Welcome Franny Armstrong-ParaNovelGirl

1: Thank you so much for being here, Franny Armstrong-ParaNovelGirl. First up is the obligatory question. When did you first begin writing?
As long as I can remember, I’ve written either to get a load off my chest, or for the pleasure of creating stories. Everyone should do it. I also do dream analysis and write mine down as soon as I awake so I know what messages my spirit guides/guardian angels have for me.
2: What inspired you to write?
My mother always urged me to write out my feelings and I have a vivid imagination so the two blended together so well, viola! I’m a professional author.

3: What do you like the most and least about writing?
Getting lost in my imagination and keeping the stories real by having them published makes for a big bundle of joy. There’s nothing like holding your own book in your hands for the first time.
There isn’t much I DON’T love about writing. Perhaps the time I spend networking to get the promotions, yet that’s important too and I love chatting with people.


4: What do you for fun and relaxation when not writing?
Read, long baths, read, write some more, and chat with my cyber friends and fellow authors. Oh, and now I get to visit my daughter with my two week old grandson. (She absolutely FORCES me to hold onto him and kiss his head on a regular basis lol)


5: Which authors do you like to read?
I’m a big fan of many, but my favorites right now are: Christine Feehan, Nina Bangs, J.K. Rowling, J.R.R. Tolkien, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Maggie Shayne, Kelly Armstrong, and so many more I can barely remember them all. I’m a readaholic.


6: What’s the one thing you’d most like people to know about you?
Well, I became a professional author because of a disabling illness which ‘ENABLED’ me to find a whole new career as an author. I love it and will never give it up.


7: Tell me about your current novel, where I can find it and your website/blog.
Extrasensory Elements Series Book 1-Author’s Demise came out in March and Tropical Balm released in April. I have a number more coming this summer and fall with so many more to follow. You can either go to my website, www.paranovelgirls.com, or my author’s page at www.redrosepublishing.com



8: Do you have any tips for aspiring authors?
The most important thing is to never stop learning and continue to grow. If you give up, you’ll never get one foot in the door. Don’t TRY to be a writer, just DO it as the rewards of knowing you can do whatever you set your heart on are great.


9: Do you base your characters on real-life people?
Sometimes I do, or a few elements of real people I’ve met. I seldom create a character who is exactly like someone I know or have met.
I find myself studying others at the doctor’s office, in stores, or even on TV and wonder what makes them tick. Everyone acts or reacts for a reason. Having an understanding of that process goes a long way into the psychology of the character.


10: Where do you get your ideas and what inspired you to write this book?
For some reason, I’ve always been a daydreamer and the stories seem to be implanted in my brain and escape on a regular basis. I try diligently to make sure I don’t write the same stories as everyone else and mine always have a hidden message within.


11: What are you currently working on?
With dozens of plots and characters laid out as soon as they come to mind, I have too many to multi-task and write so I’m focusing on one story based on love in Hawaii after a woman gets stranded there. It’s going to be under my erotic romance pseudonym. Yet I still am editing my works yet to be published as one can never have too much to offer.


12. Is there anything else you’d like us to know about you?
I’ve started a www.blogtalkradio.com/FrannyArmstrong show which airs on Sundays from 12:30pm to 1:30pm EST and have the most amazing plans for it.

My guest on Sunday, May 16 is none other than the famous International Romance Book Cover Model Jimmy Thomas (on my Author’s Demise cover below). Jimmy is a sweetheart to take some of his valuable time to join us. He’s on so many book covers and websites it’s hard to keep track of him.
I will also be having shows about the wacky things authors do when they write and what we have to deal with such as rejections, insomnia, and writer’s block. There is so much to talk about.
I do want to thank you sincerely for having me on your blog, Roseanne. It’s been a pleasure and I hope you’ll come back on mine once again.



AUTHOR'S DEMISE - Extrasensory Elements: Book 1 by Franny Armstrong

Is now available at www.redrosepublishing.com Get your copy now!

Erotic Romance: Paranormal, Suspense/Mystery

ISBN: 978-1-60435-678-6
BLURB: Death stalks telekinetic Lana Anderson, CEO of Brinkman-Bonnet Publishing. Forced to live in terror, Lana soon finds she's shadowed by more than a killer when her boss and good friend hires a cop to protect her.
Kissing a perfect stranger, Brett Colton soon finds himself head over heels in love with the woman he's hired to protect, even though he has no interest in having a serious relationship. When she's captured by the stalker he races against time to save her from her selfless act of bravery.

EXCERPT

"Good morning, George," Lana spoke to the security guard on her way to the elevators.
"Mornin', Ms. Anderson. Beautiful day, isn't it?" George said, smiling at her. George was in his sixties. From the look of his red eyes and bulbous nose he was a drinker, yet he faithfully showed up for work each day and was always polite.
"It's absolutely wonderful, George. You have a great day, okay?" she said giving him a winning smile, her emerald green eyes sparkling as she met his gaze. The last thing Lana wanted to do was let people know how upset she was.
"Sure thing, ma'am."
Lana had a lot on her mind and was in no hurry to reach her office, having arrived early. Stepping back from the crowd while waiting for the elevator she was pushed up against a large potted fern by the group of people rushing to use them. She was happy to wait for a less crowded one and used the time to go over her plans for the day in her mind.
Her reflection in the mirrored wall showed high cheekbones, a straight nose, and a narrow, heart-shaped face. A delicate mole rested below her right eye, just to the right. Strawberry-blond hair fell in gentle waves halfway down her back.
At five feet, ten inches tall, Lana was taller than most women. She carried herself with a natural grace, her back always straight, her chin held up with pride. The extra thirty pounds she carried was distributed evenly, giving her a voluptuous "Mae West" look.
The next elevator light came on with a "ding" sound, and the next group of riders moved into the car. Lana decided to wait a few more minutes until the main rush of early morning workers was over. Wrinkling her nose at the thought of sharing the small space with fresh clouds of mixed perfume and cologne she went back to her mental list of jobs.
* * *
Brett had a tail. He had been trying to shake the guy for a few blocks but the man was persistent. Entering the lobby of Belleview towers he looked around and saw an attractive woman waiting for the elevators near the back wall. She stood out from the others around her drawing him towards her like a magnet. He had an idea of how to elude his tail and hoped she would go along with it.
She's really hot! Looks like a fun-loving girl, he thought.
Taking another look outside, he saw the man coming up to the revolving doors. Moving quickly over to where the woman stood he gave his plan a shot.
Nodding politely to her, he stripped off his jacket, rolled it into a ball and threw it on the floor beside the potted fern.
"Excuse me ma'am, but I'm in trouble, and I was wondering if you could help me out?" He pulled his baseball hat from his back pocket and put it on backwards.
Lana looked up at the striking `tall, dark, and handsome' man who was speaking to her. Uncertain what he needed, she said, "Well, sure. If I can—"
Before she could finish her reply, she was swept up in his arms and kissed passionately. Lana was so stunned that she didn't react to his audacity, melting into his arms instead. Her hands rested on his chest, fingers tangled in his shirt
Brett tried to keep a close eye on his stalker, but he was distracted by the sexy woman in his arms. Boy, she could light his fire anytime! Minutes may have ticked by but he lost count, losing himself in her sensual mouth.
After the tail finally gave up and left, Brett continued the kiss, unable to stop. His pants were uncomfortably tight. Pulling her closer into his embrace, he nearly groaned as her body brushed up against him. She'd turned to liquid in his arms, sending shivers of desire up his spine.
Finally, slowly, he lifted his head and stared into her eyes. Her expression was dazed, as if she didn't quite know where she was. Her emerald green eyes met his with a bemused expression.
The elevator doors opened with a loud `ding' sound. Regretfully he let her go.
"Thank you, ma'am. You were very helpful," he said, his voice husky. Bending down, he picked up his jacket.
"Well, goodbye …" He started to say his farewell but looking at her swollen, damp lips, he changed his mind.
"Ah, what the hell," he said, and kissed her again. It was a short, lip-smacking kiss. Then, nodding, he stepped into the elevator and the doors closed on his grinning face.
Franny Armstrong-ParaNovelGirl
http://www.paranovelgirls.com/
www.blogtalkradio.com/FrannyArmstrong
http://www.paranovelgirl.blogspot.com/
http://www.redrosepublishing.com/

Extrasensory Elements Series Book 1-Author's Demise release March 11
Tropical Balm releases April 8
Forever Blowing Bubbles releases June 18
7th Eye Private Investigations Series Book 1-The Mystic Touch releases in August

Welcome Chastity Bush

Welcome to Chastity Bush, author of four published romance novels.

Chastity Bush is the author of three published romance novels, a paranormal romance entitled, Guarding Temptation, a historical romance entitled, Savage Rescue and a contemporary romance entitled, The Guarding of Eden. You can read some wonderful reviews for all three stories at http://chastitybush.webs.com.


Chastity is currently working on another historical and three paranormal romances and hopes to have them on the shelf for your enjoyment within the next six months. You can contact Chastity anytime from the contacts page of her website.




First I would like to thank Roseanne for having me as a guest today!

Some of you may know me as the author of The Guarding of Eden and Savage Rescue, both of which are currently available from Solstice Publishing. The Guarding of Eden is a contemporary romance and like all of my stories, it is laced with mystery, suspense and humor. In my opinion a good romance has more to it that just boy meets girl, boy saves girl, boy and girl live happily ever after.

Savage Rescue is a short historical romance that I am sure you will enjoy.

My latest novel is a paranormal romance entitled, A Taste of Terror and is set to be released December 1st, 2010 by the all new Muse It Up Publishing. A Taste of Terror is the first in the Guard My Heart series. Three more books in this series are planned..

A Taste of Terror has become my favorite book that I’ve written. There is just something about a werewolf, a Guardian (a new species of immortal that I have created) and the battle between good and evil that I love!

I have to admit, I absolutely love being a Muse It Up author. Everyone is so very friendly and helpful. We are like a family, helping each other and giving advice. Never are any of the Muse authors or employees judgmental. The cover artist’s are great and the editors are wonderful. I would highly recommend Muse It Up to any aspiring writer.

I am currently working on several manuscripts, all of different genres and hope to have them finished before the end of the year. One of which is a follow up to A Taste of Terror.

I love to hear from readers and have created many ways to find me! I hope to hear from you all soon!

Chastity Bush

http://chastitybush.webs.com/
http://www.myspace.com/chastitybush
http://www.facebook.com/chastitybush
http://museithotpublishing.com/
http://www.solsticepublishing.com/

Welcome Lea Schizas

Welcome to Lea Schizas, author and owner of MuseItUp Publishing. Thank you so much for being here, Lea.

Thank you for having me today, Roseanne. Glad to be here.


1: First up is the obligatory question. When did you first begin writing? When did you start your own publishing company?
I joke with everyone that I began writing while in my mom’s womb when I mistook the umbilical cord for a neat writing implement. Once I popped out and was introduced to the world, I never stopped penning but this time in words and not ‘goo goo, gaa gaa’.

As for my publishing house…as a writer we set our long term goals and opening up a publishing house was in my list from the start. I waited, educated myself, learned the business, and when the time was right and I felt ready I decided to put forth the plans to open up for business. We’ll be hosting our launch party December 1, and have a few goodies in store for that day for our readers, one of them being a Sony e-Reader.

2: What inspired you to start your own publishing company?
Roseanne, I’m known for helping writers and this is just another reflection of that. Does this mean an automatic acceptance for writers who know me or ‘of’ me? No. What it does mean is that each rejection will have the editors’ assessments to help the writer better understand why we rejected it, and then invite them to resubmit if they are willing to rework the areas we found were weak or lacking. This helps writers because as a writer myself I know how it puzzled me to see the rejection but unsure the answer to ‘why?’.

3: What do you like the most and least about running your own publishing company? What do you like least?

I love the interaction with writers, editors, and cover artists. And now with our readers group, mingling and networking with them is only a plus. I’m a people person and this is a high point for me.

The least? In all honesty, haven’t come across that yet. Maybe next year when we’re to begin offering print there may come a snag or two but for now…nadda.

4: Tell us about your company, what type of stories are you looking for? How to submit, what length stories and where can we find the submission guidelines?
There are two houses so I’ll break them down for you:


MuseItUp Publishing is for mainstream fiction:

Mystery
Suspense
Thriller
Paranormal
Fantasy
Sci-fi
Dark fiction/horror

Romance and its sub-genres
Young Adult
MuseItHOT Publishing is for romance erotica in all the various genres. If it has erotica, it goes to this publishing house. We have three heat levels:
Naughty but Nice

Naughty with sizzle

Naughty and sizzling HOT!

For both houses we accept stories from 3,000 words and up.

You can find our submission guidelines by visiting our houses:
MuseItUp Publishing: www.museituppublishing.com

MuseItHOT Publishing: http://www.museithotpublishing.com/
In both houses we also have three themes that also can be from 3,000 words and up:

Muse Divaz - Who says plus-size females can't have fun? Muse Divaz are stories where the main character is a plus-size female who gets her man at the end.
Muse Redemption - Muse Redemption are stories where a main character plays a dangerous sport (mountain climbing, race car driving, martial arts, etc) - a sport that leaves them injured and the other main character believes in them, loves them past their pain and helps them get back into the winner's circle.

Muse Dark Sleuths - Muse Dark Sleuths are stories (anywhere from 3000 words and up) that contain paranormal entities (vampires, shape shifters, werewolves, etc) who work for the police at night.
If any of the above themes contain erotica, then the stories need to be clearly marked that it’s a MuseItHOT submission.

All submissions for both houses go to:  sub.musepub@gmail.com


5: Tell us about your authors.
Do you have a year or more? I can’t begin to tell you how proud I am of them, their work, their interaction in our reader and author groups…they are fantastic. Each of them brings a different energy to the group but the reason I’m so proud is because they’ve all clicked, helping each other, offering tips, blogging and twittering about everyone’s books…the list can go on and on. They bring a family atmosphere that I find is crucial to a publishing house.
There are far too many authors right now to mention each of them but suffice to say the quality of work they brought to the table has been exemplary. It’s actually wowed me with each contract I’ve sent.


6: As an editor, what makes you accept or reject a manuscript?

For me it’s always been the beginning. We all know that the first three chapters need to sparkle before you submit it to a publisher or agent, so when I get a first chapter riddled with typos, backstory even before the main character is introduced, the passive telling voice, or head-hopping, then I know the rest of the manuscript is the same. So I’ll offer comments and suggestions along with the rejection to show the writer’s weak spots.

7: Do you have any tips for aspiring authors?
A big one - never allow anyone else’s negativity sway you to stop writing. This applies to rejections too. These are part of a writer’s life so get used to it. Always keep and remember the passion and why you began writing and move forward. Family and friends may not understand why we live by our computers, typing away at different hours in the day or night, or why we’ve hidden notebooks on our night table, in the bathroom, den, living room…you’ll turn blue in the face trying to explain it to them time and again but they won’t get it. You need to have that drive, determination, perseverance and love for writing to fully understand it.


8: I know you’re also an author, tell us about books you’ve writte
I have a Young Adult paranormal story with eTreasures - Doorman’s Creek about three teenaged boys who discover a cave and an unknown entity that places them in the path of a serial killer.
Bubba and Giganto: Odds Against Us with 4RV Publishing deals with high school and bullying. I offer not only the dangers of bullying but give a small glimpse into the bully’s point of view and why he feels the need to act the way he does.
And there are three children’s picture books in the editing or ready to be released stages:
I Don’t Want a Haircut by Guardian Angel about a little boy’s first haircut experience and what he imagines happens to him. The imagination part actually were things told to me as a children’s stylist for twenty years.
Robbie and Katie Get A Hairy Scare, also from Guardian Angel is the first in a series of books about these twins. The aim of this series is to age Robbie and Katie each year until finally they will have their own adult novels to reveal their ups and downs.

The last one is Libby the Odd Squirrel by 4RV Publishing about bullying again but showing it through the eyes of a squirrel.
I’ve also written for several anthologies.



9: Where do you get your ideas and what inspires you to write?
Ideas pop in my head quicker than I can breathe. I really don’t think I’ll have time in this lifetime to write them all so I offer my ideas to others freely. I’m not sure what inspires them. Might be reading the newspaper, listening to a song, watching TV, and bang, I rush to get that notebook left in the downstairs bathroom because the upstairs was occupied. 


10: What are you currently working on?
I was writing a novel about five years ago, The Blind Prophecy, but never had a chance to finalize it and then kicked myself because Twilight came out and it so resembled my own. So now I’m back to the drawing board to add and delete elements to make it different in case I’m called a ‘copy cat’. This is why writers should really finish their WIPs and not be faced with this type of situation.
The Gifted is another one of my favorite young adult storyline: what would you do if you had the power to grant wishes knowing that for every wish granted something from your family would be taken away? Would you grant that wish?
And there are several others, one being a sci-fi, Zylorp and the Brothers Three, about an alien warrior and hero who finally discovers that the war he fought was all lies. One act now finds him facing the Council and a possible execution, the same people he fought to protect.

11: I know you wear many hats, tell us what else you’re involved in.
There are many hats, indeed. Apollo’s Lyre is an online e-zine published every two months. Jim Harrington is the flash fiction editor, Betty Dobson our poetry editor, Earl Staggs our Write Tight editor, and Charles Mossop brings his expertise in Worlds Apart. www.apollos-lyre.tripod.com

There’s also the annual and very FREE Muse Online Writers Conference held each October. This year it will be October 11 - 17 : http://www.themuseonlinewritersconference.com/
Registrations are now open, and deadline is August.
I founded the MuseItUp online critique community but have now given ownership to each individual critique group to the moderators.
Cheryl Malandrinos took over for me and has been doing a fantastic job with another site I founded: Musing Our Children: www.musingourchildren.tripod.com This site’s aim is to bring writers together to help foster a love for reading and writing to schools around the world.
I also edit for a few houses but obviously now cutting back to work full time on my own publishing houses.



12: What do you do for fun and relaxation when not working?
Roseanne, this is my fun and relaxation. If I’m not on the laptop communicating with writers, helping writers, editing, writing…well, what can I say, I love what I do.
But I do go to the movies, enjoy a good book, watch TV, play with my two dogs, and bug the living daylights out of my kids. Hey, what are moms for?

13: Do you have a personal website? Blog?

My personal website is: www.leaschizas.com Which reminds me it needs updating.

My blog:
http://thewritingjungle.blogspot.com/

The publishing house blogs are:
http://museituppublishing.blogspot.com/
http://museithot.blogspot.com/


14: What’s the one thing you’d most like people to know about you?

The one thing…already said I’m a people person…then it has to be that I care, I really care and respect writers. Career wise that’s the one thing I would want new writers who don’t know me to understand there’s no pretence from me. As a matter of fact to show you an example how much I care, one of our authors, Frank Scully, has an amazing series, The Decade Mystery Series, and I was wowed along with the editors with his first submission. Then he subbed book two and I came right out and asked Frank why no agent signed him up. Now here comes the struggle that most writers face: he said he tried over the years, came close but with no end result. Did I contract book two? Yes. Did I contract it right away? No. I told Frank about the Muse conference and asked him to consider pitching to the agents there or at least to have a look at the agents in case he has a chance to get signed with one of them. To make a long story short, Frank checked, told me his reasons for offering to MuseItUp Publishing, and I thanked him for that honor. Recently another author told me about two agents looking over her manuscript and I told her wait for their response and then come back when you want.

15: Is there anything else you’d like us to know about you or your publishing company?

Not about me, but I need and want to rave about the editors and cover artists. I’ve already mentioned how proud I am of the authors but the editors and cover artists have been doing an amazing job. The giggles, jokes, fun and relaxed atmosphere they’ve built is nothing short of another novel in the making.

Please Vote for Me

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Vote once a day and ask your friends to vote also. Thanks, I'll appreciate it.

At the end of May they'll be giving away over $1,000 in prizes to the top 15

rated bloggers for the month.

The top rated blogs are also showcased on the sidebar of the site for

everyone to see.

A Mother's Day Tribute

Things My Mother Never Taught Me

My mother never taught me about the thrill of a first kiss or the hurt of that first breakup. She never told me about the love between a man and a woman and the joy of standing at the altar, vowing before God, family and friends to love him forever.

My mother never taught me about the emotions of holding my newborn in my arms for the first time, or the feeling of responsibility for the new life. She never told me about the overwhelming awe and love I would feel, knowing that this child came from within me. That I created this life, nourished it for nine long months, and now had to nourish and care for it in the real world.

My mother never taught me the feeling of swelled pride at watching my child take their first step or hearing their first words.

She never taught me about the combination of pain and pride I would feel as I watched my children waltz off to school, looking so grown up and yet so young. So independent. She never told me how I’d feel when they came home and said “But Miss so and so said it was better to do it this way.” and the realization that I was no longer the sole influence in their life.
My mother never taught me about the fear of having a child in the hospital undergoing tests by a neurologist after a normal eye exam discovered a problem or sitting in an emergency room while your child undergoes an emergency appendectomy. She never told me how difficult it was to watch your child suffer through typical childhood illnesses, stitches or broken bones.
She never taught me about the fear of letting your child go down the street to play or crossing the street for the first time by themselves.

My mother never taught me about dealing with my daughter’s first crush and heartbreak and lost love. She never told me how hard it would be to watch my children struggle to get good grades or make the team or try to fit in.
She never taught me about the pride of watching my children march down the auditorium to receive their diploma or hearing about their first job. My mother never told me of the deep fear I’d experience when they learned to drive or getting that phone call that told you they had an accident.
My mother never taught me of the excitement of their engagement and the trials of planning a wedding. She never told me of the happiness and pride I’d feel watching them walk down the aisle to stand beside the one they vowed to spend their life with or the worry that this child was now totally independent of you.

She never taught me of the sense of wonder I’d feel holding my newborn grandchildren for the first time.
She never explained that these feelings of worry and concern never go away when my children grew up. My mother didn’t tell me the worries would only strengthen as my children married and had children of their own. That I’d have more to love and worry about not only my children but their spouses and my grandchildren.
My mother never told me how it feels to be a mother. She never told me about the joy, pain, and overwhelming awe of being a mother and grandmother. I now know why my mother never taught me these things. Because these thing have to be experienced to understand the wonderful sense of being a mother.

But the biggest thing my mother never taught me was how I’d feel when I no longer had her to talk with, to share my feelings with after she passed from this world. She never taught me how to deal with the loss at losing a loved one or the pain deep within that I would carry through the rest of my days. My mother never told me how very much I’d miss her.

June Jubliee

Coffee Time Romance is having its 2nd Annual June Jubilee (the entire month of June) to kick off the summer months for readers and authors! The event continues all month long. Join me and put my name down as the Referral person. Hope everyone will leave a message.


I'll also be posting under the Special Interest area also. It's on the forum page below the Java Junction area. I'll be talking all month about my hobbies, quilting and embroidery - and combining the two . I'll even post pictures of some of my quilts.

Welcome, Linda Holmes

1: Thank you so much for being here, Linda. First up is the obligatory question. When did you first begin writing?

Thank you for having me. When did I first begin writing? The first time I wrote and shared what I wrote was in middle school, back in the Dark Ages. I created this rather naïve story about a young Hawaiian girl, you know the one with the leis who greets all incoming planes, named Katana Li and her deliciously handsome, fire dancer boyfriend, Tyrano. It was awful, but all my girlfriends were drooling for the next chapter, and they kept at me long enough that I ended up writing three sequels to the original.

2: What inspired you to write?

My Grandmother was a wonderful storyteller. From the time I was old enough to understand language, she told me these wonderful stories that absolutely held me spellbound. I hoped to one day walk in her footsteps and enchant others with my stories.



3: What do you like the most and least about writing?
I love being able to create my own worlds, my own dynamics, my own realities. What I like least is trying to remember the rules drilled into me by the nuns are not the rules followed by today’s publishing world. The strict adherence to grammar drilled into me by Mother Mary John is not what my editor wants me to use when constructing my stories for submission.


4: What do you for fun and relaxation when not writing?

I’m a voracious reader. I’m reading the current, and sadly, no doubt the last Jesse Stone Novel by Robert B. Parker. I also spent two years creating Designer Barbie Dolls with my daughter, Kat Holmes, that we gave away to elderly women with no family living in Nursing Homes at Christmas. We made over 200 dolls and gave every last one of them away. It was amazing watching these beautifully wrinkled faces burst into smiling, joyous angels. It was a wonderful experience. I also knit, sew, and even tried oil painting once. You don’t want to know what my mountains looked like.

5: Which authors do you like to read?
I already mentioned Robert B. Parker. I loved his Spenser series, especially the character Hawk; you gotta love a professional hit man with a moral compass that’s also eye candy, his Jesse Stone and his Sunny Randall Series. I’m sorely going to miss him. I adore Charlaine Harris, J.D. Robb, Alyssa Day, Lynsay Sands, Anne N. Reisser who really needs to come back to writing..., Glenn Kleier, Christine Feehan, Mary Janice Davidson, Yasmine Galenorn, Margaret Mitchell, and of course you knew I was going to toss my daughter, Kat Holmes, in there too. However, now that I have found the incredible world of e-books, my list is expanding to include N.J. Walters, and yourself…My God, the list is long…really long.



6: What’s the one thing you’d most like people to know about you?

I’ve always held writers in the highest regard. They are my absolute favorite celebrities, and now that I’m one of them, it’s just mind blowing. I will always work very hard with my editor to the reader the best storytelling I can give. I owe nothing less to the storytellers who paved the way before me, nor the ones who will travel the path after me.

7: Tell me about your current novel, where I can find it and your website/blog.
Actually I have two current stories. The first is the first in my Christmas Miracles series called Santa is a Lady. Five days before Christmas Santa is arrested. Angie Brightwell’s best friend, owner of Sweets & Treats, needs a replacement Santa immediately, but all the Professional Santa Clauses are already working. Beck begs Angie to please don the red suit and fill in for the last days.
Cameron Drayton, a retired Colonel with the Army Corps of Engineers, has finally gained custody of his half Iraqi two year old daughter, and he wants to give her the perfect American Christmas, but the Fates have so much more in store for Angie, Cam and his delightful daughter. Christmas is, after all, a time for magic and miracles. This will be available on Dec. 1st from Muse It Up Publishing. www.museituppublishing.com
My second book coming out in March 2011 is a Time Travel also available from Muse It Up Publishing but under their Muse It Hot Banner: The Pendulum Swing.
This story is about Joanna Moore-Reed, her husband Jason Reed and their daughter Mandi. Theirs is not a happy marriage, but Joanna post car accident, claims she’s not Joanna and damned if she doesn’t act totally UN-Joanna-like. Jason is drawn to the new Joanna, but a bump on her head changed her into this delightful Joanna, will another bump revert her back to the vicious, mean-spirited Joanna she’s been? Or could there be another reason for Joanna’s change in personality? Why does Joanna insist everyone call her Siri? And what is with her sudden abhorrence for the designer rags and high society that had been her life’s blood pre-bump on head?
With a twinkle in her eye, a belly in her dance, and a joy in her spirit, how long can Jason keep his guard up when every other member of their household is falling under the spell of the new Siri

My blog is http://linsownblog.blogspot.com .

8: Do you have any tips for aspiring authors?

Write, write, write. Never give up on your dream. I began working with an editor and agent ten years ago. For too many reasons, those efforts failed, but here I am, about to have TWO manuscripts published within months of each other! If your deepest dream is to write, then never give it up.
Other than that, check the requirements for the publisher you want to send your work to. Submission requirements vary from publisher to publisher so you have to check each one you want to submit to.



9: Do you base your characters on real-life people?

Every character I create has some aspects of real people I know to them. Cam, for instance, the hero in Santa is a Lady is loosely based on my brother who is a retired Lt. Colonel with the Army Corps of Engineers who spent a great deal of time in Iraq rebuilding their infrastructure. I gave Cam my brother’s stature, his buzz cut and his deep blue eyes. Of course now that I’m admitting he’s the model, he’s going to try to convince me he should get royalties. :>)
Even when I create a fantasy character, such as an elf, it’ll have some aspects that I see, know of, or sense in real people.



10: Where do you get your ideas and what inspired you to write this book?

Life is where I get my ideas. Santa is a Lady came about when a career Santa in my area was arrested last year for having child porn on his computer less than a week before Christmas. That arrest made me wonder what a store owner would do at crunch time to engage another Santa…and what havoc would come out of Santa being a lady?

My Other book has more to do with my love of Ancient history and paranormal themes like Time Travel. Time Travel themes allow me to visit the past and play with it to my heart’s content.



11: What are you currently working on?

I’ve just finished the sequel to Santa is a Lady and my publisher and editor are nudging me to dig into my dusty manuscripts from ten years ago, polish them up and submit, submit, submit. I’m also researching the material for the final story in the Christmas Miracles trilogy



12. Is there anything else you’d like us to know about you?

I’m a mom of another talented author, Kat Holmes who published Voice in the Night, and her new Gods at Work Series, Book One Working Under Covers available now with four more stories coming down the pike over the next few months. I’m lucky enough to read her stories in progress and can promise the world is going to love her new series, and her stand alone The Lighthouse due out on Jan 1, 2011