News and Reviews

News

I heard from my editor at Total E-bound that my submission, Forget Me Not, was accepted! It's tentatively scheduled for a September release. Squeeeee!

2 new reviews for my books.

The first is from Pam at Book Cravings: 5 Roses for Tinsel Time.
"Tinsel Time is a fun and fast paced adult Christmas fantasy with plenty of unexpected twists and turns to keep you guessing until the end."

The second is from Chamomile at Whipped Cream.

"Fool's Gold is an interesting saga of Native American forklore, treaure maps, and deception. Mixed in with dream visions nd missed opportunities made right, I found Mica and Rae's adventure to be an intriguing ride."

Lest We Forget

I want to say thank you to everyone in the Armed Services who gave their life and limbs to keep us free.


They went with songs to the battle, they were young.
Straight of limb, true of eyes, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,
They fell with their faces to the foe.
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.

Today is a very bittersweet day for me. My father, who proudly served his country for 20 years in the Air Force and then another 20 years as a civil servant is losing his battle with Altzheimers. This devestating disease has robbed him of family and friends. Although he has forgotten, he will not BE forgotten. Love you Daddy!

Passionate Ink Cyber Tour welcomes Sharona Nelson

Sharona Nelson Cyber Tour

COVER ME by Sharona Nelson (http://www.sharonanelson.com)
Amber Quill Press
ISBN: 978-1-59279-664-9 (Electronic)
ISBN: 978-1-59279-691-5 (Paperback)
Buy/Read Excerpt

COVER ME—the story of a single mom, a single man, and a health insurance plan…

Single mom Sunny Montgomery survived a lousy childhood with hippie parents as well as a terrible marriage with the cheating Kirk Stanley (AKA Kirk the Jerk), so she figured she could deal with whatever life threw at her. In short order, however, Sunny loses her job, car, health insurance, and life’s savings.

What’s a single mother to do? Get married, of course—though not for love.

Sunny accepts a marriage-of-convenience offer from her landlord, Ben Hart, so that she and Libbie, her asthmatic daughter, will have health insurance. The only problem is, she’s falling in love with him—despite the fact she thinks he’s gay. And, while she sometimes craves more distance from the temptation known as Ben, heaven knows that good, affordable apartments in Boston are as rare as winters without snow.

Through it all, Sunny perseveres. Whether beset by estranged hippie parents, money troubles, a creepy new boss, an is-he-or-isn’t-he faux husband, or the Boston mob, Sunny sustains herself with her inner strength, her best friend Dulcie, odd-duck neighbor Ray, and lots of mac-and-cheese, hot dogs, and ice cream. Oddly enough, what Sunny's daughter, Libbie, wants—comfort food and plenty of SpongeBob SquarePants on the tube—aren't fundamentally different from what Sunny wants—happiness and love.

Sunny's struggles teach us that making lemonade from life's abundant supply of lemons isn’t too difficult, as long as we follow our hearts...

So Sharona - With which character do you identify most closely?

I partially identify with the heroine, Sunny, but also equally identify with her nutty hippie mother, Daphne (“Daffy”). Because both characters have elements of me in them, COVER ME was a pure hoot to write. I was very much a hippie chick for many, many years, and still hold a lot of the same political values. I also have a grown daughter, so I know how the mother would feel about the estrangement with her daughter. But, because I’ve also dealt with difficult parental relationships in my own life, I perfectly understand why Sunny might want to keep her mother and father at arms’ length, and why she might feel pissed off at them.


Where did you get the idea for your latest book?

A long time ago, I was living with the man who’s now my husband. We’d never felt any special impulse to tie the knot, but when my ex said he planned to remarry, that meant I’d lose my health insurance. So, my live-in of nearly ten years and I got married. Though we do love each other, we had some fun with the wedding, including putting the initials of the health plan on the arch over the bride and groom atop the ice cream cake (ice cream cake because my daughter doesn’t like regular cake.)

I told the complete story of my wedding to someone once, and they said, “You should write a story about someone who gets married for health insurance.” The idea appealed to me, and the inspiration for COVER ME was born.

I spent most of my adult life in the Boston area, so setting the story there was a no-brainer. By the way, the information about health insurance options for the unemployed was accurate when the book went to press. But now Massachusetts has a completely different system. (Just wanted Massachusetts readers to know that yes, I do the research, but the Commonwealth changed the game on me when it was too late to revise the manuscript!)


Do you have a favorite comfort food?
Like my heroine, Sunny, and her daughter, Libbie, I love most all comfort food: old-fashioned macaroni and cheese (not some low-fat imitation), ice cream, homemade soups, rice pudding with lots of cinnamon and raisins. I love pretty much anything chocolate, though peanut butter’s a close second, and I’ve been known to go ga-ga over a rich, cinnamon-y coffee cake, too.

And coffee—I love coffee (any anything mocha). I would drink it 24 hours a day if it didn’t destroy my sleep. Starbucks is on my speed dial.

What advice would you give to aspiring romance writers?
Write what you love, because if you become a hit, readers are going to want more books in the same subgenre. That’s one of the best reasons not to write to market in some genre you don’t enjoy—you might end up with a career in it.

I also suggest you take the time to school yourself on the basics of grammar and story construction. It’s rare for an editor to buy a story whose mechanics aren’t the best.

Also—as they say in “Galaxy Quest” (and what a wonderful, silly movie that is)—Never give up! Never surrender!

Don’t quit trying, no matter what.

Thanks Sharona...and on that note, I'm off to write!

Hitting the Hot Spot

I'm over at Total E-bound today Hitting the Hot Spot. Come on over and see if you think I have what it takes to be a diva.

Diva-licious Update

The Romance Studio Diva Contest Round 2~

Well, I made it to the second round. Thanks to everyone who voted for my excerpt!

Now, you'll be looking at my website. Just a little background...it's my own work. No, I'm not that much of a computer geek, I know just enough HTML to make me really dangerous. I took an open source template and began tweaking until I got it the way I liked it.

Then, I started on the graphic. I bought pictures from Stock Photo and set to work using Photoshop Elements. I'm really happy with the result...so much so that my blog and myspace are also coordinated to my website.

So, go take a look, hope you like it, and if you do ...VOTE. If you don't like mine, take a look at all the others, I'm sure there's one out there that deserves your vote.

New review for To Catch a Casanova

I just got a great review for To Catch a Casanova. I had tons of fun writing the story, and I'm so glad that someone enjoyed reading it.

"I had a pretty hard time reading through the tears of laughter, but if ever it was earned this is one of those times...It also seemed to be a journey of discovery in more ways than one, but the characters came across as real, the situation though hilarious at times, was also rather emotionally charged and oh, yeah, the sex (all of it) was hot!" - WitchGiggles of Alternative-Read.com

To read the whole review, click here.

Something WICKED just won't come...

Since I finished up my Tease Dark Tarot submission, Twilight's Embrace, I've been trying to work on a full-length proposal - but have realized it needs a little more time to percolate.

So, what better than to tackle a WICKED submission or two for Cobblestone Press's new line. I worked on one that seemed like a perfect fit and the next thing I knew, it turned into a highly complex serial killer story that needs a bit more thought to get the timeline to work.

I went back to a story idea I had several months ago. Again, it seemed like a short story when I conceived of it. After I'd plotted it out and started writing it, it turned into a rather spooky seductive suspense. More suspense than sex... and a heck of a lot longer than a short story.

Sigh.

Perhaps I'm just not cut out to write short erotica. Not too surprising, but a bit disappointing.

PI's Cyber Tour welcomes Lyn Cash

Title: Mistress Mine
Book one in the Kinky Kruising Series
Author: Lyn Cash
Publisher: Total-e-bound Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-906590-09-3
Release Date: 24th April 2008
Genre: Contemporary erotic romance/light bondage/BDSM
Book Length: Novel

RC Jones poses a problem for his sibling, who wants RC out of the way before their grandfather's upcoming birthday. Shanghaied, inebriated, and tossed onto a cruise ship for the kinky, only to wake up with a leather-clad dominatrix standing over him—just what every alpha male needs!

April is a psychology major who earns extra money during the summer by working as a dominatrix on a cruise ship.

When RC gets shanghaied, April thinks he's her next submissive. But a challenge is issued—if she falls for him during his 'vacation', she becomes his submissive for two weeks.

What's a woman to do?

Excerpt page & Buy Button are HERE -

1. What does your family think about you writing erotic romance?

My son and daughter-in-law love it. My parents are ambivalent about the erotica, but they’ve read my mainstream and enjoy it. I think they like seeing how things/interests from my past have colored my writing. Foods, places we’ve traveled, family sayings and quirks, things like t hat.

2. What's your favorite snack and/or beverage while you're hard at work?

Salad and bread. I could live off of great bread and tasty salads and bottled water.

3. Do you believe in soulmates?

Absolutely.

4. What's your favorite holiday?

Used to be Valentine’s Day, but my brother just passed away on that holiday this year, so I’d have to say Christmas and St. Patrick’s Day and Independence Day. I have a thing for elves, shamrocks, and fireworks – lol.

5. Do you have a favorite comfort food?

White mocha frappuccinos from Starbucks or Scooters.

6. How do you inspire yourself?

I enjoy eating and traveling – gotta write to get there.

7. What is your idea of a perfect romantic evening?

Dinner and a movie followed by backrubs, foot rubs, Godiva chocolate, and coffee.

8. Do you have a "secret or private" drawer, box, shelf, etc. And, if you do, name five things in it.

Oh, you didn’t just go there! - LOL

9. If you could change one thing about your habits, what would it be? What is the one thing you’ll never change?

I’m so laid back that I’m almost comatose, and I rather like not being a stressball, so I wouldn’t change a thing. How’s that for arrogant?

10. If you could be any animal for just day, which one would you choose and why?

I’d be one of my dogs – they seem to enjoy life.

11. If you had one superpower, what would it be and what name would you call yourself?

I loved the television series “Heroes”, and the Peter Petrelli character had my vote for the most awesome superpower – he could acquire whatever power any of the other characters possessed. What would I call myself? I’d have to be naughty and call myself Super C. The C would stand for my last name, but it’d be ‘out there’ for interpretation. Gotta give those who don’t like us the opportunity to trash us, you know?

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Press Release Info:

Lyn Cash is the multi-published author of over fifty short stories and confessions, a couple of non-fiction books, and over a dozen novellas and novels. Her mainstream fiction is written under Bobbie Cole, her erotic fiction under the pen names of Lyn Cash and Cash Cole.

Lyn Cash
~ laughs & love in every book ~
http://authorlyncash.blogspot.com/


Thanks Lyn!

Care for a Tease?

This post is oooooh so appropriate on two different counts. The first is that I'm blogging today over on the Cobblestone Press blog about an excerpt booklet published by the Marketing For Romance Writers group. So, pop on over there to browse luscious cover art, enticing blurbs, and mouth-watering excerpts.

Second...I finished my Tease Dark Tarot -- Twilight's Embrace. Wow. The words just poured out of me once I got started. I began writing the ending the other day during one of my writing stints at Panera Bread Company. It was so moving, I had tears in my eyes. So....I wrapped it up and finished writing it at home where I could cry over my keyboard! Final word count ended up being 33,300 words, most of which I wrote in under a week. Yowza!

On Deadlines...and missing them....

I'm over at the Romerotica Writers blog today throwing out some fun quotes about those dreaded deadlines!

Diva-licious

I'm participating in The Romance Studio Diva contest. Please head on over there, read the excerpts, and vote for your favorite!

It's Auction Time!

Donate to a good cause and you could win hundreds of great prizes for readers, writers, and everything in between! I've donated a tote bag full of my seductive suspense e-books on CDs along with a jumble of autographed bookmarks and anything else I can think of to throw in!

I dedicate my support of Brenda's diabetes auction to my best friend, Ellie, who lost her fight to diabetes-related complications in 2005, as well as to my father, father-in-law, and mother-in-law who all struggle with blood sugar issues.