Author Archives: Elizabeth

In the Throes

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I am in the throes of finishing my book, so I haven’t been blogging as much as I like. I’ve got a great list of blogs I plan on doing this summer–behind the scenes looks at my previous books, spilling hints about upcoming projects, but right now, I have only one thing to do:

Finish the book. Oh, and this blog post.

Because I promised a winner.

Without further ado, the winner for the contest is: Diane Nelson, who commented on June 21, 2012 at 2:59 pm. Congratulations, Diane, and thank you to everyone who made such great comments about audiobooks.

Sigh. Now it is back to crunch time. The book HAS to get done. Even this weekend while I was stuck trapped having a lovely time with family obligations, in my head I was writing.

So the rest of this week you will find me, head down and buried in pages–revisioning, cutting, adding, laying it all out on the floor and walking my way though the story like a giant story board. Dumping scenes that don’t work, combining scenes that would work better together. At this point I have nearly all the pieces, it is just getting them in the right places.

Thought this picture from my Pinterest collection was perfect:

Hope your week is less frantic!

Along Came An Audio Book

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Over the years, people have asked and asked for audio versions of my books. And I have had to answer with a sigh of longing and say, “Sorry, they haven’t done audio versions yet.”

No more. Finally, I have an audio book!

Along Came a Duke, the audio version, is now available for download. I am so new to this whole audio thing, I need to know how do you listen to these? How do you download yours and where do you listen to them? What devices do you use? Have you ever listened to an audio book and was it a yea or a nay?

On this, I need your expertise. Comment away, please!

One lucky commenter will win a prize pack of surprises–I’ll pull it together a great box of treats from the prize closet, but it is assured to hold an autographed book or two, author swag and a really cool coffee mug. And whatever great surprises and cool things I can dig out.

Enter before midnight, Saturday, June 23rd.

Weaving Series

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Someone in Dallas this weekend asked me if when I started a new series, such as Rhymes with Love, am I tempted to bring in old characters from my other series. The answer: Boy, am I ever!

Old, familiar characters are what makes writing a series fun.

Anyone who has read my Danvers series will notice I have a slight fondness for Temple. He appears in nearly every book. I adore that man, er, character, to the point that borders on obsession. I had thought that after giving him his own book, Stealing the Bride, that would be enough. No. He had a habit of wandering onto the page of whatever story I was telling, slanting a rakish wink at me,  and while I was still flush with joy at his arrival, make himself indispensable. Wretched rogue!

So when I started writing Along Came a Duke, I really had to keep all the old characters at bay, barring the door to my office. Refusing their friend requests on Facebook.

Even Temple.

But that doesn’t mean the old books are not in the new series. Because like Temple, I am a wretched rogue at heart. And there are two “cameos” in Along Came a Duke. You may or may not have noticed them. One is a reference from to Love Letters from a Duke and the other is from It Takes a Hero.

In the interest of not providing spoilers, did you spot them, yea or nay?

Along Came a Bestseller

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First and foremost, I would not be able to celebrate this moment without all of you who went out and grabbed a copy of Along Came a Duke–you are why it is a New York Times and USA Today bestseller this week. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

What has been so much fun is meeting so many of you at the events in Tulsa and around Chicago. Too much fun. Too many laughs (really, is there such a thing?). And so many lovely people, such as our Chicago stalkers who turned up at both events to see all of us (me, Julia Quinn, Rachel Gibson, and Pamela Palmer.)

What is it like to travel in a pack of authors? Well, you are in good company because there is always someone to go find coffee with (and they never question how often you need coffee), and no one objects when you pull to a stop in the airport for the airport bookshop. And you laugh. Lots.

Rachel Gibson and I were in Tulsa a day early for our appearance on Good Day Tulsa, which couldn’t have been more lovely. The people were so nice and made us feel right at ease. And suddenly, there you are in the chair, in front of three cameras and off you go and before you know it, the whole thing is done. Whew!

What always surprises me is how many people these events can draw. All three venues were packed! I am just awed and so humbled that you all will give up your weekend afternoon or an evening to come meet one of us. It truly is a rare and special experience for us authors and all of us thank you.

And if you didn’t get to one of the events or you live too far to make it, there are signed copies of Along Came a Duke at Anderson’s Bookshop, in Naperville (call 630-355-2665) and signed copies of a bunch of my backlist at the Barnes & Noble/Woodland Plaza in Tulsa (call 918-250-5034).

And next up? Dallas! For the Boas & Tiaras Tea on Saturday. If you are in the Dallas area, check my Events page for details and the links for tickets. Anyhoo, if you can make it, I would love to see you all there, or back here next Monday with a full report and lots of pictures. I have my tiara all ready. Sadly, I am allergic to boa. LOL.

Along Comes 19

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Nineteen seems to be the number of the day. My 19th book, Along Came a Duke, comes out. It is also my 19th wedding anniversary. How’s that for chance?

I think of all that has passed in the last 19 years and it feels like such a long time. Getting married. Buying a house. The people we’ve lost in that time–our dear grandmothers, my husband’s father, friends and other family. The people who have arrived–our two sons, ten nieces and nephews (granted, one of them had already arrived when we married.)

And getting published. Not just one book, but nineteen of them. When I got married I was still working on my very first book, a Cavalier adventure titled, The Spanish Blade. Bits of that book, the myth of the blade and the story of a female adventurer have made cameos in my subsequent historicals, mostly as an inside joke, my own quiet nod to my apprentice years.

Nor have these 19 years been easy–challenges in writing, in my marriage (no long term marriage is always one long happy ending, if I have learned anything over these years is that an enduring marriage is work, compromise and at times, just plain not easy. Challenges come from all corners and our greatest has been our youngest son being born with autism. I usually don’t get this personal in my blog, but sometimes I find it ironic that while I write about happy endings, life and marriage isn’t always the bed of roses that we usually find a hero and heroine in at the end of a book.

But I never stop believing that it is possible. Call me a “the-glass-is-half-full” sort of gal.

Yet, despite the hills and valleys that is life, real life, I know two things today: I love what I do for a living–I struggled to be published because I love writing and I have continued through 19 books because I find the entire process and the mystery of putting words and characters together so very fun.

And secondly, nineteen years later, I still adore and love my husband. Probably more than I did the day I married him.

Here’s to 19 more. Books and years.

Five Things About Pamela Palmer

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I recently met Pamela Palmer in person at the Washington Romance Writers Conference–she had emailed me a few weeks before the conference as a welcome to WRW and offered her help navigating a new conference–I was so touched by how nice she was to offer, and soon discovered that she is also extremely nice in person. So if you want to be scared and “bitten” by a generous and kind person, here are Five Things about paranormal author Pamela Palmer.

1. Where is the most beautiful/romantic place you’ve ever been? Loch Ness, Scotland. My husband and I toured Scotland some years ago and visited Castle Urquhart on Loch Ness. It was late March, the trees still bare, but I still found it an incredibly beautiful, dramatic, awe-inspiring place. In late March, the castle ruins were practically empty, but for us. I could almost hear the voices from long ago.

2. Do you celebrate when you finish a book and what you do? Rather than celebrate, I’m usually looking to escape. After a particularly intense deadline hell I need to get out of the house, so I usually head for the mall to soak up the crowds and the external world. Sometimes, I haven’t left the house for days. My celebration of choice is a bottle of champagne or a dinner out, but I tend to save those for the big things—new contracts or hitting a bestseller list. Finishing a book is such a slippery thing. First draft done? Yay, but more revisions needed. Sometimes lots more. Send it off to my editor? Whew! But she’s quick and thorough and often boomerangs it back to me for more revisions within a week or two. Editorial revisions done? Yippee! But I’m still holding my breath, hoping my editor accepts the revisions and doesn’t send the book back for more.

3. If you could go on a date with any superhero, who would you choose and why? Ha. Thor, especially if he looks like Chris Hemsworth! Or Superman. I want to fly!

4. If you were not writing, what job would you have? Once upon a time, I worked for IBM, first in production control, then in procurement. (I was an industrial engineer.) If I were to return to a 9-5 day job, it would probably be something along those lines. Since I live in the D.C. suburbs, I’d likely end up working for some kind of government contractor. But I’m extremely happy with the job I have. I adore writing and love working at home.

5. Print or ebook? Both. I own a Kindle and tend to buy new books electronically. I love the convenience of instantly downloading the book I want to read, and love traveling with one Kindle vs. half a dozen paperbacks. But I have a teetering TBR pile of print books, and continually acquire more at conferences, so I tend to alternate between electronic and print. I enjoy both and honestly don’t have a preference when it comes to the actual reading experience.

You can learn more about Pamela Palmer’s newest Vamp City novel, A Blood Seduction, by visiting her website. You can also meet me and Pamela at our upcoming Events in Tulsa, Chicago and Dallas!

Winners

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What a jam-packed busy weekend. Hope you had a lovely weekend and a Happy Mother’s Day. I finally had time to pull winners of the Along Came a Duke arcs, as well as autographed Julia Quinn novels, this morning and now I am going to post their names:

Barb Ritchie, Jenn H, Linda Mc, and Mary Falls.

There were a 112 of you to choose from, so I truly put the Random Number generator through its paces this morning. Poor thing nearly fainted from exhaustion.

And if you didn’t win an ARC of Along Came A Duke, don’t despair, there is only three weeks until it releases. And if you hurry, you can get the digital version of Along Came a Duke at the special $4.99 presale price for your Kindle and Nook.

Focus, Focus, Focus

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When it comes to writing, it takes a lot of focus. There is no way around it. The writers who write book after book after book have some the most enviable focus I have ever seen. And at times I need to renew my own focus and determination to not let the distractions in this business (and yes there are many) and the freedom of working at home (which affords its own diversions) from cutting too deeply into the time necessary to write a book.

Earlier this year I put together a writing workshop in motivation–not character motivation, but motivating the writer to chain her butt to the chair and pursue her dream career. Oh, how easy it is to lecture on a subject I struggle with constantly.

Until I did one simple exercise that truly opened my eyes.

I always hear the same complaint from writers who have to balance an outside job, family, home life, commitments, life–I don’t have the time. I have those commitments as well, I will say. I’ll talk about the time my son with autism takes away from my daily writing, the commitments of being both a stay at home mom and a full time writer. The looming hell that can be deadlines. You have the time, I always extoll these writers. “You can carve it out.”

And quite frankly we all can. Even me.

The light bulb moment came last January as I was both searching for a way to show people how they could write a book–easily–every year. Perhaps even more than one. I’d been taking part of 1K sprints on Twitter and at the retreat I went on with my writer pals. 1K in 1hour they are called. You write, focused and not stopping for one hour–with the goal to get one thousand words into your manuscript. Turn off the editor and just write.

For me this works because I am a plotter. I have my scenes mapped out and I “draft” them by hand before I ever approach the computer. I like to think about the scene and let it mull around a bit before I dive in. So as I would approach a sprint, out came my notes and away I went. But this method also works for Pantsers–people who like to sit down and let the story unfold before them. Either way, you sit down and write for one hour and push yourself to get one thousand words done, which works out to be about four pages.

Now do the math. 1K in 1hour. Five days a week. Over the course of the year. Give yourself some time off for vacations, holidays and sick leave, and do you know how many words you would have written?

290,000.

A little over three full length 90K books.

Holy Crap! It truly was a light bulb moment. And one that has changed my entire outlook. Instead of eating the entire elephant in a month and ending up with a large pile of poo, considering the measured, deliberate, fully thought out approach. A little focus and 1K in 1hour, five days a week.

Thoughts? Comments?

Five Things about Grace Burrowes

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Grace Burrowes is one of the lovely members of the Washington Romance Writers who I had the pleasure to meet at their retreat the first weekend of this month. I knew immediately that I needed to introduce her to all of you! Without further ado, here are Five Things about Grace Burrowes:

1. Where is the most beautiful/romantic place you’ve ever been? Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire, Scotland.

2. If you could go on a date with any superhero, who would you choose and why? Wonder Woman. I want to know how she does it, where she got her boots, and what all the good gossip is in Superhero Land, particularly about the guys.

3. What blogs do you visit? Blame It On the Muse, Two Nerdy History Girls, The Georgian Gentleman, and few other Regency sites.

EB: Warning, I dropped by The Georgian Gentleman and got totally sidetracked!

4. If you were not writing, what job would you have? I’ve always wanted to work in a flower shop.

5. If you were going to an island for a long time, name 5 things you would bring.

  • Peanut butter
  • Toilet paper
  • A trunk full of my keepers
  • SPF 100
  • My Swiss army knife

Grace’s new book, Lady Maggie’s Secret Scandal has just arrived in stores and in digital release. To learn more about Grace and her other Regency set romances, please visit her website GraceBurrowes.com.

Rhymes with Love ~ A New Series

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Maybe you’ve heard, but my new book, Along Came a Duke, is part of new series, Rhymes with Love. I thought I’d share with you a bit of insider info and get you ready to jump into the world of Kempton, England.

I started this new series for a variety of reasons–I had felt that the Bachelor Chronicles had run its course. While at first, I thought about doing another spin-off series with Lord Andrew and his band of misfits from Lord Langley is Back in Town, but then I got hit with another idea: a village in England that is cursed.

Before you get to alarmed that this series is going to be paranormal, it is not. The curse was only the starting point.

The first peek at the steamy stepback!

Like any idea, the spark or the curse, in this case, began brewing around in my imagination, and suddenly I saw the entire village. High Street–with its tidy row of shops, the lane running up the backside of the village from the vicarage and St. Edwards, a wonderful stone church dating back to Norman times, with its tall tower that had weathered centuries. And spinsters and young ladies with nothing to do. Not a single gentleman will marry them. And most haven’t the means to go to London.

Then I realized what the true heart of this series must be–it wasn’t the curse, but the friendships, the deep, abiding friendships these women would forge.

Far better for storytelling than just a mere curse.

The more I wrote, the more I fell in love with how these friends looked out for each other, viewed each other as sisters more than friends, and how they would find their place in a world that usually gave unmarried women a skeptical eye.

The first three stories revolve around Tabitha Timmons, Daphne Dale and Harriet Hathaway. None of them are prepared for marriage, courtship or even a flirtatious glance, but what they lack in guile and intrigue, they make up for in sheer determination, spunk, and humor.

Look out London, here comes the spinsters from Kempton! And happy reading!

P.S. And why is the series called Rhymes with Love? Because the titles of the first three books are all taken from nursery rhymes: Along Came a Duke, And The Miss Ran Away with the Rake, and If Wishes were Earls.

As you will notice, the cover for Along Came a Duke even sports the perfect tuffet on which to eat curds and whey while awaiting a duke.

And finally and most importantly, if you haven’t heard, the digital version of Along Came a Duke is on pre-sale for $4.99 at Kindle and Nook.

CONTEST:
To get ready for the May 29th release of Along Came a Duke, I am giving away four prize packets–each of which will include an advanced reader’s copy of Along Came a Duke, as well as an autographed copy of one of Julia Quinn’s books. The prize packet will also feature tons of author swag and bragging rights to have been one of the first to read Along Came a Duke.

To enter, answer the following question before midnight PDT, May 12th: Which is your favorite nursery rhyme?