Brenda Whiteside's Blog, page 63

Curses, Foiled Again! by Laura Haley-McNeil #villains #wicked #series

WICKED WEDNESDAYVillainy Wicked Wednesday is the best. Please welcome Laura Haley-McNeil with a great post about villains, and she has a series that you'll want to read.
Recently, I was a guest on a blog that wanted to know about my villains. Of course, my favorite villains are the least expected. We’ve seen so many hunched men wearing capes and twirling a mustache that we’re conditioned to know that no matter how pure, this man is the villain. Writers have tried to be more creative by making the least suspicious character the villain, but I believe audiences are becoming conditioned and aren’t surprised when the police officer or the minister is the villain. One of my favorite villains is the character that always gets away with a crime. The headlines are filled with well-known people who have skated through life and because of wealth or notoriety, they manage to escape conviction. But their not guilty verdict, never an innocent verdict, doesn’t seem to surprise us. They have the money and/or the prestige to pay the high price for their freedom. Too often we’ve seen these perpetrators commit another crime, commit another heinous act against another innocent victim. When their past catches up with them, how satisfying is it to know that there is justice in this world? Maybe not in the legal system, but even if someone can skirt our legal system, they won’t go unpunished. Maybe not in the time frame we’ve set for justice, but at some point justice will prevail. As someone once said, what is legal isn’t always fair. That’s why fiction is so satisfying. We can give a promise to the reader or the viewer that some sort of justice will prevail. I’ve read the book The Lovely Bones, but I saw the movie and that had a satisfying ending for the viewer, though I was sad that the characters were never aware of the verdict. I don’t know if the movie followed the book. As long as I know the villain received his just reward, I can live with that. Now to a topic that’s much more joyful—springtime! Hope yours is starting out lovely and that enjoying fresh air and blossoming trees. Have a fabulous week! Love, Laura
DEFENDING HER HEART
Book 6 of the Crystal Creek SeriesJT Whitloch can’t close his eyes without seeing the body of the woman who drowned in his swimming pool two years ago. Though he doesn’t remember that night, he blames himself for her death and walks away from a life that gave him everything he ever wanted…almost everything. His move to Crystal Creek gives him the solitude he longs for, but still he can’t find peace. Then Gretchen Moore moves to town, and she doesn’t just stir up his desire. She stirs up his past, a past with a secret so deadly it could destroy her. Gretchen wants nothing to do with JT. Because of him, someone wants her dead. The terror from his past forces them into an alliance that soon ignites their passion. Fighting these feelings leads them to the secret of the woman floating in JT’s swimming pool, but the knowledge doesn’t ease JT’s inner turmoil. Instead, it reveals an answer that could destroy him and Gretchen. His own destruction he could accept, but he’ll defend Gretchen to his death. Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/Defending-Heart-Crystal-Creek-Book-ebook/dp/B079QVZDFH/ Kobohttps://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/defending-her-heart Barnes and Noblehttps://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/defending-her-heart-laura-haley-mcneil/1127951550;jsessionid=99CC144C2F1E272328398980D4E60247.prodny_store02-atgap11?ean=2940155417736 Applehttps://itunes.apple.com/us/book/defending-her-heart/id1347905885?mt=11

The Story #BehindTheStory – Petty Cash By Leeann Betts

MUSE MONDAY Please welcome my guest blogger, Leeann to Muse Monday. And be sure to leave a comment so you have a chance at winning a print edition of Petty Cash (US only) or an eBook.
My parents once owned a timeshare property in Hyannis, Cape Cod, back when timeshares were overpriced and didn’t hold their value. In fact, this particular property was so bad in the years after they bought, that they couldn’t even get anybody to rent it for their week, which happened to be the last week of August each year.
I actually went and stayed in this condo one year because I hated the idea of my parents losing money, and I wanted to see how bad it could be that nobody would rent.
Well, it was bad. Tired. Worn out. Almost but not quite sagging. Perhaps sagging emotionally.
However, I had a blast that week, swimming, shopping, seeing the sights on the Cape. So when I was looking around for ideas of where to send Carly this time around, Hyannis came to mind.
Mind you, I have her staying in a much nicer house, overlooking the beach, in a fictional town, but my time on the Cape provided some insights into the setting.
Leave a comment and enter to win a free print (US only) or ebook copy of Petty Cash. 
About the book:Petty Cash, book 7 in By the Numbers series featuring Carly Turnquist, forensic accountant, finds Carly headed off for another mystery. 
She and hubby Mike travel to Cape Cod as emotional support for their daughter Denise and her dentist husband Don who finds himself in the middle of a potential practice dissolution. But when their host fails to make an appearance, and a tropical storm blows through the area, things are topsy-turvy.
When their host’s body washes ashore, Don is a suspect. After all, they’d had several arguments witnessed by a number of people. Can Carly figure out who the real killer is before her son-in-law is shanghaied into a life sentence?
Book: Amazon http://amzn.to/2dHfgCE  and Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2z5ecP8
About Leeann:Leeann Betts writes contemporary suspense, while her real-life persona, Donna Schlachter, pens historical suspense. She has released seven titles in her cozy mystery series, By the Numbers. In addition, Leeann has written a devotional for accountants, bookkeepers, and financial folk, Counting the Days, and with her real-life persona, Donna Schlachter, has published two books on writing, Nuggets of Writing Gold and More Nuggets of Writing Gold,a compilation of essays, articles, and exercises on the craft. She publishes a free quarterly newsletter that includes a book review and articles on writing and books of interest to readers and writers. You can subscribe at www.LeeannBetts.com or follow Leeann at www.AllBettsAreOff.wordpress.comAll books are available on Amazon.com in digital and print, and at Smashwords.com in digital format.
Website: www.LeeannBetts.com Receive a free ebook just for signing up for our quarterly newsletter.Blog: www.AllBettsAreOff.wordpress.comFacebook: http://bit.ly/1pQSOqV Twitter: http://bit.ly/1qmqvB6

Triple #Wicked and #Sexy #Romance

WICKED WEDNESDAYI'm more than excited about the wicked characters I have in my soon to be released The Deep Well of Love and Murder, book five (and the final book) in my Love and Murder Series. Wicked men this time, but they don't totally steal the show. There's plenty of sexy romance.

But back to bad guys. Do you think imperfect humans can accidentally fall into a life that marks them as villains? In this final book of the series, there are three villains who are totally different from each other. Were they doomed from birth or just unlucky in life and made the wrong choices? Every interesting villain isn't totally bad. They have to have some redeeming qualities to be believable and interesting.

Clark Katz first appeared in book one, The Art of Love and Murder. He was married to Laura Katz. He was also a lazy, cheating husband who toyed with thievery. Spoiled by his mother and grandmother, he turned out to be a worthless adult. Now, several years later, in The Deep Well of Love and Murder, he's Laura's ex and a paroled criminal. He's dangerous and causes Laura a world of hurt. How far will he go to get Laura back?

Clark ripped the tape, and the skin around her mouth burned. When he leaned close, their noses nearly touching, she pulled her head back, escaping the worst of his hot, stale breath. This wasn’t the Clark she’d met so many years ago. That young man had always smelled of the watermelon candy he loved.
Villain number two is Charles Farley. He's a rather pathetic man. As a gambling addict with a big debt to some unsavory characters, he's looking to make a quick buck. When he joins forces with my number one villain, he does the unspeakable. Spoiled by his mother and at odds with his father, he still acts like the rotten child he was even though he's past forty. How far will he go to get the money to pay off his debt?

“You promised me a bonus.” Farley squinched his face like a grade school brat. “Up front.”
“I promised you a small commission prior to full funding for the project, if you managed to get him to sign on the dotted line.” He wanted to take the clueless idiot and shake him by the shoulders.
Farley downed the rest of the whiskey and peeked into the glass as if more would appear.“What’s the last between you and your father?”
“I slugged him.” He slid his gaze to Brad, a glassy look in his eyes. “I slugged my old man.” He flopped on the end of the bed, his chin practically touching his chest, the empty glass falling from his hand.
Brad’s mouth fell open, and he gawked at the whiny bastard. His old man had twenty-five years on him, and probably had thirty pounds and more muscle than his son ever had. The old rancher could’ve knocked the shit out of his kid.
“How did that work out for you, Charles?”
And last, but certainly not least, is Brad Markham the too slick city developer from Las Vegas, Nevada. He's really in over his head with a mob financial backer. There are ranchers who stand in his way. His wife has left him and his partner is close to a breakdown. How much can his weak character take? What will he do to save his marriage, his project, and his financial status?
Brad’s hands trembled. The air in the room thinned. Deflecting blame on Charles or not, he suspected the detective still had suspicions about his involvement. What the hell was he going to do? The whole deal fell solidly on his shoulders, with no one—no one—on his side.
His wife wouldn’t support him. Charles was a bumbling fool only interested in his own gain. His partner could do nothing but complain. Manzetti threatened. Investors were pulling up stakes.
Now a damned, small town, idiot detective was sniffing at him. This had to stop. This deal had to come together.
If it didn’t, nothing else mattered.
Yes, there are villains, but as always, this Love and Murder book has plenty of sexy romance, too! I hope I've wet your appetite for some wicked fun. I'll be announcing the release date soon...I hope!

Meanwhile, here's a teaser for the book and the full length video to come.



And if you haven't yet read the first four books in the series, you can find them as well as all of my books, on my Amazon Page. Click HERE

The Story Behind the Story . . . A Train Ride to #Heartbreak By Donna Schlachter

MUSE MONDAY Please welcome Donna to Discover Yourself. If you'd like to be in the drawing for a free print edition of Mail Order Brides (US only), please leave a comment!
The idea for this story came from a love of a movie and a friend with a great story to share. The movie was “The Fugitive”, both the original series pilot and the more recent remake. I loved the idea of a train ride leading to a second chance. My friend had recently taken a train ride from Denver to San Francisco, and she shared several delightful stories. I wondered if a train ride might be like a cruise in that it would provide an insulated environment where the travelers might do something they’d never done before. If so, this was perfect fodder for a romance, much like the old TV show, “The Love Boat”. And then I saw “Murder on the Orient Express”, and as a lover of anything Agatha Christie, decided to incorporate a few of the details in my story. The result? A chance meeting, two characters with integrity, and a way for God to reach both of them. Leave a comment for a chance to win a free print (US only) copy of Mail-Order Brides Collection.
1895, Train to CaliforniaJohn Stewart needs a wife. Mary Johannson needs a home. On her way west, Mary falls in love with another. Now both must choose between commitment and true love. October 1895Mary Johannsonhas scars on her body that can’t compare with the scars on her heart. She is alone in the world, with no family, no prospects, and no home. John Stewartis at his wit’s end. His wife of three years died in childbirth, leaving him with a toddler and an infant, both girls. Theirs was the love of fairy tales, and while he has no illusions about finding another like her, his children need a mother. Though separated by thousands of miles, they commit to a mail-order marriage. But on their journey to Heartbreak, they meet another and realize the life they’d planned would be a lie. Can they find their way back from the precipice and into the love of God and each other, or are they destined to keep their word and deny their heart? Buy link: http://amzn.to/2Cur1I4
About Donna:Donna lives in Denver with husband Patrick, her first-line editor and biggest fan. She writes historical suspense under her own name, and contemporary suspense under her alter ego of Leeann Betts. She is a hybrid author who has published a number of books under her pen name and under her own name. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Sisters In Crime; facilitates a local critique group, and teaches writing classes and courses. Donna is also a ghostwriter and editor of fiction and non-fiction, and judges in a number of writing contests. She loves history and research, and travels extensively for both. Donna is proud to be represented by Terrie Wolf of AKA Literary Management.
www.HiStoryThruTheAges.wordpress.comwww.HiStoryThruTheAges.com Receive a free ebook simply for signing up for our free newsletter!Facebook: www.Facebook.com/DonnaschlachterAuthorTwitter: www.Twitter.com/DonnaSchlachterOther Books: Amazon: http://amzn.to/2ci5Xqq and Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2gZATjm Excerpt: (when John and Mary first meet)John handed his bag to the porter, an older, stooped Negro, who nodded and smiled, thanking him for riding with him. John held back the sharp retort itching on the end of his tongue for release. It wasn’t the old man’s fault he had to change trains. He climbed the three steps and hesitated. Left or right? With no assigned seating, the only question was which car would be quieter. He’d had his fill of crying kids and snoring men. He glanced through the door of the car on his left. A woman reading a magazine, and two men playing cards. On the right, a woman with three children who ran up and down the aisle. Left it was. Inside this car, he sat in the second row. The woman was to his right, and the card players were behind him. He propped his feet on the seat facing him, crossed his legs at the ankles, tipped his hat over his face, and closed his eyes. With any luck, he’d have a good long rest before the conductor woke him for dinner. But while his body screamed for sleep, his mind wouldn’t settle. He worried about his daughters. He fretted over how Martin was handling things on the ranch. Sure, he was experienced. Sure, he’d managed things before when John was preoccupied with Sophia’s illness. He’d always been there in case Martin had a question. Now he was hundreds if not thousands of miles away. What if a cow went into a breach labor? What if a steer broke through the fence again and ended up in the mire? What if— He snapped his head up. He could “what if” himself to death. John drew a deep breath and settled his chin on his chest. No matter how bad things got in Heartbreak, there wasn’t one thing he could do about it. He might as well relax. Pages rustled beside him, and he glanced at the woman reading the magazine. Pink tinged her cheeks, and her mouth formed a tiny “o” as though she was reading something pleasing. He couldn’t make out the cover of the magazine from this angle, but he doubted it was a Sears catalogue. She was much too engrossed in it. The irony of the situation didn’t escape him. Here he was, caught up in worrying about what was happening in the real world—his real world—beyond the confines of this train, and there was this young woman purposely losing herself in the make-believe world of her reading material.

BACK IN THE SADDLE … LITERALLY #horse #ride by Holly Bargo

FEARLESS FRIDAY
Please read on for a most heartwarming, yet totally fearless, horsey tale by my guest, Holly Bargo.
Anyone who knows me in the least knows that horses occupy a huge part of my life. From that first, impromptu ride when I was three years old, the four-legged beasties have populated my dreams and desires. With a loan from my mother and the understanding that I would not only pay back the loan, but also would cover all horse-related expenses from then on, I bought my first horse at the tender age of 15. So was she.
That first horse taught me a lot, initially that she was in charge, not I. We began our relationship with her throwing me against a stall wall when I attempted to pick up her foot. During our first ride, she bolted. Very quickly, I learned that I had a whole lot to learn. We eventually grew to trust each other and I thought I could ride anything.
Fast forward nearly 20 years and two children later to living on my own hobby farm. That first horse had long since crossed the Rainbow Bridge and I had a 10-year old, green broke gelding returned for the second time from training. With my toddler son watching, I tacked the horse up, longed him, hopped in the saddle, and … ate dirt. Even though I wore an ASTM-approved safety helmet, I still sustained a concussion, bone-deep bruising, and nasty abrasions.
I never rode that horse again. The very idea of riding terrified me.
But I remembered when riding was fun. When I enjoyed it. When the horse and I moved in synchrony with each other, a summer breeze in our faces. I wanted that simple and profound joy and peace again.
So, I went back to the drawing board and took riding lessons. The instructor understood my fear and understood that I needed to get beyond it. She pushed me: walk, trot, and, yes, damn it, canter.I looked for another horse, something older, something settled, something easy. I saw an advertisement for a 19-year old Morgan mare. Since reading Laura Ingalls Wilder’s books as a little girl, I’d wanted a Morgan. I scheduled an appointment, drove out to see the horse, and fell in love with a pretty face. A friend with a truck and trailer hauled the lovely Lady Anastasia to the trainer’s. I begged the trainer to ride her first and work out the quirks and kinks. After doing so a couple of times, she said to me, “You don’t pick the easy ones, do you?”

Back to the basics again. My knees shook. My stomach churned. I forced myself to get into the saddle. We walked. Eventually we trotted. When it came time to canter weeks later, my heart pounded with terror as Stasia launched into a canter. I wrestled my all too energetic, 19-year old horse to a halt and damn near cried I was so scared.
I took lessons for a few more months. That so-called settled and easy horse wasn’t: “hell on wheels” was a better term. Ounce by hard won ounce, I regained my courage now tempered with healthy respect and the reminder of my mortality. Stasia didn’t give me anything; she made me earn every drop of confidence and skill.
The lovely Lady Anastasia turned 33 years old in February. She looks amazing for being above-ground, bright-eyed and energetic. Last fall, I broke her out of retirement for the second time. She still has energy to spare. She still isn’t one of the easy ones. But we understand each other. And, as difficult and quirky as this old mare is, I’m once again confident in the saddle.
This bodes well for the next horse.
About Holly BargoHolly Bargo is a pseudonym that originated as the registered name of—you guessed it—a horse. She lives on a hobby farm in southwest Ohio with her family and a menagerie of animals. Holly has published 18 books with the 19th, Daughter of the Deepwood, due for release on March 31.

To find all of Holly's books, visit her Amazon page. Click Here

ADDICTED TO #SUSPENSE #GIVEAWAY

ADDICTED TO SUSPENSE GIVEAWAYEnter now for your chance to win! March 13-31Readers of romantic suspense, mysteries, and thrillers, I have a giveaway just for you! Enter now and you could take home a Kindle Fire HD8, Kindle Fire 7, or Amazon gift card. Have you been eager to get your hands on that new suspense bestseller? Win one of 4 ebook prize packs also among the list of prizes and you can tell us which books to buy to feed your reading habit: suspense, mystery, thriller. CLICK HERE TO ENTER THIS FANTASTIC GIVEAWAY

Plus, shop our book fair for some heart-pounding reads from our talented group of sponsoring authors writing in your favorite genres. CLICK HERE FOR THE BOOK FAIR
It's a dynamite event you don't want to miss!This Giveaway is Sponsored byAlex Gordon • Amanda Uhl • Angela Sanders • Ava Bradley • Brenda Whiteside • BV Lawson • CB Samet • Colleen Mooney • Dara Carr • DiAnn Mills • Donna R. Mercer • Ellen Byron • Ethan Jones • Eva Winters • Fiona Quinn • Greta Boris • Inge-Lise Goss • J. L. Lora • Jacqueline Diamond • JC Andrijeski • Jennifer St. Giles • Judith Lucci • Julie Mulhern • K A Servian • Kris Michaels • Kristy Tate • Mimi Barbour  • Monique Singleton • Naomi Bellina • P. Creeden • PJ Fiala • RM Alexander • Sahara Roberts • Stacey Joy Netzel • Stephanie Queen • Stephany Tullis • Tamara Ferguson • Tamra Lassiter • Taylor Marsh • Tee Smith

Read the Ending Before the Beginning by Linda O'Connor

MUSE MONDAY Please welcome Linda O'Connor talking about my favorite subject...characters.
When I sit down to write a novel, I try to give my characters one or two quirky character traits to make them more interesting, more fun to read about, and hopefully, more relatable to the reader. In Between the Pipes, the heroine, Dr. Sarah Jain, gets together with her friends for movie nights. Sarah doesn’t mind watching suspenseful movies – because she reads the spoiler alerts and knows the ending before the movie starts!She gets that from me. :DI love knowing how a movie or book ends. Some people would be dismayed at the prospect but not me. If I know the ending, I can relax and be entertained. One time, I flipped to the back of a novel and read the ending. Imagine my surprise when the story didn’t turn out the way I’d thought it would – because I’d unknowingly read the sneak peek of the next novel instead of the ending of the one I’d been reading. Foiled! Haha.I’m very good at keeping it a secret and not spoiling it for anyone else, but I do love spoiler alerts!How about you? Do you prefer to know how a story ends before you start watching it or reading it? Between the Pipes (In the Game Hockey Romance, Book 1) Sarah Jain is a family doctor in a hockey-crazy town. She hates hockey. She hasn’t gone anywhere near a rink in years, until her friend, the team doctor, calls in a favour. Mike Wallace is the starting goalie for the Clarington Quakes, the local professional hockey team. He’s not about to let an injury slow him down or a rookie doctor call the shots. Sarah and Mike don’t respect each other’s jobs. When they have to work together, sparks fly and ice melts. Can they play a game they both can win? Love on the ice doesn’t always go smoothly.  Excerpt She’d love any excuse to spend time with him. It’d be so easy to say yes. But going for coffee together veered into the realm of personal. If she could keep their relationship professional, it wouldn’t be a problem, but she was already attracted to him. Much as she wanted to say yes, her conscience said no. First, he was a patient, and second, how could she think about getting involved with a hockey player? Passion for hockey was the last thing they’d ever share. As tempting as it was, she needed to give this one a miss.“I’m sorry. Unfortunately, I can’t.”“You sure?” He smiled slowly. “I could spring for a jelly donut.”She laughed. He didn’t have to sweeten the invitation. He was eye-candy enough. “Tempting, but…”“Too much sugar? How ’bout an apple fritter? Sounds a little healthier.”It really was too bad. “Ah well, I was going to go for a bike ride.” That was good. Sounded athletic…she had plans. Nothing personal.“On your own?”She nodded reluctantly.“You know, I have the day off. I could come along and prove that my ribs are okay. If I can cycle, then I can play.”His eyes looked so hopeful. She felt awful, but she needed to dissuade him. “I don’t go very fast.” Sarah winced silently. He potentially had a rib fracture. He needed slow.“I don’t mind.”“It might rain.” She scowled at the beautiful blue skies, without a trace of clouds.Mike laughed. “I don’t mind getting wet. Why don’t I grab a picnic lunch, and we can meet at the South Lock parking lot in an hour? We can cycle along the river, break for lunch, and come back. How does that sound?”Perfect, she thought glumly. For a bad idea, it sounded perfect.
Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078SHLX8TVisit Linda's Web Page

Would My Physician Coworkers Become Judgy McJudgersons? by Jan O'Hara

FEARLESS FRIDAY Please join me in welcoming Jan O'Hara with a most fearless post! And leave a comment for a chance at her eBook...
In thinking of a topic for this post, I remembered a time when I was still working as a family doctor and when I made a call which had the potential to threaten my livelihood, my coworkers’ impression of me, and the future of a clinic. While that may sound pretty dire, I can’t qualify it as fearless action because it felt like a calling I couldn’t refuse.My story begins during what appeared to be a routine departmental meeting. We had a guest lecturer in—Dr. Ronna Jevne, a Ph.D. psychologist armed with statistics and research. While the scent of stale coffee permeated the room, she talked to us about the importance of hope. The bottom line? As a profession, we were doing a lousy job of communicating realistichope to our patients, and that meant they paid a huge price. If you doubt that, consider the placebo effect, which is nothing more than people getting better because they believe they have the means to get better. Depending upon the study, it routinely runs about 5%, meaning that one in twenty people get better solely because of the power of hope.Anyway, as Dr. Jevne spoke, I had goosebumps chasing up and down my skin, and after, though I’m generally a quiet introvert, I had to speak with her. When we were alone, I blurted out something like this: “The reason doctors can’t give hope to patients is that we have so little of our own.”For some context, I had just returned to work after taking medical leave for burnout. But as I settled into the traces and looked around my clinic, I could see I was in better mental shape than many of my colleagues. They were as exhausted as I had been, the difference being that they weren’t admitting the depths of their suffering.Fortunately, Dr. Jevne understood what I was saying. And as that conversion spun into further encounters, we began to dream of big things. Was there a way, we wondered, to teach medical doctors how to get in touch with their own hope? To learn a system of hope cultivation? Would they then pass that hope on to their patients in a contagion of positivity? What if we didn’t restrict the reeducation to doctors but involved all the staff in a particular clinic? Would that strengthen the effect? To our surprise, when we took our vision to the department chair, and then to the hospital administrator, they seemed equally excited about the possibilities. They helped garner resources. (To this day, I wonder if their openness was because the hospital had been founded by an order of religious nuns so that the link between spiritual wellbeing and health had already been validated.)This is where I confess, though, that in the midst of our preliminary success, I developed selfish concerns. By even talking about this stuff, would I risk the good opinion of the other doctors in my clinic? While I had been getting excited during Dr. Jevne’s talk, that hadn’t been true of everyone. I hadn’t missed their polite silence, even the rolled eyes. A few colleagues already saw me as weak because of my medical leave. Would this mark me as someone who couldn’t cut it in “regular” medicine, and therefore someone who cultivated woo-woo solutions?But as I said above, it didn’t feel like I had a choice, so onward we marched.In the end, what were the results? We began with a clinic-wide workshop and finally met one another at an extraordinarily personal level. (Imagine facing your coworker and asking, “If hope were a color, what color would it be, and why?” Then imagine responding in kind. Not typical water cooler conversation, is it?)We learned about specific hope-strengtheners and hope-detractors, and how to change what we did in the exam room.We decided to remodel our clinic so our physical space would reinforce the message of hope. This meant different paint, quotations on the wall, personalized artwork, and a financial cost. But once again, the hospital administration came through with funding, and when they saw the results, they took the model to other locations in the hospital, then other hospitals in the network.The patients loved the outcome. In our refurbished, kinder space we had deeper conversations about things that truly mattered to their health.As for my fears about being written off by my skeptical colleagues, for the most part they were unrealized. We had the support of the majority and the hospital board, so the people who might have become hostile simply remained quiet non-contributors.In writing all the above—and thank you, Brenda, for the opportunity to revisit a lovely period in my life—I realize how many emotions I borrowed from this experience while writing my latest release.In Cold and Hottie, the heroine learns she is being sent on a corporate retreat that will be run by a psychologist. (Reportedly an aggressive one, rather than the brilliant ones who helped us.) She understands that she’s about to become more visible to her employer and coworkers while playing these “games”, and that there’s a real possibility they’ll decide she is weird.She also has history with her boss, so she knows she could be handing him further reason to get rid of her.On top of everything, she has to worry about wearing a bathing suit in front of her colleagues.Have you had an office socialization experience that was awkward, and potentially affected your employability? To be entered in a drawing for an e-book copy of Cold and Hottie, leave a brief comment below. In the meantime, if you’d like to know more about the book and me, here are the deets.  Blurb for Cold and Hottie: She's being sent to Jamaica for a team-building exercise. It will be led by a crazed psychologist, and the man she done wrong...who is now her boss. Oops.
A decade ago, in a messy breakup with the only man she has ever loved, Olivia Prosser behaved badly. Since, she has lived with the consequences.
Then bad news comes in rapid succession: the company she works for has been purchased; her ex, Finn, is her new employer; and she'll be reconnecting with him during a mandatory retreat in Jamaica. Five days filled with forced emotional intimacy and corporate-speak, not to mention memories better left in the past.
A white knight's armor will rust in salt water.
For years, Finn Wakefield has known who to blame for his breakup with Liv. Then new information comes to light. Liv might be innocent, and the party who framed her might be lodged within Finn's company, continuing their acts of sabotage.
But Liv shows no interest in righting the wrongs of the past. Is that for ominous reasons or because she is over Finn? Either way, for the sake of his company, Finn must push for the truth – even if the cost is a twice-broken heart.
Cold and Hottie was previously published as part of the Tropical Tryst box set, which became a #1 international bestselling ebook anthology (Aug. 1/17). See why readers call it "...a delicious page-turner set in an exotic setting.
Sales links:Amazon: http://a-fwd.com/asin-com=B079NK31WPBarnes & Noble: https://goo.gl/FBubPyKobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/cold-and-hottieiBooks: https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/cold-and-hottie/id1344689317?mt=11Author Bio and Connect LinksA former family physician and academic, Jan O’Hara left the world of medicine behind to follow her dream of becoming a writer. These days she confines her healing tendencies to paper—after making her characters undergo a period of delicious torture, naturally. She writes love stories (and biographies) that move from wackadoodle to heartfelt in six seconds flat.Jan lives in Alberta, Canada and is a columnist for the popular blog Writer Unboxed.Join Jan's mailing list for updates on her forthcoming books, exclusive content, and access to reader giveaways, including a free recipe book coming out next week ➜ http://janohara.net/newsletterWebsite ➜ www.janohara.netFacebook➜ https://facebook.com/janoharabooksTwitter➜http://twitter.com/jan_oharaEmail➜ jan@janohara.net

Find Your #Muse and #Write When You Can by Jasper Trey

MUSE MONDAY
Please welcome a new guest to Discover Yourself, Jasper Trey, with a peek into a writer's process.Thank you Brenda for having me on today.Stories are pretty easy for me to come up with, getting them written down in the awesome way they came to me on my commutes, not so easy. Or when I’m going to sleep at night and think of the perfect way to say something? I should really get up and write it down, but my bed is so comfy and cozy, surely I’ll be able to remember in the morning and write it down then. I should really learn.Instead I wind up writing at odd times, often when I have students around in my classroom and I’ve miraculously found five minutes that I’m in front of my computer and nothing else to do. Or I’m between yoga classes at the studio. That’s when I try to find that magic phrasing again, only to find it’s lost to the winds of sleep and time. BUT I get to reinvent the whole thing and see where it takes me. Sometimes its to the same place as my night time musing and other times it makes my story take a whole new direction.Olivia played in my brain for a full 18 months before I put my fingers to the keyboard for the first time. I had written it so many different ways in my head, and there was still one more way for it to go. I hope you enjoy this version of my story.Jasper (Jen) ExcerptDante turned the page of the sci-fi novel he’d checked out from the resort library. He 'd chosen it because it seemed an easy read, but the curvy brunette in the red bikini sidling up to the beach bar was winning the battle for his attention. He tried once again to concentrate on the book in front of him.The beer filled his view shortly before the bronzed, bikini-clad body did. The beer slowly crossed his vision to be set on the table next to his chair. Then, with the grace of a yogi, the red bikini braced her hands on the arms of his chair and straddled his lap, ending with her mouth a scant half inch from his own. He could feel her breath on his lips, and was on the verge of closing that last half inch.“I hear this is what you are drinking,” Bikini said, snapping Dante back to reality, and to the woman standing in front of him holding a couple of beers.He really needed help if he was imagining strangers straddling him. He was really grateful to the book, as it hid his instant reaction to the thought of her straddling him.Red Bikini continued. “I figured it was going to be Corona, and I’d have to decline the staff’s request to bring it over. But since it’s German, well, that shows good taste.”The smile she gave him was slightly crooked, but Dante thought it seemed genuine. He reached for the beer.“This will let me show the staff I can play nice,” she said. “Mind if I sit down?”Watching her from behind his mirrored aviators, he gestured with the beer toward the seat next to his. As she turned to sit, he tried as discreetly as possible to adjust the hard on that his little fantasy brought on. But the slight smile she sent him as she sat and rested her elbows on her knees, let him know she had noticed.Book: Olivia (The Harris Legacy Book 1) - https://www.amazon.com/Olivia-Harris-Legacy-Book-1-ebook/dp/B06Y2JRS5VBlog: More than Your Basic Bitch - https://wordpress.com/stats/day/bvc1point0.wordpress.comTwitter: @jenofalltradzGoodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16832035.Jasper_Trey

How She Went From #Jobless to #Fearless by Valerie Ullmer

FEARLESS FRIDAYPlease join me in welcoming Valerie Ullmer. She fearlessly dove into a writing career. Read her story.In 2010, after working for close to twenty years in various office jobs that I hated or bored me to death, I was laid off.  Of course, at first you freak out because you have just lost your job, and I was no different.  I couldn’t stop thinking about what I was supposed to do.But an idea kept playing over and over in my head.  Since my early twenties, the idea of becoming a writer appealed to me.  There are a lot of writing resources, but back when I was first thinking about it, there seemed to be rules upon rules upon rules that made me think that writing was formulaic and not natural or creative.And then I came across advice that I understood and perfectly from the moment I heard it.  In order to learn how to write…you write.  You just write.From that moment on, I realized the only way I could write a book was to write a book.  And the first one was horrendous, but I got through it and loved every moment of it and it encouraged me to try again.  I did study structure and character arcs as I went, but writing everything from writing prompts to short stories and working my way up to novels was the greatest teacher I could have ever had.Being laid off was the greatest thing that ever happened to me and it taught me that sometimes, life has something different planned for you. My newest release, Fall for You, will be released in the boxed set, All You Need is Love, available now.BlurbEthan Sutton had come to the stunning revelation that he’d fallen in love with his best friend, Sebastian Young.  Although friends since childhood, Ethan vowed to keep his feelings for Sebastian under wraps and live the rest of his life with this one secret between them rather than risk a lifelong connection and never see him again.  But when they move into their own apartment at the start of their third year of college, can Ethan keep his feelings from showing when they live so close together?Sebastian Young had an epiphany about Ethan at the end of last year and arranged for the shared apartment he’d found over the summer to be closer to Ethan and see if a relationship could develop between them.  But as they settle into their lives in a new place with such close quarters, ex-girlfriends, nosy downstairs neighbors, and Sebastian’s own doubts, their relationship could be in jeopardy before it even begins.
Can two best friends admit their feelings and fall in love?Ethan realized falling in love with his best friend had been easy.  Keeping his feelings a secret from Sebastian as they move into a one-bedroom loft and deal with decisions from their past might prove a bit more difficult.Buy LinksAmazon:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078PZR8HYItunes:  https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/all-you-need-is-love/id1330261438?mt=11Kobo:  https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/all-you-need-is-love-27B&N:  https://m.barnesandnoble.com/w/all-you-need-is-love-tamsin-baker/1127753593?ean=2940154950586 ExcerptSebastian beamed at him and managed to quickly change the subject.  “Ready to see our new place?”Ethan nodded.  He felt a loss when Sebastian squeezed his hand once before he let go.  Sebastian opened the driver’s side door and Ethan copied the movement on his side, wondering if he would survive living in a space with Sebastian and be able to keep his feelings locked down deep inside.“Let’s get our stuff after.  I want you to see it first.”  Sebastian’s excitement made Ethan smile.Sebastian reached for Ethan’s arm and led him to the side entrance of the modern building Ethan hadn’t noticed before.  Ethan was surprised when Sebastian kept his warm hand on his arm, underneath his grey tee, skin on skin.  As Sebastian turned to shoot him a smile of reassurance, walking backward toward the door, Ethan couldn’t help but noticed how the blue of Sebastian’s tee brought out the hazel of his eyes.  Thinking that he might have been staring a little too long, he glanced down and back up at Sebastian, who still smiled at him.Reaching back to open the door, Sebastian moved his hand out of the way in time to avoid the door that was pushed open from the inside.  Darting his gaze to the opened door, Ethan barely contained his groan when he spotted the pretty blonde exiting the building.Well, it was good while it lasted.She was exactly Sebastian’s type.  Blonde, slender, and wearing a tight white tank and shorts.  He knew Sebastian wouldn’t pass up the opportunity to flirt with her.Ethan tried to pull his arm from Sebastian’s grip, wanting to go inside and avoid the inevitable, but found himself trapped when she turned and smiled at Sebastian.  With a quick glance to see what Ethan had been looking at, Sebastian turned back to Ethan and raised a brow.“Hi, I’m Sarah.”Ethan was stunned silent when Sebastian gave her a quick nod in greeting and dragged Ethan through the door and up the short flight of stairs.  With one last glance behind him to make sure Ethan hadn’t bolted, Sebastian unlocked the door to their flat.“What?”“That was the first time I’ve witnessed you not flirt with a woman.  And she was blonde.”Sebastian laughed and shook his head, opening the door.  “I’m partial to dark hair and olive skin.”“Since when?” Ethan blurted.Sebastian’s smile grew wider.  He turned and walked inside the flat, leaving Ethan to follow.As if on autopilot, Ethan walked in behind Sebastian, keeping his eyes on his wide shoulders, waiting silently to see what he would say.“After Amber, and others that came before her, I realized that I needed some time alone to think about who I want to be with.  I’ve figured out a lot of things after I quit serial dating.”His words, while doing nothing to clear up why he hadn’t flirted with Sarah downstairs, struck him as sincere and completely serious.  His heart beat hard and his hands went numb, unable to stop his thoughts from presuming that Sebastian felt more for him than friendship.  And as quickly as they’d come, he dismissed his crazy notions that Sebastian would fall in love with him after all their years of friendship. About ValerieValerie writes paranormal and contemporary M/F and M/M erotic romances. She lives in Denver, Colorado with her wonderfully supportive husband and their funny and wise black lab. She's addicted to coffee, crime shows, and reading and writing character-driven romances.Social MediaFACEBOOK ~ TWITTER ~ PINTEREST ~ INSTAGRAM ~ GOODREADS ~ AMAZON