Yes I AM on a Kristan Higgins binge! This week I finished off  All I Ever Wanted and immediately bought The Next Best Thing. This one has my heart aching for Ethan. Although there is no male POV in her stories (that I've read so far, anyway) I can see what's going on with him so clearly, which is really well done. Pretty sure I'm going to read another KH book after this...

So how do you like the new photo? I'm kinda liking it!

This past week I've continued working on my two main works in progress, going back and forth between them, and it's been going great! I've been cranking out some great word count, though I did get a little hung up yesterday, so I went for a run and did some yard work. Today I broke through the little writer's block.

Last week I also spent some time working on a plotting spreadsheet. This isn't as scary as it sounds. I've learned I'm not a plotter, or I shouldn't be anyway, because it takes all the fun out of writing when I know what's going to happen. But as I write (this is my own process) I have some looseleaf sheets that I jot down notes about each scene and chapter - the page numbers, whose point of view it's in, a few words about what happens. This helps me pace myself, so I know when I need a hook to end a scene or chapter, so I know I'm not writing too much in one character's point of view, and so I know when I'm getting close to a turning point (which I do plan out ahead). Lately I've been highlighting the character POV with different colour markers and adding in the plot, subplot or secondary plot that's in the scene also with coloured pens, thanks to the last workshop I took.

So I decided to try a spreadsheet instead of paper and it's been working well. I could use it to plot the whole story, but I just use it to do my scene notes as I go. It shows the word count for each scene as well as the TOTAL word count, and I've got colours for each POV and plot line. It has spaces for the scene goal (which I usually know before I write) and a short summary of the scene (which I don't know until after I write it - sometimes those darn characters just take over!) So I'm pretty happy with my plot spreadsheet!

Here's a little snippet from my upcoming Ellora's Cave release, Taming Tara - coming November 26!!

Also you can see the trailer here

      She poured a small amount of olive oil into a plastic cup. “Place it in the palm of your hand and cover it with your fingers to warm it,” she instructed Joe, showing him with a small cup of her own. “After a minute or two, hold the cup under your nose to appreciate the bouquet of the oil.”
     They lifted the cups to their noses.
     “Remember earlier I said the organoleptic properties were taste, aroma, feel?”
      He nodded. “It smells like olive oil,” he said, wrinkling his nose and flashing those appealing dimples.
      She laughed. “Okay. Now place a small amount of oil on your lower lip, and with the tip of your tongue, taste the oil for its degree of sweetness.”
      Oh God. This might have been a big mistake. Watching his tongue come out and lick his full bottom lip was so sexy. She cleared her throat. “Now, sip the oil and taste for spiciness, using the sides of your tongue.”
      She waited.
      “First, what do you feel?” she asked him, watching his face.
      “Mmm…” His dark brows drew down. “It feels smooth…oily.”
      “How about thick? Sticky? Cooling?”
      He shook his head. “Yes. It’s thick and smooth but…not cooling, it’s…warmer.”
      Huh. How about that. “Good. And what do you taste?”
      “I would say this is…kind of peppery.”
       “Wow. I’m impressed. Here, try it with some bread.” She ripped a hunk off a crusty loaf and handed it to him. He dipped it in the oil and chewed on it thoughtfully.
      “It’s peppery and warm, but not really biting.”
      “It’s not making you feel like you have to cough? Not burning in the back of the throat?”
      “I do feel it in the back of my throat, but not like I’m going to cough.”
      “Good. It mellows over time. This is our Arbosana. It’s a perfect complement to traditional, rustic dishes such as bruschetta with garlic, pasta and beans, panzanella.”
      Joe grinned. “Sounds like home. And it’s not pasta and beans—it’s pasta e fagioli.”
      He said it with an Italian roll to the words that was so freakin’ sexy she felt herself melt deep inside.
      Drawing in a deep breath, she poured more oil into a clean cup and they continued their tasting. Watching Joe savor the tastes, closing his eyes to get a deeper appreciation of the aromas and tastes and feel of the oils was a disconcertingly arousing experience. He was a sensual man, obviously enjoying the sensory pleasures of the olive oils. Her lower abdomen grew warm and achy and she squeezed her thighs together.

Except it's Thurday *hanging head with shame at being such a delinquent blogger*

I finished Mini Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella. Not my favourite book of hers either. It had a couple of funny moments, but for me there wasn't enough about Mnnie (cute name; get it?). I never sensed the maternal love Becky has for Minnie, in fact they didn't spend a lot of time together and when Minnie has "issues" they hire a professional nanny to deal with it instead of dealing with it themselves. That disappointed. me. I do sense another story coming, though, with Luke reconcilitation with his mother  - any bets?? :-)

I then read another Kristan Higgins books, Just One of the Guys. LOVED this book! Chastity really stuck in my mind, what a great character. Since I liked it so much, I bought All I Ever Wanted, also by Kristan Higgins. Just started it last night. My third book of hers and I'm starting to see the pattern...

Okay - what happened to my picture!  Look at the thing go! Do you realize I never knew until just now that it was animated? I wonder if everyone else has been seeing that?  I think I may need to search out a new image! (Not that it's not appropriate for some of my stories!)

I've really been on a writing roll this week! I've been turning out between 2000 and 4000 words nearly every day, and man does it feel good after a long dry spell. Last week I mentioned I'd been working on Gabe's story and then switched over to With Strings Attached. I wrote and wrote on that story up until today, and then went back to Gabe's for a while. Gabe's story is at about 21,000 words and With Strings Attached is over 32,000 so I'm really happy with my progress. In fact, I was so busy writing I forgot to write this blog post yesterday. And now...cracking the WHIP...back to work!

Here's the cover I just got for my next Ellora's Cave release. 

Tara Lockhart has had to be tough and in control to prove to her grandfather, and the rest of the world, that she can run the family business. But when Grandpa hires Joe Scaletta to help manage the business, her control is threatened.

At Le Château, Tara believes she’ll find what she really wants—men who will let her be strong and dominant and in control.

Joe is desperate to make a success of this job after his career tanked in a disastrous scandal. When he runs into Tara at Le Château, her Dominatrix act doesn’t fool him—he can see the submission inside her. He knows if he can show her that side of herself, it will make his new job a helluva lot easier. But teaching Tara to see inside herself becomes more than just a business strategy—it becomes personal.

I don't have a release date yet so stay tuned!

I finished Prince of Midnight by Laura Kinsale. It was a good book but not my favourite of hers. I found several times there was so much tension I had to put the book down. So many bad things happen! This story was mainly from the hero's point of view, which normally I like, and I did like this hero, Sophocles Trafalger :-), it was the heroine I had some problems with. She had a tragic past, certainly, but I think getting inside her head a little more would have made her more sympathetic. And I got frustrated because so many times they seemed so close to getting together but all that keeps them apart is their fear of expressing their feelings. Which is certainly a legitimate fear, except he'd told her over and over he loved her so I didn't quite get why she didn't believe him.

Now I'm reading Mini Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella. Am I in a bad mood lately or what? Because I love Sophie Kinsella and I love Rebecca, except she has a baby now and I don't have as much patience for her selfishness. When you have a baby everything changes. Maybe that's what Bex will learn by the end of the book, I'm still just in the early chapters.

Okay so the picture is ropes not chains...

Well I've been successful at the writing this week! And it feels soooooo good!

I went back to Gabe's story. Sorry, I don't have a better title yet. I suck at titles. Sometimes they come so easy and perfect...and sometimes they just don't come. Did I tell you the story of titling my next EC release? No? Okay!
This story has to have gone through the most titles ever. When I first wrote it I called it What She Really Wants. I didn't like it. In its first incarnation it didn't have the BDSM elements and when I rewrote it I didn't think that really fit. I then named it Taming Carina. I thought it kind of went with the "Taming of the Shew" thing I had going, but I didn't really like that either. When I submitted it to my editor at EC I titled it Power Exchange. PERFECT!!! I loved it, and it went with my last story, Power Struggle. The stories aren't really connected other than by Le Chateau, the club the characters belong to, but I thought having a series of names was good. BUT...that title had already been used. Pout. I had to change it. Not only that, I had to change the hero's name because I'd used an overused name. Now THAT was painful. I'd come to know and love Cole...and suddenly had to change his name. I suggested two other names to my editor and she rejected both of them, one already used, another she felt didn't really give a good sense of the story. Finally, I ended up changing the heroine's name too, to Tara, and naming it Taming Tara, which has a better sound than Taming Carina. But both characters' names had to change. My god it was like changing the names of my teenage children, I tell you.

A little side story.

Anyhoo...I wrote a lot on Gabe's story. Realized I'd screwed up a little on his background, based on what I wrote about him in Power Struggle. Have to fix a few things, but should be easy. Got to a point where I was "written out". I wonder if other writers experience that? I sometimes write and write and write and then I'm just....done. For a while. Like I need to refill the well of inspiration or something. Sometimes it only takes going for a run, or doing something else for an hour...sometimes a little longer. Just need ideas to strike me.

This time instead of going for a run (which would have been healthier, I admit) I went back to another WIP, With String Attached. I read through the 11,000 words I'd written, seems like such a long time ago. It felt so laborious when I was writing that, and I know I was going through a hard time, but when I read it...wow! It was sharp and fun and seemed really easy!

My lesson this week: Have faith in your writing. Even when it seems hard, DO IT. (Like Nike says, LOL). Just do it.

Yay it's Friday! I have a review to share from The Romance Studio, for Power Struggle. I got this while I was away on vacation last week and it made me SO happy! (Speaking of my vacation, I posted a little about it and some superawesome photos taken by my husband over at Nine Naughty Novelists today).

The Romance Studio gave Power Struggle 5 HEARTS!

 "Power Struggle is a story that sizzles with its intense sensuality, deep-seated passion and extremely emotional pull that packs a powerful punch...a richly detailed story that is brimming over with sexual tension, intoxicating desires and intriguing carnal needs that is edgy and psychologically intense. The bold, daring and compelling plotline teases and engages reader's hearts and mind for a superb way to spend a few entertaining hours. The characters display a great depth of personality, moral fiber, emotion as well as attraction and readers will feel and believe Tori and Dev's passionate adventures... Kudos to author Kelly Jamieson for another fantastic winner!"

I finished Match Me If You Can by Susan Elizabeth Phillips last week. Loved this book! Great characters. I couldn't put it down. Then I read Burning Up by Susan Andersen, another fav contemporary author. I really enjoyed this story too - not a lot of angsty conflict, but some great characters, a great story and spicy heat!

Now I'm reading Prince of Midnight by Laura Kinsale. Just got into it on the plane yeterday after working on edits on my next Ellora's Cave release until my computer battery died. :-)

Thought I'd post one more picture from my vacation. That's me and my kids, our first morning in Santa Barbara, sitting at the end of Stearns Wharf. We could hear the sea lions barking out on the buoy. They made us laugh.

Yes this blog is a day late but I spent all day Monday travelling and had no internet access. Now I'm home from my wonderful vacation in California. But that wonderful vacation meant I got no writing done whatsoever last week.

But that's not entirely true, because as you know from reading this weekly blog, writing isn't just about writing. Huh? I mean, there's the editing and the researching and the planning, and also the business of writing. And I did do all of those other things last week. I got another round of edits on my next Ellora's Cave release, Taming Tara, and I did work on those during my vacation when we had some quiet time back at the hotel. I also did some research - I went to the historical museum and the library to do research for the historical romance I have "in progress". I did some other research on a book that is in the planning stages by travelling to the Santa Ynez Valley and really, all my time in Santa Barbara, Montecito and Ventura could count as research because I set nearly all my books there, or in fictional California towns just like them. I did a little planning work and I also kept up with the "business of writing" with emails and Twitter and blogging. So it's not like I wasn't doing ANYTHING over the last week :-)

I've been pretty distracted from my writing over the last month or so, as you'll know from reading my blog, and I got some good news last week that I think will help with that. I'm really hoping that I can get my head back into writing and not thinking about the "business" of writing and start being really productive again. Wish me luck!

But here are a few pics from our whale watching trip the other day.

These are Common Dolphins swimming right in front of the boat.

This is the tail of one of the Humpback whales we saw - there were three of them swimming together and they got so close to the boat we got sprayed by them!



This is Santa Cruz Island, one of the Channel Islands.

This is a Risso Dolphin. They were much bigger and slower than the Common Dolphins and didn't want to come play with us.





Well this is kind of funny, Today I go to post my "What I'm Reading Wednesday" blog and I checked back to see what I posted last week and...discovered last week's post was still in draft. It never posted. *Sigh*. So here are 2 weeks worth of what I'm reading:


Last week:
I finished Renegaed by Lora Leigh. I think I said enough about this book last week.

I'm now reading Seize the Fire by Laura Kinsale. Can't. Put. It. Down.
I so admire how all her heroes and heroines are so different.

This week:
I finished Seize the Fire. I loved the book, my only complaint was the ending. It was heart wrenching, hearing what happened to Sheridan, I loved the emotion of it, but the ending where Olympia reacts and accepts him seemed a bit too abrupt. I think it would have been more satisfying with just a bit more, there.

Then I read Just My Type by Erin Nicholas. Great story! I did love the character growth but once more, there was a character who had me on the edge of being so frustrated! When Mac married Sara and then wouldn't sleep with her, in fact abandoned her, I just wanted to yell at her for putting up with that! But liked the ending.

Now I'm reading Match Me If You Can by Susan Elizabeth Phillips.

And just a reminder: If any of you haven't read my very first Samhain book Love Me, now's your chance to get it for FREE (who doesn't love free???) at Amazon here ! For a while it was the #1 bestseller ("seller") in contemporary romance at Amazon!









I have a fondness for this story and for the characters Gavin and Melina who are learning to communicate and getting into (and out of) trouble in their relationship! Gavin and Melina's story continues in Love Me More and then in 2 Hot 2 Handle, Abby gets her own love story.

Before I talking about what I'm writing this week, I have to mention the Nine Naughty Novelists Anniversary Contest !  We're having a month long scavenger hunt and all the details are at our blog. November 9 will be our first anniversary so we're giving away some books and  $50 Amazon gift certificate!

Over the last week I have been writing again. Not a lot, but some. I'm still quite distracted by a lot of "writing business" issues but getting better. I was working on my new menage idea (as I mentioned, tentatively titled With Strings Attachd) and then go a little stuck. I believe I may have experienced writer's block!  My solution: work on something else. So I went back to Gabe's story and started zipping along with it. And it's going pretty well, actually! Since this story is set in Santa Barbara and that's where I actually am this week, hopefully the beautiful setting will provide inspiration. (see photo below!)

Also worked on edits last week, first round edits of my next Ellora's Cave release, Taming Tara. Just got second round of edits from my editor yesterday so will be working on that again this week.

I like these little teaser excerpts! Here's another (unedited) one from my upcoming Ellora's Cave release Taming Tara. As you may know, this is a modern day BDSM version of the Taming of the Shrew. I hate to call Tara a shrew or even a bitch, but she's a strong, determined woman who learns a lot about herself. 

A short time later Joe carried a tray with a plate stacked with toast and peanut butter and two cups of coffee—both black, no cream or milk to be found, so he hoped Tara could handle that—down the hall into the bedroom. Tara rolled over in bed as he walked in, half awake.


Her honey-blonde hair hung in tousled strands around her face, eyes sleepy, mouth swollen. She was fucking sexy as hell. His dick twitched.

“I thought I smelled something,” she murmured, shoving her hair back.

He set the tray on a dresser and carried her cup of coffee to her.

She sat up and took it in both hands. “You made breakfast?” She peered up at him.

“Yup. Not much to choose from. Sorry your coffee’s black.” He paused.

She shrugged and sipped it. “I can drink it black. Mmm. This is good.”

“And I found a loaf of bread in the freezer.”

She shook her head, eyes questioning him. “Um…thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He sat on the bed, the plate of toast between them, his own cup in his hands, and leaned forward to kiss her.

“I’m starving,” she said. “Cheese and crackers wasn’t enough dinner for me.”

“Me either.”

“Do I get to get dressed today?” she asked him, with just a hint of snark.

He considered that. “I don’t know. I’d love to keep you naked, but the truth is, that just makes me horny, and without condoms…”

She lowered her chin. “I have to go home.”

“Why?”

“I…uh…”

“If you tell me you have to go in to the office, there’s no way in hell you’re getting any clothes back.”

She blinked at him. “Uh…”

He grinned. “It’s the weekend. Neither of us has any reason to go back.”

“Yes, but…”

He shrugged and took another bite of toast. “So, we’ll get condoms. There must be somewhere around here.”

“Santa Ynez.” She snapped her mouth shut. Joe grinned.

She sighed. “It’s only a few miles away. It’s kind of a cute little town.”

“Perfect,” he said. “I’ve never been there. Let’s go check out Santa Ynez.”

“I’m going to need clothes.”

He laughed at the waspish tone in her voice. “Oh, all right, if you insist.”

“And I need a shower.”

He grinned and stroked up her spine. “A shower sounds good. Let’s go.”

I've been working on a new story idea this week, tentatively titled With Strings Attached. Got this idea last week and had to start it. I know, I know, writing ADD yet again. It's going pretty well, although only about 10,000 words in.

Also did a big round of editing on my next Ellora's Cave release - editing commas, that is. Sheesh. Why can't I get it right? Different publishers have their own style preferences and I never seem to get it right. This time I was taking them out and putting them right back in somewhere else. In fact the majority of the edits were commas. Oy. I guess it's better than having to rewrite something major though.

If any of you haven't read my very first Samhain book Love Me, now's your chance to get it for FREE (who doesn't love free???) at Amazon here !

I have a fondness for this story and for the characters Gavin and Melina who are learning to communicate and getting into (and out of) trouble in their relationship! Gavin and Melina's story continues in Love Me More and then in 2 Hot 2 Handle, Abby gets her own love story.

Well I haven't read a whole heck of a lot this week! I'm now reading Renegade by Lora Leigh. This is an auto buy for me, but I think might be my last one. At least for a while. Having a definite feelings of deja vu. All seems very similar to all her other books. And this book is little repetitious, too, I'm sorry to say, with a not very strong conflict keeping them apart.