Goodbye and Farewell by Andrea Downing

      For some reason the song “So-long, farewell, etc. etc” from The Sound of Music is going through my head—probably because this is my last post here at The Roses of Prose.

      Good-byes are always difficult, no matter what the situation.  I was in London last week for a wedding, which was happily followed by seven days of nonstop visiting with old friends from when I lived there. After the final dinner with one, I burst into tears because we happen to be at that age where ‘ya never know.’ But let me not get too morbid.  Here on the Roses’ blog, we’ve had some pretty good times, many laughs, shared a lot of important information, and hopefully made friends for the future. As Thanksgiving approaches, I find I have a lot to be thankful for.

And the best good-byes are brief so I won’t linger.  It’s been highly enjoyable for me and I’ve appreciated all the support over the months, and reading everyone’s thoughts, both in their own posts and in comments. So, farewell everyone!

Oh, but it wouldn’t be an author’s post without one more thing.  I know my fellow Roses will be entertaining you with their Christmas stories throughout December, but let me also mention my latest before I go, available at https://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Cowboy-Keep-Contemporary-Collection-ebook/dp/B07JF6LYWD/   Curl up with some great Christmas reading:

The weather is cold, the atmosphere is festive, and the cowboys are hot. How do you keep a cowboy at Christmas?

Don’t miss this holiday collection of modern-day cowboys and the women they love, featuring USA Today, Amazon Bestselling, and Award-Winning authors.

CHRISTMAS, LIBERTY, AND THE THREE MINUTE MAN by Carra Copelin

Nashville event planner Liberty Ann Hart has come to Mistletoe, Texas, to set up and promote a Christmas fundraiser for country music star Lilah Canfield. She tries not to fall for the local carpenter building the outdoor stage, but his cowboy charisma is hard to ignore.

Daniel Dylan Layman is happy to live his life in obscurity in Mistletoe, until a sassy, headstrong woman removes her shoe and beats an ATM machine for eating her debit card. From that moment, he’s determined to show her a Texas country life away from the glitz and glamour of Nashville.

A CHRISTMAS CAROLE by Andrea Downing

When single mom Carrie Matheson inherits a Wyoming ranch and moves out of NYC, her six-year-old son is not happy. Trying to help Tim settle into life out west isn’t easy, especially when his pleas to Santa receive replies from a mysterious correspondent. Is it the crotchety ranch foreman upon whom she relies so much? Somehow, she doesn’t think so….

Tate Schrugge is amused by his new neighbor when she jogs over with some mis-delivered mail. But Tate has just finished with a long-term relationship, and the lithe blonde in front of him has just called him Scrooge.

If these two can get together, it might be the Dickens of a romance.

THE PEPPERMINT TREE by Kristy McCaffrey

Skye Mallory had always aspired to leave her family’s ranch, and she took pride in having achieved her dream of becoming a lawyer. But when an unexpected inheritance draws her home for the Christmas holidays, she’s surprised by a longing to set down roots in the wide-open meadows and woodlands of southwestern Colorado. Only one thing stands in her way—a cowboy who broke her heart nine years ago. 

In high school, Joe Carrigan had admired Skye for her spirit and her intellect, but he had known she was destined for a life beyond ranching. Turning down her romantic overture had been the best course of action for them both. But now, he’s returned to the community he left years ago, and it’s inevitable that he’ll come face-to-face with his one regret in life—Skye Mallory. This time, however, he wouldn’t be so chivalrous.

THE DEVIL’S CHRISTMAS KISS by Devon McKay

Kristen Kelly is returning home with a new attitude. No longer the shy, awkward girl of her past, she’s determined to show the small town what she’s made of. Especially Cole Lawson. When she’s challenged by Cole at a holiday kissing booth, she finds the wicked cowboy hasn’t changed a bit. He’s still the most frustrating, infuriating, and tempting man she has ever come across.

The minute he sees Kristen again, Cole Lawson can’t believe his eyes. She’s the one girl he’s never forgotten but convincing her they belong together will take more than a Christmas kiss. Kristen doesn’t trust him but, this time, he’s determined to not let her go.

SLAY BELLS by Hildie McQueen

Big-city girl Carmen Dias is prepared for the worst when she accepts a writing assignment in rural Montana, but she’s pleasantly surprised by the jubilant atmosphere and warm welcome of the townspeople. Unfortunately, as she begins working on an article about their small-town Christmas festival, she discovers a dead body, putting her face-to-face with a local—and hunky—detective.

Weary from his all-work and no-play schedule, Detective Jared Bowden braces for a busy season helping at his family’s Christmas festival. When a beautiful writer arrives in town, his holidays immediately take a turn for the better. But a murder investigation, possible charges against him, and a pesky ex-girlfriend don’t exactly spell romance.

Can Carmen and Jared find love amidst the mayhem and sleigh bells?

THE BEST CHRISTMAS by Hebby Roman

Sofia Rossi travels to Texas to re-connect with her estranged teenage son, Aaron, who’s at a ranch rehab-center. An immigrant from Argentina, she has managed to thrive in the tough New York world of modeling. And she’s a survivor of an ill-advised liaison with a wealthy, married member of New York society. When her ex-lover manipulates their son into living with him, Aaron gets into trouble. Sofia will reclaim her son at any cost.

Gar McCulloch, after losing his wife to her high school sweetheart and his daughter to a drug overdose, believes his life is over. He dedicates himself to turning a dude ranch into a juvenile drug rehab-center. Selfless and with twenty years of juvenile counseling experience, Gar is a wizard at reforming other people’s kids, but he can’t forgive himself for his one failure… his daughter.

As two emotionally-damaged people come together to save Sofia’s son, neither feel they’re entitled to romance or happiness. Their mutual attraction and admiration come as a surprise and an unexpected joy, making this their best Christmas… ever.

COUNTING DOWN TO CHRISTMAS by Patti Sherry-Crews

Melody Evans grew up as the only child of a single mother, never putting down roots. Instead, they carried family traditions from home to home, none more precious than those surrounding Christmas. Romance? Melody has put a wall around her wounded heart and turned a cynical eye to the concept of happily ever after, despite making a living as a wedding planner.

Veterinarian Leland Jennings IV has roots long and deep at his family’s ranch in South Dakota. What he lacks, according to his meddlesome sister, is someone to settle down with. But he continues to hold out, nurturing an unwavering belief that there is only one woman out there for him. Christmas? It’s a holiday for children, not a bachelor living alone.

Once Melody and Leland get over their initial animosity, they come together like two pieces of a puzzle, sparking emotions and nostalgic memories that bring magic to the holiday season. But when tragedy strikes, will the budding romance become a case of the right person at the wrong time, or will they forge a new path together?

Weird Words with Friends by Leah St. James

A few months ago, Jannine wrote about playing Sudoku and how it wasn’t until she tackled it from a standpoint of logic that she was able to play and enjoy. It also helped her organize her thoughts for her marketing plan!

I also am a voracious Sudoku player (sans the marketing plan, of course.... Plus there’s only so far my brain will follow the “logic” path!).

I like playing Sudoku because it’s low tech. You need the puzzle (book or newspaper), a  pencil or pen, and some light. (And your brain.) I’ve always avoided online games because I didn’t want to get caught up in yet another “thing” that keeps me attached to a screen.

But that all changed during my vacation to North Carolina back in September. My vacation buddy (my oldest, closest friend for more than a couple decades), was playing Words with Friends (FB’s version of Scrabble) and said, “You should try it. I think you’ll really enjoy it!”

(Edit for correction:  I'm told the game IS Scrabble...that's how much I don't know about online games. But I still like the "weird" play on words! Now back to the matter at hand.)

She knows me well. It has become my latest obsession.

Like Jannine, it took me a bit to understand how to be successful. Basically it boils down to putting the highest point letters in odd/bizarre combinations that no one who is fluent in English would come up with  on his/her own.

I discovered this fact not playing with my friend, but with the computer! (She suggested I try it because there is a “teacher” who can suggest ways you could have improved your score.)

The “teacher” will give you feedback on every word you play.

The best is:  Incredible! I couldn’t do any better!
(It’s amazing how you can feel appreciated by a machine. And, it’s amazing how some of the shortest words can score the highest points!)

The next level down is:  Superb! The best word is only a few points better.
I’m usually happy with that, and sometimes I’ll smack myself on the head when I realize I missed an easy extra couple of points.

At the next level down – Good work. But there is some room for improvement – is where it starts getting ridiculous. I mean, take a look at one of my plays.

My word was JUNTA. I was impressed with myself considering my letters were: J-N-T-A-E-K-E. Plus there was a Q in play and I  had no U!

Here's what "Teacher" came up with:

JAUK??? ... Seriously???
What the $#&@(*! is "JAUK"?

(For the curious among you, it is an intransitive verb of Scottish origin meaning to dally or dawdle. Now you know.)

Anyway, "Teacher" scored 31 points on that word no one ever heard of, while I scored a measly 14 on a perfectly respectable word (JUNTA). And I still prefer mine.

Moving on... when you have really failed, “Teacher” will say:   
OK, I guess. But how about this word?

Uh....no, I had NOT thought of that word actually. In fact, I've never seen, read or heard of that word. Ever. Are you sure it's a word, Teacher? It looks more like a grunt to me! 
 
Half the time when I score big, I’m just picking letters at random and trying them out! I have no idea (1) that they’re words or (2) what they might mean!

But I am having fun. Sometimes I get a chuckle. Like look at this grouping of the tiles I had to play.

I was singing Old McDonald Had a Farm in my head for a whole day. (You’re welcome.)

Some other interesting words you might note:  

ADZ:  I mean, would you ever have known that ‘ADZ’ is a word much less ‘ADZES’? (Adz: a  variant of  the more common "adze"--duh!--which is a cutting tool.) 

CAF: According to Mirriam-Webster, it stands for "Cost and Freight" which is NOT supposed to be an allowable word because abbreviations are not permitted! No fair! 

And how about CHIAO? (I'm too tired to even look.)

I finally printed out a list of words with Q but without a U.

You might see why I’ve decided to rename the game WEIRD WORDS WITH FRIENDS.

If you haven’t yet, give it a try. You’ll exponentially expand your vocabulary of words that no one else would ever know!

--------------------------------------

When not scouring her brain for words with X, J and Q, Leah attempts to write fiction with romance and suspense. Learn more at her website, LeahStJames.com. Occasionally she retweets poetry on Twitter or posts recipes she’ll never actually try on Pinterest. Happy November!

Writing the (Semi) Breakout Novel by Alison Henderson

I haven't been writing, but I have been thinking. A lot. 

I'm preparing to start a new book, the first in a new series, and I've been feeling for a while that I want this series to be different somehow. I just haven't been able to define different. I feel like I need to write something more. By that, I mean something with more depth, more to say. Maybe. The problem is, I still want romance, and I still want mystery. I don't want to switch from genre fiction to literary fiction. 

This urge might have something to do with my general overall mood. When I wrote Unwritten Rules, I was a new empty-nester, work was going great, and I had life by the tail. I could try to be funny. For the past couple of years, humor has eluded me. I really struggled with the final book in my female bodyguard series, and while I love the final result, I know it isn't as funny as the previous two.

In an effort to find the right tone for the new series, I've been re-reading Donald Maass's brilliant book, Writing the Breakout Novel. I'm not trying to "break out" in the way he means--signing with a top agent, scoring a six-figure contract--but I am looking to add depth to my work. Several years ago, I attended one of his day-long workshops based on this book and found it very instructive. He puts into words many of the principles most of us sense about writing but never mange to articulate. The book was published in 2001, so some of the advice is dated, but much of it is still pertinent. I recommend you read it for yourself, but I thought I'd share some of the highlights I hope to incorporate into my next book.

Premise
A breakout premise has plausibility, inherent conflict, originality and gut emotional appeal.

Stakes
High stakes start with high human worth. Honesty, integrity, loyalty, kindness, bravery, respect, trust and love of one's fellow men are all measures of high human worth.
Breakout novels combine high public stakes with high personal stakes. 
To raise personal stakes ask, "How can this matter more?" 
To raise overall stakes ask, "How could things get worse?" 

Characters
Breakout characters are deep and many-sided.
Larger-than-life characters say what we cannot say, do what we cannot do, change in ways that we cannot change.

Plot
Conflict in the breakout novel is meaningful, immediate, large-scale, surprising, not easily resolved and happens to people for whom we feel sympathy.

This all sounds pretty lofty, especially for what may turn out to be another quirky romantic mystery, but it has helped me think about my characters and my story in a new, deeper way. 

Alison
https://www.alisonhenderson.com 

What Do You Prefer and a Chance to Win! by Christine DePetrillo

A few fall this-or-that questions for you today. Answer them and I'll randomly select someone to receive one $10 Amazon gift e-card to celebrate Autumn. (If you are the winner, a valid email address will need to be provided so prize can be sent. Random winner selected by Thursday, November 8th, 11:59 PM EST.)

Do you prefer:

1. Leaf peeping or a hay ride?

2. Apple picking or a fall craft show?

3. Pumpkin pie or apple pie?

4. Cider or beer?

5. Chillin' by a firepit or bike riding?

6. Christmas music before Thanksgiving or after Thanksgiving?

7. Decorating with real pumpkins or fake ones?

8. Scare crows away or let 'em stay?

9. Hot chocolate or tea?

10. Autumn-themed books or movies?

Just post your preferences in the comments and be entered to win. Feel free to share this post with your friends so they can join in on the fun!

Be sure to check back here after Thanksgiving and into December for The Roses of Prose Annual Holiday stories! Free holiday cheer! Also join the Facebook reader group I co-host with author Amanda Torrey - Small Town Hearts. We have a blast over there!

Toodles,
Chris
www.christinedepetrillo.weebly.com

My Mind is Traveling More Than I Am by Vonnie Davis

I feel like I've been traveling both physically and mentally since Calvin passed. Lake Marion in South Carolina with my youngest son, DIL, and Ryan at Tina's parents lakeside house was my leaping off point. I've been to Paris to sprinkle some of Calvin's ashes as I promised him. Then onto the Scottish Highlands to visit the areas I've been writing about for the last few years.

The next time I stepped onto a plane it was headed to Boston. I was going to spend three days with my grandson Ryan, a junior at MIT. He was eager to tell me something. Over lobster he'd bought, he told me he's staying on to get a Masters in AI--Artificial Intelligence. His employer, IronNet, is paying for the additional degree He's been with them for two years--fulltime during the summer and part-time during the school year. He loves what he's doing. "Being a Geek is awesome." Ryan is now writing code for a small country in Africa to protect them from terrorists who might try to infiltrate their energy grid and banking system.

We had a grand weekend, hiking over the campus, talking about Shakespeare and current events. We schlepped through the Boston Museum until it closed. Visiting his Frat House where he lives was also on the agenda he'd organized for our time together.

It's located in the Back Bay area of Boston. He has to ride his ten-speed across the Charles River to reach MIT campus. Before we stepped inside, I got this warning. "The first floor is whisper only except for eating time. I want you to see the Study Room. The walls are lined with overflow books from the Boston City Library. You'll see long tables and green table lamps often featured in library scenes in the movies. Oh, and no pictures taking in there, you'll disrupt everyone's concentration. There's a reason our fraternity earned the award for the highest GPA in the whole country." 

Was he for real? This was a frat house. "Toga...toga...toga!"

We walked into a large foyer about twelve feet by twelve, the antique chestnut woodwork gleaming; lemon oil used to polish it fragranced the air. A round interictally carved table sat in the middle. To the right was a huge, book-lined room. Seven students raised their heads in unison, stared at me, and nodded once in acknowledgement before their gazes returned to their laptops. I'm telling you it was darned near creepy scary.

I wanted to tip-toe through that floor for fear my heels would click against the shining wood floors.

The dining room was immaculate, "How many students live here?" Ryan said thirty-five. "Does the Chef--yes, I said Chef--also clean?"

"We all take turns cleaning. Five of us every week, which works out  to about twice a semester." He lifted a shoulder. "Better than at home. There I had to clean my bathroom, my room, and vacuum the upstairs and steps every week." 

On the second floor was a music room with a grand piano and other instruments on shelves. Ryan sat at the piano. "I wrote this just for you, Grandma." He played a classical-sounding piece he'd composed as a semester project for his Musical Technology class (his minor), His professor arranged for the Boston Pops to come to campus to play the piece for the class. He'd titled it "Someone I Can Always Go To" and I bawled like a baby.

"I didn't know you could play the piano," I sniffled.

He grinned. "YouTube, Grandma. You can learn how to do anything there."

My next trip was to Midnight and Magnolias Conference in Atlanta. You know my angst about pitching to agents. Did I even want an agent? Did I want to keep on writing? For that matter, could I even stop? Ah, the emotional travelings of my mind.

Did I want to step back into the stress of writing for publishers or would I self-publish in my own timing?

I received a call from my editor at Loveswept. While on Bookbub and the day after, "A Highlander's Obsession" sold over 2,000 copies each day. So, what was I working on now?

Mercy, did I want to go through this again? Sell or be dropped. I replied to the lady who'd told me I need to dummy down my writing that I'd get back to her.

I decided to toss out a challenge for myself. Depending on how she accepted it would help me decide. So, I emailed her this

Toolbelt Sexy

You know the type, Sue.

Rugged. Hard-working. Alpha. He wears t-shirts strained over hardened muscles, worn jeans that cup his manhood like a lover’s hand, and a quiet expression of determination. Just the sound of his booted footfalls in the other part of your home make you tingle with awareness. Who would guess a toolbelt riding low on a man’s hips could be so sexy, but on these men, it is. Oh yeah, so unbelievably wicked sexy. TOOL BELT SEXY.

Webb

Carlos

Dawson

Each 70-75,000 word book of the Tool Belt Sexy Series is set in a different place. There are few secondary characters. The desire, the passion, and the bumpy ride to their HEA is designed to fulfill the fantasies of romance readers.

She wants the first three chapters of book one. Oh, AND she wants to hear about "Golden Charm," the book more women's fiction than romance I'd pitched to agents at the conference in Atlanta. My chin dropped. How...how did she hear about that? Who had she spoken to?

This was creepier than college students actually studying in a Frat House. 

My editor from HarperCollins emailed me today. "Momma V...I think of you often and hope you're adjusting to the painful change in your life. I just wanted to give you a bit of nice news --Santa Wore Leathers has been selected for the Kindle monthly deal of the month. I'm sorry not to tell you sooner, but we only just found out. Please do shout about it on Social … " 

So, my traveling mind continues to hop about. Decisions made: I'll keep on writing. I can't NOT write. Yes, I'll continue to submit and lick my wounds when I'm turned down or a three-book contract is limited to two because of sales numbers. For sure, I'll continue the self-publishing. I love that level of control.

Oh, and those professional head shots I had taken at Midnight and Magnolias? These are the two chosen from the eight.

Vonnie Davis writes contemporary, paranormal, and romantic suspense.

"Sizzling Romance with a Twist."

The Elements of a Striking Book Cover by Jannine Gallant

HIDDEN SECRETS releases at the end of this month. I need to promote it. I don't intend to self-publish book one of my COUNTERSTRIKE series, (recently re-titled) FATAL ENCOUNTER, until May of 2019. For these reasons, I was NOT going to post my new cover. But I can't seem to control myself...

When I made the decision to self-publish this new series, I immediately stopped writing and started obsessing over covers. I was trying to put together a concept that fit with my outdoor scenery yet suspenseful vibe brand. I didn't want these to be exactly like my other covers, but I wanted them to be similar. I finally decided on scenes from the books where the heroine is running away from danger. Book One is in the woods. Book Two is on a rocky beach. Book Three is a pond near the heroine's cabin in the forest. Do you think I could find backgrounds I like with running silhouettes? Of course not. So, I emailed fellow Rose and cover designer extraordinaire, Alison Henderson, to see what she thought about adding a dark running woman silhouette to a background and to ask if she wanted to design my covers. She said "no problem." What a relief. But she also said she thought it would look better with a real person rather than the dark shadow I'd imagined.

And so the back and forth of creating the perfect cover began. So much thought goes into a cover. The concept. Images that convey the concept but also will actually work as a cover. It has to show up well in a thumbprint size plus attract the eye of a reader and make them click on it to read the blurb. I had a heck of a time finding background images that had a spot for the running figure, had a suspenseful vibe, but weren't too dark to show individual features, AND were cool and attractive enough to make a reader notice them. A tall order. We finally agreed on background images we both liked. Then, we had to find running women with the right coloring and the right clothes that could be dropped onto the backgrounds. Hello, 90% of the photos show women running toward the camera. Most all of them are wearing sports bras! Not what I had in mind for my heroines escaping crazed killers AT NIGHT in the dark and cold. We finally found images that work.

Putting them together is where Alison did her magic! She cropped the background, then overlaid mist on my running woman (very cool) to make her blend and placed her in the perfect spot after experimenting with sizing. She looked like she was floating. Yikes! I decided she'd have to move her forward to firmer ground, even though I liked the deeper placement better. Instead, Alison added a little more greenery at her feet to fix the "floating" problem and ground her. I was THRILLED with the results!

The final ingredient of any book cover is the lettering font, color, sizing, and placement for the title and author name. I did a little research into what the top romantic suspense authors use. Most were straightforward fonts, no cutesy or rounded letters. It has to reflect the suspenseful genre, after all. White was a no-brainer on this background. Size and placement were the next aspect to consider. Big name authors mostly use very simple backgrounds with their name at the top in LARGE lettering. The title is generally at the bottom. Authors without name recognition have larger titles at the top and their names in smaller type at the bottom. I decided to use a combo of this. Title at the top, but my name in equally large type at the bottom. Why tell readers, hey this author does NOT have name recognition? Maybe if my name is large, they'll think they SHOULD know who I am. At least that was the thought process I used. Alison found the perfect font and put my request for sizing into action, and we got it done on the second try. Amazing!

So, here it is! The final cover of FATAL ENCOUNTER. I love it! I'm forever grateful to Alison for being so accommodating and working with me to make my vision better than I originally imagined. We're a terrific team! What do you think? Did we do a great job? Does this look like romantic suspense? Would you click on it to read the blurb?

To check out my other book covers, visit my WEBSITE. And don't forget to pre-order HIDDEN SECRETS! Happy reading!

A Day to Celebrate Those Who Have Passed by Rolynn Anderson

Today I experience The Day of the Dead in San Miquel de Allende, Mexico.  The event is meant to celebrate the memories of the dead, not scare folks, but I have to admit the town is full of skeletons…and that gives anyone pause. Or the shivers.

My brother joins us November 1, and the two of us will have our faces painted, made easy with a couple margaritas.  We’ll march in a parade to the central jardin (garden) by San Miquel Archangel Paroquia, a beautiful church built in the late 1800’s.  After the parade, we (including my husband) sit down to a four-course dinner, three glasses of wine, each, included. Oh boy! Speaking about dead people...and dinner doesn't start until 9:00 p.m.  

I’m decorating my hat and sorting through my meager wardrobe for an event I hadn’t planned on.  I can’t wait!

Like the Mexicans, we Americans have special events to honor those we have lost by celebrating their lives.  These are good memories, worth savoring.

You may know by now I’ve launched FIRE IS NICE as a virgin pre-orderer.  The fun and the marketing moves apace.

In 3 days I have 12 pre-orders.  Who knows how many I’ll get by release day, Dec. 4?  I followed rules/advice.  Report to come.  

Click here to get the bargain dollar off on Fire is Nice before Dec. 4!

Amazon: http://a.co/d/iOgLJuw

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/902286

http://rolynnanderson.com

Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Rolynn-Anderson/188767867821613  

Twitter:

https://twitter.com/rolynnanderson

Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4990049.Rolynn_Anderson

Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/author/rolynnanderson