#WriteWed Plotting with Friends & Lucy the Elephant

This weekend I got together with some writing friends from the fabulous Liberty States Fiction Writers. If you write genre fiction, you should really check out this organization. They’ve also got a great conference coming up in March with a number of workshops as well as editor/agent appointments.

I’m in the process of writing ONE NIGHT OF PLEASURE and wanted to bounce some ideas off my friends. They were awesome in helping me firm up some issues that I had and right now I’m chugging along on the first draft of this novella. I’m loving Bridget who is my kind of girl. Laid back and more comfortable in jeans and work boots than a fancy gown or high heels.

Of course, her first sexy encounter with the hero, retired Navy Captain Mark Smith (who you met in STAY THE NIGHT) will put her out of her element and into those girly clothes she just hates.

Actually, you kind of hear about Bridget in ONE LAST NIGHT and you get to meet her at the end of STAY THE NIGHT.

I’m having fun so far in setting the opening of this story in an Atlantic City casino and researching where I’ll take Bridget and Mark in Margate. I got to stay in Margate once many many years ago and it’s the perfect setting for Mark’s home. If you are ever down in that area, make sure to check out Lucy the Elephant. Lucy is a national history landmark and is one of the last animal-shaped buildings in the world (I believe). It’s been used for several different things such as a restaurant and tavern and it had a nearby hotel. Here’s a photo of it and it’s sure to get a mention in the book.
lucytheelephant

I hope you enjoyed this behind the scenes look at my writer inspiration.

Egg Creams & Business Trips

Sorry for being silent, but I was away on business and it was impossible to blog. The trip went nicely. Business accomplished, delicious Kansas City BBQ tasted and even more awesome, I got to visit with some friends! Of course my little kitten Slate was not happy to see me go and wanted to sneak away with me!
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While I was away the topic of egg creams came up. Egg creams are a Brooklyn tradition and include neither eggs nor cream and are quite easy to make! Where does the name “egg cream” come from? Theories abound that it is because fountain sodas of that time sometimes had eggs and cream or that the name is a bastardization of either French or Yiddish words. Regardless, it’s a tasty treat.

Ingredients

1/2 cup 2% or Whole Milk (skim or 1% do not foam enough)
2 tablespoons Chocolate Syrup (Fox’s U-Bet is the most commonly used in Brooklyn)
Seltzer

Directions

Some people will tell you to put the milk in the glass and then add the seltzer, stir and add the chocolate after.

I think it’s more fun to put the chocolate in the bottom of the glass, add the milk and then pour in the seltzer while stirring. What you’ll get is a foamy chocolatey soda that’s lighter than an ice cream soda.

My family used to have a Cuban variation of the egg cream that involves putting about 2-3 tablespoons of condensed (not evaporated) milk in a glass and then adding a cola while stirring. Very tasty also, but very very sweet!

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend! See you Monday!
EggCream
Thanks to Jason Perlow for releasing these photos into the public domain.

#TeaserTuesday FIGHT FOR LOVE #Vampire #Romance Coming in Late Spring 2015

VAMPIRE REBORNI don’t normally share a WIP, but I am excited about continuing Diana and Ryder’s story for you! This little teaser is from FIGHT FOR LOVE which I hope to have for you in late spring 2015. This continues the story from VAMPIRE REBORN, although you do not have to have read that novella to read FIGHT FOR LOVE.

If you cannot see the excerpt below, you can click here to read the teaser from FIGHT FOR LOVE.

Upside Down Cornbread Cake and BE MINE Erotic Romance Release & #Giveaway #FoodieFriday

Happy Friday! Woo hoo we made it to the end of the week. I’ve got a busy weekend planned and I hope you have a great one.

Today I’m sharing a recipe that helps handle some of the leftovers from Thanksgiving. I love the Penguin Cornbread Mix from Costco, but always have a lot of it left over after the holiday. While we love cornbread in my house, I wanted to find a way to mix things up.

After checking out a few sites, I came across an upside down cake recipe from the fabulous Sunny Anderson and decided to adapt it to deal with the cornbread mix as well as the fruits I had handy, namely pears, apples and blueberries. You can actually make this with any fresh or canned fruit which is why I didn’t put any specific fruit name in the title. If using canned fruit, make sure to drain it well so you don’t water down the sauce for the topping.

Ingredients

2-3 cups fruit, sliced (except small fruits like blueberries)
1 cup brown sugar
1 stick of butter
1 cup rum/amaretto/or other sweet liquor
1 cornbread mix

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small saucepan, melt butter, add 1/2 cup brown sugar and still until dissolved. Add liquor and slow boil until the liquid is a little syrupy.

Make cornbread according to the mix and add the remaining 1/2 cup brown sugar.

Oil 9×13 inch pan. Layout the fruit in the bottom of the pan. Once the butter/sugar/alcohol mixture is syrupy, pour over the fruit. Then pour the cornbread mix over the fruit and syrup.

Bake for 30-45 minutes or until knife comes out clean from the cornbread. Let cool. Once cool, invert the cake onto another plate.

Serve with ice cream and/or whipped cream. The cake is dense and not too sweet. For those who need gluten free, this is a perfect recipe since corn does not have gluten. Just make sure to check the label of your cornbread mix to make sure there are no other products containing gluten.
Upside Down Cornbread Cake

BE MINE Valentine’s Day Erotic Romance Set

As I mentioned the other day, we’ve got an awesome box set for you for Valentine’s Day and it’s only 99 cents for a limited time. Check it out at these retailers:

Amazon: http://bit.ly/AMZBeMine
Amazon UK: http://bit.ly/AMZUKBeMine
Amazon CA: http://bit.ly/AMZCABeMine
Amazon AU: http://bit.ly/AMZAUBeMine
B&N: http://bit.ly/BNBeMine
Kobo: http://bit.ly/KoboBeMine

BE MINE — Ten Erotic Romances for Valentine’s Day features contemporary romance, paranormal romance, military romance, and BDSM romance from today’s New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors. This boxed set is ONLY available for a LIMITED TIME so get your copy before it’s gone.

So…won’t you Be Mine?

Be-Mine-99-Cent-Ad

a Rafflecopter giveaway

#ThrowbackThursday Lucky 7 Bad Boys

Good morning! Hard to believe it’s Thursday already and time for a throwback! This one is not that far a throw since it’s from the 2014 RT Conference in New Orleans. Check out some of the Lucky 7 Bad Boys authors enjoying breakfast at the awesome Cafe du Monde. It was such a treat for us to get together to celebrate making the NY Times and USA Today lists with our Lucky 7 Bad Boys box set. Guess what? We’re doing another set for you in March of 2015! I won’t spill the beans about the theme just yet, but I promise you will enjoy the seven stories in the set.
Lucky7ladiesRT

#WriteWed Inspiration for ONE NIGHT OF PLEASURE

In ONE LAST NIGHT you first hear about Maggie’s older sister Bridget Sullivan who is in the Army. You also get to meet Bridget toward the end of STAY THE NIGHT. You also are introduced to Captain Mark Smith, U.S. Navy, Retired, in STAY THE NIGHT. Mark runs a security company with multiple offices, including one in Atlantic City. The next novella in the Take a Chance series, ONE NIGHT OF PLEASURE, will take place in A.C. and will feature Bridget and Mark’s story.

Bridget’s occupation in the story was inspired by the work that I saw happening along the Jersey Shore after the Hurricane Sandy devastation. In addition to the towns rebuilding their boardwalks and streets, the Army Corps of Engineers came in during 2013/2014 to help replenish the beaches and dredge local inlets that had been affected by the storm. Here’s a photo of some of the beach replenishment courtesy of the US Army Corp of Engineers. You can click here to see more photos of the USACE dredges and works on the Jersey Shore.
USACE JerseyShore

In ONE NIGHT OF PLEASURE, Bridget was Army Reserves and called into active duty where she served honorably and received a Bronze Star for valor during combat. She’s back home and finishing her college degree. In the mean time, she’s working for a construction company that is assisting the Army Corps of Engineers with additional work along the Jersey Shore. Since she’s become friends with an assortment of ex-military in the Atlantic City area, she’s thrown together with Mark and the sparks fly! I hope you’ll enjoy ONE NIGHT OF PLEASURE when it’s available, hopefully in February.

For now, I’ll leave you with some photos of the Jersey Shore after Sandy.

#TeaserTuesday STAY THE NIGHT and the BE MINE Erotic Romance Box Set

Stay the Night Erotic RomanceIt’s wicked cold out there today! What better for such a chilly day than something to warm you up, namely an excerpt from my erotic military romance STAY THE NIGHT.

STAY THE NIGHT is specially priced at 99 cents, but it’s also part of the BE MINE Erotic Romance Box Set which is also specially priced at 99 cents for a limited time.

Blurb for Be Mine

Be Mine Erotic Romance

    Be Mine — Ten Erotic Romances for Valentine’s Day features contemporary romance, paranormal romance, military romance, and BDSM romance from today’s New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors. This box set is ONLY available for a LIMITED TIME so get your copy before it’s gone.

    So…Won’t you be mine?

    ~Ten Complete Stories, Professionally Formatted, Limited Release~

    Snowed in With the Tycoon by Shoshanna Evers
    When they get snowed in together on the same piece of land they’re each fighting for, unexpected desire sparks.

    Wrong Bride by Geri Foster
    Short, sexy, fun…

    Crashing Down by Cathryn Fox
    Will the fire they created turn to ash when truths come spilling out?

    Eternal Ever After by A.C. James
    BDSM and HOT alpha Vampires… Oh, my!

    The Erotic Dark (A BDSM Erotica Novel) by Nina Lane
    A downright dirty book!

    Stay the Night: A Navy Seal Erotic Romance by Caridad Pineiro
    He was the kind of man that every woman would want . . .

    Marley’s Ménage by Jan Springer
    Single, soon-to-be mom, Marley Madison’s latest cravings are downright…naughty, she wants a menage and she needs it bad.

    Heat Wave by Denise A. Agnew
    He’s one hot man she can’t resist

    Romance Quickies (Encounter 2) by Monique DuBois
    Brooke is determined to have a one-night stand, but will the sexy stranger let her ride him on the subway?

    Morgan’s Match by Krystal Shannan
    The biggest catch to being a matchmaker…you can’t work a spell on yourself.

If you can’t see the excerpt below, you can click here to read the STAY THE NIGHT teaser.

You can get the BE MINE Box Set at the following retailers! More are coming soon!

Amazon: http://bit.ly/AMZBeMine
B&N: http://bit.ly/BNBeMine