Things That Make Me Cry

Come check out my blog today at the Vixens about writing emotion.

Happy Weekend

It's been a busy week, and when that happens, I always look forward to the weekend, hoping to be able to relax and wind down...but that really never seems to happen because the weekends are filled with another kind of busy.

Do you ever feel as if there's no room in the hectic schedule to break free of it and try something new? Something different?

That's why, no matter how busy we are, our family makes it a point to set aside at least a weekend a month to do something exciting together--okay maybe not exciting, we're not bungee jumping or anything, but you know what I mean...

One weekend it was a trip to the Great Wolf Lodge (wheeeeee!!), and then the next weekend it was a weekend doing nothing but watching movies and playing Wii together, then another one of camping in the backyard and a bonfire with roasted marshmallows (we had to recover from the cost of the GWL excursion). This weekend is my son's lacrosse tournament, so I will be spending the weekend in an arena--it may not seem very special or exciting, but I love to watch him play, and I love watching the other kids and the parents. It's also one of the few chances I get to just sit back with no responsibilities, absolutely nothing to get done, but be there cheering kiddo on. And it is definitely a break from the routine.

What are your weekend plans? What do you like to do to break away from the everyday?

Happy Father's Day

I was away this weekend, but between shopping and the beach and dropping in at no less than three home-reno stores, the family made a special trip out to have dinner with my parents to celebrate father's day.

What can I say about my father? He's never been a very chatty sort. He has something to say...he says it. We get on with life. As a kid I found him intimidating and unapproachable, and I think he felt he had to be that way in order to keep us all in line. But he's also mellowed...like, a LOT since his children have all left the roost and gone on to be productive, successful members of society. I'm glad to see it too. I'm glad that he's decided his job is done and now he can relax and enjoy the grandkids :)

As much as he may have scared the crap out of me sometimes as a kid (mostly during my unruly teen years, if the truth be told), I never ever doubted that we were always his first priority and that he loved us very much. And seeing the way he is now with my own son, and how that kid idolizes the man...it's awesome.

So I want to wish my dad a Happy Father's Day and send a special shout out to my husband, who is one of the finest men and best father's ever!

My dad and kiddo, working hard!!

Now time to cool off and have some fun :)



That deserves some ice cream for sure!

GUEST AUTHOR: KS Augustin

Never give up, never surrender!

Let me tell you about a story I wrote the year before last. That would make it 2008. I was very proud of that novel because it was one of the first actual novels I ever wrote. (Up till then, I'd mostly been writing novellas.) I tried to get some interest in it but it never quite got there. What could it be, I wondered?

* The heroine as an exonerated terrorist?
* Having three of the four main characters non-white? * Interleaving some pretty hard science-fiction into the romance?
* The jaundiced view of the military that the hero and heroine hold?
* The fact that the only ostensibly alpha character in the entire novel is a villain?
* The fact that it's the heroine who has to rescue the hero?

As a writer, you can think up reasons for rejection till the sun goes nova and still not be finished. So, maybe for a reason I listed above, and maybe for none of the above, I wasn't able to tempt an agent with it.

I kept editing and polishing the thing through 2009...and heard about a new digital publisher opening. Not a fly-by-night, but one with solid investors and staff with publishing bloodlines. Hmmmm, would they be interested in My Little Novel?

Carefully reading the submission guidelines, I submitted a partial. They liked it! They asked for a full! With bated breath, I submitted the full! And Quartet Press folded. Aiyyayay! You know how that ancient mariner felt with the albatross around his neck? Yeah, that's how I was starting to view My Little Novel.

Then, I heard that Harlequin was starting up a digital-first press. Carina Press. From deep in my lair, my ears pricked up. I wonder...?

You know how you read that it's not enough to just write? You have to have tenacity and a tough hide to be a writer? It's true. Because if I hadn't somehow convinced myself that somewhere in the universe existed someone who'd appreciate My Little Novel, that story -- now called IN ENEMY HANDS -- would not be one of the launch titles for Carina Press on Monday, 7 June.

So let that be a lesson to you. Educate yourself in writing. Read widely. And cultivate tenacity. If I can do it, so can you!

IN ENEMY HANDS

The Republic had taken everything from Moon―her research partner, her privacy, her illusions. They thought they had her under control. They were wrong.

Srin Flerovs, Moon's new research partner, is a chemically enhanced maths genius whose memory is erased every two days.

While he and Moon work on a method of bringing dead stars back to life, attraction between them flares, but that poses its own problem. How can their love survive when Srin forgets Moon every two days?

When she discovers the lethal applications her research can be put to, Moon knows she and Srin are nothing more than pawns in a much larger game. Together, they must escape the clutches of the Republic before they become its scapegoats. But there are too many walls around them, too many eyes watching. They want to run, but they're trapped on a military vessel in the depths of space, and time is running out....

Kaz Augustin is a Malaysian-born writer of science-fiction, romance, and permutations of the two. Her website is at http://www.ksaugustin.com/ and she blogs at http://blog.ksaugustin.com/ You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter; just look for “ksaugustin”.

JK Coi: In Enemy Hands is recently released by the brand new Carina Press and I'm interested to know how many of you have already taken advantage of some of their amazing authors' great new titles. For a chance to win In Enemy Hands and one other Carina Press release of your choice, tell me what other Carina Press books you've read or are looking forward to reading. I'll draw a name on Wednesday night.

Winners!

Congratulations to the winners of my Twitter Contest!

@sarahsreviews and @Pearl_ROOB

You've each won a copy of The Trouble With Destiny and The Morning After.
(email me at jkcoi(AT)rogers(DOT)com for your prizes!)

Thank you to everyone for participating!

Twitter Contest!!

I'm in a great mood tonight, even though I had to work late, and I'll be working late most of the week. Why then? Because I just bought some new music and made a new playlist, and I got a whole whack of new books to read, and some great entries to judge in this year's amazing TRW Contest.

I'm celebrating my good mood by holding my first ever Twitter contest!

Retweet the following before 10:00 pm on Tuesday, June 8, 2010 to be entered to win. TWO copies of my Samhain release The Trouble With Destiny, and TWO copies of my Ellora's Cave release The Morning After are up for grabs:

@jkcoi is in a great mood, which means a contest! Retweet by 10pm Jun 8 to win The Morning After and Trouble With Destiny!

Winner!

The winner of Margaret Rowe's Tempting Eden is:

LIMECELLO!!

Email me at jkcoi(AT)rogers(DOT)com with your snail mail address and I'll make sure that you get a copy of this FABULOUS book!

Tempting Eden

My friend and critique Partner, Maggie Robinson had her debut release Mistress by Mistake, and as everyone should know by now, this was an super amazing book!

But now her alter ego (writing as) Margaret Rowe is celebrating the release of Tempting Eden, a book I've been looking forward to seeing in print for a long while. This is a book that pushes all the boundaries and demands an emotional response. It's bold and daring and gut-wrenching. Don't miss it!!

To help her celebrate, I'm giving away a copy of Tempting Eden to one lucky commenter on the blog this week. Just leave me a comment telling me what you're looking forward to this summer. Is it a book, a vacation, or something else?