Mini-Review: DESPERATE MEASURES by Candice Hern

From Amazon: Customers who enjoy the traditional Regency Romances of Georgette Heyer will enjoy this witty Regency short story by New York Times bestselling author Candice Hern. Lydia Bettridge is a young woman suffering the pangs of unrequited love. To capture the attention of Geoffrey Danforth, the man who has stolen her heart but barely notices her, she has resorted to desperate measures with a seemingly clever plan. By engaging the help of Phillip, a friend of her brother's, to play the love-smitten fool in public, she hopes to pique the interest of her unnamed love. But when Geoffrey himself shows up to take Phillip's place, all her careful planning is turned upside down. What's a girl to do but to make the best of it? This short story was originally published in The Mammoth Book of Regency Romance.

A TALENT FOR TROUBLE by Jennifer Turano (Bethany House, October 2013)

From Bethany House's website: For years, Miss Felicia Murdock's every thought and action have been in pursuit of becoming a minister's wife. When the minister she'd set her sights on has other ideas, she decides something in her life needs to change--and soon--before she wastes any more time pretending to be someone she's not. If that means spreading her wings and embracing a more lively way of life, who's to say nay?
Grayson Sumner, Lord Sefton, has had more than enough of spreading his wings and only hopes to settle into the life of a respectable New York gentleman. Prompted by some friends to lift the spirits of the disappointed-in-love Miss Murdock, he is surprised to encounter an adventurous young lady with an unfortunate knack for stumbling into troublesome situations.
Just as Grayson decides he's had quite enough of her antics, his past comes back to haunt him and his presence in Felicia's life endangers her. As they work together to extricate themselves from this latest complication, will Grayson and Felicia decide they want to spend the rest of their lives keeping one another out of trouble?

Audience: Adult (Clean)

Genre: Historical Romance
Length: 352 pgs.

Rating: *** (Liked it)

To Tweet or Not to Tweet

Lately, I have heard so many authors (on Facebook, of course) lamenting about how useless Twitter is. So I couldn't hold in my opinions any longer. This is how you do Twitter and win friends and fans!

DO NOT post constantly and only about your book, and where it's on sale, and who read it, and who reviewed it, and on and on. People will tune you out and then it becomes pointless. Authors who have books releasing during a week are given a bit of leeway, but usually because they post about normal stuff 95% of the time.

DO interact. If you like a writer's book, tweet them about it. They'll love to hear it. They'll probably answer. Kiersten White and Shannon Hale--best selling YA authors, peeps!--have tweeted me. 

DO make writing friends. It's a fantastic writing community. It's how I got to know Sarah Eden. Even though Krista Jensen and I once lived only four hours apart in Wyoming, I became friends with her through Twitter. She's awesome. I even got to beta read for her a few months ago. It was my friendship with Melanie Jacobson that got me a pitch appointment with an editor at Covenant, who ended up requesting to see THE GAME PLAN. I wouldn't have gotten that fateful appointment if Melanie hadn't tweeted me. I met the fab Gina Denny and Suzanne Gale via Twitter (we followed some of the same people). 

DO stalk agents and publishers. There are amazing contests and chats via twitter that you will NOT see on Facebook. People hooking up with agents, finding out what agents are looking for, finding agents that are perfect for them. Isn't that, in and of itself, worth getting on twitter for?!?

Sure, okay, it's not for everyone and your writing career will probably survive if you just don't want to, but when I think of all the advantages, I know there's a reason I can't stay away!

So go forth! Tweet!

THE RELUCTANT BACHELORETTE by Rachael Anderson (HEA, 2012)

From Rachael Anderson's Blog: Unknowingly cast as the bachelorette for her town’s charity event, Taycee Emerson wants out. Especially when she discovers her old teenage crush, Luke Carney, is one of the bachelors and it's up to the viewers--not her--to decide which bachelors stay or go.

Coerced into participating, Taycee does what any self-preserving girl would do. She launches a subtle attack on Luke’s good name with the hope of getting him voted off the show. Unfortunately, Luke's an eye-for-an-eye kind of guy, and when he discovers what she's up to, it means revenge.

But when their pranks go south, will they screw up any chance they have at a future together, or will they be able to forgive and forget and prove that love really does conquer all?

Blog Tour Review: JUST ELLA by Annette K. Larsen (CreateSpace, August 2013)

Tour Schedule

Just Ella by Annette K. Larsen

Book Summary:
A Proper Romance
Ariella was only looking for a distraction, something to break up the monotony of palace life. What she found was a young man willing to overlook her title and show her a new and vibrant way of life. But when her growing feelings for Gavin spiral out of control and clash with the expectations of her station, she will discover that the consequences of her curiosity are far more severe than she’d imagined. I watched in helpless horror as two guards hauled Gavin to his feet and dragged him from the room. My voice was frozen, unable to protest as another guard took hold of my arm, leading me upstairs. From the confines of my room, I stared into the darkness beyond my window, hoping to catch one more glimpse of Gavin. He was gone, and I wondered if he would have been better off if he had never met me. I write clean romance. Why? Because that’s what I love to read, but over the years I’ve discovered it’s quite a challenge to find good clean romance. I believe it’s a genre that many people are looking for and too few authors are writing. My first novel, Just Ella, took me many years to write because I wanted it to be more than just a cutesy love story. I wanted it to have depth, to feel genuine. Hopefully I succeeded, but you’ll have to be the judge.

Amazon Paperback * Amazon Kindle

Review: GLIMMER OF HOPE by Sarah M. Eden (Covenant, 2013)

From DeseretBook.com: Stunning Miranda Harford once had the world at her feet. She was young, carefree, and desperately in love. But when her new husband left for London without her, her world fell apart. Devastated by his abandonment, Miranda fled their home, taking residence at her husband’s rarely visited countryside estate. For three years, she lived alone. But now, as the holidays draw near, an unexpected visitor arrives . . .

Carter Alexander Harford, Seventh Viscount Devereaux, is a man driven to succeed. His work is his life, and the position of Prime Minister of England is within reach. But in truth, Carter is a man haunted by lost love. Estranged from his beautiful wife, Carter is shocked to find Miranda—the woman he loved and who he believed left him—in residence at his country home.

As plans for a holiday party move forward, the uneasy couple realizes that to avoid further scandal, they must keep up appearances in a charade of marital happiness. Thrust together by fate, it quickly becomes clear that they have both been living beneath a conspired cloud of misunderstanding. As family, career, and social pressures threaten to keep them apart, can love have even a glimmer of hope?

Lessons In Storytelling from a Three-Minute Viral Video

I've seen this video around a lot the last few days, but usually when I'm checking out social media, I'm popping in for a minute or two. I scan statuses, tweets, whatnot, but I don't always watch the great videos people post. This one was absolutely worth is. Watch it. Then let's discuss how it shows excellent storytelling in three short minutes. (Don't worry. It's in Thai, but there are subtitles. Not that you'd need them actually...)




This video is three-minutes long and tells an excellent story. Why?

1. No long explanations
In three minutes, the makers of the video didn't have time for long-winded back story--there is still back story and setup, but we're shown exactly what we need and no more. The little boy needed medicine. The man paid for it and the boy runs away. We see by his giving the homeless man food too that this man regularly gives back to others.

2. The characters are relatable
The storytelling makes us care about the characters--about the little boy who's so desperate to help his mom he will steal medicine; a kind man and the daughter who would do anything for him. Two and a half minutes with them is all it took to make me cry.

3. The story has a familiar structure
First we have the brief set-up, followed by the catalyst (the father's illness) that moves the story into the second act (how will the daughter pay for the bills?). It seems like she will lose everything to save her father (conflict, something to fight for). Then the story resolves as the twist is revealed--the doctor is the little boy the kind man helped out all those years ago.

In three minutes. Stories don't have to be long, sweeping tales to be epic. This video proves it.