Annie Nicholas

Koishi

2012-01-20T20:53:00.000-05:00

I'm so excited for this projected!

Gatekeepers will be a new series at Lyrical Press and my dragon hero Koishi is the Gatekeeper of the east. Releasing in 2013 though, so we all have a bit of a wait.

Some News

2012-01-13T11:20:00.000-05:00

I've accepted a contract with Carina Press for a new series titled Confessions of a Succubus! First book should be due out this fall. I'm very excited about this series. It's sexy, it's fun, and full of naughty things.

And this morning, I signed the contract for The Sigma book five of The Vanguards series! Release date has not been shared with me yet since the ink is still drying but I'd say before the end of the year.

It's been a busy month. :)

Looking Back and Looking Forward

2012-01-01T19:44:00.002-05:00

It's that time of the year again where I check my goals.

This was 2011 list:

Save some money to take the boys on a real vacation. Not a camping in the backyard kind of deal. The destination is not as important as the time together so I won't worry about it.
Make excercise a priority and try to get in shape enough to jog. *eek* (I've already been working on this goal for three months so I cheated a little.)
Promote my two new novellas releasing in 2011.
Write two novellas and one novel this year.
Find either a new to me publisher or agent.

Re-evaluation:

We took the boys to Colorado for a week last June.
BIG MAJOR FAIL on the excercise.
Promoted the books
I wrote two novellas and two novels this year. (high fives myself)
I found a new to me publisher, which I am unable to disclose at this time.

I'm pleased with this except for still being out of shape.

For 2012

I really need to get healthy. I've been very career focused in 2011. This year my health is taking priority. I'm in an excericise program and have started small changes in my diet. I'll check back in a month instead of a year to see if I'm still on track.
Organize promotion for release in March and trip to RT convention in Chicago.
Hope to have two more releases this year. I'm just waiting for paperwork and time frames to be confirmed before I can share.
I will write three novellas and one novel and hopefully have another novel started by the end of the year.
Go away somewhere tropical for my 40th birthday.

Happy Holidays

2011-12-24T13:34:00.000-05:00

I love the Holidays. I love preparing for them and I love enjoying them with family, friends, and co-workers. As my kids age I try to create new traditions for them to carry to their future family. This year we are starting with going out to nice dinner on Christmas Eve just the four of us and then tomorrow will be an all day PJ party.

As a writer I started the tradition a few years ago of having the Boys of Christmas visit my blog and I haven't forgotten.

Lola wishes you a Merry Christmas too!

Cookies for Christmas

2011-12-18T14:37:00.002-05:00

Shortbread Cookies:

2 cups (260 grams) all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon (2 grams) salt
1 cup (2 sticks) (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup (60 grams) powdered (confectioners or icing) sugar
1 teaspoon (4 grams) pure vanilla extract
For Chocolate Dipped Shortbreads:

6 ounces (180 grams) semi sweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

In a separate bowl whisk the flour with the salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter until smooth and creamy (about 1 minute). Add the sugar and beat until smooth (about 2 minutes). Beat in the vanilla extract. Gently stir in the flour mixture just until incorporated. Flatten the dough into a disk shape, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill the dough for at least an hour or until firm.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) with the rack in the middle of the oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough into a 1/4 inch (.6 cm) thick circle. Cut into rounds or other shapes using a lightly floured cookie cutter. Place on the prepared baking sheets and place in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes. (This will firm up the dough so the cookies will maintain their shape when baked.) Bake for 8 - 10 minutes, or until cookies are very lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.

For Chocolate Dipped Shortbreads: Place 3 ounces (90 grams) of the finely chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl and place it over a saucepan of simmering water. Once the chocolate has melted, remove it from the heat. Add the remaining chocolate and stir with a wooden spoon until it has completely melted and is smooth and glossy. Taking one cookie at a time, dip one end of each cookie in the melted chocolate and place it on a parchment lined baking sheet. Once all the cookies have been dipped in the chocolate, place the baking sheets in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes, or until the chocolate has hardened.

Shortbread cookies with keep in an airtight container for about a week or they can be frozen.

Makes about 20 shortbread cookies.

Here's the video with more detailed intructions from Joy of Baking.

More cookie blogs!

Mice : http://jeannenewalker.wordpress.com/2010/12/20/the-making-of-mice-and/

Cake Batter Cookies: http://keriford.com/2011/12/20/cake-batter-cookies/

Stained Glass Cookies: http://cmtorrens.com/2011/12/20/stained-glass-christmas-cookies/

Read more: http://joyofbaking.com/shortbreads/shortbreadcookies.html#ixzz1gusYUDzz

Nook Lovers

2011-12-17T16:11:00.001-05:00

I own a Nook.

I chose it over a Kindle ages ago because I wanted to be able to hold one in my hand before purchasing it. This was before Kindles were being sold in stores. I love my e-reader but there are not many website dedicated to Nook readers like there are to Kindle users. Until now...

Nook Lovers

This blog is showcasing cheap reads with link for the Nook. Finally, someone is listening.

Jingle Bell Hop

2011-12-08T09:02:00.001-05:00

Six Men A Working

Welcome to the Jingle Bell Hop! If you arrived here by accident or have fallen off the bus click this link to get back on. There are lots of giveaways with a grand prize of a Kindle Fire! Some of us are going the twelve days of Christmas and, as you can see, I'm doing the Six Men A Working.

Nothing is sexier than a man at work. I also have a present for everyone this year!

Lifeguard

Construction

Cowboy after a long day.

Do-it-yourselfer

Fire Fighter

Gardener

Now, for the present. I'm giving away free downloads of my full length novel Bait.

Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/bait-annie-nicholas/1100245217?ean=2940011209499&format=nook-book&itm=2&usri=annie+nicholas

All Romance Ebooks: (which has all formats for Nook and Kindle and iPads and computers)

http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-bait-516185-139.html

or on my website, you can download the just the .pdf version http://annienicholas.webs.com/apps/documents/

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

Mahalo to All Those Yummy Men...

2011-11-23T10:20:00.000-05:00

Tuesday Thankfulness

2011-11-22T07:32:00.000-05:00

I've been a critical care nurse since 1993 and I've worked many hospitals across North America but never in unit as supporting as the one I'm in presently. My co-workers encourage my endeavors even if my genre isn't their cup of tea. :) Some have become fans. *blushes* So, I'm thankful to work in an enviroment that doesn't mind my having a notebook at my side and my taking a moment to jot down an idea or two when needed.

Monday Thanksgiving

2011-11-21T03:31:00.000-05:00

This week I'm posting a few things I'm thankful for. Today's post is over at Paranormal Romantics because I wanted to thank my fellow authors over there for never giving me any trouble over the last 2 1/2 years. :)

Cover Love!!!

2011-11-06T22:03:00.000-05:00

Helloooo, gorgeous.

Omegas in Love The Vanguards Book Four

Some things are best forgotten...

Releasing Spring 2012

Blog-a-Thon

2011-10-28T08:37:00.000-04:00

Paranormal Romantics annual Blog-a-Thon starts tomorrow at 9AM until Sunday at midnight!

Lot of prizes!

Come join the fun.

Every hour a new blog post goes up.

Every hour a new contest to enter. You have all weekend.

Winners announce Halloween afternoon.

First Line Sneak Peaks

2011-10-16T14:25:00.001-04:00

Really, I have been busy writting. You can't tell from my releases to come calendar but it won't remain empty for long. I hope. :p

"Today seemed like a good day to burn some bridges."
                                      From Scent of a Human (completed work and shopping it)
                                      Book One Eorthe Chronicles

"Sex and love should come in the same package but a succubus didn’t have those options."
                        From untitled work
                            Book One Pia Confessions

"Sex got better with time, and being with Katrina these past two years had proved it. "
                       From Omegas in Love Vanguards Book 4

"Love sucked."
              Form The Sigma (work in progress)
              Vanguards Book 5

I Need a Vampire...

2011-10-02T18:38:00.000-04:00

...fix.

I've picked up some new to me series in September and inhaled them. I got into Nalini Singh's Hunter series and Jill Myles' Succubus Diaries. Both contained vampires but as secondary character.

*la sigh*

It made me realize I haven't read a good old fashion vampire book in a long while. Something in the nature of Anita Blake or Black Dagger Botherhood.

I browsed through Amazon last night and my head is still spinning. So much to chose from but what's garbage and what's good?

Recommend something to me. Pleeeeease.

No Christine Feehan.

Didn't someone mention a vampire named Bones during my birthday bash this summer???

I'm all ears and opened pocket book people.

If you're interested in seeing my tastes or opinions on books you can catch me on Goodread.
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3132972.Annie_Nicholas?origin=

Publishing Industry Blues

2011-08-30T10:27:00.000-04:00

School starts tomorrow.

Part of me is going YIPEE! and the other is a little sad. I know my children are not disappearing but I'll miss their noise. Even with these mixed emotions, I did take a week off work to enjoy some peace and get my ass in gear for the coming year.

I'll be blogging about my goals on Paranormal Romantics on Monday and have a few days to think about it still. I'm not sure what I want.

When I started on this journey the only goal was to get an agent and go NY. Then ebooks were born. It was exciting and I loved this option and embraced it with all my heart. Yet, a small part of me still looks to NY. At this point in my career, I can afford to take the time and shop a novel around the agent circuit but do I want to?

Will I make more money going NY or make the same?

NY is offering smaller advances with poor % on royalties in comparison to ebooks and then there is the agent's cut to subtract from it. Is it worth it to go that route anymore?

I've struggled with this all summer. I finished book one of a new series and need to find it a home. Where should I look?

Good Morning

2011-08-20T03:57:00.000-04:00

Long time no blog.

It took me awhile to recover from the birthday bash. LOL

Honestly, I've been holed up trying to finish my latest book and I should be writing 'The End' later today. I've been working on this book for nine months and hope its worth the effort. I tried something different for me and told the story from four different pov's. Once it's done I'm not sure what to do with it. LOL

Grand Prize Winner for My Birthday Bash Week

2011-07-24T11:13:00.000-04:00

To chose the grand prize winner for this week's grand prize I input every person name who commented into a random winner generator. Every comment left meant an entry. So if you left 6 comments you got 6 entries.

The winner is BLHmistress!

Congrats. :D

Saturday's Winner

2011-07-23T23:58:00.000-04:00

Yadkny, you're yesterday's winner! Congrats and the e-mails are on their way.

Last Day of My Birthday Week!

2011-07-23T00:04:00.001-04:00

It's the last day!

I have Savannah Chase and DL Jackson over to play party games.

Savannah has brought a copy of Bid For Love, her new release.

Her fantasy man is up for auction. Will Nico dare to bid?

Nico's history of romantic disasters has taught her when she gambles on men, she's fated to lose. That doesn't stop her from secretly lusting after Jeff, the handsome construction worker she sees every day on her way to work.

When the New York's Sexiest Bachelor auction begins and Jeff comes up on the block, she's seriously tempted to place a bid. The wager can't be taken lightly -- It might be for a good cause, but she's making a bid for love...

Warning: This book contains explicit sex, strong language

http://www.savannahchase.com/

DL has brought her collections of romantic sci-fi.

Evolution never happened so fast.

Twelve hours outside of Terra II, Colonel Kaleb Titan, a molecular geneticist and commander of the Ark, faces a life or death choice that could change the fate of mankind.

The Genesis I, aka the Ark, travels with a hold full of wildlife and three crew members. When a wolf bite and genetically-altering gamma radiation transform Kaleb, he notices his senses have been heightened, his libido has gone haywire and he can’t keep his hands off his crew. Worse yet, they don't seem inclined to stop him.

When their sister ship, the Genesis II arrives early, Kaleb’s problems compound. As soon as the command crew of the Genesis II boards, one whiff tells Kaleb they’re not from Earth or who they appear to be.

When he discovers that they’ve kept the Genesis II’s crew of over two thousand alive, he begins to believe their reasons may be far more ominous than anyone could have imagined. However, he also discovers what’s holding them back. The hijackers seem to be allergic to canines.

Now they're forced to employ biological warfare against their own, but will it be enough to save humanity?

History is about to repeat and only one species will survive.

Contains: Menage (M/F/F), Lesbian sex (F/F), intercom sex

Some love affairs last a lifetime…others never end.

Fifty years into the future, if you’re one of the damned, you don’t run for your life, you run to save your soul. Jocelyn Miller is wanted for crimes she committed before she was born. Homeless, blind and out in the elements on one of the coldest nights of the year, her desperation results in a bad decision. When Jocelyn and her brother Nate rob a convenience store, Jocelyn comes face to face with her worst nightmare and greatest love, a reaper named Gabriel.

Gabriel Solaris is an Enforcer, a genetically enhanced psychic often referred to as a reaper for his ability to take souls, and he’s charged with collecting Jocelyn’s. When he finds Jocelyn outside the store, he’s sure she’s up to something illegal. Proving it isn’t necessary. He holds a warrant and it’s all he needs. But the closer Gabriel gets to Jocelyn, the more he begins to question his duty and why he believes her claims of innocence. When Jocelyn tells him she loved him once, Gabriel loses control and kisses her. Instead of taking her soul, he gives her a week to prove innocence in her past-life crimes, something he has no authority to grant.

Four soldiers face alien threats in these two erotic tales of explosive romance.
Detonate

Alice MacKay can't keep up with all the bomb threats in Trios Port. When Boomer, a former Terran Marine with more than a healthy dose of arrogance, strolls into her office for an interview, she can't get rid of him fast enough. But disarming bombs is easier than disarming amorous Marines. When Boomer decides to stick around, MacKay wonders if she's met her match.

Happy Trails

Jenna's been infatuated with Tyson Rivers since she boarded the mining ship, but the scoop's explosive ordnance officer doesn't seem to know she's there. Too shy to introduce herself, she decides to snoop in his personnel file instead. When Tyson catches her digging, he realizes he's not the only one feeling the attraction, but could his tactics to get her alone end with a bigger bang than he expected?

And I have a print copy of Bait to give away as well!

Today's draw ends tomorrow morning and I will also be drawing the grand prize winner!

Leave a comment and don't forget to leave someway for me to contact you.

Friday's Winner is...

2011-07-22T23:54:00.000-04:00

Anne! The emails have been sent. Congrats and happy reading.

The Party's Not Done

2011-07-22T00:18:00.002-04:00

My Birthday may have passed but I'm still celebrating for two more days! Some of my buddies have dropped in. Voirey Linger and Hailey Edwards are here. Voirey writes about angels and Hailey writes about demons. Well, well...if you ever met them you'd wonder if maybe it should be the other way around. LOL

There are some things an angel shouldn’t do…

Renatus is a legalist and knows the rules better than most. But knowing the Law doesn’t stop him from imagining the press of a hard male body against his, or remembering one forbidden kiss that left him hungry for more. He leaves Heaven to mingle with mankind, hoping that satisfying curiosity will quell desire. He finds Adam, a college professor who has given up on love.

Adam once dreamed of finding the perfect man and settling down. His dreams and trust were shattered when he found out the truth about his ex. Meeting Renatus seduces Adam into taking another chance on love. But Ren is keeping secrets, and the only promise he will make is that he will leave.

Now the Most High has commanded Renatus to retrieve the Law of Men and Angels, and a vengeful demon is circling, waiting for her opportunity to strike. Staying is impossible, leaving unbearable, and Ren wants to succumb to temptation, forsaking eternity for a life on Earth with Adam.

http://www.jasminejade.com/p-9118-forsaking-eternity.aspx

The most damaged heart can fly with the right pair of wings.

Madelyn’s life is far from fairytale perfect. She is second in line for the throne of a corrupt, brutal monarchy. Or at least she was until her dark guardian sacrificed his life to hide her safely in a realm of infinite possibilities.

For years she’s lived among a colony of escaped slaves as her guardian’s widow. Even in this simple life, though, nothing is as it seems. Her hero kept a secret—a younger brother named Clayton Delaney. Warrior, winged demon…and the man who now wants to lay claim to her heart.

No longer cast in his brother’s shadow, Clayton meets all obstacles head on, including one named Maddie. His infatuation with her reaches the breaking point when she undergoes a royal rite of passage, going into heat and pushing them both over the edge.

Just as Maddie learns that some risks are worth taking, she discovers that her guardian may be alive. And she’s forced to make a choice between the man she’d thought she loved, and the demon willing to lend her his wings.

Rule number one, when living with aliens, never make assumptions.

Rule number two, knowledge is power.

Rule number three, don't fall in love.

Assigned as an interpreter to the Cyngi, Liaison Sadie Beckit is left in the dark. The mysterious species’ data chip, from head quarters, holds minimal information and Ambassador Nual refuses to give her more. As the Red Dawn is held under siege in a remote part of space, the crew and passengers fight for their lives. Sadie's orders are to escape but her heart is already a hostage.

Falling in love was not in her orders and broke rules one through three.

All three of these books are being given away. To be entered in the draw tell me the name of your favorite book of all time.

Thursday's Winner

2011-07-21T23:59:00.000-04:00

Na! You won all the Westervelt Wolves books and a signed copy of The Vanguards. I sent you an e-mail.

Today is my Birthday

2011-07-21T00:01:00.033-04:00

Today is the day!

I wish I could say I'll be spending a quiet day at home with the family but alas it is the final swim meet of the season and I have to work it. LOL So my b-day day is postponed until Saturday when all my boys will be around to hang out.

Doesn't mean I don't want to celebrate though! My best writing bud Rebecca Royce just walked in with an arm load of goodies. She giving away the whole Westervelt Wolves SERIES away. You read it right, all SIX Westervelt books including her latest release Angel's Wolf!!!

And I'm offering a signed copy of The Vanguards print book, which contains all three novellas.

Ashlee Morrison has a secret obsession—with a dark and mysterious male. The only problem is that he’s a wolf and she’s becoming convinced that she’s insane. But Ashlee’s wolf is no ordinary canine; he is Tristan Kane, third son in the royal family of the Westervelt Wolf pack.

Trapped in his wolf form by his evil father’s men, Tristan has desperately sought a way out of predicament and is shocked to find that the sad but beautiful redhead who has come to the wolf cage can not only hear him, but awakens in him the knowledge that she is his mate, the other half of his soul.

Ashlee, unaware that she is half wolf-shifter, agrees to accompany Tristan back to his pack in Maine to seek answers to her past and understand her future. But as Tristan and Ashlee grow closer, familial betrayals will threaten to destroy the fragile love they have started to build.

With the odds stacked against them, Ashlee and Tristan will either embrace their love to save the Westervelt Wolves or be lost forever to despair.

Three years ago, Summer Morrison’s happy, normal life was thrown into upheaval. Forced to discover, before she was ready, that she was half-wolf shifter and mated to the pack’s enforcer has left Summer moody, shaken, and resentful. When tragedy strikes her family, Summer is forced to come back to the world of the Westervelt Wolves…and into the arms of Cullen Murphy.

Cullen has waited three years for Summer, having promised her mother he would give her time to grow up. But he’s never forgotten his mate and craved her presence since he first saw her on the battlefield three years earlier. The trouble is, now that Cullen has Summer, he has no idea what to do with her. Three hundred years of being alone has left Cullen socially inept and more lonesome than he would ever admit. He lives with the guilt and shame of his deeds, while knowing his role is pivotal to the pack’s survival.

Together, Cullen and Summer will heal each other’s wounds and discover that life is worth living as long as they are together. Now there’s just the little matter of Kendrick and Claudius, their evil henchmen, the army of miscreant wolves, and the demons that keep attacking. If they can survive, their love will be everlasting. But failure will mean not only their destruction, but the end of the Westervelt Wolves.

When love is eternal, failure is not an option.

A lone wolf is a dangerous creature, until he meets his mate. Then he’ll become lethal to protect her.

Faith Anderson never asked to be a wolf shifter, but one strange encounter with the Westervelt Wolves and she suddenly has a past she knows nothing about and a future wrought with danger. No one is more disappointed than she to discover that the island does not hold a mate for her…that is, until she collides with Theo Kane, the missing prince of the Westervelt Wolves who has chosen isolation to save his pack from what he believes are his insane tendencies.

Theo couldn’t imagine anything worse than the near death experience that left him scarred and forever changed. Until some of the same things start happening to Faith. Now he has no choice but to face what he has avoided for over a year if he doesn’t want the past to repeat itself, this time taking Faith along for the ride. Together they will battle demons, invisible wolves, and worst of all his father to find their eternal love.

But if the price is eternity, are they willing to risk it all?

Wolf’s Magic is the story of Azriel Kane, fifth brother in the royal Westervelt wolf pack. Always different from his siblings, Azriel prefers to spend his time underground in a lab than out fighting battles to save the pack from destruction. In his own way, he feels he is contributing to the pack’s success. However, when fate plants his destined mate in a cage where he can’t ignore her, Az will be forced to face up the demons that have plagued him since childhood and be the shifter she needs him to be.

Leah St. James has no idea who she is or how she came to be trapped in a cage in Azriel’s lab. The only thing she is certain about is that she is not a wolf and that she wants out of her false wolf body as soon as possible. Counting on Az to save her from the same doomed fate as the other wolves Az is given to study, from the distance of her cage she can see Az for who he really is and not the false front he presents to the world.
But Kendrick Kane is not done with Westervelt and when he steps up his game to eliminate the Kanes from Westervelt, Az and Leah will need each other to discover the truth behind his evil plans, that is if Azriel can finally reveal the secret he has been keeping since he was a child.

With Leah’s help, can Azriel finally take his place in the pack hierarchy or will they fail and lose Westervelt forever?

In search of his sister in New Orleans, Michael finds his mate instead. But Scarlett is broken, nearly destroyed. With doom around the corner, Michael Kane has no time to lose. If he can save his mate, perhaps there will be a chance for all of them. Or maybe it’s already too late.

Left with no other choice, Michael will have to teach the wolves in the New Orleans pack how real Alpha shifters behave, while showing his mate he is a man of his word.

(Annie licks the above cover.)

Just Released!

Angel Kane has always known who her family was and why she was hidden away from them in New Orleans. Now on the run, the last thing she wants is anything that could potentially get in the way of the plan she’s made for herself. That is, until she walks into a truck stop in New Jersey and encounters Parker Liberty—the wolf fate has picked out to be her perfect mate.

Parker Liberty hasn’t uttered a word in almost forty years. Not since the horrible day he watched his father murder his mother on the island of Westervelt. He ignores his inner wolf and contents himself with expressing his inner emotions through his tattoos. But when a pair of witches almost kill Angel, he will return to Westervelt to save her.

Meanwhile, Westervelt is under constant attack from Kendrick Kane, the pack's former Alpha, whose evil knows no bounds. His ultimate goal is to see all of his children dead --and that includes his daughter, Angel. It is questionable whether the Westervelt pack can even survive the week. Angel and Parker’s arrival will either turn the tide of the war or end the pack forever.

The Omegas

The Alpha

The Beta

Since NINE stories are in the basket, I'm going to make this a little harder than leaving just any comment. Rebecca is being so generous I want you to tell me the name of one her many other books she's written that is NOT Westervelt. To make it easy here is her Amazon page. :)

Wednesday's Winner

2011-07-20T23:55:00.000-04:00

Bet you thought I forgot to announce yesterday's winner. If you did, you were right!! LOL

June is the winner and the prizes are on their way.

Three Book Wednesday B-day Bash!

2011-07-20T09:27:00.000-04:00

Better late then never! But the wait will be worth it. Today, I'm giving away TWO books and my Paranormal Romantic buddy, Stacey Kennedy, is here to give away her new release Tainted Blood. So leave a comment to enter! And remember the week just gets better.

Someone is about to get some Spice in his life.

Spice has nothing but the clothes on her back when she returns to Chicago. She's looking for a better life, and that means reuniting with her estranged twin sister, Sugar. She isn't thrilled to find out Sugar's boyfriend is a vampire. But then she meets Eric, once the bottle-cap-glasses wearing nerd next door - now grown into the kind of man she'd love to snuggle with on this cold winter night...and he’s offered her his room in Sugar’s house.

Eric can’t believe Spice has returned. He’d given up hope of ever seeing her again, let alone having her stare at him as if he’s sex on a stick. But now that all of his fantasies for them are coming true, reality rears her ugly head and Eric must tell Spice his intimate secret; he’s actually an Alpha werewolf looking for his mate and he thinks he’s found her.

Three days of hell, in charge, and running out of antacids.

As the pack’s Beta, Robert needs to watch over the Vasi werewolf pack for a few days. He hates the responsibility, but his job is to dissolve any problems while his alpha honeymoons. Nevertheless, trouble comes to town and her name is Esther. She's beguiling, beautiful and picks his pocket. Although Robert doesn’t trust her, he still wants to possess her.

Esther arrived in Chicago with the intention of slaying a vampire named Daedalus. While trailing her quarry, she encounters Robert who unhinges her world. He doesn’t know her trade, and she doesn’t know his connection to the vampire. Disturbed by her attraction to this unusual werewolf, she can’t decide which prey to hunt. The one who’s stolen her heart or the one who’ll fill her bank account.

Hot graphic werewolf sex, growing body parts, and one pissed off Nosferatu.

Earth Witch, Sabi, has been gifted with the ability to see premonitions of the darkness that threatens human lives. Safe in the Otherworld, she adjusts to these new visions…which isn’t going so well. Luckily, she’s got the sexy Guardian, Ryker to help her work through these visions. He’s intent to show her how to distance herself from them and help her gain control of life. Not that it’s really helping. The visions are leaving her crippled and unable to help pinpoint the killer’s locations to stop the acts from happening.

If that’s not enough to deal with, she soon begins to see vampires on a killing rampage in San Francisco. Vampires are being born and left to fend for themselves, resulting in innocent lives being taken while they’re in the throes of blood lust. But as Sabi’s visions begin to kick up a notch, personal matters need to be put aside. And as the mystery begins to unravel, Sabi will begin to see that these visions are getting far more dangerous and that humans are not the only ones at risk―she is.

Tuesday Winner

2011-07-19T23:58:00.000-04:00

Is Carla!! Contact me with your e-mail silly! annienicholas (at) ymail (dot) com

I'll send you your prizes.

Turn It Up Tuesday-Birthday Bash

2011-07-19T00:08:00.002-04:00

Inez Kelley is over today and she brought presents...for me, but I'll share. Sort of...

She's also brought a copy of Turn It Up, releasing in August!

Blurb:

Dr. Bastian Talbot and self-proclaimed sex goddess Charlie Pierce heat up the air waves with their flirty banter as radio hosts Dr. Hot and the Honeypot. Off the air, they’re best friends…but Bastian wants to be so much more. He wants Charlie—in bed, and forever.

Problem is, Charlie doesn’t do commitment. Sure, she’s had X-rated fantasies of Bastian, but he was always just a friend—until he impulsively proposes and unleashes the lust they’ve been denying for years. Charlie’s willing to explore where their wild chemistry leads, but she won’t marry him. And he won’t have sex with her until she accepts his proposal, despite her seductive schemes.

What are Dr. Hot and the Honeypot to do? Ask their listeners for advice on how to tame a sex kitten and turn a perfect gentleman into a shameless lover. The Race to Wed or Bed is on…who will turn up on top?

http://www.inezkelley.com/

I'm also throwing in a copy of The Omegas: book one of The Vanguards series.

Blurb:

Only a vampire is man enough to teach werewolves how to fight.

Pretty librarian Sugar wants her life to stay quiet. That’s hard enough when friends and neighbors turn into furry werewolves every full moon. But when a hot vampire gets involved, life’s bound to get complicated.

The Omegas have always been the pansies of the paranormal. Now Chicago’s top werewolf pack has issued them a life or death challenge. Their only option: hire a vampire warrior to teach them the moves.

Daedalus has been a powerful vampire for ages. Intrigued by the chance to train the geeks of the underworld, he wasn’t bargaining on losing his heart to a human. Can he make the Omegas a success, fit into Sugar’s quiet life, and avoid being ripped to shreds in the process?

To WIN today, I'd like you tell me how you would like to spend your birthday?

Monday's Winner!

2011-07-18T23:58:00.001-04:00

The winner of Irresistible and Dangerous Desires is Jennifer Mathis! My Birthday in on Thursday and Jen is the only one who guessed right. It also means that Thursday will be extra special. :)

Release Day of the Birthday Bash

2011-07-18T00:01:00.002-04:00

It's release day for...

Irresistible

and I'm giving away a copy.

Blurb:

Werewolves believe in soul mates. Sirens eat theirs.

Sirens, a mutation of mermaids, need sexual energy to survive. Marie Laframboise lost her only food source when her strip club burned down. Not wanting to kill any of her victims, she’d learned to glean the lust off her clients, and now she is starving. She can’t resist the temptation to invite herself to the singles shifter party held by local werewolf stud, Maxwell Cox, and feed.

Max doesn’t want a soul mate, but to his dismay, she shows up at his party. Just as Marie can’t resist the temptation to feed, Max can’t resist the instinctual urge to claim her. Marie has never wanted a relationship, but she can’t shake off Max’s pursuit. He offers her things she has only dreamed of, but she fears the hunger will turn those dreams into nightmares.

Her appetite is not one to mess with. Max thinks he’s found the perfect mate, but Marie may have found the perfect prey.

Graphic sexual content, hot shifters, and one scary-ass siren.

Sharing my release day is Diane Escalera with Dangerous Desire and she's giving away a copy as well!

Blurb:

Sometimes you have to lose one thing to find another.

Sienna Diaz is desperate to find her missing beagle, no matter what it costs. She hires Cruz Santino, the best—and hottest—in the business. He’s an ex cop, dangerous on many levels, which comes in handy when all evidence indicates her beloved pet was snatched to use in a dogfighting ring.

Cruz will do whatever it takes to find Sienna’s lost pet, but he also wants results from the smokin’ hot attraction between them—and he isn’t above breaking his own hands-off-clients rule to get there. However, until he brings her beloved beagle home safely, he won’t have Sienna's undivided attention...and affection.

Strong language, caliente sex, violence, and a dangerously hot rescue.

Today, to win, you have to guess which day this week is my actual birthday.
(choices: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday)

A winner will be drawn from those who chose the right day!

Monday's Winner

2011-07-17T23:54:00.000-04:00

_yay_ is yesterday's winner and she recieved a copy of Bait and Hard Drive!

Birthday Bash Day One

2011-07-17T01:33:00.002-04:00

Let's open this week off right!

Ambrielle Kirk, a great friend I met in a romance writing critique group who helped me with Catch, has brought over a copy of Hard Drive to give away to a lucky commenter.

Blurb:

Content with his computer business, Carlos is happy with his choices in life…until a confident Nubian beauty walks into his store. Too bashful and insecure to unleash the romantic man inside, he is instantly attracted to Dana as she unknowingly changes his preconceived notions about gorgeous women who need every male at their beck and call.

But the truth comes out: Dana may have another agenda, and Carlos is ready to hide behind his glasses and computers. But will he combat his trust before this beauty walks out on him…for good?

You can find Ambriell Kirk here: http://ambriellekirk.wordpress.com/

I'm also going to giveaway a copy of Bait: book one of The Angler series.

Blurb:
Live bait makes all the difference.
Sent on a mission to lure Budapest’s vampire Overlord into a trap, Connie Bence is instead caught red-handed by the dark Casanova. Her employer has concrete proof of the dubious leader’s misdeeds but she is surprised when this ruthless killer, Rurik, offers her protection and rescues her from his own kind. It plants seeds of doubt in her mind and she begins to question his guilt. Now she is thrown into his world where blackmail determines her every move and where she must betray those she cares about or let them die. The stakes are high. She either puts her trust in Rurik or leads him to his execution.

Love or life.

Don't forget to leave a way for me contact you if you win!

Da Rules for Birthday Week 2011

2011-07-17T00:50:00.001-04:00

Everyday this week (July 17-23) there will be giveaways.

Every comment is an entry.

The entries will be for the prize of the day AND for the weekly prize.

I will announce winners the next day.

Leave your e-mail address so I can contact you if you win.

Simple. Easy. Fun. (kinda like me)

My Birthday is Next Week...

2011-07-10T21:07:00.002-04:00

Let's get ready to PARTY!

Between July 17-23 I will be giving one of my books away everyday, including some print ones and the no-longer published Red Dawn.

I will ALSO be choosing a winner from all the comments over the week to win a copy of ALL my books.

Some of my friends are coming over to help me celebrate!

Inez Kelley author of Turn It Up

Rebecca Royce author of The Westervelt Wolves

Savannah Chase author of Bid For Love

Voirey Linger author of Eternity Angels series

Ambrielle Kirk author of Hard Drive

Hailey Edwards author of Everlong

Stacey Kennedy author of Tainted Blood

Diane Escalera author of Dangerous Desire

and of course, the boys

There will be caaaake too!

The Vanguards in Print!

2011-07-01T10:36:00.001-04:00

The Vanguard series book 1-3 is in PRINT today!

Amazon

Barnes and Noble On special today!

or you can order it from your local bookstore with this ISBN# 1616503084

Annie Nicholas

Party 'Til Your Heels Fly Off: Mega Author Blog Hop Tour

2011-06-11T00:00:00.001-04:00

Tour Rules:

1. HAVE FUN!

2. INVITE ALL YOUR FRIENDS!!! SPREAD THE WORD!!!

3. THIS TOUR STARTS: Monday June 13, at Midnight (Arizona time)
THIS TOUR ENDS: Monday June 20, at Midnight (Arizona time)
Winners will be drawn and posted on June 21st!***

4. MEET AND MINGLE WITH ALL THE AUTHORS. EXPERIENCE A NEW PARTY DESTINATION AT EVERY STOP. PARTICIPATE AT EVERY BLOG CONTEST AND BE ENTERED FOR CHANCES TO WIN MULTIPLE PRIZES. EVERY BLOG VISITED IS ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY TO WIN.

5. PARTICIPATION IN ALL BLOGS IN RECOMMENDED, BUT NOT REQUIRED. REMEMBER, THE MORE BLOGS YOU HOP, THE BETTER YOUR CHANCES ARE OF WINNING PRIZES. EVERY AUTHOR IS WAITING TO MEET YOU AND INTERACT WITH YOU, SO PLEASE BE SURE TO SHOW EVERY AUTHOR SOME LOVE.

6. DID I MENTION HAVE FUN? WHOO HOO, HERE WE GOOOOO!

***Authors have full descretion to choose an alternate winner is the event any winner fails to claims their prize(s) within 72 hours of their name being posted or after notification of winning, which ever comes first. Anyone who participates in this blog hop tour is subject to these rules.***

Today is Connie Bence's birthday! She's the first heroine I created and stars in my paranormal erotic romances. Her voice came naturally to me and we became fast friends.

And both of us want to celebrate! So, grab a glass of champne.

We'll be serving dinner soon.

Then cake.

While we wait for the other guests Connie wants to share her favorite excerpt from The Angler series where she faces vampires and intrigue is thick in the air. This part takes place in a Budapest bath house. Connie has already crashed a vampire party, been chased through the dark streets of the old city by a crazed bloodsucker, and let down the team of slayers she works for. All she wants is to relax.

Excerpt from Bait:

Pembe stood next to me. She waved to the pool. “Go?”

I needed to express to this Hungarian speaking, assertive woman there was no freaking way she could get me into a pool full of vampires.

I pointed to the pool. “Too many people.”

She shook her head, not understanding.

I placed two of my fingers by my own teeth like make-shift fangs.

Her eyes widened before the room boomed with her laughter. She thumped me on the shoulder in good-natured way but nearly knocked me off my bare feet. Maybe she didn’t know. Then she either thought I tried to joke, or I needed to be placed in a crazy-house.

I glanced around looking for inspiration on how to explain what I wanted. My communication skills lay back in my suitcase, in the form of a Hungarian/English dictionary. We needed a translator. “Rurik?”

Pembe glanced at the pool then at me then raised an eyebrow.

“Rurik?” I repeated.

She shrugged and led me to a secluded sitting area.

I sat there alone in my canvas slip, disappointed in the turn of events. It never occurred to me there would be other vampires here. Rurik offered me protection but how did that work when he wasn’t around? Either way, I didn’t come to socialize. It would be in everyone’s interest if I just hunted down my clothes and escaped.

Pembe peaked around the corner and ordered, “Follow.”

She brought me further into the bathhouse and led me to a room with individual marble tubs. Hot, steaming water brimmed to their edges and a drain in the middle of the floor took care of the excess water if it should spill. Warm mist filled the air. We were alone.
This was what I wanted.

I smiled gratefully. “Koszonom.” Thank you.

She nodded and gestured for me to use the center tub. “Towel.” Then she left.
I hoped she meant to go get me one. All this wonderful, steam filled luxury caused my muscles to cramp in anticipation. I couldn't wait to dive in. The canvas slip pooled at my feet then I hurried to the hot water. I eased into the tub and experienced what a lobster must feel when sliding into a pot.
Once immersed in the tingling water I stared at the colored glass set into the ceiling until I entered a blissful trance.

The door opened behind me. Someone passed me to place towels on a table by the tubs. I turned to thank Pembe.

Rurik stood there instead with a stack of fluffy white towels folded nicely in his arms, wearing nothing but a smile. Strong, muscular arms set the towels down. A lean, long waist met the rise of his firm ass.

I shut my mouth before I caught flies and checked for drool.

He glanced a shy look over his shoulder but the shy was pretend. “May I join you?”

No need to guess why that's her favorite part of the book, huh? Someone's knocking on the door, just a minute...

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

Ah, the boys are here.

Let the party begin.

We're giving away the set of The Angler series to a lucky commenter this week. Don't forget to leave your e-mail so I can contact you.

It plants seeds of doubt in her mind and she begins to question his guilt. Now she is thrown into his world where blackmail determines her every move and where she must betray those she cares about or let them die. The stakes are high. She either puts her trust in Rurik or leads him to his execution.

Link and available at all ebook vendors.

Caught between two vampires, Connie is torn between Rurik, the one she loves and Tane, the one she’d love to stake.

Hunger burns in Connie Bences’ soul--she craves the blood of her vampire lover, Rurik, but it’s not satisfying her needs anymore. It’s driving her insane. Desperate to find help, Rurik brings her to Rio De Janeiro, where Tane rules the vampire nation.

The back-stabbing vampire almost killed her and Rurik when they’d first met, then used them to obtain his crown. She would rather stake him, but the small drop of Nosferatu blood he’d forced her to drink in Budapest is blooming into a bond, one which ties her life to his. One he won’t hesitate to manipulate.

He admits to binding her so Rurik would have to remain at his side, but their timing couldn’t be any worse. The betrayer finds himself betrayed. Tane’s rule is in upheaval and he’s forced to place his trust in two people who owe him no allegiance—her and Rurik. In the middle of a power struggle, Connie fights to keep her lover, but didn’t plan on Tane slipping into her heart.

Link and available at all ebook vendors.

Hope you enjoyed the party and careful not end up like this clown.

Next stop on the Hop is Nicholas Denmon

In July I'll be throwing my own blog birthday party so keep an eye open for it because I think I'll be in a giving mood.

2011-06-10T07:49:00.000-04:00

I'm being roasted today. Come join the party!

http://authorroastandtoast.blogspot.com/

The Beta

2011-06-06T01:00:00.002-04:00

Once a month, a bunch of authors get together and post excerpts from published books, contracted work or works in progress, and link to each other. You don’t have to be published to participate just an writer with an excerpt you’d like to share. For more info on how to participate, head over to the Excerpt Monday site! or click on the banner above.

Fresh Excerpt:

The building blocked Robert’s view of Esther as he turned the corner. His car wasn’t in this direction, but he didn’t want her to witness his jump and heel click. The werewolf blood running in his veins enhanced the excited leap, making it higher than a human’s. He bent his knees to absorb the impact of landing. Tonight, he’d kicked ass and kissed a dark-haired beauty. Her smell still lingered on his hands with the memory of how her thick, mahogany hair felt curled around his fingers.

He couldn’t believe his ears when she asked him for the time. Tall, she had long legs with a nice curve to her hips and breasts, intelligent blue eyes and a personality playful enough to draw him out his shell. She’d taken control of the conversation, no hesitation in asking him to accompany her home or in kissing him. He loved smart, confident women but one had never liked him back.

Grinning like a fool, he jogged to his car, burning off the extra energy her kiss produced. He’d wanted to do so much more with her, like push her against the wall so she could wrap her legs around his hips and allow him to grind against her core. Maybe tomorrow night, he’d get what he fantasized.

Approaching the car, he pulled out the keys. The gas gage was on empty on his way here. He needed to fill the tank, but he couldn’t recall how much cash he’d brought with him. After working for banks and credit card companies for the last few years, he never liked using either, not trusting the system. His right back pocket, where he usually placed his wallet, was empty. Checking the left pocket, his heart sank into his gut as it turned out empty as well. He patted the front ones and only found his cell. Maybe he’d dropped it while wrestling with Talon?

Deep down inside, he knew the truth. Esther.

He was such a fool. Beautiful women didn’t ask geeks like him for a kiss. Grinding his teeth, he pictured her laughing at him as she flipped through his wallet, counting what little cash he carried.

The hole in his gut grew wider. Crap, he didn’t have anything to buy gas and no way to get home but his own two feet. The last thing he wanted to do was call Daedalus or anyone from the pack for a lift. He’d never hear the end of it.

Respect was something you earned, and how would he ever obtain any if he fell for obvious scams?

Clenching his fists, Robert turned around and marched back to where he’d left Esther. His beast stretched inside him, frustrated that he wouldn’t release it. Control over one’s inner monster sounded easy, but the struggle became an hourly routine. Shifters dealt with this all the time, day or night, in sickness or in health. The first rule of the Vasi pack was human dominance over animal instinct, because once the beast started calling the shots the shifter began to forget right versus wrong and listened to the laws of the jungle instead.

Robert crouched by the spot where Esther had stood as she’d kissed him. Sometimes animal instincts came in handy. Her scent left a trail. He wanted his wallet back, and his pride.

LINK

Annie Nicholas
http://www.annienicholas.com/

Links to other Excerpt Monday writers

Note: I have not personally screened these excerpts. Please heed the ratings and be aware that the links may contain material that is not typical of my site.

Six Sentence Sunday

2011-05-29T06:14:00.001-04:00

Last Sunday I left my sentences on a cliffhanger so this finishes that bit. LOL For Six Sentence Sundays click HERE.

He didn’t budge an inch.

Rob was a werewolf? It took a moment for her thoughts to collect into something coherent, then she realized he was naked. Her prior imagination didn’t do his body justice. Fine sculpted muscles covered his torso, arms and legs. She stared—no, she might as well be honest—she gawked.

Six Sentence Sunday

2011-05-22T03:37:00.001-04:00

Welcome to Six Sentence Sunday. Here is a link that will take you to other great writers and their shares.
My six come from my new release The Beta.

“You are one big mother fucker,” Esther whispered, awe apparent in her voice.

He bared his teeth and lunged.

She pressed against the car as her body froze, then pried her eyes open when the end didn’t come.

The werewolf melted before her eyes as it transformed back to his human form. His fur shrank into pale white skin covering wiry muscles that slid back into place and the color of his irises darkened until she gazed into a set of sharp green eyes.

“You!” She placed her hands on Rob’s bare chest and tried to shove.

Interested in more? Click here for blurbs and excert.

The Beta Reviewed

2011-05-21T12:42:00.002-04:00

Very nice review for The Beta from PNR!

"Esther is a tough slayer and Robert is a very unlikely Beta, and they seem perfect for each other. I definitely will check out the previous 2 stories in this series to see what happened before. Also, there is a little open ending to this story and a couple questions unanswered, so I am eagerly awaiting the next book."

By Felicia Wright

http://www.paranormalromance.org/reviews/review.php?id=33670

Today's Schedule Includes...

2011-05-19T08:51:00.000-04:00

Romance Junkies! I'm giving away The Omegas or The Alpha.

Still time to enter in the Trip Around The World Blog Tour to win a copy of The Beta and other great prizes.

Where Am I Today

2011-05-18T10:49:00.000-04:00

I over at Voirey Linger's blog giving more goodies away!

May 17th Locations

2011-05-17T14:15:00.001-04:00

I'm over at Author's Island Cyber Launch Party giving away The Omegas and The Alpha.

My week long party is HERE with the Trip Around the World Blog Hop. I'm giving away a copy of The Beta.

I have an interview over at ARe.

I'm also over at Nocturne Romance Reads.

Excerpt Monday!

2011-05-16T00:01:00.012-04:00

The Beta, book 3 of The Vanguards series, is releasing today!

Welcome to Excerpt Monday...

Once a month, a bunch of authors get together and post excerpts from published books, contracted work or works in progress, and link to each other. You don’t have to be published to participate just an writer with an excerpt you’d like to share. For more info on how to participate, head over to the Excerpt Monday site! or click on the banner above.

Excerpt:

Another man exited the building not long after the vampire. He wore a rumpled button-down, short-sleeved shirt tucked into loose jeans. His mouse brown hair cried for a cut and a comb.
He pushed his glasses up his nose and bent to tie his running shoes.

Recognizing him as the person who had accompanied Daedalus earlier, Esther heard opportunity knocking. He didn’t look like a threat being thin and weak. She crossed the street and approached him from behind. “Excuse me. Do you have the time?”

Glancing over his shoulder, his gaze traveled along her bare legs, to her knee length loose skirt, and finally met her stare. Her breath caught in her throat. The irises of his eyes reflected a non-existent light and shone pale amber. He blinked and it vanished, must have been the glasses that gave such a strange effect.

He rose in a single fluid motion that set her predator alarm off. Checking his cellphone, he gave her a shy smile. “It’s ten after two.” He scanned the area around them. “This is a dangerous part of town, ma’am.

You shouldn’t walk around alone. Trouble is going to find you.”

Or maybe find him. She eyed his wiry arms and changed her assessment of him. Lean, tight muscles slid under his skin as he moved. He wasn’t weak, more like a cross between a martial artist and a geek.

“Are you offering to walk me home?” Flashing him her most flirtatious smile, she toyed with a piece of her hair.

He swallowed. “S-sure.” Shuffling to her side, he fell in next to her, eyes darting around them.

Men were so easy to manipulate, but this one actually wanted to protect her. So cute, she could have pinched him. Trying to be discreet, she took quick peeks at him. Nice strong chin and straight nose.

Maybe a hint of freckles? It was difficult to tell in the dark.

“I’m Esther.” She held out her hand. What the hell prompted her to use her real name?

Wrapping a firm hand around hers, he shook it. “I’m Robert.”

His touch sent tingles along her arm. The name seemed too mature for him. “What are you doing out so late, Rob?” How did such a polite man like him get involved with a Nosferatu? She checked his neck for bites and didn’t see anything, but there were more places on the body to feed from besides the neck. It would be a shame if he was a blood slave.

“Robert is fine. I was checking on a…friend.” He stuffed his hands in his pockets. “And you, Esther?”

She laughed. “I’m up to no good.” And she winked at him.

A rosy blush surfaced on his cheeks as he stumbled.

Something in this man attracted the devil inside of her. She entangled her arm around his and leaned into his hard body. The strength hidden under the geeky exterior sent a pleasant shiver through her body. Not all things were as they appeared. She hated surprises but not this one. If this was an act then he deserved an Emmy. She glanced at him, pleased that she needed to arch her neck back slightly to meet his sharp green gaze.

God, what was she doing? She assessed him like a potential lover instead of a possible avenue to get her mark. Stupid, focus. Once Daedalus was out of the picture she’d come back for Rob if she still wanted him. Until then…she stopped in front of a duplex. “This is my place.” She lied with the ease of an expert.

Buy Link

Links to other Excerpt Monday writers

Note: I have not personally screened these excerpts. Please heed the ratings and be aware that the links may contain material that is not typical of my site.

If you'd like a chance to win a copy of The Beta please click HERE.

Annie Nicholas
http://www.annienicholas.com/

Mega Author Blog Hop: Ticket to Paradise!

2011-05-14T00:01:00.010-04:00

TOUR RULES:

1) HAVE FUN!!!

2) INVITE ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS!!! SPREAD THE WORD!!!

3) THIS TOUR STARTS: Monday, May 16, at Midnight (Arizona Time)

THIS TOUR ENDS: Monday, May 23, at Midnight (Arizona Time)

4) MEET AND MINGLE WITH ALL THE AUTHORS! EXPERIENCE A NEW DESTINATION AT EVERY STOP! PARTICIPATE IN EVERY BLOG CONTEST AND BE ENTERED FOR CHANCES TO WIN MULTIPLE PRIZES! EVERY BLOG VISITED IS ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY TO WIN!!

5) PARTICIPATION AT ALL BLOGS IS RECOMMENDED, BUT REMEMBER, THE MORE BLOGS YOU HOP, THE BETTER YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING PRIZES. EVERY AUTHOR IS WAITING TO MEET AND INTERACT WITH YOU, SO PLEASE BE SURE TO SHOW EVERY AUTHOR SOME LOVE!

6) DID I MENTION TO HAVE FUN? WHOO! HOO!! HERE WE GOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Welcome to Chicago! The urban jungle containg humans, vampires, and shifters. Walking the streets at night has always been dangerous but there are predators in the dark that we forget about.

I'm loving my journey with my geeks of the paranormal, my werewolves with no attitude, the pansies of the paranormal. The Vanguards series starts out with The Omegas where a bunch weaker shifters group together and form a small pack to support each other. In the next book, The Alpha, we watch as the new alpha struggles with his position and also meets his high school crush again.

The Beta, book 3 of The Vanguards series, is releasing tomorrow!

These books are all based in Chicago, city of the century. It rose from a swampy frontier town to become the quintessential American city. Struggling against all odds to become the metropolis it is today. Very much like my little pack. The city is divide in well defined neighborhoods such as Chinatown, The Back Yards, New City, and 200ish more. I explore a little of the city in each story.

Next year, Romance Times will be holding its annual conference in Chicago. I will so be there.

Blurb:

Three days of hell, in charge, and running out of antacids.

As the pack’s Beta, Robert needs to watch over the Vasi werewolf pack for a few days. He hates the responsibility, but his job is to dissolve any problems while his alpha honeymoons. Nevertheless, trouble comes to town and her name is Esther. She's beguiling, beautiful and picks his pocket. Although Robert doesn’t trust her, he still wants to possess her.

Esther arrived in Chicago with the intention of slaying a vampire named Daedalus. While trailing her quarry, she encounters Robert who unhinges her world. He doesn’t know her trade, and she doesn’t know his connection to the vampire. Disturbed by her attraction to this unusual werewolf, she can’t decide which prey to hunt. The one who’s stolen her heart or the one who’ll fill her bank account.
Hot graphic werewolf sex, growing body parts, and one pissed off Nosferatu.

Excerpt:

Another man exited the building not long after the vampire. He wore a rumpled button-down, short-sleeved shirt tucked into loose jeans. His mouse brown hair cried for a cut and a comb.
He pushed his glasses up his nose and bent to tie his running shoes.

Recognizing him as the person who had accompanied Daedalus earlier, Esther heard opportunity knocking. He didn’t look like a threat being thin and weak. She crossed the street and approached him from behind. “Excuse me. Do you have the time?”

Glancing over his shoulder, his gaze traveled along her bare legs, to her knee length loose skirt, and finally met her stare. Her breath caught in her throat. The irises of his eyes reflected a non-existent light and shone pale amber. He blinked and it vanished, must have been the glasses that gave such a strange effect.

He rose in a single fluid motion that set her predator alarm off. Checking his cellphone, he gave her a shy smile. “It’s ten after two.” He scanned the area around them. “This is a dangerous part of town, ma’am.

You shouldn’t walk around alone. Trouble is going to find you.”

Or maybe find him. She eyed his wiry arms and changed her assessment of him. Lean, tight muscles slid under his skin as he moved. He wasn’t weak, more like a cross between a martial artist and a geek.

“Are you offering to walk me home?” Flashing him her most flirtatious smile, she toyed with a piece of her hair.

He swallowed. “S-sure.” Shuffling to her side, he fell in next to her, eyes darting around them.

Men were so easy to manipulate, but this one actually wanted to protect her. So cute, she could have pinched him. Trying to be discreet, she took quick peeks at him. Nice strong chin and straight nose.

Maybe a hint of freckles? It was difficult to tell in the dark.

“I’m Esther.” She held out her hand. What the hell prompted her to use her real name?

Wrapping a firm hand around hers, he shook it. “I’m Robert.”

His touch sent tingles along her arm. The name seemed too mature for him. “What are you doing out so late, Rob?” How did such a polite man like him get involved with a Nosferatu? She checked his neck for bites and didn’t see anything, but there were more places on the body to feed from besides the neck. It would be a shame if he was a blood slave.

“Robert is fine. I was checking on a…friend.” He stuffed his hands in his pockets. “And you, Esther?”

She laughed. “I’m up to no good.” And she winked at him.

A rosy blush surfaced on his cheeks as he stumbled.

Something in this man attracted the devil inside of her. She entangled her arm around his and leaned into his hard body. The strength hidden under the geeky exterior sent a pleasant shiver through her body. Not all things were as they appeared. She hated surprises but not this one. If this was an act then he deserved an Emmy. She glanced at him, pleased that she needed to arch her neck back slightly to meet his sharp green gaze.

God, what was she doing? She assessed him like a potential lover instead of a possible avenue to get her mark. Stupid, focus. Once Daedalus was out of the picture she’d come back for Rob if she still wanted him. Until then…she stopped in front of a duplex. “This is my place.” She lied with the ease of an expert.

Link

Leave a comment with your E-MAIL addy and you'll be entered to win a copy of The Beta in celebration of its release.

Therese Gilardi is your next destination on this trip around the world.
If you'd like to start at the beginning of the hop click HERE.

Annie Nicholas
http://www.annienicholas.com/

Work in Progress

2011-05-08T01:00:00.004-04:00

In celebration of Mother's Day I'm going to share from my work in progress, code named DOUG.

“It’s bad enough your father is entertaining vampires, Kele. We don’t need any more vermin within the den.” Jerked from the ground by her hair, Susan was dragged across the floor by Mother. Pain shot into the roots of her scalp while she scrambled to support some of her weight on her legs. “My daughter took too many liberties in offering you shelter. You’ll need to find another den to take you in.”

You can find more Six Sentences Sundays HERE

Irresistible- New Cover

2011-05-02T19:31:00.001-04:00

I love my new cover for Irresistible.

Werewolves believe in soul mates. Sirens eat theirs.

Sirens, a mutation of mermaids, need sexual energy to survive. Marie Laframboise lost her only food source when her strip club burned down. Not wanting to kill any of her victims, she’d learned to glean the lust off her clients, and now she is starving. She can’t resist the temptation to invite herself to the singles shifter party held by local werewolf stud, Maxwell Cox, and feed.

Max doesn’t want a soul mate, but to his dismay, she shows up at his party. Just as Marie can’t resist the temptation to feed, Max can’t resist the instinctual urge to claim her. Marie has never wanted a relationship, but she can’t shake off Max’s pursuit. He offers her things she has only dreamed of, but she fears the hunger will turn those dreams into nightmares.

Her appetite is not one to mess with. Max thinks he’s found the perfect mate, but Marie may have found the perfect prey.

Graphic sexual content, hot shifters, and one scary-ass siren.

Six Sentences of The Beta

2011-05-01T00:01:00.000-04:00

This is my first Six Sentence Sunday. I've been wanting to play with this great idea for months but I have a terrible memory and only remember to join when I'm away from my computer. :D This is the beginning from my coming release, The Beta.

Competent leadership went hand-in-hand with confidence. Tonight, Robert couldn't find either. The alpha of the Vasi werewolf pack had left Chicago on his honeymoon, which placed Robert, his beta, in charge.

The weight of responsibility crushed him like a big, fat elephant. His goal to keep the pack intact seemed jinxed.

He folded his eyeglasses and placed them in a case, tucking it in his back pocket.

Year of the Rabbit Blog Hop!

2011-04-22T21:33:00.002-04:00

Easter involves all sorts of fun and family get togethers. It also involves candy.

I can't send everyone sweets but...

I do have mancandy for you.

Sometimes a little goes a long way.

I'm starting to really like curly hair on men.

Is that the French flag?

Place a new twist on wet t-shirt.

Shhhh...

Oh yeah, the cover of my coming release.

Three days of hell, in charge, and running out of antacids.

Esther arrived in Chicago with the intention of slaying a vampire named Daedalus. While trailing her quarry, she encounters Robert who unhinges her world. He doesn’t know her trade, and she doesn’t know his connection to the vampire. Disturbed by her attraction to this unusual werewolf, she can’t decide which prey to hunt. The one who’s stolen her heart or the one who’ll fill her bank account.

Hot graphic werewolf sex, growing body parts, and one pissed off Nosferatu.

Excerpt

ps. I'm guest blogging at Whipped Cream Reviews. Leave a comment THEIR SITE and get entered to win a Nook or 150$ GC.

Annie Nicholas

First Chapter

2011-04-03T15:15:00.000-04:00

Your first chapter is the salesman of your novel. Most readers will read the first pages of a book before purchasing it, some will go as far as reading the whole first chapter. You have about two thousand words to grab that person’s attention and keep it.

How do you do that?

Think about the movies. I don’t know if you’ve seen Matrix but I’m going to use it as an example. Trinity, the heroine, is sitting at a computer having a conversation with a mysterious person talking about another, the hero, which we don’t know yet. Right away it sets questions in our minds. Like a first line of a novel. Then the police and Guardians attack her. There’s a spectacular chase scene where Trinity barely escape with her life and ends with a cliff hanger of her disappearing in thin air. Makes you want to stay and watch the rest of the movie.

That’s how a first chapter should be; just enough information to wet a reader’s curiosity, action to grab their attention, and a cliff hanger ending to make them want to turn the next page.

Doesn’t need to be a chase or car crash or fight but it can’t be boring. If you start your book with backstory or description the reader gets bored. Begin the story in a moment of change. Action is what draws the reader along. You can spread details about the past as the story progresses.

How can you improve your first chapter skills?

Read the first chapter of your favorite book slowly. See how the writer draws your attention and how. What important event takes place? How much description is used and how much history is given? You don’t need to write the answers. I just want you to study the chapter from a writer’s perspective.

Novel Structure

2011-03-28T00:07:00.001-04:00

I know there are a lot of pantsers in the writing community and there is nothing wrong with it but I do believe in some structure.

*clears throat* Please, remember this is my opinion and not written in stone.

Think of a plot as a house. It needs a foundation or it will crumble and it needs walls to hold it together. These are the bare bones of a building.

Each story needs a beginning.

Each story needs conflict.

Each story needs an end.

These three things combined are your foundation of your plot. (Beginning, Conflict, End.)

The walls of your story can change shape and size, just like real walls do. My house will be different from your house. Characters, Black Moment, Goals, Motivation, etc. are your story walls. These will move around with every story.

So, pantsers might think they’re not plotting (You know I’m talking about you. ;) ) when in fact they have a foundation and walls. They may not know how they’ll end the story but they know it has to end.

I’m a very visual person so I found this structure on the internet and modified it for my needs. I actually sketch this out prior to writing just to get an idea of where I’m going and use it to remember when I’ve forgotten. Nothing is built in stone. Just like a house, you can tear down a wall and build another one.

What is essential for a novel is that your conflicts are escalating otherwise your middle will sag and your reader might get bored. Hence, the stair case structure as a reminder. For an examples, I’ll use the movie Finding Nemo (we’ve both got small kids so I assume they’ve you seen this). Each conflict Marlin faces gets worse and worse. He meets Dory (a small conflict), they meet sharks, then they lose the mask and almost get eaten by an Angler fish, and then the biggest obstacle, the jelly fish where Dory almost dies.

The black moment, where your main character feels like it’s the end of the world and your reader is in tears, usually comes just before the ending. In Nemo the Black Moment is when Marlin thinks Nemo is dead and is swimming aimlessly in the Sydney bay.

Voila, bare bones plot but you’ve got a map and shouldn’t get lost. And if you do, well, just make another map.

Another thing I do before writing is do a small character outline. You can add to it as you develop your story. I usually do but at the beginning it makes you think a little harder about them. So I make a list of the main characters who will have a point of view in the book. Under each name I write down their GMCs. (Goals, Motivation, Conflicts.)

Let’s do Marlin since the movie is mostly in his POV.

Goal- To Find Nemo

Motivation- Nemo is his only child and he loves him.

Conflicts- A human stole him and needs to cross the ocean to find him.

Annie Nicholas

Are Vampires Dead?

2011-03-20T18:38:00.000-04:00

I went to the Liberty State Fiction Writers Conference this weekend and one of the hot topics was market saturation. Can you over write a certain topic?

It made me think of vampire tropes (story lines). Are vampires dead?

I hope not.

I’ve always loved vampires from Dracula to Lestat to Zadist to Tane. The fiction world would be a duller place without our dark heros. I’ll always keep reading vampires.

The writing community agrees with me. A topic can always survive. There are so many ways to create a story and keep it fresh. As Heather Osborne from Samhain stated, “Vampires will never die.”

Annie Nicholas

LOOKIE LOOKIE!

2011-02-27T08:57:00.001-05:00

I have cover love today! This is the next installment of The Vanguards series where Robert is left in charge of the Vasi pack while his alpha is on his honeymoon.

BAIT. Same Book With A New Price

2011-02-17T20:10:00.000-05:00

Just a little announcement. Bait will soon be available at a cheaper price. It's already discounted at All Romance Ebooks. I'm just waiting on the other websites like Amazon and Nook to upload it.

Live bait makes all the difference.

Sent on a mission to lure Budapest’s vampire Overlord into a trap, Connie Bence is instead caught red-handed by the dark Casanova.

Her employer has concrete proof of the dubious leader’s misdeeds but she is surprised when this ruthless killer, Rurik, offers her protection and rescues her from his own kind. It plants seeds of doubt in her mind and she begins to question his guilt.

Now she is thrown into his world where blackmail determines her every move and where she must betray those she cares about or let them die. The stakes are high. She either puts her trust in Rurik or leads him to his execution.
Love or life.

Stylish Blogger Award

2011-02-05T09:43:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Rebecca Royce who awarded me with the Stylish blogger Award. You can visit her site here.

According to the award I have to tell you seven things about myself.

1. I'm a workaholic. If I'm not at my full time day job or writing then I'm renovating.

2. I love old houses. This is the second house I've owned and renovated that's over 100 years old. I used to be much more passionate about DIY projects than I am now. Writing has taken over that hobbie. Still love my house.

3. I have two sons, a hubby, and a fat hound dog who thinks she's a little boy.

4. I am a nurse.

5. I would rather spend all my money on traveling than on material things. Thank goodness my hubby keeps me from doing it.

6. I was born and raised in Quebec Cananda but live in Vermont now. And apparently, I still have an accent but I don't hear it.

7. I can't spell worth shit.

Isolation

2011-01-30T21:11:00.000-05:00

Maybe it's the weather

Maybe it's where I live.

But I've been feeling isolated lately. There's been very little chatter on the net from my usual buddies, Yahoo messenger has been empty, and forums are talking about things I don't care about.

Ever been surrounded by a crowd of people yet feel alone? My family and work fills my day. My friends call and I'm busy all day long with projects but when I sit down to write there's just me. I haven't anyone to discuss this passion with. No one I know in real life actually gets me, just the writers I've met online. Thank goodness for them or I would have gone mad.

I went to RT convention last year and finally had the opportunity to meet writers in person and talk shop. I loved it. This year I'm going to the Liberty States Fiction Writers convention. I'm really looking forward to getting regenerated.

Ever feel like this? What do you do?

Menage a Trois

2011-01-16T23:52:00.000-05:00

Though the idea of being part of threesome sounds enticing, in reality I think it's quite an emotional challenge. Keeping a stable relationship between two people is tough enough without insert another personality to the equation. How do you keep feelings from getting hurt and jealousy from blooming?

I’ve never been part of such a relationship, though I’ll admit to the fantasy. Many romance books have started including ménage a trios and my next release has one but I didn’t want to write about it blindly.
Did I go out and have a ménage? LOL. No, my husband is too alpha possessive to believe in sharing and to be honest, so am I. Instead, I gathered my never and asked. It surprised me how open people are about their relationships and I gathered as much info from this treasure trove as I could.
From what I learned, there seems to be two different kinds of ménages. One where there is the central couple who asks a third to join them for sex but with very little emotional attachment. The other is where all three are equally involved, sexually and emotionally.

I decided to give myself a migraine and chose the second option by not only writing a ménage between three lovers, but a deranged love triangle, where the affection is more turbulent than a whirlpool bath. Love triangles can be a mess but if a resolution can be found, it makes life so much sweeter.

What is your opinion in the ménage a trios?

My 2011 List

2011-01-08T23:53:00.001-05:00

Time has come and gone once more. I've officially been published for one year and what a year. Two novels and three novellas, can 't beat that.

Really, I can't beat it. LOL Most of those books were written the year before I contracted them or during the time I was waiting for the first one's to come out. So, I don't think I'll be publishing at this pace until I can quit the evil day job.

The things I'd like to get done this year is:

Save some money to take the boys on a real vacation. Not a camping in the backyard kind of deal. The destination is not as important as the time together so I won't worry about it.
Make excercise a priority and try to get in shape enough to jog. *eek* (I've already been working on this goal for three months so I cheated a little.)
Promote my two new novellas releasing in 2011.
Write two novellas and one novel this year.
Find either a new to me publisher or agent.

It's All in the Kiss

2011-01-01T00:01:00.004-05:00

Welcome to the New Years Eve Blog Hop 2011! If you've fallen off the bus click HERE.

All romances start with one of the simplest, yet the most life changing, meaningful thing that a person can do.

A KISS

It means so many things. A mother's light kiss on a sleeping child's head, a press of the lips on a woman's wrist, an eager crush of two mouths, a tender brush on a someone's cheek. I love to write about 'the kiss'. What other non-lethal action makes a person want to melt to the floor, pine for someone, or ease pain?

Here is my homage.

The "I want you" kiss

The "Don't Leave Me" or "Don't Forget Me" kiss

The "I think you're sexy" kiss

The "vampire" kiss

The "I love you so much" kiss

The "spiderman" kiss

picture by Aaron Rohde

The "New Year's Eve" kiss

My most memorable kiss was a simple thing. My DH leaned over and kissed me on the forehead out of the blue on day. I was O-o but then I was awwww. *blush*

Do you have a special kiss?

First Hunk of Chirtmas

2010-12-24T00:01:00.003-05:00

Look what I found under the tree!

Second Hunk of Christmas

2010-12-23T00:00:00.005-05:00

Uh--hi.

I think my brain stopped.

Third Hunk of Christmas

2010-12-22T00:01:00.003-05:00

Fourth Hunk of Christmas

2010-12-21T00:00:00.005-05:00

Gives a knew definition to trimming the tree.

Fifth Hunk of Christmas

2010-12-20T00:01:00.007-05:00

Come here, I'll cheer you up.

Sixth Hunk of Christmas

2010-12-19T00:01:00.000-05:00

You can set those pillows over here.

Seventh Hunk of Christmas

2010-12-18T00:01:00.000-05:00

Hot Damn, Santa!

Eighth Hunk of Christmas

2010-12-17T04:00:00.002-05:00

Here, I can hold that towel for you.

Ninth Hunk of Christmas

2010-12-16T22:42:00.000-05:00

Better late than never.

Tenth Hunk of Christmas

2010-12-15T00:00:00.000-05:00

He can slide down my chimney.

Eleventh Hunk Of Christmas

2010-12-14T00:01:00.001-05:00

Just a little lower please?

Hunk Number 12 Count Down to Christmas!

2010-12-13T00:02:00.001-05:00

Watch out he's armed and dangerous!

A Werewolf Under the Tree, Please?

2010-12-04T01:35:00.000-05:00

Once upon a time, there was a writer who liked the things that went bump in the night and liked the things that went bump, bump, bump even better. She spent much of her time creating the characters of her dreams and lent them to her readers as fantasies. As the holiday season approached, someone asked her to compile her Christmas wish list but unfortunately the things she wanted didn’t exist.

She wrote the usual simple things like slippers and bubble bath stuff but really her mind was her very own werewolf. Something to keep her warm during those cold Vermont winters. Maybe if she wrote Santa this year he’d deliver?

What would be on your Christmas list?

What Every Husband Should Learn

2010-11-27T15:46:00.000-05:00

The wife says: You want

The wife means: You want

The wife says: We need

The wife means: I want

The wife says: It's your decision

The wife means: The correct decision should be obvious

The wife says: Do what you want

The wife means: You'll pay for this later

The wife says: We need to talk

The wife means: I need to complain

The wife says: Sure... go ahead

The wife means: I don't want you to

The wife says: I'n not upset

The wife means: Of course I'm upset you moron

The wife says: You're ... so manly

The wife means: You need a shave and sweat a lot

The wife says: Be romantic, turn out the lights

The wife means: I have flabby thighs.

The wife says: This kitchen is so inconvenient

The wife means: I want a new house.

The wife says: I want new curtains.

The wife means: Also carpeting, furniture, and wallpaper!

The wife says: I need wedding shoes.

The wife means: The other forty pairs are the wrong shade of white.

The wife says: Hang the picture there

The wife means: No, I mean hang it there!

The wife says: I heard a noise

The wife means: I noticed you were almost asleep.

The wife says: Do you love me?

The wife means: I'm going to ask for something expensive.

The wife says: How much do you love me?

The wife means: I did something today you're not going to like.

The wife says: I'll be ready in a minute.

The wife means: Kick off your shoes and take an hour nap.

The wife says: Am I fat?

The wife means: Tell me I'm beautiful.

The wife says: You have to learn to communicate.

The wife means: Just agree with me.

The wife says: Are you listening to me?

The wife means: [Too late, your doomed.]

The wife says: Yes

The wife means: No

The wife says: No

The wife means: No

The wife says: Maybe

The wife means: No

The wife says: I'm sorry

The wife means: You'll be sorry

The wife says: Do you like this recipe?

The wife means: You better get used to it

The wife says: All we're going to buy is a soap dish

The wife means: I'm coming back with enough to fill this place.

The wife says: Was that the baby?

The wife means: Get out of bed and walk him

The wife says: I'm not yelling!

The wife means: Yes I am! I think this is important!

In answer to the question "What's wrong?"

The wife says: The same old thing.

The wife means: Nothing.

The wife says: Nothing.

The wife means: Everything.

The wife says: Nothing, really.

The wife means: It's just that you're an idiot.

The wife says: I don't want to talk about it.

The wife means: I'm still building up steam.

I'm Blogged Out!

2010-11-20T20:58:00.000-05:00

So sorry. This place seems to be the last place I blog. With Christmas coming, there are so many blog promos to full fill. By the time those are written my mind is empty when I come home. (Here)

I signed the contract for the third installment for The Vanguards series: The Beta. No release date yet. I am talking about Wordle again over at Paranormal Romantics this week and I've place the picture of this MS up.

It's Thanks Giving week and all my Canadian relatives are invading. At least ten people will be staying for a few days. I'm pulling out the bedding and checking the air mattresses. My husband, who is an only child, is planning his escape routes. We all go out on Black Friday to shop until we drop then have lunch with cocktails and cocktails. I have nothing huge on my list of things I'd like to pick up this year. I just like the hustle and bustle. (I know, it's so odd. I ususally hate shopping.) Mind you, I'm in Vermont, the most easy going, polite state in North America. No stampedes here. Everyone is excuse me while they trample over your feet. LOL

Hope you have a fun and peaceful week.

Star Wars The Force Unleashed II

2010-11-07T10:00:00.000-05:00

Yep, your reading it right, a video game.

I love Star Wars and have passed this on to my boys. They both have dreams of being Jedis and would be first in line to get a light saber if they were ever invented.

This weekend we rented The Force Unleashed to see if we liked it before purchasing it. Well, it we completed it 48 hours. Yep, I'm a great mom. LOL We played it Friday night and all day Saturday. It was like watching a movie so we couldn't put it down until we found out if he found the girl.

Don't worry, I'm not posting any spoilers. The game is short so satisfying for kids and yes, violent in that Star Wars manner so no blood at least. It helps that the angst filled warrior in this game was a hottie. ;)

Nanowirmo

2010-11-02T09:47:00.000-04:00

I first heard about Nanowirmo about nine years ago. I hung out at a forum dedicated to CJ Cherryh's works. If I remember correctly it was named Shejidan. Most of the members were gearing up for Nov. 1 and they introduced me to the idea of writing a bad novel.

What a concept. I'd always wanted to write a book but never tried because I thought it would be terrible. The first and hardest thing each writer has to accomplish is to finish a manuscript. Doesn't matter how poor the writing or plot. Once the skeleton of the story is completed the writer can always work on it to flesh it out.

That year I made an attempt at my first 50k. I never reached my goal but I did get to 35k, more words than I'd ever written before. That story still lies somewhere on my bookshell. (I still write on paper. LOL) It won't ever get finished but the idea that I'm allowed to write badly was my first step to getting published.

I wonder how many other writers started with such simple inspirations. What got you started?

Halloween Blog Hop!

2010-10-29T07:06:00.003-04:00

Happy Halloween! If you found this blog by accident and want to join the fun then click blog hop.

As a paranormal author this is a fun time for me. I decorate my home in a scary fashion, get the spooky music going, and frighten the local children. And of course, pass out awesome candy. I even dress up. This year I'm going as a zombie fairy. LOL

If you leave a commen and get kicked off the tour, don't worry. Just click HERE and you'll be back on track.

To make this holiday even more special, we at Paranormal Romantics are throwing a Blog-a-thon this weekend. About thirty writers will be blogging and offering a prize with each blog and all you need to do is comment. As a GRAND PRIZE we at PR chipped in together and got a NOOK filled with books to give away. To enter that contest you'll need to do a little more work. I'll be posting five questions at our blog. The answers are hidden in the blog posts. You'll have to send these answers to paranormalromantics@yahoo.com

So come join the fun tomorrow and check in during the weekend to see what we're up to. You might go home with a NOOK! http://www.paranormalromantics.blogspot.com/

Do you think I'm excited yet? I have even more to celebrate because I have a release on the best month of the year.

Blurb:

Caught between two vampires, Connie is torn between Rurik, the one she loves and Tane, the one she’d love to stake.

The Excorist

2010-10-24T17:00:00.001-04:00

Hot DAMN!!! Does this movie scare me.

Just thinking about it makes my stomach turn. I can watch slasher movies and monster movies without nightmares. I still scream but then again, I'm screamed during Finding Nemo, so no big deal there. Anything to do with the spiritual world, demons, and possession has me clinging to my DH like a five year old for days.

I was about eight years old when I saw the Excorist. (Thanks Dad.) It came on television, since there were no VCRs or DVDs in THOSE days. He saw the little girl with the movie star mom and thought it was a Disneyish movie. Low and behold, my life was changed and my parents couldn't kick me out of their bed for nights.

Years later when I was a new mother the director's cut came out. I didn't even need to see the movie. All it took to set me off was the commercial of the spider walk.

I was home alone with my new born. My DH worked evenings at the time. I phoned my older brother, it was about 10PM, and asked if he'd like to come over to hold my hand. LOL Thank goodness for big brothers.

What movie makes you shake in your boots?

Catch is AVAILABLE

2010-10-12T19:52:00.002-04:00

Blurb:

Caught between two vampires, Connie is torn between Rurik, the one she loves and Tane, the one she’d love to stake.

The back-stabbing vampire almost killed her and Rurik when they’d first met, then used them to obtain his crown. She would rather stake him, but the small drop of Nosferatu blood he’d forced her to drink in Budapest is blooming into a bond, one which ties her life to his. One he won’t hesitate to manipulate.

He admits to binding her so Rurik would have to remain at his side, but their timing couldn’t be any worse. The betrayer finds himself betrayed. Tane’s rule is in upheaval and he’s forced to place his trust in two people who owe him no allegiance—her and Rurik. In the middle of a power struggle, Connie fights to keep her lover, but didn’t plan on Tane slipping into her heart.

BUY NOW

Excerpt:

Vampire slayers mourned those of their ilk who got caught. While most died a true death, some of the very things they hunted lured them to cross over and they became creatures of the night. Or in my case, blood bound with one. Colby and Red, my former comrades-at-arms, treated me as if I was dead, but I never felt more alive.

Jardim Botanico was a botanical paradise famous for its peaceful landscapes. Minutes away from my hotel, it sat in the heart of the south side of Rio de Janeiro. I’d spent the night sneaking along its gardens, ponds and well-manicured lanes, desperate to escape the predator who stalked my trail. Every time I got close enough to make a run for the streets, he’d pop out from hiding, almost as if daring me to try.

Bloodsucker.

An envelope of silence surrounded me as I hid under the dark green leaves of a tropical plant. The scents of nutmeg and cinnamon lay thick in the air, I hoped they covered mine. My heart raced and sweat made my curls stick to the nape of my neck, not only from the heat, but from anticipation of the chase. I’d been smart this time, wearing a black sleeveless t-shirt, sport-shorts and water bottle clipped to my hip so the Brazilian weather wouldn’t sap my strength. My hair color, though, gave me away most of the time. So pale and yellow, sometimes it seemed like a neon sign saying ‘here I am’.

I’d gotten pretty good at running away from vampires. Connie Bence, live bait extraordinaire, was my last job, but I quit and tonight wasn’t a trap.

It was a game.

The night blanketed everything. I thought a city like Rio would be up at all hours, people partying in the streets, especially on New Year’s Eve. I was right. They were. Just not around here. The Copacabana Beach probably swarmed with people. One nervous human and one lusty vampire were the only creatures roaming the botanical gardens tonight.

A humongous, lighted Christmas tree floated on the central lagoon as a landmark. From the hotel window, I could see it to the northwest. This meant I needed to go southeast. Or did I? Ah shit, I suck at this stuff. Don’t throw me in the woods, no matter how manicured.

Laughter drew my attention and I peeked through the leaves. The street was ten yards in front of me through a small stone archway. The noise drifted closer.

I’d been waiting for a witness. It sounded like a group celebrating, probably heading to the beach where the fireworks would be going off in a few hours. If I could make it to them, my vampire wouldn’t be able to finish the hunt.

He had to keep his people’s existence a secret. If he broke that law, the big nasties would come and punish him.

Even vampires had nightmares—the Nosferatu.

I crouched under the foliage and did my best imitation of an Olympic sprinter waiting for the start pistol. My adversary strolled out from the shadows next to the archway.

Clenching my teeth, I swore under my breath. Dirty, freaking bastard knew what I was going to try.

With his hands clasped behind his back, he whistled a little Hungarian ditty. He wouldn’t kill me, this wasn’t about life and death. It was about winning.

The small group of people, my would-be rescuers, appeared.

My vampire blocked the exit with his body, waved at them and called out something in Portuguese. They laughed. It appeared they found him hilarious.

I didn’t find it funny.

The muscles in my legs trembled with the strain. They wanted to take off and run with all their might. It took some effort to make myself relax and slow my breathing. Rurik, the vampire, knew I was close, not my exact position or he would have taken me by now. How did he follow me? Maybe the blood bond we shared gave my location. If that were true, shouldn’t I sense something about him, too?

For once, I’d like to win this game, just once. Make it to our hotel before he captured me. It would mean he’d finally submit to my whims, instead of the other way around. The irony that I couldn’t dominate him without his consent wasn’t lost on me, but I’d make do.

He now stood in the center of the exit, his arms extended to touch the stone walls of the archway. The dim light from the streetlamp outlined his lean muscled frame. “Run, Rabbit, run.” The softly spoken words sent shivers down my spine. “Try to get away.” He’d named me Rabbit when we’d first met in Budapest a little over a year ago. Only he could call me by that nickname, he had earned the privilege. No one else had my permission.

My options for escape narrowed. The garden contained more gates, but I didn’t know where. We’d been playing since sunset and he already prevented my leaving three other times. If I gave up he would be disappointed. I understood his need to hunt, yet I grew tired of losing, too.

I eyed a wide Banyan tree by the fence. Long vines hung from the branches, waiting to root themselves one day. Before Rurik bound me to him, I wouldn’t have considered the crazy plan formulating in my head. The blood we shared made me faster and stronger. I healed quicker and didn’t get sick. Best of all, I stayed young. Worst of all, if he died, so did I.

Marriage vows seemed weak compared to that. So if he needed a little hide-and-seek in the dark, I played with him.

Annie Nicholas

http://www.annienicholas.com/

NEW Website is up.

2010-10-05T23:10:00.000-04:00

It's done. It's DONE!

After months of designing and brainstorming with midnight phone calls, my website is operational.

To celebrate I am having some mini fun here on my blog.

There are hidden things on my homepage. That's the only hint you'll get. At least for now.

The person who lists the most correct hidden things will win one of my backlist ebooks of their choice. I'll keep this contest open for one week. If there is a tie, I will place their names in a hat and chose.

Let the games begin, my lovelies.

The Ruts

2010-09-28T21:03:00.000-04:00

Sometimes writers get stuck in a rut and don't even know it. Not like writer's block but doing something over and over again, not even noticing.

I reached an all time achievement of having the word 'but' in my manuscript 453 times. On some pages I used it ten times. Kind of made me proud that I could find so many uses for one word. There are times I read my favorite authors and find they have some sentences they use frequently, almost a trade mark.

LKH likes to use, "he leaned toward her face."
Ward likes, "Fuck you very much." and "Shitkickers."
Butcher uses, "Boomstick" and I'm sure there's more but I nothing comes to mind without my pulling all my books down.

I've noticed the phrase, "kissing with an expert's ease," creep into more than of my books.

What are some of the phrases you recall and by who?

Farwell Summer

2010-09-19T21:19:00.000-04:00

I'll miss your hot summer nights.

Cooling off in the pool.

Lazy afternoons in the shade.

Steamy days at the beach.

Farwell Summer. Until next year.

Now, I need to find my rain gear.

I Have a New Pretty to Share

2010-09-06T09:28:00.000-04:00

Caught between two vampires, Connie is torn between Rurik, the one she loves and Tane, the one she’d to love stake.

Hunger burns in Connie Bences’ soul, she craves the blood of her vampire lover, Rurik, but it’s not satisfying her needs anymore. It’s driving her insane. Desperate to find help, Rurik brings her to Rio Des Janeiro where Tane rules the vampire nation.

The back stabbing vampire had almost killed her and Rurik when they’d first met, then used them to obtain his crown. She would rather kill him but the small drop of Nosferatu blood he’d forced her to drink in Budapest is blooming into a bond, one which ties her life to his. One he won’t hesitate to manipulate.

He admits to binding her so Rurik would have to remain at his side but their timing couldn’t be any worse. The betrayer finds himself betrayed. Tane’s rule is in upheaval and he’s forced to place his trust in two people who owe him no allegiance—her and Rurik. In the middle of a power struggle, Connie fights to keep her lover but didn’t plan on Tane slipping into her heart.

COMING SOON!!

New Addiction

2010-08-30T11:59:00.000-04:00

Hello, my name is Annie Nicholas and I am a Black Dagger Brotherhood addict. It has been four hours since I've read anything from this series. LOL

Love finding new-to-me authors who have a wonderful line up of books for me to consume.

Anyone else enjoyed or enjoying these stories? What do you like about the series and who's your favorite?

Board Games

2010-08-17T23:31:00.000-04:00

I have two little boys so playing board games comes with the territory, as does video games but I'll save that for another post.

We have some of the classics: Monopoly, Clue, Life, Sorry, and Battleship

Some of the newer ones: Apples to Apples, Whonu, Cadoo

But a game we've enjoyed that I've never heard of, which we recieved as a gift, is T-Rex. The premise of the game is similar to Sorry. You have four dinosaurs who need to get home BUT the similarities end there. When to dinos land on the same spot they battle with dice numbers. The loser gets sent to the river at the beginning of the game. You also have a T-Rex marching around the board moved my a red dice each player has to roll on their turn. If the T-Rex lands on your dino it's sent to the Lair and you need to roll a 6 to get out. It's a load of fun and I'm surprised at the complexity and mathematics it offers to children.

What kind of games do you enjoy?

A Delicate Philosophy

2010-08-11T07:00:00.000-04:00

I’ve been pondering Happiy-Ever-Afters at the end of stories. With each book, I struggle to bring my characters to Happily-For-Nows let alone the HEAs.

Why? Because sometimes it feels like it’s a lie. I think in modern society we are led to believe everyone should get a HEA but when it doesn’t happen we struggle with depression and worse because we think we’ve failed our culture’s expectation. I hear, “What’s wrong with me?” from friends, co-workers, and family when things don’t come together like they should.

I can understand the need to read and watch things that end well so you can finish with satisfaction. I’m guilty of this but I’m also aware that it’s fiction. Sometimes I wonder if the younger generations are as grounded.

Everyone DESERVES a HEA but most don’t get it. The majority of us get HFNs or less. I’m a realist and it sucks sometimes but my day job makes me so. When I write, it bothers me to have to twist things out of proportion to make it work out in the end. I do my best to make it real.

I have nothing against HEAs in stories. I’m a big fan and hate being let down as a reader. I’ve just figured out why I have trouble writing them and wanted to share.

What’s your take on HEAs in real life?

New Release Today by Kate Pearce

2010-08-03T11:09:00.002-04:00

First in a sexy new series that takes a bite out of the court of King Henry VIII
Desperate to defeat King Richard III and gain the English crown, Henry Tudor made a pact with the Druids that bound him and his heirs to the Druid’s deadly struggle against the Vampires. Ever since, the Llewellyns, an ancient Vampire slaying family, have been in the permanent employ of the monarchy.
Now Henry VIII is on the throne, and his father’s bargain has almost been forgotten. Until corpses drained of blood start turning up in the most inappropriate of places, including the king’s bedchamber. But are these people the victims of the Vampires-or of the Druids?
To save the king from a nameless assassin, Rosalind Llewellyn, Vampire hunter extraordinaire, must form an uneasy alliance with a known Druid slayer. Sir Christopher Ellis hails from a family that has protected the Vampires for centuries, yet Rosalind has no choice but to rely on his help. And with her life threatened and her loyalty tested, Rosalind may even have to acknowledge the unthinkable. This sworn enemy may be her soul mate.
Click here to purchase. For more information on the author, visit her website or blog.

Take a Number!

2010-07-30T19:04:00.000-04:00

What is this thing called Writer's Block and where can I get some?

Don't shake your head at me. I need rest and the voices won't let me be.

It's all Spice's fault. She invaded my head two in the morning less than a year ago. The story she told me was so compelling I had to get up and write it all down. A flood gate must have broken when she came through because the characters and their stories won't stop coming. I'm booked for the next three years.

I've had a character in my head for a year now but didn't know where she fit, why, or who her hero could be. He introduced himself to me this morning and EVERYTHING fell into place. OMG I have to write this story but--but I'm already writting a great one that's been waiting four months to be started. Not to mention the OTHER story all outlined and researched sitting in my computer for the last year and half. Then sequels start shouting, "What about our fans? They don't want to wait that long for the next book!"

AHHHHH! Take a number and I'll get to you between day job, kids, and husband. Sorry, household the cleaning may take a back seat for awhile. Maybe I should campaign for a maid. I doubt that's in the budget. LOL

I love to write and wish I could do it all day, everyday.

What have the voices been doing to you?

Wordle

2010-07-24T00:38:00.003-04:00

I have a new obession and it's name is Wordle. It's even on my favorites list.

What is it? You copy/paste a document at http://www.wordle.net/ and see the word montage it creates. The more the word appears in the document the bigger it is in the picture. Apparently I have a 'like' issue.

This picture is of a WIP. As a writer I see a lot of possiblities with the program. I am now aware I possibly use his name too much and I need to use a thesaurus for the word 'like'. It is also a good way to find a title. The word that pops out to me is HUNGER.

Let's try another one. I'll use Bait this time.

A fully editted book and the picture appears more balanced. There are many options, one being to not remove common words. Go check it out and have fun!

Getting Someone's Attention (First lines, Queries, and Synopsis)

2010-07-13T11:37:00.001-04:00

When I say someone I mean editors, agents, and most importantly, readers.

It only takes a few pages for someone to decide if they are going to like your story or not. You may have the best story ever but if your first pages are not compelling it will be a hard sell. A lot of articles on this subject talk about hooks but I found it confusing because I can never figure out what my hook is or I have too many hooks. LOL

My best advice is don’t write BORING. Use character, mood, and setting to draw and keep their attention.

You’ve written a whole book about a character you love. Now, you need to condense this character and show it off in the first paragraphs. You can use their voice or a short narration to grab your reader and have them fall in love with your creation.

“Lately, I’ve been spending a lot of time rolling on the ground with men who think a stiffy represents personal growth. The rolling around has nothing to do with my sex life. The rolling around is what happens when a bust goes crapola . . . ” (Janet Evanovich, Hard Eight)

Setting is another tool you can use. Describe, see previous blog for description tools, something that entices and entrances by using the five senses.

“He stood at the window . . . framed by the faded curtains which she had chosen forty years before. The sun had bleached their bright roses to a faded pink, and the linings were so threadbare that they could no longer be sent to the cleaners for fear of total disintegration.” (Rosamunde Pilcher, Under Gemini)

Palpable mood can spellbind a reader. With the use of the right kind of adjectives, you can make your reader shiver with anticipation of what will come next.

“The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth comes again. In one Age, called the Third Age by some . . . ” (Robert Jordan, The Eye of the World) [one of my favorite books by the way}

You have the technical tools now. Here is where you must pull the creative part from your soul and make writing an art. Get creative, break rules, and snap your reader to attention. DON’T WRITE BORING.

The first line of your novel is the most important one of the whole book. I rewrote the first line of Bait twenty-seven times before I found what it needed. “Live bait made all the difference, pretty much a no-brainer.” I chose to go with character since the whole series revolves around Connie. To come up with my first lines, I try to summarize the core essence of the story. Such as the bait reference for a book about being human bait. Or in The Alpha, “No one could call Spice Monroe weak, at least not to her face, yet she returned to Chicago with nothing but the clothes on her back. If only the strong survived, then why did she feel like such a loser?” This story condensed down to Spice’s struggle with belief in oneself.

Not BORING. No cliché lines, no AA introductions, and the story starts right away. Once again, I can’t stress getting creative.

Query letters, another very important thing, since it needs to pass through the gauntlet first before most editors or agents will read your wonderful first page. Many writers spend weeks editing and polishing their WIP then throw together a query/synopsis overnight. These things are just as important as the book. They represent your writing skill.

The query should contain a short open to the story and leaving them wanting more. Kind of like a blurb. I usually start my query with the tagline. Then you need to add the technical info of the book like word count, genre, and heat level. To end the letter give a quick resume such published works and contests wins. I don’t go into much detail. Mine reads like “I have # books published with such and such house and # with this other house. I have received many five star reviews and hit some of the bestsellers lists. For more detailed information here is my website.”

Synopsis should be written in present tense. Where in your story you should be showing your characters dilemmas, in the synopsis you need to tell them. It’s basically a summary of key elements, conflicts, and plot lines. You need to tell everything important, especially the end. The best piece of advice I’ve ever received on writing a synopsis is this: Tell it like your describing the best movie you’ve ever seen to your best friend.

Example:

“It turns out the rosebud, they’ve been looking everywhere for, is not a flower but a gemstone. They have to bribe their way out of jail and jump on a train across the country where John starts to fall in love with Jessica…”

Armed with these tools, go forth and catch someone's attention!

Writing 101- Description

2010-07-08T09:36:00.000-04:00

Hey, look! I found my brain.

The next subject I wanted to cover is description in your story. Like show vs tell, you will find two camps on this subject, those who love to describe and those who hate it.

I’m in between the two. I think every scene should be set-up so your reader has a picture in their head BUT they don’t need to know what kind of lace pattern is on the kitchen curtain unless it is pertinent to the story. Also, I suggest not giving a whole paragraph of setting at the beginning of each scene. Weave it into your writing like fine thread and from your characters pov so the reader doesn’t get bored. I’ll give an example in a moment.

Another tool a writer can use is vocabulary. Remember a thesaurus and dictionary is a writer’s best friend. Your character’s mood will affect how you describe your setting. A sad person will view the world differently than an angry one. This also adds to your showing part of writing skills. By using mood in your description shows your reader how your character is feeling without actually telling them.

I will use the above picture for examples.

My character, let’s call her Tiffany, is walking through this forest. As an exercise we will find hopeful words to use and they don’t have to only be adjectives. Let’s use soar, bright, fresh, spring, and promise. I choose most of those words from the top of my head as I thought what hopeful would feel like and I also typed it into my thesaurus to see what came up. I found promising, which sounded good for my use.

Example one:

The bright sunlight broke through the morning mist and Tiffany’s heart soared. Darkness faded so she could see some of the trees and with it some of her fear. Fresh earth tinted the air. Tiffany found a new spring in her step with the promise of escape from these woods.

Notice how all the description comes from Tiffany’s view point. I didn’t describe as if I was above her but from her senses. Let’s mix it up and make Tiffany hopeless by using words like sank, dark, dank, heavy, and danger. I used the same process as above to choose my words.

Example two:

The dark mist swallowed the sunlight and Tiffany’s heart sank. Light faded so she could barely see the trees and with it some of her hope. Dank earth tinted the air. Tiffany found her steps heavy with the danger of being lost forever.

Similar paragraph but by changing the words used to describe the moment, I’ve changed the mood. I didn’t need half a page of description to do it either. From this point the story can continue.

Any questions?

Suspended

2010-07-05T09:52:00.000-04:00

Writing 101 classes have been temporarily post poned until Annie Nicholas finds her brain. Sorry for the inconveince.

Independence Blog Hop

2010-07-01T22:10:00.000-04:00

There is a lot promoting I could be doing but I'm taking a break from it and going to sit back and enjoy the view. These hotties are my five top favorite pictures and I wanted to share them with you.

He's my favorite. *sigh*

Have a fun weekend. I'm giving away a copy of The Omegas away at this hop.

The Alpha Releases Today!!

2010-06-21T07:00:00.000-04:00

New Blog look with a new release!

BLURB:

Someone is about to get some Spice in his life.

Spice has nothing but the clothes on her back when she returns to Chicago. She's looking for a better life, and that means reuniting with her estranged twin sister, Sugar. She isn't thrilled to find out Sugar's boyfriend is a vampire. But then she meets Eric, once the bottle-cap-glasses wearing nerd next door - now grown into the kind of man she'd love to snuggle with on this cold winter night...and he’s offered her his room in Sugar’s house.

Eric can’t believe Spice has returned. He’d given up hope of ever seeing her again, let alone having her stare at him as if he’s sex on a stick. But now that all of his fantasies for them are coming true, reality rears her ugly head and Eric must tell Spice his intimate secret; he’s actually an Alpha werewolf looking for his mate and he thinks he’s found her.

Buy

Excerpt:

Sugar had everything Spice wanted; a loving man, friends, and a home.

“Daedalus let you cut your hair?” A short man built like a bodybuilder approached her.

The awe in his voice snapped Spice out of her self-pity and the protector inside reared its head. This was the second reference to someone allowing her little sister to do something. “What do you mean ‘let me’?”

What kind of relationship did Sugar have? She needed permission to cut her hair? Maybe destiny brought her back to Chicago to save her little sister from some monster. Again. All those bad things happening to drive her here couldn’t be coincidental.

She crossed her arms over her chest. “Where is my sister, and what are you doing in her house?”

They glanced at each other, confusion apparent on their faces. “What?”

The man in the kitchen stuck his head out of the door, chocolate brown eyes wide as he stared at her. “Spice?” The smile he’d given to her when he thought she was Sugar returned but wider.

Her heart skipped a beat. In the light his face seemed familiar as well. “I know you.”

“You should, we were only neighbors forever as kids.”

“Eric!” He had grown. Stupid, of course he’s changed. But she never expected that the skinny, lanky bottle-cap-glasses-wearing nerd would develop into a charming, handsome I-wanna-snuggle-you-on-a-cold-night kind of man. “Hi.” The jobs as a hostess, a bartender, and the most recent, a stripper taught her how to talk to men the way they liked. But with him grinning at her like a happy puppy, her mind went blank.

He swept her into his arms in a bone-cracking hug.

“Wow, I’d forgotten Sugar had a twin.” The redhead scratched his chin. “You look exactly alike, except your hair is short.”

Eric set her back on her feet. “Let me take your coat.” He tugged on the belt and untied it. To her surprise, the small action sparked warmth between her thighs. Not like he took off her clothes but she began to wonder what it would feel like if he did.

Their eyes met. His pupils dilated, the chocolate brown faded to amber, and something feral peeked at her.

She gasped and stepped back.

The pretty oriental girl took her arm and dragged her into the living room. She chattered about making tea, but Spice’s attention riveted on Eric as he stood with the men surrounding him.

What the heck? She’d seen need in men’s eyes before but this was darker, deeper, and so much more alluring.

The redhead tried to take Eric’s arm, but he shook it off and stomped out of sight.

Spice sat on the overstuffed couch. “What did you say your name was?”

“Katrina.”

A dainty, petite girl with long black hair to her knees, yet she gave Spice the impression of great strength. Life in Vegas taught her to be an excellent judge of character. Too bad it had taken her so long to learn.

“I’ll be back in a minute. You stay while I make tea.” Katrina slipped away to the kitchen.

Every flat surface in the living room held a book. Soft cover, hard cover, tattered, or new, Sugar loved her books. The walls were lined with shelves filled with them. Spice picked up the closest one and smelled it. The scent of paper always reminded her of her twin.

The large, square coffee table in front of her held the game Risk. Different colored pieces lay scattered on the thick blue carpet.

Game night at Sugar’s house. She glanced at the hallway. With Eric. Many questions formulated in her head. What happened to her reclusive sister over the past two years? When did she get friends? Probably when her only one, me, left town. Did she hook up with Eric?

Hope sprung in Spice’s heart. Her attraction to him was out of character. She usually loved them tough and bad. Maybe he could be the new beginning she’d come home for.

To celebrate my new release I'm giving away a copy of The Alpha at Paranormal Romantics on 6/21. Be on the look out for my other guest blogs because I'll be giving other copies too!

Annie Nicholas
http://www.annienicholas.com/

Point Of View

2010-06-14T10:43:00.000-04:00

When I first started to hang out on the net with other writers, I kept wondering what a POV was? Point of Venue? Practice of Verbs? Once, I found it stood for Point of View I realized I hadn’t a clue what it meant.

A little google search told me the definitions.

• a mental position from which things are viewed
• the spatial property of the position from which something is observed
• the narrative mode used by writers to convey the plot to the audience

Narrative mode? I did a little more digging.

-First person: is a point of view in which an "I" or "we" serves as the narrator of a piece of fiction. While first person point of view can allow a reader to feel very close to a specific character's point of view, it also limits the reader to that one perspective. The reader can only know what this character knows.
Example: “I loved the way he struggled to keep his eyes from wandering over my body as he lectured about the pros and cons of the insurance policy.”

-Second person: the narrator tells the story to another character using "you". The story is being told through the addressee's point of view. It is the least commonly used POV in fiction.
Example: “You opened the door to find an orange cat on your doorstep.”

Third person: uses third person pronouns such as "he" or "she." It’s the most versatile form of pov and can be sub-divided into omniscient and deep.
Example: “He ran around the corner, surprised to find the vampire waiting for him.”

• Omniscient: in which both the reader and author observe the situation either through the senses and thoughts of more than one character, or through an overarching godlike perspective that sees and knows everything that happens and everything the characters are thinking.
Example: “He ran around the corner but he didn’t know a vampire had been waiting for him there all night.” (I find this the hardest pov to write in.)

• Deep: is being so immersed in a character's head, his or her thoughts color everything in the story. It's got 1st person depth in 3rd person format.
Example: “He ran around the corner, his heart stopped as he came eye to eye with his worst nightmare, a vampire.”

So, point of view simply means where is your reader observing the story. If they ‘are’ the character then you want first or deep third. If you want them sitting on the characters shoulder as if watching then you want second or third. If you want them above as if on the ceiling or sky then third omniscient.

Once you chose a point of view, I recommend sticking with it throughout the story. I’ve read some experimental stories where the writer would switch from first to third depending on the character but it knocked me out of the story and I found it too distracting. The best writing allows the reader to get caught up in the story and not even notice what pov they are in.

Next week I’ll discuss deepening your point of view. Don’t forget we’re celebrating our first year anniversary at Paranormal Romantics and having daily give aways.

Show vs Tell

2010-06-07T07:00:00.002-04:00

The nemesis of all new writers and, you know, even the ones who’ve been writing for awhile. LOL
To start I want to mention that I think how much you show your story versus how much you tell lends to your voice. It gives your stories a fingerprint, if that analogy helps more.

In my opinion, writing is about forging an emotional link to the reader. While some good fiction functions on a higher intellectual level, it’s the visceral stuff that sticks in our memories. The ones that made you feel the characters’ losses and joys. We’re drawn to these stories because it touched something deep inside and took hold. One of the best ways to grab someone with your story is by creating vivid images that immerse them in the world— by not merely telling readers what’s happening, but showing it to them.

“Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.” ~Anton Chekhov.

Like I’ve repeatedly said in this blog series, everything in moderation. I believe in showing more than telling but it’s not written in any writing rules book that is the way it has to be. This choice is part of my voice as a writer.

Every time I find emotional adjectives such as angry, sad, happy, etc in my WIP, I step back and ask if there is a way I can show what my character is feeling instead of telling the reader. This draws the reader emotionally closer to the character.

Ex: Angered by Sheila’s betrayal, Tom left the room. (TELLING)

Tom squeezed his fists until the nails bit into his palms. He stomped from the room and slammed the door behind him. How could she betray like this? (SHOW)

Another suggestion is to show time passing without telling the reader. This is simple but I didn’t get it until another writer told me, so for those like me here you go. LOL State what meal the character is eating, where the sun is in the sky, mention the stars or moon, piles of mail can grow, or have them check their watch. There are plenty of things that can be done and it’s better than stating, “three days later.”

Describing the setting can be considered showing as well but I’ll be discussing this at length in its own blog.
Use of everyday things you observe from people around you will help with showing. If my character is anxious, I’ll make her dialogue short and fast and sometimes it won’t make sense depending on how upset she is. See how this kind of ties in with sentence structure, which I discussed in another blog. Show isn’t an easy concept to jump onto. It’s not 1+1=2. It’s more like 3+2=7 except when there’s a full on the 4th of May but then again you can minus 1.

Once you do get it, I promise it will snap in your head and you’ll see all the possibilities.

When I finally grasped the power of show, I realized I told my readers too much in the aspect of my plots and decided to show them clues instead. Even if they didn’t pull them all together and solve my story on their own, when my heroine did figure it out the readers would have an ‘AHA!’ moment and hopefully think, “She wrote something about this in chapter three. OH! She also mentioned that clue in chapter seven.” I know as a reader, I LOVE those ‘AHA’ moments.

Let’s use an example for this. I’ll make up a plot for this example. Say the end of your story is that the hero saves the heroine by mixing a magic potion to cure her from an evil spell. He needed to gather all the rare ingredients to make it and use a recipe from his great grandmother’s spell book. Mention the spell book in ch 1 or 2 as hint. Have him notice ingredients here there in context with the rest of the story but not too obvious. At the end of the book when he’s in the process of saving her, the reader is more involved in the story because you showed them pieces of the solution. Mind you this is just a simple example to give you an idea of what I meant.

Last but not least, do not go crazy on the showing either. If your character needs to cross the kitchen and get a glass of water and if it is not relevant to the story, then by all means, just tell us. Megan walked to the sink and poured a glass of water.

I hoped this helped more than harmed your understanding of show vs tell.

New Release by Ciar Cullen

2010-06-05T12:26:00.002-04:00

Available now at Amazon!.
Emily Fenwick, former NYPD, is now reluctant defender of 1890 New York. Unfortunately for Emily, who hates "the creepy stuff," she ignored her inner voice, went to a carnival in Central Park, and entered a Victorian tent in hopes a psychic would have some encouraging news about her woefully boring love life. The guarantee she receives of meeting a tall, dark, and handsome stranger comes with a huge catch--he lives in an alternate dimension of the past.

Jack Pettigrew leads a quirky band of lost souls in a battle to save New York circa 1890. Nightmares have come alive and threaten to terrorize a fragile era. Jack leads the "punks," who have been sucked back in time through a vortex. Each has a fleeting memory of their own death--or near death--and must determine for themselves why they have been chosen for this mission. Is Steamside their Purgatory? Could an Egyptian obelisk in Central Park be the cause of the time rift, or is Emily herself to blame for the goblins, zombies, and other nightmarish scenes plaguing them?

If the Punks want to return to 2010, they must ensure there's going to be an 1891. If they conclude they're really ghosts, then it might be time to party like it's 1999.

Dear Reader, Please note that while this book has some adult content, it is not ultra steamy romance. If you prefer hardcore gadget laden steampunk--look away. While this book has some steampunk elements, it is primarily a fantasy romance. Best wishes!

To Was or Not to Was and Format Basics

2010-05-31T07:00:00.003-04:00

WAS?

The verb “To be” is said to be the most versatile of the English language, constantly changing form, sometimes without much of a clear pattern. Considering that we use it often, it’s really too bad that the verb “To be” has to be the most irregular, slippery verb in the language.

Present tense:

I am

We are

He/She/It is

Past tense:

I/He/She/It was

We were

Past participle- I have been

Progressive participle- I am being

To use these types of verbs makes a weak sentence. You should try to avoid them. Note that I am not saying “do not use them.” These are wonderful words and you need to use them, but try to limit their use. EVERYTHING IN MODERATION.

So how do I get rid of my ‘to be’ verbs? How do I make my writing read stronger and more interesting?

1) Change the to be verb to a strong verb: (Here is a list of 1000 Active Verbs)

Example: Rurik was afraid for Connie.

Rurik feared for Connie.

Example: She was alarmed by the proximity of the vampire.

She ran away from the vampire.

2) Eliminate the be verb by writing one or more showing sentence. (I’ll be covering Show vs Tell next week)

Example: Werewolves are mean.

The werewolf growled when they stumbled into his cave and woke him. Lurching to his feet, he swiped at them with its claws before they could turn and run.

3) Combine sentences to eliminate the be verb.

Example: The zombie is hungry. He heads to the allies, disappointed, despite having eaten his fill of brains .

The zombie heads to the allies, hungry, even after eating his fill of brains.

4) Eliminate the entire sentence if its omission does not change the meaning of the passage.

5) Leave the be verb if changing it alters the meaning, diminishes the passage, or makes the structure unworkable.

As to formatting, every new writer asks about this at one time or another.

1. Check the publisher’s submission guidelines and follow them.

2. If there are no guidelines use a clear font like Courier New or Times New Roman, size 12 is standard. Double space or, if you understand you word processor (WP) enough, make the lines exactly 25 per page. Number your pages by using your WP program, upper right hand corner is standard. I prefer a header with the title of my MS and my name on each page. Not so necessary in a digital age and for e-pubs but some contests and agents still like paper so if a page is lost they know where it belongs. Title page with your Pen Name, Real Name, snail mail address, e-mail address, title, word count, and genre is a good idea if, like I said, you have no guidelines to follow. Most submissions require a query letter and synopsis with each submission. I will cover those two dreaded subjects when I get the nerve to write them unless I can find a sucker—er—knowledgeable writer to guest blog for me.

This concludes the basics to writing 101. Next week I will start the next steps to taking your skills seriously and hopefully won’t confuse further.

If you have any questions please ask. I don’t bite, not unless you ask me too and say please.

Punctuation by Caroline Adams

2010-05-24T07:00:00.001-04:00

Punctuation is part of any serious writer’s craft. When used properly it helps guide your reader through your words, so they pause, stop, and start the way you meant your story to be read. Consider punctuation the roadmap for writing.

The following sentences provide guidance ‒pay attention not just to the words, but the punctuation as well‒on some of the things that punctuation can do:

Some punctuation can emit emotions: Excitement! Pondering?

Ellipses pause or dwindle off…

The em-dash stops abruptly‒

The semi-colon links two independent clauses together; as one, they create a deeper meaning than either statements does alone.

Commas segregates your phrasing, each special and unique, into readable components, which is especially vital in longer sentences, but never, under any conditions, allow a single comma to separate the subject from the verb, and don’t put a comma between two independent clauses; that’s semi-colon’s job.

The em-dash allows you to insert‒we all love to do this‒a totally independent thought into our sentence.

In summary, you have this great tool to guide the reader through your words: proper punctuation

Learn it; use it!

Now that I have you all excited to learn punctuation, let me throw in a caveat and my nomination for the stupidest punctuation rule of mankind.

While you would think punctuation rules should be black and white, not all of them are. I’ve no doubt someone will disagree with some of what I’ve written here. So my best advice is to pick a reliable source and stick to it. Personally, I try to follow The Chicago Manual of Style.

When you acquire an editor, they may go by a different standard, so you might need to tweak a few things. However, editors are aware of the ‘grey areas’ and a difference in usage will not bring shame upon you and your children. However, using blatantly wrong punctuation shows you have failed to learn an important tool of your trade.

Grey areas aside, English and American punctuation do have some differences. So make sure you learn the punctuation of the country where you plan to publish.

Now to the most illogical rule known to mankind: The Crappy Printer/Fragile Punctuation Rule.

That may not be its real title, but it should be!

The story concocted to explain our stupid rule is as follows: Long ago, our first printing equipment was, to be blunt, shoddy. Thus, the publishers made a change to the English punctuation rules to solve a printing problem they were having.

“Fragile punctuation will always be on the inside of any ‘quote marks,’” declared the grumpy printer, tired of fighting with a tiny half-blocks at the end of the sentence.

“But what if it’s an ‘internal quote’ that logically should be inside the sentence?” his apprentice asked.

“I don’t care if it’s an ‘internal quote,’” the grumpy printer replied. “If it ends in a period or comma, put those quote marks on the outside!”

“But if the sentence ends in an exclamation point or question mark then I can use ‘logical punctuation’?”

“Yes!”

The apprentice rubbed his temples, feeling the anger of centuries of writers bearing down upon him. “So we will not just be illogical, but inconsistent in the way we treat the’ internal quote’?”

“Yes. I’m just making this change so I can print using this crappy machine. Logic and consistency be damned!”

And while the printer’s life improved, American writers have been pulling out their hair ever sense.

Which leaves me to ponder why, in our digital age, where nary a half-block can be found, does this illogical fragile punctuation rule still exists? And when will the madness stop?

BLURB:

Aaron de Coeur arrives at his father, the Marquis’ deathbed to hear his father’s confession that he had married a sixteen year old English heiress five years prior to get himself out of debt. The young woman was allowed to remain in England and shockingly opened a ‘gentleman’s club’ becoming the mistress for half the men of society. The Marquis holds himself responsible for ‘stealing her life’ and begs his son to honor the promises he made to the girl. Aaron gives his word, but upon investigation discovers that matters are not as they seem.
Buy now

BLURB:

While investigating the death of a friend and client, Maddy Hamilton, Xavier Thorn (reputed to be the inspiration of Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes) is greatly impressed with Maddy’s nephew, Victor, and offers him a job as his secretary. Aware of Xavier’s history of firing secretaries, Victor garners a promise that he cannot be fired for three months and then proceeds, in Xavier’s view, to be cheeky and impertinent at every turn. Xavier endures ‘the impudent pup’ because Victor is most skilled in extracting the truth from clients and intuiting facts with little evidence to assist. As they solve a string of cases, Xavier discovers a few more important details about his troublesome assistant, such as her true gender, and the realization that she has awakened his long dormant heart.

Buy Now

Sentence Structures by a Dummy

2010-05-17T09:46:00.000-04:00

When I refer to a dummy, I mean me. Like I stated in my first post, I don’t have any education in grammar, barely passed it in school, so if you’ve come here to be enlightened by big words describing each aspect to a sentence. Stop here.

I know a sentence starts with a capital letter, ends with a punctuation mark, has a noun, and a verb. There’s more to it than just that but I don’t think I need to know more. If you can’t wrap your mind around all the rules of the English language don’t sweat it. Try to write anyway.

What I do stress is to read and re-read your favorite books. Not for enjoyment but for study. Read what you liked the most and figure out why you like it so much. Pick out your favorite scene and dissect it. How did the writer use words to make it touch you?

Words are like music, they have a beat. When you watch an action movie the notes are fast and strong or a love scene can be lyrical and slow. How you construct your sentences affects the reader. Short to the point sentences can be used in high stress situations in writing, just like longer more poetic ones can be used to slow the mood in a story. The following example is an action scene. I’ve highlighted the short sentence to show the higher ratio.

Ex: Rurik carried me back toward the wall. I could see Dragos' thugs fighting. A glimpse of a tall man with short, blonde hair in army fatigues between these warriors caught my breath. Colby was about to get creamed.

The smash of glass breaking made me twist around. Rurik had broken one of the small windows. He cleared the big shards away with his hands and winced as they cut through his skin. They barely even bled. He lifted me up to the hole, shoved me through it, then shouted, “Run, Rabbit, run!” A hard slap landed on my rump and pushed me through the rest of the way through the window. It stung.

The beat is made faster by the short sentences. It gives a sense of urgency and anxiety to the reader. This technique should not be used all the time, only in plot defining scenes, like this one where the story takes an unexpected twist. You will also notice I dispersed a long sentence in between these short beats. I call this a ‘take a breather’ sentence. If you have too many short beats in a row it sounds too desperate, like a racing heart, and not a good read.

Which brings me to my next point, don’t write boring. How is sentence structure connected to all of this? It’s everything. Readers need variety. Not just in characters and story but sentence structure too. Let me bring your attention to the red sentence above. I could have made all those sections short beats instead.

He lifted me up to the hole. He shoved me through it. He then shouted, “Run, Rabbit, run!”

How boring. It would have followed my short beat rules for action but it gave three similar sentence structures in a row, which is why I switched it. How can you tell what to do and when? Read it out loud. Listen to rhythm of the words.

Here are some quick simple rules to keep the reader’s interest. Don’t start following sentences with the same word or structure.

Bad ex: She walked to her desk and picked up a notebook. She wrote his phone number down.

Better ex: She walked to her desk and picked up a notebook. With a crayon, she wrote his phone number down.

Or: She walked to her desk and picked up a notebook. Writing his phone number down, she noticed her hand shook.

You’ll notice I’ve followed these same rules throughout this blog. Same goes with paragraphs, don’t use the same word or sentence structure to start succinct paragraphs.

Another rule, which I think most authors would agree with me, is EVERYTHING in moderation. It’s okay to use a LITTLE adverbs and –ing verbs, like the above example.

Try to start each sentence with an interesting word, be it verb or now. You won’t be able to do all of them but those that you can, then should be. Vary the, a, with, it, and pronouns starting sentences. I’ll use the same example from above.

EX: He carried me back toward the wall. I could see Dragos' thugs fighting. A glimpse of a tall man with short, blonde hair in army fatigues between these warriors caught my breath. Colby was about to get creamed.

The smash of glass breaking made me twist around. Rurik had broken one of the small windows. He cleared the big shards away with his hands and winced as they cut through his skin. They barely even bled. He lifted me up to the hole, shoved me through it, then shouted, “Run, Rabbit, run!” A hard slap landed on my rump and pushed me through the rest of the way through the window. It stung.

Each sentence started differently.

I hope this blog helped and didn’t make you more confused with my music analogy. It’s difficult to teach and learn this part of writing. This is one of the first steps of how to grip a reader’s attention. Like I mentioned before, re-read your favorite parts in books and examine the technique used.

Any questions?