Sourcebooks Casablanca Romance Authors

Since the day I began taking writing seriously, I've daydreamed about the release of my debut novel. Now it's happening for real.

It is nothing like I imagined. It is so much more.

It ismore BUSY than I imagined. Promotion, preparations for my first ever signing, emails with my fabulous publicist, interviews and blog posts for my virtual tour.... WOW!

It is more EXCITING than I imagined. Preliminary reviews from prominent critics and book bloggers have been pouring in. People on Goodreads are adding MY book to their lists. Friends, family and acquaintances are cheering me on with sincerity that brings me to happy tears.

It is more SURREAL than I imagined. Holy wow! I have a book coming out! It has a gorgeous cover, I got to hold it in my hand. Posters and bookmarks, dude! People are reading it! R.L. Stine tweeted about it! (He was amused by the title.) Authors I admire, old and new favorites, are offering encouragement and support! I'm still afraid I'm dreaming.

It is…

So many reader events to choose from during the year--from the insanely busy mega-conventions to the quiet and intimate smaller venues. Here are just a few...I'm looking forward to attending the following events this year.

I've already received my mega-book order for RT, so be sure to arrive early before the books and giveaways are all gone. If you're going, please look for me! I love chatting with readers :)







Barbara Vey’s 2nd Annual Reader Appreciation Luncheon
April 27th, 2013 10am-3pm Crown Plaza Hotel, 6401 South 13th Street, Milwaukee, WI 53221.  I’m delighted to have been asked to sponsor a table…and am planning the goodies right now Here’s the link http://barbaraveyreaders.com/ RT Book Lover's Convention 5/1-5/5/13 ~Sheraton City @ Crowne Center, Kansas City, MO. Here's the link: https://www.rtconvention.com/register Some of the things I'll be doing during RT:Pre-convention: I'll be at the Kansas City Public Library on Monday at the "Romance Come…

Up until a couple of years ago, if someone said the word "pirate" I would automatically think of super-hot Johnny Depp. I don't care if he has funky teeth, he's dishy.
However, since I've had the good fortune to be a published author, there's a far less sexy kind of pirate out there---the eBook pirate.  This is when someone takes an eBook and posts it on a "file sharing" site so that others can download it for free.

Not cool.

It's not the same as passing a friend the paperback you just enjoyed. When you hand someone an actual book they are the only person reading it.  Don't get me wrong. All of us authors love it when you share your excitement about our books, that's how things catch on.

However, when someone posts an eBook on one of these pirate sites, anyone on the planet with internet access can download it. This translates to thousands upon thousands of dollars stolen from every author and publisher.

So not cool.

The good news is tha…

by Leah Hultenschmidt, Senior

Have you ever tried to grow orchids? They're gorgeous, but I haven't had any success with growing them in the house.  But just think how these beautiful flowers grow everywhere in the rainforest!  25,000-30,000 varieties. :)


 Some are truly fragrant. Think of how it would be, winding your way through the rainforest and seeing these growing in the trees wild.



 Solid? Speckled? :)

You know what waterfalls are for, right??? :)

Don't you love when something fun reminds you of something fun every time you see it? Like a waterfall in a particular rainforest jungle? :)

So I just had to get a picture of it, so I could envision, well...jungle cats beneath the waterfall. Ah...those were the days. If you read Savage Hunger--you know what I mean--beyond the jungle are orchids and parrots and monkeys and Maya Anderson serving as a jaguar guard while you and Connor are... Well behind the waterfall...it's left up to your imagination.  Wouldn't you love to  have a good feat…

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a massive Dave Grohl fangirl. (Grohl was the drummer for Nirvana, and created Foo Fighters.)  So when I heard Dave was keynoting South By Southwest 2013, I blocked out an hour on my day job's Outlook calendar so I could watch the webcast uninterrupted.

Dave didn't disappoint. In an f-bomb-laden, highly personal speech, and sporting ridiculously sexy reading glasses, Dave brought us along on his personal journey, one in which he was inspired by punk music, protected his independence, and developed and nurtured his individual voice.

Voice. It's an aspect of art that musicians and writers share. It's a tone, or a worldview, that makes a piece of work - or a body of work - belong uniquely to its creator.   

"There is no right or wrong, there is only your voice. Cherish it. Respect it. Nurture it. Challenge it. Stretch it and scream until it's (expletive) gone."

"Am I the best drummer in the world? Certainl…

Seems like a lot of us have been writing about Spring here on the Casablanca blog, but I'm beginning to think we aren't going to have one, mainly because we had Spring last Fall.

Remember when the rains finally came and the weather stayed warm into December, and then suddenly, it was winter? That's my prediction for this Spring/Summer season. One day, we'll be wearing our winter coats, and the next, we'll be in shorts. It all evens out eventually. Maybe not the way we want it to, but then, we've never had much control over Mother Nature, unless you want to count global warming, which is more pervasive than the day to day stuff.

I've already had my book release for the year, so I don't have anything to pimp, but I'm still getting reviews of Wildcat, most of which have been favorable. Next up is a self-pubbed contemporary erotic romance trilogy, and I hope to have the first one up by the end of April. I know a lot of people who've been able to qui…

My critique partner says, "Don't throw away a scene. You never know when it might be useful." Well, for my latest book, Flirting Under a Full Moon (coming April 2,) a lot of scenes were taken out...but not thrown away. It looks like this one might be useful as a blog!

This is the scene where werewolf Nick meets vampire Anthony.

Anthony ran to the altercation as quickly as humanly possible. Until he knew what kind of creatures of the night these three were, showing his vampiric speed could be dangerous, since paranormals were still in the closet, at least in this part of the world.
He reached them just in time. The big guy clenched his fists and shook as if ready to let loose on the other two. He looked as if he could tear them to shreds with his bare hands, if he wanted to. The street light glinted off metal blades in the other guys’ hands.
Anthony forced his way between them. “Hold on,” he said in a commanding tone.
“I’ve got this,” the big guy said.
“It seems to me …

When somebody explained to me that introverts recharge their emotional and even physical batteries in solitude, I wasn't even school age, but my reaction was, "THAT'S ME!" Growing up in a family of nine, solitude was at a premium, and having the house to myself--even having a room to myself--was a rare and delicious treat.

by Olivia Cunning

When I moved to Texas last July, I knew that my winters wouldn't really be winters anymore--not by a Midwesterner's standards. Last winter, I still lived in Nebraska and this is the kind of thing I dealt with for several long, depressing months.


I remember using this thingie a lot. Ugh! I hate this thingie.


Driving was an icy, slick nightmare for three months. I had to dress in layers. I was always, always cold. And as someone who suffers from Seasonal Affective Disorder, I would spend months trapped indoors feeling, well, sad. I even owned one of those fancy blue lights and sat in front of it for half an hour a day. It helped. A little. But it didn't do anything for my constant state of cold.
I hate winter. I never understood the appeal of snow. To me, snow means a lot of back-breaking shoveling and dangerous driving conditions. Apparently, some people think it's pretty. It does cover the ugly dead landscape of winter. I'll give it that.
Each win…