Mary Alice Pritchard’s Blog

Lizzie here.      SEE HOW THEY DIE available now at www.fictionwise.com

I had so much fun with the last contest that I’m going to have another one. The mistress hasn’t found out yet so don’t tell her or I might not get to post anymore.  So, all you have to do is post a comment to this blog to be entered to win another book package. She has lots of good stuff here in the office for giveaways. This is for See How They Die that is out at The Dark Castle Lords. www.thedarkcastlelords.com

As for what she is working on, it’s a really hot book called Hot and Bothered. I’ve read some of it. Let me tell you, it’s good! It is a contemporary romance. She had another books she’s also worked on called Double Trouble. It’s a neat Suspense novel. I love it. It has a lot of action in it. I like action.

Speaking of action, we chased a squirrel all around a tree yesterday. It didn’t climb up, it just circled the tree. I think it was teasing us. What do you think? Anyway, Tipsy got dizzie and quit on us. Whimp. Little Bit even got in on the action. He doesn’t do a lot anymore. Getting to be an old man. Just like the grandparents. Ooops, I wasn’t suppose to say that anymore. The mistress finds out I’m calling them that again and I’m in trouble. Shhhh

Oh and the garden. I love playing around the squash plants. They have these big leaves you can hide under. Only thing is those big yellow things that grow under them. They get in the way. The mistres picks them though so they don’t stay around long to get in the way. The tomatoes are getting nice and big. They are suppose to turn red when they are ready. I am waiting not so patiently on them.

So, don’t forget to post a comment to the blog here and maybe I’ll pick your name. Be sure and read her excerpt below. I know, it’s hard to read. I’m not really all that savy with the cut and paste keys. Have a good day and look to see if you have won Monday.

 

Late posting but the mistress has been on the computer writing a lot lately.  

The winner of the book package is Sarah Doddson.  Congratulations Sarah!

 

Lizzie

Don’t tell the mistress, but while she is busy writing elsewhere, I’m posting a contest.   So, all you have to do to be entered to win is post a comment about her excerpt in the previous post. Sorry, I know it is hard to read, I’m not really good at doing those things yet. Shut up Little Bit!  He says I’m not good at much of anything.  I am too!

Anyway, post a comment about it and you will be entered to win a book package!!!  The contest runs through midnight Sunday night. Good luck everyone!

Little Bit is just grouchy cause he had to go to the vet today. The mistress took him for his shots and he’s mad at her. I’ve been napping most of the morning away. Time to get out and about to see what is going on.  Now remember, don’t tell the mistress about this. It’s just between you and me.

 

Lizzie

Hi Everyone!  Lizzy here to talk about See How They Die. You can still get it at www.fictionwise.com or www.thedarkcastlelords.com

You really don’t want to miss this one. It is sooo good. Here is a blurb and a hot excerpt.  Hmmmm wonder what the mistress would say if she heard me say hot. LOL 

Most dreams don’t come true but Rhiannon knows her nightmares do. They haunt her until it’s too late for the victims. Rhi can’t hide anymore when the latest victims are found close by. Determined to help the local sheriff stop a madman before he kills again, Rhi has to set aside her own fears placing her trust and just maybe her life into the hands of another lost soul.
Excerpt:
“Look, I’m not going to Casper with you.  I’ll email you every single detail from the dreams as soon as I can write them down.”  Rhi waited, but all he did was smile and shake his head.  “Then you’re going to have to arrest me.”  She schooled her face to hide the panic that washed over her and jerked the two ends of the towel tighter across her legs. 
“Can’t,” was all he said.  His eyes never left her, kicking her anxiety level up a notch or two.
“What do you mean you can’t?  Can’t what?”  Rhi had a bad feeling she wasn’t going to like this answer.
“I’m not an officer of any type of  law, so I can’t arrest you.”  His dark eyes still held their promise of danger, his face void of any expression.  Finally, he moved off the bed, stretching to his full height before slowly approaching her.
Rhi’s breath caught in her throat as she watched him draw nearer.  Caught in the chair with a towel barely covering her, she had nowhere to run.  Her only choice would be to drop the towel and break for the door, but she wouldn’t even consider that option.  When he leaned over her, snagging her panties with two fingers from the back of the chair, she sank deeper.  His face never registered the first hint of emotion, but his eyes grew impossibly darker as he slowly lowered the silky scrap of cloth into her lap. 
“You’re going to Casper.”  He caught her eyes with his and she couldn’t look away no matter how much she tried.  “Unless you’d rather stay here with me as your roommate.”  Leaning forward, he placed a hand on both arms of the chair, smiling with that predator smile, more teeth than lips. 
It wasn’t a particularly friendly smile, but one holding the promise of something deliciously wicked.  Rhi nervously moistened her lips, still unable to tear her eyes from his, and tried to keep from sinking any deeper into the chair. 
“At least in Casper you’ll have a room all to yourself.” 
Dear God, she groaned to herself.  That smile was a dangerous thing.  When it wasn’t all teeth, being dangerous, it turned his dark eyes into fiery pits promising every exquisite torture a woman’s body could ever crave.  Everything inside her wanted to find out what just one of those delicious tortures would feel like, but she knew better.  The crackling energy around him seemed alive with a mind of its own, telling her even though a taste would be worth it, she’d likely get burned in the end. 
See!  I told you it was hot. Talk to you all later! Lizzy

           Today, I have Rebecca Savage here with me and we will be talking about writing.  Be sure and post a comment here or email her at rebeccasavage@rebeccasavage.com for a chance to win a download of her book.

 1. What do you write and why?

I write Contemporary Romantic Suspense…mostly because I am contemporary and I get it:) I don’t have to work so hard at world building or research as I would with historical or fantasy…not that I’m lazy but…:) —although…I have delved into the world of fantasy with my latest work in progress: a dragon story…set in contemporary / parallel universe time periods;)

2. What do you read and why, especially if it’s different from what you write?

I read anything romance, but it has to have a good storyline and plot…not just romance, and it has to be fast-paced. I also read Louis L’Amour:)

3. Who do write for?

I write for Champagne Book, The Wild Rose Press, and Carnal Desires. And I write for me and me readers;)

4. How long have you been writing?

I started writing in 2004 summer. Just picked up a book and started reading in 2003 and got hooked and decided I’d try my hand it. Can’t imagine it not being a part of my life now;)

5. How do you world build?

I world build by first writing what I knwo and where I know. I’ve been to every setting,e xcept the one in my fantasy novel, the dragon story. That’s my biggest challenge. But a fun one.

6. How do you write: the process and atmosphere?

I am a serious pantser! But I have to know where I’m starting and where I’m ending and a bit in the middle. Then I just sit down and go for it…kind of like I’m winging this interview now:) LOL. Kind of like my teachign style….oops! Of course I prepare my lessons well in advance for my precious students. LOL

7. How do you build characters and their personalities and looks?

My characters are tough and bossy. They don’t take any crap. Kind of like me. Problem is: that can be both good and bad. A person like me never truly gives up their whole heart or yeilds to trule love, or at least haven’t seen any rason to give up my whole self yet. I’m too stubborn. I think that might be why I’m in the middle of a divroce aftr 24 years. Hmmmmmm….

8. Tell me about some of your heroes and heroines:

My heroes and heroines are stong, but they find love and believe in it. I do too. It’s just harder to give in when it’s your own heart on the line.

9. Are you a pantser or plotter?

I kindof mentioned this before. Definite Pantser!

10. What’s your WIP?

MY two WIPs are:

one: dragon story….:) which is also a contemporary story, FBI agent falls for secret organizatuion leader of dragon world…:)

two: the third of a series of six stories: Guard My Baby was first, published, Guard My Body was second, and was my latest release in January 2010, and I’m working on Guard My Life now:)

11. What’s your latest release and tell me about it:

Latest release was Jan. 2010: Guard My Body: CIA operative and bad boy bike meets librarian with a wild side:) Of course that’s a perfect match! And they have to stop a terrorist from coming across the Mexican border and bombing the heck out of some rich kids in elite schools to prove a nasty point. UGH! 

12. Anything from your personal life you’d like to tell us?

I’m a teacher of History and German and I have three kids and one granddaughter and I’m getting a divorce this summer. But I’m trying to be positive and shouldn’t be throwing that in here, but I want people to know that if they are in the same position, they should remain positive and not give up. Love has to be real…it just has to:)
 

Blurb:

A hard core CIA covert ops expert like Nash Kincaid takes everything seriously, especially his mission to retrieve classified information from his contact, take it to the right people, and stop the deaths of thousands of children at the hands of home-grown terrorists.

A librarian with a wild side could throw a ringer into his plans, but Ayden Devlin takes most things seriously, too, even when she decides to live out the lives of the characters in the books she reads by helping her sister Leigh, a spy for the CIA. She lets Leigh insert classified information into her mouth where there’s a missing tooth, so she can safely transport the info to Nash.

Nash and Ayden meet in a biker bar, and a hit man tries to kill Ayden. Nash throws his body in the path of a bullet to save her. A bullet grazes Ayden’s head and knocks her out cold. When she comes to, she and her rescuer have to establish trust. They don’t know each other, and the mission has gone awry. It takes time to convince each other of their respective honesty and identity.

It takes no time at all for them to realize they’re hot for each other, and not much more time to realize it’s more than heat. Love blooms, stoked by building passion, the flames rising higher with each new dangerous encounter.

Will they survive to share their love and lives?

***

Excerpt:

Who the hell sends a librarian to do the job of an undercover CIA agent?

Covert Operation Expert Nash Kincaid - at least that’s what his latest passport said - sat in a seedy biker bar, sipping on his tap beer, waiting impatiently for a librarian - of all people - to show up and make a Top Secret information drop.

He scowled and scoffed silently into his foamy brew at the very balls of his friend and fellow comrade in arms, the man who’d set up this preposterous rendezvous. How the hell had Ace ever gotten it in his head that some stuffy old bookworm would be suitable for a transfer of classified information? So what if this Ayden person happened to be Ace’s partner Leigh’s sister? That didn’t mean she could pull off something like this.

And who the hell is the amazing-looking chick that just walked in the door?

Nash’s eyes widened, and his blood simmered beneath the surface. He let his eyes wander down, and then roam back up, the woman’s sexy form. Her slim but amply curved silhouette stood out against the shadows of the barroom. Bright neon lights poured over her sexy outline, illuminating her body in vibrant red and yellow hues, cascading over and around her like waterfalls of color for her to bask in. She wore a skin-tight muscle shirt and a short leather skirt. The shiny, sequined material clung to curvy hips, stopped inches above shapely knees, and topped off endless, toned legs. Her fiery hair hung loose, reaching her narrow waistline, flowing like a billowing sea of red. Nash wanted to grip her waist with one hand, run his other through all that mass of organized tangles, hold on tight, and plow into her beckoning body like a madman.

Okay, so maybe her body didn’t beckon him, but he sure as hell wanted it to.

***

Bio:    

Rebecca Savage’s Publishing Journey

An avid reader can become a prolific writer. Such is the case with me. I started out in my teens reading Louis L’Amour. I have one hundred ninety of his paperbacks and fifteen of his books bound in leather. I read them all, loved them and saved them. I only read one romance during my teens, titled The Daring Deception. Lately I’ve tried to find it so I can buy it, but I haven’t been successful in my attempt to locate it. I only want it for nostalgic purposes, since I had no idea I’d eventually become a romance junkie and writer. In essence, that book was my romantic beginning.

I never read another romance until 2003 when I graduated with a Masters in History and decided to read something for fun. A friend of mine always carried a romance novel in her purse and read constantly. I borrowed a couple of books from her, and the rest is history. I was hooked.

I read all kinds of romance, but only write contemporary suspense/intrigue. I had a top secret clearance in the Air Force when I served as a Morse Code operator/supervisor, so I seldom have to research, yet. I’ve done a bit of digging to confirm things I already suspected to be true, but mostly I write from experience or imagination and stick to the facts as much as possible.

I read books from August 2003 until May 2004, and I was lying on the couch reading one day and thought, “What would I write if I wrote a book?” I like action movies that make you think, a story with a good plot with a hero and heroine trying to figure out what’s affecting their lives, bringing them together, and pulling them apart. I started there. I decided to write a suspense/mystery, since neither the reader nor the characters knew who was after the hero/heroine, although sometimes both the reader and characters do know who the villain in my works is, but the villain is allusive.

So, all those books I read, and still read, were a learning process, just as everything else in my life has led up to where I am now. I was a good student, a good military leader, a good reader, and I hope I’m a good writer. Only time and sales will tell.

I wrote a trilogy in summer 2004 while off for the summer from teaching. I wrote another trilogy in summer 2005. I joined RWA in October 2005, after searching for a publisher on the internet and seeing advice to join organizations like RWA and local chapters. That’s how I ended up at CRW, but not until March 2006. Teaching slowed down the process. Darn those daytime jobs.

CRW taught me so much. My first meeting I learned writing is a business and how to write a query/synopsis. I had no idea there were such things. I also learned how extreme the competition is. I had no idea so many writers existed and wanted to be published or what a game it is. I learned it’s all about persistence and taking the steps to get there. I also learned I’m a fly by the seat of my pants, character driven writer, not a plotter.

After joining RWA/CRW I went back to those first six novels and began self-editing based on things I learned about craft: voice, passive, throw away words, POV, etc. I started submitting to agents, editors, and publishers. I took any and all advice from the rejection letters and fixed anything I was told was wrong.

I didn’t start working with Critique Partners or judging or reviewing for magazines until this year(2007). I wasn’t ready, even though I might’ve thought back then I was. I had to climb the ladder. I had to learn craft and even technical programs. I had no idea what track changes on Microsoft word was. I know. Seems silly, huh? Like everyone should know these things.

When I first started coming to meetings, I thought I was so writing illiterate, and I was. Terms most writers are comfortable with totally escaped me. I didn’t know what POV was, or lots of other things. I didn’t go to college to be a writer. I wasn’t an English major. I’d never been a journalist. I worked on a Masters in History. So my background was foreign to what most successful writers have under their belts.

That didn’t stop me. I just kept plugging along. I had no idea how long it’d take. I thought I’d submit and get published. End of story. Boy, what an eye opener the past few years have been, and when I moved from South Carolina and could no longer attend CRW meeting, I joined MORWA in St. Louis, Missouri.

I landed in a few writers’ woes and pitfalls along the way, but my writer friends have shown me the right way to do things. I submitted to an online agency, and it turned out to be bogus. I paid eighty dollars for my stuff to be looked at, and they tried to weasel me out of more. Thank goodness CRW stopped that mistake.

So my fist pitfall was a hoax agency, and then I contracted with an e-publisher that went out of business, but just kept my work and didn’t tell me anything. Come to find out, my editor was holding my ms, and after the ninety days – thank goodness for that clause – she emailed me and told me of the issues within the company. That company no longer exists.

I was allowed to pull my work from their company and resubmit elsewhere. I did. I got a contract for the trilogy I penned in 2005. I signed with The Wild Rose Press: Fueled By Instinct, Cloaked In Assassination, and Destination Ever After. My other trilogy wasn’t ready yet. It was my first attempt at writing, and I’d worked on it, but it took a lot more tweaking to ready it. Now I’ve published it with Champagne Books, and the first book released in January 2009 and made the bestseller list for February 2009 and is listed as Best Book: Coincidence, Combustion, and Consequences are the three titles in that trilogy. I also have a book published by Double Dragon/Carnal Desires: Guard My Baby.

In the meantime, I wrote another story in 2006 after joining CRW. I submitted to Harlequin and was asked for a full ms. The editor liked it, but not enough. I sent that story to an agent, along with a note saying Harlequin asked for a full. When Harlequin rejected, she did, too, but she asked to meet with me in Dallas at nationals.

I wrote another book after RWA nationals and submitted it to her. She liked it and asked for me to fix a couple of things. I made the changes and resubmitted. She asked for one more thing. I fixed that, too. She asked for one more thing, and I’m in the process of doing those changes now and will resubmit soon.

In other words, it’s all about not giving up. I suppose there’s a time to quit, but as long as a writer is not at a stand still – work on something else while going through the process of one edit – then it’s not a bad thing to take awhile working and dealing with a possible agent/publisher.

Rebecca Giallongo: Pen Name: Rebecca Savage
Best Selling Author of the Year: 2009!
Website: rebeccasavage.com
Email: rebeccasavage@rebeccasavage.com
Email: grgiall@yahoo.com
Author of Contemporary Romantic Suspense

  

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