Looking Forward To March 2012 Releases?

Happy Wednesday All,

Thank you to everyone who left a comment on yesterday's post. The prayers, positive thoughts, and words are much appreciated!

There are so many books being released in March that I'm feeling like I'm going to get behind and accidentally leave someone out.  I'm going to take the time to list the ones I do know and am aware of so that everyone knows what's coming. If you know of one that I do not mention, please be sure to say so in the comments and say when in March it's to be released.

So here we go...

March 2nd -- Carla Rossi will release a brand new Inspirational Romance. The title of this book is Unlikely Praise.

March 6th -- Laura Childs will release her next novel in the Tea Shop Mystery series, entitled:  The Agony Of The Leaves.

March 26th -- Jennifer Bray-Weber will release on E-Reader her 2nd Romancing The Pirate novel, A Kiss In The Wind.
(Note to Nook Users:  Barnes & Noble's website is giving me problems right now. I don't know if it's my computer or a glitch or something else).

March 27th -- Kerrelyn Sparks will release her next Love At Stake novel, Wanted: Undead Or Alive.

These are the releases I know off the top of my head. If you have any to add,  please do so in the comment section along with which day in March the book is released.

Have A Witty Wednesday!

Spotlight On Author: Jennifer Bray-Weber

Happy Friday Everybody,

As promised, today is the day I'm posting my August Author Interview. I know every author I'm always excited about (I must sound like a broken record LOL). But I always have a reason for being excited about whoever I interview.

This particular interview is with Jennifer Bray-Weber, who, besides being an incredibly talented author, is a really cool person. She also has a great sense of humor and is a lot of fun to hang out with; so, without further ado, I give you the awesome Jennifer Bray-Weber...

Me:  Your novel, Blood And Treasure focuses on pirates. I've read from other interviews you've done, that you got the idea from a dream, but did you always want to write about pirates or was it just after you had that dream that the idea came to you?


Jennifer:  Thank you for having me, Bethany.

I started out writing dark stories set in various times throughout history. The Roman Empire, Salem Witch Trials, and the Civil War have been the backdrop to most of these tales. The common thread to these stories is the tragic endings. Hardly anyone gets out alive! My favorite is about a Civil War veteran battling deep depression. The final word in this short story is ‘Bang’. I still get goose bumps. Some might suggest I see a professional. I say mwuahahaha….


Me:  How many books do you plan to have in the Romancing The Pirate series and do you have an idea when the next one will be released?

Jennifer:  There are 5 total in the "Romancing The Pirate" series. Each story is an adventure for the pirate ship Rissa and her crew. The pirate captains in "Blood And Treasure", "A Kiss In The Wind", and "The Bruised Sky" get more than they bargain for in the lasses they encounter. Sea battles, vicious enemies, and the testy sea aren’t nearly as dangerous as these captains losing their hearts. "In Clash Of The Tides", the pirate captain is a woman who buys her hero off the auction block. The last novel, yet to be titled, is a dual love story between modern day treasure hunters seeking the mystery behind the sunken Rissa and the pirate captain and his heroine on the doomed vessel.


My next novel, "A Kiss In The Wind", is scheduled for release in spring 2012 with Carina Press.


Me:  For Fun: What music puts you in a good mood?


Jennifer:  Everything from Metallica and Def Leppard to Breaking Benjamin and Shinedown. Yep – I’m a heavy beats and hard rockin’, loud music kind of girl.


Me:  What advice do you have for aspiring authors?


Jennifer:  Listen to those who speak of hard work, writing the best story you can, perseverance, growing the proverbial thick skin, and finding great critique partners. It’s all great advice. But I’m all about opportunities. Never, EVER let opportunity pass you by. My career has been enriched because I tackled opportunity, put it in a strangle hold, and held it for ransom within an inch of its life.


Me:  You recently went to the RWA National Conference in New York City. What do you find is the most helpful about conferences like that?


Jennifer:  Networking. There is so much value in attending writing conferences. Workshops, meetings, book signings, awards ceremonies, and parties all provide the opportunity (BUZZ WORD!!) to meet others, learn from industry pros, exchange and absorb knowledge, and forge new friendships.


Me:  Do you have a favorite character who you've written, and if so, who is it and why are they are you favorite?


Jennifer:  Captain Blade Tyburn of "A Kiss In The Wind". He’s an infamous libertine with devilish good looks, quick wit, and insatiable desire for women. That is, until he meets his match in knife-wielding, pick-pocket Marisol.


Henri, the small (don’t call him a dwarf! ) curmudgeonly cook, runs a very close second. The only thing he fancies more than the little bows in his beard is his rum.


Me:  For Fun: What's your favorite Holiday and why?


Jennifer:  It’s a tie between Christmas and Halloween. Christmas is magical. Family traditions, good will, twinkling lights, yummy food, festive decorations and lots of parties makes for an enchanting holiday. I like Halloween for many of the same reasons, except Halloween is mischievous. I love mischief. Lots of mischief.


Me:  What's something you learned about pirates that you found really fascinating?


Jennifer:  Pirates were democratic and lived by codes. Captains were elected by the crew and often split power with the quartermaster. Articles were drawn up by the crew and signed by the crew. These articles were detailed and included rules of behavior, care of weaponry, punishments, treatment of women, and the division of shares.


Me:  Do you find that pirate legends are close to the truth or not at all?


Jennifer:  All legends are based on some sort of truth. I will say that the "Pirates Of The Caribbean" franchise does depict pirates, shipboard terminology, and pirate superstitions with a lot of elemental authenticity. But just so you know, the Kraken, half-sea-creature-half-man pirates, and giant goddesses are not real. Not sure about zombies, the Flying Dutchman, or man-eating mermaids.


Me:  Are you planning to stick with pirates or do you have other series ideas in mind?


Jennifer:  In my future I see more pirates, serial killers, Confederate spies, fire-breathing dragons, and a paranormal world built around the 7 virtues and 7 sins. Thankfully, not all in the same book.


Me:  Anything else you'd like to add?


Jennifer:  Should I tickle your fancy, please visit me at the following places on the World Wide Web.


www.jbrayweber.com.


https://www.facebook.com/jbrayweber


https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jennifer-Bray-Weber-Author/172485736149726


http://twitter.com/@jbrayweber

Thank you, Jennifer Bray-Weber for dropping by! You can get a copy of Blood And Treasure (which is really, really good by the way) on Amazon Kindle and Amazon in Paperback, as well as on Barnes & Noble Nook.

Have A Fantastical Friday!

Calling All Heroes!

Happy Monday All,

What do you look for in a hero? Someone larger than life? Super-Man, maybe? *EDIT as of 9:37 a.m.:  (I'm talking about FICTIONAL heroes. As Tess points out in the comments there are real life heroes that make this world a better place, and they have my respect, admiration and gratitude for what they do, but for this post I'm talking about heroes in novels, I apologize for being unclear).



  Or perhaps you're for someone a bit more "untouchable"--a little more "forbidding", like Mr. Darcy. Maybe you go for swashbuckling pirates like Captain Jack Sparrow.

One thing I was told about heroes is that they should be "larger than life".  

Heroes do have to be believable but they aren't likely to necessarily be someone you'd meet walking down the street. I don't know about you, but I've never run into Edward Cullen (or any other vampire) as I walked out of my house (maybe I wasn't looking hard enough?) I have yet to meet Mr. Darcy at the grocery store (kind of the wrong time period). Or Captain Jack Sparrow anywhere (not that I'd want to, I'd rather read about pirates, not encounter them in real life).

Last time I saw a shape shifter was...never. So, yeah, in a sense they have to be larger than life and unrealistic. But they also have to be believable, someone people can relate to. Now granted, most of us aren't going to believe that a demigod is existing in our swimming pool, like Percy Jackson, but believable in that a person can suspend their disbelief. That is, they have traits we can relate to.

Heroes have to have some kind of honor code. Something that makes them heroic. For Darcy, one of the things that made him heroic was helping Elizabeth Bennett's sister--and saying he only thought of her while doing so. That's not only heroic, but entirely romantic. (Now you men understand why we women swoon when someone brings up Fitzwilliam Darcy).

For Edward Cullen, I'd say a heroic gesture on his part was how he prized Bella's humanity. He treasured it. He didn't treat her as expendable as the other human-blood drinking vampires were prone to doing, he and his "family" treated her humanity as something to guard.

I don't know enough about Captain Jack to say what makes him heroic. 

My favorite heroes are the ones who did things because they are just so passionate over the heroine they couldn't help themselves. Yes, I'm that mushy-romantic. I'm sort of the "knight-in-shining armour" type heroes.

What defines a *edit as of 9:38 a.m.:  FICTIONAL or in a novel hero for you? (Like I said above, there's many real-life heroes I totally respect and agree that they truly DO make the world a better place, but I'm talking about fictional heroes that appear in novels, that's why I brought up Mr. Darcy, Captain Jack and Edward Cullen, rather than real-live people.  I apologize if I wasn't clear).

Have A Magnificent Monday!

Pirates Take Over My E-Reader

Happy Friday All,

Before I get started on today's topic, I want to give you all a heads up about a post I enjoyed on another blog. This post was done by Will Graham, author of Street Heat and Sometimes There Really Are Monsters Under The Bed. I highly recommend you check out the post, it's called Can't Never Did Anything and it's on MuseTracks.

But, first, before you go to MuseTracks to check out that awesome blog post, come on board a pirate ship with me in Jennifer Bray-Weber's Pirate Romance, Blood And Treasure.

I've been interested in reading this one because pirates are one of those mysteriously fascinating things that I've sort of dipped my foot into every now and again (plus I'd heard great things about it). I don't know much about them, but I know some of the legends and stories out there. After all, my husband's a big fan of the Pirates Of The Caribbean movies and of course, Laura Childs' Tea Shop Mystery had some pirate lore in it.

So, I purchased and downloaded to my e-reader Jennifer's book (she plans to have it available in-print at some point).

From page one she had my attention. She took just a short paragraph to have me picturing a street behind a tavern in the 1700's. I stood there with her heroine, Lianna Whitney, as she's startled by a French man who slides a medallion down her dress. I could see pirates, Captain Zane Fox, and his best mate, Blade, burst through and make off with her.

Jennifer's imagery is so fantastic. You sail the seas right with her characters, you duck the British soldiers, deal with betrayal, contemplate the hangman's noose, and a host of other adventures you'd only find on Captain Fox's ship.

The book is an adventure, romance, suspense, and thrilling ride all wrapped up into one novel.

If you haven't sailed the high seas with Captain Zane Fox and tavern-maid, Lianna Whitney, I suggest you get up that gangplank, weigh anchor, and set a course for one of the websites that offers the novel immediately!

Blood And Treasure by Jennifer Bray-Weber is currently available on Amazon Kindle and Barnes & Noble Nook.

Have A Festive Friday!

"Shiver Me Timbers!"

Ahoy, Mateys And Welcome To Another Week,

Okay...I've talked about dragons, heroes, villains, the window characters, vampires and the like, now how about something else fun?

PIRATES!

I have no problems with people writing about pirates. In fact, one of my favorite Georgette Heyer books deals with a privateer. The book is called Beauvallet and it's awesome.

Not sure what it is that makes pirates so fascinating...especially in romance novels. I guess it's the whole sexy pirate appeal for some. For me, I guess it's just seeing how love affects people--especially a character that's supposed to be intimdating, like a pirate.

Another thing is pirates are utterly adventures. Take Pirates Of The Caribbean movies for instance. Lots of people were very fond of Johnny Depp's performance as Jack Sparrow and all the mystery, intrigue and adventure fond in those stories.

In writing this blog, I did some searches and found a Pirate Code Of Honor also there's some other Pirate Code of Honor information here (this last link is connected to a Pirate Cruise company).

While doing a second search about pirates (for this blog post) I came across some interesting links:

Avast! Welcome To A Pirate's Life Site!

Welcome Aboard! (this link seems to have a TON of information, I've read some of it. Very interesting).

So, what about pirates fascinates you (if you're fascinated by them)?

Have A Merry Monday!