Tory Richards's Blog, page 209

Author Wendi Zwaduk is on tour!

My Life Outside Writing....



I want to thank Tory Richards for having me here at Romance with an Attitude. I'm having a great time on my tour and am excited to be here. I've been asked lots of questions along this tour, but the question I'll try to answer here is what my life is like outside of writing.



Hmm. I don't know how glamorous it will sound...but here goes. When I'm not writing, which happens a lot more than sometimes I'd like, but I'm a regular person. Okay, so what's a regular person? I'm a mom and a wife, so I have those things to do. Laundry because any mother knows how many articles of clothing a child can go through, especially when said child is messy. Hey, he likes to play in the sand and run around the yard. I get the honor of vacuuming. Yes, it's an honor...okay, not really. But someone has to keep the tumble weeds of dog and cat fur under control. It's not that either dog is particularly furry, but hey, it adds up. And then there's playing. Got to take time to play and have fun. We go to the zoo, to the county fair, work on art work together...you know, have fun.



As I said, I'm also a wife, so there are those things to do, but the fun thing is DH is the best research partner. Yup. He willingly sacrifices himself for my art.



I've got a day job which I both love and sometimes wish I could give up. I'd love to be able to write 24-7, but that's not in the cards right now. Got to bring in a little cash for the grocery trips and the outings at the zoo. I know this will sound strange, but it's a nice diversion, too, when writing is not going. There are times when the story won't flow or the characters won't cooperate. I've got the family and the EDJ for a break.



But we were talking about my life outside of writing. I love to grocery shop. I do. I get to wander the store, looking for whatever I need to feed the family for the week, but I also get to people watch. It's an outside of my writing life activity, but it feeds into my writing. I love to add people I see into the stories. Most of the time it is very organic—I see something and say, hmm, what if I do this with this character? But most of the time I let the characters do their own things based on what I see.



When I'm not writing I like to read, too. To write well, in my humble opinion, you have to be a reader. You do. How else can you know what's hot, what's selling, what's new, and what is along the same lines as your work. Get the creative juices flowing, too. Not copying. Never that. I mean, how can you twist and turn the general idea—boy meets girl, boy romances girl, boy (or girl) screws up and loses girl, boy and girl get back together—and make it into your own ideas. My favorite thing is to somehow work racing into the story. I love to watch the races, to learn about race lingo and to adapt it to what the characters are doing. So I watch the races, read books, and work on my ideas.



Looking back on what I've written here for the blog and I see that even when I think my writing life is separate from my life, it's really not. It's all intertwined and mish-mashed. It all works together and I like it that way.



I always dreamed of writing the stories in my head. Tall, dark, and handsome heroes are my favorites, as long as he has an independent woman keeping him in line. I tend to write books with titles taken from songs because music is one of my many muses. I earned a BA in education at Kent State university and as well as a Masters in Education from Nova Southeastern University. I've tried my hand at teaching, waitressing, and retail sales, but writing holds my heart. I love NASCAR, romance, books in general, Ohio farmland, dirt racing, and my menagerie of animals. I have six books under contract and more than my brain can handle percolating. I can't wait to share them with you! http://www.wendizwaduk.com http://wendizwaduk.blogspot.com



Hey folks! Wendi will be giving away ($10 Amazon gift certificate) to one commenter. So follow the tour and the more you comment, the better your chance of winning. The tour dates can be found here: http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2011/06/virtual-book-tour-ever-fallen-in-love.html.



Tucker lost the love of his life once, but this time, he's not taking no for an answer.

Once a driver, always a driver...



Racing consumes Tucker Poston's life. Until he sees her again. Megan Rodney. She's the one person to come between him and his ride. She's the only woman to understand him. The only woman he's ever loved. Circumstances tore their love apart. Now he's determined to show her the contents of his soul, even if it means losing his heart. Being a driver doesn't warm his lonely nights. Too bad she's not interested.



Megan's not about to fall for his smooth lines and slick image. She's got a good life as a team owner for a stock car team. Still, memories of their love affair burn bright in her mind. What's a girl to do when the man of her dreams, the man who pushed her away, wants a second chance at forever?



Contains a little spanking, anal play, and domination shared between former lovers, but no one's complaining. For good measure, there's the sizzling use of a Camaro hood for outdoor pleasure.





Excerpt

"I come in peace." Tucker Poston took a step back. In one hand, he held earphones. In the other, the radio. "Want me to talk to him? I've got my own headset. I understand race brain."



"Race brain?" She rolled her eyes. "You can talk, sure. I didn't expect you." I'm not completely upset. She took in the way his t-shirt contoured to the dips and valleys of his chest. Muscles rippled under the soft cotton. She licked her lips. Years ago, she'd spent countless hours touching and tasting his skin. A slow burn started deep in her heart. For a split-second, she'd almost admit she missed him.



"Eric got waylaid. Your rear tire changer had his foot run over by the number four truck."



"If it's not one thing, it's another." Megan tugged at the hem of her blouse, smoothing out unseen wrinkles. She sucked in her stomach. What would he think of her extra pounds? Guys of Tucker's calibre liked women in the size two range. Her size eight wasn't anywhere close.

She turned away and massaged her forehead. She wanted to smack herself. What would he think? What was she thinking! His opinion didn't matter, regardless of his obvious sex symbol status. She meant nothing to him.



"Eric suggested you and I settle our differences—at the track." He wrapped the earphones around his neck and clipped the radio to his belt loops. "I want to help you and I'd guess there will be another couple laps under caution. What's the team frequency?"



"Forty-seven. I can't afford another trashed truck."Although her gaze travelled south for a moment or two, Megan groaned. Noticing the way his jeans hugged his body and accentuated the strong muscles in his legs wasn't going to make Mat a better driver. Nope, all it did was kick her libido, back from a long hibernation, into high gear. Truth be told, she didn't want to deal with Tucker. The wounds from his betrayal were way too fresh even after ten years. Damn. Coupled with his way of wrapping her around his finger and she didn't stand a chance of keeping him at bay.



Tucker hooked his index finger under her chin. "Hey, I've got a good rapport with him. He's scared he's not going to finish or keep his ride. It's paralyzing. I know where he's at because I've been there too many times."



Her heart pounded and her hands shook. If she waited another minute, Mat could put the truck into the wall. Then again, Tucker could make another move and get closer. Megan shoved her second thoughts aside in favour of her team.



"See if you can get through to him, Professor Race Brain." She found the frequency on his headset. "I've got faith in you."





Tory, I'm so glad I got to blog here today. I'm willing to answer questions or comments. Thoughts? Questions? Something you want to get off your chest, so to speak? I'm all ears.

Monday Man Candy

Hubba! Hubba! A little early folks. I have a special guest dropping by tomorrow!

Cool Picture

See the dog?

Ok...I'm officially a senior now, I just joined AARP! The...

Ok...I'm officially a senior now, I just joined AARP! The first time they sent me information in the mail I was offended. I thought 65 was the magic number, not 55.

An old married couple was at home watching TV.The husba...

An old married couple was at home watching TV.



The husband had the remote and was switching back and forth between a fishing channel and the porn channel.



The wife became more and more annoyed and finally said...





"For god's sake! Leave it on the porn channel. You already know how to fish!"

Monday Man Candy

Don't try to kid me. I know exactly where your eyes are staring!

I'm sure I'm going to hell for watching syfy on Sunday bu...

I'm sure I'm going to hell for watching syfy on Sunday but oh well, at least I won't be alone! Worked yesterday so took today off. It's been a busy week in our household, what with Alivia turning five. Birthday? More like birth week:) There was something almost every day.

It's an important month for her because not only did she turn five but she will also be starting kindergarten. She's excited now, but I bet when the day comes she'll feel and act differently. I don't think she understands that the friends she's made these last four years at day care will be going with her. We only know of one little girl.

On a different subject. Do you think the extreme heat is affecting our tires? Two days in a row I witnessed a blowout on the interstate, and it got me to thinking. One happened right in front of me, and I could see how it could easily have turned into an accident. The vehicle lost control for a moment, thick ribbons of tire went flying. I had to swerve to avoid running over the biggest piece. As I continued down the road I took note of all the rubber on the shoulder, seeing more than usual.

The heat has always been wicked in Florida but lately seems hotter than usual. And when you have to be out in it you feel the effects fairly early on. It literally sucks the life right out of ya! Thank god for the relief of air conditioning.

Let's PARTY!

YOU CAN'T MISS THIS GREAT MONTH LONG EVENT! LOTS OF GOODIES TO BE HAD! CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW!

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Whoohoo! I get to go to work everyday with people who don...

Whoohoo! I get to go to work everyday with people who don't like me...because I'm the boss. I'm not taking it personal though, they didn't like their old boss, either. They don't like change. They don't like being told what to do. They don't like being held accountable for what they do. And they definitely don't like being sent back to do the job right! LOL

How do you know when it is time to "hang up the car keys"...

How do you know when it is time to "hang up the car keys"?



I say when your dog has this look on his face!