Laurel Cremant's Blog, page 8

Just a Quick Hello and a New Year Check In.

Hello All, 

It's been a while since I've written a post, so I decided to stop a write a quick hello and update. I feel like I'm always writing that I'm busy I (which is true, I am), but ever since I left my day job and began writing full time in December, that is even more true. Things have gotten a lot busier for me but in all the best ways. Now that I can dedicate a solid eight hours a day to writing, I feel on cloud nine. In the last two months the following has happened:

1.) Released Wynter's Fall, Book one in my Wynter Tales trilogy
Buy Now
2.) Released Midnight Mistletoe and Midnight Dare, Book one and two of my Golden Alphas Trilogy
Buy Now Buy Now
3.) Started a collaboration for a new shifter book with another author who will be revealed soon. I'm super excited about this because I greatly admire this author and have read almost all of her books, so this is a big OMG for me.

4.) Found the most amazing cover designer, Taria Reed. I'll be using her exclusively for my contemporary and paranormal covers moving forward. I'll also continue to use Salo Vargas for all of my fantasy illustrations because he's just the shiznit.

5.) Both Midnight Mistletoe and Midnight Dare achieved Best Seller Status via Amazon and All Romance (Happy Dance)!

6.) I FINALLY got my office organized and in exactly the shape I want it in. After having to sit in it every day for HOURS. I had no choice but to finish decorating the room. It was either that or go crazy. It's in shades of pink and turquoise and I LOVE it! The room is a little reminiscent of She-Devil, but whatever! In honor of its completion I'll be throwing a contest. 


7.) I have at least one release planned for every month for the rest of the year...Yeah that is ambitious, but hey this is my job full time now, and I'm having fun finally working on all of the projects I've had to put on the back burner in 2013 because of time constraints...

8.) And yes that means that How To Kill Your Immortal will FINALLY be released this year!

9.) Okay random...I started doing 100 squats a day and my ass looks great!

10.) I discovered this website, and it made my baking experiments so much more interesting. 

Okay that just about covers most of my happenings for the past few months. How is the new year treating you all? Any resolutions, any goals? Let me know :)

Talk to you soon,
Laurel

Midnight Mistletoe is a Best Seller

Hello All,

I'm excited to announce that since it's release on December 20th, MIDNIGHT MISTLETOE  has become a BEST SELLER on both All Romance and Amazon! It was also featured as a Reader's Choice selection on ARe. 

This first installment is currently ranked within the top 50 best selling books on All Romance and is listed within the top 100 best sellers on Amazon in FIVE categories! I can't tell you just how excited and humbled I am by all of this. 

When I began this series I was both excited and terrified at it's reception. I've never written a serial before and I was unsure of how readers would feel about following my characters Georgia and Marcus through their journey. I'm gratified to know that these two strong characters are connecting with you all, so thank you! Thank you to all of you who have purchased the book. Thank you to all of you who have written reviews. Thank you to all of you who have spread the word to others. Just THANK YOU all around :).

2014 marks the beginning of a new phase of my life. I will be officially writing full-time and will finally have the opportunity to work on the projects that have unfortunately been put on the back burner for too long. So you'll be seeing a lot of book releases from me this year :)

I'll be announcing the release date for the second installment to The Golden Pack Aphas serial at MIDNIGHT MISTLETOE's official Facebook Virtual Release party this Thursday, January 2nd 2013 at 2013. You can join the party here. 

For those of you who don't know, during the release party you'll be able to vote for what happens next between Georgia and Marcus. I hope to see you there.

MIDNIGHT MISTLETOEAvailable NowAll Romance | Amazon (US)/(UK)/(CA) | Barnes & Noble | Google Play

Talk to you soon,
Laurel

Wynter's Fall Virtual Release Party!

Good Morning All,

I hope you all had a good weekend. I took the weekend off from basically everything and am now back in full force. As you can see by the gigantic banner below, tonight is the Virtual Release Party for WYNTER'S FALL , the first book in my Wynter Tales series. The fun begins at 7:30pm EST (4:30pm PST).
Join the Party!Stop by the Facebook event here, to join in on the fun. There will be plenty of games, activities and of course PRIZES. And of course don't forget to pick up your copy of Wynter's Fall :)

WYNTER'S FALL Available Now!Amazon | All Romance | Barnes & Noble Talk to you soon, Laurel

Lady’s Destiny a Cover Reveal!

Come join the celebration on fb here:  https://www.facebook.com/events/178102525731861/?notif_t=plan_user_joined
BLURB
When dreams haunt you in the most delicious ways and fate pulls you into destiny’s path, what can be done other than to accept and submit to it.
Can Iria truly get what she’s always dreamed of or will it always just remain a memory? Being a rare creature such as her with exceptional beauty and rarity of existence should be enough.  Though, all she wants is her desire, her destiny… To be with a man—one man.
Are these dreams she’s having real? Could she really take on human form and become a Lady to be with the man she craves?
Dezso discovers a magical creature—a being of incredible light and peace. He is drawn to it again and again, and his feelings grow with every encounter. He carries a dark secret that he wishes never existed. The only thing that truly brings light upon his existence is the beauty that warms his heart but seems to only exist in his head—with dreams and visions of a magical woman, full of heartwarming light.
Will he ever know true love and happiness? Will he ever be able to lighten the weight and share his dark secret with another...?
Darkness is growing stronger, weakening the light and killing off what makes the world a beautiful place to live in. Enter a world of fantasy and dreams, passions and temptations. A world where dragons, unicorns, magic and mermaids really do exist. A world where love WILL conquer all!
To be released January 2014.


Bio:A.R. was born and raised in Bronx, NY and is the oldest daughter of two girls. She holds an Associate’s Degree in Computer Science and Information Technology, which was only briefly used. She’s a mother of two entertaining teen boys (as well as a lovely fawn Chihuahua, whom she considers her furry daughter.) She’s also a wife to a delightfully handsome and amazingly funny man-beast. She loves anything dragon and fantasy related. In her free time she enjoys exercising, writing, listening to music, hiking, cooking, dancing and reading. She also loves a great adventure in and out of a book!
She writes to free her mind of its constant wondering and clutter. She thrives on the fact she can share some of it with readers that have the same passion for a great story.

Stalker links:


~ Twitter ~ Facebook ~ A.R.’s Blog ~ Amazon author page ~ Pinterest ~  Tumblr ~


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Thursday Tease with Roxy Wilson

Hello Lovelies,

Today I have a smexy post Christmas treat for you. The awesome Roxy Wilson was nice enough to stop by and drop a quick teaser of her new book, The Right Kind of Love .

I was fortunate enough to meet Roxy earlier this year just after reading her debut novel, He's So Into You. Not only did I like her writing style, but Roxy is a genuinely nice person who is fun to interact with online. 
If you check out the gorgeous book cover to the left you'll see the cover for Roxy's latest book, The Right Kind of Love .

It's no secret that love cover reveals. They're the perfect tease to the beginning of a new story. So often we see couples or nekkidness all over covers that I love to see covers that are both compelling, simple and beautiful all at once.

What are your thoughts? What about covers tantalize and tease you? What draws you in and captures your attention.
THE RIGHT KIND OF LOVEAvailable now via Secret Cravings PublishingAnd available at Amazon Barnes & Noble and other e-book outlets December 30th

BLURB
New Yorker Sloane Saunders has just about given up on love. She’s thirty-something and very single. A magazine article jolts her from her malaise and motivates her to do something she’s never tried before: online dating, and firstmeet.com is the website of choice.

Attending his brother’s bachelor party was the wake-up call Blake Morrison needed. Memories of a passionate relationship from his past drive him to return to claim his woman. Sloane. Despite the sizzling chemistry between them, it’s not as easy as he thought. With a family crisis and Sloane’s preconceived notions about love and relationships getting in the way, can Blake convince Sloane they have the right kind of love and that a love like theirs can last?

EXCERPT
“Why am I doing this, again?”

Sloane stared at the matchmaking website. Firstmeet.com. It promised to make falling in love easy. Then why was her chest so tight? Why did she feel like Atlas, with the weight of the heavens on her shoulders? Were these signs that her foray into online dating could turn out to be one of the horror stories she’d heard on the news? With her luck she’d end up meeting a catfish who created a false identity and made a complete fool of her. Not in a million years would she have believed she would resort to this.

Do I really need to do this? Is it worth the risk? No. Maybe I shouldn’t bother. I should just be content living alone, and using my Hitachi Magic Wand when I feel the need for some adventure in the bedroom.

“You know what?” Sloane moved the cursor to the Log Out icon. “Maybe this isn’t such a good idea after all.” Just when she was about to click on the icon, Harper’s words came swimming up to the surface of her consciousness—Open yourself up to new possibilities, and maybe, just maybe, you might get your happily-ever-after.

Sloane lifted her eyes toward the ceiling. “Harper, you’re not even here, and you’re messing with my head.” She looked at the monitor and saw she had a million questions to answer before she completed her profile.

She inhaled a deep breath. “Okay, here goes.”

The questionnaire was exasperating. She couldn’t believe it went so far as to ask her to select what she’d do if she won the state lottery. How about all of the above? Sheesh. Sloane used the Eeny meeny miny moe rhyme to choose an answer, since all of the above wasn’t one of the options.

Twenty minutes later, Sloane completed the online form and paid the subscription fee. She took her shower and was just about to wrap the bath towel around her body, when she heard the doorbell. She wasn’t in the mood for visitors. Not when she needed to get ready to head out in a few minutes. The NHL games attracted large crowds, so everyone knew how important it was to arrive there early to get the coveted seats. Whoever was outside continued to press the doorbell, making Sloane more and more irritated by the second.

“Enough already, I’m coming,” Sloane muttered. She dried her skin briskly. Who could possibly be disturbing her peace this early on a Sunday morning? Don’t people understand the concept of weekends? It’s Sunday, for crying out loud. She rushed to her drawer and grabbed some clothing, along with her under-things. It didn’t seem as if Sloane could put her clothes on fast enough for her impatient, unwelcome guest.

By the time Sloane reached the hallway, the shrill sounds of the doorbell seemed to touch the most sensitive part of her nerves. She barely restrained herself from shoving her fist into her mouth to prevent herself from screaming. Sloane opened the door, not too gently. Belatedly, she thought how foolish it was to not check the peephole before opening the door. When she saw the man standing before her, her last-minute fear vanished.

The first thing that caught her attention was the width of his shoulders. It was one of the things about a man’s physique that got her going. Sloane believed only other full-figured women would understand the rare delight she felt in the moment, to be standing next to a man with such broad shoulders. Sloane was sure she would feel protected, and oh-so-delicate, if he wrapped his arms around her. It was a sensation she didn’t often enjoy with the opposite sex. It would feel so good to be an elf, a dainty little thing, needing protection, in his presence. Sloane mentally shook herself out of the fixation on the man’s shoulders, and allowed her eyes to track upwards.
“What the—” Her voice trailed off as she peered into cyan-blue eyes. She felt like her eyes were going to pop out of her head, as she looked into the all-too-familiar crooked, dimpled smile of the man who’d haunted her naughtiest dreams for ages.
“Blake?”
Did you like your tease? Go ahead and show Roxy some love. You can always find her strutting around the web, especially Facebook and Twitter. And don't forget to check out her blog. Ms. Wilson's posts are always so informative. 

ABOUT ROXY WILSON Blog /Website | Amazon | Goodreads | Facebook | Facebook Fan Page | Twitter
Roxy Wilson is a self-professed junkie whose excessive consumption of traditional and electronic books is legendary.

As a graduate with a degree in Education, she writes blogs which help readers to think critically about and appreciate poetry. In July, 2012, however, she decided to delve into the world of writing romance stories.

When she is not reading or writing, she spends her time cooking, listening to music and visiting the various islands of the Caribbean.


Talk to you soon,
Laurel

All I Want for #Christmas are These Pimp #Gifts

sourceGood Evening Lovelies,

Where the heck did this year go? When I say so much has happened, I mean SO MUCH has happened in my life this year! As of this weekend I officially have FOUR works published with four more to come within the next three months.

This year has been EXHAUSTING, but oh so worth it. I've had the opportunity to put more time into my writing and have an actual, dare I say...plan and production schedule for 2014. Two years ago I would have never thought to be where I am now.

One thing I knew from the beginning of this journey was that it would be hard. Balancing a full time job, family, friends, writing AND all of the other bumps life likes to throw in your path is has been enlightening. I've gained some friends and lost some friends. I've had moments when I couldn't remember the last time I ate or slept. And there have been times when I thought to myself, "Is this really worth it?" And the answer has always been the same, "Hell Yes!" This is my dream. All of the sleepless nights and moments of self-doubt are worth it.

I have a lot of goals for 2014. But one thing I've learned in the last two years is to understand that goals are targets not wishes. You work your ass off to get to them, not hope they just happen.

All that being said I do have a few wishes this holiday season that will definitely fit in my stockings and require very little effort, or plotting, or outlining, or typing...

WISH #1: Something Unique
ArtOfWhere, Laura Nations
I'm a geek at heart and I love gadgets. Unfortunately, in the tech wold we all live in now, I hate that my electronics have no uniqueness to them. Most phone cases and laptops skins are pretty generic and that's really annoying to someone like me who likes to make a statement. I came across this website, ArtOfWhere, when a photographer friend of mine mentioned they often load their pictures to this shop and those images can be used for almost anything, including cell phone cases. SOLD! The designs range from sophisticated to whimsical. You can get anything from custom cases to pillows and leggings. The Elephant cell phone case above happens to be one of my favorites.

WISH #2: Something Fierce

WISH #3: Something Hot
Bakers Shoes, Trudie Boot
Okay so I'm a shoe whore. I know this and I own it. DON'T. JUDGE. I live in South Florida and the average temperature in winter in 72 degrees. Even if ot were 95 degrees I would find an excuse to wear these hotties. If I have my way and these fierce boots from Bakers end up in my closet this year I'll join the ranks of people going "selfie" happy. My instagram and twitter feed will be filled with nothing but pics of me in these bad boys :)

And that's it! My completely materialistic wish list for this holiday season. What's on your wish list? And what's on your list of goals for 2014?

Talk to you soon,
Laurel

Two Winter Releases for Holiday Reading #Kindle #Romance #Ebook

Hello All and Happy Holidays!

My two winter releases Wynter's Fall and Midnight Mistletoe are officially released and available for purchase. I had more than a few nail biting moments on Friday and Saturday as I waited for the books to post to Amazon. It took FOREVER (not really) 

In celebration I will be in search of a bottle of wine and a few hundred hours of sleep :).

Each book is the first in two new series I've started, Wynter Tales and The Golden Pack Alphas.


For those of you in the mood for a little fantasy I present....
WYNTER'S FALL

Amazon (US) |  Amazon (UK) |  Amazon (CA) |

Barnes & Noble An unsuspecting mortal, A Keeper of Dreams, And a group of Gods intent on reclaiming powers they no longer deserve...

Melania Wynter has a big problem, the man of her actual dreams is becoming all too real. Determined to gain back some control over her life, she hopes that a a little vacation will be enough for her psyche to stop comparing her real life to the vivid dreams she's had since childhood. But one patch of ice, a solid pine tree and a nasty bump on the head derail her plans.

Daiomone, Keeper of Dreams has always been drawn to Melania. He's bided his time, waiting for her to cross-over to his realm, but manipulative God's have interfered in unexpected ways. With a helping hand from fate, he must go to Melania and keep her safe.

Together they must navigate the wilderness and survive both the cold and trouble-making Gods.

And for those of you in the mood for a naughty paranormal I've got you covered...
MIDNIGHT MISTLETOE

Amazon (US) |  Amazon (UK) |  Amazon (CA)
WARNING: This short novelette/short story of 8,000 words is the first book in this serial and contains snarky dialogue, extremely inappropriate uses of mistletoe, alpha HEROINES and the weres smart enough to chase them. 
All were-hybrid, Georgia Walker wants for Christmas is to spend some time away from her pack and in particular, away from one increasingly dangerous enforcer turned Beta. She has every intention of spending her days basking in the warm Caribbean sun and indulging in an island fling, or two. Anything to forget the way a certain were made her pulse race and skin tingle.

Marcus Legrand has only one goal this holiday season, bring Georgia home and finally claim her for his own. Convincing the strong willed ice princess will take all of his skill and patience, but Marcus is no stranger to hunting prey. He has every intention of putting both his rank and heart on the line.
Talk to You Soon, Laurel

Make way for some #Holiday #Romance!

Hello All, 

Things are moving and progressing at warp speed in my neck of the woods. I'll be making an announcement very soon about some major changes in my life. But until then I will leave you with a quick blurb for one of my December releases, Midnight Mistletoe . Yup I've decided to throw you a quick holiday curve ball. A paranormal short story I originally began as an exercise to help me with some writers block turned into a series I just have to complete. The release date is December 20th so get ready. But don't worry for all of my Contemporary fans I haven't forgotten you. My new contemporary titled Executive Control isn't too far behind as well as Acquisition Skills the next book in my Boardroom Acts series. 

I'm also super excited about  my other December release Wynter's Fall. It's also the beginning of another series titled Wynter Tales. The style and format are completely different from anything else I've ever worked on and has been an amazing journey.

Midnight Mistletoe , is the first book in my Golden Pack Alphas series. This series is my first official foray into the world of serials so I hope you enjoy and decide to read more :)

Midnight Mistletoe All were-hybrid, Georgia Walker wants for Christmas is to spend some time away from her pack and in particular, away from one increasingly dangerous enforcer turned Beta. She has every intention of spending her days basking in the warm Caribbean sun and indulging in an island fling, or two. Anything to forget the way a certain were made her pulse race and skin tingle.
Marcus Legrand has only one goal this holiday season, bring Georgia home and finally claim her for his own. Convincing the strong willed ice princess will take all of his skill and patience, but Marcus is no stranger to hunting prey. He has every intention of putting both his rank and heart on the line.
Talk to You Soon, Laurel

#Evernight Readers' Choice Awards, #VoteNow

Hello Lovelies, 

Today I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Persuasion Skills has made it to the semi-finals in the First Annual Evernight Readers' Choice Award!

Queue awkward Carlton-style dancing! So if you have an extra moment to spare pleae head on over to Evernight and take the quiz or just click here.

I'll be back a little later on tonight with a follow-up post to my "Books A Romance 
Writer Can't Live Without" series. Also stay tuned this week, for an excerpt from my December book release, Wynter's Fall.

Talk to you soon,
Laurel

The Color of Love Blog Hop! #ColorOfLove

Hello All, 

And I do mean all. Welcome to the Color of Love blog hop! I'm so happy and honored to be participating in this hop. Not only does the hop shine a great big light on multicultural and interracial romance in books, but it also provides the opportunity to meet new authors and others that I've admired for quite some time.

Take a looksie at the linky link below. You can hop along the web with us and join in on the fun.

A few years ago I began the amazing and often times scary journey into writing romance. When I first decided to put my butt in a chair and hands on my keyboard, I didn't make a conscious decision to create interracial or multicultural characters. As any author will tell you, a muse can be a very bossy thing. My muse in particular was also very adamant that my characters reflect the world and world of love I saw around me. 

Coming from a Caribbean family and growing up in multicultural cities all my life, I've always been surrounded by families and couples that reflect every culture and color in the rainbow. I myself am in an interracial marriage and when I penned my first romance my characters and their needs took center stage not their race, religion or culture. 

The common term for my current home town (Miami, Florida) is that it is one big melting pot. Which is very true. So my question to others who are surprised by romance featuring interracial and multicultural characters as leads, is this-Who wants to eat bland soup? Everything tastes better with a little salt and pepper, not to mention some cumin, paprika, some oregano, and all the other spices that make a dish just mouthwatering delicious!

Aside from my books reflecting the color of love out in the world, they also tend to have snarky heroines, sneaky heroes and love that is patient enough for my characters to get their acts together. My latest book, Persuasion Skills, features two best friends turned business partners who begin to realize that their friendship may have room for so much more. I had a lot of fun writing this book, not only because I enjoyed writing about two friends finding love with each other, but also because the hero and heroine reflect so well, the couples I see around me in real life. 

If you want to learn about more IR/MC reads, authors and websites, follow along on this hop and show some love!  And of course following along also gives you a chance to win some great prizes. Enter to win using the rafflecoptor widget below and clink on the linky links to "hop" over to the next blog. 

Thanks for stopping by and Good Luck!


PRIZES~1st prize: $50 Amazon gift card + 8 ebooks~2nd prize: $30 Amazon gift card+ 8 ebooks~3rd prize: $20 Amazon gift card + 8 ebooks~4th prize: $10 Amazon gift card + 8 ebooks

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LINKY LINKS


Talk to you soon, Laurel