Cat Christmas Countdown 2

Ivan is a cat with two names. His official name is Ivan - given to him by the Offspring when he arrived here - from the RSPCA - all our cats are rescued (well - Sid rescued himself - we opened the door and then he just walked in and said he lived here and who are we to argue?)

But Ivan was rescued from the RSPCA where he had been taken when he was rescued from being drowned in a sack in the river, along with his four brothers and sisters. He was named Ivan, but along the way he was also described as a Spiffy little cat - and so Spiffy he became by name too.

He is, according to the proper description a handsome 'bi-coloured, magpie cat.' ie he is black and white. He is also a perfect gentleman and has quite the sweetest nature of all the cats. If Bob is Robert Redford, then Spiff is the Cary Grant of cats - or perhaps the James Stewart. He has that sort of old-fashioned gentleman approach to life. Always polite, always diffident. It comes from arriving in the house when there was already a redheaded Alpha Cat in situ. And so, Spiff knows his place.

A couple of years ago, we thought Spiffy was on his way out of this particular life. He was desperately ill and didn't look likely to recover but thanks to a vet called Michelle, who now has a very large place in Spiffy's big heart (And ours) he is still with us and only a year younger than the Alpha Cat - at 16 and a half .

Spiffy being the gentleman that he is, he is the one cat who will put up with the necessity of posing for Christmas pictures at this time of year. So he is also the cat who ends up wearing a silly hat.

Cat Christmas Countdown 1 (Amended)

There have been protests - and sit-ins in my house! It has been pointed out to me that there are more cats in this household than SID!

And this is true - there are three other cats. All of them have been mentioned but they are complaining that Sid has been over-exposed. It's true, I'm afraid, that he has been getting a very big head and, I'm sorry to say, an Attitude (or should that be a Cattitude?) as a result of the attention he has been getting in Blogland.

So to redress the balance - in the Countdown to Christmas, I will have to show you the other cats who are all taking part in the celebrations too. They will appear in order of Seniority which - as Bob points out - means that Sid who is the baby of the family will appear last.

So here is Boss Cat - the Alpha Cat (and never let it be whispered that a redhead cannot be an Alpha hero - at least not in Bob's presence!) He is the Damian Lewis of cats.

Well - no - not really - you see, Bob is short for Robert Redford and his official name is Redford. That is because when he arrived at our house he was a tiny bundle of strawberry blond fur with big blue eyes. And so he was named for the star of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

Bob would like to think that he is in fact the Sundance Kid. He has the same narrow eyed look as his namesake in the picture here. He is very definitely the cat who rules the roost and even though he is now the advanced age of 17 + he is still the Boss Cat and even Sid wouldn't risk challenging him.

Two years ago, Anne McAllister gave all the cats an Advent Calendar (well - she said she gave it to me but as you can see, it says 'Santa I've been a very good cat - so it's obvious who it's really meant for. She also provides 'greenies' as cat treats to go in the little pockets for each day. I don't know quite what's in the greenies but I do know that Bob adores them - he would rip your hand off to get them. So here in today's Cat Countdown picture is Bob - going for the greenies.

PS In the comments on this posting there was a protest of the Feline sort - from Mr R Redford (the furry one - not the film actor) pointing out that his picture did not show his full handsomeness but only an ear and the back of his head. I havem therefore, added a further picture of The Alpha Cat to show that he is indeed an very handsome red head.

Catching up 2

Well, the Greek Pineapple is tweaked and back on my editor's desk - so I hope she still loves him. I've actually written and sent cards - the parcels to post are also on their way. I'm actually beginning to feel as if I might have something organised for Christmas

I've also been keeping the postman busy with the prizes from my 12 Days of Christmas contest - Sid has now picked all 12 of them and they are on their way to the winners.
The second batch of winners are:

Linda Gates from Missouri who wins a copy of Their Secret Baby
Cynthya Petzen from Indiana who wins a copy of Bound By Blackmail
Di Anne Cummings from South Carolina who also wins Bound By Blackmail
Mina Gerhart from Pennsylvania who wins The Married Mistress
Sandy Yashnyk from Ohio who wins The Married Mistress too
Joanne Major, who lives just down the road from me in Lincoln UK wins At The Sheikh's Command
And Deidre Peake from Southern Australia wins a copy of The Married Mistess

For my newsletter members, I will be running an extra New Year contest - details will go out to list members this week.

I've been very busy with the lovely ladies from We Write Romance, polishing the last stages of the brand new web site which is to be unveiled on January 1st 2007. So if you really want to be able to see the difference - or if you just want to get a last look at a historic web site - check out the old version now. The new one will be very different!

And of course the new site will also have the details of the brand new HERE COME THE BRIDES contest I'm running with Liz Fielding and Anne McAllister so look out for that.

Oh and I'm also nursing the BM who has Lesser Spotted Yellow Mountain Fever - ie the common cold - and that's taking some doing! Now you know what I've been up to all week - and it's only Wednesday!

Catching up 1

While I was tweaking the Greek pineapple, Kate Hardy tagged me with the '4 things . . . '

I've cheated and just copied this straight from the time I did this for the Presents Authors web site.
If you haven't visited there, you might like to take a look - and you can find out how the other Presents authors answered this and other 'tags'

Okay:
4 jobs I've had in my life:
Children's librarian – this was my other 'proper' job – the one I trained for and had qualifications in and did for more than a few months.
Toffee factory worker – A vacation job when I was a student. You could eat as much toffee/chocolate as you liked – after the first week I'd had more than enough.
Bookshop assistant. Here's where I learned to read books without ever bending or cracking the spine – then they could go back on the shelves!
Civil servant – interviewing claimants for benefits at the Dept of Health and Social Security . I hated it.

4 museums worth visiting:
Bronte Parsonage Museum – for anyone like me who loves Wuthering Heights or Jane Eyre etc – this is where Charlotte, Emily and Anne actually lived and died.
National Portrait Gallery – all those faces of real people.
Jorvik Viking Centre – in York. Not exactly a 'museum' – more an experience. You can hear, see, and actually smell what Viking life was like.
Trinity College Dublin where the fabulous illuminated manuscript Book of Kells (dating from approx 800 AD) is on display

4 places I've lived:
Newark Nottinghamshire where I was born
Halifax West Yorkhire where I grew up
Aberystwyth, Wales where I went to University and met my husband
Lincolnshire where I live now

4 tv shows I love to watch:
Coronation Street – the original and best UK 'soap'
Most Haunted - because I just hope that one day the investigations will prove that there are ghosts
2 Pints Of Lager and A Packet of Crisps – very rude and very very funny
Coupling – brilliant comedy and brilliant observation of male/female relationships

4 places i've been on vacation:
Malta
Tasmania
Madeira (I have a thing about islands)
Iowa

4 websites I visit daily:
Well, the only ones I visit daily are
eHarlequin
And various Blogs of friends:
Anne McAllister
Kate Hardy
Liz Fielding

(that was then - now I'd have to add the Pink Heart Sociaety into the mix)

4 of my favorite foods
Salad
Pasta
Vegetables –any - (honest!)
Fish and chips –( they taste best, eaten with your fingers from the paper when you're very hungry on a cold dark night)

4 places I'd rather be right now
In bed – asleep (well I've just finished a book on deadline) (nothing changes! I wrote this in May 2006 but it applies now as well - and there's been another book, another deadline in between)
Ireland
By the sea – anywhere
On the settee – reading a good book

Tweaking a Greek Pineapple

Irish author Trish Wylie has the perfect phrase for a book that takes a lot of writing. A book where the hero (in this case a Greek) proves recalcitrant and unco-operative. (OK, more recalcitrant and unco-operative than usual) She describes them as being like giving birth to a pineapple.

Yes, I can relate to that.

This having been the case with Andreas and his story, I had labelled the book my Greek Pineapple. And I had fully resigned myself to the fact that the book might need revsions when I finally sent it in. However, it seems that the blood sweat and tears haven't affected it too badly, and my lovely editor (who is a woman of great taste as well as a dab hand at cracking the whip very gently) has fallen in love with Andreas despite his pineapple tendencies. She merely wants a tweak to bring the book to the sort of perfection she demands (and she is very demanding).

So that is what I'm doing this weekend - tweaking the Greek pineapple. I just have my fingers crossed that an editorial 'tweak' translates into an authorial tweak and doesn't become a total unravelling of the whole Fairisle Knitting Pattern of the book.

Or is that mixing a metaphor too far?

Meanwhile Sid has chosen the last few winners of the Newsletter 12 Month of Christmas Contest - winners will be notified this weekend. And then I will set up a new Newsletter Special for New Year - after which you can watch out for the special HERE COME THE BRIDES contest that Liz Fielding and Anne McAllister and I have been hatching between us - and that took a lot less struggle than a Greek pineapple.

Angels or Fairies?

So what do you put at the top of your Christmas tree? When I was little, we always put a star - to remind us of the star that led the Wise Men from the East to the stable in Bethlehem in the story of Christ's birth.

Then, later, when my son was small and I had a rush of blood to the craft-making side of my head, I made some felt decorations to go on the tree and one of those was an angel who always lands on the top of the tree once it's decorated. She's looking a bit worn and grubby now, after umpty-ump years of service at the top of the tree - but tradition is tradition and when I unpack the decoration boxes this weekend, there she'll be.

I don't normally go for fairies. Angels are one thing - my images of angels if they exist, would be great glorious, strong, almost frightening creatures - William Blake sort of angels, not cherubs or pretty pretty blonde girlie angels in pink. My Gabriel, Michael etc would be like my heroes, strong, stunning - awesome.

And for me, fairies are even less appealing - well, the traditional Christmas Tree ones. Fairies with sparkle and glittery frou-frou dresses - blonde curls, and big eyes. But yesterday I found and fell for a fairy - and a fairy in pink, what's more. If anyone had told me it would happen, I'd never have believed it. But this is no ordinary fairy - she's gold wild, corkscrew hair, her dress is a mess with jagged bits and glittery things stuck on here there and everywhere - best of all (to someone who can rarely cram her feet into fashionable 'womens' shoes' - she has big feet in clod-hopping boots. And she's reading a book. (Well, okay - going by the other fairies who all had musical instruments, she's probably supposed to be singing - but she has a sort of a book in her hands)

So I couldn't resist her. I bought her and brought her home and, no she's not going on top of the Christmas tree - but she looks perfectly at home on my mantlepiece.

In fact, I loved her so much that I bought a second one - exactly the same for a very special friend who will love her just as much as I do.

Smug cat . . . and more countries

So I booted the Greek out the door and sent him to entertain my editor.
Great, I thought - I have some free time - and some lovely books to read and . . .

And someone pointed out that they put Christmas on December 25th and didn't tell me.

Eeeeek!
I have presents but they're not wrapped, I have cards but they're not written. I have a tree but it's not decorated . . . You get the picture?
I do have smart hair though - today's visit to the hairdresser sorted that out - and tomorrow after a visit to the dentist I shall have wonderfully clean and polished teeth.

So I can dazzle people with my smile and my hair and then maybe do you think they won't notice that they haven't got a card - or their present isn't wrapped??

Matters are not helped by the fact that a certain smug cat is telling me that he has done all his cards - finished them days ago, in fact! Hmph! He insists I post the evidence too. So here you see Sid hard at work on his Christmas cards.

And while I was busy with the Greek-who-did-not-want-to-be-written I found that my country counter was sneaking upwards. And somehow it's got to 66 countries. So now I have to go and check which are the new countries so I can welcome them properly. But first I have to find the list of the countries I already had - it's here somewhere - maybe under the pile of presents waiting to be wrapped - or the bundle of cards waiting to be written . . . .

Or maybe it's under a certain smug cat who has done all his cards already!

PS One thing I did manage to do is to pack up the Christmas Stocking prizes and get them in the post - and the Newsletter 12 Days of Christmas prizes that Sid has chosen so far (along with doing all his cards!) so prize winners - look out for them. Enjoy!

And the winners are . . .

Fanfare and trumpets . . .
. . . and a loud, contented burp from Sid . . .

and I can announce that the two winners of the Christmas Stocking Stuffed with books are:

Shirlene Nguyen, Arkansas
Jenny Teo Singapore

Shirlene and Jenny win :

Christmas, Kids and Kisses - Kate Walker et al
Accepting the Boss's Proposal - Natasha Oakley
The Italian Doctors' Bride - Margaret McDonagh
Chosen as The Frenchman's Bride - Abby Green
White-Hot - Trish Wylie
A Mistress for The Taking - Annie West
Blind-Date Marriage - Fiona Harper
The Italian Millionaire's Virgin - Christina Hollis
Lord Greville's Captive - Nicola Cornick

Congratulations to both winners. Your prizes will be on their way just as soon as I can get them into the mail.

And if you didn't win this time, there are lots of other opportunities to win coming up

Firstly there's the 12 Days of Christmas draw on my Newsletter list. The same answers as the Christmas Stocking Contest will get you an entry to this - but you must be a member of my Newsletter mailing list. (see sidebar or my web site for details)

Sid has already picked out winners for some of those 12 days -

Christy Hawkes, Utah - who wins a copy of The Married Mistress
Minna Puustinen Finland - who wins a copy of The Married Mistress
Judy Theis Pennsylvania - who wins a copy of The Married Mistress (a popular choice!)
May Schultz Virginia - who wins a copy of At The Sheikh's Command
Aisling Durnan, Co.Louth, Ireland - who wins a copy of Desert Affair

All winners also receive a special Christmas decoration.

This contest still has 7 more days to run - and there will be plenty more special contests just for my Newsletter readers in 2007.

And don't forget to look out for the great new contest coming in January when together with
Anne McAllister and Liz Fielding I will be running

HERE COME THE BRIDES

to celebrate the February publication of

Sicilian Husband, Blackmailed Bride by Kate Walker
The Santorini Bride by Anne McAllister
The Valentine Bride by Liz Fielding


Look out for details of that posted on web sites and blogs in the New Year.

Watch this space . . .

The Christmas Stocking Contest is now closed.
Sid is busy working on picking a winner - well he will be when he wakes up from his post-breakfast snooze! I will post the names of the winners here just as soon as I know them.

Christmas Stocking Books and Authors - 9

Ooops !
I said I'd listed and detailed all the books that are going into the Christmas Stocking prize - but I haven't. Because, as someone pointed out to me last night - I didn't tell you about this one:

The Christmas Baby's Gift by someone called Kate Walker.

They married for passion and the desire to have a baby, but not for love. One year later, Peta realises that she has fallen in love with her husband of convenience, Liam.
But there is still no sign of a child, until a baby girl is left on their doorstep just before Christmas.

This book orignally came out in December 2002 and it had one of my least favourite covers only in the UK - which you can see here.

The American one was better - but it still gave a 'happy families' image to the book which was not really representative of the story. Perhaps that was why it was mistakenly labelled a 'Sweet' Romance in the
Christmas Pack it came out in in Australia.

I'm glad the book is getting a second time around. It got some lovely reviews when it first came out -

Kate Walker, who is in my own personal opinion one of the greatest Harlequin Presents Authors ever to grace the line, is back with another unforgettable romance, The Christmas Baby's Gift, a romance so full of heartfelt emotions, incredible passions and fiercely captivating characters that readers will be planning its location on their keeper shelves long before they've ever even finished reading it. Diana Tidlund - Writers Unlimited


Kate Walker once again shows why she is the diamond in Harlequin's crown of authors. Her talent for pulling the reader into the story and making them feel every outrage, hurt, and ounce of joy her characters experience is unsurpassed. I read this book voraciously cover to cover without coming up for air. If you need a little Christmas magic in your life, this should be an automatic buy. Romance Junkies

The other stories in this special Christmas 3 in 1 By request anthology are:
The Christmas Child by Diana Hamilton
Gift-Wrapped Baby by Renee Roszel
And if you don't win the Stocking (Closing date Midnight tonight - whenever midnight arrives latest in some timezone) it's on sale now in the UK - or on Amazon.co. uk or on the M&B site.

Christmas Stocking Books and Authors - 8

So we come to the last of the books that have been donated to the Christmas Stocking Contest. This book is Lord Greville’s Captive by Nicola Cornick and it’s the only Historical Romance in the stocking.

But I’m thrilled to have this particular book in the stocking, and I was delighted when Nicola agreed to donate one of her titles to the contest. Unlike so many of the other books which are by new or newer authors, Nicola has been writing Historical for some years. Her first book was published in 1998 and she has been writing for HQN books and historical romance for Harlequin Mills & Boon ever since. Nicola’s books are always great reads and she has had books in the Finals of both the RITA and the RNA Romance Prize awards.

Nicola and I have known each other through the RNA for years, but as we are both so busy and we write for such different lines, we rarely get a chance to sit down and really talk. Most of our communication is through email and tends to be about the RNA’s New Writers’ Scheme, which Nicola has organised for the last few years, a task that she has now handed on to another RNA Officer.

And that’s a pity as we share a lot – in background and interests, we both has a fascination with Prince Rupert, nephew of Charles I, and his dog Boy, we both love the books of Mary Stewart and Georgette Heyer – and we both grew up very close to each other, but never knew it until romance writing meant that we met.

Nicola Cornick was born in Yorkshire, England, within a stone’s throw of the moors that had inspired the Bronte sisters to write Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights. One of her grandfathers was a poet. With such a background it was impossible for Nicola not to become a writer.

Nicola went to school in a former stately home. It was the sort of school that taught girls how to find a rich husband and how to get in and out of a Rolls-Royce gracefully. Unfortunately Nicola did not pay enough attention to the bit about the rich husband and has therefore never had the chance to practise the bit with the Rolls- Royce. She is extremely happy with the husband that she has got, however, and with her gorgeous cats and dogs! Nicola studied history at London University and has done a variety of jobs, from sticking price tags on shoes in a factory to serving refreshments on a steam railway. She lived for seven years in a cottage haunted by the ghost of a cavalier. It was here that she wrote her first historical romance for Harlequin Mills and Boon. Since then she has written 15 books and 2 novellas for Harlequin, and been nominated for a number of awards including the RNA Romance Prize, (for The Earl’s Prize) a RWA RITA (for The Wayward Widow) , and a Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice award.


Nicola’s book, Lord Greville’s Captive is a change from her Regency titles as it’s set in the time of the English Civil War. It was published in the UK in July this year and is out in America in Harlequin Historical this month. (but don’t worry – if you didn’t manage to get hold of a UK copy – you can pick up a USA one from Amazon!)

Let me tell you a bit more about this book:

A peaceful courtship
Years before, he had come to Grafton Manor to be betrothed to the innocent and beautiful Lady Anne – a promise that was broken with the onset of war. . .

A prisoner of war!
Now, Simon, Lord Greville, has returned as an enemy, beseigining the manor and holding its lady hostage. Simon’s devotion to his cause swayed by desire for Anne, he will not settle for the manor house alone. He will have the lady – and her heart – into the bargain.
Yet Anne has a secret that must be kept from him at all costs . . .

As I’d expect, Nicola is already getting some really great reviews for this book – how about these –


"(An) intense and sensual story of honor, trust, courage and love." Romantic Times Bookclub 4 star review.

"A darkly passionate, edgy tale, LORD GREVILLE’S CAPTIVE holds you hostage until the last page is turned." Romance Junkies 5 blue ribbon review.

LORD GEVILLE'S CAPTIVE is what historical romance should be and much more besides. CataRomance

And if that doesn’t tempt you to pick up this book – well, I promised to let you know what Nicola herself calls Lord Greville’s Captive - this is what she said when I asked her to join in the Christmas Stocking Contest

I'd love to participate in your Christmas Stocking contest. . . I'll send a couple of copies of my US December release, Lord Greville's Captive, or Cavalier in Bondage as it is affectionately known for the love scene!

How can any romance reader resist a book nicknamed ‘Cavalier in Bondage? I have this book on my own TBR pile and I've been managing to resist it - then Nicola sent me the lovely USA editions and I had to peek at the first few pages . . . BIG mistake . I had to force myself to put it down. That's another treat I've promised myself for when this Greek is out the door.

Nicola’s next book out in the UK is a book that has already been out in America where it was published in July this year. Deceived will be published as a Mills & Boon Historical in February 2007. Nicola has sent me a copy of the UK cover which I’ve posted here but I much prefer the USA cover – which you can see here - or in a larger version on Amazon.com.

If you want to know more about Nicola, visit her web site which has lots of fascinating detail about the books, extracts from them and Nicola’s notes about how she came to write them. You can also read about the research Nicola does before she writes a book, and details of some of the historical events that have formed the background to her stories.

And if you’d like to chat with her about her interest in history, with special reference to Christmas, she’s doing a Q&A on eHarlequin about Christmas customs throughout history next week, so you could join in that. I don’t have a link for the Q&A but as soon as I do, I’ll post it here so you can find it easily.

And that's it - I've now told you about all of the books that are included in the Christmas Stocking Stuffed With Book prize. I hope you'll agree that there is a wonderful assortment - with lots of great reading from every line and in every style. The contest is still open for about another 48 hours - it closes when December 10th is over in all time zones! - and after that I'll let Sid loose on the crunchies and see who he picks as the two winners of this bumper bundle of books.

If you haven't entered yet, make sure you get your entry in - details are on my Contest Page - and Good Luck

And a great big Thank you to all the wonderful authors who contributed books to the prize. You've helped to make it very special indeed. I just wish that I could win!

Christmas Stocking books and authors - 7

My Christmas stocking author today is an Australian - which means that the the RWAus Conference where Anne McAllister and I spoke, she will have been subjected to Hugh-in-a-towel - probably by both of us. But I don't suppose she minded.
And no, I'm not going to use that as an excuse to post Hugh-in-a-towel again, instead I'm talking about another great Australian export - Annie West.

I've chosen today to blog about Annie for a very special reason - one you'll discover when you read her story of how she got The Call.

Annie lives with her husband and children on Australia’s east coast, north of Sydney. Annie grew up wanting to be an archaeologist or a national parks ranger or a bookseller, so of course she became a public servant. In the meantime she travelled and read books.

I’ll let Annie tell her story in her own words:

I discovered romance books in my teens. At the time I was discovering Georgette Heyer, Victoria Holt and Mary Stewart at the library, I found the rose cover on a stack of category romances in my best friend’s house. Her mother read them voraciously and soon I did too. I loved the fantasy element, the exotic far-away locations, the fact that the heroine got exactly what she wanted and (yes, of course) the wonderful heroes. What did it matter if the guys at school were spotty, immature or dull when there were Spanish aristocrats, sexy Italians and other fascinating heroes just waiting to steal a girl’s breath away?

Fortunately I found my own romantic hero while studying at university. Despite the distraction I completed an honours degree in Classics. I was also fortunate to spend lots of time travelling, backpacking through Egypt and Greece, ‘tramping’ in New Zealand, sightseeing in Europe and living in Germany a couple of times.

Through school (English classics and romances) and university (Homer and romances) and work (parliamentary reports and romances) there was a common thread. I love a happy ending. I read a wide range of books but that always includes romance. Inevitably I wanted to write them.

I joined Romance Writers of Australia – one of the best things I’ve ever done. That put me in touch with other writers and provided a valuable source of know-how, inspiration and great friends. My first manuscript was over length,full of problems and immensely fun to write. Inevitably it was rejected but I learned so much from writing it.

Annie’s story is an example of how persistence and courage are needed in the world of romance writing and publishing - any publishing. There was almost ten years between those first attempts to write for Modern/Presents – or M&B Sexy as the line is called in Australia.
Here’s how Annie tells that part of the story.

One weekend I went to an all day writers’ workshop. It was fabulous and I felt the buzz of excitement as romance writers shared their enthusiasm. In the afternoon Miranda Lee and Emma Darcy spoke and inspiration hit. By the time I left I had an idea for a story.

Writing ‘A Mistress for the Taking’ was like coming home. The words flowed and I knew I was in my zone for the first time ever. I felt the story in my bones. Though you know what ‘home’ is like – lots of housework – or polishing! I entered it in a contest and even got a placing for the first kiss but to my disappointment there was no request for the manuscript. I sent it anyway – straight to the slush pile.

I was immersed in another story when Tessa Shapcott requested the full manuscript. I sent it and tried to repress those effervescent hopes – I’d had full books rejected before. A month later I received an email asking for revisions. At the end of November 2005 I sent a revised story. Of course I knew that busy editors don’t read whole manuscripts overnight and contact breathless authors the next day. But that didn’t stop me hoping.

I still remember December 8th – waking up and not following my usual routine of heading to the computer to check my emails and write. Why bother? There’d be no news. Finally I checked the mail. There was a message from Richmond. It was long so I started skimming ... thanks for the revisions ... (no ‘but’ yet) ... they worked well ... (where was the ‘but’?). I looked for the inevitable ‘but’ and couldn’t find one. I read it twice before I realised that the editor really meant it when she said she wanted to buy the book. It must have taken me five minutes for the news to seep in, despite the fact that the attachment was called something like ‘Mistress for the Taking acceptance doc’.

(Now do you see why I had to post today? Happy Acceptance Anniversary Annie!)

To my amazement I didn’t squeal with delight – the children were still asleep. Instead I dragged my husband over to read the news. He was just as excited as I was. After all, he’s lived with my writing obsession for years. The next days were a haze, punctuated by sudden bursts of glorious delight – ‘hey, they want MY book’! It’s a good thing I spoke to my editor after the news had sunk in a little – or I wouldn’t have made any sense at all

The book Annie has donated to the Christmas Stocking is her very first title – A Mistress for The Taking – so you’ll want to know more about that:

Made to be his mistress . . .
Inexperienced Marina Lucchesi must save her brother from ruin. Rich, handsome Ronan Carlisle wants to settle a score.
Rona’s Strategy is simple: if Marina poses as his mistress, he’ll ensure that the man who made them both suffer will pay. But Marina wonders, why would Ronan, one of Australia’s most eligible tycoons, want her?
However, she’s not in a position to refuse Ronan’s offer. . . or resist the overwhelming physical attraction pulsing between them . . .

A Mistress for the Taking was published in the UK in November, is out now in Australia, and will be published in Presents in December. Romantic Times has already given it a great review:

...filled with intrigue and romance. It’s great fun to watch Marina and Ronan struggle to control their raging desires while participating in a cat-and-mouse game they’re playing with the evil Wakefield. West does a good job of developing the romantic relationship between the protagonists, while maintaining the aura of suspense." 4 stars ~ Stephanie Schneider

Annie’s next book will be The Greek's Convenient Mistress, published in Modern Romance in January 2007 This is followed by The Sheikh’s Ransomed Bride in April, and For the Sheikh’s Pleasure in August. It may have taken her ten years or so to make it to acceptance – but in the year since then she’s certainly been busy!

You can find out more about Annie and her books on her web site

Happy Acceptance Anniversary Annie - and I wish you every good luck and success in your writing career.

A Tale of two hunks

Or should that be a tail of two hunks? Well, only one of them has a tail.

Who am I talking about? This guy ->


Or this one?


Hugh Michael Jackman or





Sir Sidney St John Willoughby Portly-Lummox ?

What do they have in common? What's the connection here? I suppose one could say they are two wonderful specimens of males. Dark hair. Beautiful eyes - great physique. Well, all I know is that if I put either one of them on my blog, the hits go through the roof.

So what will happen when I put both of them on together? We shall see.
And yes, Sid is adorable - trouble is, he knows it.

A C O S B *

Apparently Sid has been over on another blog, complaining that he is bored. I'm spending too much time with the Greek and not enough time with him - he says. Well, as this is Sid's current postion and attitude - does he look like he cares that I'm busy with Andreas?

He is also not very good at keeping Christmas secrets and has been talking about photographs that are supposed to be saved for a little closer to the Big Day. He's demanding that there should be a pic of him on this blog right now.

Okay Sid - here are some pictures - but they might not be the ones you want posted - not yet.
There's Sid on a desk ->



Or Sid in a basket
<-








Or there's this wonderful picture of Sid that Anne McAllister took when she was here.
What do you mean where's Sid? Of course it's Sid. Don't you recognise the Tail?

But as the saying goes, dear Sid - be careful what you ask for. You wanted a Christmas photo of you, *A Cat of Superior Breeding
- so here it is . . .

I think this was the after-effects of one cat-nip too many.

Busy with a Greek . . .

Andreas has his memory back and he's keeping me very busy - so here's a quick catch up.

1. The Christmas Card poll is closed and the gift I will be buying from Oxfam Unwrapped instead of sending Christmas Cards to my readers will be Essential Medicines for a village for 6 months. And because, as someone very sensibly said, those medicine need safe water to drink in order to take them, I'm including safe water for 50 in with that. Thank you to everyone who helped me choose.

2. The Christmas Stocking Contest runs until December 10th - so you still have time to enter if you want. Details are on my Contest Page - but please answer the questions! I've lost count of how many entries I just can't accept because they haven't even mentioned the questions - just sent me their name and address. Sorry - no - those entries just get deleted. If you want a chance to win - answer the questions!

I have two more books and authors to write up - Nicola Cornick and Annie West - details of those coming soon.

3. From tonight I will be getting Sid on the job to pick a daily winner from me Newsletter 12 Days Of Christmas contest. This is only open to my Newsletter group - but you can sign up now and enter - just use the link in my sidebar or any of the links on my web site - or even here.

4. And finally - my February release - The Italian's Forced Bride - cotinues with its reputation for making readers cry. I just heard from the first American reader who said it reduced her to tears. She also made a lovely comment about one scene that I can't repeat here because it has a definite spoiler in it, but she added : It was a wonderful story. Definitely a keeper. Thanks Chris for letting me know! (Chris got hold of a copy early because she bought a UK copy when she was on my course in Fishguard in November - but USA readers should be able to order it from the eHarlequin site from January.
Right - back to Andreas . . . The inspiration I posted yesterday and the day before has really helped.

Wet Tuesday

It's still raining.
If anything, it's raining more than it was yesterday. And so, although Andreas has - found a way to dry himself - I'm still in need of a little inspiration. So I'll share some of the inspiring things that have helped .


<- This one I'm sharing with Jullie Cohen - to help her while away some of the time spent waiting for her baby to arrive.



And this one is the one that got Andreas into that pool in the first place -

OK - now I feel I can go and write!

Christmas Stocking books and authors - 6

I think I've mentioned here that some years ago, I set up the 'Conference Virgins' scheme so that RNA members who are attending their very first ever RNA Conference have a chance to connect with other first timers, ask the questions that are worrying them about the Conference and generally get over that 'I don;t know anyone' feeling. I'm no longer the active co-ordinator fo that scheme (which is now known as the 'First Timers' not the Virgins!) but I'm proud of having set it up and delighted that it continues to run in some form.

It was through the First Timers scheme at the Conference in Egham in 2005 that I first met Fiona Harper. The organiser of the scheme that year introduced her to me and asked if I could answer some of her questions. As her questions were mostly about the new direction the M&B Tender line was going to take once it merged with Silhouette Romance and became simply Romance, I'm afraid I wasn't the most expert person to ask .


But Fiona really didn’t need my advice. She had already written a novel and had submitted the manuscript to the RNA’s New Writers’ Scheme. The person who read that – and no, sadly it wasn’t me, - enjoyed the book so much that the NWS organisers wanted to send it straight to HMB to let an editor see it. I’ll let Fiona tell this bit in her own words –

It was my first completed attempt at a novel and I was totally petrified about the critique. ‘All I want,’ I said to my husband, ‘is for someone to say I don’t stink too badly and that maybe I have potential.’ To take my mind off it all, I also entered a first chapter competition jointly run by M&B and the New Writers’ Scheme.

The short version of the story is that both the readers who saw my manuscript really liked it and seemed very excited about wanting to send it on directly to the M&B offices in Richmond. I was gobsmacked, for want of a better word. For the next few days I would often make my family jump out of their skins by shouting: ‘I don’t stink!’ at the top of my voice.

The nail-biting began. I stopped sleeping properly and began staking out my inbox. When the message finally arrived, I missed it. The editor who had seen my story dropped me an email one evening saying she wanted to ‘touch base’. What a wonderfully vague term, I thought, when I found it at 5am the next morning after yet another sleepless night. I emailed right back saying I would be at home and settled down to wait—only three inches away from the phone at all times.

At 10.30am the phone rang. By this time I was convinced I had slipped into a parallel universe. The editor from HM&B told me they loved my book and wanted to buy it. The whole situation seemed so surreal by then that I became horribly calm and collected as I chatted to my new editor. She must have thought I was seriously weird not to be whooping and jumping up and down.

That night was the RNA’s Winter Party. Not only was my sale announced, but I discovered I had also won the first chapter contest. My memory of that evening is of smiling so much my mouth hurt, talking to lots of people whose names I instantly forgot and not having enough hands to hold congratulatory glasses of wine with

But Fiona’s great success story doesn’t end there. The RNA also runs the the Joan Hessayon NWS Award. This is presented to the best debut novel each year to have come through the New Writers' Scheme and been accepted for publication. In July this year, Fiona’s novel won this award and the judges had this to say about it:

The judges think that this very contemporary short novel is funny and charming and has real heart. The hero is original with two distinct personae. You're on his side right from the cracking first page. Among our pleasures were a delightfully brisk heroine, whizzy plot, her aging rocker dad and the way the hero handles a truculent kid. We believe totally in the world and the characters. And there are some fabulous one liners that made us green with envy.

So let me tell you a bit more about the book - Blind-Date Marriage. Here’s the blurb:

Can this blind date lead to an appointment at the altar?
Serena – loves everything in life, except for blind dates! She’s turned her back on her unconventional upbringing, and her deepest wish is to find the man to spend the rest of her life with . . .
Jake – is a highly successful and focused businessman. He’s worked hard to escape his roots, and now lives by one rule: never get married.
A romantic candle-lit restaurant, a dozen red roses, champagne on ice. . . the scene is set for the perfect blind date!

Though personally, I prefer the RNA Judges’ summary –

Blind-Date Marriage is about Serendipity Dove's quest for a little normality in her unconventional life. All she needs is a nice husband to provide her with two-point-four children and she'll be in heaven. But finding the perfect man is harder than she anticipated. However, on a blind date she meets Jake, an intelligent, attractive accountant, and he ticks all the right boxes. Well, almost all of them. She's too busy falling in love to notice that, down in the small print, the ready for commitment box is glaringly empty.

Already Blind-Date Marriage is getting some great reviews - like this one from the Pink Hearts Society
Blind date marriage is a humorous and touching story with a riveting plot, plenty of action and a loveable, quirky heroine. It’s written in a young, contemporary style and I absolutely loved it.
A book you should not miss!

Asked to tell me a bit more about herself, Fiona gave me this summary:
I live in London with my husband and two princess-wannabe daughters. I like dancing, cooking and reading. I adore gingerbread lattes. As for my dislikes, I have a fridge magnet which just about sums it up: “Housework can’t kill you, but why take a chance?”

Blind-Date Marriage is on sale now as a Romance in the UK and in Silhouette Romance in America.
Fiona has now sold two more books to the M&B Romance line - Her second novel, Her Parenthood Assignment is out in March 2007 - and is working on her fourth! She’s come a long way in the very short time since I met her in July 2005. If you want to know more about her then check out her web site or her blog.

Just because . . .

. . .it's a wet WET Monday. And I've been at my desk since 6am trying to get my Greek to - er do something that will make him get his memory back . . .
And because I needed to get him from the swimming pool to the bedroom, I had to do some research into what he might look like . . .


Here's the result - this one is to share with Kate Hardy. And Liz Fielding


And to share with Anne McAllister -

Well, that brightened my wet Monday - how about you?

I can now go back to work inspired

Christmas Stocking books and authors - 5

Last spring, I went to the Richmond offices of Harlequin Mills & Boon to have my first official lunch with my new editor. We went to a lovely small restaurant not far from Eton House and had a lovely meal with a lot of laughter and discussion of books, deadline and schedule dates etc. At one point, my editor mentioned that there would be some other editors coming to the same place for lunch together with a brand new author – a very recent UK signing to the Modern line.

Of course that sparked my interest. And a short time later I saw the new author come in. I recognised the expression on her face – after all, I knew it had been on my face once, 20+ years ago maybe but I still remember it. That sense of excitement , awe, a little tension and an overwhelming flood of disbelief. The feeling that ‘this isn’t happening to me – in a minute I’m going to wake up and find it’s all been a dream . .’

I didn’t get a chance to go and talk to the new author that day, my first meeting with Christina Hollis came later, at a Presents Author dinner I was hosting in September – which is where the picture I’ve used to illustrate this post is taken. It was a lovely evening and this time I had the real pleasure of being able to talk to Christina and get to know her better. Luckily for me, she’s also given me some biographical notes so that I can introduce her to you properly

Christina Hollis was born a few miles from Georgian Bath, England. As an only child until the age of seven, she found it hard to lose her place as the centre of attention when her little sister came along! The books that were all around her as she was growing up became her comfort, and the greenhouse her refuge. Her very first book was a few sentences about three puppies that lived in a basket. Her mother produced it – by stitching the handwritten pages together.

The school’s careers advisor gave her the straight choice between medicine and teaching, telling her ‘there is no money in either writing or horticulture’.(Something I relate to as I was always told I’d never ever succeed as a writer!) Unable to follow either of her dreams, she left school at sixteen and started work in an office. A move to the marketing department in the same financial institution brought her into contact with high-flyers for the first time. Working as their ‘gopher’ was an experience that opened her eyes to life outside of sleepy Somerset.

It was at this time she met her husband, on a blind date organised by her future brother-in-law. Love at first sight led to marriage within eight months. Christina had never stopped writing, and when one of her plays was short-listed for a national award, her husband suggested she should give up office work and write full-time.

Half a dozen full-length novels followed, but many rejections, too. In addition to writing fiction, she lectured on organic gardening. She also wrote regularly on both horticulture and self-sufficiency for several national magazines, illustrating her work with photographs she had taken herself.

The birth of her children meant that freelance work had to be put on hold. Then, when her son was six months old she saw a newspaper article about a successful writing course at her local college. There, the Welsh poet Paul Groves introduced her to short-story writing. Various examples of her ‘homework’ went on to be broadcast by the BBC, achieved success in several national competitions, and publication in magazines such as ‘The People’s Friend’.

One holiday assignment was to write the first two thousand words of a novel, to be read aloud during class. That was how ‘The Italian Billionaire’s Virgin’ came into being. Urged to send it to Mills and Boon by her fellow students, her thrill at being invited to send in more chapters and then the whole book was only exceeded by the experience of receiving THE letter – acceptance! It arrived on her son’s birthday, making it a double celebration that the family will never forget.


Christina tells me that the hero on the cover of The Italian Billionaire’s Virgin looks like her husband when she first met him – so that ‘love at first sight’ makes perfect sense!

But I should be telling you about the book - because of course Christina has donated two signed copies of The Italian Billionaire’s Virgin to the Christmas Stocking Contest. It’s also on my own TBR pile, waiting for a moment free to read it. So to whet your appetite – here’s the blurb:

An innocent for the taking . . .

When he finds out that Contessa Larissa Alfere-Tiziano has inherited a ruined Tuscan palace, gorgeous, ruthless Italian property magnate Antonio Michaeli-Isola is determined to reclaim his birthright and make the palazzo his own. And if that means seducing and then discarding the beautiful, spoilt Contessa . . .then he will.

But Rissa is keeping up a pretence that her title has forced upon her. Though Antonio thinks she’s no better than a gold-digging adventuress, in reality the vulnerable virgin is struggling to make ends meet. As she gives him her innocence, will Antonio realise his misapprehension . . .before it’s too late?


Christina doesn’t yet have a web site or a blog that I can link you to – but as soon as she does, I’ll let you know. At the moment she’s hard at work on her second novel.

The Italian Billionaire’s Virgin is on sale in the UK shops on January 5th – but it’s already available on the Mills and Boon web site if you can’t wait that long. USA and Australian publication dates to be announced. It sounds like the perfect holiday treat to me!

PS Abby Green's first book is now also available on the M&B site . See here for more details if you missed them

Can you tell a book . . .

. . .by its cover?

The results of the annual Cover Café Worst Covers 2005 have been announced. So it you want to take a look at the incredible green-legged man, the daring one-legged one-armed twin or the fiery Celtic Cliché, take a look at the Cover Café results here. But be warned - don't try drinking any tea or even water while you view - snorting liquids can be painful.

There are the winners of the best covers up there too - including a beautiful one by brilliant UK historical novelist Elizabeth Chadwick - and they're worth a look. But the Worst Covers are by far the best value.

Have I got news for you . . .

Okay, I know I'm still in the middle of the Christmas Stocking Contest - which has another week to run - but publishing is like TV or films - you're always planning ahead and working on the next thing.

So I've been looking at the publishing schedule I have coming up - and thinking about the next book . . . and planning the next contest. . .

And I'm starting to get really excited about what's coming up.

Yesterday I mentioned that I would be running this contest with Anne McAllister. Today, I'm delighted to be able to announce that the wonderful Liz Fielding will be joining us too. We're all going to be working together on a great new contest that we're launching on January 1st.

So as soon as 2007 dawns - or as soon after that as we can manage ! - check out our blogs and web sites for

HERE COME THE BRIDES

Meanwhile - back to the scheduled contest - entries for the Christmas Stocking Contest accepted until December 10th - then Sid gets to work!

More on the books and authors tomorrow.

Welcome Sarajevo!

I love the way I now get to see the names of the cities where some of my visitors live. This morning, I added country number 61 to my collection - and I was lucky enough to be on line and checking my blog when my visitor from Bosnia Herzegovina appeared. So I know that they live in Sarajevo. They were there along with a visitor from Tel Aviv in Israel and Lummen in Belgium - what an international start to the weeked. Welcome to my blog !

Remember that Japanese book I had a contest over? The reprint that I asked for help to try and find the title? And thanks to Jennifer and Cryna I decided it had to be The Unexpected Child ? Well - we got the right book. I received copies of the book in the post today, along with the Japanese edition of The Antonakos Marriage so I could check. And there on the title page are the words The Unexpected Child 1997 - so the mystery is cleared up. Jennifer and Cryna I hope your book bags have arrived and are useful - you can always use them for Christmas shopping. I always fold one up and put it in my handbag (purse) to carry with me so that I can use if for and unexpected shopping I have to do.

Those of you who have never seen one of my bookbags you can find a pic of one here .It used to be on my web site Contest Page but right now that's where the Christmas Stocking Stuffed with Books is showing. You have until December 10th to enter the Christmas Stocking contest - and to enter the special Newsletter 12 Days of Christmas Contest which is open to members of my newsletter group. I'm going to start getting Sid to pick prizes for the Newsletter Contest from December 5th onwards - with 12 Signed books and a little extra Christmas gift to give away - one a day from 5th -27th December.

Then I'll be starting a new contest for my Newsletter Group - and there will be a special contest coming up in the New Year, one I'm running jointly with Anne McAllister - watch our blogs for details. And I'll be including bookbags as part of the prizes in those. So why not join the Newsletter list to make sure you get all the up to date info. (see the link in the sidebar - or click the one above)My Newsletter members are always the first to know about everything - and they get chances at all the special Newsletter only prizes too.