, and he finally got a glimpse of her eyes. The irises were a deep hued blue, as dark and vast as the clearest midnight sky. And the threat glimmering inside those devastating, beautiful orbs was exacting.
“Out of my way, Lycae.”
Her soft voice was like brandished velvet against his spine, causing his skin to ripple and the hair on his arms to rise in recognition. The bones in his body seemed to thrum, along with something else that had lain dormant his entire life. He shook his head hard and faced the furious female with the voice of a siren, the face of an angel, and the body of a goddess.
“I can’t do that.”
“Of course you can,” she purred, lifted the gun, and cocked the hammer for added effect.
Christ, but she’s ballsy.
Mindful of the shiny obsidian sidearm, he reminded her softly, “Bullets don’t work on us, cher.”
“Sure they do.” Her voice was husky and slightly accented, as lullingly sweet as the honeysuckle radiating from her skin. “If they’re made of silver.”
He stepped forward and was rewarded with a bitch of a sting in his chest, followed immediately by another. The excruciating burn that accompanied the sharp bite scoring the skin inside his chest and rending tissue was devastating. He withheld the grimace that would reveal the pain she wrought, meeting her level stare and grinding his teeth together.
“I missed the heart intentionally, Lycae.” She peered around him for a moment and returned those glorious blue eyes to his face, gun level and at the ready. “I won’t a second time.”

Thanks again for having me, Laura. You rock!


Soft As Moonlight is available today at Amira Press (http://www.amirapress.com/).

Please welcome author Skhye Moncrief

Hello, Skhye, and thank you for agreeing to do the interview. First, could you introduce yourself and talk about your work? What time-travel fiction have you written or are in the process of writing?

Hi, Laura. Thank you for inviting me over. My Time Guardian series is about two sects from the future who intermarry in order to travel through time and safeguard history--one sect sports kilts, the other Druid robes. I'm kind of geeky scientific in that I'm formally educated in geology and bioarchaeology. So, I had to set up a series that allowed me to write about when and wherever I felt like writing. So, my series spans the time from the first monolith's erection to whenever the future may land a tale. My available titles include a medieval Irish setting, a medieval Cumberland setting, a futuristic on earth, a futuristic offworld, and many set in present day Scotland. I should add that often the characters begin in one time period, travel to another, but end up in a third--and I'm told I handle the transitions well. The series is based on what appears to be Celtic legend but often brings in gods from other mythologies. What else would an evil anthropologist do? My King Arthur is a time-traveling shape-shifting dragon...

What are your favorite time destinations and why? My anthropological specialization in bioarchaeology should answer this question: I live in the past. :) I like everything from early hominids forward. And since I have this strange fascination with natural and cultural ecology, I like all settings including speculation of the future. So, let's just say the sky's the limit with my scrawlings. :)

Where is your work available? My titles are at http://thewildrosepress.com as well as http://amazon.com, http://borders.com, and http://bn.com.

What got you interested in the genre? For how long have you been a fan, and who are your favorite authors of time-travel fiction? Karen M. Moning was someone whose work fascinated me when I first began writing. But I really did live in the past long before writing romance, i.e. reading historical romances and works like The Clan of the Cave Bear. Add in my fascination with Star Trek since it first aired when I was a young child and my formal education, and, voila, writing time travel romance just seemed natural.

What mechanisms do you use for time-travel? Do they vary from story to story? In my series, the Orders use runes, astro-folklore, post-Modern alchemy, and sacred marriage while hoping the fairies kick in the rest of what's needed to travel across time and space. The male members have a time-travel key, i.e. fairy-forged sword. Yes, it's a very complicated system, mechanically. But I try to reveal a different aspect of time travel in each tale.

What type of research do you do for the genre? Where do you find your sources? Since I am known as the geeky blogger who blogs about reference books, let's just say I use books I've collected from geology & anthropology courses, as well as researching to crack the great mystery of numerology/astrology/Tarot/etc (to understand how people in the past thought). Literature courses are my friend. And I am always on the hunt for another great bargain at library sales, thrift stores, used-book stores, and bargain bins. Half.com is a godsend...

Everyone is invited to stop by http://blog.skhyemoncrief.com to sift through my back log of Reference Book posts. And where would I be if the History Channel didn't air The History of Concrete? Okay, I admit I know who invented it... But it's a great documentary, nonetheless.

Is there anything else you’d like to add? Thank you, Laura! And remember Ghandi's words: "Be the change you want to see in the world." I believe that's my motto when writing. ;) ~Skhye

Again, thank you so much for your input. Good luck with your writing!
-laura h.
"Arthur is a masterpiece..." 4 hearts for He of the Fiery Sword's King Arthur ~Diane Mason; The Romance Studio

“The Spell of the Killing Moon offers the best of spine-tingling suspense. The setting is perfect... Moncrief’s ability to wield magic and emotion are without compare. Her words twist together emotions and visuals until you experience this tale as if the trap were set for you. Some lines blend a kind of poetic magic: “Moonlight wove a special kind of magic, a spell so vacillating that a person never knew if reality were anything other than a dream.” Darkness and premonitions and deadly intent fill these pages... a unique blend of mystic Medieval Gothic and romance…and a true blood-curdling thriller. 5 books" ~Snapdragon, LASR

"Intense, original, suspenseful, and dramatic... an unpredictable topsy-turvy romance... the suspense builds with every page in SACRIFICIAL HEARTS. In a world where symbols mean everything, magic is the way..." ~Snapdragon; LASR

HE OF THE FIERY SWORD available at www.thewildrosepress.com
www.timeguardians.com
www.skhyemoncrief.com
"Be the change you want to see in the world." ~Ghandi

One lovely blog

Hello, I was very happy to be recognized for the "One Lovely Blog" award by my friend and fellow author, Jaime Saare, author of terrific paranormal stories. She writes entertaining tales that I love to read. Thanks, Jaime!

For my chosen three: Kimberly Eve at http://kimberlyeve.blogspot.com/ writes a very interesting blog about the Tudors. I love stopping by and reading her latest information.

Jaime Saare writes a witty, entertaining blog that I truly enjoy checking out on a regular basis. Her insights are fun to read. http://jasaare.blogspot.com/

My friend, Linda LaRoque, writer of wonderul time-travel fiction and tales set in Texas, has a blog that covers various topics. It's a cool blog. http://lindalaroqueauthor.blogspot.com/

Copy the award image above and choose three blogs you enjoy! Write a blog post to let everyone know who they are and why you enjoy them. Then let the lucky bloggers know you've chosen their blogs as "One Lovely Blogs".

Please welcome author Susan Macatee

First, could you introduce yourself and talk about your work?

Hi, first I’d like to say thanks so much for having me, Laura! I’m Susan Macatee. I’ve been dabbling in writing since I was in grade school, but got serious about it after the last of my three boys started school. It wasn’t until I decided to write romance and joined Romance Writers of America that I started having any success with my submissions, though. After having my first romance, a short stand-alone vampire story, released as an e-book last year from The Wild Rose Press, I’ve signed five new contracts with TWRP; two for full-length novels, two for short stories that will be part of two different historical anthologies and one stand-alone novella-length vampire story. All of these stories are set during the American Civil War.

I’m also working on two new full-length romances. One’s science fiction romance, the other post-Civil War.

What time-travel fiction have you written or are in the process of writing?

Erin’s Rebel, the book of my heart, is my first foray into time travel. It’s set during the American Civil War. My heroine, a modern day reporter, is thrust by way of a car accident and a Victorian brooch containing a lock of the hero’s hair into a Confederate army camp during the Civil War.

Here’s the blurb: Philadelphia newspaper reporter, Erin Branigan, is engaged to marry an up-and-coming lawyer, but dreams of a man from the past, a Civil War captain, change her plans and start her on a journey beyond time. After a car accident, Erin wakes to find herself living in the 1860s in a Confederate army camp.

Captain Will Montgomery, the man of her dreams, is now a flesh and blood Rebel soldier who sets her soul aflame. But the Irish beauty holds a secret he needs to unravel before he can place his trust in her.

Can she correct a mistake made long ago that caused his death and denied her the love she was meant to have? Or is she doomed to live out her life with nothing but regret?

The only other story I have in that genre right now is a short story to be featured in the upcoming TWRP American Civil War anthology, Northern Roses and Southern Belles. My story, Angel of My Dreams, is the story of a modern-day Civil War reenactor, who becomes entranced with a woman he keeps seeing at events attending fallen men on the battlefield. The woman turns out to be the ghost of a Civil War nurse. This is more of a reincarnation tale, as the hero goes to a therapist, has himself hypnotically regressed and learns he’s lived before as a Civil War soldier. The story weaves itself back and forth through time, so although not your traditional time travel, it does have many elements of that genre.

What are your favorite time destinations and why?

The American Civil War is my favorite destination. I love the pageantry and heroism of men and women who fought and sacrificed for what they believed in. I’ve spent the past ten years or so as a Civil War civilian reenactor, and since I love reading time travel romances, I was really disappointed to find so few TT romances set in that time period.

Where is your work available?

I write for The Wild Rose Press. http://thewildrosepress.com/ Currently, I only have one short story available for purchase, a Civil War set vampire story, called Eternity Waits. All my other releases will come out this year, starting with Erin’s Rebel, my Civil War time travel, on July 17th.

What got you interested in the genre? For how long have you been a fan, and who are your favorite authors of time-travel fiction?

I’d have to say about five years ago, when I first immersed myself in romance fiction. I’d been writing for years, but didn’t seem to be getting anywhere. I’d heard romance was a big market and decided to investigate. Although I loved reading the historicals, I found myself intrigued by time travels. They became my favorites.

One of the first time travels I remember having read is Susan Grant’s Once a Pirate. I also read medieval-set stories by several different authors. One of them was Victoria Alexander, I don’t recall all of the others, but I did read Helen A. Rosburg’s The Circle of a Promise. I’ve also read Scottish highland time travels as well as Native American ones, just can’t recall all the titles or authors. I even read one set during the Civil War that started with a woman psychiatrist who traveled back through time on a train ride. The latest TT’s I’ve read and loved are Judi Lynne’s Yankee Angel, Bess McBride’s A Train through Time, Dawn Thompson’s The Falcon’s Bride and the latest by her, published after her death, The Bride of Time.

What mechanisms do you use for time-travel? Do they vary from story to story?

Developing the time travel mechanism was the hardest part, for me, of doing a time travel. I just couldn’t seem to find any believable way to get my heroine back in time to meet the hero. Since Erin’s Rebel was my first romance, I entered it in as many unpublished contests as I could afford, but the judges kept telling me my time travel device just wasn’t believable. I almost gave up on this story, but while taking an online workshop with the late Dawn Thompson on story openings, Dawn suggested a car crash, so I went with that.

But I still needed something to tie the whole time travel theme together. I’d read a few great time travels where the hero or heroine goes back into their reincarnated body and I decided that would work here. So, my heroine goes back into the body of a woman who she thought to be her grandmother’s great-aunt, but was actually the heroine in a past life. And the object that ties everything together is a Victorian brooch containing a lock of the hero’s hair. It was common during this time period for people to preserve and carry a lock of a loved one’s hair, either as a remembrance of one who’d died, or as a way of keeping a piece of someone far away close. Victorians were notorious for their sentimentality.

What type of research do you do for the genre? Where do you find your sources?

Since I set my stories during the Civil War, I’ve used what I learned as a reenactor to give my readers a feel for the time period. What they wore, ate, what they did for fun, and any other little details of everyday life my characters should know, or my time traveler has to learn. For major events, like dates of battles and other historical facts, I use reference books and the internet.

Here's the blurb for Erin's Rebel:
Erin's RebelTime Travel RomanceThe Wild Rose PressPhiladelphia newspaper reporter, Erin Branigan, is engaged to marry an up-and-coming lawyer, but dreams of a man from the past, a Civil War captain, change her plans and start her on a journey beyond time. After a car accident, Erin wakes to find herself living in the 1860s in a Confederate army camp.Captain Will Montgomery, the man of her dreams, is now a flesh and blood Rebel soldier who sets her soul aflame. But the Irish beauty holds a secret he needs to unravel before he can place his trust in her.Can she correct a mistake made long ago that caused his death and denied her the love she was meant to have? Or is she doomed to live out her life with nothing but regret?

Is there anything you’d like to add?

I’d like to invite readers of your blog to visit my website to learn more about me and all my upcoming stories, as well as a sneak peak at my latest work in progress.

You can find me here: http://susanmacatee.com/

Or at my blog: http://susanmacatee.blogspot.com/

And I’m also a regular contributor at http://slipintosomethingvictorian.wordpress.com/ where readers can learn all about the Victorian era.

please welcome author Mary Ricksen

Hello, Mary, and welcome. Thanks for the interview. :)

First, could you introduce yourself and talk about your work? What time-travel fiction have you written or are in the process of writing?
Hi Lara, thanks for having me on your site. A little about me. Hmmm. I am an animal lover. Right now we have two German Sherpherds. One is a young female named, BoBo,and she just went into heat.

The older one up until now has only been annoyed with her. Jealous of each other, their petty bickering was starting to get annoying. But now, they are in love.

It' quite interesting to see them interact and how lovesick my poor old boy, Junior, is. the mind says yes, yes, yes, but the body says no. He is just to arthritic to get up there. The grooming, nibbling and loving is quite different. Hormones are amazing aren't they.

I am in the process of working on my second book, so I have not been able to do the blogging I usually do. Burned Into Time, is a sequal to my first book, Tripping Through Time, and it continues with the story of time traveling to the late 1800's to the beautiful state of Vermont. Why did I pick Vermont. Well it has all the mistique and presence I needed for my stories. There is so much to work with. The imagery is so easy with such a beautiful place to use for a backdrop. And I love the place. I will admit the research is hard to do from where I live, but I am managing.

I am married it seems like forever to my husband of 33 years, would I change him. Sure if I could, it's not for want of trying. If only I could get him to clean up after himself. Ha! I always tell people he is like my left let. I would hate to lose it. And he makes me laugh! Right now we live in hot, hot, hot, Florida. I am aiming for the mountains of North Carolina eventually.

When I retired I decided to pursue my writing career. It has been the best move of my life and I wouldn't give up meeting all the wonderful people I have met for anything. Authors are some of the best folks in the world!

What are your favorite time destinations and why?
I like the late 1800's there was so much development at that time. My first book took place on the Lake Champlain islands, my second book will take place mainly in Stowe Vermont, and my third will be in Florida.

Where is your work available?
You can buy it at any of the usual on line places, like Amazon, and Barnes and Noble.com.

What got you interested in the genre? For how long have you been a fan, and who are your favorite authors of time-travel fiction?

I think I have read every time travel romance novel in print today. I started with the time-travel romance about ten years ago. I love them all. Linda Lael Miller, Flora Speer, Becky Weyrith, Kate Lyon, the list of my favorite time travel authors is quite extensive. Now I am starting to read some ebook time travels by my own publisher.

For a time I read every western romance, then every Indian, then it was sci-fi and fantasy. Ever read Peers Anthony he's very different.

What mechanisms do you use for time-travel? Do they vary from story to story?
So far it's only been by putting on a magic Celtic ring that my heroines have traveled into the past. I am really a newbie, and have only published one book.
I hope that my publisher likes my second one too.

What type of research do you do for the genre? Where do you find your sources?
Reseach has been hard for me. My local library is not much help when I try to get loaned books. The main West Palm Beach library is totally unorganized and useless as far as my
experience goes. I actually am from Vermont so some of it is easy. I do a lot of on line looking. But the information is spotty and hard to come by. I am working on that though.

Is there anything else you’d like to add?
I am inclined to think that when you want to accomplish something, like publishing a book, you have to devote yourself entirely and never quit. Some of the best writers in the world have been rejected at one time of another. If you give up, that's the end of it. I so wanted to accomplish this, I've dreamed about it since I was a kid. I am grateful for the help I have had from fellow authors. They are so supportive and understanding. Maybe someday I can be as helpful to someone just like they were to me.

Thanks Lara and I wish you the very best. Mary