A Debut Not To Be Missed.

What a week for good news! Another friend, mystery writer Kate Carlisle, will see her debut novel HOMICIDE IN HARDCOVER hit the bookstore shelves on February 3rd! It's the first in a new bibliophile series. I'm so, so thrilled for her!!

And HOMICIDE IN HARDCOVER also garnered 4 1/2 Stars from Romantic Times Book Review! Here's RT's review:

"This first in a new series is going to launch Carlisle to a bestselling position and have readers looking forward to the next installment of delightfully eccentric characters, droll dialogue and a meticulously planned crime. Bibliophile heroine Brooklyn Wainwright is brilliant, feisty and funny."

About the book (from Amazon):

"The streets of San Francisco would be lined with hardcovers if rare book expert Brooklyn Wainwright had her way. And her mentor wouldn’t be lying in a pool of his own blood on the eve of a celebration for his latest book restoration.

With his final breath he leaves Brooklyn a cryptic message, and gives her a priceless—and supposedly cursed—copy of Goethe’s Faust for safekeeping.

Brooklyn suddenly finds herself accused of murder and theft, thanks to the humorless—but attractive—British security officer who finds her kneeling over the body. Now she has to read the clues left behind by her mentor if she is going to restore justice…"

Kate Carlisle is running a contest all this week in anticipation of the release of her novel. She's giving away a Launch Party Package chock full of good things... be sure to check it out. :)

Take Care,

Michele

Feeling Lucky? Here's Your Chance to Defray Your Conference Costs.

I realize I'd already posted the information for this raffle back on September 5th, 2008, but seeing as the economy has really taken a dive since then and registration has just opened for RWA National... I thought perhaps some of you may be interested.

This raffle offers a chance at defraying the cost of attending RWA National. That's a nice deal, should you win! :)

The proceeds of the The 2nd Annual VFRW Writers’ Rafflemania will benefit the Sheila A. Conway Memorial Fund.

Good Luck!

Michele

***permission to forward granted***

Go to RWA National in Washington DC for FREE*

With the opening of registration last week for the RWA National Conference, here's a way to defray your costs:

Valley Forge Romance Writers Presents

The 2nd Annual VFRW
Writers' Rafflemania!
The Prize: *$ 1,500.00 Check To Defray Your Costs For…
2009 RWA National Conference Fee!
Held In Washington, DC
July 15-18, 2009

Raffle tickets cost $5.00 each or (3) for $10.00.
Grand Prize drawn on March 27, 2009.
All entries must be postmarked by February 28, 2009 and received by March 13, 2009.
Checks received after March 13, 2009 will be returned.
Prize is non-transferable.

Rules and information: http://www.vfrw.com/raffle/
or email: JudiFennell@JudiFennell.com

Some Good News.

I want to share some more good news with you today. Yay for good news!

Friend and USA Today bestselling author Maureen Child has a couple of books out right now, a paranormal romance with Signet Eclipse titled Bedeviled and a Silhouette Desire titled An Officer and a Millionaire.

Firstly, Bedeviled earned a Starred Review from Booklist! Here's the quote: "Clap if you believe in Faeries and even if you don't, you can applaud Maureen Child's heartwarming, hilarious adventure, a ticket to the fantastic Otherworld and back." Wonderful.

Here's a little blurb about Bedeviled: "Maggie Donovan isn’t interested in overthrowing a Faerie queen. She barely had time to kill the demon that devoured her fiancé. Then she comes home to find a scrumptious hunk in her living room who informs her that saving the Otherworld just happens to be her destiny, and Maggie realizes she may not have a choice…"

Secondly, Maureen's book, An Officer and a Millionaire has been #1 on Walden's Bestseller list for TWO weeks already! (Here's to a continued run at #1, Maureen! Hey, that rhymes.)

And more good news. Today on her blog, Jennifer Lyon has posted an interview with Maureen and a lucky commenter will win a free copy of Bedeviled! Pretty cool. :)

So be sure to head over to Jen's blog and check out Maureen's interview...You might win a free book. :)

Take Care,

Michele

P.S.

Way to go, Maureen!

More Contest Info.

I thought some of you might be interested in the information for OCC/RWA's 26th Annual Orange Rose Contest, so I've posted an overview of the details. As you can see from reading below, quite a few editors become involved in the final round, so it's a pretty cool contest... And it's obviously well established! :)

Good Luck!!

Michele

P.S. Oh, and please don't forget: Jennifer Lyon is holding a cyber book launch for her newest book, BLOOD MAGIC... Hop on over to her site and enter her contest to win some great prizes!!

* * * * PERMISSION TO FORWARD * * * *

26th ANNUAL ORANGE ROSE CONTEST FOR UNPUBLISHED WRITERS

Deadline: April 11, 2009
Enter: Synopsis and beginning of unpublished manuscript (55 pages maximum)
Categories: Contemporary Category Romance, Historical, Inspirational,
Mainstream w/Romantic Elements, Paranormal/Time Travel/Fantasy, Romantic Suspense, Erotic Romance (New!), Single Title Romance (over 70,000 words)
New: Revised score sheet for Mainstream category entries (Sample available at www.occrwa.org)

Fees: OCC-RWA members - $25.00
Other RWA members - $30.00
Non-U.S. resident RWA members ONLY - electronic entry - $32.50

First round judges: 3 published authors

Top ten finalists will be announced July 11, 2009 and are chosen by their overall score, NOT by category. Finalist manuscripts are judged by two editors who acquire in the appropriate category for the finalist entry(ies) and are selected AFTER the finalists are determined. The final round editor/judges in 2008 were:

Allison Brandau, Berkley
Alicia Condon, Dorchester
Melissa Endlich, Steeple Hill
Keyren Gerlack, Luna, HQN
Alex Logan, Grand Central
Selina McLemore, Grand Central
Lindsay Nouis, NAL
Charlene Patterson, Bethany House
Danielle Poiesz, Pocket Books
Erika Tsang, Avon/Harper Collins
Adam Wilson, MIRA/HQN

Cash prizes: 1st - $100, 2nd - $75, 3rd - $50, 4th - $25

Rules and Entry Form: www.occrwa.org
Questions: Charlotte Lobb, Contest Coordinator or Linda McLaughlin,
Electronic Entries Coordinator orangerose@occrwa.org

A Cyber Book Launch Party for BLOOD MAGIC

Over the next five weeks, my good friend, Jennifer Lyon, is throwing a Cyber Book Launch for the first book in her newest paranormal romance series, BLOOD MAGIC! And you know what? Romantic Times Book Review gave this book a 4 1/2 Stars HOT! It's one of their highest ratings... How awesome is that? RT's review: “Witchcraft, magic and dark curses take on a new twist in Lyon’s action-packed series launch.”

Over on her brand new website, Jennifer Lyon will be giving away cool prizes... So be sure to head over there and check it out! (http://jenniferlyonbooks.com/)

Oh, and feel free to tell your friends too! :)

Take Care and Good Luck!!

Michele

Reaching Out.

Okay, so I'm slowly getting back into the swing of things here... But I do have some news:

Firstly, many of you who visit this blog probably already know about the fire that burned down fellow blogger Travis Erwin's house last weekend. Fortunately, he, his wife and two boys are safe... thank God. But they lost nearly everything.

Erica Orloff and Stephen Parrish have set up a site where one can donate cash or send something via Amazon to help the Erwin family rebuild their lives. You can find more information about it here: http://habitatfortravis.blogspot.com/

If there's one thing my family and I have learned over the past nine months, it's how ready and willing friends, or perfect strangers, are to reach out and give a helping hand when one is going through a crisis... even if it's just to give encouragement and words of support. It's a humbling experience to realize those people are out there and that they care. We literally had thousands of folks pulling for Matt and the family, and the support came from the most amazing and surprising places (more on that in another blog).

This is why I'm so pleased to see so many reach out to Travis and his family as they deal with this. It does seem that everywhere I turn, someone is dealing with a major life-changing crisis. Sigh.

*****

Secondly, some FANTASTIC news:

Matt is HOME!!! Because he progressed so well after the Bone Marrow Transplant, he was released from the hospital several weeks early! He still has a long, long ways to go, but he's "free" from the tiny, sterile hospital room and back in the comfortable surroundings of his own room. :)

We're so thrilled to have him home!! And of course, incredibly proud of him for fighting his way through hell and back. Way to go, Matt.

Thank you again to everyone who reached out to us in support. You truly have no idea how much that means to us.

Take Care,

Michele