It's been a busy month.

I just realized I haven't posted much in the past month.  I must admit I've been busy proofreading Love's Intensity for an upcoming print release.  Yes, you read that right.  So many of you have asked me when it would happen.  I'll let you know when I have the release date.

I've also been busy making my rounds to various blogs.  Some of them are Angela Smith's blog, Michele Wiegert's blog, Mychael Black's blog, Eloreen Moon's blog, and Sarah's Storylines.  Love's Intensity was also featured on the cover of Romance Lives Forever. Getting the word out keeps an author pretty busy.

I also landed my fourth book contract for If It Kills Me and I continue to write updates to some of my many in-progress stories.

That's all for now.  Be sure to return here on Saturday, March 8th, for my blog interview of Angela Smith and revelation of her upcoming release.

Good Grief?

I experienced physical uneasiness days before my brain registered what was happening.  It seemed as if emotions long unfelt lay just below the surface, ready to explode out onto everyone with whom I interacted.  Then, I looked at the calendar and realized I was days away from the 7th anniversary of the last week of my father's life.

As if on cue, deep, painful emotions bubbled to consciousness, bringing with them the memories from that week.  I wanted to turn off my emotions or take my heart out for a few days and place it in a special jar for safe keeping.  It suddenly became clear to me why two of my favorite shows used these two methods to escape the darkness of mourning.

I continued to do my work and interact with a smile with those around me, but the wolf inside impatiently waited to bare her teeth in a snarl for anyone who dared bring difficulty to my door.  Tears threatened my composure, but I pushed them back by living up to the meaning of my name - I helped comfort others whose pain dwarfed my own.

While the Super Bowl is a time when Americans laugh, eat, shout, and enjoy the latest million dollar commercials, I remember...I remember the night my father passed into another realm 7 years ago.  I don't know who played or won that game, and I don't really care.  Nothing else mattered that night except that the man who taught me how to catch bees with my bare hands and set them free without harming them was now gone.

He never lived long enough to see any of my books published, but his presence can be found in all of them.  As for my upcoming release, Billiard Buddies, my dad - a gifted bartender or "mixologist" as he liked to say - would have smiled to see his gift to me became the center of attention for Gina.  I don't have that pool stick anymore, but I'll never forget what it meant to me.  Her father also died before the story began.  I suppose writing it became therapeutic. It's often said authors write what they know.   Even so, Gina's story has a life of its own that I could never claim as mine.

So, is grief any good?  Sure, I don't think so while I'm living through it, but I'd never give up this proof that I'd loved deeply and lived courageously for anything. I also take comfort in the words, "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted." (Matthew 5:4 ESV)  It's what helps me see that grieving, though unwelcome, can sometimes be good.  I remain grateful for the family and friends who share my journey with me.  I do not take any of them...or you for granted.

Enjoy the game.

Presenting Andrea Cooper and her newest novel: The Garnet Dagger...

The Garnet Dagger Blurb: Everyone knows what happens when a vampire bites a human…but what if the victim is Elvin?

Forbidden to cross the Elvin barrier into human lands, Brock cannot sate his curiosity. Cursed by a vampyre bite that forces him to feed on the life-essence of others, he is unable to touch another without taking their life. Chained by prophesy, he must find a witch, pierce her heart, and draw her blood for his cure. 

Celeste must escape the monks who have held her prisoner for years. Her magic has been kept dormant by her captors. An ancient powerful Warloc craves her powers. If he succeeds in devouring her magic, she and his world will die.

When Brock falls in love with Celeste before realizing her demise is his cure, will love triumph over his desire to be healed? Will he risk everything to save her from a Warloc, an oath breaker, who also wants her dead?

The Garnet Dagger Excerpt:  Chapter One

I’ve known death. For over half a millennia, I escorted many to death at the end of my sword. In the eyes of the dying, I watched it shroud them. Foolishly, I thought many more eras would pass before death came for me. It came so swiftly that I could not run; I could not escape. At a village, dressed in human clothes, I took in everything. By observing for eons, I understood and spoke their language. The world of mankind fascinated me. Their hobbled homes burrowed into the ground.

Rocks crunched on top one another with thatched roofs woven from straw. Never had I seen a home or inn that was higher than three levels, as if they were afraid of the sky. I delayed my return to my people as I watched human jugglers bounce torches and knifes. It was autumn equinox and the festivities would continue well into the night. Children laughed as they chased each other. A trail of leaves from their costumes twirled after them. It was dark when I reached the forest. Since I was already late, I hiked uphill to a shortcut rather than take the long path back home. I didn’t need to alert any of my kind near the barrier at this hour. Liana would wonder why I was late.

Tonight was the two month anniversary of our hand twining ceremony. One more month as was custom, and then we’d be wed. A gasp rustled through the trees. The roots shot a warning through to me with stifled caution. Adjusting my pack, I continued on instead of changing back into my Elvin clothes. After I passed the border which kept humans from entering our land, then I’d change. In the distance, I heard a groan. Curious, I spun in the direction of the sound. The autumn wind breezed through my worn human clothes, chilling me. But someone needed help. I turned in the direction of the sounds. Whatever made the noise should be a few yards ahead.

I hiked slower than my normal speed, so as not to startle whatever human called out. My leather boots crunched upon dried, diseased leaves and bark. Horrified, I glanced up. Branches twisted around each other to suffocating. Lifeless limbs cracked in the wind. Flesh of the trees sloughed off in layers, exposing its bones. Gashes hollowed out chunks of warmth. Fragments of leaves clung to finger tips, marking sepulchers of the dying trees. Trees mourned with wails like splitting wood, and I brought my hands over my ears. I must flee before I became infected, they told me. Flee before the stain of this defilement creeps into you, they warned. Trees spoke to my kind, always had. Yet these trees were in such agony of death that I could not breathe. Felt as though my lungs had folded in on themselves, like a moth unable to break loose from its cocoon.

Nothing I could do for them, and if I lingered too long, whatever disease gnawed upon them may choke me. Where would I go if I carried something so foul as to devour trees from the inside out? I’d never return to Tamlon if I brought this infection with me. I drew away, but a movement at the base of a decaying tree to my right caught me. My night vision picked up the sight of a human. His sallow face seemed to glow in the moonlight. Poking out from rags lay his arms and legs, which resembled skin stretched over sticks. So cadaverous was his face, I’d have thought him dead if he hadn’t moved.

“Please,” he said and his voice sounded like cicada’s vibrations, “help me.”

“What ails you in this troubled place?” I wondered if my voice, foreign to my ears in speaking the human’s language, revealed my nature.

“I am lost.” His dark eyes crinkled around the corners. “Without strength to rise. If you would but assist me up, I’ll be on my way.”

I’d never touched a human on purpose before. Was it that that gave me pause, or dread that stilled my heart? My feet itched to flee. As soon as I helped him, then I’d leave. I gritted my teeth and reached a hand down.

His gnarled fingers snapped on my arm, making me wince. Jerking me forward, his face contorted. Surprised by his strength, I fell beside him. Blackness curled around me. Teeth, fangs, broke through the skin on my neck. Then I knew him for what he was, a vampyre.

Cooper, Andrea R. (2013-03-25). The Garnet Dagger (Crimson Romance) (Kindle Locations 60-67). F+W Media. Kindle Edition.

 

Andrea’s Bio: Growing up in Houston, Texas, Andrea has always created characters and stories. But it wasn't until she was in her late twenties that she started writing novels.

What happened that ignited the writing flame in her fingers? Divorced, and disillusioned by love songs and stories. They exaggerate. She thought. Love and Romance are not like that in the real world. Then she met her husband and realized, yes love and romance are exactly like the songs and stories say. She is now a happy wife, and a mom to three kids (two boys and a girl).

Andrea writes paranormal and historical romance. When not writing or reading, one may find Andrea dancing in Zumba.

She believes in the power of change and counting each moment as a blessing. But most importantly, she believes in love.

 

 

The Garnet Dagger Book Trailer  http://youtu.be/ISi0u9LoseM

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AndreaRCooper.author

Twitter: @AndreaRCooper

Website: www.AndreaRCooper.com

Buy Links: Crimson Romance ebooks | Amazon | B&N | iTunes

 

What to do during snowfall...

Market!  Market!  Market!

So I checked into Andrea Cooper's blog today where she is hosting me and my novel, Love's Intensity, and tweeted about the post via my fan page on Facebook.  Then, I announced the post all over Facebook.  I updated my website and responded to the gracious comments made about my cover and excerpts.  Now I'm blogging about it.  All in a day's work.

I hope you took the time to read the post.  Have a great night.

 

Happy 2014! Reviewing 2013 and looking ahead.

I can't believe it's been a year since the creation of my Facebook fan page and Twitter account.  I've had a blast interacting with many people who follow my releases and weekly writing challenges.  Thanks for all the encouragement.  Please "like" my fan page to stay on top of the latest happenings.

Last February brought me the opportunity to attend a Heritage Cultural Event and time to work on three of the many stories in my head, including a post Civil War piece which seems to come to mind every February.

"A Beautiful Girl" celebrated her second birthday on April 7th.  I spent an entire week sharing trivia about this story.  If you've read this inspiring story, leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, and your favorite online store.

My online radio interview with Dr. Lila Robinson in May was a great success.  If you haven't heard it yet, take a listen here.

July was super busy.  With an overhauled website, a second novel called "Love's Intensity" released on July 11th, and my very first writer's camp, that month proved to be packed with successful events.

In August/September, I submitted two manuscripts, received the cover for my soon to be released novella, and even tried a little acting in a friend's play.  I also participated my first Blog Review Tour for "Love's Intensity."  I'm so grateful for the 4-star reviews received from the blog hosts.  Check out their reviews and others on Amazon and on my site.  I even hosted a Blog Hop Tour sponsored by Wild Child Publishing, the publisher of my teen romance paranormal novel, "Love's Intensity."  I also had a couple friends hound me about a couple stories I mentioned to them.  They can't wait for me to finish 'their stories.'

I could hardly contain my excitement when editing began for "Billiard Buddies" in October.  Check out some more information about this story here.  The Collingswood 2013 Book Festival also went on without a hitch.

I spent November featuring a couple of the stories I submitted earlier.  As of January 1st, I'm still waiting to hear of their acceptance, although one seems to be close to a 'yes.'

Then, finally in December, I hosted mother/daughter authors, Leslie and Terri Talley, on my blog here.  I spent the rest of the month dreaming up and writing over 16,000 words for two new stories.

So what's next?

Finally making the time to type in scenes currently written on too many sheets of paper.  My hope is that I understand what I wrote as some of them were written while still sleepy.

That's plenty, yet only a snap shot of all I did.  Stay tuned for the upcoming release date.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

A great snow!

Well, I think the snow has finally calmed down outside.  It's a great day to stay inside and do some writing.  Perhaps, the snow covered trees will inspire some scenes.

Hope everyone gets home safe!

When you're there, feel free to get cozy and read a book.

Hosting Mother/Daughter Authors: Leslie and Terri Talley

Mother/Daughter Writing, From Mother’s Point of View

My daughter Terri’s interest in writing was sparked by a writers’ conference we attended in Melbourne, Florida, when she was in high school. Years elapsed during which time she mulled over an idea for a series which became Elements of Mystery.

Meanwhile, I had published travel pieces and a few short stories, but the publication of my mystery novel, Make Old Bones, eluded me. It had won first place in the mystery/suspense category at the Space Coast Writer’s Guild in 2000. Finally in 2008 Terri and I attended a conference sponsored by the North Florida Writers’ Association at Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Make Old Bones once again won first place in the Lighthouse Book Awards for mystery/suspense. Terri was so proud, she cried! That spurred me on; that spurred her on. She finished writing her mystery novel, Carbon Copy. She hoped to ride in on my coattails. The opposite happened.

She submitted to Wild Child Publishing, an electronic publisher; I had never thought of doing that. When her book was accepted, I submitted also and was accepted. Since then we have critiqued each other’s work. She is my biggest fan! We feed off each other. My main characters, Otis and Clarice Campion, became her main character, Lilly Allen’s, Uncle Otis and Aunt Clarice. When we are together and we hear an interesting turn of phrase, we both screech, “I call it!”

One way I may have unconsciously influenced her is by setting, or a sense of place. According to my professor, Dr. Richard Adicks from Literature of the South at the University of Central Florida, there are six prominent features in Southern writing: a sense of history or of the past; a sense of religion or original sin; a sense of the grotesque; a sense of place; a sense of family or genealogy; and agrarian, or rural.

I write from a sense of place. Set your novel in a unique setting, and all manner of ideas pop up. Terri imbibed this from somewhere. Her first novel is set in New York and the Florida Keys, the sequel in Charleston. Her upcoming takes place in Scotland. My first takes place in Daytona Beach, the second in St. Augustine, the third in Ireland, and my work-in-progress in Scotland. We both have hurricanes and castles figuring prominently.

Even though we are much alike we have differences. My degrees are in English with some nursing thrown in. Hers are in Accounting and Taxation. She comes up with better plots. And while my mysteries are Cozies, hers are more modern.

But the acorn doesn’t fall far from the tree, to be trite! Great minds, and all that!

Leslie Talley

Author of Make Old Bones and Bred In The Bone

Leslie Talley received her B.S. in Nursing from the University of Kentucky and a B.A. and M.A. in English from the University of Central Florida, Orlando, where she subsequently taught, as an adjunct, Technical Writing and Business Writing for ten years.

Leslie and her husband Luke have two children: Terri Talley Venters, Wild Child author of Carbon Copy, Tin Roof, and Copper Cauldron; and Damon Talley, video conference lead at Harris Corporation. Leslie and Luke have lived in Titusville, Florida, for forty-five years.

Make Old Bones and Bred In The Bone are both available from Wild Child Publishing, amazon.com, and barnesandnoble.com. Purchase links can be found on her website. http://www.makeoldbones.com/

Bred in the Bone

By Leslie S. Talley

 

In this sequel to Make Old Bones Otis, Clarice, and Miss Letty act as exchange innkeepers at Castle Keep in St. Augustine, Florida.

Castle Keep, built of timbers from a shipwreck, has a disturbing history which carries over to the present. Recently a series of break-ins by a homeless man and the sound of chains dragging in the attic complicate matters.

Miss Letty and Clarice visit the original plantation site where Clarice discovers a skeleton in the icehouse. In addition, they find the burned body of the homeless man in a dragon sculpture, causing them to make connections among disparate events separated by over a century.

Add to the mix a psychic, an African-American journalism student, the Donner wedding party, Florida Gators, two snobbish Southerners, father and son mural painters, an obstreperous Cavalier King Charles spaniel named Charles Dickens, and an obnoxious, but, unwittingly, helpful twelve-year-old named Beddington.

Mother/Daughter authors, From daughter’s point of view

Wow! Where do I start? 18 years ago, my mother and I only dreamed of writing a novel, let alone getting it published. Our dreams of becoming mother/daughter published authors was just something we fantasized about. Now we’ve both published not only our debut novels, but their sequels as well.

Reflecting back over the last 18 years, I realize how much hard work went into our first books: Make Old Bones for my mother and Carbon Copy for me. The hardest part for me was starting. I thought about it for 8 years before I finally started writing. The next hardest part for me was finishing. I spent 5 years writing Carbon Copy. My mother was the reason I started and finished it. I always tried to have a chapter for her to read whenever we planned a visit. Then the next hardest part about the writing process was the waiting. Although I was blessed to find a publisher within six months of finishing Carbon Copy, it was another 2 and half years in editing before it was finally released in June 2012.

Now that we both have the same awesome publisher, Wild Child Publishing, the writing and editing are much easier for the both of us. I’ve recently finished writing my fifth book, Silver Lining, the epic conclusion to the Carbon Copy trilogy, while my mother is almost finished writing the fourth book in her bone series - The Bonnie, Bonnie Bone. My mother and I are case in point that hard work, patience, and determination, can make your dreams come true. We couldn’t have done it without each other’s constant encouragement all of these years.

So now that we’ve had our dream of being mother/ daughter published authors come true, what’s our next dream? I still dream big. I’m looking forward to having both of our books out in print so that we can do book signings together. And although I loathe public speaking, I can’t wait to do a mother/daughter presentation at a writer’s conference. Thank goodness my mother is an award winning Toastmaster. I’ll just smile, nod, and show cleavage. We’re brainstorming a co-authored book which is a prequel to Carbon Copy and Make Old Bones. The characters in our books are related. My heroine, Lilly, is the niece of my mother’s heroine, Clarice. The title will contain both a “bone” and an “element”.

My biggest dream of all is to have one of my books get made into a movie. My mother and I promised to be each other’s “plus one” if either of our book movies get nominated for an academy award for best adapted screenplay. And yes, I’ve mentally started writing my acceptance speech. Who knows what the future holds for our books, but the best part of all is that I’m enjoying this wonderful journey with my mother. I love you, Mom!

Terri Talley Venters,

Author of Carbon Copy, Tin Roof, Body Of Gold, Copper Cauldron, and Silver Lining

 

Terri received her Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Master’s degree in Taxation from the University of Florida. She is a licensed CPA and a Second Degree Black Belt in Taekwondo. She lives in St. Augustine, Florida, with her husband, Garrison, and their two sons.

Terri has two other published works available from Wild Child Publishing. Carbon Copy and its sequel, Tin Roof, plus her unrelated novella, Copper Cauldron. She recently finished writing Silver Lining, the epic conclusion to the Carbon Copy trilogy, coming soon from Wild Child Publishing. Her romantic/suspense novel, Body Of Gold, is coming soon from Freya’s Bower. Terri also posts free short stories on her website each month. www.ElementsOfMystery.com. Follow her as she weaves her way through the Periodic Table of Elements.

Terri is the daughter of Leslie S. Talley, author of Make Old Bones and Bred In The Bone which are also available from Wild Child Publishing.

For the purchase links and more info about Terri’s books, visit her website.

Elements Of Mystery 

Like Facebook Fan Page

Follow Terri on Twitter

 

Tin Roof

the sequel to Carbon Copy

 In the sequel to Carbon Copy, Lilly Allen returns to her hometown of Charleston, South Carolina, to be closer to her mother, help with her injured brother, and heal from the disappearance of her fiancé Grier Garrison. While she awaits Grier's return, she busies herself with her mansion renovations, her best friend's wedding, and her job as a news reporter.

But even her busy schedule cannot stem the worry over her brother's persistent amnesia and changes in personality. Is he her real twin? Or did they rescue a clone?

On top of this, the months of pining without a word from Grier begin to take their toll. She finds herself growing closer to her favorite cameraman, Joe. His confession of undying love, followed by a passionate kiss, has her questioning how much longer she can wait, and whether she wants to.

To further complicate matters, two unrelated news stories drag her into the seamy underbelly of the Charleston Police Department where murder and drugs are common occurrences.

In the chaos of a hurricane, another body washes ashore, and Lilly comes face-to-face with the murderer.