The best lesson I've learned since getting published...

First of all let me apologize for being MIA the past few weeks. I had two kids home from school 2 different weeks and I have been working on finishing my half of a book I am co authoring...... So today is my day here and the topic of the day fits perfectly... I've actually been thinking a lot about different lessons I've learned since getting published. It seems like every blog I read there is some kind of drama going on with either publishers going out of business or authors getting the short end of the (contract) stick. And believe me, from surviving a few publishers (Venus, MG, TF) there have been some incredible lessons learned.

Before you sign on with a publisher look and see the names of authors who are already there. Email them and ask if they are happy with the publisher. Chances are if they aren't they will tell you.

I'd say the best lesson I've learned is to go with your gut instinct. If things don't seem right to you, don't just accept the contract. Wait it out and find a publisher that you think will make you happy. Don't settle. Your work is too important.

take care,

Annmarie

It's Been A Good Week

I got my first ever review this week for SEDUCED BY MAGIC.

4 1/2 stars from Romantic Times.

And I quote: "...sparkles with fantasy. Fairies, satyrs, werewolves and deities populate Julian's world, but they're so well crafted that they're completely believable, and smoldering erotic scenes develop the protagonists' relationship...this story is unpredictable and fascinating, setting the stage for what are sure to be highly anticipated sequels."

Can I tell you excited I am? You should be able to see my grin through the screen. Whenever I think about it, I get a happy little smile. Why? It's all about validation.

Writing is a solitary profession for the most part. Sure, after we sell, we have an editor to help us along and sometimes before we sell we have critique partners. But mostly we sit in front of a computer, typing away on a keyboard while the story runs in our head and we hope like hell it comes out right on the screen. When we're finished and we send our baby out into the world, we're justifiably nervous. Okay, terrified, but if we let that consume us we would never write.

And having someone I don't know tell me they enjoyed my story, that makes all of rest of it--the rejections, the frustration, the setbacks and the occasional writer's block--worthwhile.

Because someone else likes my baby. And that's even better than chocolate. Most days.

SOLD!

I'm so excited! My romantic suspense novel, ROMANCING THE STONES, just sold to Samhain Publishing!

This book was inspired by a legendary black dog that roams the streets of Richmond, Virginia. No one can catch him, and no one knows where he came from or where he goes. He just...is.

The black dog in my novel appears when the heroine, Charlie Blair, most needs him, or when paranormal events are at hand.
You see, she has found a golden...er... rod on an archeological dig in Peru, but the find has disappeared. Instead she's left with a handful of Ica Stones that it seems someone is willing to kill to possess, and a police detective on the trail of a serial killer.

Oh, and did I mention that she's naked, in the shower, and holding a Glock on him when they first meet?

The novel should be out this fall, and I can't wait for you to read it!

Where have all the Muses gone?

Have you been checking up on us? Looking for a post my your favorite muse each day? Well, we took a little break from our topics to... write! Yes, good reader, the Muses have been working on creating some wonderful new stories for you.

Dawn is cooking up a new historical romance that is sure to please.

Steph is playing in her incredible fairie realm and expanding that world.

Cathy is romping in the the world fairy tales and updating one for you.

Rowan is traveling off world with the heroine of her newest fantasy.

And Mari and AnneMarie... well, you will just have to wait and see what these talented ladies are inspired to create for you.

So we'll be back soon. The good news?
Now you have time to catch up on reading some of our books!

May you find inspiration for all you love today,
Rowan

New paperback released: Pirate's Mistress

Includes Crossed Swords and Sea Hawk's Mistress.
Buy it here: http://www.jasminej ade.com/p- 3944-pirates- mistress. aspx?skinid= 11
Erotic Adventure Romance
Available from Ellora's Cave

Reviews for CROSSED SWORDS:
4 1/2 Stars, RT Top Pick! - "LaCroix has outdone herself. This swashbuckling tale will have you offering to swab the decks, if it will put you in good graces with the wickedly handsome pirate captain! There's plenty of action in and out of the captain's quarters to keep you flying through the pages of this sizzling story." ~ Romantic Times BOOKClub

"5 Stars...wonderfully written story about the powerful sea Captain and his prisoner falling in love...If you are looking for steamy sex, that will leave you seeking your own release, look no further...It’ s perfect!" ~JERR

Reviews for SEA HAWK'S MISTRESS:
“4 Stars...a fun blast-from-the- past...This was a terrific, sexy little romance...The romance is sweet and tender; the sex scenes are vanilla with a touch of dominance and bondage. Sea Hawk’s Mistress was good to the last drop...” ~JERR
-------------------

Chck out my Sunday post at Unusual Historicals. It is a release party!

http://unusualhistoricals.blogspot.com/2008/03/release-party-pirates-mistress.html

Leave a comment to be drawn next Sunday to win a copy of Pirate's Mistress!

If I Could Go Back in Time, I'd Love to Go Back To...

In my December release from www.CerridwenPress.com, RETURN TO ME, my heroine has been reincarnated over and over for centuries. In every life she was subject to the will of men. She couldn't save herself because she didn't have a chance, didn't have power, couldn't break the rules...

One thing she learned in her current life is that finally, in today's modern period, she has a chance to survive. She becomes a self-defense expert and she goes after the man who has hunted her and her lover down each lifetime. No more waiting for her date with destiny- she goes after it with fists flying!

So I guess what I am saying is, I love the pageantry of many, many ages in the past, but I don't think I'd like to live in any of them forever. There's no guarantee I'd have money or status or power of any sort. In fact, I'd be much more likely to be a peasant, have poor health, and die of malnutrition or disease long before I was old enough to die in childbirth.

That's why I love romance books so very, very much. I can live through the heroine, experiencing life the way she does, and I can know for certain that my happy ending is coming before the back cover closes.

If I could go back in time, I'd love to go back to...

As a lover of history, this is a difficult one! Everywhere! Anytime!
Uh...but I have to choose only one, right?

Okay.

Regency England. England in the early 19th Century. But only if I could be rich--a duchess or a princess, perhaps. At the very least, a countess! (This is my fantasy, right!?) Then I'd get to dance and hold intellectual conversations with men like Mr. Darcy and ladies like Jane Austen, or perhaps Mary Wollstonecraft. I could explore England in its heyday, ride in a carriage down cobbled streets, or maybe sidesaddle on a spirited chestnut along Rotten Row. I could visit the theatre--an opera, or maybe a comedy...and if it was bad, I could throw cabbage at the actors (would I ever do that? Noooo, not me! ). Maybe I'd find that Mr. Darcy and, much to our parents' chagrin, we could elope to Gretna Green.

Ahhh...

IF I COULD GO BACK IN TIME, I'D LOVE TO GO BACK TO...

Hmmm... this one is a thinker for me. I'm too practical to go back to most time periods for long, knowing that the, er, hygeine of the time could be rather offputting. But I'll just jump through time for a bit and see what I like.

I'd like to spend some time in the 1920's. I love the fashion and attitudes of that time. Free (except for the booze of course) and fun. The beginning of talking movies. No income taxes - yet.

I would also like to spend a weekend at Versaille at the Court. What an opulant world. After seeing the movie 'Marie Antoinette' I am fascinated by the riches and luxury of that time. Before the revolution of course. And only a weekend, or a long weekend perhaps, because as lovely as it looks - it also seems to be a little boring after a while.

And finally - I'd like to go back to about... the late 1500's early 1600's, because back then, my body type of curves and large bossom would make me a supermodel! Or perhaps, a painter's muse. I think Rubens and I would have gotten along very well.

Oh, and no matter what time I visit - I want to go back with lots of money in my purse, because there is pretty much no period in history where it was good to be poor.

I think I'm a product of my time. Must be why even though I read lots of historicals, I write contemporary (or contemporary fantasy).

Have a historic week!

-Rowan

IF I COULD GO BACK IN TIME, I'D LOVE TO GO BACK TO...

Ancient Rome.

To actually see the greatest city in the world when the Coliseum was filled with people (okay, they were blood-thirsty, but still) and the Forum temples held daily rituals, that would be amazing. Gladiators, Vestal Virgins, Emperors, oh my.

I was never much of a history buff. Sure, I read historical romances when that was all there was but it was never the history that captured my attention. It was the romance.
Then I started researching this idea I had about ancient Etruscans. And I got hooked on the time period BCE. If you're not a devoted watcher of the History Channel, then BCE is Before Common Era. It used to be BC which I always thought meant Before Christ but I'm sure there was another meaning-

Sorry, off track. Anyway, I started looking for books to read about the ancient Etruscans, from whom the Romans stole most of their culture. Except for children's books like the ones from DK (which is full of useful knowledge for beginners), there wasn't a lot. But then I discovered the wonderful world of college presses.

Yes, these books read like textbooks because they are. But for a devoted reader like me, they are something I can sink my teeth into, gnaw on for a while then pick out bits and pieces to create my own stories.

They're filled with information about human sacrifice and blood rituals and Goddesses and Gods and they're better than any fairytale I'd ever read. And they've made me into something of an Amazon stalker, always looking for new research material.

Now, if I could just find a book on time travel...

If I could go back in time I'd love to go back to...

I apologize for not posting on "my day". I have so many little things I am involved with these days. On Tuesday I posted over at the Unusual Historicals blog about Florence Nightingale. If you would care to read about the woman who set the standard for nursing, check it out here.

If I could go back in time I'd love to go back to... Elizabethan England. I dig the fashions, the whole courtly life thing. I could see myself as the Queen's assistants to entertain her with my stories. (My dream here, okay?) I think I spent the entire time watching The Golden Age in awe of the fabulous gowns. Elizabeth was truly a well dressed monarch. If only we had someone like her to look to to run things. (Instead we get to pick from political candidates, trying to choose the lesser of all evils to become our leader...)

What Do I Find Sexy/Romantic in a Man…

Sexy is…

…my husband’s arms, especially his forearms. He’s a drummer and that must have something to do with it. Watching him play, those sinews twisting and flexing. Don’t even get me started on the look on his face when he’s drumming. Heavens, it’s enough to make my feet tingle.

…a man’s arm settling protectively on your arm or lower back, even if you don’t need protecting.

…catching him looking at you with a warm glint in his eye.

Romantic is…

…walking in to find he has put away the dishes(even if I have to look around to find what I need), folded the laundry (even if he doesn’t do it the way I would), or swept the floor. And he doesn't expect a parade for it.

…when he gets up first and gets the newspaper or puts out the dog.

…arriving with the DVD of a TV show you loved as a kid, that he’s never heard of, but he buys it anyway. And watches it with you. Even if he has no idea why it appeals to you.

…bringing you a Twix when he stops by the store on his way home.

…just sitting quietly together. Anywhere.

Mmmm… I need to go write now…