Lauri Robinson's Blog, page 13

Edits

A book’s journey is never ending. In most cases it starts the moment an idea pops into the author’s head, and from there, it flows forward through months, or longer, of rewrites and edits, and all sorts of behind the scenes work. Years later, long after it’s been published, it continues on, in the hands of readers. I think that’s pretty cool, and must say, there’s really not a part of that process I don’t enjoy.
Some parts are more intense, when I’m connected more passionately with the book, and other times, I have to concentrate to remember the characters and their journeys. I say this because Harlequin will be publishing two of my stories in August, in their UNDONE line for a western themed month, and I received the edits on both books this month. These stories were two or three books ago, and I had to reread each one in order to gain insight on the characters and what they wanted out of life, as well as how they achieved it, before I could work on the edits. That’s not unusual, and I don’t mind in the least, and had to chuckle last night when my husband remarked, “You wrote it, how can you not remember it?”
It’s amazing to me, too, all the file cabinets we have in our brain. How when we start reading, a drawer opens up and all those memories come flowing out. Like when we start watching a movie we don’t remember seeing, but then one pivotal scene happens, and everything clicks. That’s when I normally say, “I have seen this before—the ending is great!” That too—when I do it—drives my hubby crazy.
All that said, Slow Dance with the Rancher and Rescued by the Ranger will both be released in August. Both are fun, short stories. In “Slow Dance”, Rancher Garret McCoy places a bet he can get Rory Boyle to dance with him, even though, Rory—the preacher’s daughter—is none too fond of him. And in “Rescued”, Texas Ranger Trace Edwards returns to Montana to investigate stolen cattle—which also means he has to face Annie, the woman he’d left behind.
It’s a wonderful day for writing, considering it’s SNOWING again! I was hoping to take my Mustang out of storage this weekend. That’s obviously not going to happen.  Papa and I will be going to the Wild Turkey Federation Banquet on Saturday. We are taking two granddaughters this year. The oldest has gone with us the past few years, and now that her sister is four, she’s invited along, too, and overly excited from everything her older sister has told her.  
It’s been a while since I’ve posted a blog, so I’ll mention we had a fabulous Easter—as I hope you did! My brother and his family drove up from Nebraska, and two other brothers and their families joined us too. The Easter Bunny was good to everyone, besides LOTS of candy filled eggs scattered all over Papa’s garage because the yard was too full of snow, one granddaughter received a live bunny, another a bike and the other a pink BB gun. You can imagine the chaos of all that on your own.
Be good to one another, throw some goodies out to the spring time birds flocking home despite the weather, and give someone a hug for no reason other than you love them.

Cover Reveal...

The Cowboy Who Caught Her Eye THE SHOPKEEPER'S SHAME Pregnant and unmarried, Molly Thorson knows her livelihood is under threat. The last thing she needs is a distracting cowboy swaggering into view. Especially one who knows she has a secret and still looks at her with desire in his eyes.  THE COWBOY'S SECRET Carter Buchanan knows all about secrets. It's his job to know. And Molly sure has something to hide. But the fear in her eyes touches a place he thought long-ago dead-and now this cowboy can't help but consider exchanging his pistol for a band of gold.... 
Yes, I do believe it’s a gorgeous cover!
Last weekend we attended a murder mystery dinner. (This is one of my son’s and his wife.) We had a fabulous time, even though, at the end of the night it was revealed the character I was portraying, Poly Ester, was the murderer! 
We celebrated our youngest son’s birthday on Monday and our granddaughter lost another tooth! Our granddog had surgery on Wednesday for a torn ACL. Poor guy had been miserable with the injury, and after checking all other options, we chose to have it surgically repaired. He’s been very good about it all, and I do believe he’s enjoying all the extra attention he’s getting. Our youngest granddaughter, (she’s two) told all her friends at childcare about Bear and his big orange bandage. 
Speaking of grandchildren, we learned come August we will have a grandson! Very exciting news!
On the writing side, I’m still plugging away at my Alaska gold rush story. The research for this book continues to be fascinating, and makes me want to visit Alaska more than ever! My final class for community ed course I was teaching was last Thursday. I truly had some wonderfully talented students and will miss them!
That’s enough rambling for now. I must get back to 1892 in the Yukon. Keep smiling! Life is good.        

ON SALE

     The entire Quinter Bride Series is on sale for $2.99! 






The ebook version of Inheriting a Bride was released March 1st. So it is now available in both print and electronically. "A delightful western...humor, realism and sweet emotion." -RT Book Reviews on Inheriting a Bride.  Next up (print in June, ebook in July) The Cowboy Who Caught Her Eye. The cover art will be coming soon, in the meantime, here’s the blurb:
THE SHOPKEEPER'S SHAME Pregnant and unmarried, Molly Thorson knows her livelihood is under threat. The last thing she needs is a distracting cowboy swaggering into view. Especially one who knows she has a secret and still looks at her with desire in his eyes.  THE COWBOY'S SECRET Carter Buchanan knows all about secrets. It's his job to know. And Molly sure has something to hide. But the fear in her eyes touches a place he thought long-ago dead-and now this cowboy can't help but consider exchanging his pistol for a band of gold.... 
Life at the home front continues to be busy. March arrived with a blustery winter storm. Hubby is so tired of moving snow this year, and I’m so thankful he continues to do so. I’m also thankful he keeps my car on the road. I came home last week with the brake light flashing. He informed me one of the lines was almost snapped in-two. (Most likely from driving through the foot of snow last week—I happened to be on the road prior to the snowplows.) Hubby says he’s afraid to tell me I need to consider getting a different car. Last time he said that I came home with my Mustang. (Which left me still driving my old one six months out of the year.) I know I’ll have to retire the Grand AM soon. She’s just been so trusty I hate to part with her. 
Speaking of cars—my son called me the other day to ask if I was brain washing his daughter. When I asked why he told me while he was giving my granddaughter a ride to school, out of the blue she said, “Just think Dad, only six more weeks and we get the pony car out of storage.” Aw, yes, that girl has my heart. 
Only two classes left of my eight week writing class. I’m going to miss it, but will be glad to have one more evening of writing again. Next weekend one of the groups I volunteer for is putting on a Mobster Mystery Dinner—one of those where the murder happens while you’re eating and everyone has to figure out who did it. Promises to be a fun event! Today, we have out-of-town company arriving this afternoon, and a celebration of life to attend this evening, as well as another one tomorrow. 
Until next time, turn your dreams into plans—I know you can do it!

February is on its way out....

I do enjoy how the number of daylight hours continues to grow even though it means another month is slipping away. The sunlight gives me more energy. Though I’m already dreading when we ‘fall back’ in March. Loosing that hour always bothers me. 
We had a wonderful ‘cowgirl’ birthday party for our granddaughter yesterday.  Everyone was to come dressed as cowgirls and cowboys. Though it took some ‘dusting off’ of clothes hanging in the closet, Papa and I managed to attend in the requested style. 
Stop over at Sweethearts of the West for a bit of information about the love life of President Andrew Jackson and his wife Rachel. There’s also an excerpt from Inheriting a Bride and a chance to win a paperback copy. 
The class I’m teaching for Community Ed has been so much fun! My students are all writing very unique stories, and I’m learning as much as I’m sharing. 
My niece, who was married last summer, was featured in the local newspapers Wedding Showcase this week. I shed a tear reading the article. Such wonderful memories!
I’m deep into a new story. Set in Alaska during the great gold rush at the end of the 1800’s, I’m learning so much about what took place then and loving every minute of it. Herione Maddie is the daughter of an outlaw looking for a way to leave her past behind, and hero, Cole, self named Lucky, is looking for his future. They’re really butting heads right now. 
Embrace every day. You’ll be amazed by what’s happening!

Happy Valentine's Day!

We woke up to several more inches of snow this morning. A blessing for the ground when it all melts, but don’t ask my son to be happy about it. It took him over four hours to get to work, which usually only takes 50 minutes or so.

Since I will be teaching my community ed class tonight, DH and I have to no great plans for Valentine’s day. However, I do believe he plans on grilling (no, the snow doesn’t stop him, and I noticed the steaks he’d bought yesterday in the fridge this morning). I offered to watch the grandgirls so the kids could go out on Friday evening, and am looking forward to the fun the three of them have while playing together.   

On Monday, Feb. 18th, I’ll have a special valentines post happening over at Cowboy Kisses Blog, and it includes a give away of Inheriting the Bride so pop on over there next week.


Be someone’s special valentine today! Even just a smile will work!

Time Flies....

I apologize. I had not realized it had been so long since I posted a blog. Time does seem to fly by doesn’t it?
Lots going on around here. Look at this…a loose tooth! This picture was a couple of weeks ago. That tooth is now gone and the one beside it is loose. And my granddaughter is so very excited about it. We will be celebrating another granddaughter’s birthday later this month and Papa bought her the most spectacular purple cowgirl boots—full of bling. We can hardly wait for her to open them. I bought her the entire little cowgirl outfit to go with it, hat and all. She loves to play dress up, so I know the presents will be well used.
Did you watch the super bowl? The Budweiser new colt commercial stole my heart. The best!
The class I’m teaching for Community Ed is so much fun! Last week we dug deep into knowing your genre, and this week we are focusing on plotting.
I’m in the mix of edits and writing—two of each. Editing two, and writing two. Some days I feel a bit dizzy, and I do hope to get at least one of the edits done this weekend. It will be a busy one. Saturday is family day at my brother’s house and Sunday our granddaughter has a gymnastics meet.  
Next release….February 19th the mass market paperback of Inheriting the Bride will be released! The ebook version will be released March 1st.
Here’s the blurb: 
He'll get beneath every delicious layer of her disguises...
Kit Becker travels to Nevadaville prepared to use any pretense necessary to discover why she must share her inheritance, and with whom.  
Clay Hoffman knows a thing or two about money-grabbing females, so when he finds one posing as his new ward, he's determined to get beneath every delicious layer of her disguises. Discovering she's telling the truth, Clay is torn--he should be protecting her, not thinking about making her his bride! All he knows for sure is that he's inherited a whole heap of trouble!
That’s enough for now…Have a wonderful week, and wear a smile with pride.

Coming soon...

His Wild West Wife will be released February first. 
Central Kansas, 1883
Chicago lawyer Blake Barlow has tracked his runaway wife all the way to the middle of nowhere. If she wants a divorce, he'll grant her one—as soon as she tells him why she left.
Clara Johnson is angry. Blake betrayed her mere weeks after exchanging vows—but when he rides up to her family farm, it's to get her signature, not to beg for forgiveness.
Clara and Blake agree their brief marriage was an impulsive mistake—but that doesn't stop the passion between them from flaring as hot as ever...
The holidays are over, and now we enter the deep freeze of the winter months. It’s the time of year for blankets on the couch to snuggle under and slippers near the door. It’s also wonderful writing time, and I’m happy to say my latest manuscript, The Wrong Cowboy, has been sent off to my editor. Of course I’ve started on the next one and I’ve created the outline for the one after that. I love having deadlines; they keep me focused to stay on track. I’m also preparing to teach a course in writing for my local community education program, which promises to be a lot of fun, and have made the time to catch up on reading some of the wonderful books I'd downloaded to my Kindle. 
Lots of other things going on, too. Birthdays, sleep-overs, gymnastic meets, yoga classes, library events. It’s all good, and we express our thankfulness every day.  
Stay happy, stay focused.

Happy New Year!

I am very grateful for many things that happened this past year, and am thrilled to start 2013 off with Unclaimed Bride sticking in the number one spot of best selling HQN Historicals at Amazon. 
I can’t say I’m big on resolutions, but I do like goals. I have several of those I’ll work on this year. I also have my bucket list and hope to dip into it a couple times.
After spending last night celebrating with friends, we have a relatively quiet day planned. A lovely way to start a new year. I do have a ham prepared to go in the oven, but it will depend on the granddaughters. They each came down with a nasty cold at various times over the holidays, and if all aren’t feeling up to par, we’ll wait and have the family dinner this coming weekend when everyone can enjoy being together without any coughing or sneezing.  
2013 is already full of scheduled events I’m looking forward to—there will be a rather spectacular one around August…Life is so wonderful. I say a thank you for each and every one of you, my family, my friends, my fans, every night, and will continue to do so. I so appreciate you being with me on this writing journey.  
While the house is quiet and my coffee is warm, I’m going to pull up my story due this month and complete the final read through.  A perfect way to start out a new year. 
Happy New Year all—make it the best one ever! God Bless.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas....

The granddaughters spent the night on Friday and helped me wrap the presents that had piled up in the corner of my bedroom waiting for just such an event. We also watched Miracle on 34th Street (the remade version, not the original, black and white just doesn’t hold their attention) while munching on a tray of homemade goodies. We’ll gather at one son’s house on Christmas Eve and another son’s house for Christmas Day and I’m looking forward to watching the girls tear into their gifts. The little one hidden amongst the presents in this picture wants a specific princess kitchen so badly she shivers when talking about it. (That present has been wrapped for some time and I sincerely hope ‘some assembly required’ doesn’t take hours!)
Today I will make a trip to the grocery store to purchase the times I need to create the dishes I will bring to both gatherings, and we have a lunch date with our oldest granddaughter. She turns six today and with the holidays so close, we’ve made a tradition of celebrating it early and going out to eat at the restaurant of her choice on her actually birthday.
One the writing side, all is going well. I had the unique opportunity to write a Christmas story during the Christmas season. It seems I’m usually writing about July in December and vise versa. HQN asked me to write a story for their 2013 Christmas anthology in November, and just this week I received the edits. I plan on completing them this coming week. Anna and Tanner’s story will be released next October. 
It’s hard not to think about all that’s going on around the world, and the tragedies right here in the United States. Please say a prayer, offer sympathy and empathy, but also take the time to reflect upon your blessings. All that you have and hold dear. That’s my Christmas wish for you.

Tea Party

Oldest granddaughter will turn six on the 23rd of this month. Yes, a Christmas gift we treasure all year long. She had a princess tea party today where fourteen little girls had a glorious time, and each took home their very own china tea cup and saucer. (This picture was taken a few weeks ago by a photographer.) After her friends left, extended family arrived and we had a second birthday party. This weekend will also include her first gymnastic meet tomorrow. Life just gets busier and busier the older the granddaughters get, and more wonderful. 
Last weekend we put the tree up, with help from the granddaughters so the bottom is more heavily decorated than the top, and it looks absolutely perfect. I also spent a day preparing the Mustang for storage, and afterwards, I needed to give my winter car some TLC. She needed a good cleaning after sitting for so many months. I love driving the Mustang, but have to admit, the Grand Am has seats that are much more comfortable. She is also a bit easier on gas, and I’m extremely thankful for how my husband keeps her on the road for me. 
I received another cover this week! His Wild West Wife will be released in February from HQN UNDONE. I’m turning the corner toward THE END on my latest manuscript. The heroine is a mail order bride with six kids in tow, and hero is, well, he’s the wrong cowboy. 
The holidays are approaching fast, and I hope you are each finding the time to savor the season. Make memories, and create a new tradition for the next generation. They’ll appreciate it.