Chat with Anastasia Plum from Keeper of the Golden Dragon's Heart by Gemma K. Murray

Well, our lovely Gemma K. Murray had intended on blogging today, but she’s a little busy working on Book 3 in the Cedar River series. I’m Anastasia Plum and I thought I’d help one of my favorite women out. After all, she managed to help me catch my favorite flyboy, Bowie. Oops, speak of the devil himself, here he comes.

Bowie: What are you doing, babe? (cocking an eyebrow)

Ana: I’m helping Gemma. She’s so busy working on Brady and Silver’s story and I know how important this is to her.

Bowie: (shaking head) Darlin’, do you know what you’re doing?

Ana: (glares at Bowie) Are you saying I can’t manage to tell our story without screwing it up? Get out, Bowie! (points finger toward the front door)

Bowie: (bends to kiss his wife) I never said that, but I love you. Take it easy today. (waves to the readers)

Ana: That man aggravates me! Okay, where was I? Oh right, let me tell you about the woman who I blessed with our story.

Her name is Gemma K. Murray and she resides in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I watched her for a while before deciding this was the author to tell the stories of Cedar River and their residents.

See, Gemma had a hard time believing in her talent, so her writing career was simply not a career. One night I snuck into her dreams and allowed the story to unfold. We butted heads, she and I. Foolish woman tried to make me a wolf-shifter. (I stopped speaking to her for about a week over that mistake!) Finally, the story was finished. Bowie and I told everyone in Cedar River about Gemma. They began to clamor at the gates of her dreams, begging for their story to be told as well. When Keeper of the Golden Dragon’s Heart was released in March, Gemma cried, but she returned to her keyboard and began Adam Thomas’ story. Once again, foolish woman thought she knew whose story to tell next…she was wrong.

(Ana takes a sip of her tea and nibble of chocolate) Let’s see, I should tell you about Cedar River. Cedar River is a small community set along the shores of Lake Superior in the U.P. Shifters of every shape and size call Cedar River home. We’ve managed to stay hidden for many years, but now there are some religious zealots who think shifters need to be destroyed. Keeper of the Golden Dragon’s Heart allows the reader to step into our world.

Do you want to see the cover? The artist made me look FINE!

 

Blurb-The Upper Peninsula of Michigan seems like it is another country. The rawness and beauty of the land draws people from every walk of life. What most people don't realize is there is a little town nestled on the banks of Lake Superior that an entire group of supernatural beings call home. Shifters of every shape and size live there. They raise their families there. Tourists come from near and far to visit the quaint town of Cedar River, Michigan. The tourists never realize they are walking among some of the most unusual beings on earth.

Bowie Golden is a dragon shifter who is in charge of Cedar River's safety. Until now, the biggest threat to anyone's safety was Anastasia Plum, a witch/puma-shifter. She has been the town hellraiser since she was a teenager. Now someone has discovered the secret the residents of Cedar River keep for one another. These radicals are determined to eradicate the entire town. It's up to Bowie to keep them all safe.

Ana has always idolized Bowie. She may have stirred up trouble from time to time, but Bowie or one of his brothers would always get her out of the trouble she was in. One day, it happened. The unthinkable, the unimaginable occurred. Anastasia Plum fell for the "golden" boy. What an unlikely duo- the sheriff and the hellraiser!

Just as these two discover their passion for one another, a group of people is determined to keep them apart. It's up to Ana to prove that she is the only Keeper of the Golden Dragon's Heart.

Ana:Doesn’t that sound like a great book? (I may be a little biased.) I promised Gemma I wouldn’t talk too long.

If you’re looking for a wonderful story, you can pick up Keeper of the Golden Dragon’s Heart for your e-reader at these places on the web:

Amazon

B&N- 

Coffee Time Romance e-bookstore

Leap of Faith Publishing 

Now, if you’re looking for Gemma, you can find her here:

Website- http://gemmakmurray.com (She’s got some great stuff on there.)

Facebook- http://www.facebook.com/GemmaKMurray

Goodreads- http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5781668.Gemma_K_Murray

And I (along with Adam’s lady, Luna McIntyre) “encouraged” Gemma to start up a Cedar River series Facebook page. This way, we can interact with the readers. At any given time, there will be a resident of Cedar River available to answer any questions you might have.

Cedar River Series on Facebook- http://www.facebook.com/CedarRiverSeries

Stop by and chat with all of us. Prove to Gemma I, I mean, we weren’t wrong in asking her to do this for us.

On behalf of Gemma, I want to say “Thank you” for allowing us to come visit with you today! I had a blast and I know Gemma will be on to answer any questions a little later on. The woman has to take a break sometimeJ Have a bright and beautiful day filled with blessings! Bye-bye!

One month, and the countdown is definitely on.

It's only one month now until Gothic hits the virtual bookshelves, and this little brown duck is starting to get just a little bit excited. 

A couple of things have happened in the last little while, most of it on the Leap of Faith website. Last time I posted to promote this little work, I know I had a friend of mine ask about where my name was on the list of 'coming soon' books and/or authors. And now, Ta Da!!

http://www.leapoffaithpublishing.com/Nicole%20D.%20Fergusson.html

Does this change me? Does the promise of instant fame, riches and adoration transform who I am at some basic level? Does it inflate my ego, make me feel like my hours spent slaving over my laptop lifeline are all worthwhile now?

Mostly, Gothic's release date makes me keenly aware that there is a sequel novel that I need to finish polishing up, and 20 pages of notes in another document for a third novel in this series that I still need to round up the time to write up. As for instant fame, riches and adoration... I think I'll just settle for picking up a second contract after this one ;)

But I'm chuffed. About Gothic and about having that first book published in a number of years, I definitely feel chuffed. :)

Anyone who has had anything at all to do with writing/editing/publishing knows that this is not a quick process. I first started writing Gothic in October last year, got the acceptance letter for Gothic back in February of this year, and with edits, formatting, cover art and everything else, this project will span almost a full year of work. I'm not the only one who's invested a lot of time and energy into this book. My publisher has kept me awash with how excited she is about this book, how excited she is to have readers devouring it. My editor has kept me humble and continued to insist that dashes are needed where ellipses currently sit. My friends have reblogged my Tumblr posts on their own sites with beautiful messages convincing any and all that they should, must, will buy Gothic if they have anything to do about it.

And, of course, there's my beautiful fiancee, who brought me tea and hot chocolate when I was writing the first draft of Gothic for several hours a day in the space of a week. Who went on long walks talking about this book during the editing process. Who has checked in with me every couple of weeks or whenever it's been a little while since he heard something new on the book front.

Who is singularly to blame for inspiring the 20 pages of notes on the third book, most of which was dot pointed before the second book even got to polishing stages. 

And who puts my dream of writing first a lot of the time. 

I'm really looking forward to having this book out. I'm really looking forward to sharing that moment with every single one of these people.

New Title 'Gothic' by Nicole D. Fergusson

Goodness, it's been a while since I posted here, hasn't it? I come to you today, fresh from my first day at a new job, thinking that I will have a couple of weeks away from my writing to recharge and re-energise after the last week of restructuring one novel, editing another and beginning two new ones. Here I am, ready to take the world by storm.

  

(in a couple of weeks) 

Then today, I get an email from my friendly, neighbourhood publisher. "Erm, ehm, promotion, promotion, promotion." Imagine me headdesking at this moment as I scratch my head and utter, 'I knew I forgot something...' So! Leap of Faith LLC have been kind enough to take a ... leap of faith :D ... with my new novel Gothic, which is in final stages of editing and awaiting cover art.

Gothic is the first in a new paranormal romance series sketched together in the middle of my Honours year last year (much less stressful than the writing I was actually researching and getting marked on, I tell you! (Anyone who has ever done an Honours year can tell you this is true.)) Of course, then I talked to my partner about this book I had just written and he said, 'So what happens if you did this next...?' and so a series was born.

But Gothic... I have had so much fun writing this story. It's a story of a human girl, Dahlia, who's mother died when she was eight. After her father ran away with grief, she was taken in by her vampire godmother and the rest of the werewolf pack of which her father had been a part. When the story starts, Dahlia has just moved out of home and wants to live the 'normal' life, i.e. a life without quite so much vampire and werewolf influence. In the first few weeks of class, she finds out that her godmother has contacted one of her vampire friends to watch over her. He, Elliott, ends up being one of her confidants. Another student, and human girl, Renee ends up being another close friend.

Hijinx ensue! Time for some more visual assist:

Renee meets our girl Dahlia through her normal university boyfriend. She's super cute and acts about half her age because she wants to get the university experience "just right". Elliott is another supernatural featuring in Dahlia's full supernatural dance card. He is of the mild snark and general hilarity, and claims at times to have brushed elbows with such popular figures as Lord Byron and Bram Stoker.

One of the best parts of this story is that I have clear images for both of these characters. The lovely actors who are acting as muses in my head right now are none other than the lovely Ms Ksenia Solo from Lost Girl and Mr Ian Somerhalder (nicknamed 'Smoulderhalder' with good reason by fellow cast mate AND GIRLFRIEND Nina Dobrev) from The Vampire Diaries. Say what you will about these shows, but these two people are gorgous. Anyone who knows me will know I shamelessly fangirl this TV series that is based on the L. J. Smith series of books from my childhood.

So that's me and mine for in the last little while. More news and excerpts to come next time I get a chance to be on the computer.

Because He Needs me

Because He Needs Me/Lynn Granville published by Leap of Faith in ebook and print is a sweet medical reminiscent of the line by Mills and Boon. It was given a four star review recently and praised for it's style. This book is a story of selfless love and contains mild sex scenes so its for people who want a love story in the old style .

A new book called The Bastard will be coming from Leap of Faith and Anne Ireland soon - this one is a saga set in the 1920's through to WW11 Hope you enjoy. If you would like a feww copy of any of my Anne Ireland books in ebook, just mail me at linda'Lindasole.co.uk

My New Release: Heart Song

Heart Song 

Released June 29, 2012
ISBN: 9781476235066
Short Story 53 pages
Publishing by Rebecca Vickery Publishing

Facing death might change Gideon’s life.

Blurb:

Gideon thought he had the perfect life as a musician with a beautiful model as his girlfriend, until he was diagnosed with breast cancer.

Ashamed and afraid he may die, Gideon hits bottom when his girlfriend dumps him for a real man.

Hope comes in the form of his father’s ghost and a person he has just met. Can he beat the odds and survive? And if he does, can he ever find happiness again?

Excerpt:


Maybe it was the morphine that caused him to slip into some kind of hallucination or maybe he was just dreaming—or wishing. The room appeared filled with white fog so thick that nothing remained visible beyond the bed where he lay. A fragrance drifted on the fog almost like a memory of forest, pungent cedar, rich, leaf-covered earth and sun warmed water.
Gideon knew before the form appeared through the fog to stand at the foot of his bed that his father had come to him. He closed his eyes against the visage and yearned for it to be real even though he knew it couldn’t be. His parents had died two years ago in a car accident. But, when he blinked his eyes open once again, his dad was still there—a slim, tall man wearing waders and a fishing hat over his thick, silver hair. A narrow fringe of white mustache graced his upper lip as he smiled that lopsided way that Gideon remembered so well. He seemed so real that Gideon felt a lump of suppressed emotions form in his throat and wanted to cry with pure joy. All he could manage to say in a whisper was, “Pop? Is that you?”

BUY LINKS:


Amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Song-ebook/dp/B008G1GKJ0/
Smashwords
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/177196
Monkeybars
https://www.monkeybars.net/PbRJV
https://www.monkeybars.net/monkey/thing/5585f4cdefcaaa1f6d7fabaf22ced78e
COVER CODE:
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKG4mcZS3vaPUcrkQhHh9_x6D08toMhHqhc9AB11KuVFFw4lIDxeQe1ehjwvybYhyALUxFD3QK5uMLoglZATtihKDINQ3-ek2VYe9StyKYGkk0UNyIuzTYPYGC80ZIQKg-9bg5LztQ29I/s320/Heart+song+Cover.jpg

MY Amazon Page for Heart Song
http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Song-ebook/dp/B008G1GKJ0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341074735&sr=8-1&keywords=Heart+Song+by+Sarah+McNeal

I'll be giving away a free copy of HEAR SONG on Thursday. All you have to do to have a chance to win is leave a comment. Pretty easy, isn't it? Here's the tag to my blog on July 5th.
Sarah’s Provocative Ponderings:  http://pasttheprint.blogspot.com/
I hope to see you there!
In the meantime, have a wonderful Fourth of July and be safe if you're traveling.

A Sample of the World’s Most Romantic Love Poems by Libby Mercer

John Harrington, the hero of my debut novel, Fashioning a Romance, has a few personality quirks, one of which is randomly spouting off quotes from a wide variety of books and poems. So in the spirit of John’s compulsion to quote – and because Fashioning a Romance is indeed a romance – I thought I’d compile a list of the most romantic love poems I can find. Some of them are pretty long, so I’ve just taken my favorite bits out to share with you here. And here they are, in no particular order:

1.      How Do I Love Thee? (Sonnet 43) by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

I know. It’s not exactly a revolutionary choice, but Browning’s poem encompasses so much in so few words. It’s timeless.

“I love thee to the depth and breadth and height

My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight”

“Smiles, tears of all my life; and, if God choose,

I shall but love thee better after death.”

2.     I carry your heart with me by e. e. cummings

I challenge you not to sigh wistfully after reading this poem in its entirety. It really is so beautiful.

“I carry your heart with me (I carry it in

my heart) I am never without it”

“I fear

no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) I want

no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)”

3.     Rememberings by Peter Robson

Thank goodness for Google and the Internet. Otherwise I never would have found this little gem by a contemporary poet I’d never heard of before.

“I also know for me you’re the one

In spirit, body and soul

Forever, whenever, wherever you be

You are the half of my whole”

4.     To My Dear and Loving Husband by Anne Bradstreet

Nearly four hundred centuries after this poem was penned, the warmth from these words is almost palpable. Talk about your warm fuzzies…

“If ever two were one, then surely we.

If ever a man were lov’d by wife, then thee.”

“My love is such that Rivers cannot quench,

Nor ought but love from thee give recompense.”

5.     La Vita Nuova by Dante Alighieri

This may seem like an odd choice. Dante’s poem is simple and straightforward, not flowery (which I mean in a good way!) like the others, but it really spoke to me. It’s a short poem, so here it is in its entirety:

“In that book which is

My memory…

On the first page

That is the chapter when

I first met you

Appear the words…

Here begins a new life”

What can I say? The concept that the moment when two soul mates sparks a new life gives me a warm, tingly feeling.

Also, I was thrilled to find this poem by Dante, as there’s a pivotal scene in Fashioning a Romance when John and his new love, Caitlyn, stand before Rodin’s iconic sculpture “The Kiss” which, as I learned, is based upon two actual historic characters whose story is revealed in Dante’s Inferno. I love it when things all come together full circle like this.

I had a blast researching art and literature for Fashioning a Romance. I hope you enjoyed my list and that I was able to incite a smile or even a wistful sigh.

Visit with Ciara Lake

Hello Moonlight Romance Blog, thank you for having me.  I’m Ciara Lake and very excited to communicate with readers and authors. 

Writing is a joy.  The moment it becomes no longer joyous I will feel different about it.  But for now I rush home to write.  I have a difficult day job where escape from it is wonderful.  I love to escape into my worlds of fiction.   I can manipulate these fantasy worlds as I wish.  How great is that!  I sometimes just spend time thinking about my plots, sort of like daydreaming as a therapy.  I jot down notes I later use when weaving my new worlds. 

                This new career has helped me make some great friends and or collogues.   Patricia, Elise, Regina, Pam and the list is growing.  I’ve worked with great publishers too.  I believe we all share the dream to be successful while having fun writing.  To me writing is like art.  I create art as I write a new world into existence.  It’s like painting with words. 

                If you are interested in writing… get started.  For so many years I dreamed of writing and did not do it.  Then one day I decided to write and the rest is history.  I was lucky to find someone to mentor me.   I suggest reading, communicating on blogs and you can find a mentor to help you as well.  There are secrets to the industry just like in any career.  A mentor can help you find your way making it an easier venture.  

                In June I am going to a convention with Lori Foster, Reader’s Get Together in Ohio.  I am very excited to go visit with other authors and fans.  Some of the authors there are favorites of mine.  That will be nice to meet them.  This author world is so different from being a lawyer, it’s refreshing.  It’s exciting and fun.  I am really grateful to those you enjoy my books.  Thank you for reading them.  I welcome any suggestions or comments to me directly about my books too.

Please read the series I am writing with Elise Whyles.  The series is a new twist on Vampires and other immortals.  One of my biggest joys is brain storming with Elise regarding our stories.  Working together to get the world and characters to come to life is exhilarating.    

                May 21, 2012 my next book is going to be released with Beachwalk Press, Curse of A Dragon’s Claim, Forsaken series book 2.  I am very excited for this series to launch.  Elise Whyles book was already released in April, Forsaken Heart.   Enjoy this new twist on immortals among us.  

Curse of a Dragon's Claim by Ciara Lake
The Forsaken Series, Book 2
Genre(s): Erotic Paranormal Romance
Digital ISBN: 9781937325268
Length: Novel
Publication Date: May 21, 2012
Price: $5.50

The flame within a dragon warrior's heart awakens Arianna's passion as she begins a journey in which she will discover she's something more than she ever imagined possible.

The realm of the dragons is a world of magic, danger, and mystery. For centuries they've been at war with the vampires, but now the two enemies must work together to save all immortals, and the mortals they co-exist with, from an ancient evil. In order to do so, they need the help of the Forsaken, descendants of immortals who were cast out into the human realm, their memories wiped clean of their true heritage.

Clayne MacDagon is a powerful dragon warrior who is sent on a mission to find one of the Forsaken. Although he's told that this woman is his fated mate, he can't believe it could possibly be true. Arianna Mergliano possesses both dragon and vampire blood, and Clayne has an intense hatred for anything even remotely related to vampires, the evil beings who were responsible for his beloved twin's death.

When Arianna meets Clayne, she's convinced that the man is insane, or maybe he's a warlock or even the devil himself, but whichever it is, she wants nothing to do with him.

Clayne knows he can't fail at his mission. And once he meets Arianna he also knows that what he's been told is true—she is, ironically, his intended mate.

Convincing her to accept him is only the beginning. He has to protect her from those who might want her dead. Together, they must face the shadows and evil that have long plagued the immortal realms and find a way to survive the coming war.

Content Warning: graphic sex, some violence

Thank you, Ciara Lake.  

http://www.ciaralakeromancebooks.com