Mimi Barbour's Blog: Believe!, page 39

The Lure of Romantic Suspense!

Today is a special day for me because I get to welcome a lovely guest, Gerri Hines. This lady is an author's best friend. If you don't believe me, check out her blog here and you'll see what I mean!!

 
 
 
When I pick up a romance novel, I’m certain of one thing. Boy…I mean man meets woman; man wants woman; woman discovers the man is her knight in shining armor; they fall in love and live happily ever after. A happy ending. A celebration of their love. The formula has been used for years upon years. And when I’m in the mood for a light read, I greatly enjoy a good romance.
 
Although to be honest, I can’t write a simple romance. I’ve tried. Every time I try, the book takes a turn, a wide turn back to what I’m comfortable with—romantic suspense. I can’t help throwing my heroine into danger. Yes, I’m one of those romance suspense authors. I also follow a formula. Conflict. Conflict. Conflict.
 
Up until Fragmented, most of my books have been historical romance suspense books. I’ve been drawn to the past…that is until this last spring. I live in Boston. I wanted to do something for the Marathon Bombing victims. So I wrote.
 
Fragmented, Book One Boston’s Crimes of Passion series, is my first suspense thriller. I have also pledged to give half my royalties to one of the charities that support the victims of this tragedy. It is my way of giving back.
 
I’m excited for the release of Fragmented. I’ve gotten quite a lot of positive feedback on Fragmented. Let me share a few quotes from some fellow authors.   
 Praise for Fragmented: “Fragmented is a thoroughly engrossing romantic suspense which will have you turning the pages as fast as you can! Author Colleen Connally does a masterful job diving into the demented mind of a serial killer. If you liked Silence of the Lambs, you’ll love this story. Highly recommended!”  ~ S.G. Rogers   “A gripping, page-turning thriller. You won’t be able to stop reading. And you’ll sleep with the lights on! Colleen Connally creates evocative words that will send more than chills down your spine. There’s also a few scenes that will grip your heart!”~ Elaine Raco Chase,   “A fast-paced, sensual romantic suspense with a compelling heroine and a caring, dynamic hero.” ~ Lindsay Townsend
     


FRAGMENTED   BOOK ONE, CRIMES OF BOSTON SERIES The first in the Boston’s Crimes of Passion Series! A pulse-pounding thriller! Ms Connally’s first murder mystery delivers! Suspenseful…shocking…a psychological thriller— leaving readers on the edge of their seat.  Cameron Quinn is caught in a web of deceit. Protecting her brother from being framed for a murder places Cameron in untold danger. When the real killer diverts his attention to her, she has nowhere to turn, especially not to the man she shared one unforgettable night… who now is trying to put her brother in prison. A “must read” for any suspense lover!   She would do anything to protect her family… Cameron Quinn watched her father fall into a world of despair after being falsely accused of causing her mother’s death. Now, her brother is a suspect in a crime she knows he’s not capable of committing. She’ll risk everything to save her brother from the same fate as her father, even destroying evidence that implicates him in a series of murders.  He would do anything to win a case… ADA Darren Kennedy is known as ‘the bulldog.’ He doesn’t lose. When a killer emerges on the streets of Boston, he’s dead-set on putting that killer behind bars…along with anyone that stands in his way.  A killer would do anything to get his heart’s desire…Cameron soon discovers that the police aren’t the only ones who suspect her of covering for her brother. The murderer is still out there and he isn’t happy his plans have been disrupted. Now, the twisted psychopath has turned his attention towards Cameron and will stop at nothing until he has her in his control.   Intrigue, love, betrayal…suspense!      Connect with Colleen Connally:   Website:  Jerri Hines, Romance Author:  http://jerrihines.org/   Blogsite:  Colleen Connally:  http://colleenconnally.blogspot.com/   Twitter: Colleen Connally:           https://twitter.com/ColleenConnally Jerri Hines:                      https://twitter.com/jhines340 Carrie James Haynes:      https://twitter.com/CarrieJHaynes   Facebook: Novel Works:   https://www.facebook.com/pages/Novel-Works-by-Jerri-Hines/112059205487095           Colleen Connally:    https://www.facebook.com/pages/Colleen-Connally/1403164973243511?ref=hl Jerri Hines:   https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jerri-Hines/203768702990224   Links to buy Fragmented:   Amazon:  http://goo.gl/LCHOcW   Barnes and Noble:  http://goo.gl/5OY20y   Amazon UK:  http://goo.gl/gqcVMZ  

Publishing a new book!

 Publishing a new book is always an exciting time for an author. For me, it’s a feeling of accomplishment that I love. I guess I’ll have to admit that it gives me a sweet rush that’s become addictive.
 Is it the knowledge that I’ve finished something I started that’s so pleasurable? Heck - I don’t know. Could it be the story that’s existed in my head now has a happy ending?

 Maybe…

 At least now I can move on. Make room for the other characters who’ve been driving me batty, impatiently waiting on the sidelines and madly waving at me from time to time.

 It’s a strange kind of phenomena that occurs when I’m close to the end of a book. My mind starts sifting through all the many ideas that have hammered away for attention. Normally, I’ll let a thought take root and dwell on it until I either see potential or I decide it’s just not gonna work.

 If it’s a fit, then anytime I have spare room in my brain (that's an oxymoron if I ever heard one :-)))) the concept begins to jell and refuses to be turned off. When I let myself become involved to where the plotting process naturally begins, I’m hooked.

 That’s when the fun starts. A new group of people immerge and I create as many diabolical conflicts to torture them with that I can think of. Since I’m always weaving in romance and aiming them toward their happy ending, I never worry that a lot is too much.

 I’m not sure how others begin the process of a new story but for me it usually starts with the heroine. Most times I can see her clearly. The hero follows soon after and he’s the one I’m more challenged to bring to life. The story floats around in the background such as whether it’s a suspense or contemporary, angel theme or spirit-travel. Then the lightbulb flashes and the plot appears.
 Gol darnit I love those moments! It’s like being at the starting gate and the gun fires for the race to begin.

  How does the process work for you?


***

Newsletters – are they an important tool for an author?? #freepartay

Oh yeah!!
 According to what I was told back in 2006, a newsletter could be the most important tool of all. At the time, my webmistress urged me to start gathering names because the people who signed up to get my intermittent letters would be interested in me and my progress. They’d be my fans –happy for my success, supportive and hopefully proud.

 After visiting various workshops at the Emerald City (Seattle) Conference recently, I do believe that advice was solid. I’m happy to say that I took her seriously and I did start gathering my list.

 I opened my newsletter in a place called Your Mailing List where you can gather up to 1,000 names before the price of $3.99/mo kicks in. There are other places out there and I do believe one of the most popular sites is called Mail Chimp where you can have 2,000 on your mailing list for free (why didn’t I sign there???)  Mimi—pounding desk!! After further checking, it seems once the 2,000 range is reached, the cost increases significantly…hummm! Lifting head off desk, grinning…

 Unfortunately, since I haven’t been very active about garnering names, I probably won’t have to worry about slipping into the paying slot for some time. But that changes as of today. From now on, anyone I meet who touches my life in some way will be invited – notice I didn’t say begged – invited to join my mailing list.


Recently, I listened to a seminar on newsletters where the speaker strongly urged anyone who had a product for sale to send out letters at least once a week and always be prepared to reward the reader in some way for opening and reading the post. Giving the reader an incentive for reading my news made sense, whether it is a bit of humor to brighten their day or maybe a chance to win a gift certificate or even a free book. I could do that. But not four times a month.
Face it, there just isn’t that much to say between books and I’m lucky to get one released every couple of months. Myself, I do enjoy reading what some of my colleagues are working on but I wouldn’t be so interested if I became inundated with too many people sending me continuous updates. Therefore, I decided that a monthly letter would be sufficient. Now, all I have to do is make sure that there’s some excitement in my life so I can pass it on.
 And you know what?  There is. Lately, I’ve seen my income steadily rise from all the hard work I’ve put in. My books are becoming popular and have reached a lot more people than I ever dreamed they would. It’s brilliant to know that I have touched that many lives with my stories. It’s also wonderful to have made so many new friends in the industry.

 And here comes the fun part – Ahem!! Are you ready???

  Would YOU sign up for my newsletter?? There’s a hot little button on the right side and anyone who signs up in the next month will have a chance to win a $20 Amazon Gift Certificate.

 How did I do? Did you sign?? ***

Speaking of signing up???
Were you looking to sign up for lots of 
FREE
new books and a chance to win a kindle??
This week's

FREE PARTAY

will give you both.

My offer in this partay is my newest release....
She's Not You
Free for 1 day only!!!
November 29th

 

Newsletters – are they an important tool for an author??

Oh yeah!!
 According to what I was told back in 2006, a newsletter could be the most important tool of all. At the time, my webmistress urged me to start gathering names because the people who signed up to get my intermittent letters would be interested in me and my progress. They’d be my fans –happy for my success, supportive and hopefully proud.

 After visiting various workshops at the Emerald City (Seattle) Conference recently, I do believe that advice was solid. I’m happy to say that I took her seriously and I did start gathering my list.

 I opened my newsletter in a place called Your Mailing List where you can gather up to 1,000 names before the price of $3.99/mo kicks in. There are other places out there and I do believe one of the most popular sites is called Mail Chimp where you can have 2,000 on your mailing list for free (why didn’t I sign there???)  Mimi—pounding desk!! After further checking, it seems once the 2,000 range is reached, the cost increases significantly…hummm! Lifting head off desk, grinning…

 Unfortunately, since I haven’t been very active about garnering names, I probably won’t have to worry about slipping into the paying slot for some time. But that changes as of today. From now on, anyone I meet who touches my life in some way will be invited – notice I didn’t say begged – invited to join my mailing list.


Recently, I listened to a seminar on newsletters where the speaker strongly urged anyone who had a product for sale to send out letters at least once a week and always be prepared to reward the reader in some way for opening and reading the post. Giving the reader an incentive for reading my news made sense, whether it is a bit of humor to brighten their day or maybe a chance to win a gift certificate or even a free book. I could do that. But not four times a month.

Face it, there just isn’t that much to say between books and I’m lucky to get one released every couple of months. Myself, I do enjoy reading what some of my colleagues are working on but I wouldn’t be so interested if I became inundated with too many people sending me continuous updates. Therefore, I decided that a monthly letter would be sufficient. Now, all I have to do is make sure that there’s some excitement in my life so I can pass it on.
 And you know what?  There is. Lately, I’ve seen my income steadily rise from all the hard work I’ve put in. My books are becoming popular and have reached a lot more people than I ever dreamed they would. It’s brilliant to know that I have touched that many lives with my stories. It’s also wonderful to have made so many new friends in the industry.

 And here comes the fun part – Ahem!! Are you ready???

  Would YOU sign up for my newsletter?? There’s a hot little button on the right side and anyone who signs up in the next month will have a chance to win a $20 Amazon Gift Certificate.

 How did I do? Did you sign?? ***

RELEASED on Time!! - "SHE'S NOT YOU" - #Amazon #99cents #Elvis Presley

 
This book has been an absolute joy to write and a nightmare to release. But it’s there now. The cover posted on the Amazon page looks so darn cute. Maybe because the sweet sleeping puppy called Sam is one of the characters in the story.
The month and a half it took to write this book was a fun time for me. The song echoed in my head periodically to remind me of where the plot line needed to go. I’d even
play the tune just to get in the mood.
Of course, writing about the Christmas season is always special. I enjoy trying to get the mood just right so that it comes through the pages for the readers to see and feel.


When I write my characters, I have a vision in my head, and at first, for the hero, I saw Elvis himself. But then Jesse Parker emerged and became his own man. I’m glad because he’s a sweetheart and a shadow to no one. Locked into an old, dead love affair, this guy needed to wake up and let go of his memories.  So he wouldn’t miss the love right in front of him. In the song it said – And it’s just breakin’ my heart cause she’s not you. Maybe not, but she was better.
Belle Foster soon became real to me also. As a mother myself, I felt her worries and fears for her little girl. She’s a woman who’s had so much to overcome, most of all a belief in her own worth.
And Layla, the child, could be anyone’s daughter or granddaughter. Mischievous and cute as a button, she gets into your heart, digs a hole and won’t be shook loose.
Put these three people together in a love story and you have a wonderfully warm tale that will brighten the holiday season for any reader of romance.  *****  Since I haven’t chosen which song to use for the next book in the series yet, I intend to set up a contest to let the readers help make that decision. The information for this contest will be posted on my website and facebook page.


So… if you’d like to be involved, please do come and either sign up for the newsletter on my website or follow me on facebook. Soon, I will be writing a post and sending everyone linked with me the simple rules.
**The winner will not only choose the title by picking his/ her favorite song of Elvis’s, but the book will be dedicated to that person also.
****

Does the age of a book matter in fiction today?

  
I read something on a blog the other day where there was a mention of the age of the book discussed. How once a book was over a year old, its value had diminished. And it got me to thinking whether it was a problem in today’s e-book market.
 
I decided after looking at the puzzle from all angles that it isn’t really as important as some people would believe. Of course this doesn’t include the traditional paperback and hardcover system where your publisher would give a novel a very short window of time to make its sales on the book shelves, and then pull it when the book didn’t sell very well.
 
Personally, I have a loaded bookcase at home with hundreds of books that I’ve gathered and kept because they were either presents or too good to give up – books to be re-read. Still to this day, I scour second-hand bookstores and flea markets looking for backlists from favorite authors. This bodes well for my hypothesis that people still love older books.
 
Today, on Amazon, E-bay and other sites, one can find books that years ago would be very difficult to buy. It’s so freakin great!
 
Now for e-books, it’s a whole different system. First of all your book is up there on Amazon to stay. Or until the author or publisher take it down which would probably only happen in the case of there being no sales.
 
From this point on, I can only make suppositions based on my own behaviour. When I look for a book, most times I either search for an author I already like or the same author of a book I just finished and loved.  I seldom look to see when it was published unless I think I may have already read the story. Otherwise, I will happily pay my money and enjoy my purchase.
 
The reason for my blog today is because of the book I'm now promoting in the Free Partay (see below). It’s called “Together for Christmas” and is a book first published by Wild Rose Press in 2011. Not that two years is any great age at all when it comes to e-books, but if we were thinking the old traditional way, it would have been off the bookshelves a long time ago unless it had been a best-seller. Even then, chances are it would only be in a small book store or… have a new cover.
 

Which is what Together for Christmas has! As soon as I had the rights returned to me, I slapped a new cover on it as fast as my artist could come up with one (and I might add - he did a fabulous job). Then I released it again under my own name.
 
It worries me some that a few people might have already bought the book and will not recognize it with its new face, but since it’s only for sale with Amazon, I know their wonderful return policy will cover any purchases that might fall into this category.
 
Since the book is written during the Vintage era, again I don’t worry that the contents might be outdated. The story is just as lovely today as it was when I created it. So, in my way of thinking, if a book was interesting and well-written years ago, it still is today.
 
Well some books….

 
Amazon

99 cents for a limited time only!!!



Abbie Taylor has a thousand things to do before the big day, help the vicar with his needy families, organize the Christmas nativity, and spare time for a distraught baby at the orphanage who only settles when she’s near. Falling into a coma while her spirit resides inside a prickly, big-shot businessman doesn’t work for her at all… until she falls in love.

How could Marcus Chapman be so unlucky? First he’s saddled with his newly widowed mum, and the next thing he knows, he has an annoying spirit invader who’s instantly aware that he isn’t nearly as tough as he makes out. Between these two manipulating women, and the orphans Abbie forces him to visit, the poor man doesn’t stand a chance. The season is Christmas, and love is all around.
    Praise for this book:

 
“Barbour spins a difficult story with ease. Her prose is smooth. Her characters rich and her plot fast paced. She delivers the well-deserved happily ever after ending perfectly.” ~ Reviewed by Jo-Ann Carson 

“With all of the terrible things that are happening in this world, sometimes you just need a shot of happiness. I'm glad that Mimi realizes that this need exists and is able to create this happiness to share with us.” ~ Reviewed by Leandra Hanes

***

Does the age of a book matter in fiction today? #freepartay

  
I read something on a blog the other day where there was a mention of the age of the book discussed. How once a book was over a year old, its value had diminished. And it got me to thinking whether it was a problem in today’s e-book market.
 
I decided after looking at the puzzle from all angles that it isn’t really as important as some people would believe. Of course this doesn’t include the traditional paperback and hardcover system where your publisher would give a novel a very short window of time to make its sales on the book shelves, and then pull it when the book didn’t sell very well.
 
Personally, I have a loaded bookcase at home with hundreds of books that I’ve gathered and kept because they were either presents or too good to give up – books to be re-read. Still to this day, I scour second-hand bookstores and flea markets looking for backlists from favorite authors. This bodes well for my hypothesis that people still love older books.
 
Today, on Amazon, E-bay and other sites, one can find books that years ago would be very difficult to buy. It’s so freakin great!
 
Now for e-books, it’s a whole different system. First of all your book is up there on Amazon to stay. Or until the author or publisher take it down which would probably only happen in the case of there being no sales.
 
From this point on, I can only make suppositions based on my own behaviour. When I look for a book, most times I either search for an author I already like or the same author of a book I just finished and loved.  I seldom look to see when it was published unless I think I may have already read the story. Otherwise, I will happily pay my money and enjoy my purchase.
 
The reason for my blog today is because of the book I'm now promoting in the Free Partay (see below). It’s called “Together for Christmas” and is a book first published by Wild Rose Press in 2011. Not that two years is any great age at all when it comes to e-books, but if we were thinking the old traditional way, it would have been off the bookshelves a long time ago unless it had been a best-seller. Even then, chances are it would only be in a small book store or… have a new cover.
 

Which is what Together for Christmas has! As soon as I had the rights returned to me, I slapped a new cover on it as fast as my artist could come up with one (and I might add - he did a fabulous job). Then I released it again under my own name.
 
It worries me some that a few people might have already bought the book and will not recognize it with its new face, but since it’s only for sale with Amazon, I know their wonderful return policy will cover any purchases that might fall into this category.
 
Since the book is written during the Vintage era, again I don’t worry that the contents might be outdated. The story is just as lovely today as it was when I created it. So, in my way of thinking, if a book was interesting and well-written years ago, it still is today.
 
Well some books….

Speaking of  books, I have the delightful task to tell you about this week’s  FREE PARTAYFor those of you who don’t know what this means, click on the link.You will see a bunch of books that will be free all day. My selection is called "Together for Christmas", so please help yourself to a copy of this delightful and heart-warming Christmas story.
  

Abbie Taylor has a thousand things to do before the big day, help the vicar with his needy families, organize the Christmas nativity, and spare time for a distraught baby at the orphanage who only settles when she’s near. Falling into a coma while her spirit resides inside a prickly, big-shot businessman doesn’t work for her at all… until she falls in love.

How could Marcus Chapman be so unlucky? First he’s saddled with his newly widowed mum, and the next thing he knows, he has an annoying spirit invader who’s instantly aware that he isn’t nearly as tough as he makes out. Between these two manipulating women, and the orphans Abbie forces him to visit, the poor man doesn’t stand a chance. The season is Christmas, and love is all around.

 Also, Today there are three book sets that are an INCREDIBLE DEAL!!! Make sure and grab a copy of each.    

A trip along memory lane… #Elvis #ElvisPresley

I have to admit to spending a lot of time in the past few months researching the songs Elvis made famous during his incredible career.  *I can’t say I’ve ever enjoyed that particular chore more.* Since my aim is to write stories for some of his songs, the words are important. Listening to them has taken me back in time where I've revisited some wonderful memories.
 While listening to Love Me Tender, I travelled back in time to 1956. I was very much a tomboy of ten back then, hadn’t even reached those mind-blowing teen years. I’d gone to the local movie theatre near where I lived in Winnipeg. In those days the 10cent admission and 10cent bag of popcorn could only be had once a month as we weren’t all that well off. But, this particular Saturday my favorite actor, Roy Rogers, was on the billing and I had whined my way into my dad’s pockets – he’s still a sweet, giving man.

 Off I went with friends and thoroughly enjoyed the cowboys and Native Americans blockbuster. (Sorry – but that just sounds wrong!! :-)

 Because there were two movies back to back, even though I knew I was expected home, I got caught up in the one following the stereotypical western and stayed glued to my seat. Love me Tender was the very first Elvis movie I ever saw. Serious trouble awaited me with my mother, but I remember thinking that watching him would be worth it. I hung out until the last scene where I bawled my eyes out. Totally smitten, my heart now belonging to the boy with the incredible smile, I faced the music. When I tried to explain why I stayed, it flew over their heads like smoke from the cigarettes they both enjoyed. Mom yelled, dad winked – no bigggie:-)

 Not long after, it was announced that, on the coming Sunday, Elvis would be appearing on the Ed Sullivan show . For the first time, I ignored my parents when they admonished me to get away from the television, not to sit too close or I could go blind. When he appeared and began to sing Hound Dog, I went berserk. I screeched along with the audience and fell back in a heap at the end. Tears clogged my eyes while I’d watched my fantasized boyfriend appear live. Mom laughed at my performance and Dad grumbled about idiots with ants in their pants.

 From that day on, every chance that came my way to get my hands on teen magazines added another photo to my overcrowded wall in the small bedroom I shared with my sister. In fact, I remember one she finally made me take down because she said she felt his eyes watching her while she undressed for bed. It bugged her so much, she’d cover it with a scarf. After she said that, I also began to get the weird sensation he was peeking and down it came.  Hey, I was ten!!!

 You know, as much as my young heart adored my idol, I believe I loved his music even more. The rock and roll beat lit a fire in me and still does to this day. My feet can never stay still when I hear that sound. As the years rolled on, I perfected the jive and every chance I got; I’d be bopping with whoever would get on the floor with me – boy or girl. Sometimes even the doorway when I was alone and the rhythm would make me move. Still happens once in a while.  OMG - can't believe I'm blabbing that.  

Moving forward a few years…
When I was thirteen, a year younger than my sister, she had a boyfriend (let’s call it puppy love because all they did was hold hands – things were REALLY different back then). On Christmas day, shy and rather hesitant, he arrived with three of his buddies for backup. He had a present for her that I still have to this day since I took it over as soon as he left. It was an LP of Elvis’s Golden Hits.(My sister was never a huge fan – not like me.)
 The best thing about that gift??

I eventually married one of those buddies and he's still my husband today.


 Do you have any memories about those times in your life that changed you forever?
 ***I wanted to remind you that I now have a JOIN MY NEWSLETTER  link on the right side panel.
 Since I will be chosing 3 lucky winners

for a gift copy of my soon to be released She's Not You , please be sure and add your name there now. **Just so you know, those addresses are dear to me and will never be used

except for MY newsletters.


***

I also have a New Releases Notification link

on the right side panel

which connects to

  Amazon.



Once there, on the right side under "Liked"click on the link for "Stay up to Date"

***

Have you ever thought - Wow - I wrote this?

Have you ever written a novel or an essay or even a letter that you just knew was good. I’m not talking great. (I’m leaving my mother out of this, :-)) I mean that after you finished it and you're reading it over, time and time again, you found yourself sighing and muttering – good, good. And a few times you sat back and thought… wow, I wrote this?
That’s what happened to me as I worked on my newest book called “She’s Not You”. It’s as if someone else inside me, a lovable someone, dictated the words – or maybe just the feelings – and I had to put them to words.
There were a few times when I couldn’t seem to come up with the exact phrases I knew would describe the emotions or the actions perfectly. When I relaxed and freed my thoughts, there they were waiting for me to grasp them. It was kinda eerie but wonderful at the same time.
Now I’m not talking about a literary masterpiece. I don’t write that type of a story. My work is all about entertaining the reader. Sort of like a favorite hour-long TV show in comparison to a blockbuster at the cinema. There’s room in this world for both.
Right?
I know that personally, I love reading something that can take my mind off my day-to-day and lift me into another world. Give me a romance with some humor, good characters and conflict and I’m all yours. But until I began writing my own books, I never thought much about the efforts made by the person who did all that work – the author. How she/he came up with the plot? The motivation they had to write the story.

  
I still don’t know how it works for others but I can tell you what motivated me to write this one. A song played on the radio by my favorite singer of all times (Elvis) and it rang in my head, drove me near batty, until I got that light-bulb moment. Write the damn story. I’m so glad that I listened.









Since then I have been replaying a lot of his music and I know one thing for sure.  This is just the beginning. There's a series here just waiting for me. One that I totally look forward to creating.    




"She's Not You" - Book #1 of the Elvis Series will be released November 25th


  If you wish to be notified by Amazon when this book is released, just click on the Stay up to Date tabon the Mimi Barbour Page.     ***

Branding - Take it serious or not?

   I didn’t at first. I thought it was just a lot of hype for us to spend even more money to sell our products. After all, what did it matter if at a glance people recognized me? Did it mean they’d rush off to purchase my books?
 I’ve grown up over the last few years in the industry and I now realize that I was an idiot in my earlier thinking. Of course branding is important. It’s a reflection of the outer image you want to portray to the world.  And darn right it matters.

 It matters that you attract people at a glance enough for them to follow through to get to browsing. And who knows where browsing can lead… hopefully to my beautiful new books page full of excerpts and buy links.

 One of the things I always liked about my blog is that I felt comfortable there and hoped it made others feel the same. Like an easy chair that just fit. But those old Lazyboys can get pretty shabby over time.

 So, with the help of a professional, all my pages are now sleek and slim, no more extraneous links, no more jumble left lying around because I didn’t know and didn’t take the time to learn how to clear it away…. I’m so ashamed, gulp!!

 My old Vicarage Bench on my newsletter and website are gone to be replaced with the image I’ve chosen to be branded with. In my opinion, today it fits my writing perfectly. A bit of fun mixed with drama to evoke suspense and fantasy. 

 So… if you are on the fence right now, wondering whether to take the leap to improvement, I have one piece of advice. Take your time. Make sure that the replacement is actually better. And if at all possible, think ahead to where you’d like to be in a few years. Brand yourself in such a way that those later decisions will fit into the choices you make today.  


 Talking about making choices,
I have chosen to put my contemporary romance,
The Surrogate's Secret,into the November 15th
Free Partay.  

As you know, there are a lot of best-selling authors
who have books in this promotion,
so please check to see
if there's anything that interests you. And while you're at it,
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Back Page Blurb: Her twins mean the world to surrogate mother, Sheri O’Connor. Since the donor parents were killed before their birth, she gladly takes on the responsibility to raise them herself. When their Chilean Uncle, Miguel Rivera, arrives unexpectedly to take them back to his country, she unravels and coldly informs him that isn’t going to happen. Because they’d used her eggs in the process, her claim supersedes anyone else’s. Never in a million years does she dream that the South American heartstopper wants her babies so much that he will force her to marry him by threatening to withhold the money she needs for an operation for her tiny son.
 Miguel knows women aren’t to be trusted. After all, didn’t his devious fiancé give him up for dead and marry someone else while he spent months being held hostage in the jungles of Columbia? If his mother hadn’t brought a team to save him and end up getting shot during the rescue, he wouldn’t be alive. Therefore, if the only thing that can stop his Mamacita from succumbing to her wounds is to adopt his dead brother’s surrogate children, then he will do anything to see that happen. Even marry the ditzy blonde whose saving grace is her gorgeous body, beautiful face and her absolute devotion to her babies.