Cheryl St. John's The Preacher's Daughter and a Giveaway!!!

Available this month is Cheryl St. John's latest book The Preacher's Daughter!

Look for The Preacher's Daughter in stores or order it from Amazon.com, BN.Com, or eHarlequin.com.

I have an unsigned copy of Cheryl St. John's previous release, The Lawman's Bride, and some goodies to giveaway to one lucky reader!

If you would like to enter just send an e-mail to jenscontest @ gmail.com (no spaces) letting me know you would like to be entered. Please put "Cheryl St. John Contest" in the subject line.

Contest ends June 30, 2007!!

One entry per person please!!! Must be 18 to enter! One winner will be chosen randomly from all correct entries received by 11:59 pm EST June 30, 2007 and announced here on the blog (with winner's permission). Winner(s) will be notified via e-mail and asked to send their mailing address. E-mail addresses will only be used to contact you if you are the winner...they are not collected or used for anything else. Once notified, winners will have one week to respond or a new winner will be chosen.

Feel free to post about the contest and spread the word! Let me know if you have any questions!
If you have not read a Cheryl St. John book, I highly recommend that you do!

Visit her site and check out her blog!

Interview with Jude Liebermann

Have you ever had a dream? Jude Liebermann was 13 when she read and 18 when she wrote her first romance novel. Still an avid reader, she enjoys anything from romances to horror and science-fiction/fantasy, and her own books have pretty much the same range. For two decades now, Jude has dreamt of becoming a published author. Well, that dream only became a reality after spending her own money to self-publish her books. You can read about them by visiting her site at http://www.judesplace.com.

Her first novel, Formerly Brandewyne is currently being offered for free to read online (or you can get the paperback for just the cost of shipping!) as well as a few of her earlier stories (visit her forum to read more about them.) A few years ago, she was inspired to write her first fanfiction, which led to several more. The first one is based on the character of Legolas from Lord of the Rings and the others were inspired by Orlando Bloom's movies, so be sure to check those out at her Orlando Bloom page! Jude’s next project in the works is her first trilogy. The first two are available for purchase and the third is now being edited. She’s really excited about these stories, which have the title of A Modern Myth. Nada’s Secret and Grady’s Return are both for sale through lulu.com.

What inspired you to become a writer?
I CAN’T REMEMBER A TIME WHEN I DIDN’T WRITE. I WAS A VERY IMAGINATIVE CHILD AND CAN REMEMBER WRITING MY OWN VERSION OF A NANCY DREW MYSTERY WHEN I WAS ABOUT 5. HAVE NO IDEA WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT. WISH MY MOTHER HAD KEPT IT, SINCE IT WOULD BE A HOOT TO SEE HOW HORRIBLE IT WAS! STORIES HAVE ALWAYS JUST COME TO ME, SO IT WAS ONLY NATURAL TO START WRITING THEM DOWN.

How long have you been a writer?
WELL, EXCEPT FOR THE FIRST 5 YEARS, ALL MY LIFE

Please tell us about your book(s).
MY FIRST ROMANCE NOVEL WAS BASED ON MY OWN EXPERIENCES. IF SOMETHING IN MY LIFE DIDN’T TURN OUT THE WAY I WANTED IT TO, I WOULD CREATE AN ALTERNATE ENDING IN A STORY. THAT HELPED FUEL THE REST OF MY BOOKS, WHICH NOW HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH ME. THE BOOK I’M CURRENTLY WRITING IS ABOUT A 21ST CENTURY WOMAN WHO IS TRANSPORTED TO 1935 BY TOUCHING AN OLD PORTRAIT. I’M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THIS STORY AND PLAN ON IT BEING MY NEXT PUBLISHED NOVEL.

What inspired the story/stories?
SOMETIMES WHEN I WRITE, I FEEL AS IF I’M MORE POSSESSED THAN INSPIRED…LIKE A REAL MUSE IS WHISPERING INTO MY EAR AND TYPING THROUGH ME. ACTUALLY, THAT IS A GREAT FEELING.

Which comes first for you…plot or characters?
DEFINITELY THE PLOT…THE CHARACTERS SORT OF FIND THEIR OWN WAY AND THE STORY PROGRESSES.

What is your favorite part of being a writer? Least favorite?
WHEN THAT FIRST INKLING OF A NEW STORY STRIKES AND I’M ABLE TO START IT AND KEEP IT GOING IS MY FAVORITE PART. THE WORST PART? WRITER’S BLOCK. I ACTUALLY SUFFERED FROM THAT FOR ABOUT 2 YEARS AND IT WAS TERRIBLE. SINCE THEN, I’VE BEEN WORKING ON 2 DIFFERENT STORIES! SO MUCH BETTER…THE OTHER LEAST FAVORITE ASPECT IS HOW HARD IT IS TO GET PROFESSIONALLY PUBLISHED, BUT THEN I HAVE SO MUCH MORE CONTROL OVER MY STORIES THIS WAY.

How did you decide to self-publish your work? What did self-publishing involve?
I TRIED FOR ABOUT A DECADE TO GET PROFESSIONALLY PUBLISHED BEFORE I DECIDED THAT IT WAS POINTLESS…MANY FAMOUS NOVELISTS HAD TO GET STARTED BY SELF-PUBLISHING, AND IT IS A LOT EASIER NOW THAN IT WAS WHEN I FIRST GOT STARTED. THERE ARE SO MANY VENUES AVAILABLE NOW THAT ARE SO REMARKABLE. I HAD TO SPEND A LOT OF MONEY WHEN I STARTED IN 1997…NOW THERE IS LULU.COM, WHICH IS INCREDIBLE!! I CAN’T SAY ENOUGH ABOUT THAT COMPANY. SELF-PUBLISHING ISN’T EASY THOUGH. YOU HAVE TOTAL CONTROL OF EVERYTHING, WHICH INCLUDES EDITING, TYPESETTING AND OF COURSE ADVERTISING. THANK GOODNESS FOR THE INTERNET, OR IT WOULDN’T BE POSSIBLE AT ALL! I’M MAKING A NAME FOR MYSELF WITH MY SITE, MY FORUM, AND NOW HOPEFULLY MYSPACE. HOPEFULLY SOMEDAY I CAN JOIN THE PROFESSIONALLY PUBLISHED ELITE.

What do you hope readers get out of your work?
I HOPE IT MAKES THEM LAUGH AND CRY AND THINK. I WANT THEM TO BE ABLE TO ESCAPE INTO THE STORY. WHEN I’M TOLD THAT SOMEONE COULDN’T PUT MY BOOK DOWN ONCE THEY STARTED IT, THAT IS THE BEST COMPLIMENT THEY COULD GIVE ME!

What would you like to tell aspiring writers?
DON’T EVER STOP WRITING. EVEN IF YOU THINK YOUR STORY IS TERRIBLE, KEEP TRYING. YOU WILL GET BETTER WITH EVERY ATTEMPT


For fun:
Describe yourself in 3 words.
LOYAL TRUSTWORTHY DILIGENT

How do you relax?
I WORK ON MY FORUM OR WATCH TV OR I WRITE

What do you like to read?
I LOVE TERESA MEDIEROS’ NOVELS.

What is your favorite book of all time?
OOH TOUGH ONE. I DON’T THINK I HAVE ONE OF THOSE. THE FIRST ONE THAT JUMPED TO MIND WAS “THE GREEN MILE” BY STEPHEN KING…DON’T EVEN KNOW WHY…MAYBE CAUSE IT MADE ME CRY MY EYES OUT.

If you could save one book from destruction, what would it be?
MY TRILOGY…HMMM, ANOTHER TOUGH ONE.

If you had a time capsule to be opened 50 years in the future, what would you put in it?
A CD OF ALL MY BOOKS

Thank you Jude for a great interview!

You can check out Jude’s work at her site: http://www.judesplace.com/

Heidi Betts Giveaway Winner!

Sorry I am so late adding this. I became ill and had some computer issues making it difficult to blog!

Congrats to Diane M. from WA! She is the winner of the Heidi Betts Giveaway!

If you didn't win this time, don't worry I have another contest coming up sometime next week so be on the lookout for it!

Happy Reading!

Interview with Author Heidi Betts and a Giveaway!

FORTUNE'S FORBIDDEN WOMAN (June 2007)
A Romantic Times 4 1/2 Top Pick!

FORBIDDEN LIASON…
Creed Fortune had hungered for Maya Blackstone for nearly a decade, but he’d held back to protect his family’s reputation. After all, the press would have a field day if they uncovered a clandestine affair between a Fortune heir and his very own stepsister! Then a heated argument between Creed and Maya turned into a feverish night of lovemaking. Even though the raven-haired school teacher melted his heart in ways he’d never dreamed possible, Creed had to find a way to douse their dangerous attraction. Otherwise, the sordid truth could topple the Fortune empire!

DAKOTA FORTUNES: Power is their birthright, oil is in their blood.

The lovely Heidi Betts has a new release this month and she was brave enough…oops…meant kind enough…to answer a few questions for me and my blog readers.


Please tell us about your book.
FORTUNE’S FORBIDDEN WOMAN is the sixth and final book in the multi-author “Dakota Fortunes” continuity series from Silhouette Desire. For anyone who’s read the previous titles in the series, this is Creed’s and Maya’s story…a story of forbidden love and long-suppressed desires.

FORTUNE'S FORBIDDEN WOMAN is part of a series, can you tell us about the process of writing a book that is part of a series?
Writing a book in a continuity series is definitely an interesting experience. When you write connected books as part of your own series, it’s complicated enough…keeping track of characters and events and such. But with this type of series, I got to work with several other authors and write a story that was closely connected to others. It gives new meaning to the idea of keeping track of characters and events. LOL

With this book, I was given notes for the entire series—every character, every plot, etc.—and then I was given specifics about my own story, and I was in charge of plotting things out the way I wanted them to go (while still falling in line with the other books in the series, of course), following up on the couples who had been introduced previously, and wrapping up the entire series in a satisfying, happily-ever-after way. That, I have to admit, was kind of neat.

What inspired the story?
The “Dakota Fortunes” series is a spin-off of previous “Fortunes” series developed by Silhouette Desire. I can’t say what inspired this particular story, exactly, since it was the brainchild of the Desire editors, but the characters are the offspring of previous Fortunes, with a very intricate family history. And I think Creed’s and Maya’s relationship may be the most intricate of those within the Dakota Fortune family; they had a lot to work through and a lot to overcome.

How much input do you have on covers?
Authors are always asked to give input on covers. I discuss ideas with my editor ahead of time and fill out an art fact sheet with details for the art department and artists—hair color, occupation, type of character, type of clothing, scene suggestions. And I’ve been very lucky, I’ve gotten some wonderful covers. Of course, there are never any guarantees that you’ll get a good cover or that you’ll end up with exactly what you wanted. I think the artists and art departments try to come up with a cover concept that is going to look good and be eye-catching. In the end, that’s the most important thing, anyway, not whether they give you the exact scene you wanted from the book or the right color of blouse on the heroine.

What do you hope readers get out of your books?
I hope readers get a few hours of enjoyment, a few smiles, and a moment at the end that makes them sigh. I just love a book that’s so good, you don’t want to say goodbye to the characters and can’t help giving a little sigh on the last page. That’s the type of story I try to tell every time, and the type of reaction I hope readers have each time they read one of my books.

What is your favorite part of being a writer? Least favorite?
I love creating great characters and entertaining stories. I love it when I’m writing and actually find that I’m amusing myself.

I hate revisions. I know it’s part of the writing process, but once a story is finished, I want to be able to move on to the next without having to stop and go back to work out kinks in the previous one. And—oh, yeah—don’t editors know that every word I write is brilliant and perfect the first time around?!? Sheesh! :-P

Is there anything you would like to write, but haven’t? For example, any other genre you’d like to try?
Actually, the thing I’ve always most wanted to write is humorous contemporary. Really funny, sexy single titles a la Rachel Gibson or Susan Andersen. And , I have recently signed with St. Martin’s Press to do just that. I couldn’t be more excited, even though the idea of writing a big book after writing so many shorter ones is a little intimidating. But I’m already having a blast, and I’m delighted to really be able to let loose and work on something I’ve wanted to try my hand at for a long time.

If you were not an author, what would you do?
I would probably be a veterinarian, work at an animal shelter, or run a big cat sanctuary. (Can you tell I love, love, love animals?) Except for the veterinarian part, which would require entirely too much schooling and too little time for writing, I may still do the others eventually. The animal shelter part might be bad for me, as I’d end up bringing every single animal that wasn’t adopted home with me; so maybe I should just open my own shelter, that way they’d already be home. *g* And opening a big cat sanctuary isn’t out of the question, either. I’m starting with little cats of the domestic persuasion, but I’d love to be involved in rescuing and rehabilitating lions and tigers and cheetahs (oh, my!) one day, too.

How do you relax?
By reading, of course. There’s nothing better than curling up with a good book. And then there’s watching TV and movies. I do get a little obsessive about those.

What do you like to read?
Romance!—what do you think? Is there even anything else to read? I don’t care what kind…category or single title, romantic suspense, humorous contemporary, paranormal…I’ll read it all, but it has to be romance.


Thank you so much Heidi for the interview! Congrats on the great reviews! I look forward to reading many more of your books in the future and wish you much luck!

Everyone please remember to look for Heidi’s current release Fortune’s Forbidden Woman and her upcoming release, Heat Wave (July 2007)

Giveaway!
I have an unsigned copy of Blackmailed into Bed by Heidi Betts and some goodies to give away!

Contest has ended!
One entry per person please!!! Must be 18 to enter! One winner will be chosen randomly from all correct entries received by 11:59 pm EST June 10, 2007 and announced here on the blog (with winner's permission). Winner(s) will be notified via e-mail and asked to send their mailing address. E-mail addresses will only be used to contact you if you are the winner...they are not collected or used for anything else. Once notified, winners will have one week to respond or a new winner will be chosen.

Feel free to post about the contest and spread the word! Let me know if you have any questions!

If you have not read a Heidi Betts book, I highly recommend that you do!
Visit her site and check out her blog!