Bev Pettersen's Blog, page 17

Meet 2019 Golden Heart Finalists Janet Raye Stevens and Christine Gunderson!!

Today we’re welcoming not one but TWO Omegas, Janet Raye Stevens and Christine Gunderson, both 2019 Golden Heart Finalists in the Young Adult Romance category, Janet with her sci-fi book THE NASCENT BLOOM, and Christine with THE WALLS BETWEEN. Why two at once, you ask? Janet and Christine aren’t just finalists in the same Golden Heart category; they’re critique partners, and good friends! They met on the RWA contest circuit before they became GH sisters. They’re here today to tell us how they...

Meet 2019 Golden Heart Finalist Jilly Wood!!

Today in our series of interviews with the Omegas, the 2019 Golden Heart Finalists, we’re welcoming Jilly Wood, a finalist in the Paranormal Romance category with THE TRANSFORMATION OF ALEXIS DOE. Jilly Wood was born and raised in Derbyshire, England, a county that’s best known for Mr. Darcy but is also home to ancient castles, deep caverns veined with rare gemstones, wild moors studded with otherworldly rock formations, and a whole host of supernatural legends. All these elements are to be f...

Meet 2019 Golden Heart Finalist Elly Kate!!

Today we’re welcoming another Omega, Elly Kate, a 2019 Golden Heart finalist in the Contemporary Romance category with her manuscript THE CINDERELLA FACTOR. Elly Kate began reading romance novels early, pilfering from her mother’s collection kept piled in a basket in the kitchen. Writing romance came much later – in fact, not until just a couple of years ago. After years of penning poetry and non-fiction, dreaming up romantic stories has stolen her heart and she can’t seem to stop. Born and r...

Meet 2019 Golden Heart Finalist Lisa Heartman!!

Today we’re welcoming Lisa Heartman, one of the Omegas, the 2019 Golden Heart Finalists. Lisa is a finalist in the Romantic Suspense category with her book HIGH HEELS AND HANDGUNS. Lisa Heartman is a coffee-swilling, sass-spewing, romance writer who believes love is messy and magnificent. She writes things she wishes she had said, and some she wishes she hadn’t, delighting readers with exhilarating stories and swoon-worthy characters in a world where danger and desire collide. In addition to...

Meet 2019 Golden Heart Finalist Anna Collins!!

Today we’re welcoming another Omega, Anna Collins, whose book RESURRECTING ANNIE WOLFF is a finalist in the Mainstream with Central Romance category! Anna grew up in a land far far away – Sweden to be exact – but moved to the US after meeting her American husband back in 2002. After two more international moves and several domestic ones, she now lives in the greater Seattle area with said husband, their 12-year-old son, and 10-year-old daughter. A puppy will be joining the brood later this ye...

Guest Blog: 2019 Golden Heart Finalist Susan Lee – This One’s For the Dreamers

Today we’re welcoming another member of the Omegas, the 2019 Golden Heart Finalists: Susan Lee, whose manuscript DRAGGED has finaled in the Young Adult category. Susan Lee has built a career as a Human Resources executive at successful startups such as Spotify, Warby Parker, and SeatGeek. Her biggest job takeaway: we are all, for the most part, ridiculous.

Meet 2019 Golden Heart Finalist Becke Turner!

Today we’re welcoming another of the Omegas: Becket Turner, whose manuscript MURPHY’S DEBT is a 2019 Golden Heart Finalist in the Best Short Contemporary Romance category. Becke Turner spent many years honing her story chops—many years. A native of southern Illinois, Becke and her husband of over forty-seven years were on the move for the first ten years together, including a three-year stint operating her family cattle ranch in Missouri. But two kids, 300 cows, ten horses, four dogs, and eno...

Guest Blog: 2019 Golden Heart Finalist Janet Walden-West

Today we’re delighted to welcome Janet Walden-West, another of the Omegas, the 2019 Golden Heart Finalists. Janet is a finalist in the Contemporary Romance with her manuscript Salt + Stilettos. Janet is also a long-time friend of the Rubies and a hard-core participant in our yearly Winter Writing Festival, and we’re already huge fans of her fabulous writing voice! Regular Ruby readers know about our annual Make It Golden Contest, in which competitors submit 50-word book openings, Rubies selec...

Meet 2019 Golden Heart Finalist Sammi Spizziri

Today we’re delighted to welcome another Omega, Sammi Spizziri, whose manuscript AFTER I BID YOU ADIEU is a 2019 Golden Heart finalist in the Young Adult Category Sammi Spizziri lives in a small town in Illinois with her husband and baby girl. When she’s not lost in writing (or reading) a new book, she’s a stay-at-home mom who dabbles in accounting on the side. Boy bands, rec league volleyball, and chai tea lattes are a few of her favorite things. Here’s a blurb for AFTER I BID YOU ADIEU:

Eig...

Meet 2019 Golden Heart Finalist Rosie Danan!!

Today we’re continuing our series of interviews with the Omegas, the 2019 (and final) class of Golden Heart Finalists. We’re delighted to welcome Rosie Danan, whose manuscript NEVER HAVE I EVER finaled in the Contemporary Romance (Long) category and will be available from Berkley/PRH in Fall 2020!! Rosie Danan writes steamy, big-hearted books, articles, and tweets about the trials and triumphs of modern love. In her spare time, she enjoy jogging slowly to fast music, petting other people’s do...