Sourcebooks Casablanca Romance Authors

April has been an interesting month for me. To start off, I made an unscheduled trip to the Florida Keys with my pal Suzie. She goes camping at the Bahia Honda State Park every year, but this year, she didn't have any takers to go with her. Since she's been recently diagnosed and started treatment for a rather nasty autoimmune disease, she didn't know until the last minute whether her doctor would let her make the trip, and I wasn't about to let her go by herself. I'd never made the Florida trip with her before, mainly because she's usually gone for more than two weeks and I don't like leaving my guys for that long. Needless to say, they didn't like it, either! But Suzie and I had a great time, despite the fact that the Internet hotspot on my handy-dandy new smartphone didn't work out there in the boonies where I had a minimal signal. I wound up posting to my blog from the McDonald's in Marathon. Now, if you've ever visited my blog, Cheryl ...

Next week hundreds of romance authors and readers will beheading to Kansas City for the annual Romantic Times Booklovers Convention . If you're a reader or writer of romance and you've never been, you really have to go. (Just FYI, next year we'll be in New Orleans). This is a really fun convention because it's all about readers and writers meeting and mixing. Lots of authors on the Casablanca blog will be there, waiting to meet readers! I'm participating in several fun events. The first is Wednesday afternoon. It's UNDRESSING THE HERO. Whether they wear cravats, kilts, or cowboy boots, a hero is a hero--and when you meet one, you just know. We'll play an interactive game, where readers undress a life-size hero, piece by tantalizing piece.  Sounds fun, huh? Then I run off to join my friend Deeanne Gist for her workshop, BOTTOMS UP: VICTORIAN WOMEN'S CLOTHING FROM THE INSIDE OUT. I get to play lady's maid and help Deeanne dress layer by lay...

Sometimes beginning a story is easy. Sometimes it isn't. I had an idea for the beginning, then tried to come up with something different, but when I reread the opening, I liked it...so I'm off and...running with it!!! 1969 Jaguar Series II E-type roadster I kept thinking I wanted one of my jaguars to have a jaguar car, so this is it. Don't you love it??? :) Tammy Anderson, Maya and Connor's cousin, is getting to know David Patterson, Wade Patterson's brother, and already they are totally at odds. I also learned that Jaguar Hunt and the next Highland wolf story, A Hero of a Highland Wolf are coming out next spring! Woohoo! With Silence of the Wolf coming out in Feb, that makes 3. But that's not all! Mistletoe, Mayhem, and the Highland Wolf is scheduled for Oct. So another 4 books next year! Which means 3 that I have to write. :)  And in just a few days, A Highland Werewolf Wedding will be released, 2nd of the 4 books to be released this year...

(from your editor who loves you) by Deb Werksman Editorial Manager Sourcebooks Casablanca I’m noticing lately that variations on the same or similar names for two different characters (Hal and Henry, Elyne and Eileen, Greg and Eric). These names are both visually similar and evocatively similar, which causes reader confusion even when the characters are distinct. The human eye “fills in” the letters, so that we read words in chunks. In addition, we’re often “reading aloud” to ourselves in our head (silently). When two names pop off the page (or into the eye and the mind) alike, the reader has to slow down to think about what she’s reading, and that pulls her out of the story. So, here are some guidelines: Use a distinct name for every character Start every name in the book with a different letter  Make sure names are not variables or derivatives of the same name Try for names that are different lengths/syllable counts/vowel sounds Make sure names w...

by Olivia Cunning I'm super excited that my Sinners on Tour series are now on audio book! So excited that I bought them all so I could add them to my "I love me" shelf. I've heard great things about the narrator of the series, Justine O'Keef. Listeners say she does a great job. She gives each rock star in the Sinners band a distinguishable voice and although reading "Sed said" aloud is a bit of humor I didn't intend (why did I name the band's vocalist Sed?), she also portrays the humor of the books well. I guess I'll have to take the listeners' word on it. I'm afraid to listen to them. That's right. I bought them and haven't listened because I'm afraid I'll spend the entire time criticizing the inflection. As an author, I "hear" my books a certain way when I write them and I "hear" them the exact same way every time I read them. So if something is off in the inflection of the narrator...

by Macy Beckett Happy Tuesday, readers and bargain-hunters! If you love cheap ebooks and awesome contests, I have some links to share with you today! Let's start with... GOODREADS GIVEAWAYS: "Fun and flirty with characters you'll love page after page." -NYT Bestselling Author Christie Craig Enter to win an autographed advance copy of the third book in the Sultry Springs series, SURRENDER TO SULTRY, which releases August 5th from Sourcebooks Casablanca. Giveaway LINK "A perfect blend of sizzling romance, action, and suspense." - #1 NYT Bestselling Author Jennifer L. Armentrout Enter to win an autographed advance copy of the first book in my brand-new young adult series, ALIENATED, which releases February 4th from Disney-Hyperion. Giveaway LINK Go forth and enter...best of luck! Next I'd like to share some special... DISCOUNTS!  "Witty and fun, warm and endearing, Macy Beckett will tug your heartstrings!"...

Last year I set myself a challenge. I've always written full-length novels and I find it no problem to write 100,000 words. But late last year I decided to write a little novella spin-off in my London Steampunk series, as a Christmas gift to my readers and as a little something to tide them over in the intervening months between Kiss of Steel's release in September and the upcoming release of Heart of Iron (May). This is easier said than done. Writing a novella is so much fun - but completely different to writing full-length. I love weaving complex plots together but in a novella you can't do that. There's limited word space, so everything has to be tight, focused and based on one plot element. And the challenge of creating a complete romance in 35,000 words? Complete with the smexy scenes, fully fleshed back stories and emotional character arc? Hoo-boy. That's how Tarnished Knight came into being. Of course, it helped that this particula...

When I was a kid, my big sister and I didn't get along. I mean, AT ALL. To the extent that it's kind of a miracle that we both reached adulthood. We had a lot in common, but for some reason we chose to ignore that. Neither of us wanted to be ANYTHING like the other one. My sister was musical, smart (better grades than me) and computer-savvy. I was loud, boy crazy, and into depressing poetry.  My poor sister got the "honor" (read-incredibly miserable task) of chaperoning me on a few dates. Needless to say, this was another point of contention in our already-strained relationship. We're pretty close in age, only 23 months apart. She had much more interest in going to college and making a career for herself than chasing after boys, something I scoffed at then. Of course, I know how stupid I was now, but hey, we all learn as we grow, right? When I was a teenager, I remember having some kind of stupid argument with my sister. I was complaining to my Nana a...

"Find The Stars Look Down not quite soothing enough for a bed book--will fall back on Through the Looking Glass ."             --Dowager Duchess of Denver in Busman’s Honeymoon The last six weeks or so have been an intense time, full of transitions from the old to the new--a new month, a new season, and a new schedule (thanks to Daylight Savings Time). Some of us may be starting new jobs, moving to new locations, planning or promoting new projects . . . but I would hazard a guess that all of us are extremely busy with one thing or another! At unsettled times like this, when I’m not writing, I find myself reaching for my stash of tried-and-true comfort reads. The books that feel like that favorite old sweater or broken-in pair of slippers. The books that you can sink into like an armchair or a warm bath.   The books in which you know exactly what you’re getting, and the experience never disappoints. What ...

My uncle took the fabulous picture above. He takes awesome pictures. He should! He used to be the White House photographer. I don't know about you, but the spring bug hit me hard. And nothing says spring like spring cleaning. I know what you're thinking, but there were some things just bugging me. You know the feeling. I couldn't stand it any longer. How much longer could I possibly ignore my dusty drapes? Ugh. Believe me, I've tried. After dry cleaning all of my drapes at home (which look 100% better-Dryel works wonders), another project I tackled was my great-grandmother's hutch. My mom told me when she gave me this beautiful piece of furniture that the hutch was the only thing in our family that survived the Vandergrift flood of 1936. I love antiques with a story behind them. I also love the fact that when it's time for my daughter to have the hutch, she'll know the tale to pass down to her daughter. How cool to actually...