Fun Friday: Chicken Enchiladas and Strawberry Rosé Margarita

Would you believe that I have never had an enchilada? How weird is that? I've had tacos, burritos, and even a chimichanga, but somehow enchiladas managed to fly under my radar. Until now. One of my Facebook friends was raving about the enchiladas she recently prepared, and she made them sound so delicious, I had to give them a try.

So, chicken enchiladas call for the following:
Chicken--the recipe calls for canned chicken, but I chopped and sauteed chicken breasts for this. Nothing against canned chicken, but it didn't sound all that tasty.
Tomato--Yes! I have a ton of these from my monster tomato plants. I'm an awful gardener. I grow stuff, but my garden looks like a jungle rather than an actual garden. Someone, please help me!
Lettuce
Onion
Cheddar Cheese--I'm a cheese fanatic lately, so I'm using extra.
Sour cream--I'm not a fan, but my oldest is.
Corn tortillas--I've been told that using flour tortillas would be cheating.
Chopped green chiles--I am using canned for these.
Enchilada sauce--I bought the prepared kind. Did I mention that I can be a lazy cook?


Here's the recipe I'm using. Oh, and my kids want to try them too, so this week's fun isn't 100-percent all about me.


Now for the drink, this one IS all for me. I chose a Strawberry Rose Margarita. The ingredients are really simple. All you need is tequila, triple sec, lime juice, sparkling rose' wine, strawberries, and a bit of sugar for the rim of your class. I had to go out and buy the strawberries and triple sec, but I have a feeling it will be worth it! Here's the recipe!

In the Spotlight: Author Julie Shelton

About Julie Shelton

Julie has always loved stories, both reading and writing them, ever since she was old enough to hold a book in her hands.  One of her favorite childhood activities was smuggling books under the covers to read by flashlight after she was supposed to be asleep.

A career as a children’s librarian eventually led to her dream career as a freelance storyteller and puppeteer, a business she operated successfully for twenty-five years.  During that time she created and wrote all the original material for Kidstuff, a monthly language arts newsletter full of poems, songs, puppet and flannel-board stories, finger plays, and other resource material for early childhood educators.  For that endeavor she won the prestigious EDPRESS Award for the best educational newsletter of 1982.  Her 288-page book, Puppets, Poems and Songs was a major resource.  She has also written other resource materials for librarians and preschool and early elementary teachers.
Julie lives in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia.  Now widowed and retired, she once again has time to devote to her two favorite things—reading and writing—especially her new love, erotic romances with strong heroines, hunky alpha-male heroes, and lots of smokin’ hot sex.

Julie Shelton's New Release:

Honeymooning in England, Jesse Colter, Adam Sinclair and their beloved wife, Sarah, are heading for their friend Thorne Cahill’s BDSM club for dinner when another car deliberately tries to run them off the road.  Thanks to their own driver’s skills, the other car is destroyed, the two unknown occupants killed.
Through Thorne, they discover that they’re the targets of a “blood feud”, instigated by Konstandin Sokolov, son of Viktor Sokolov, the Albanian mobster who had unwisely kidnapped Sarah a few months back, and paid for it with his life.  They also discover that Thorne’s guests, ruthless human traffickers, have gathered at the club for a slave auction being held the following night.  Konstandin Sokolov happens to be one of the buyers.
Fraught with treachery, betrayal, and deadly danger, Keeping Sarah keeps the reader on a knife’s edge of tension, while simultaneously exploring the deepening emotional and physical commitment between Jesse and Adam.  They already trust each other with their lives.  Now they must learn how to trust each other with their love.

Pre-order your copy here: www.bookstrand.com/keeping-sarah

ADULT EXCERPT

     Then Jesse turned to Sarah.  Bending down, he put his hands beneath her arms and lifted her up off the floor.  Turning her in his arms, he unhooked the garters, then unlaced the corset, letting it fall to the silk carpet.  As soon as the beautiful, but restrictive garment fell away from her, Sarah took the first deep breath she’d had in hours.  “Step out of your shoes, baby,” he crooned, rolling down her stockings and removing them one foot at a time.  “Now bend over and grab your ankles.  I owe you a spanking.”
     With a whimper, she assumed the undignified position, her second of the night, wrapping her fingers around her ankles while he got on his knees behind her to remove the vibrators from her pussy and ass.  Dropping the toys on top of the crumpled corset, he palmed her ass cheeks, his flexing fingers making deep indentations in her sweet flesh.  “Spread your legs, baby, or you’re gonna fall over.”  A smile curved his lips upward as she slid her feet outward.  God, I love this ass!  He slapped her sharply, the sound and her subsequent cry loud in the quiet room.  “Count,” was all he said, transfixed by the erotic sight of his handprint blooming on her skin, first white, then red.
     “Y-yes, Master.  O-one.”
     “How many have you earned tonight, slave?”
     “Ten, Master.”  Her voice was barely audible, muffled by her position.
     “There will be no warm-up, so I’ll make them quick.  Count them all.”  In rapid succession, he delivered ten blistering swats to her backside and by the time she counted the last one, her ass was fiery red and she was sobbing in pain.
     Crap, that hurt!  And yet, it felt so good.  So damn good.  The heat from her ass seemed to be having an effect on her clit, as if the two were connected by wires pulsing and crackling with electricity.  Her sobs turned into moans as he stroked and kneaded the heat more deeply into her flesh, sending it straight to her pussy until her clit felt like it was on fire.
Still gripping her ass cheeks, he lowered his head, slanting it sideways to flick the tip of his tongue across her throbbing little nub.  She jerked and cried out as pleasure consumed her.  Then he straightened, pulling her up after him, and steered her toward the bed.  If Adam was in sub-space, then Sarah was right there with him, lost and drifting and needing Jesse’s loving care.  It was now his duty and responsibility to love them and keep them safe and give them the pleasure they had both earned and richly deserved.
     “Climb up, baby,” he said, assisting her up onto the bed.  “On your hands and knees above Adam, pussy over his face, head over his cock.”  As he was talking, he, too, was getting on the bed, crawling across its enormous expanse toward Adam’s feet.  “Legs apart,” he ordered and Adam slid his feet across the silky sheets.  “Prepare Sarah.”
     At the quiet command, Sarah’s core convulsed again, sending out another gush of fresh cream.  God, she was so ready to come!  She had been so highly aroused for so long, now that it was finally going to happen, it was all she could focus on.  Without warning, Adam reached up and stroked his fingers through her slit, from front to back before thrusting two fingers deep inside her sheath hovering so tantalizingly above his head.  He pressed his thumb against her puckered anal opening, pushing insistently, until the muscle relaxed and sucked it in.  Sarah stopped breathing.  With wicked skill, he thrust in and out of both her anus and vagina, pinching the membrane between his thumb and fingers as he stroked, quickly re-stoking the fires of need in her sex, burning just beneath the surface.  A thin, high wail escaped her lips as pleasure devoured her.
     “Christ, Jess,” Adam muttered over the wet, sucking noises his fingers were making as he pumped them in and out of Sarah’s sheath, “you should see what I’m seeing.  Our little slave has the most succulent pussy in the world.  And it’s dripping all over the place.”
“Sarah,” Jesse ordered, “Take Adam into your mouth.”

AUTHOR INTERVIEW WITH JULIE SHELTON

Can you tell us a little about your new book that’s coming out on August 7th?

Keeping Sarah is my third contemporary BDSM ménage romance for Siren Publishers.  It is the third and final installment in the series which began with Loving Sarah, published in 2012, and its sequel, Owning Sarah, published last September.  By the time I finished writing Loving Sarah, it was clear to me that I had enough material for more than one book, hence the sequel, Owning Sarah.  Both are MFM ménages.  But even though Owning Sarah ended with Sarah, Jesse and Adam’s wedding and their happy ending, I couldn’t stop thinking about the three characters.  I couldn’t help but feel that Jesse and Adam needed to explore the feelings they were developing for each other as well as for their beloved wife, Sarah.  So, Keeping Sarah was born.  But this is Jesse Colter and Adam Sinclair and nothing comes easy for them.  So, in addition to telling Jesse and Adam’s evolving love story, Keeping Sarah is also a harrowing thrill ride of deadly car chases, Albanian blood feuds, a sex slave auction, murder, betrayal, and gut-wrenching intrigue.

Please tell us how the idea came to you for Jesse Colter, your main hero.  Be sure to include all the fun details.

It started with his name.  Jesse Colter.  It was the perfect name for a Dominant, alpha hero.  I spent months thinking about him and coming up with a compelling back-story for him. 
Abandoned by his Native American mother, neglected and abused by his alcoholic bully of a father, Jesse is embittered, angry and going nowhere fast.  At age nineteen, he takes a summer job as part-time gardener at the Marshall estate and meets thirteen-year-old Sarah Marshall.  To a hardened biker and sexual Dominant, Sarah Marshall is like some fey, magical creature from another world, and he is enchanted by her.  For the first time in his life, Jesse has someone who thinks he’s wonderful.  Someone who listens to him and values his opinion.  Someone who makes him laugh and who cares for him.  Sarah Marshall quickly becomes someone precious to him.  Someone to treasure and protect.  Someone to love.  At first he loves her as an adult loves a child.

But as Sarah grows into a beautiful, voluptuous young woman who makes no effort to hide her growing love for him, Jesse is terrified that his carnal feelings for her and his Dominant nature will end up destroying the one thing he treasures most—Sarah Marshall.  So he leaves their small town of Marshall’s Creek and joins the Navy, becoming a SEAL.  Eight years of grueling training and dangerous missions give him a sense of identity and self-worth.  He realizes that he is a man of honor and integrity and is finally able to admit to himself that he needs Sarah in order to make him complete.  Determined to do whatever it takes to win her trust and her love, he returns to Marshall’s Creek.  That’s where their love story begins in Loving Sarah.  It continues in Owning Sarah, and finishes with a bang in Keeping Sarah.

What influenced you to send your first book to a publisher? How long did it take?


I spent four years writing, editing, polishing, re-writing Loving Sarah.  It was a never-ending cycle.  Then I lost it.  Completely wiped it out of my computer.  I was devastated.  The thought of having to recreate an entire 400-page novel from scratch was so daunting, I fell into a deep depression.  Then around four months after I lost it, I had to print something and that’s when I discovered that the entire novel, minus the last 15 pages, was still in the print queue.  I was elated!  And I knew that I had to send it off to a publisher immediately, before my ignorance of computers caused something else to happen to it.  Siren was the first publisher I submitted it to, mainly because they published a lot of my favorite authors.  Around three weeks after I sent it to them, they emailed me and asked me to make a few changes.  I figured this was a pretty good sign, thinking if they weren’t interested in it at all, they wouldn’t have bothered to ask for the changes.  They offered to publish it less than two weeks after I submitted the revised manuscript.

Could you tell us a couple of favorite authors who inspired you to write?

Sure.  LoraLeighMayaBanksCheriseSinclairSophieOakLisaMarieRiceLaurenDaneJoeyWHillLeahBrookeEdenBradleyKristenAshleyLexiBlakeShaylaBlackFionaArcherLyndaAicher—and that’s just her first name!  My earliest influences, years and years ago, back in the dark ages, were Mary Stewart’s romantic suspense novels and Phyllis Whitney’s gothic novels.

Is music a factor for you while you are writing? Do certain songs put you in the right frame of mind to write certain stories?

When I put music on, it’s to listen to it, so I usually find it distracting when I’m writing because I want to sing or hum along with it.  It’s hard to write when you’re bopping around in your chair, singing at the top of your lungs, lol

If you could collaborate with one author who would it be?

Good grief, there’s no way I could pick just one!  Go to the list above, close your eyes and point.  I’ll go with her.

What is the strangest source of writing inspiration you’ve ever had?

Years ago I was watching the movie, Becket (with Richard Burton and Peter o’Toole).  In one scene there was a minor female character dressed in a blue gown.  I was finishing my BA in French at the time and doing extensive research on life in a thirteenth-century French castle.
Well, the minute I saw that gown, an entire romance novel sprang into my mind.  I couldn’t write it down fast enough.  And since I was taking all my research notes on 3 x 5 index cards, that’s what I wrote the novel on.  I wound up with two shoeboxes full of index cards, one with all my research notes, the second with my novel.  Last year I transcribed the entire book onto my computer and that became Dark Warrior, my third book for Siren, published in January of this year.


Looking for author Julie Shelton online? Find her here: 
Amazon author page: http://amzn.to/IEAADL
Website:  http://bit.ly/Nn2gPE
Facebook author page:  http://on.fb.me/19nGsh2
LinkedIn Profile:  http://linkd.in/1gYBG9p
 

Smelling the Roses

Image by Alfred Borchard

Like the average person, I have a whole slew of things I'd call faults or flaws, but at the moment I'm thinking the biggest one is the trouble I have with stopping to smell the roses. Somehow, I'm always focused on what I have to do next or what's coming up in the future. The only time I'm fully relaxed is when I'm asleep. Sometimes my mind is on work. You know, instead of being fully present for a walk out in the fresh air, I'm thinking about a freelance article I have to write later. Sometimes it's fun stuff. Like while I'm watching a movie, I'm thinking about an upcoming vacation. The problem is, whether it's work or play, always looking ahead keeps me from enjoying the present. And I'm starting to think it's preventing me from fully living.

My toddler is the perfect opposite of me when it comes to this. When we're out on a walk or in the yard, she's crouching down to stare at an ant or picking up a rock to feel its weight and texture. And she's fully engrossed. If I want to take her inside, it's hard work because she's so fully involved in whatever she's doing. Even enticing her with things I know she likes doesn't tear her away, at least not without kicking and screaming. And let me just say this little person is interested in everything. She notices every bee, stick, bug, flower, bird, or plane that comes into view. I love watching her little face light up when she sees a ladybug and the huge grin she gets when she hears a puppy bark or a bird tweet. I want to be more like that, taking life a little slower, taking the time to revel in more of the little things, and feeling less daily stress.

So often, I think Wow! This day went sooooo fast! And I definitely catch myself wondering how my 20 year old grew up so darned fast. I really don't want the time to fly by (except when I'm in line, at the dentist, or getting a pelvic exam), so I have to make more of an effort to stop and smell the roses without thinking about grocery shopping, my next oil change, or how many articles I have in my queue.

Here's hoping I can break this bad habit. Unfortunately, I'm not off to the greatest of starts. I've already made a mental list of 10 other things I need to do just in the time it took to write this post.

Fun Friday: Shrimp and Beer

For the first time in forever, I almost forgot today was Friday. I was so busy all day that it somehow felt like a Monday. When I actually remembered it was the start of the weekend, I felt like I'd won the damn lottery.

 As for the eats, I had some shrimp I'd frozen from last week when I had that cruddy cold and couldn't eat much. I also have some clams, but it was so hot and humid all day that my appetite wasn't the greatest. Rather than prepare a bunch of food I wasn't going to eat, I opted for the shrimp. Seafood is absolutely my favorite, so there's not a whole lot I haven't tried when it comes to shrimp, but I managed to find a Szechwan shrimp recipe to try out. And I decided to make some coconut shrimp as well, just in case I didn't love the Szechwan dish.

 Here are the recipes I tried:

Szechwan Shrimp
This one was pretty easy and didn't require a million ingredients. It included ketchup, which surprised me for some reason. I used raw shrimp, though the recipe calls for them to be pre-cooked. I was told that cooked shrimp might become rubbery when I added them to the sauce, and who needs that?

Coconut Shrimp
The coconut shrimp was pretty easy, except that it lead to a bit of ducking and weaving as I tried to avoid the popping cooking oil. Yeah, I'm afraid of the hot oil in the pan, and I'm only a little embarrassed to admit that. This recipe includes beer, which inspired my choice of beverage for the night.

The Drink:

I opted for a couple of ice-cold Coronas, which is totally cheating since beer is not at all new to me. I'll do better next week!

In the Spotlight: Author Michelle Roth

About Michelle Roth

Michelle Roth is a novelist from Los Angeles, California. When she’s not disappearing into foreign lands, or making two perfect strangers that she invented fall in love, she’s probably curled up somewhere with a glass of wine and a good book.
In her spare time she is typically hanging out with her awesome boyfriend and their two equally awesome cats. She likes taking road trips to nowhere in particular, cooking elaborate meals then making other people do the dishes, and being nerdy on the internet. Visit her blog at www.michelleroth.net for information on her latest releases, exclusive excerpts, and more.

Michelle's Latest Release:

Elle Thomas has had a crush on Jim Conroy for months now. Among their small circle of friends, they're the only two single people left. It makes sense that he might gravitate toward her at social events, and maybe even flirt a little bit, right? Elle can't help but want more, though.
Jim may be going insane. He's been chasing Elle for months. He's flirted with her, asked her out, and done everything else he could think of to get her attention short of skywriting his feelings. When Elle finally agrees to go out with him, things quickly heat up between them.
What starts out as a single spark of attraction between them quickly burns out of control. As they settle into the beginnings of a relationship, one moment will change their lives forever. Is their relationship strong enough to survive when reality sets in?

New Release! Available Now! Buy It Here: http://www.bookstrand.com/unexpectedly-yours

ADULT EXCERPT

Standing up now, he moved toward her. He’d been watching her mess with the hem of her dress since she’d arrived. He’d been getting small, tantalizing glimpses of her smooth thighs for the better part of an hour now. She was driving him crazy and seemed to have no idea.
She got off the couch now, smiling, and said, “I had almost given up on dinner.”
He pulled her into his arms and asked, “Would you mind putting off dinner a few minutes? I’ve got something I need to take care of.”
Looking at him curiously now, she said, “Oh?”
He nodded and the leaned down to take her mouth with his. Nibbling her bottom lip gently, he mumbled, “Super important.”
When she sighed against his lips, he deepened the kiss. As tongue swept into her mouth to tangle with hers, he stroked his hand down her back to press her even closer to him. His hands moved down to settle on the curves of her ass. He immediately heard a low moan in the back of her throat and felt himself harden.
Breaking his mouth away from hers, he trailed his lips down the side of her throat, pressing soft, biting kisses against her neck. When he gently sucked on the patch of flesh where her neck and shoulder met, he felt her shudder slightly against him. She pressed closer and rolled her hips against him.
Groaning, he pulled his mouth away from her shoulder and said, “Every time you messed with the hem of your dress, it gave me this overwhelming desire to bury my face between your thighs. Would you mind?”
He felt her sharp intake of breath, then a moment later she laughed and said, “Literally anytime you want to, I can make myself available for that.”
With a groan, he captured her mouth with his again. The kiss grew wild, quickly. Her hands slid around his waist and up his back. She pulled him until he was flush against her. The only thing that separated them was clothing and he had every intention of correcting that particular issue very soon.
He moved them slowly back toward his desk and sat her on the edge, pushing the skirt of her dress up. Standing between her thighs now, he pulled back from the kiss. Pressing his lips to her throat again, he began swirling his tongue against her skin.
He cupped one breast in his palm and felt her nipple pebble under his touch as he moved his fingers against it. He continued to massage her breast gently with his palm until he heard her breathing increase slightly. He moved his hand lower to the damp heat between her thighs and discovered that the filmy lace was soaked.
On a groan, he sank to his knees. Helping her shift, he pulled the panties down her legs and slid them over the heels she wore. He stared at her now and felt another wave of lust hit him. He could see the evidence of her arousal against the now bare lips of her pussy.
He used his thumb and forefinger to spread her open and leaned forward. Running his tongue in a circular motion around her swollen clitoris, he heard her sharp intake of breath. When he slid two fingers into her tight channel, she gave a moan.
Pumping them into her with a steady rhythm, he shifted his mouth slightly, making direct contact with her clit for the first time. He felt her flutter around his fingers as she cried out. Working his fingers against her, he rubbed the flat of his tongue in time with the press of his hand.
She was whimpering with each stroke of his tongue and he could feel her tightening and fluttering around his fingers.

Character Interview: James Conroy

1) Please describe your character. Then answer the rest of the questions from his or her point of view.
James Conroy. 6'3 and BUILT.  Light mocha skin, 5 o'clock shadow. Short hair. Think Shemar Moore-esque.

2) It's Saturday afternoon and you have no particular place to go. What do you do with your time? And what do you wear while doing it?
Usually on Saturdays, I'm hitting the gym and then catching up on yard work. Once that's done, I usually hang out with Deacon or Chris. There's always a sporting event somewhere.

3) When and with whom did you have your first kiss? Briefly describe it.
Jennifer Wallace. In sixth grade, and it was awkward. Thankfully I've had time to practice since then. I'm pretty sure I had no idea what the hell I was doing.

4) How old were you when you lost your virginity? What kind of experience was it?
Amy Lowenbrau. I was 15 and she was 16. It was brief. That's when I realized that I was quite.. uh.. large. And that some women might not be able to accommodate that.  Let's move on?

5) What is your favorite food? Is there any food you hate?
I try to eat clean, so I'd love to say it's chicken and brown rice but it isn't. I love a nice juicy steak with bleu cheese crumbles on top. I absolutely hate kale. It's just gross.

6) What's your favorite sexual position? Why?
Woman on top. She controls the motion so I know she's enjoying herself. Plus I'm a breast guy, so ...

7) What's the craziest place you've ever had sex?
I'm a fairly traditional guy, for the most part. I have this hammock in my back yard I'd like to try out though...

8) What do you wear to bed?
Nothing. It just twists and annoys me.

9) If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
Between running a company and all of the other social obligations, I never have enough down time. I'd love to be able to just sit down and read a book, ya know? I'd learn how to say no to people. That's what I'd change.

10) What's your best feature?
I'm loyal. I think that's really important. The world is full of some pretty crappy people. It's good to know who's really on your team.

11) What are your pet peeves?
People who chew with their mouths open. Drives me insane.

Friday 7/25: Irish Cream Ice Pops

I had a delicious seafood meal and a cocktail planned for this Friday, but a rather nasty summer cold has thrown a monkey wrench in that. It started with the 14 year old, spread to the toddler, and has now come to plague me with a sore throat and an awful, awful cough. Needless to say, clams, crab legs, and booze just don't hold much appeal for me right now. I'll save that for next week.

Somehow, I'm still in the mood to make something new this week, even if I don't feel like eating it. So, I decided on Irish Cream Ice Pops. They sound absolutely delicious, and I can't wait to try them once my taste buds return to normal and my throat no longer feels like its on fire.

Here's the recipe:

Irish Cream Ice Pops

1 Cup Irish cream liqueur
3/4 Cup Greek yogurt
1.5 Cups vanilla pudding
3/8 Cup cream
1 Teaspoon vanilla extract 


Here's how you make these:

1. Pour liqueur in a saucepan and bring it to a boil. Once it has come to a boil, remove it from the heat. Let it cool, and make sure you still have at least 3/4 cup of liqueur once it has boiled.
2. Pour the cooled liqueur and the rest of the ingredients into a bowl.
3. Mix the ingredients together, just until everything is combined very well.
4. Pour the mixture into ice pop molds (Ikea sells these for super cheap).
5. Freeze your ice pops overnight.

This would probably work just as well with other liqueurs. Give your favorite a try. As for me, these ice pops will give me something to look forward to once this cold passes. In the meantime, I'm not interested in much other than chicken soup and tea with honey and lemon.

Writing Process Blog Hop

Fellow sireniesta Michelle Roth nominated me to participate in a fun blog hop about the writing process, so here goes:

A little About Michelle

Michelle Roth is a novelist from Los Angeles, California. When she’s not disappearing into foreign lands, or making two perfect strangers that she invented fall in love, she’s probably curled up somewhere with a glass of wine and a good book.

In her spare time she is typically hanging out with her awesome boyfriend and their two equally awesome cats. She likes taking road trips to nowhere in particular, cooking elaborate meals then making other people do the dishes, and being nerdy on the internet. 

Her books are currently available on http://www.bookstrand.com/michelle-roth.

Michelle's blog:  http://michelleroth.net/

A Little About Me

I’ve been writing forever, so having my work published has been a dream come true. My first book, Taking Chances, is a MF erotic paranormal romance that came out in March! My current release, The Secret-Keeper’s Choice, is a menage (MFM)--also an erotic paranormal romance.
As a child, I'd get lost in books for hours, using a flashlight to read under the covers long past my bedtime. I read my first romance novel as a preteen and was immediately hooked by the swoon-worthy heroes and daring, spunky damsels. Though my reading tastes have definitely matured, I still devour romance novels, especially those of the erotic, paranormal, fantasy, and historical variety.
I like just about all types of romance books, but stories that include adventure, intrigue, or danger have always excited me. If they incorporate some science fiction too, I’m even happier. For my own books, I try to write strong heroines who can fight their own battles but sometimes enjoy letting the hero take the lead.

Find my books here: http://www.bookstrand.com/suzette-rose-cauler.

1) What are you working on?

Right now, I have three works in progress. That's right, three. Somehow I'll get going with a book, get another idea, and have to write about it. The WIP that is nearly done is the first book in a wolf-shifter series. I'm so excited about it. It's a menage, and the characters are really living for me. And, of course, I'm totally in love with my heroes. *sigh*

2) How does your work differ from others in your genre?

Well, all I can say is I'm unique, so my work is just naturally different because I'm creating it. Give a bunch of writers a single plot line, and they'll come up with a slew of different stories, all from unique perspectives. I have so many authors that I idolize, but I take pride in the fact that no one has a voice or a view exactly like mine.

3) Why do you write what you write?

Well, I've been reading romance books for longer than I can remember, and I've always loved them. One thing, though, is that I have never been a big fan of the closed-door romantic scenes. I want to know exactly how the sparks fly when the characters are alone together. That's why I write what I write.

4) How does your writing process work?

Hmmm...It works sort of like this: 

1. Get an idea that just won't go away. Try to ignore it while I get things done.
2. See scenes from the book in my head while I'm in the shower, at the grocery story, working, driving, and trying to sleep.
3. Sit down to write and have words pour out of me until the wee hours of the morning. Forget to sleep and suffer the next day.
4. Try to write at a more steady pace in between working and chasing children around the house. 
5. End up back at number 3 all over again--and again, and again.

Seriously, it goes like that for the most part. I tend to get most of my writing done late at night when everyone else is asleep. It's quiet, and I can think straight then. I'm more of a panster than a plotter, so I pretty much just write as the thoughts come to me.

And now, here are the three authors I roped into participating with me. Be sure to check them out!

Jordan Ashley
Lynn Davidson
Rhiannon Ayers