Inara Scott's Blog, page 3

It’s Free!

Last week, I made a dream come true. Some of you might recognize this dream. It isn’t about publishing, or finding this love of my life, or having incredible kids, or even fitting into a size 6. I’ve done all those. (Okay, maybe not the six 6 thing.) They were awesome. They were life-changing.

But this is even better.

This is…paying off my student loans.

© Mike Watson | Dreamstime Stock Photos

Most of you know I’m a lawyer, so you can probably guess that I’ve been carrying around some massive loans from law school. Fewer of you know I’ve got a Master’s in Recreation and Leisure Students (very useful) so there were loans for that. And of course, I took out the maximum loans I could (as did my poor parents) to fund my undergraduate education at Duke University. When I graduated from law school, out of necessity I consolidated all my nasty loans together and got on a 30 year payback plan. At a rate of interest that students today can hardly even imagine.

I realize this is more insight into my finances that you had ever hoped or wanted to get. But hey, this is building up to a big thank you, so hang in there, okay?

Because I was on the 30 year plan, I wasn’t supposed to pay off these loans until 2030. (Yes, I am that old.) But in fact, I paid them off on Thursday.

It was terrifying. It was exciting. It was a little anti-climactic. And the reason I was able to do it? Publishing with Entangled. If it hadn’t been for Liz and Heather and Libby, Rules of Negotiation would still be under my bed. The Boss’s Fake Fiancee would never have been written. And these books made my dream of paying off my loans come true.

So now for the thank you part. As a thanks to all the readers who helped make this crazy thing a reality, I’m making Exposing Alix, my contemporary full-length super sexy adult romance, free. Just for a few days (my keeper Amazon won’t let me do more than 5 days). A thank you to all the readers who love romance.

Here’s a little about Alix:

Under the name Alix Z, Daisy Zahn was once a wildly successful director of romantic, erotic movies. But when her pursuit of love left her with nothing but heartache, Daisy left Hollywood for a small-town in Oregon, and closed off her heart for good.

Bad boy actor-director Ryker wants nothing to do with love or romance, but when critics complain his love scenes are too cold, he seeks out the mysterious Alix Z to add her sexy spin to his latest film. Ryker quickly becomes fascinated by the reclusive beauty and determined to show her that sex doesn’t have to be cluttered with emotion. But in the heat of their passion, can he keep his own heart out of the shot?

Here’s the link: http://www.amazon.com/Exposing-Alix-ebook/dp/B00AI68N32

I’d love for you to download and share the news!

All my best,

Inara

POISON Blog Tour Dates!

The voting is closed, and the results are….

Oh wait, this is a blog tour, not a results show. Whoops!

A couple of weeks ago I put out a call for people to sign up for a blog tour to celebrate the release of the late Bridget Zinn’s debut YA novel POISON, which releases on March 12. I was stunned and thrilled by the result. The tour now includes over 100 participants, many of whom knew Bridget personally, many of whom did not but want to be a part of this wonderful event.

Below is a list of the participants and the day they will be blogging. Please help support Bridget and these kind folks by visiting their blogs and commenting their posts, tweeting, Facebooking, and doing whatever you can to spread the word. Use the hashtag #POISON on Twitter and maybe we can get it trending on March 12. Wouldn’t that be grand?

MARCH 12

E.M. Kokie

Nyrae Dawn

Julie “Manga Maniac Cafe”

Abby Niles

Pam “Bookalicious” van Hylckama

Jennifer McAndrews “Honestly YA”

MARCH 13

Kate Treadway “Verb Vixen”

Martha Brockenbrough

Cameron Y. – What the Cat Read

Bobbie Gould

Molly “Wrapped Up in Books”

Eileen Li

MARCH 14

Ashley Walsh “The Quiet Concert”

Jennifer Rummel “YA Book Nerd”

Tammy Hall

Laura Kaye

Melissa Simmons

Shelley Bunnell

Kate Bourne “The Book Monsters”

Taneesha “A Diary of a Book Addict”

MARCH 15

Caroline Starr Rose

Lindsey Loucks

Amy Alessio

Elyana Noreme

Rachel Patrick “Beauty and the Bookshelf”

Sonya “Sony the Book Lover”

Elizabeth Seckman

MARCH 16

Sara Bennett Wealer

Amy Plum

Betty G. Birney

Elizabeth Otto

Ellen Faith

Celeste Holloway

MARCH 17

Janet Fox

Erica “The Book Cellarx”

Amy Stewart “Simple Love of Reading”

Libby Fischer Hellmann

Melody May

Rebekah Faubion

MARCH 18

Jon Goldhirsch

MaryAnn Oprea @ Chapter by Chapter

Jennifer L. Armentrout

Brenna from Esther’s Ever After

Lauren Thoman “The Housework Can Wait”

Annabelle Hammond “Read Write and Read Some More

MARCH 19

Lucia “The Loyal Book”

Jessica Miller “I Read to Relax”

Melissa de la Cruz

Sara Hayet “The Page Sage”

Tara Hudson

Rebecca Lamb

MARCH 20

Johanna Wright

Tara @ Shhh… Not While I’m Reading

Michelle “Much Loved Books”

Kristina Snyder

Zoe Dawson

Peter Salomon

MARCH 21

Gwenyth Love “Rants n Scribbles”

Sarah Evans

Robin Bielman

Mundie Moms (Katie)

Cynthia Leitich Smith

Tamson Weston

MARCH 22

Lucy “The Reading Date”

Carrie Ardoin “Sweet Southern Home”

Tracy James Jones

Nikki Wang “Fiction Freak”

MARCH 23

Amy Thau “Tripping Over Books”

Ashley G. “Wholly-books”

jone “Maclibrary”

Jaime @ Twisting the Lens

Crystal “Winterhaven Books”

Allison Kirk

Jess “Book Rook Reviews”

MARCH 24

Lucy Softich “Adventures in Bookland”

Stephanie “Poetry to Prose”

Caren Crane “Romance Bandits”

Lori Degman

Beth Saxton

DJ

MARCH 25

Michael Gettel-Gilmartin “Middle Grade Mafioso”

Ruth Tenzer Feldman “Blue Thread”

Lynne Kelly

Hafsah “Icey Books”

Samanthe Beck

MARCH 26

Becca “I’m Lost in Books”

Brook Gideon “Dead Gideons”

Natalie J. Damschroder, for Everybody Needs a Little Romance

Beth Revis

Damaris “Good Choice Reading”

MARCH 27

Amy G. (Kissed by Ink)

Stephanie Ruble

Angie Manfredi “Fat Girl Reading”

Rachel Coyne

Chris Miller

MARCH 28

Natalie J. Damschroder

Sara Shafer

Audra “The Society”

Laura Hernandez: Snorkle “My Sentiments Exactly!”

Stephanie “Love Life Read”

Be a Part of Bridget’s Team–Celebrate Poison!

Could you do something sweet for Poison?

 

In the summer of 2010, I met Bridget Zinn for the first time. We were at a gathering of local young adult authors. The group, which still meets, was small but warm, and I was welcomed immediately. People were sharing updates on their work and life. Bridget, despite the presence of a virtual stranger, was laughing about the way her cancer treatment had made her boobs bigger and how she needed to special order a new bra. She was beautiful, with a round, sweet face and eyes that laughed just as loudly as her voice. I discovered we shared a publisher, as well as the frustration of wanting desperately to see our book hit the shelf, only to have it pushed out and delayed.

I found it hard to believe such a young, vibrant woman had cancer.

I assumed Bridget’s cancer was one of those weird, treatable types that you looked back on with amazement when you were fifty. I didn’t appreciate how serious it was for a few months. But over the next year there were more treatments, and more stories. Bridget married her boyfriend Barrett, and he started to accompany her to our gatherings. Not to participate, just to get her there. He would wait in a booth across the restaurant, giving Bridget time to be with us. I loved him for that. Throughout it all, Bridget maintained the same air of sunny optimism that she had when I met her.

Bridget died in May, 2011.

Bridget’s first YA novel, Poison, is being released by Hyperion on March 12, 2013. Being published was Bridget’s dream. Now, nearly four years to the day from her diagnosis, her novel is at last reaching readers. On her behalf, her friends and family want to celebrate her accomplishment and help get her book into the hands of readers.

Poison’s first review just came in, a near-rave from Kirkus Reviews, who write, “Don’t let the title or cover fool you! No grimdark teen fantasy or angst-y heroines here; just a frothy confection of a fairy tale featuring poisoners, princesses, perfumers and pigs, none of whom are exactly what they appear (except maybe the pigs)…. Good silly fun—a refreshing antidote to a genre overflowing with grit and gloom.” We’re sure this is the first of many happy reviews to come for Bridget’s debut.

Since Bridget isn’t here to share her novel, people are pulling together to help get the word out about this former librarian’s sweet, hilarious debut.

How you can help

 

If you’re a blogger

I’m helping coordinate a massive blog tour for Poison. During the week of March 11, we’re hoping to get everyone in the blogosphere to write about their own firsts. It could be the release of your first novel (if you’re an author), or first blog (if you’re a blogger), or any other momentous first (if you’re human).

If you’re interested in participating in the blog tour, follow the link and sign up. We will send you information about Poison to add to your blog. You’ll send a link to your blog to: Barrett Dowell, barrettdowell@gmail.com (Bridget’s husband) and he’ll put it on this web page. As well, her agent will post it and tweet it every day for a solid week.

If you have a Twitter account

During the week of March 11, tweet about #Poison.

Tweet a photo of you holding the book. You could also tweet a link to this web page, part of a review, or a link to your blog post. Just use the hashtag #Poison.

If you’re on Facebook

During the week of March 11, post a picture of you holding Poison, and/or a link to her web page.

If you knew Bridget, write about her. If you didn’t, write about how a librarian helped kindle your love of reading. Or how your favorite young fantasy lit a fire in you as a reader that opened up the full world of literature.

If you’re an author

Consider mentioning Poison during the week of March 11.

You’ll remember how exciting it was to have your first book published. If you’re doing an event, or talking to librarians, consider giving a piece of your time to the story of Bridget and Poison. If you use social media, anything you can do during that week to help get the word out would be welcome.

If you’re a librarian

During the week of March 11, help spread the word.

Bridget was a YA librarian, first in Wisconsin, then in Oregon. Spread the word about Poison on any listservs you’re on. Post a review on Goodreads or LibraryThing. Help raise awareness and get the book into the hands of readers.

If you’re a reader who loves Poison

Please post a review—if not during the week of March 11, then as soon as you can.

And consider reposting your review from Goodreads on Powells.com, Amazon.com, BN.com, and wherever readers look for ideas about what books to read next.

If you’re the parent of a teen who might like Poison

Take them to the library to check it out/put it hold, or buy them a copy. On Facebook, share a photo of your teen holding the book or ask them to put in on their own Facebook page.

If you’d like to support the book and your local school or library

Purchase a copy and donate it to a library’s shelves.

We will be setting up a tumblr of donations and photos of readers with the book.

Thank you so much! We all loved Bridget and her novel, and since she cannot be here to promote it, we are trying to do that for her. We, her family and friends, are so grateful for the kindness of readers to help share her work with the world. She was a writer and a reader but above all a true friend of good books and readers everywhere.

If you’re interested in helping, please let us know so that we can add you to the reminder list. And thank you in advance.

About the novel

Sixteen-year-old Kyra, a highly-skilled potions master, is the only one who knows her kingdom is on the verge of destruction—which means she’s the only one who can save it. Faced with no other choice, Kyra decides to do what she does best: poison the kingdom’s future ruler, who also happens to be her former best friend.

But, for the first time ever, her poisoned dart…misses.

Now a fugitive instead of a hero, Kyra is caught in a game of hide-and-seek with the king’s army and her potioner ex-boyfriend, Hal. At least she’s not alone. She’s armed with her vital potions, a too-cute pig, and Fred, the charming adventurer she can’t stop thinking about. Kyra is determined to get herself a second chance (at murder), but will she be able to find and defeat the princess before Hal and the army find her?

Kyra is not your typical murderer, and she’s certainly no damsel-in-distress—she’s the lovable and quick-witted hero of this romantic novel that has all the right ingredients to make teen girls swoon.

About Bridget Zinn

Bridget grew up in Wisconsin. She went to the county fair where she met the love of her life, Barrett Dowell. They got married right before she went in for exploratory surgery which revealed she had colon cancer. They christened that summer the “summer of love” and the two celebrated with several more weddings. Bridget continued to read and write until the day she died. Her last tweet was “Sunshine and a brand new book. Perfect.”

Bridget wanted to make people laugh and hoped readers would enjoy spending time with the characters she created. As a librarian/writer she loved books with strong young women with aspirations. She also felt teens needed more humorous reads. She really wanted to write a book with pockets of warmth and happiness and hoped that her readers’ copies would show the watermarks of many bath time reads.

Links about Bridget

(If you post something, don’t forget to post a link to this page: http://bridgetzinn.com/help/index.php)

Everything you need to know about helping spread the word (with lots of info and links)

A remembrance of Bridget written by her agent (with a video of Bridget that shows how vibrant and funny she was)

Bridget’s path to publication – in her own words.

A post in which Bridget shares her Sneaky Tips for writing (which also has an audio file of her reading this post)

Entangled in Love Blog Hop!

The authors of Entangled publishing like nothing better than a party. And what could be a better holiday for a romance author than Valentine’s Day? To celebrate the day of Hallmark cards, unreasonable expectations, engagements, true love, and the occasional bout of tears, we’re having a big fat fun blog hop. Bounce all over the internetz today checking out Entangled authors blogs and enter to win lots of lovely Entangled prizes. Click here to check out what the other authors are giving away during the Entangled In Love blog hop!

And now for my super easy giveaway! All you have to do to be entered to win is head over to my Facebook page and leave a comment on my wall. In your comment, tell me if you’re a Valentine’s Day lover or scrooge. (I’ve been both at various times in my life!) If you’re in the mood, you can like my page so you get all my latest book news. One random commentor will receive a rare PRINT copy of The Boss’s Fake Fiancee!

All the participants in the blog hop will be accepting entries through February 16th–so play on and have fun! Also, join us for a Valentine’s Day Twitter party! Here’s the deets:

Date : February 8th, 2013

Time : 9pm EST

Hashtag : #EntangledInLove

What : We’ll be asking Valentine’s day related questions and each question has prizes to be won! Answer right for a chance to win some of the many awesome prizes

Where : Follow the instructions below

1. Go to http://tweetgrid.com/party

2. Fill in the hash-tag as #EntangledInLove

3. Fill in the hosts

@entangledpub

@totalbookaholic

@babsbookbistro

@anjanavasan

4. Enter your twitter handle, follow the tweets, answer the questions and you may just get lucky

Don’t forget to mention the #EntangledInLove hashtag in your replies!

Indulgence Party!

Crazy, hun? The Indulgence imprint turns one on February 12th, and since Rules of Negotiation was one of the launch books for the line, that means Brit, Tori, and all their friends are turning 1 too!

To celebrate, Entangled Books is going all out with the celebration!

We have a ton of fun stuff planned for everyone, including numerous chances to get your hands on all of our Indulgence books and interact with the authors.

Join the Indulgence Party on Facebook to talk to the authors, answer questions and win some pretty cool prizes! The schedule is as follows (Links & Prizes will be updated soon!):

Time: Noon – 4pm EST.

February 5th

Inara Scott & Ros Clarke *** THAT’S ME!

February 7th

Nicole Helm, Nina Croft, & Rachel Lyndhurst

February 11th

Barbara DeLeo & Michele de Winton

February 13th

Amy Andrews, Stephanie Draven, & Annie Seaton

February 19th

Addison Fox, Victoria James, & Nicola Marsh

February 21st

Christine Bell & Bronwen Evans

February 26th

Marisa Cleveland, Robin Covington, & Robyn Thomas

February 28th

Diane Alberts & Jennifer Probst

Want to get your hands on ALL of our Indulgence books? Well, this month you can!

When : February 4th – February 28th (Weekdays)

Time : 9pm – 10pm EST.

Where : Twitter! If you’re not following us yet, follow now at @indulgencebooks !

Hashtag : #IndulgeYourself

How : Starting February 4th, follow the #IndulgeYourself hashtag on Twitter! We’ll be tweeting clues, you need to figure out which Indulgence book the clues refer to and a random winner gets a copy of the book!

These clues will be related to any of the following:

Book Cover

Blurb

Quotes

For reference, you can find a list of all our Indulgence titles here! You can refer to this list when we give out the clues.

Sounds fun, right? We hope you join us!

Wait, there’s more!

On February 12th, Entangled will be hosting a Grand Prize Giveaway full of Indulgent Goodies, on their blog! So make sure you check back!

Breaking the rules…

If you’ve read any of my category romance, you know I’m not good at following the rules. Career heroine? Got one. Hero that speaks Klingon? Check.

So what’s your take on non-traditional heroes/heroines? Do the “rules” for category romance still apply in today’s world? I’m chatting about breaking the rules of category romance on the Entangled Indulgence blog. Swing by and say hello!

http://www.indulgencebooks.com/2013/0...

Exposing Alix has a new cover!

I was nervous about self-publishing. I was worried about the time it would take, the response to the book, and whether it might somehow damage my “brand” (God help me if I really have a brand!). I invested a bunch of money in editing and a little on advertising, and wondered if it would be well spent. I hemmed and hawed. Finally, I hit the publish button.

The result was Exposing Alix. And it’s been totally worth it. Maybe not financially–it’s early, and while I haven’t made back my investment yet, sales are pretty good and I’m hopeful that I will. But more importantly, I am getting the opportunity to try things in real time, and see how they affect readers.



This is something traditionally published authors don’t get a chance to do–try things out. You’d be surprised how divorced authors are from the business end of things. Agents negotiate contracts. Editors and marketing people make covers and titles. Someone writes the back cover blurb. Sometimes, sometimes the author gets input. Usually, they do not. And forget about sales. That data belongs to the publishing house and they HATE sharing it. (Again, I’m talking traditional publishing.) People used to ask me how my first book, The Candidates, was selling. I didn’t have any idea what sales were until I got my first royalty statement–eight months after publication. Writing for Entangled I get information more often (quarterly) but it’s still hard to get real time data.

But with self publishing you are in control. I write the blurbs. I make the ads. I choose the cover. And I can check my Amazon dashboard any time and see how many copies have sold. By the day. Twice a day if I want (I try not to. That sort of thing can make you crazy.) Which means I can change all those things I created and see if it affects sales. I can even do something drastic–change the whole darn cover, for example–and watch the response.

So that’s what I’ve been doing. Tweaking. Watching. Changing. Experimenting.

And damn, is this FUN!

Apparently, you all like this ad:

He won’t let her hold anything back…but can he keep his own heart locked away forever?

better than this ad:

She won’t settle for anything less than love….He won’t let her hold anything back.

Interesting, right?

And now here’s the big question. Which cover do you like better?

The old one is at the top. Here’s the new one:

Very different, right? I can’t wait to see how the response differs between the two. And I’d love to hear from you all on this one.

Which cover do you like better? Which makes you more likely to buy the book?

To entice you to give me your feedback, I’m offering a copy of any of my e-books to one commenter–Rules of Negotiation, The Boss’s Fake Fiancee, or Exposing Alix!

Guess What? A new book!

If you don’t happen to follow me on Twitter, friend me on Facebook, or subscribe to my newsletter (what? you don’t do all three? I’m shocked! Shocked I tell you!), you may not be aware that I have a new book out! It’s a steamy contemporary romance about a bad boy Hollywood director who doesn’t believe in love, and the erotic filmmaker who is determine to show him that it does.

Here’s the fabulous, sexy cover:

The idea for this book was simple: take a woman who has been hurt time and again, who desperately wants to believe in love and becomes convinced that she sees it in the eyes of people making love. Take a man who is surrounded by love but refuses to be vulnerable to its power. Add a dash of Hollywood, a few cameras, some complex family drama, and turn up the heat. In the end, you’ve got EXPOSING ALIX:

Does love exist on the other side of the lens?

As far as Hollywood bad boy director Ryker Valentine is concerned, love is a dangerous fantasy—one he doesn’t want in his movies any more than he wants it in his life. When critics complain his love scenes lack emotion, he reluctantly agrees to let renowned erotic filmmaker Alix Z put her romantic, sexy spin on his latest flick. Still, on the other side of the camera, Ryker is determined to stay in control. He’ll show Alix that sex doesn’t have to be cluttered with love—if only he can keep his own heart out of the shot.

Just because life has sent more heartbreak than love Alix’s way doesn’t mean she doubts its existence. After all, she’s seen it over and over through the lens of her camera. So when Ryker turns on the heat, she’s determined to keep things purely professional. Ryker doesn’t do love and Alix won’t settle for anything less—even if it means giving up a passion unlike anything she’s experienced before…

Available now on Amazon!

I hope you’ll enjoy taking time out of your holidays to enjoy a little relaxation with a good book!

Cheers!

Finding (and selling) the heart of your book

No, that’s not a typo. I know everyone out there talks about writing the book of your heart. This is about something different. This is about finding the heart of your book–and using that heart to strengthen, deepen, and ultimately sell the book.

Thanks to NaNo, many of you out there have just finished writing a book. Maybe your first. Maybe your 10th. In either case, you probably didn’t write that book just for yourself. You probably wrote it because you wanted to share it with readers. Which probably has you thinking, what do I have to do now to get this thing published?

Good question. There are lots of steps along the way (revising, getting an agent, submitting, making the decision about the type of publishing you want to do). This isn’t about those steps. This is about the step before that. This is about figuring out the heart of your story.

What is the heart of a story? For me, it’s the emotional core. It’s the essential idea or concept that readers will connect with as they read the story. This isn’t a big, generic theme, like redemption or happily ever after. It isn’t a trope or a plot. As a romance writer, it is personal and vulnerable to your characters. It’s the thing they most fear, or most desire. And the crazy thing is, you may not know what it is until you finish writing the story.

Let me give you an example. I started writing my most recent release, The Boss’s Fake Fiancee, in early 2012, knowing only that the trope would be a fake engagement and that it would feature characters from Rules of Negotiation. I came up with a plot, some conflict, and a story arc. I knew that my hero was a recluse, and that my heroine would have trust issues after being cheated on by her boyfriend. I got half-way through a first draft before I realized that my hero’s secrecy was motivated by more than a bad relationship or the death of his parents when he was young.

I realized that my hero was different than any other hero I’d written before.

I realized that he was…SPOILER ALERT!!!…on the autism spectrum. It was mild, but it was there.

This was a big deal.

This changed everything.

Still, I actually sort of ignored this revelation. I continued writing my draft. I downplayed my discovery. I didn’t think readers would connect with a hero with Asperger Syndrome. I didn’t want to say it outloud. I knew it, the hero knew it, and even the heroine figured it out. But I was reluctant to trust readers with this information.

So I sent the book to my editor, Libby, who is a goddess. She (and the other goddesses at Entangled who read the first draft) loved the book. They loved Garth. But they thought I needed to be clear about his autism. It’s mild enough that readers who aren’t familiar with spectrum disorders might not understand him, they said. I needed to give it a name. I needed to own it.

To say I fretted about this is a HUGE understatement. I really, really feared that readers wouldn’t enjoy the book if I did this. I feared that they wouldn’t be comfortable rooting for a hero who wasn’t like everyone else. Who had a different sort of reason for his inability to navigate social situations and his fear of relationships.

Libby was confident. She knew what I didn’t: that this was the heart of the book, and hiding it would do the book, and its hero, a disservice.

So back to the topic of this blog. Finding the heart of the book. Garth, and his autism, was the heart of The Boss’s Fake Fiancee. But until I recognized that fact, and more importantly, before I revised the book around that heart, the story was only half told. It lacked the core to guide it. The spark to set it apart.

So, with Libby’s support, and the support of the amazing team at Entangled Publishing, I revised the book (twice) to focus more on the heart of Garth’s struggle. And you want to know the really amazing thing? The Boss’s Fake Fiancee sold over 6,000 copies in its first month. This book exceeded my expectations on a grand scale. I have been overwhelmed by the love people have shown it, and Garth.

So, as you pull out that NaNo book, or whatever you’re working on, I have this advice. Find the heart of the book. Find the emotional, driving core that sets this book apart from every other book out there and celebrate it. Trust your readers and trust the story.

You owe it to your characters–and yourself.

Join Inara’s Romance Reader Posse!

Dear Friends~~

I love you all. I really do. You’ve made this year incredibly special, from your enthusiastic response to my lawyer-in-love Tori Anderson (and they say career women don’t sell!) to your over-the-moon YES to my tortured hero Garth Solen, who I worried endlessly that readers would have a hard time connecting with. You showed me that you are people who love romance in all forms, and you want me to take chances and write the kind of unique, sexy, emotional books I want to write. So thank you!

Now, as many of you know, I like to give away books. I also like to hear from readers. Occasionally, I need people to ask for advice, or opinions. As I have a new book releasing VERY SOON, I also want to know what you think about it, and if you might be willing to help spread the word about it.

Sound interesting?

I hope so! Here’s what I’m thinking. You tell me if you want to be a part of my Romance Reader Posse. Those who join in the fun will get an advance copy of EXPOSING ALIX, the book I’ll be releasing just in time for the holidays. (NOTE: EXPOSING ALIX is definitely not YA! This is an adult Romance Reader Posse. I’ll make a separate announcement for Delcroix fans who want more YA.) You’ll then be on my list for advance copies of future romance releases. I’ll also come to you from time to time asking questions. For example: do you want swag? If so, what kind of swag? -OR- Which cover do you like better? -OR- Where should I go on tour?

You get the idea!

If you were so inclined, I’d be terribly grateful if you would post a review of EXPOSING ALIX on Amazon, B&N, or Goodreads. (These reviews make a huge difference to the success of the book. Never doubt that YOU MATTER to me!)

Sound easy?

Sweet. Send an email to inara.scott at gmail dot com if you want to join in the fun. Space will be limited to 15, so email me quickly! And until then, here’s the blurb for EXPOSING ALIX:

Does love exist on the other side of the lens?

As far as Hollywood bad boy Ryker Valentine is concerned, love is a dangerous fantasy—one he doesn’t want in his movies any more than he wants it in his life. But when critics complain that his work is too cold, he reluctantly agrees to let renowned erotic filmmaker Alix Z put her romantic, sexy spin on his latest movie. Still, on the other side of the camera, Ryker is determined to stay in control. He’s determined to show Alix that sex doesn’t have to be cluttered with love—but can he keep his own heart out of the shot?

Just because life has sent more heartbreak than love Alix’s way doesn’t mean she doubts its existence. After all, she’s seen it over and over through the lens of her camera. So when Ryker turns on the heat, she’s determined to keep things purely professional. Ryker doesn’t do love and Alix won’t settle for anything less—even if it means giving up a passion unlike anything she’s experienced before…