Secrets Volume 19

Is available for pre-order here.

Attack of the ants

This morning I took the dog out in my bare feet, like I always do. I wasn’t quite awake yet at 5 am, which is pretty much the norm around here , so I stood on the side steps and let her do her business in the side yard. When I got back inside, I noticed my feet were burning. They were covered with tiny black ants, and they were all biting me. I brushed them off my feet and tried squishing them with paper towels, but these suckers just wouldn’t die. I had to get out the vacuum to get rid of them.

I’ve been bit by red ants before, but never attacked in mass quantities by black ones. It was the start of a very bizarre day.

What have you all been up to lately? Anything interesting?

Today’s Post

Is at Romance Worth Killing For. We’re discussing our office space. Come on over and check out some pictures of where we work, and tell us about your own work space.

Today’s post…

Is at Romance Worth Killing For. It’s been a lot of fun. Stop by and check it out when you get a chance.

I added some new book covers to the Upcoming page on my site, as well as the blurbs for the two stories in Heart of the Storm.

What I read last month

4th of July by James Patterson. Yeah, it was a really slow month. I started a few other books that I didn’t finish, but I might try to finish them this month since I seem to have a little more extra time coming once the kids get out of school.

What did you read last month?

Oh, swing over to the RWKF blog to check out what we’ve been up to this weekend, or rather, what our heroes have been up to. Because of thunderstorms and power outages the past two days I haven’t been able to participate much, but I had a good time reading what everyone else did.

I know it’s been forever…

Since I last posted. Sorry to disappear. This time of year is super hectic, with school ending and dance competition season for the mini diva in full force. Plus, I think I’ve had blogger’s block again. I really couldn’t think of much to say. (For anyone who’s interested, the mini diva’s classes did very well in competition–especially one of her tap numbers. They won a gold medal, a special award, and even took first place for high scores in the small group category.)

I have a couple of updates. Sorry for the long post. I shortened it here, and you can read the rest by clicking on the link at the end of the post.

First, Heart of the Storm is available for preorder from Amazon.com. I’ve seen the draft of the cover for this one, and I love it. I’m dying to share it with everyone, and as soon as I get the okay, I’ll post it. HotS is the print compilation of Reality Check and Miss Independent.

Read this month

1. True Evil — Greg Isles
2. Turning Angel — Greg Isles
3. Drop Dead Gorgeous — Linda Howard
4. Dave Barry Slept Here — Dave Barry

I didn’t read much at all in April, and May is shaping up to be around the same. What did you read in April?

Interview with Zavier Hunter

Zavier is the hero in Sleepless, and he’s very different from David, who was interviewed last week.

Name: Zavier Hunter

Age: Older than an ordinary person could comprehend.

Occupation: At the moment, I’m a business owner. Before that…well, let’s just say my former “job” involved some real hands-on interaction with women.

Fears or phobias: I’ve spent many years trying to move past what I’d been, and I worry about sliding back to that place.

Favorite food: I eat out of necessity rather than for enjoyment. I prefer to take my pleasure in other ways.

Favorite color: The exact blue of Nina’s eyes. Whenever I look at them, I know she can keep me out of the darkness.

Are you human? Ah, no. I’m something…else. I can be an erotic dream or a nightmare.

Describe your perfect woman: Before Nina, I would have said all of them, but she changed my mind very quickly. So in answer, my perfect woman is one who can accept me–and even love me–for what I am, faults and all.

Want to know more about Zavier? Post questions in the comment section and I’ll get him over here to answer them.

Sleepless is available now from Changeling Press.

My newsletter and today’s post

Today’s post is up at Romance Worth Killing For.

Also, the latest issue of my newsletter is (finally ) available on my website. Check it out here.

Character interview…David Storm

I meant to post this much earlier, but I got caught up redoing my website. (Check out the new header–that’s my new site banner….what do you think of it?) Anyway, I’m going to be doing something new on my blog once a week for a little while: character interviews.

Here’s a little bit about David, the hero from The Whole Shebang, in his own words:

Name: David Storm

Age: 25

Occupation: elementary school teacher (5th grade)

Residence: Lilton, Vermont

Pets: A few I inherited when I married Lucy–an ancient chocolate lab, and a couple of cats who spend most of the day hiding from the kids.

Children? Four stepsons. Twins Lucas and Trevor, and then Nate and Tanner. It’s hectic, but I wouldn’t give it up for anything. I’m hoping there are a couple more kids in my future. Lucy and I have been discussing the possibility.

Most embarrassing moment: Ah, that’s a tough one. Probably when Lucy and I went out to dinner and she lit my sleeve on fire. Though that one is probably more embarrassing for her than me.
Fears or phobias: Heights…and spiders, but don’t spread it around.

Favorite food: Anything I don’t have to cook. Seriously, if I can take it out of a box and microwave it, I’ll eat it.

Favorite color: Red

What was it like growing up with four brothers and sisters? Uh, interesting. The house was constant chaos, and since I’m the youngest, I got picked on. Like, a lot. We all get along great now. My brothers are my best friends.

Is there anything else you’d like to tell readers about yourself? There’s not much to tell. I’m an easy-going guy. As long as I have my wife, my step-kids, my family, and my job, I’m a happy guy.

I’m back…with a new release!

The Whole Shebang is out today from Samhain Publishing! This is book number 4 in the Storm Siblings connected books, and it’s special to me. A lot of what Lucy has been through is similar to what I’ve been through, and some of the funny things her boys do are things my own children have done to me. (Like gluing the dog’s collar to her fur–my middle one thought it was uncomfortable for her when her collar was loose around her neck )

An instant family wasn’t what David had planned for his life, but once he met single mother Lucy he knew he had to change his plans.

Fifth grade teacher David Storm has had it up to here with one of his students. Lately the boy’s attitude has changed. He’s is obnoxious and rowdy, unable to sit still for five seconds, and is constantly interrupting to ask questions that have nothing to do with the subjects they’re studying. The boy’s twin brother is just the opposite-so quiet that it has David worried. He calls their mother and tells her he needs to speak with her, setting in motion a whole set of events he never could have imagined.

Lucy Parker knows what her boys are trying to do-and she doesn’t approve. Since her divorce from their father three years ago, the eleven-year-olds have been trying to set her up with every single man in the tri-county area. They mean well, but she isn’t looking for love. She’s got enough trouble raising four rambunctious boys, and she doesn’t need to add someone else to the list. Especially not their latest choice-their very handsome yet way-too-young-for-her teacher.

To Purchase: (My Bookstore and More)

Here’s an excerpt:

David sat at the table with the two younger Parker boys, eight-year-old Tanner and his brother, Nate. The boys had grabbed him a bottle of water—their mother didn’t allow soda since they were “hyper enough already”—sat him down at the table, and given him the children’s version of Lucy’s life story. Especially the recent months, since she’d broken up with the man they referred to as the “dumb boyfriend”. He wondered if she realized the younger kids appeared to be in on the plot, too. They gave such glowing recommendations he had to bite back a laugh.

“So then my dad moved to California,” Tanner told him, his eyes sparkling with the same mischief he’d seen in Trevor’s eyes so many times at the end of the school year. “And he got married again. My mom wants to get married again, too.”

David nearly choked on his water. “Does she know that?”

“Well, no,” Tanner continued, his big, blue eyes wide. “But she will.”

“You think so?”

He nodded, going about as solemn as a preteen could get. “I know so. My daddy says she’ll be happier when she…moves on.”

David smiled. He had a feeling Lucy already had moved on, but her ex and her boys didn’t seem to know it yet. Either that, or the kid had watched a few too many episodes of Dr. Phil.

Tanner glanced at David out of the corner of his eye. “Do you like my mom, Mr. Storm?”

“Call me David. You’re not in school right now. We’re all friends here. And yes, I do like your mom.” Probably a little too much. He barely even knew her.

“Are you going to ask her out on a date?” Nate asked, making date sound like a forbidden word. He blinked a few times before bursting into a round of giggles.

David joined in the laughter. “Your mom doesn’t want to go out with me.”

“Yes she does,” Nate argued. “I know it. She said so the other day. I heard her talking with Aunt Nikki.”

“Oh, really?”

The little boy nodded his blond head and wrinkled his nose. “She said you’re a hottie.”

David couldn’t help but smile. That put a new spin on things. Maybe she wasn’t as averse to the idea of coffee with him as she’d pretended to be.

He didn’t have a chance to say anything else. Lucy walked into the room, took one look at her boys and threw her hands up in the air. “What do you two think you’re doing, harassing Mr. Storm like this?”

“Just talking, Mom,” Tanner assured her, his tone serious. “And he said we can call him David since we aren’t in school, and we’re friends.”

The glare Lucy shot him had him shaking his head. He’d pissed her off. Again. Damn, she was cute when she was all red and frazzled.

“Upstairs, guys.” She propped her hands on her hips. “Go brush your teeth, wash up and get your pajamas on. It’s almost bedtime.”

Once they’d rushed out of the room, she turned to David. “Don’t listen to anything they told you. None of it’s true. Absolutely none of it.”

Her face was flushed, her lips parted and her hair a mass of wild, strawberry blonde curls around her face. The urge to kiss her—hard—nearly overrode his common sense. Almost. At the last second, he dragged the feeling back and stood, balling his hands into fists to keep from grabbing her.

“So you don’t think I’m a hottie?”

Might be away a little longer

My internet access has been down since Monday, so I’m not able to get online from my house. I’m checking in briefly from my parents’ house since I’m here to dry laundry anyway (dryer belt snapped, but that’s another story ) just to let everyone know I’m not sure when I’ll be back online. Hopefully the issue will be fixed soon.

Vampires, demons, or werewolves…or something else?

:::A quick bit of news and updates first…

I’m still waiting for word from my editor on the new title for Whose Afterlife before I can announce who the winners are in that contest (cross posted here and my MySpace blog). I know which title was my favorite, but I passed all the suggestions along to her and I want to see what she thinks before I announce anything.

Sleepless now has a release date from Changeling Press. April 20th–the same week The Whole Shebang releases from Samhain. Next week, I’ll be posting excerpts of both books.:::

A good portion of my writing, as well as my reading, is devoted to the paranormal genre. It’s been a fascination of mine since I was really young. I think it’s at least in part because I grew up in New England, where ghost stories are a big part of the culture. Every old building seems to be haunted in some form. The first paranormal book I can recall reading was Ghosts I Have Been.

Vampires were my first paranormal love. I remember being eleven and staying up all night reading Salem’s Lot. High School started my fascination with series books when I eagerly awaited every new installment of the Last Vampire series from Christopher Pike. Even now, vampires are still one of my favorites (the darker, the better), but I have to admit, I’ve been writing demons since around 2002 and I’m really enjoying those stories as well.

What do you think? Are vampires and werewolves overdone, or do you still enjoy them? What do you think of all the demon books available now? Are there any paranormal creatures you’d like to see written about that don’t get enough exposure in books?

Books read last month

(I also have a post up today at Romance Worth Killing For)

Here’s what I read in March. A little more varied than usual.

1. Dead Until Dark — Charlaine Harris (very cool vampire book)
2. Motor Mouth — Janet Evanovich (I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would–I love her voice)
3. The Passenger — Joie Lesin (very cool, unusual historical)
4. Visions of Heat — Nalini Singh (love this series)
5. Under the Wire — Cindy Gerard (this series, too)
6. The Kindness of Strangers — Katrina Kittle (Absolutely incredible book)
7. Out for Christmas — Amelia Elias (this one was a lot of fun)
8. The Letter — Willa Okati (this one was short, but good and had an interesting plot)
9. No Rest For the Wicked — Kresley Cole (yet another series I read…noticing a pattern here? )

What did you read last month? Anything good? What’s on your list to read next?

Good news :)

Reality Check was voted Best Romantic Comedy of 2006 at Romance Reviews Today!

Rachel Storm is a woman who has it all. A great job, an amazing apartment, a decent paycheck…and overbearing mother hell-bent on seeing her married before the next millennium. Rachel doesn’t want to get married. She likes her life the way it is, but her mother won’t let it rest.

When her sister announces her wedding, the little white lie Rachel told her family about her “fiance” blows up in her face. Now she has to find a fiance by the weekend or face the wrath of the wedding nazi.

Doug, the impossibly good looking gay guy from the office, seems like the obvious choice.

There’s just one little problem with her plan—Doug isn’t gay. And he plans to spend the entire weekend trying to get Rachel into his bed.