VALENTINE'S DAY WAYBACK STYLE

Welcome to my blog. I'm so excited. Today seven talented WayBack authors join me, and we're showcasing our cowboys and their ladies' special Valentine moments. We hope their stories bring warmth to your day and ideas to surprise your special valentine.

AJ





FINDING THEIR WAY BACK by Cindy Spencer Pape

“This is wonderful,” Freya Malone said as she leaned back on the picnic blanket and let the sun warm her cheeks.

“Well, it’s our first Valentine’s Day,” her husband Zane said, stretching out beside her. “I wanted it to be perfect.” As if to add emphasis, one of the horses tethered to a tree behind them nickered.

“And your mother is thrilled to babysit,” Free added. “I adore Daniel, but it is nice to have a little break.” Not that she was complaining. With Zane’s parents living on the Triple M ranch with them, she had all the help she needed with their three-month-old son.

“Nice to spend a little time alone with my wife,” Zane agreed, leaning down for a kiss. When he’d finished, they were both breathless. Then he pulled a small package from his pocket.

With trembling fingers, she unwrapped it, revealing a heart-shaped turquoise pendant on a heavy silver chain.

“This belonged to my grandmother,” Zane began as he took it from her to clasp the chain around her neck. “My grandfather was an Irish cowboy who saved up and bought some land. He fell in love with a Mexican waitress, and they took a lot of crap from local bigots. But they loved each other until the day they died.”

Tears welled up in Free’s eyes. She loved him so very much. “Thank you.”

His hand cupped her cheek as his dark eyes gazed lovingly into hers. “I know our romance was fast—we never dated, we got married in March, had baby in November. But I wanted to tell you the same thing my Grandad told his wife. I want you to know you’ll always have my heart.”

To order Finding Their Way Back go to :
http://www.thewildrosepress.com/anthologies-c-149.html


Cindy Spencer Pape
www.cindyspencerpape.com
www.cindyspencerpape.blogspot.com
Wayback titles: All the Way Back
& After the Rodeo in Finding Their Way Back

**********

FINDING THEIR WAY BACK by Stacy Dawn
One Starlit Valentines:

Hard to believe he’s really here.

Sometimes the unbelievable path her life had taken still amazed Elizabeth. She wiped at the blissful tear tickling her cheek as she watched the large cowboy brush their young daughter’s curls as he softly sang Gretal a lullaby.

The low timbre of his voice rumbled through her chest like the first roll of thunder on a cool spring night. Would there come a time she ever got used to this? She hoped not. These moments were all the more special because of the time they’d already wasted.

When finished, he turned and came to stand before her in the doorway.

“Keep looking at me like that, Lizzy, and I’ll forget about this Valentine’s Day dance and show you what I’d really rather be doing tonight.” His warm lips came down and showed her exactly what he had in mind. “Maybe we could work on giving Gretal a little brother or sister?” he suggested, now nuzzling her neck.

“Well, I planned to save this as your Valentine’s gift tonight,” she managed to sigh out. “But since we’re skipping the party—”

His head pulled back slightly; a roguish grin, curved beneath eyes dark with desire, left her breathless.

“Let’s just say we don’t have to work very hard at all.”

Link to buy: http://www.thewildrosepress.com/anthologies-c-149.html


www.stacydawn.com

***********
THE WRONG SIDE OF LOVE by Sylvie Kaye

Lili rolled her neck, weary from twelve hours on her feet in the beauty shop. Today was Valentine’s Day and every regular wanted her hair done for the big night of anticipated romance. From past experience, she knew some gals would be back next week bemoaning their big disappointments. In Lili’s opinion too much importance was placed on the day.

Love was every day. Love was the little things.

By the time she dragged herself home, propped up her aching feet and flicked on the TV, Luc drove up. He’d been out of town on business and looked as bone tired as she felt.

“Hi, beautiful.” He bent, kissed her slow and tender. “Mmm..I’ve missed you,” he said, pulling away to tug off his jacket. Before tossing it, he patted the pocket as if remembering something. “They set candy out at the meeting. Know how much you love a chocolate bar.”

Her heart warmed. Even with his hectic schedule he’d thought of her.

Just then a TV commercial blared. Something about saying it with jewelry, flowers, and greeting cards this Valentine’s Day.

Luc’s shoulders slumped. His dark eyes met hers. “I forgot.”

“No you didn’t.” She smiled at him, unwrapping the chocolate bar, breaking off a piece to savor while he sat down next to her and draped his arm around her shoulder.

To order THE WRONG SIDE OF LOVE go to:
http://www.thewildrosepress.com/books-in-series-wayback-texas-c-172_173.html?page=2&sort=7a

Slip under the covers with Sylvie Kaye
LOVING JILLY July 9, 2010 The Wild Rose Press
BANNED IN TEXAS~In Print at Amazon.com & Barnes&Noble
WRONG SIDE OF LOVE,Wayback, Tx~The Wild Rose Press
DEVIL IN COWBOY BOOTS ~Amazon and B&N
HER MAINE MAN~In ebook and print at TWRP
Contest and Excerpts at www.sylviekaye.com


*****************************

OBSESSED BY WILDFIRE
By Autumn Jordon


Isobel slipped out of Warner’s truck and was immediately trapped by his hard body. Her shawl fell from her shoulders and Warner’s warm lips caressed her exposed bare skin. The man’s maleness wrapped around her senses, crushing her defenses into dust. Her knees buckled as tingles followed his assault over her dress’s thin strap, up the cord of her neck to the sensitive area under her lobe.

Tilting her head toward the snow moon, Isobel’s eyes drifted close. “We’re together six months and you still can’t wait until we get inside?”

“Remember our first date?” He mumbled against her ear.

“I’ll never forget. You wanted me so bad.”

He pulled back and chuckled. “I wanted you. You ripped my shirt off before I made it up the porch steps.”

“I think all the smoke you’ve inhaled while investigating fires has affected your memory, Yankee.” With her hands splayed on his hard chest, she pushed him back. “Why don’t we head in and I’ll show exactly how you assaulted me.” She entwined her fingers with his and started toward the house only to be yanked back.

“I need to show you something first.” Grabbing both her hands, Warner backpedaled toward the barn.

“No. I’m not dressed for the loft.”

“Trust me.”

Isobel laughed. “I’m in trouble if I do that.”

Warner rolled back the barn door and hit the light switch.

Lizzy whinnied.

Isobel took a moment to give the mare now completely blind in her right eye a treat of winter apple. As the horse’s soft muzzle tickled her palm, Isobel wished she’d find another horse as great as Lizzy was at the barrels and as pretty as the Appaloosa she’d seen at auction last week.

“Come on.” Warner’s hot breath brushed her ear.

Her new dress would smell of straw and beast if Warner had his way. The gravel floor crunched as Isobel dug her FMN cowgirl boot heels into its firmness. “No way I’m going to make out—”

A nicker drew Isobel’s attention to a stall that should be empty. “What was that?

She peered through the bars at the handsome Appaloosa colt she’d lost to a higher bidder at the auction. Her heart thumped under her breast. “I don’t understand. How?”

Warner’s eyes danced with wicked joy. “I knew how much you wanted him. Happy Valentine’s Day, sweetheart.”

Isobel laced her fingers around Warner’s neck and pulled him closer. “Yankee, you’re going to get your shirt ripped off again.”

To order OBSESSED BY WILDFIRE visit The Wild Rose Press
http://www.thewildrosepress.com/obsessed-by-wildfire-p-3839.html

www.autumnjordon.com
2009 Golden Heart Finalist EVIL'S WITNESS coming June 18, 2010 TWRP



*****************


BLUEST HEART by Amber Lehigh WIllimas

Josie Brusky had been on her feet pretty much since dawn. Valentine’s Day made Josie’s Treasures—Wayback, Texas’s solo gift shop—the one-stop place for every cowboy with a sweetheart from a hundred miles around. Now she was finally home and her arches were screaming for some downtime.

As she walked into the house, she kicked off her heels then frowned. The jars of candles around the room were lit. A vase-full of bluebonnets overflowed with blooms on the coffee table. And the scent of something zesty tickled her nostrils. Following the sound of country music, she made her way back toward the kitchen.

Her jaw dropped. Standing at the counter, beer at his elbow, white Stetson pulled low over his eyes, Casey Ridge poured marinade over two thick, juicy-looking steaks.

It wasn’t the fact that the man was cooking that stopped her in her tracks. What astounded her was the fact that he wore a starched, white KISS THE COOK apron…and nothing else but the Stetson and cowboy boots.

Josie clapped a hand over her mouth as a wide grin broke over her face. Thoughts of a good glass of wine and a quick nap flitted out of her head as she stepped across the tile floor.

He turned his head and grinned, dimples digging into his sun-bronzed cheeks and blue eyes gleaming. “Hey there, pretty lady.”

“Well, well.” She shook her head, skimming her eyes from his hat to his boot-clad toes then back up again, enjoying the view. Sliding her hands up his chest and onto his shoulders, she beamed into his face. “You really know how to make a cowgirl happy on Valentine’s.”

He bent his head to kiss her. “Like the apron?”

“I’m thinking about untying it, actually.” She pursed her lips, considering. “You know, I think I’ll dress to match.”

“Ooh.” He smirked as she backed away, hand slipping from his. “Wear the red boots.”

She threw a suggestive wink over her shoulder. “You betcha.”


Amber Leigh Williams
URL: www.amberleighwilliams.com
amber@amberleighwilliams.com

See more of Casey and Josie in BLUEST HEART, available now from The Wild Rose Press. Meet the first hero of The Wayback Ridge trilogy, silent cowboy Judd Black in BLACKEST HEART—also available now from The Wild Rose Press. Look for BET IT ON MY HEART, the final story in the Ridge family saga, March 3, 2010!


************



Finding Their Way by Roni Adams

“Dusty?”

“Yeah, I’m in here.” He walked back down the barn aisle past the empty stalls. As he reached the doorway he stopped in his tracks. His wife held the reins of two of the most beautiful horses he had ever seen.

He frowned. “Who’s horses?” He reached out to touch them; his expert gaze roamed down the animals appreciating their muscular form.

“Their mine. I’d like to hire you to train them.” Her blue eyes sparkled.

“Car,” he startd. She knew how he felt about her spending any of her own money on his new horse training business.

She stepped forward. “You asked if I wanted candy or flowers for Valentine’s Day. I couldn’t decide.” She waved her arm towards the two matching horses. “This one is Candy and this one is Flowers.”

He tried to be mad at her but she was so damned cute thinking she’d outsmarted him. “It’s not a present if you paid for it yourself.”

“Oh you’ll pay, cowboy.” She slid her gaze down his body and wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

He snaked his arm around her waist and pulled her hard into his arms. “Its probably going to take me a long time to work off that bill.”

She linked her arms around his neck. “Then I suggest you put my horses away, while I slip upstairs and wait for you to come to work.”

With a quick kiss she slipped from his arms and was gone. Dusty stared after her not entirely sure how on earth she managed to give him the best Valentine’s Day gift ever.

Link to buy: http://www.thewildrosepress.com/anthologies-c-149.html


Roni Adams
www.roniadams.blogspot.com
www.roniadams.com
Watch for the fourth in the Double B Series "The Cowboy's Duet" due out fall 2010

*************
Re-ride at the Rodeo
By Anne Carrole


Clay shoved his hands in the pockets of his worn and dusty jeans as he stared at the wide expanse of Texas land he called home. Would she like it, he wondered, not really sure what he’d do if she didn’t. Dusty was a small town girl, used to having lots of people around. He kicked at the hard earth. Dirt and pebbles sprayed against the tire of his pick-up.

In the distance a cloud of red dust barreled toward him. Her Silverado stopped a few feet from Clay and within a heartbeat Dusty was bounding out of the cab, her long blonde hair flying. Grabbing him around the neck, she planted a heart-stopping kiss on his lips. She still had that effect on him, months into their engagement. The June date for their wedding couldn’t come fast enough. And yet, he worried it might never happen.

“Your mom sent me out here.” She looked up at him with questions in her beautiful blue eyes. Clad in jeans and a t-shirt, this petite, fine-boned woman looked remarkably at home on his ranch. Today he’d find out if that was just wishful thinking.

“I’ve got your Valentine’s gift in the truck,” he said, taking a step back.

She looked into his pick-up’s cab. “Where?” she asked with the eagerness of a little girl looking for her surprise.

Clay reached into the truck’s flat bed. “Here.” He drew up a white picket section of fence, a bow tied on one of the boards.

She blinked, a puzzled expression on her face. “A fence?”

“Yup. A white picket fence. Which I was hoping you’d want to situate right about here.” He set the fence posts down in the holes he’d dug earlier.

The frown that had furrowed her brow gave way to a smile. “For our house?”

“I thought this wouldn’t be too far from the road or from the main house, but far enough we won’t have to worry about the kids playing in the yard or my mother dropping by too often. Developer said it could be done by May.”

Dusty laughed, the sunlight glinting in her eyes. “I can’t believe it. Our home.”

The pressure on his heart eased and Clay gathered her to him. “And with those two words, you just gave me my Valentine’s gift, honey.”

Buy Link: http://www.thewildrosepress.com/reride-at-the-rodeo-wayback-texas-series-p-991.html
Re-ride at the Rodeo
By Anne Carrole
http://www.annecarrole.com


*************

SHADOW OF THE HAWK by Judith Rochelle



Maggie Riley walked into the living room, the twins finally asleep and the ranch settled for the night, and smiled at her husband. Hawk stood beside the stone fireplace, waiting for her, reaching out to take her hands as she neared him.

“Maggie, mine.” His eyes were dark with passion and love as he drew her near. “The day we met I would have died if not for you, You not only saved me that day but for always. You made me want to live again. And love. Oh, yes, definitely love. And I want you to remember every day of our lives how much you mean to me.”

He handed her the box. Maggie’s hands trembled as she opened it and tears gathered in her eyes as she lifted the necklace from its cotton nest. A silver heart with a hawk etched into its surface swung from a graceful chain.

“Oh, Hawk.” She was so overcome with emotion she couldn’t find the right words.

“It’s my heart, darlin’. It belongs to you and no one else. I wanted to give you a very special Valentine’s Day gift to show you just how much you mean to me.”

He took the chain from her shaking hands, fastened it around her neck and pulled her close for a passionate kiss. When he finally lifted his mouth from hers, Maggie lifted her hands and touched his cheeks.

“I love you so much, Hawk. And I have a special gift for you, too.”
He cocked one eyebrow, questioningly.

“You do? I don’t see any packages.”

She looked into his eyes, so full of love it nearly brought her to her knees.

“It won’t arrive for a few months yet. Happy Valentine’s Day, Hawk. We’re having another child.”

Link to buy Shadow Of The Hawk: http://www.thewildrosepress.com/books-in-series-wayback-texas-c-172_173.html?page=2&sort=7a

Judith Rochelle
www.judithrochelle.com
romantic suspense with a twist

Welcome Margie Lawson

Hi, everyone and welcome to my blog. I'm totally honored to have Margie as my guest today. If you've taken any of her classes, you know you're going to learn a lot reading her post today. So get out your highlighters, red pens and notebooks and welcome her.

RHYTHM and CADENCE and BEATS. Oh my!

Lions and tigers and bears. Oh my!

I can see Dorothy, the Scare Crow and the Tin Man skipping down the Yellow Brick Road. The cadence of their sing-song line is similar to the heading for this section.

Rhythm and cadence and beats. Oh my!

Rhythm, cadence, beats--no matter which term you choose--it’s an internal assessment. No real rules apply. You know what sounds right and what sounds wrong.

You only know how it sounds if you read your work out loud. Frequently.

Read the last two paragraphs out loud. How’d they sound?

I could have written:

It is important to pay attention to the rhythm inherent in your written work. You could refer to this rhythm as cadence or a beat. It does not matter which terms you use. Understanding the rhythm of writing is an internal assessment. There are no real rules that the author can apply. You can only tell if the rhythm is right by reading your work out loud. You will know if it sounds wrong.

OKAY – Read that wordy block (above) out loud.

Is there anything pleasing about the way the words and sentences are arranged?

It’s written in a textbook fashion. Bor-ring. Bor-ring. Bor-ring.

What are textbook authors thinking? They often do an excellent job obfuscating what could be interesting information in an obdurate style. And they use words like obfuscate (I’m thinking disguise) and obdurate (I’m thinking unyielding) which increase the snooze factor.

What about my next sentence (from above).

You only know how it sounds if you read your work out loud. Frequently.

That rhythm works for me. Even the sentence frag.

Read your work out loud. Trust your CADENCE EAR. Your cadence ear tells you if you got it right. Your cadence ear will smile.

Ha! Funny image.

Let’s look at what Dwight Swain, TECHNIQUES OF A SELLING AUTHOR, said about sentence structure in 1965.
Yep, that’s when that gem was published and it’s still a winner.

The following is from Swain’s TECHNIQUES OF A SELLING AUTHOR, page 32. It’s three paragraphs.

It demands little genius to recognize that too many short sentences, or long sentences, or simple, or complex, or periodic, or loose or what-have-you sentences are likely to grow tiresome.

The answer, obviously, is to introduce variety—variety of length, form, style, and so on. Many a tired old declarative sentence (He stalked off without a word) has been given a lift via rearrangement of its elements (Without a word, he stalked off) . . . rephrasing (Grim, wordless, he stalked off) . . . addition of some bit of action (Pivoting, he stalked off) . . . or of color (Face a cold mask of menace, he etc.), or the like.

On the other side of the fence, beware variety for variety’s own sake. The moment syntactical acrobatics attract attention to themselves, they also detract from your story; and that’s a sure road to disaster.

SWAIN MADE MY POINT FOR ME. Let’s look at that last sentence again.

The moment syntactical acrobatics attract attention to themselves, they also detract from your story; and that’s a sure road to disaster.

Note: Swain backloaded that sentence with his most important word, disaster.

SYNTACTICAL ACROBATICS. A power phrase for a power concept.

BEWARE of syntactical acrobatics. Any writing that creates a speedbump for the reader, writing that puts a hugs spotlight on the writing and away from the story – creates authorial intrusion by syntactical acrobatics.

Back to Rhythm and Cadence and Beats.

Do you read your work out loud?

How often?

Do you match the rhythm to the scene?

Brandilyn Collins, author of GETTING INTO CHARACTER: Seven Secrets a Novelist Can Learn from Actors, shares important points about sentence rhythms. If you don’t have her how-to book, I strongly recommend getting it.

Here’s one of Brandilyn Collins’s points:

The rhythm of your sentences should match the “beat” of action in your scene.”

It’s MARGIE again. Brandilyn and I share a brain. I agree. :-)

Brandilyn Collins provides these guidelines (pages 147 and 148) on creating rhythm.

1. Past participles (past-tense verbs ending in ‘ing’) are best used in quiet, easy –rhythm scenes. When action or suspense begins, use regular past-tense verbs.

2. Complex sentences work better in quiet rhythm; simple sentences work better for action.

3. In general, the higher the action level, the shorter your sentences should be.

4. In high action sequences, such as fight scenes, divide the action and reaction into separate sentences or short phrases within the same sentence.

Great advice. You’ll find more discussion on these points in GETTING INTO CHARACTER: Seven Secrets a Novelist Can Learn from Actors.

Challenge your Cadence Ear:

Check out the cadence in these excerpts.

Please take a couple of minutes, read them out loud, and consider the cadence.

Jodi Picoult, CHANGE OF HEART:

“Fletcher,” he said, testing the word in his mouth as if it were made of sharp stones.

Powerful cadence – and a powerful dialogue cue too.

Anna Campbell, UNTOUCHED:

I could feel his gaze on me as I walked to my car. It felt like a cape made of light, like the wings of the angels I’d never believed in.

Ah – Fresh writing that brushes your heart.

BLOG GUESTS: It’s your turn!

Analyze the cadence of one of these excerpts (above or below).

What did the author do that made the cadence work?


Harlan Coben, THE WOODS,

I knew they were watching me, studying my responses. I became aware of my steps, my posture, my facial expression. I aimed for neutral and then wondered why I bothered.
Allison Brennan, SPEAK NO EVIL
His heart continued to vibrate between his ears, a loud ringing, and he could hear anything but his internal organs working, working. Heart pumping blood through his veins, his head swelling, filing with certain knowledge that he would be discovered.

Lisa Gardner, HIDE, p. 9:

Matt took me to the movies. I don't remember what was playing. I was aware of his hand on my shoulder, the sweaty feel of my own palms, the hitch to my breath. After the
movies, we went for ice cream. It was raining. He held his coat over my head.
And then, tucked inside his cologne-scented jacket, he gave me my first kiss.
I floated home. Arms wrapped around my waist. Dreamy smile upon my face.
My father greeted me at the front door. Five suitcases loomed behind him.
"I know what you've been doing!" he declared.
"Shhhh," I said, and put a finger to his lips. "Shhhh."
I danced past my stunned father. I drifted into my tiny, windowless room. And for eight hours I lay on my bed and let myself be happy.
I still wonder about Matt Fisher sometimes. Is he married now? Has two-point-two kids?
Does he ever tell stories about the craziest girl he ever knew? Kissed her one night.
Never saw her again.

Sara Gruen , WATER FOR ELEPHANTS, From the Prologue:
That moment, the music screeched to a halt. There was an ungodly collision of brass, reed, and percussion—trombones and piccolos skidded into cacophony, a tuba farted, and the hollow clang of a cymbal wavered out of the big top, over our heads and into oblivion.
Grady froze, crouched over his burger with his pinkies extended and lips spread wide.

SECOND EXCERPT from the prologue of WATER FOR ELEPHANTS:
The concession stand in the center of the tent had been flattened, and in its place was a roiling mass of spots and stripes—of haunches, heels, tails, and claws, all of it roaring, screeching, bellowing, or whinnying. A polar bear towered above it all, slashing blindly with skillet-sized paws. It made contact with a llama and knocked it flat—BOOM. The llama hit the ground, its neck and legs splayed like the five points of a star. Chimps screamed and chattered, swinging on ropes to stay above the cats. A wild-eyed zebra zigzagged too close to a crouching lion, who swiped, missed, and darted away, his belly close to the ground.

BLOG GUESTS:

Please post your ideas regarding rhythm and cadence and beats.

Have you trained your Cadence Ear?

Does your work carry the power of cadence?

Do you work to create cadence that draws the reader deeper into the scene?

I’d love to hear from you!

I’ll respond as time allows during my work day. I’ll be on-line in the evening (Mountain Time).

POST A COMMENT – AND YOU MAY WIN A LECTURE PACKET!

I will draw a name for a Lecture Packet, a $22 value, at 10PM Mountain Time. Winners may choose a Lecture Packet from one of my six on-line courses. Lecture Packets are available for all my courses through Paypal from my website, www.MargieLawson.com.

1. Empowering Characters' Emotions

2. Deep Editing: The EDITS System, Rhetorical Devices, and More
3. Writing Body Language and Dialogue Cues Like a Psychologist
4. Powering Up Body Language in Real Life:
Projecting a Professional Persona When Pitching and Presenting

5. Digging Deep into the EDITS System

6. Defeat Self-Defeating Behaviors
Thank you for being here today. Please keep reading – you’ll learn about cool opportunities for writers!

FYI: BRENDA NOVAK’S DIABETES AUCTION!

NYT Bestseller, Brenda Novak, donates an amazing chunk of her life to fundraising for diabetes research. She selflessly gives months of her energy, creativity, and what would have been writing time, family time, self-time to her DIABETES AUCTION.

For writers – it’s a warm-your-heart win-win. Bid on one of the hundreds of items – support diabetes research and you may win an experience that changes your life. A plotting lunch with an agent or NYT bestseller at a national conference could contribute to a contract for you.

If you're not familiar with this auction -- it's a gold mine for writers!

My husband and I love to support the Diabetes Auction. With over 1000 donations, if I don’t mention them . . . you might miss them.

Yikes – a Missed Opportunity!

Margie’s Donations:

1. A set of six Lecture Packets

2. A 50 page Triple Pass Deep Edit Critique

3. Registration for a Write At Sea Master Class by Marge Lawson on Deep Editing Power, April 4 -8, 2011; donation by Margie Lawson and Julia Hunter

4. A FLYING GETAWAY FOR TWO

You select the destination – any place within 600 nautical miles from Denver.
A weekend, you and a friend, plus my pilot-husband flying our four-seater plane, me, and a two-hour deep editing consult. The consult is on the ground.

5. Registration for an IMMERSION MASTER CLASS session!

A $450 value . . .

The three-day Immersion Master Class sessions are designed as a personalized, hone-your-manuscript experience focusing on deep editing. The sessions are held in Margie’s log home at the top of a mountain west of Denver. Participants will concentrate on transforming their manuscript into a page-turner. The winner may attend a session in the fall of 2010 (depending on availability), or one of the four sessions offered in 2011.

THE DIABETES AUCTION runs from MAY 1ST to MAY 31ST. You can tour the
Diabetes Auction site now. http://brendanovak.auctionanything.com/

Brenda Novak is my hero. What a way to give back.
Margie Lawson —psychotherapist, writer, and international presenter—developed innovative editing systems and deep editing techniques for writers.

Her Deep Editing tools are used by all writers, from newbies to NYT Bestsellers. She teaches writers how to edit for psychological power, how to hook the reader viscerally, how to create a page-turner.

Over four thousand writers have learned Margie’s psychologically-based deep editing material. In the last five years, she presented fifty-four full day Master Classes for writers in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

Lectures from each of Margie’s on-line courses are offered as Lecture Packets through PayPal from her web site. For more information on courses, lecture packets, master classes, and 3-day Immersion Master Class sessions, visit: www.MargieLawson.com .


Thank you for your time – and thank you again for joining us today!

All smiles…………Margie
www.MargieLawson.com


NEXT WEEK'S BLOG: VALENTINE'S DAY WAYBACK STYLE
Please join me and six other Wayback authors as we share special valentine moments featuring couples from our books on sale at THE WILD ROSE PRESS.

Yeah! It's A Party! Obsessed By WildFire releases today.

Woohooo! Today is the day I’ve dreamt of for so long. My first novel release, OBSESSED BY WILDFIRE is on the cyber-bookshelves at The Wild Rose Press.

OBSESSED BY WILDFIRE is rated HOT! I wish I could make the lettering for HOT red, but blogger doesn’t work that way. Anyway, I didn’t know I could write HOT. My editor thinks I could write erotica. My answer to her is a topic for another blog.




The story, set in the Texas town of Wayback, is about a woman who meets a man who could distract her from her accomplishing her dreams. I love the banter Isobel Trinidad’s emotional conflict causes between her and the sexy fire marshal, Warner Keyson. The couple made me chuckle. By the end of the book, Isobel learns love can make dreams sweeter. Obsessed By Wildfire has all the elements I love in a book. Suspense, a hero that is eye candy and a damn nice guy who also has a sense of humor, and a strong smart heroine. If you love those elements too, pop over to The Wild Rose Press and for less than a cappuccino you can download OBSESSED BY WILDFIRE and have a couple hours of pure entertainment.

Excerpt:

Isobel side-stepped and leaned into the horse. Out of nowhere, the beast pushed Isobel with its large head, knocking her off balance. She stumbled face forward against a pickup.

Warner jumped. Large hoofs pawed. Huge teeth sneered.

The horse was attacking Isobel. Warner’s heart lodged in his throat, cutting off his cry. He rushed forward intending to save her from the beast. How? He didn’t know, but he had to try.

“Giddy-up.” He flung his arms wildly as he ran toward the horse. “Giddy-up out of here.”

Isobel rolled over on the fender. She stared wide-eyed back at him. Oh, God. She looked confused, stunned.

The beast circled, kicking up gravel. The whites of its eyes were phantoms in the night. Its head reared in the air, yanking Isobel’s arm.

Gravel flew as he slid to a stop. The reins were wound around her wrist. If the horse took off, he’d drag Isobel. She’d be seriously hurt.

His chest rose and fell rapidly. Sweat formed on his upper lip. Slowly, Warner lowered his arms. He swallowed hard trying to clear the lump in his throat and to sound calm. “Wait. Don’t run, horsy.”

“Shit, Warner. Are you out of your mind? What are you doing?”

****************************************************************
Me again. I chuckled while writing this scene. If you’d like to read the entire story, and I hope you will, here is the link to The Wild Rose Press home page. http://www.thewildrosepress.com/ Obsessed By Wildfire goes on sale at high noon!

And if you’d like to see a trailer for Obsessed By Wildfire here is a link to that as well. http://www.autumnjordon.com

CONTESTS:

In celebration of my first release, everyone who leaves a comment here this week will have their names dropped into my own Stetson. (Yes, cowgirls wear stetsons too.) From there, on Feb. 3, 2010, I will pick one lucky winner who will recieve a gift certificate to Star Bucks. Also, everyone who emails the correct answers to autumnjordon@yahoo.com with contest answers in the subject line will be entered into a special drawing for a $25.00 B & N certificate.

The winner for the comments will be announced here next Wednesday when the awesome Margie Lawson will be my featured guest.

Finally, I will announce the winner for the three questions contest on Feb. 14, 2010 at 5pm EST. Good luck everyone.

1) What is the name of Isobel's horse?
2) What is the color of Isobel's Taxi?
3) Who did Warner pull his gun on?

LET'S PARTY!

24 Does It For Me

Cursor…

You know when I only cursor once, I probably have my subject matter already pinned down. I do. 24.

I’m absolutely nuts over the action-packed television show. I’ve been a fan since season 4, when I found the series. I immediately had to find seasons 1, 2 and 3. What is it about the show that makes me count the days until it airs, has me warning all of my family and friends not to call while it is on, and turns me into a superhuman and grab the power for the big screen television from my husband? JACK.




Kiefer Sutherland’s character Jack is one of the reasons the show has me hook. He is a fearless tortured soul. He is a man whose morals will not be comprised. The man fell in love once in the eight seasons, and even though he and Audrey have gone their different ways, he has not had another relationship. Well, there was that woman in season five—a small town woman who made him think, maybe I could live a normal week or two without terrorists, but in the end Jack knew who his heart still wished for. IMO. Sigh.




But Jack isn’t the only reason to watch the show, the cast is filled with characters you’ll either love or hate. I cried, actually mourned for days, when Edgar died. I've also jumped out of my chair and cheered when others got what they deserved.


And if it’s action you crave, 24 has got it. There is a definite storyline, stop the terrorists and save the world, but there are so many subplots woven there isn’t time much time to relax. These subplots take you into the personal lives of the characters and in a short time you are vested in their well-being, like Edgar and his mother. (Grabbing a tissue) Okay, sometimes the what happens in the personal lives of a character has a direct bearing on the ultimate goal of saving the world. Like when Tony’s wife was killed in season 5, he came back in season 8 as a villain. I completely understood where his anger was coming from and I’m hoping the writers will redeem him in this season.

Cliffhangers, if you want to learn what cliffhangers are, watch the show. Ninety percent of the time, at a commercial break there is a cliffhanger. And every week, at the end of the show there is a black moment which will have you counting the hours to until 24 hits the screen again.

Now, If you’re a writer, we can talk about the elements it takes to make a great story such theme, characters, plots, black moments. Which pulls you into a story.

Or if you’re a 24 fan, we can talk 24 and JACK. (GRIN)

Coming JANUARY 27, 2010 from The Wild Rose Press, OBSESSED BY WILDFIRE.