Karilyn Bentley's Blog, page 43

Honoring Mothers Around the WorldLiese Sherwood-Fabre Whi...

Honoring Mothers Around the WorldLiese Sherwood-Fabre While living in Mexico, I stopped at a store one morning on the way to work. At the check-out counter, the clerk asked me if I were a mother and then wished me a happy Mother’s Day when I told her I was. Taken aback, I thanked her and went on to the embassy. Sharing the incident with a colleague, I realized how the celebration differed from that in the US. In Mexico and some other Latin American countries, the date for celebrating motherhood doesn’t change. It is always May 10 and can fall on any day of the week—unlike in the US where it is always on a Sunday. Outside of church, the chance of non-family members in the US acknowledging your role as a mother is much lower.
When we moved to Russia, I learned about International Women’s Day—celebrated on March 8. This is Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day all rolled into one. In our office, the men took up a collection and gave all the women flowers. My husband’s company lined up all the women, and the department heads congratulated each woman individually. Outside of work, restaurants were crowded with patrons and flower stalls sold out.
Regardless of the country, almost all recognize and honor the importance of mothers and women to the family and society, and although awkward at first, I’m now appreciative of the support those outside my family have shown.
So to mothers everywhere—whether you celebrate on May 10, March 8, May 12, or some other date—I wish you a happy day and thank you for all you do for your families!

What about you? When or how will you honor the mothers in your life?
Leave a comment for a chance to win a copy of  my debut novel Saving Hope, describing one mother’s efforts to save her child.  You can read more about this book at Musa Publishing.

Princess Lipperman: Seeing Ghosts

Today is the official release date for HEARD IT THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE, the first book in my new series from Midnight Ink titled A Dead Sister Talking Mystery. I thought it was the perfect segue into talking about ghosts and supernatural things that have happened  to us. First, I'll give you the blurb so you can get a feel for the story.

Sisters Tessa and Lainey Garcia weren’t on speaking terms. But now that Tessa’s dead, her wisecracking ghost is making up for lost time.
Lainey Garcia left Texas nine years ago after her sister Tessa married the only man Lainey ever loved. So when Tessa’s house explodes, the last thing anyone expects is for her to appear to Lainey . . . as a ghost.
Formerly a part owner of the biggest vineyard in the region, Tessa’s got the goods on every fake, floozy, and two-faced liar in town. But Tessa doesn’t know who killed her, and she asks the remaining Garcia girls to uncover the truth. Setting out to fulfill their sassy sibling’s wish from beyond the grave, the sisters discover a mile-wide list of suspects who wanted Tessa dead. Learning the hard way that killers don’t like snoops, Lainey fears she’ll be the next Garcia sent to the big vineyard in the sky.

Okay, this book is loosely based on my own four sisters, one of whom died way too young. Although my sister who died is nothing like my smart ass ghost, the book does show the relationships I still have with all my sisters. My sister Theresa was two years older than me and we fought like cats and dogs growing up. The two oldest sisters were best friends as were the two younger ones. Tessie (as we called her) was a loner with her own set of friends. She didn't want any part of me, and that was okay.

It wasn't until we were both adults with children of our own that we began to get closer. A year before she died (heart attack) she told me a secret that no one else knew. I guess she wanted to get it off her chest. After she died, my younger sister badgered me into telling her over the phone one night, and I swear to God, the lights flickered. It freaked me out enough that I never repeated her secret to anyone else.

Now here comes the spooky part. After I had written Grapevine (formally titled TALK DEAD TO ME) I was guest blogging and mentioned the story I just told you. When I went to post it, the spam word was TESSE. OMG! My sister is Tessie and my ghost is Tessa. Talk about getting chills.

I was a skeptic until then, but now I am a believer that there are things that go bump in the night. I know some of you have a story like this, and I'm dying to know. Some lucky commenter will win a copy of HEARD IT THOUGH THE GRAPEVINE (US and Canada only.)

Report From RT13

This past week I attended my first Romantic Times convention in Kansas City with my fellow Princess Sylvia McDaniel. RT has always been billed as a readers convention, where avid fans of romance can meet the authors whose work they love, but in recent years the con has added a craft track for writers as well. 
All in all, I had a wonderful time. I found the vibe at RT to be playful and exuberant. There were parties and games and all sorts of give-aways. There were dress-up parties of every sort, from the Western Saloon Girl party I co-hosted with a fabulous group of historical writers, to Steampunk and Regency Soirees, and a Vampire Ball. Writers and readers wore a variety of costumes throughout the week, competing for prizes for the most elaborate and convincing get-ups. 
Despite all the cos-play, I did manage to learn a thing or two professionally. As a whole continues to be a dynamic, rapidly changing industry, and that no one approach (traditional NY publisher, independent small publisher, digital publisher or self-publishing) is best, nor desirable. The authors who seemed the most content and confident, were those who are publishing their works across all formats (trad and self), at a variety of price points, and in a variety of lengths (collections of stories, novellas & novels). 
There were some genres that are ‘hot’ (hello “New Adult!) and some genres rumored to be losing steam (Urban Fantasy and especially Historical always seems to be rumored to be ‘dead’ when the NYT and Amazon lists clearly show both are alive and well.)
 
But the greatest common denominator is that those authors who are the most successful, across a variety of publishing formats, are those writers who are passionate about their genres, and deliver GREAT stories to readers. 
For me personally, the highlight of the week was the huge author signing that took pace on Saturday. There were hundreds of authors, thousands of readers and hundreds of thousands of books! I sold books to readers who had never heard of me, and I sold books to readers who had loved my previous books, and I even managed to sell a book to a reader who took the time to find me, and tell me that she didn’t like one of my books! (She didn’t like that she had to “wait until France for them to have sex” in Almost A Scandal) But the loveliest moment was when I had the honor of signing a copy of my debut novel, The Pursuit of Pleasure that an avid reader brought from home with her.  
The best ‘takeaway’ from the conference is that I made new friends (just like we were supposed to do when our moms sent us off to school at the beginning of each school year). I made new friends who are authors, I made new friends who are readers. I connected with both authors and readers who are my friends on Facebook. I reconnected with old friends I only get to see once or twice a year and deepened those friendships.  
All that socializing may seem like a frivolous waste of conference time, but writing and publishing can be a fraught, soul-crushing business, and the people who are going to see us through it are our fellow authors. Gather your friendships close and cherish them. And then form a group like the Plotting Princesses. :)
 
 

PP Blog: welcomes L B Joramo & The Immortal American. Intrigued?

The PP is sharing a tiara with L B Joramo, author of The Immortal American.Intrigued? We are. Let's get to know her.  How did you get from your day job to writing romance?  Well, technically I don’t write romance. But I have two pseudonyms that say otherwise. Sshh! Don’t tell. As for me, L. B. Joramo, I write historical fiction with strong elements of romance and paranormal activity.
I’ve been making books since I was six. I glued together some construction paper with my crayoned stories and that was my first book. I couldn’t stop there! So I’ve been writing ever since. When I went to college though I didn’t go for the obvious English or Literary degree. Instead, I got a degree in sociology. I love studying people, and sociology was the best way I could discover all their niches. I kept writing my stories through all of that. It was after I applied to graduate school that I was allowed to read my philosophy professor’s letter of recommendation. He wrote that, yes, I’d make a fine graduate student, but he hoped I would become a writer one day. Then it hit me how many of my professors and teachers over the years had tried to support my writing. I don’t know why it took me so long to see that. Up until then I knew I wanted to write, but to call myself a writer . . . I really didn’t know if I was that brave or not.  After I had my son, I knew I had to be. If not for myself, then for him. I had to show him that people really could pursue their dreams. I slaved over the craft of writing for years. I took classes, read books, got critique buddies, went to workshops—you name it, if I could afford it or had the time, I would do it. I don’t think I really slept for a few years there. I would work, be a mom, all the while trying to write really well. I had always entered contests, but after a couple years, I started to win them. I had always tried to query agents, and it was about that time that they started getting more interested in me. When a publisher wrote me an email saying he thought I had massive potential and that he’d like to publish me it was too surreal. It also happened to be the day or two days after my mother had died, so it was an odd time too. How I wanted to call her to finally tell her the news. I still do.
I haven’t quit gotten away from my day job yet, but my published life has just gotten underway. Wish me luck to fulfill the dream of making enough money with my writing to quit my day job!  
What are your three favorite books of all time?   To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Atonement by Ian McEwan, Women Who Run With the Wolves: Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype by Clarissa Pinkola Estes, Ph.D.
 Morning, afternoon, or evening person? I force myself to be a morning person, but I am more evening, late evening at that.
Music--with or without? What kind? Depends on my mood. Sometimes I love the silence; sometimes I need the silence filled. If I’m writing I listen to classical or instrumental music.
First or third POV? I do both.
How's tricks? Do you juggle multiple projects? I do! While I write one book, I’m usually plotting another. Editing somewhere in there.
What's harder: beginning, middle, or the end? I think the beginning. I’m a plantser, so I usually do have the beginning and the end, but now I try to plot too, so I start to love my middle so much that I’m excited to get there. It’s that tricky beginning, where I want to hook my readers, that always intimidates me the most. I usually have two or sometimes many more versions of the beginning.
Revisions: Love 'em or hate 'em?  Now I LOVE them! When I first started writing, I really hated them, but now revisions and the edits make my books beautiful. I can’t be more excited to do revisions now.
How did you come up with that title?  Best advice anybody every gave you? I owe so much to D. Patrick Miller, the first publisher who thought I had potential. He knew I was holding back in my writing, in my plot. He was so right! He recommended going as big as I wanted, not fearing how much someone out there would hate it. Man, he knew me better than I wanted him to. I never told him I was a people pleaser. He just knew that my writing could get very pinched because I was trying so hard to make others like it.  I wrote only for me from there on out. Well, I do have critique buddies who help keep me from having supernovas on the first page of a book, but otherwise I now only write what makes me happy, and that saved my writing.
Fill in this blank: My ideal fictional hero would think me gorgeous no matter… how grumpy I get when I haven’t slept enough.
What's your favorite dessert? Pineapple upside down cake with loads of whipped cream and a cherry on top.
Do you write at home or someplace else? Home. Find Lani's book at:Amazon Find Lani at:Website  Thank you Laini for being with us today!!

Blog: Wearing the PP Crown today is guest Delaine Roberts & Running to You

Hi, Delaine and welcome to the Plotting Princesses. Let's jump right in and get to know more about you!


How did you get from your day job to writing romance? I’ve always played around with writing. During my Master’s Degree program, my professors suggested that I explore writing. I decided to listen to them. So many things happen in my day job as a Medical Sales Rep that I think “that would make a great story!”

What are your three favorite books of all time? Palomino by Danielle Steel, Exposed to You by Beth Kery and Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie.
Morning, afternoon, or evening person? Evening for sure!
Music--with or without? With!!! What kind? Pop and Jazz
First or third POV? First
How's tricks? Do you juggle multiple projects? Yes, but not intentionally! I start a project and my mind entertains interruptions from these other stories. It is fun and frustrating at the same time.
What's harder: beginning, middle, or the end? The beginning.
Revisions: Love 'em or hate 'em? Hate ‘em.  A simple revision can change more than one dynamic story line. That’s the tricky part.
How did you come up with that title?  Best advice anybody every gave you? My first title was picked by my dear friend. My other titles have just come to me, mostly while driving down the highway. “Don’t stop just because one person doesn’t like it. There’s always one idiot in the bunch.” My dear husband and true fan!
Fill in this blank: My ideal fictional hero would think me gorgeous no matter…how messy my hair was and without a trace of makeup on.
What's your favorite dessert? Not ‘Yo Mama’s Banana Pudding

Do you write at home or someplace else? At Home and anywhere I can
What's your favorite type of hero/heroine and why? My favorite heroine is one that has to find her strengths, not necessarily overly confident. My favorite hero is one who can fill in the blanks for his lovely and love her for having blanks to fill. He helps her find who she is, rather than telling her who she isn’t.
An excerpt from Running to You:


          Never let it be said that a great outfit can’t make or break a situation.“Yes, I’m available, Grayson,” I barely whispered, still trying to catch my breath and calm my out-of-control heartbeat. I could only hope that I wasn’t blushing, too. “And yes, I’m definitely interested.”He kissed me again, only much less gently this time, knowing for sure that this is what we both wanted. Between the headiness of his confession and the thrill of his hands moving against my bare arms in a heated trail of touch, I was doing my best to stay standing upright.          “By the way,” he said, still close to me, “that is now my favorite skirt.”
Find Delaine at:
Twitter: @delaineroberts
Facebook: delaine.robertsauthor
Website: www.delaineroberts.comFind Delaine's Running to You at:
Smashwords
Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3YQLLbGT90


Thanks, Delaine, for being with the PP. Good luck with your writing and your book.

Blog: Where are Liese Sherwood-Fabre and Vicki Batman?

Over here! *waving hands wildly* at theDPL International Book Fair, 4/27 12-5
Founded in 2006 the Dallas International Book Fair is an annual literary event showcasing works by national and internationally acclaimed authors as well as regional and local authors representing diverse regions of the world. This family event offers artistic and cultural performances, film and book presentations, educational workshops and children’s activities. The goal is to promote a love for books, reading and literacy through multilingual and multicultural activities.


Hopefully, you can say hi, buy a book, get an autograph, just have fun.
The library is located at: 1515 Young St. Dallas, TX 75201
And for more information, go to: http://DallasInternationalBookFair.com

Blog: The Plotting Princesses' Guest-Eva Gordon & Apocalyptic Moon

 Today, the Plotting Princesses are handing off a tiara to Eva Gordon for a special author interview. Welcome, Eva. Sit back, hang out and let me peel you some grapes while we probe your thoughts.
How did you get from your day job to writing romance?  My day job used to be teaching high school AP Biology and Anatomy/Physiology and though I loved teaching, I caught the writing bug and was never cured. It all started when I began telling my students fictional stories about my life. I had my first fantasy published and I decided to quit teaching and devote my life to writing stories waiting in line to be told.
What are your three favorite books of all time?  So many, yikes. Hmm. I loved the Outlander series, Kushiel’s Dart series, and the Sword of Truth series.
Morning, afternoon, or evening person? Morning.


Music--with or without? What kind? Always music. Long Spotify and Pandora play list. The music depends on what novel. Heavy metal to classical. While writing Apocalyptic Moon, I listened to many renditions of The Walking Dead, Evil Residence and other soundtracks that reflected the zombie apocalypse mood. For Lycan Gladiator I listened to the soundtrack for The Gladiator and real ancient Roman music.
First or third POV?  Third person. One day I will attempt first person.
How's tricks? Do you juggle multiple projects? Yes, juggling like a crazed circus performer. I spend the bulk of the day writing my current project. The rest of my time is spent promoting my current release, editing my next release ( actually all time stops while I do this), and finally  sending query letters to my beta tested new novel.
What's harder: beginning, middle, or the end? I like it all, but my beginning usually requires more re-writes as I smooth the entire story.
Revisions: Love 'em or hate 'em? Love’ em.  The goal is to make the story as good as possible for the readers.
How did you come up with that title?  Best advice anybody every gave you? I wanted a title that lets people know it takes place after an apocalypse and the moon is a hint that it involves werewolves. Hence, Apocalyptic Moon.
Fill in this blank: My ideal fictional hero would think me gorgeous no matter…how science geeky I am.
What's your favorite dessert?  Dark Chocolate anything.
Do you write at home or someplace else? Home but will write anywhere.
What's your favorite type of hero/heroine and why? Alpha male hero and a feisty intelligent heroine.

Book tagline:Ravaged by a global zombie pandemic, humanity’s survival depends on the secret society of shifters, but can they be trusted?Book Blurb:Dr. Dora Adler’s life has been in disarray since the beginning of the zombie apocalypse, but when she gets bitten by one of the undead her whole world is turned upside down. Held captive in a secret underground lab, the tall, muscular hunk in the next cell is her only hope for salvation. Unfortunately, he claims to be a werewolf. Yeah, and she’s supposedly a witch.

Dirk Gunderson is an alpha Arbor pack werewolf. Captured and collared, he’s sold to the zombie lab in hopes his blood serum can create a vaccine. He needs to escape, but not without the hot little brunette witch.

In the midst of enemy werewolves and the hordes of undead, Dirk and Dora’s sexual tension ignites a blaze hotter than the desert highway. Along their journey, they battle the inevitable: a werewolf must never take a witch as a mate.

Kindle buy link: http://tinyurl.com/bdvgak6 Kindle UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/Apocalyptic-Moon-After-Bane-ebook/dp/B00B5O7HMY/ref=sr_1_4?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1363102960&sr=1-4Paranormal Romance/Fantasy AuthorAnimal Lore Specialist/Raptor educatorWebsite: http://www.ravenauthor.comBook Trailer: http://youtu.be/Sep_p8pksgABlog: http://evagordon.blogspot.com/https://www.amazon.com/author/evagordonLike Page on Face Book http://www.facebook.com/pages/Eva-Gordon/45924449313

PP Guest: Tiffinie Helmer-EDGE

Hi, Tiffinie, and welcome to the PP where everyone wears a crown. Here's yours and may I say you look fabulous!
Let's get to know Tiffinie!

How did you get from your day job to writing romance? I’ve always written romances, since I love a happy ever after. But it wasn’t until my husband finally finished college, and my last child of four entered kindergarten, that I started writing for publication.
What are your three favorite books of all time? Wow, this is hard. I have so many authors that I love to read. To Die For by Linda Howard, Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie, and A Grave Denied by Dana Stabenow. I have a love for sex, murder, and humor. Hmm…that about sums up the books I write.
Morning, afternoon, or evening person?Oh, evening. There is magic at midnight.
Music--with or without? What kind?Definitely with music. I actually chose music depending on the scene I’m writing. BEARING ALL is a spy story, and I wrote the whole thing to tango music.
First or third POV?I like writing with more than one POV, but I really respect those who tackle first person POV.
How's tricks? Do you juggle multiple projects?I have tried this, but it has yet to work for me. Hopefully I can get a handle on how to do this as there are a lot of projects I need to finish.
What's harder: beginning, middle, or the end?Either I don’t want the book to end or I rush the ending. I always end up having to rewrite the ending.
Revisions: Love 'em or hate 'em? Ooh, hate ‘em. I tend to edit when I write. A lot of the time, if I’m in a corner, I can’t write any farther until I figure it out.
How did you come up with that title?  Best advice anybody every gave you? MOOSED-UP is “my” Alaskan term for being messed-up by a moose, and the moose is a star player in getting my characters together. And for the best advice I ever received, I’d have to go with my grandfather since he had a numbered list of lectures. I’ll go with one of his favorites. “Work smart, not hard.”
Fill in this blank: My ideal fictional hero would think me gorgeous no matter…how much I pissed him off.
What's your favorite dessert? Cheescake! Preferable with dark chocolate sauce and fresh raspberries.  
Do you write at home or someplace else? I write at home, but sometimes that can get chaotic with all the kids and their friends coming and going that I runaway to my favorite bookstore café and hide out. I really should do that more as I get some of my best writing done.
What's your favorite type of hero/heroine and why? Strong, creative, willing to fight for what they want, and complex, which gives me lots to write about. I also love when they can take what I torture them with and rise above it. 
Blurb: He's lost his edge...

Photojournalist Cache Calder lives to chase a great story. He's just returned from the Middle East after surviving a suicide bombing that left him injured and grief-stricken. The last thing he wants is to travel to the wilds of Alaska on a "Where Is She Now" Assignment. But when his editor informs him that his subject is former kidnapping victim, Amelia Bennett who jump-started his career twenty years earlier, he packs his bags.

She lives on the Edge...

Mel Bennett's carefully maintained control unravels the moment she meets Cache Calder. Attraction flares for the man who seems to really "know" her. No one at the Edge of Reason Lodge is aware she was the young teenager who'd survived one of the most publicized kidnappings in recent history, and she wants it to stay that way. But she starts to question her heart and her sanity when unexplained incidents begin to happen and a deadly threat returns to finish what he'd started so long ago.
Links:Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Edge-Romance-ebook/dp/B00BVG5IF4/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1366266572&sr=8-3 Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/edge-tiffinie-helmer/1114849049?ean=9780615786513 Website: http://www.tiffiniehelmer.com
Thank you, Tiffinie, for joining the PP girls today!

Michelle Miles: How popular are you?

Photo courtesy Zimbio.ComA few days ago, my son (who is 11) and I were running a few errands. One of the stops was the post office in which I was mailing a box of swag and a free book as well as an envelope with some swag. He held up the envelope and asked if that was bookmarks. I said yes and that they were for a reader.

Then the conversation went like this:

"Mom, how popular are you?"

"What do you mean?"

"In your book stuff. How popular are you?"

I couldn’t help it. I laughed. "I’m pretty much a nobody, son."

He didn’t seem to believe me. "But on a scale of 1 to 100, how popular are you?"

I laughed again. I guess to him I am SUPER popular because I have books and talk about writing pretty much 24/7. I’m sure my husband and son are sick of me. It’s all consuming. Just ask them. Poor guys.

When I didn’t respond, he said, "Like...are you a 60 or an 80?"

Bless his little heart. He thinks I’m that popular. I muttered, "More like a 20."

And then we had a long discussion about genre fiction. One of his questions was, "Why don’t you write science fiction or fantasy, Mom?"

I think that’s a sign, don’t you?

But we had a good in-depth discussion about genre fiction and what it is and what it’s not. He wanted to know about all the sub-genres and then, very intelligently, told me I should be writing science fiction or fantasy. I think that's just for him, though. ;) I told him I "sorta" wrote that but it was different in that it was part of the romance I wrote. Yes, he knows I write romances just not exactly WHAT they're about. And I'm going to keep that way until he's at least 35.

Anyway, then he asked a little about non-fiction, which is TOTALLY not my realm but we discussed. He’s quite intelligent for an 11 year old, actually.

But the "popular" question got me to thinking. And I couldn’t help but equate it to those high school days where I was totally NOT one of the popular kids. I was in the "ignore" group. The band geek. The nerd who liked Star Trek and wrote fan fiction in the back of class (maybe why I flunked Chemistry and Algebra 2? Sorry, Mom). The one who hung out with the smart kids but who was too lazy to BE one of the smart kids.

I’m still the kid at the back of the class writing fiction. Only difference now is I have my name on a few books. Does that make me popular? To my son it does.

Maybe being "popular" in my kid’s view is all that really matters. He thinks I’m popular because I write books. I think that’s pretty special.

Michelle Miles writes contemporary, paranormal and fantasy romance. Most of her time is spent daydreaming about pirates and knights in shining armor and faraway lands were there are still princes and princesses. Find out more about her books at her website or follow her on Twitter.

Blog: Vicki Batman-Stinky Cheese?

Stinky Cheese?
 
A while back, I told a girlfriend I was in a rut. I wanted to do some new things. Here's some ideas we explored:
Tatting-need more lessons.Mah jongg-still learning, but have improved.
Basketweaving-class cancelled.Crochet-liked, but went back to needlepoint.Basic Plumbing-shall try when offered again.
But when this one caught my eye, I was all over it in a heartbeat. Cheesemaking 101.

The only thing I knew about cheese is eating it. But this store and the founder has a world-wide reputation. The Julia visited here. The cheese is served on American and Virgin airlines. The best restaurants use it.
The company is located in a reviving area of town. Part of the 100 year-old tile floor is in the entry. We signed our names, got aprons, hairnets, washed hands. The class, led by the founder and owner, started with the company's history. Then, we toured the facility with her describing the various cheeses in the cooler.
It all began with milk poured in a double boiler. The class cut in half lots and lots of lemons. Using a reamer, we got out the juice which was strained and poured into the double boiler. A few minutes later and some stirring--abracadabra--we had ricotta.
I'm not kidding. It was like magic. After the ricotta was scooped and stowed in containers, we were showed three kinds of mozzarella which began with mozzarella curds-- balls, string cheese, and olive loaf.  Hey, no making fun of the lady in the hairnet!
 
We chopped the curd, kneaded it into bits, added hot water, strained and pulled the cheese as she had. Afterwards, the class participated in a wine and cheese tasting. We took home our goodies, too.  
I had a blast getting out of my rut and expanding in this way.
What are you doing that's new and interesting? Want to try Plumbing 101 with me?

 
Vicki Batman is ensconced in her wheelie chair with a diet Coke and her ancient napping cat. Find Vicki at: http://vickibatman.blogspot.com Or at: http://plottingprincesses.blogspot.com. Her latest and greatest is San Diego or Bust: http://museituppublishing.com