Kimberly Dean's Blog, page 37
May 18, 2013
Signs
I went to see Iron Man 3 tonight, even though I’ve got a writing deadline that’s approaching like a rampaging horse. The movie was okay, but not my favorite of the series. We stayed through the credits, awaiting the teaser that always follows Marvel Comics movies, when something appeared that made my guilty conscience cringe. There it was, right in the list of credits — the name of my book’s hero! Agh! Nabbed. So yes, here I am at the keyboard late at night trying to make up for precious lost time.
May 15, 2013
High School Reunion re-release
It looks like Rouge has re-released High School Reunion in ebook format. This was one of my favorite books to write. It was a different voice for me. People are always telling me my books are funny, when I’m not really meaning them to be funny. (What is up with that?) So in this book, I went with the funny. They say that humor and erotica don’t mix, but I think this erotic romance came out pretty well. It makes me smile just to think about it.
I feel the need to clear up some things, though. The original title of this book was not High School Reunion. I don’t remember what it was, but I’ll admit the draft title wasn’t very good. High School Reunion didn’t do much for me, but the editor liked it. The heroine’s name also started out as Rory. Cheek (original publisher of the book) was located in England, however, and apparently Rory is strictly a man’s name over there. My editor suggested Roma, which I thought was really cute. We decided to go with both.
That was when it hit me that I was putting out a book called High School Reunion with characters named Roma and Missy. Sound familiar? As in Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion? Aggg! I was horrified, but my editor didn’t think it was a problem. Well, okay. That’s how things sometimes go for writers in the traditional publishing world. Today, I would have fought a bit harder to get at least one of the two changed so it didn’t look like a blatant rip-off. Back then, I was over-ruled.
Speaking of fighting a bit harder, if I’d had any input whatsoever into this cover from Rouge, I definitely would have thrown in my two cents. I am completely underwhelmed by this sweet fluff. People who aren’t suspecting an erotic romance are going to be very surprised. This book is definitely erotic! Lots of sex going on in those pages. Yet the pink… and the bow… Ugh. As for the models, they’re attractive but Roma and Jake are both blondes. Way to go, Rouge.
Buy High School Reunion Kindle │ Kobo │ iBooks │ All Romance eBooks
May 2, 2013
Romantic Times Convention 2013
The Romantic Times Convention is got off to a great start yesterday. There were some good talks from some of my old buds like Sylvia Day and Shayla Black. Mark Coker from Smashwords had some really interesting things to say about self-publishing. I took copious notes when he was talking. I squeezed in a dinner of really bad chicken Parmesan, met with a fan, and then went to Ellora’s Cave’s “Bad Girls of Romance Disco Inferno”. (Hm, I guess that includes me!) The Ellora’s Cavemen – and a Cavewoman – did the hustle. Ladies, these guys not only look good, they can move!
Now Day 2 is about to start. I’m going to hit a few more workshops and then get ready for the E-book Expo from 4-6 Central time. Come visit me at my table. If you’re not in Kansas City, you can follow along on twitter at #RT13EXPO.
April 15, 2013
Maxie available for pre-order
MAXIE is now available for pre-order!
Triple X, Book 2
Maxie’s quiet, predictable routine is shattered when she steps outside her flower shop and almost runs into two women. It’s not the near collision that’s startling. It’s the strangers’ faces. It’s like looking in a mirror times two, and it sends her into a dead faint.
Sheriff Zac Ford sees three identical copies of the woman who’s caused him more sleepless nights than he can count, and it stops him in his tracks. Maxie’s buckling knees snap him out of his trance, and he catches her before she hits the cement.
Two sisters she never knew she had? Maxie can’t deal with this turmoil, not on her own. She needs a shield, a rock. For the first time in her life, she takes a wild leap of faith.
When Maxie calls him her boyfriend, Zac has no trouble playing along. It’ll give him time to figure out what these “sisters” want. Soon, though, for-show kisses get hotter and playacting touches grow bold. And Maxie must choose to stay in her safe little world, or grab life by the horns.
April 2, 2013
Midnight Justice available today!
Midnight Justice releases today. This is a print anthology with a really unique theme of superhero romance. My contribution is Blade of Moonlight which was previously only available in ebook format. The other contributors are Vivi Andrews and Jodi Redford, two fabulous authors with fun stories. Buy this one, I think you’ll like it.
ISBN: 978-1619210530
Midnight Justice Amazon Barnes & Noble Samhain
March 10, 2013
Favorites
My goal for today was to accomplish a lot of things on my “to do” list, but instead I pulled out a dog-eared favorite book of mine. I have a stack of these — okay, a whole shelf — of books that I’ve kept with me from move to move. This particular book was The Daughters of Cameron by Aleen Malcolm. It was released way back in 1983, and I bought it second-hand in a used bookstore more than a decade later. I think it’s the last book in a trilogy, but I’ve never sought out the other books. I don’t know if I could even find them now.
The book’s spine is creased, the pages are yellow, and the storyline is definitely outdated. It’s a historical and something that I’d never write. The funny thing is that I don’t believe I’ve ever really read the book. I skim it until I get to the part that I absolutely love — the romance between the damaged characters of Rue and Quin. (Oh, they make my heart squeeze.) Then, I read… and the rest of the world goes away.
There’s something like that in each of the books on that shelf — something that grabbed me. To this day, I can vividly remember scenes from each of those books and the feelings that they generated. It’s scenes like that which I try to create in my own work. I want to write books that people will keep in their bedside tables long after they’ve been read. I want people to use up storage space on their e-readers just so one day they might go back to read a story or even just one scene again. Because that’s when a book becomes a favorite. Not when you first read it, but when you keep it and read it over and over again.
So I might have wasted the day in some people’s opinion, but I was struggling with my own work-in-progress. Now I feel inspired. That’s what favorite things do.
February 21, 2013
Cover for MAXIE
Here’s the cover for MAXIE, Book 2 in the Triple X series. It will be coming to your ebook store in August!
Maxie’s quiet, predictable routine is shattered when she steps outside her flower shop and almost runs into two women. It’s not the near collision that’s startling. It’s the strangers’ faces. It’s like looking in a mirror times two, and it sends her into a dead faint.
Sheriff Zac Ford sees three identical copies of the woman who’s caused him more sleepless nights than he can count, and it stops him in his tracks. Maxie’s buckling knees snap him out of his trance, and he catches her before she hits the cement.
Two sisters she never knew she had? Maxie can’t deal with this turmoil, not on her own. She needs a shield, a rock. For the first time in her life, she takes a wild leap of faith.
When Maxie calls him her boyfriend, Zac has no trouble playing along. It’ll give him time to figure out what these “sisters” want. Soon, though, for-show kisses get hotter and playacting touches grow bold. And Maxie must choose to stay in her safe little world, or grab life by the horns.
February 18, 2013
Midnight Justice
I was happily surprised today when I found a box lying on my doorstep. It was my author copies of Midnight Justice, which releases on April 2. This superhero romance anthology includes Blade of Moonlight, Breaking Bad by Jodi Redford, and Superlovin’ by Vivi Andrews. I love technology, but there’s still something about a paper book. I love the feel and the smell and the look of it. Call me old-fashioned, but I’m still happy to see my stories in print.
Excerpt from Blade of Moonlight.
Review
“Part of the Midnight Justice anthology, Dean’s novella manages to balance a strong plot with sex scenes hot enough to melt an ereader…the pacing here is quick yet unhurried, and erotica fans will enjoy the resulting fun read. Recommended.” —Library Journal Reviews
“Andrews delights with two hot characters who are so colorful you’ll laugh out loud.”
—RT Book Reviews magazine on The Sexorcist by Vivi Andrews, Nominated for Reviewer’s Choice Award 2011
“Redford delivers a solid story with a bit of mystery and some adventurous sex. Collections that are looking to include a lighter take on sexy romps in the style of Laurell K. Hamilton or Sunny will find this a solid addition.”
—Library Journal Reviews on Maximum Witch
February 12, 2013
Live in England and want PRIVATE DANCER?
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