World Book Day and my Local Library

Yesterday was World Book Day. I was going to post this article on time, but when I sat down at the computer I became engrossed in my manuscript for Love Redeems, the third book in my Redcliffe paranormal romance series. Anyway, aside from writing, I am a life-long book lover. I probably mentioned that already. It kind of goes with the territory of being an author.

Buy Love Redeems (A Redcliffe Novel) today

On Tuesday I took my daughter to our local library for a weekly 'Rhymetime' session. This is a great little group where babies and toddlers are entertained by singing nursery rhymes and reading books. The library assistant who ran the session informed us that in honour of World Book Day, our children would each receive a voucher for a free book. Fantastic!

She then encouraged the adults to peruse a pile of books on an adjacent table. These books were wrapped in brown paper, and were not labelled. We were invited to pick up a 'mystery' book and loan it from the library as part of their World Book Day celebration. I had to check it out! So I selected a juicy looking package and took it home.

How exciting to have a mystery  book! When we returned home, I put it on the table and avoided it for as long as possible to prolong the excitement of this annual event. (Yes I am a geek!) So what was this book? Take a look:

It is a contemporary thriller set on a remote Scottish island. This is a genre that I haven't read for a long time, so it will be quite a treat. Thank you, World Book Day!

Did you enjoy this article? Join my tribe today, and I will send you a fabulous FREE book to get you started… (be warned, my vampires do not sparkle, and my wolves will bite!) 

The Writer Loves Books

OK, the title of this post is perhaps a little silly and I am stating the obvious. There cannot be a writer out there who does not love books, but I am open to comments if you can prove me wrong. Anyway, my point is that I love books. I have always loved books. As a child, my mother taught me to read, and would take me to our local library every Saturday morning. I would step into that small one storey building full of excitement and happiness, and spend a few hours searching the shelves in the tiny children's fiction section, picking out my allocated allowance of six books. I would then read them all within a few days, return the following weekend, and do the whole thing again. I loved it!

Now that I am officially a published author, I feel on top of the world. I have just finished writing my third book, and I immediately started writing a fourth. The words flowed effortlessly, the stories are buzzing round my head, and I am both excited and overwhelmed with it all. But that is only half of my situation. I have an enormous pile of books to be read. That is just the paperbacks, and a couple of hardbacks. On my new Kindle I have something like sixty books or more, including samples. And somehow I ended up back in our local library the other day, and came home with another five books to read. Talk about a sucker for punishment!

This obsessive behavior got me thinking. Perhaps I am addicted to books. I have to touch them, to feel the texture of their covers and smell the familiar library smell of the ones I borrow. Even on my Kindle, I like the sharp definition of text, and the neatly ordered electronic pages. I feel such excitement every time I pick up a book, whether it be fiction or non-fiction. The point is I will learn something from each story, and I will experience new people, new places, and new adventures. I love books. I am a bookaholic. Who's with me?

Author Interview with C. A. Lofton

Here is an interview with C. A. Lofton, the author of non-fiction book African-American Guide to Prosperity:

http://www.livinglearninglovinglife.com/2012/02/interview-c-a-lofton-author-of-african-american-guide-to-prosperity.html

This book represents something a little bit different, a guide to spiritual and practical prosperity using cultural traditions and mindsets.

Love Hurts Book Review

I am very excited to share with you my latest review of Love Hurts on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/review/R2HRB8H472W20P/ref=cm_cr_dp_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B005AXVDZS&nodeID=341677031&tag=&linkCode=

Writing a good Redcliffe Conclusion

For the last week I have been mentally preparing the conclusion for my latest Redcliffe novel Love Kills. This follows the story of bookshop owner Jessica Stone as she comes to terms with the revelation that her lover is a vampire, his identical twin brother is a werewolf, and that she is a witch who must now learn to accept her heritage and embrace her newly discovered powers. The story is set on the rugged coast in Cornwall, England, and I have a host of vampire and werewolf supporting characters, with a few humans and witches thrown in for good measure.

The novel writing went very well until I reached the end. Then I began to struggle. I wanted to end the story at a point which leads easily into the third book in my Redcliffe series, but not so that it was too abrupt. While I was away on a short family holiday, I kept repeating the conclusion in my head, and every day it changed slightly. Tonight I finally managed to sit down and actually do the writing.

I was in for a surprise. Once I had settled my daughter in bed, I quickly became engrossed in my work. My fingers flew over the keys, the words appeared as if by magic on the computer before me. And my conclusion to Love Kills began to take shape with a surprisinly dramatic outcome. I still have a little more to write, and I have reached another brick wall of sorts. But I'm not worried. After a good night's sleep and a day of household chores, I have no doubt that my muse will be back on fine form tomorrow evening and I will write the perfect conclusion. Bring it on!

Romancing the Book: Interview & Contest: Catherine Green

Romancing the Book: Interview & Contest: Catherine Green: Jen: Today we welcome debut author Catherine Green to Romancing the Book. Catherine, will you please share a short bio with us? Catherine:...

The Redcliffe Trilogy Inspiration

This morning I was feeling a mild sense of panic when I realised that once I finish editing Love Kills and send it off to the publisher, I will then need to start writing the third Redcliffe book. At the time it was only a vague idea in my head, sort of following on from the latest instalment that I just wrote. Determined not to be perturbed, I put the panic out of my mind and sent out a silent plea to my muse.

After lunch I finally dragged myself away from the computer and decided to take myself, the baby and the dog out for our daily walk. The weather was beautiful. It was sunny and fairly mild for a January day in England. We strolled along by the canal, my daughter chattering away happily in her pushchair, the dog running off ahead exploring the undergrowth.

My mind wandered as I stared out at the water, and I admired the way the sunshine reflected in warm colours of orange, yellow, and even hints of blue on the gently rippling surface. There were no boats moored up in their usual spots, which surprised me, but then I remembered, it is winter. We continued on our walk, following the gentle sweep of the recently resurfaced towpath, and we didn’t encounter anybody else on our way.

And then it hit me. I was mentally organizing my current edit of Love Kills, and then I started to think about what would happen next to Jessica Stone and Jack and Danny Mason. The story suddenly panned out in my head, clear and exciting and ready to be written. Hallelujah! My muse has spoken, and my prayers have been answered. As soon as Love Kills has been despatched, I will get started on the next book, as yet untitled.

But that wasn’t all. I was in luck today, and it must have been the sunshine drawing out my inspiration. Not only did I mentally prepare the third Redcliffe book, but an idea for the fourth one started to grow as well.  And it sounds good! And then, to top it off, I came up with a plot for a completely separate novel featuring a character that appeared in another novel. She is a powerful and ancient vampire, and I now have a clear idea of where she came from, and how her story should be told.

All in all, it was a very successful walk. I feel refreshed and invigorated to continue my work, the dog is happy after running round like a puppy and playing with sticks. And my daughter had some fresh air and a little stimulation as she saw the ducks, the water, and the beautiful countryside in which we live. Clearly I was brought to live in Middlewich by some sort of divine intervention!

If you haven't yet read Love Hurts, get it now for Kindle on special offer until the end of January!

The Thrill of being a Writer

I have just finished writing an intense cliffhanger of an ending to my second Redcliffe novel Love Kills. It was amazing! Having finished editing a separate manuscript, I was thinking about what needed to be done on my current WIP. I had written the first draft of Love Kills, but was unhappy with the way I had finished it.  There had to be more.

Well it seems that my muse agreed, and all day today, while doing my menial household chores, the story has unfolded in my head. As soon as my daughter was in bed, I had to get on the computer. Two and a half hours later, and the result is one finished first draft manuscript, and one very excited author! I do love this job.

The crazy thing is, I am actually physically shaking from the exertion of writing that particular part of my novel. The adrenaline is pumping through me, and I'm on a high. Who needs drugs? Just write! I could happily write all night now, but I know that I need a break, and my muse needs to rest. The only downside is I don't have any wine in the house to celebrate with. Never mind. Once my book is published and people are enjoying it, my current task will be complete. And by that time I will be on book 3, which promises to be even more exciting and intense...