Just some cat pics

Because I don't know how to get pics onto the Harlequin blog except by posting them someplace else first. And because I really should post something here now and then.

Here's Earl Grey a few days after we rescued him from where he'd been abandoned in a nearby park. He was only about six weeks old.

And here he is now, two months later, much bigger, and still growing. He's a wild one when awake, but very sweet when he's asleep. :)

Giveaway Day One!

Today is the first day of the Harlequin Historical Holiday Giveaway (that's such a mouthful). Each participating author has a personal giveaway (see the calendar below, or go here for one with all the links). At the end, there's a grand prize of a Kindle Fire! Today is Michelle Willingham's contest.

My New Cover and the Advent Calendar Giveaway

Starting November 30^th, Harlequin Historical authors are having another holiday giveaway! We had so much fun last year that we just had to do it again. Each participating author chose a day on the calendar to run her own individual contest, and there’s also a grand prize from all entries throughout the contest – a Kindle Fire! For the contest calendar, go here. For the rules, go here. The more days you enter, the better your chance of winning the Kindle Fire!

Here's the cover for my January Undone! They painted the hero's hair red just for me. :) This is the sequel to The Wanton Governess, and it was so much fun to write. ;~))

Not So Super Heroes and Last Chance at the Giveaways.

This is the last day of the Small Blogs, Big Giveaways for October. To enter, go here. Lots of prizes and gift certificates are being given away. And if you don't make this month's contest, you can try in November.

It's also the last day for the Pink Fuzzies giveaways. I posted a brief blog today about my kind of heroes, as well as an excerpt from Tastes of Love and Evil. To read or just comment to enter for a prize, go here.

Happy Hallowe'en!

Sweet Potato Dressing and More Giveaway Stuff

 Small Blogs Big Giveaways is still ongoing, and so is the Pink Fuzzies week-long giveaway.

Today on the Fuzzies, I posted a recipe for sweet potato dressing (a Thanksgiving sort of thing) and a pic of one of the river canyons north of Vancouver, because giving thanks and Vancouver go together in my mind. Here's the pic because it's worth posting twice:

For the recipe, go here, and comment if you'd like a chance to win one of the three books Mary Ricksen and I have to offer. For a chance at the SBBG loot, go here.

Giveaways: Small Blogs Big Giveaways and Pink Fuzzy Slipper Writers

This is a crazy giveaway week! I'm one of the featured authors at Small Blogs Big Giveaways, where they're giving away 62 prizes and 6 gift cards. I've donated paperbacks of Tastes of Love & Evil and Sunrise in a Garden of Love & Evil, and a Kindle e-book of Notorious Eliza. To enter this fab contest, click on the graphic below or go here.

We're also giving away books all week at the Pink Fuzzy Slipper Writers. Drop in every day and comment for a chance to win one or more of the prizes below (each author is offering her own prizes the day she blogs):

Evil's Witness by Autumn Jordon (e-book)

To Love a Hero by Mona Risk (e-book)

French Peril by Mona Risk (e-book)

Forever Love by Mary Marvella (e-book)

Haunting Refrain by Mary Marvella (e-book)

Champagne for Two by Patrice Wilton (e-book)

All of Me by Patrice Wilton (e-book)

Tripping through Time by Mary Ricksen (signed paperback)

Red Bird's Song by Beth Trissel (e-book)

Enemy of the King by Beth Trissel (e-book)

Somewhere My Lass by Beth Trissel (e-book)

Tastes of Love and Evil by Barbara Monajem (signed paperback)

The Wanton Governess by Barbara Monajem (Kindle e-book)

Anyone who comments here will be entered in my personal giveaway as well. LET THE FUN BEGIN!

Pics for Irish Tea Brack and 3-Legged Cat

A terrible photo of tea brack by a terrible photographer (me). It's much darker and more beautiful. The recipe will be up tomorrow on the Harlequin Historical Authors blog.

This is the Three-Legged Cat that belongs to our friends in Ireland, about to walk away...

And at rest.

Ireland pics for my blog on eharlequin

A view in Northern Ireland, in the countryside south of Derry.

On the old city wall of Derry

The Peace Bridge over the River Foyle

The Ireland blog is now up -- go here.

Argh! Testing to see if all my setups are gone

I'm late as usual remembering to post things here, but since some of my Facebook setups have disappeared, I will post anyway to see if this post shows up there. Or on Twitter. Or both!

Today, I'm having fun at Ellis Vidler's Unpredictable Muse talking about taking my Muse for a ride.

This month, I'm a spotlighted author at Nights and Weekends. Thank you, Margaret Marr!

The Wanton Goveness -- Release Day!

Today is release day for my new Regency e-novella, The Wanton Governess! Pompeia, the heroine, was a hoot to write, and the cover conveys her nature beautifully. (Kudos to Harlequin's art department:)). I've posted an excerpt in two places today, at the Pink Fuzzy Slipper Writers and the Harlequin Historical Authors blog. (Same excerpt, different sorts of blogs. The Pink Fuzzies blog on all sorts of random topics as well as their books; the Harlequin historical authors post lots of cool stuff about history. Take your pick, if you'd like a peek into Pompeia's wanton heart!)

The Wanton Governess is available for purchase at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Books-a-Million, eHarlequin, and other places where e-books are sold.

Okay now -- here's the blog to go with Saturday's pics:

The Two Faces of Masquerade

or, if you have difficulty navigating and commenting on the eharlequin site, it's also up here, at the Harlequin Historical Authors independent blog:

http://harlequinhistoricalauthors.blogspot.com/2011/07/two-faces-of-masquerade.html

I've asked a philosophical sort of question about why masquerades were so enticing, in spite of (or maybe because of) their dangers. I'd love to write a Harlequin Undone where the lovers meet at a masquerade. Would you like to read one?

Pics for Masquerade Blog

Miss Chudleigh as Iphigenia, 1849

Rowlandson, Dance of Death: The Masquerade

Gawthorpe Hall

Gawthorpe Hall! Astonishingly, I managed to post all four pics to the eHarlequin blog. (Maybe I'm finally getting the hang of it.:) My blog about this gorgeous Elizabethan house is here.

Pics for Monday's Harlequin Blog

Charles II. Just because.

Gawthorpe Hall, Lancashire, England

Parterre at Gawthorpe Hall

Charlotte Bronte walked here... and that's all I have to say for now. Hopefully these pics will show up on Monday's blog... if not, at least they're here. :)

New Cover -- Test Post

I never know whether my covers will post properly first go on Blogger. Sometimes the colors are all skewed!
Anyway, here's the cover of my new Undone, to be out August 1st:

Killer Characters -- No Shrinking Violet

When I was invited to blog at Killer Characters as one of my characters, I had a hard time deciding which to choose. I decided on Violet Dupree, the vampire owner of Blood and Velvet, because I thought I'd never, ever write a book about her. She simply wasn't heroine material.

My daughter said, "You may change your mind when you get into her head," and she was right. Violet just may have a book in her after all.

http://tinyurl.com/noshrinkingviolet

Do your characters ever surprise you like that? If so, stop by and tell me about it. :)

Amish Friendship Bread

Today I posted a recipe for Amish Friendship Bread (and the friends it attracted) on the Pink Fuzzies. Yummmm.

Still waiting with bated breath for the cover of my new Undone... Sigh.

Hijacked by Fairy Tales

Today I'm blogging at eHarlequin.com about how my writing has been hijacked by fairy tales. To read more, go here. There's also a geeky historical question there which I hope someone will be able to answer!

PRUDENCE PRODUCETH ESTEEM!! None of my heroines seem to have figured that one out. :~)

Tastes of Love & Evil is Book of the Week!

Color me blown away! Last week, Tastes of Love and Evil got a lovely, lovely review from Orchid at Long and Short Reviews, and it's up for Book of the Week!

If anyone has the time or inclination, I'd love to get some votes.  :)  The poll is here.

More News!

Notorious Eliza and Tastes of Love and Evil both finaled in the Golden Quill contest. I am thrilled to bits!!

Not only that, but I finished Constantine's story -- more or less. When is a story ever finished? I'd revise my children's book from eons ago if I could. But after receiving comments from my beta reader, I'm fixing the last scene with Constantine and his new love and then... whee... off my hands it goes.

Title change: The Alluring Governess is now The Wanton Governess, but the pub date is still August 2011. Waiting anxiously to see what the cover looks like...

LOSING MY INNOCENCE

I'm blogging today in the Harlequin community. To read more about my lost innocence, go here.

News: My next Harlequin Undone will be out in August. It's called The Alluring Governess. Can't wait to see the cover!

Also, Sunrise in a Garden of Love and Evil is a finalist for the New England Reader's Choice Bean Pot Award. Yay!

The print below is a caricature by Cruikshank of that group of celebrated whips, The Four-In-Hand Club. Aren't they a hoot?

Also -- How did I forget Eliza?

The self-promo aspect of writing is annoying enough as is -- trying to think of where to say something and where not -- but how could I have forgotten to mention this on my own neglected blog? I guess neglected is the key word here.

Notorious Eliza won the 2011 Epic e-book award for Historical Romance! Go, Eliza!

What Heroes Look Like In Your Mind and Enchilada Lasagne

I blogged today over at e-harlequin about this weighty topic and my new wallpaper guy.

Also, I made this recipe last night for a potluck. It was great. (Unless, like my dh, you don't like the corn tortillas in it. He said they reminded him of old socks. (Not the flavor, though!) I'm not usually a fan of corn tortillas either, but when they're soaked in this fabulous sauce, YUM!

For the month of February, Harlequin's doing a Regency Bicentennial blog.

Lots of fun stuff about the Regency era, and there's even a quiz. To find out more, go here.

And in my personal news, Harlequin Historicals is going to publish another of my short novellas in their Undone! line. Yay!

Grumpy and Cursing

Back again after a long break, grumpy (don't know why) and blogging about cursing heroines on eharlequin. The post is here: To Curse or Not to Curse. The picture is Billingsgate fish market in London in 1736, where lots of cursing went on. (Please ignore the formatting gobbledegook which I couldn't get rid of but which perhaps made the subject of cursing more a propos.)