Sourcebooks Casablanca Romance Authors

No, I have not gotten a little too cozy with my bottle of The Macallan 18. I know what day it is: “The Virtuoso” hits the shelves today, featuring the youngest son of the Duke and Duchess of Moreland, Lord Valentine Windham. This should have been an easy book to write because I’d had both “The Heir,” and “The Soldier” to get to know my hero. Lord Val is a younger loyal brother, intelligent without being academic, and tall, dark and handsome (of course). He’s also, as the Windham series readers know, a virtuoso pianist. In fact, that’s about all he is, at least in his own estimation. According to the Rules of Romance, it thus became imperative that I take Lord Valentine’s music away from him. This did not sit at all well with Lord Val, and it positively tortured me . There was a time long ago when I was defined by my devotion to the keyboard, so I had more than theoretical empathy for my hero. My friends were musicians, my hobby was music, my profession was music, my academic fo...

Happy Halloween, everyone! To tell you the truth, the whole Halloween thing is kind of lost on me. I've never been much for dressing up and going trick-or-treating. I've always had a great fondness for very good chocolate, the kind you won't find given out when going door to door, freezing your tush off (in my neck of the woods at least) and wearing a costume designed by your mother to get back at you for the pain of childbirth. Yeah, I got over the whole Halloween thing young. I believe it was in the first grade when my mother dressed me up as the toothless fairy, but I digress. Just because I'm not a huge fan of Halloween does not mean I don't believe in things that go bump in the night...or in my case, broad daylight. My grandparents lived next door to Mrs. Romeo in Brooklyn for forever and Mrs. Romeo and my grandmother were best friends. My mother and Mrs. Romeo’s daughter, Janet, were born six months apart and grew up together. They too were best friends. They ...

I know the theme is “Things that go bump in the night,” but I can’t do it. I can’t write about dark, scary things. I’ve been told it’s because I have such an active imagination. Great for a writer, but bad for a woman whose husband loves Stephen King and horror movies. Speaking of Stephen King, I quote him when I want to explain why I’m not a horror fan. He said, “The innocent must suffer.” A writer should experience the emotions of her characters, and I actually suffer for the poor stupid girl who goes down to the basement in her bra and panties with only a baseball bat to protect her. We all know the thing that’s going to go bump in her night will be her head hitting the cold, hard floor. Ouch. However, an active imagination is why I’m getting great reviews and loads of fan mail. People like my books because they’re different. I’ve been told I don’t think like other people. At first I was a bit offended, but after mulling it over, I’ve decided I’m okay with that. A lot of write...

JUST CALL ME AUTHOR FRANKENSTEIN   THE HISTORICAL REANIMATOR   When I chose to write romantic historical fiction, one thing became eminently clear to me - my desire not only to craft emotionally compelling romantic stories but to bring my chosen historical era to vivid life. While as a reader I love to lose myself in any well-written historical romance, I am most gratified when a novel is able to answer the cravings of both sides of my brain, by using people and events relative to the historical setting to take me well beyond the romance and deep into the era itself. As an author, I want to truly immerse the reader in another time and place, not only by the characters’ dress, manners, and speech, but with the setting itself by interweaving real historical elements so seamlessly with the fiction that it becomes virtually impossible to distinguish the difference. In so doing, the setting becomes so much more than just a colorful backdrop but is almost e...

W hen I first learned that this month’s CASA Blog theme is Things That Go Bump In The Night , I knew exactly what I wanted to write about: men and their camouflage applications.  Yes, that’s right – make-up!  For centuries, warriors (the Celts immediately spring to mind) have worn face coverings – masks and various feature-obliterating paints – over their visages to assist them in battle.  Oftentimes , using mud, clay, leaves, and a mixture of wines, dyes, and berries to aid their mission, they draw on their faces or don a covering before they set forth on their journey. Now, several of us – Navy SEAL wives – love to tease our husbands about wearing makeup; yes, the gooey stuff that comes in a multitude of hues.  No matter whether it's mud browns or tans, leaf greens or flat black, this camo cover can be a major benefit for our men on their sensitive military Ops.  In my opinion, this is a helpful way for Navy SEAL men to keep things from goin...

By Deb Werksman  Editorial Manager Sourcebooks Casablanca   There are some editorial notes that I find I’m requesting again and again, from authors both experienced and new. If you are one of my Fall 2012 authors, you will have received this email directly a while ago. I thought of another one, so check it out at the end of the list. THERE WILL ALWAYS BE EXCEPTIONS! This is a craft we practice, not a science, so please don’t think this is all written in stone.  Now, without further ado, here is the list of Editorial notes: 1)       The love story must be the primary focus of the book. Your book is being published in the romance category—the love story is what your reader is buying the book for, so please make sure all the other elements revolve around the love story. Make sure the action/adventure elements of your plot are NOT swamping the love story.  2)       ...

Yep, I'm one of those weird ones who likes to find adventures of the dangerous sort. I absolutely love shows like Storm Chasers and Ghost Hunters. The people in those shows brave some rather wicked foes, be it a tornado or some sort of malevolent spirit. So when I was in Philadelphia back in August, it was only appropriate that I would venture off for the ghost hunting tour offered on the first night of my stay in Philly. The inner skeptic in me laughed and said, "Yeah right. It'll be all smoke and mirrors." However, the inner adventurer in me shrugged. Even if it was all staged, at least I'll learn some history. Most of the places on the tour were famous historical buildings, after all. The tour guide passed out EMF readers. My inner skeptic rolled his eyes. My inner adventurer said, "Oh! I'm an official Ghost Hunter!" We were encouraged to take pictures. I eagerly turned my camera on, ready to catch a ghost in action. The tour started off at Was...

from Mia Marlowe... I won't say I actually saw a ghost when I was a kid, but I did see something . I blogged about it at Brava Authors so I won't repeat myself here. But as an adult, I do definitely feel as if I had a visitation from a departed loved one. It came in the form of a vivid dream. A few months after my grandfather died, I dreamed of him. Instead of looking haggard and wasted as he had when I saw him near the end of his life, he was robust and happy. He winked at me and said, "Tell your grandma I love her." So, of course, I had to call my grandma and tell her about my dream. She was so relieved. You see, she'd been catching glimpses of my grandfather around their house. From the corner of her eye, she'd seen him standing in a doorway, but when she'd turn her head, he'd disappear. She feared she was going crazy. Fortunately, I was able to reassure her. I'd just read an article about how people often see departed loved ones in familiar p...

For the last couple months, I’ve been working on some big projects at my day job, which has required me to adjust my schedule to meet deadlines. Rather than my normal Monday through Friday, I’ve been working Tuesday through Saturday. No big deal. I actually like coming into the office on Saturday when it’s quiet. It’s amazing how much work one can accomplish when not being interrupted every ten minutes. :) Well, this past Monday, I was working at home, having a really good writing day. Then at 12:16 pm, an email pops up from my editor. Up to this point, I had been diligently ignoring those handy, albeit annoying, email notifications. But this was my editor . No way could I ignore her message. So I clicked it open and read the subject line. And that’s when anticipation bumped into my heart. To be perfectly honest, the bump was more like a slam, but I had to fit the occasion to this month’s theme. :) Wanna know what sent anticipation slamming into my heart? My debut’s cover. Is...

Growing up on Cedar Hill, life was just a bit different because our neighborhood was so small and everyone knew everyone else. Best of all,   my brother, sisters, and I were lucky enough to have friends right around our own age. Naturally, I followed my big brother EVERYWHERE! Which would explain why one time he left me halfway up a pine tree while he and his friend ran away—then there was that time we were playing Army, and I was the soldier with a head wound and that needing cleaning—and they got soapy water in my eyes. There is definitely a pattern here…which leads me to one of the scariest moments from childhood—following my brother and his friend to Trenchert’s House—it was haunted.  We all knew it and were forbidden to go there by our parents. Naturally as kids, we didn’t listen, we were kids!   As I snuck through the woods—close behind my brother and his friend—but not too close, I realized they were headed toward Trenchert’s…and then the screa...

Hi all! I'm celebrating THE STORM THAT IS STERLING with a fun contest to win a NOOK! That's right -- a NOOK! And if you check out my website I am doing an early blog tour with all kinds of prizes as well! Including in November a HONEY BAKED HAM AND GODIVA! So go HERE to win a Nook -- good luck! Go HERE to see what other great prizes I am giving away And I don't know about you guys but as much as I like a scary story its always better with a hot hero nearby that you can snuggle close to. And I have a feeling I'll be doing that when I go see Paranormal Activity 3 out today ! Tell me this preview isn't scarier than some of the entire movies you've seen! Happy Paranormal Activity Day everyone!

By Leah Hultenschmidt, Senior Editor As I was planning the post, I didn't realize we'd have our own bump in the night--lots of rain led to a bit a ceiling leak in the apartment. Which meant moving bookshelves, mopping up, draping everything we own with towels, and all kinds of fun. This morning, though, it's all blue skies and sunshine and the perfect time to announce a Twitter contest that can help writers smooth out any bumps in your path. Sourcebooks will celebrate the National Day on Writing on Thursday, October 20th, with a “Name Your Favorite Author” Twitter contest and giveaway. Every two hours (between 9amEDT and 7pmEDT) Sourcebooks will give away a collection of writing and publishing titles to a randomly selected winner who Tweets the name of their favorite author using the hashtags (#dayonwriting #favwriter. The winning package includes copies of Jeff Herman’s Guide to Book Publishers, Editors, & Literary Agents 2012 , Writing Great Books for Young Adu...