Laurie London's Blog, page 9

Sweetblood Banners For You

Check out these awesome Sweetblood banners that Sarah from I'm Loving Books made. They're for your websites, community forums, etc.  Just download them from her site and link the image back to her (it's included with the html). Thanks, Sarah, for creating them (you're very talented) and for making them available to everyone! And a big thank you to Abigail from All Things Urban Fantasy for requesting them!

I *might* just replace my swirly divider thingie (right below this) with one of these banners.

My Own "Caught on the Cover"

Inspired by RT Magazine's feature Caught On The Cover, where they spot book covers with celebrity-look-alikes, I realized I have one too.

Here's Embraced By Blood, book 2 in the Sweetblood series, and here's Jude Law and Sienna Miller.


 






Neither actor served as my inspiration as I wrote the book, in fact, Alfonso has longer hair for most of the story, but when my editor and I saw the cover, we both thought he looked like Jude Law.

Here's a little secret: The book was finished but in the editing phase at the time, which means I was able to tweak the story just a bit. At the end when Lily runs her hands over his newly-cropped hair and mentions how she misses it being longer, that wasn't in the original version. I added it in order for Alfonso to more closely match the cover image.

Thank You Thursday Winner

 Congratulations, Mary D! Random.org picked you as the winner of FASTBALL and HOT NUMBER by V.K. Sykes on last week's Thank You Thursday!!! I've forwarded your email addy to VK.

Thanks, everyone, for reading and commenting. Stay tuned for the next edition of Thank You Thursday.

Thank You Thursday - VK Sykes

I've got a fun surprise for today's Thank You Thursday post! When I heard that author Vanessa Kelly had teamed up with her husband to write romance under the pen name of VK Sykes, I just had to have her on to tell us all about it. Welcome, VK!

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Hi Laurie!  Thanks so much for having me on your blog today.  I’m excited because I get to talk about my latest book, even though it’s not one of my Regency-set historical romances (although I’ve got one of those coming out this October).  My latest book, Hot Number, is a contemporary romance, written under my alternate pen name of VK Sykes.  In fact, there’s a bit of a twist to this book—I wrote it with my husband.  In fact, I have three other books already out that I wrote with hubby, including Fastball, which we released last month.

When I tell people I write sexy romance books with my husband, eyebrows tend to go up.  Then the questions and comments begin, some of which involve sly remarks about our activities behind closed doors.  I never respond to those questions, but I am happy to talk about our working relationship.  Lots of people find it difficult to wrap their heads around the process of two people writing a book, much less a husband and wife team doing it.

So how do we do it?  Very carefully. We talk about what we’re going to do and when, how long it’s going to take, and then we schedule accordingly.  We never work on the same book at the same time.  If he’s writing the first draft of a VK book, I’m working on a historical romance.  When those drafts are completed we switch out—he edits my manuscript while I revise his.  This is really important for me.  If I had to write two manuscripts at once—especially in different genres—my head would explode or I’d have a nervous breakdown. 

Hubby can probably compartmentalize better than I can, but he claims this strategy works for him too.  Establishing these boundaries helps, because each particular book belongs to only one of us as we’re working on it.  If we tried to work on the same manuscript at the same time, I fear very bad things would happen.  This way we have a bit of distance from each other’s heads and a whole lot more sanity.

Are there times when we disagree?  Well…yes.  I’d love to tell you that everything runs as smooth as silk all the time, just like the other aspects of our marriage.  And if you believe that, I have some nice swamp land in Florida I’d like to sell you.  The reality is we disagree less than you might think, but we do disagree.  When that happens, we usually argue about it for a bit—sometimes fairly loudly—but usually solve any problems by deferring to each other’s expertise.  If it’s a plot issue I generally cede the point to hubby, since he does most of the plot development for our joint books and excels at it.  If the problem concerns an emotional turning point, how women think, or a sex scene, I tend to carry the day.  Sometimes dear hubby forgets that we’re actually writing a romance and not a thriller or a sports story, and I have to remind him of that.

All in all, though, we play really well together and enjoy what we do.  Some matches are made in heaven, and I like to think that ours is one of them—just like the heroes and heroines in our books!

*********************************************** [image error] Geeky but brilliant college professor Sadie Bligh has failed once again to win the most prestigious award in mathematics.  All she has to show for her life’s work is a flat-lined career and a non-existent social life.  So when her best friend suggests a wild week in Las Vegas, gambling and hooking up with hot guys, Sadie decides she has nothing to lose.

But Sadie’s first night in Vegas involves an unfortunate run-in with a mojito and a poker table, drawing the attention of the casino’s deputy chief of security.  Nick Saxon thinks Sadie’s a problem, but she thinks he’s incredibly sexy.  Since she’s come to Vegas to let loose, Nick just might fit the bill.

With a sick mother to care for and a boss who hates his guts, Nick has enough on his plate, and the bundle of mayhem called Sadie Bligh spells nothing but trouble. She’s also funny and smart, and the sexual energy between them could light up the Vegas strip. But when she’s fingered for counting cards at the blackjack table, Nick is faced with a stark choice:  protect her and risk getting fired, or toss her out on her sweet behind and risk never seeing her again.

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About VK:

V.K. Sykes is really two people - Vanessa Kelly and Randy Sykes, a husband and wife team who write sexy contemporary romance. Vanessa also writes Regency-set historical romance for Kensington Zebra under her own name. Her next book, His Mistletoe Bride, will be released October 1. 

You can find V.K. on the web at www.vksykes.com, and Vanessa at www.vanessakellyauthor.com.  Vanessa is also a member of Rock*It Reads, a collective of traditionally published authors who also self-publish books.  You can visit Vanessa and her fellow authors at www.rockitreads.com. 

Make sure to follow V.K. here:
Blog | Facebook | Twitter |  Pinterest

Buy HOT NUMBER here:
Amazon | Smashwords

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GIVEAWAY:

VK is giving away one copy each of the latest VK Sykes e-books, FASTBALL and HOT NUMBER, to one lucky commenter. And since they're e-books, the contest is open internationally.

~ Rules~

1. Please put your email address in the comment so that we can easily contact you if you win.

2. Although it's not necessary, it would be lovely if you could show V.K. some love and follow her on Twitter,  Facebook and/or blog.

3. Answer the following question:
Do you think you could work creatively with your significant other?

No Wimps Allowed

Given the nice weather in the Seattle area, combined with the fact that I actually had time, I was able to ride my horse for the first time this year. (Rain and my nice, expensive show saddle don't mix well.)

Me and my pony

So what does riding my own horse in my own arena have to do with not being wimpy?

As I struggled to heft that heavy saddle onto my horse's back, I realized that my upper body strength is pretty pathetic right now. I used to be able to easily lift it. But when you don't do something regularly, you get weak...and wimpy.

Reading Chelsea's post about taking Krav Maga reminded me of a recent conversation I had with my sister. We both worry about becoming too entrenched in our comfort zones. Certain family members are, and they're afraid to do anything new or different. I think it comes with getting older. When you're young, new and different are a way of life. You take new classes, meet new people, have new adventures, live in new places. But when you're beyond college and have settled down into "life," these new experiences happen fewer and farther in between.

Now, you actually have to choose to seek out these experiences, because they're not an automatic part of your life anymore. And sometimes it's easier to settle back and get comfortable.

But comfort is for wimps...and for those with no upper body strength.

The Cornell website has some good tips on getting out of your comfort zone. I was glad to see that I'm doing them.

1. Say yes to more.

I invited a few author and blogger friends to do the Run For Your Lives zombie run with me this summer. Check out this video from a competitor. I can't wait!



2. Take a class that scares you.

Chelsea chose to take Krav Maga. My sister and I are going to take shooting lessons and go rock climbing. Guns freak me out and I'm semi-afraid of heights, so this will really push it for me. 

3. Join a club. 

After admiring two friends' gorgeous sweaters, they told me about Ravelry, an online community for knitters and crocheters. I joined and now I try to meet them weekly at a coffee shop to knit. (You should see the gorgeous stuff my friends make--there's not a doily or afghan in sight.)

Fiction writers are told to throw their characters into situations that make them uncomfortable because: 1) no one changes when they're comfortable and 2) if you don't, the story will lack conflict and be boring.

I, for one, don't want to stagnate or be boring. 

What about you? What things do you do to stretch yourself and get out of that wimpy comfort zone?

I've Been Tagged For Lucky 7's

What fun! Authors are tagging each other to post 7 lines from page 77 of our latest book or current manuscript, starting after the 7th sentence. I've been tagged by Zoe Archer, so here's my excerpt from TEMPTED BY BLOOD, the 3rd book in the Sweetblood series, which just came out. (Oh great, it's got the f-word. Sorry, Mom!)

The fucker spun around, clutching at Jackson's biceps, but he didn't succeed in loosening them. Damn, he was strong, though. Much stronger than the other one. Probably from the Sweet. 
Jackson hitched his arms tighter and the guy choked. As with any vampire who lived on an all-blood diet, the air from his lungs reeked, and Jackson tried to keep his head turned away as much as possible. DBs used the stench as a calling card of sorts.
Unless they've already been tagged, I'm tagging:

Rebecca J. Clark
Alexis Morgan
Shelli Stevens
Jessa Slade
Erin Kellison
Thea Harrison
Stephanie Draven

Tag! You're it!

Reader fun at the RT Booklovers Convention

On April 11-15, I'll be attending the RT Booklovers Convention in Chicago along with thousands of people. I can't wait to meet readers and lots of my favorite authors! In addition to the crazy parties, here are some of the events I'm doing:

1. Lady Jane's Salon

I'm reading from Tempted By Blood on April 10 with authors Cherry Adair, Tracey Devlyn, Hope Tarr and Traci Hall. It's at Le Chocolat, a wine and chocolate bar in Naperville. Click here for more info.

2. Collect author signatures for prizes

Starting Wednesday, I and a bunch of other authors will be handing out fun brochures for you to gather signatures during the con. People who get all of them (I think there are 17) and show it to one of us at the end of the Saturday book signing will be in the running for some cool prizes including a Nook, B&N giftcards, and a box of books/swag. Look for me at the con and I'll give you a brochure.

3. Kiss Me, Kill Me: Writing Action Scenes With Heart

(THURSDAY, 10:00-11:00 am) Action in romance novels isn't strictly between the sheets! Join five multi-published, bestselling romance authors as they share tips, tricks and techniques about how to write action scenes that will keep your readers on the edge of their seats.
  Panelists: Zoë Archer, Ilona Andrews, Larissa Ione, Laurie London, Nico Rosso 

4. Name That Vampire

(FRIDAY, 11:15 am-12:15 pm) Up for grabs: the world heavyweight title of Vampires' Biggest Fan! Think you know fictional vampires? Think you love them best of all? Our game will separate the fangbangers from the fakers as players fight to name that vampire. Prizes for the winners, and goody bags guaranteed for the first 30 registrants.
  Hosts: Joyee Flynn, Laura Kaye, Lisa Kessler, Laurie London, Caridad Pineiro, Elisabeth Staab


5.  Giant Bookfair

(SATURDAY, 11:00 am-2:00 pm / 10:30 AM opening for conventioneers) Meet more than 300 authors who will autograph books, posters and bookmarks. Bring your "keepers" and have them signed!

If you're collecting Romance Trading Cards, come find me and I'll hook you up with an entire set of Sweetblood cards.

I hope to see you there!

Thank You Thursday Winner

Congrats to Yadkny for winning an e-ARC of SAVAGE HUNGER on last week's Thank You Thursday!!! Shelli Stevens will be emailing it to you shortly.

Thanks, everyone, for visiting. And stay tuned for the next edition of Thank You Thursday coming to a Thursday near you.

Thank You Thursday - Shelli Stevens

Welcome to Thank You Thursday, where I invite an author to answer a few questions about their book's dedication and acknowledgments. I LOVE reading these little snippets at the beginning of books and often find myself wondering about the story behind them. So I decided to ask.

Today, I'm thrilled to have one of my good friends here. Shelli Stevens has a brand new paranormal romance series that kicks off with SAVAGE HUNGER. I had the pleasure of reading an early draft and loved it! Stay tuned, because she's giving away a copy.

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1. In the acknowledgements of SAVAGE HUNGER, you thank several people. Can you tell us about one or two of them and how they helped you?

Well, I thanked several people, but the person, or really group that helped this book come together was the Cherry Plotters. And you, Laurie, are quite familiar with them being one of us! But for those who don't know, we're a group of published and aspiring authors who get together and help plot books for one another. And we eat a lot, and chat a lot, and just have a fun and supportive time.

2. Was there anyone who helped you when you researched a plot detail? If so, who is it and what did you learn?

Hmm. Cherry Adair helped me with the discussion of knives in one scene. When she read it, she pointed out my hero wouldn't just call it a knife, he'd know the exact kind of knife. That fascinated me and I went and researched cool knives :P

3. Samhain Publishing included this book in an ad they ran on a jumbo tron in Times Square. How do you like working with them?

I love working with Samhain and can't thank them enough for all their support. This book at one point we considered shopping to the big New York publishers, but I've been so happy with Samhain and most of my readers found me there, I was happy to let Savage Hunger find a home with them!

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Samhain Publishing / March 2012
The man who vows to protect her may be her biggest threat.
Being the daughter of a world-renowned scientist, Sienna Peters has struggled to carve out her own career in the field. But her world is sent spinning when she discovers a secret species being held in the lab where she works, and the horrible things being done to them. Compelled to do more than hand off an information-packed jump drive to her father, she sets out to free the creatures.
The minute his team enters the compound, federal agent Warrick Donovan knows their mission will have more trouble than they bargained on. Unfortunately, trouble comes in the form of Sienna Peters, the younger sister of his close friend. Now not only does he need to save her pretty ass, he needs to discover just how involved she is with the imprisonment of the shifters.
Sienna knows she should trust no one—not even the man she might still love. But as the danger escalates and past passion ignites, her heart has other ideas. Even when the shroud of mystery is ripped off more than one stunning truth…
Warning: Must love alpha males, be intrigued by federal agents who may or may not shift into wolves, and most importantly be prepared for intense action of the dangerous and sexual kind.


"A thrilling, sexy adventure from page one. Awesome!" Cherry Adair, New York Times Bestselling Author


"The first book in the Savage series by Stevens is off to a rockin' start. Filled with intrigue and action it seems like the plot of a television series. It has a cast of characters guaranteed to cause a reaction — either annoyance or intrigue — and is sure to catch even the most cynical reader's attention." ~Romantic Times Magazine

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About Shelli:

Shelli is a New York Times Bestselling Author who read her first romance novel when she snatched it off her mother's bookshelf at the age of eleven. One taste and she was forever hooked. It wasn't until many years later that she decided to pursue writing stories of her own. By then she acknowledged the voices in her head didn't make her crazy, they made her a writer.

Shelli currently lives in the Pacific Northwest with her daughter where she writes various genres of romance. She's a compulsive volunteer, and has been known to spontaneously burst into song.



Find Shelli hereWebsite | Facebook | Twitter
Buy Savage Hunger here:
Kindle | Nook | Samhain Publishing


GIVEAWAY:  Shelli is giving away an e-ARC of SAVAGE HUNGER to one lucky commenter who answers the following question: 
If you were a shifter, what kind of animal would you want to shift into?

Tempted By Blood blog tour, part 2

Here are some of the places I've been this past week talking about Tempted By Blood, and where I'll be online this coming week.


3/11-3/17 Riverina Romantics spotlighted the Sweetblood series all week. She's giving away a lot of swag!

3/12 Ramblings with this Chick - feature on Tempted By Blood

3/13 All Things Urban Fantasy - how the Sweetblood covers are made

3/21 Harlequin Paranormal Blog - setting research I did for Tempted By Blood

3/22 Books Make Me Happy

3/23 WereVampsRomance Blog