Monday, June 27, 2016

Anticipation....The First Kiss.

Now I know you all remember your first kiss. I know I do. And my first kisser shall remain nameless. Suffice it to say the good news is I still remember the person, and the setting! 

I think we can all agree we've seen hundreds of first kisses on the big screen. Memorable first kiss movies-for my generation, who can forget Ryan O'Neal and Allie McGraw as Oliver Barrett and Jenny Cavilleri in Love Story. Or how about Bridget Jones Diary? And I love Hope Floats with Harry Connick Jr and Sandra Bullock.  

I could name thousands of great first kiss moments from books I've read! I think what appeals to us with first kisses is the anticipation leading up to the event. It's a dance of sorts. The heroes in the books or movies usually go out of their way to entice the heroine. Sometimes with silly antics other times using more heroic tactics. The heroine for the most part is usually not impressed and then slowly comes around. Or it could be the first unexpected scene where no one sees that kiss coming that hooks us. As readers we know we want that first kiss to lead to bigger things. In a high heat romance it could be a full on love scene or in sweeter books a tender moment that leads to lasting love.

How ever you like them, be they fictional or for real, first kisses are our first hint of what falling in love could be like. What's your favorite first kiss scene from a book or movie? Or do you have a first kiss memory of your own that you'd like to share? If so please feel free to comment below! 
***** 
Tracey's new book A Changed Agent will be releasing on 
July 19th. 
Waterfall Press is doing a 100 copy ebook giveaway of A Changed Agent click here to enter. Giveaway signup ends on July 18, 2016.

Monday, June 20, 2016

First Kisses and Wedding Bells

First kisses and weddings...I've been thinking for weeks about which to write about and decided to talk about both!

First kisses...I think everyone can remember their first kiss, good or bad. I was about 13 and "going steady" with a boy named John. He'd taken me to a matinee and then walked me home afterward. The two of us stood there awkwardly, slowly saying good. Then he suddenly looked up the street. I leaned forward to follow his gaze and he turned around and kissed me. All in all, not a bad first kiss; although I admit, as a romance author, I've given my characters better ones.

A personal favorite is from my Summers at the Shore series between Brooke and Rory. 

First remembered by Brooke in The Beach - Their lips met in a perfect kiss that was everything Brooke Martin had ever imagined a kiss could be. Fireworks exploded inside her. Her toes curled up. She was hot and cold at the same time. 

Then Rory's take in the second book, The Boardwalk - Yes, they tasted like cherry ice... sweet cherry ice. He needed to taste more and moved his tongue into her mouth; more cherry. He could easily lose himself in her. He wanted to hold her, touch her...he wanted all of her. But she was young, he reminded himself as he pulled away and confessed that had been his intention for months.

As the saying goes, first comes love, then comes marriage. I truly enjoy writing weddings, and all of my series have them; some have even more than one. Choosing between them is tough.

I do have a soft spot for the grooms taking over and giving their brides weddings beyond anything they could have imagined. 

Rory surprised Brooke with a top secret wedding in The River, where even the venue was a surprise to Brooke. That was fun to imagine and bring to life for my readers - The car pulled into the park on the riverfront and Brooke saw white roses and tulle bows everywhere. It was absolutely stunning. An aisle was made from flowers and about thirty seats were set up with a rose covered arbor in the center.

But the wedding that will always hold a special place in my heart is the wedding Barrett threw for Ella in my Strong Armed series.

Knowing how unworthy Ella believes she is, Barrett stops at nothing to give his bride a wedding beyond her wildest dreams. It was important for me to have the wedding celebrated in their penthouse, because that was the first place that Ella felt loved. The penthouse had become a haven for her; a place where she discovered her strength and value and to me, that was the only place for Barrett and Ella to exchange their vows in Being Strong - Our living room was transformed. All the furniture was gone and replaced with white chairs in rows; the first in each row having a red rose bouquet on it. There was a white linen aisle runner with red rose petals. White and silver fabric was draped everywhere. I started shaking again, taking it all in and my eyes traveled to a white silk archway, tacked with white rose bouquets, positioned in the doorway between the living room and terrace. My eyes settled on Barrett, smiling at me. I felt myself smile and drank in the sight of him in the formal tux with the silver gray vest and bow tie, a scarlet red rose in his lapel.

Several months later, however, Ella got her own chance to plan a wedding, when her younger sister announced she was about to elope with Barrett's younger brother. Armed with her newly acquired power and wealth, in a matter of hours, Ella was able to turn a Las Vegas elopement into a wedding for the impulsive siblings.

But just how impulsive were Bryn and Carson? Many readers reached out and asked for more Bryn and Carson, and although it has been more than a year later than originally anticipated, I'm pleased to announce on this blog that Inner Strength, a supplement to the Strong Armed series will be available Friday, June 24 on Kindle for Amazon. I will post a link as soon as it is available.

It is a stand-alone book, and you don't have to have read the Strong Armed series to read Inner Strength. But a note, Inner Strength begins in the same time frame as Book 4, Staying Strong and runs beyond the original series, so it will contain spoilers for anyone who didn't read the series first.

As always, all my books are available for free on Kindle Unlimited and through the Amazon Prime Lending Library.


Monday, June 13, 2016

First Kisses and New Releases



Hi, everyone! As a romance author, you can bet that I love great first kiss stories. I have to admit, my own first kiss was less than perfect. If I recall correctly, there were braces and split lips and the shock of learning tongues were involved in the whole process. No wonder I turned to romance novels!


Since my own first kiss left something to be desired, I thought I’d share the first kiss between Jade and Logan, the hero and heroine of my newest release, Summer with the Soldier (Holiday Encounters Book 4). Theirs was a little more romantic than my own:

His eyes drifted closed, and I couldn’t help myself. I gave into the urge driving me and leaned down to press a kiss against his lips.
I meant it to be only a quick, comforting peck, but he must have had other ideas. As I went to pull away, one of his hands came up and caught me behind the head, gently but firmly cradling it and holding me hostage against his mouth.
His lips were warm and firm as he slowly nibbled, kissing first my bottom lip and then the top. This was no comforting, hello, nice-to-see-you kind of kiss. This was a Kiss. With a capital K.



For more Logan and Jade (I will admit, they get up to a little bit more than kissing) you can grab a copy of their story on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited here: 


I also want to share with everyone a new project I'm working on along with five other talented authors, the Alaskan Den Men Series. There are eighteen books planned so far, all of them featuring sexy werebear shifters and tons of feel good romance! 





For more info about these books, you can take a look here: 



Happy Reading! 
Amy Lamont 



Monday, June 6, 2016

June at WVRA = First or favorite kisses / Blushing brides and weddings. #Romance

Each week, all month, we will be talking about first / favorite kisses or brides / weddings!

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I've been reading romance novels for most of my life and there is nothing more awesome than reading about that very first kiss.

Writing them can be a little more difficult, but just as much fun.

Where will they be?
How will they do it?
When will it happen?
Who will initiate?
Will it bring them closer or pull them apart?

So many interesting questions.
So many juicy details.
So much fun to read!
So much torture to write!

Well, not always. :)

If you'd like to read Jack and Maggie's first kiss head over HERE to my personal blog where I have a teaser posted from Valentine's Day.




Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Kobo
AllRomance  

iTunes

Tuesday, May 31, 2016

Spring...is it over already!!



Hey there! So this month on our blog we've been talking about spring. Is there spring in your step? Have you sprung forward? Spring may be nearing an end, but I have to say our spring, weather-wise, was interesting. It started out great with warm days followed by cool nights. Then suddenly it was like winter had returned with cool days and frozen nights!! All those plants we put in that had been thriving were suddenly threatened by Mother Nature's antics. Thankfully, if you wait for just a bit here in the Northeast, the weather will changed. And sure enough it has. We just had days in the 90s and I didn't hear nary a complaint.

Our farmer's market has opened and I can't wait to get there to pick up some of my favorite vegetables and herbs.

I'm looking forward to sitting on my front porch and watching the world go by. And maybe plotting a book or two. I bought this really cool disc bound organizational notebook that I'm excited to fill with my ideas for the next two books in my historical series.  Springtime is a great time to reassess my writing. I take a look back at the first half of the year to see what I've accomplished and look forward to the next half to set my goals. I sort of do the same thing with my life. For me Spring is one of the best times of the year! I hope you are enjoying yours! 



Monday, May 23, 2016

Spring Fever Has Past - Getting Back on Track!

I can't believe that May is nearly over and Memorial Day is just a week away. It seems the time goes faster and faster with each passing year. At least Mother Nature has finally caught up to the calendar and the weather is warming up. I look forward to the days when I can lounge in my pool and think up new story ideas.

But first I need to get those "old" to me story ideas published. Of course, I had the typical setbacks of any mother of a teenage girl this past month. The prom was on April 29, and if you've never done prom before, it's an experience like no other! I thought we were way ahead of the game when the dress was purchased in February with the shoes found the first week of March. But no matter how much prep is done early, the final week leading up to the prom is a trial. The prom was quickly followed by AP exams and SATs and my daughter completing her Girl Scout Gold Award project. Yep, it's pretty busy around here. But now I'm focused, and here's what to expect:


I know I've said it before, but I will be publishing Inner Strength, probably by the end of the month. When I published my last installment of the Strong Armed series, so many readers commented that they wanted more of Carson and Bryn's story. I have to admit, they were a favorite couple of mine; Bryn the debutante ballerina and Carson the devilish bad boy - there was too much there to leave behind. I am releasing Inner Strength as one full-length novel, with the three parts combined under one title. It is a supplement to the series, and can be read as a stand alone. I will be announcing its release simultaneously on my Facebook page, Elisabeth Mayer - Romance Author, as well as the WVRA Book Nook Facebook page.



And my newest series, Chosen, is a trilogy currently in editing and I'm hoping to release all three books around the 4th of July. This will be my first foray into the supernatural, paranormal genre, and so far feedback is encouraging. I still needs those finishing touches, but I hope you'll take a look as I tell the story of Olivia Collins, who arrives in Salem, Massachusetts to spend the summer with her family and falls in love with Michael Fairely, who is perfect in every way, and just happens to be the son of Satan.

And more to come...
I'm also excited to be working on a short story for a collaboration that will be released in time for the holidays. This will be my first collaboration with other authors and I am so excited and honored to be a part of that. Watch this space for more news...



Tuesday, May 17, 2016

Spring projects




     This has to be one of the strangest bouts of weather for our area. Is it Spring or Fall? One day beautiful, clear and warm. The next windy, rainy and cold. Even though Mother Nature is undecided, there are still outdoor projects to accomplish.
     I love the outdoors. I spend hours tending my flowerbeds, vegetable garden and turtle pond. This year, the turtle pond got a much needed expansion.
This is the before picture. Note the fence on the far side of the pond. It runs directly beside the plants. The waterfall also needed a bit of attention before it could be started.

This shows the expansion. They now have a playground. Have to say battling with this fence alone was tiring. I was sore, and cut up all over by the time I was done. Didn't realize just how out of shape I was until I fought a roll of fencing and pounded in post through grass, dirt and rock with a heavy sledge hammer.

The completed project. The fence moved. A pathway cut through the plants. Plants relocated to the new fence line. Stone placed so they have a location for sunning (if the sun ever comes out for any extended period of time). The waterfall is functioning. Now if the weather would cooperate, I'd have a relaxing place to sit and write. Just waiting on the sun.
This is the start of project number 2. Didn't take a pre-picture. Should have. Before we began, there were those large railroad ties shaped in a triangle around the stone. Over the years, they got broken and rotted, so we finally removed them and expanded the flowerbed to include around the wine barrel, which covers the well. Can't wait to finish this and plant flowers in the entire bed.

As far as writing has gone, I finished a short story, which was supposed to be a horror romance, but I feel it leans a bit toward a heavy paranormal with romantic elements. I'm off to the next manuscript. I'm finally feeling the flow of creativity and loving every minute of it. 
This was my last release:
Escape
It's a Sci-Fi Romance
It's available @ http://bit.ly/27v3DAH
And @ Amazon: http://amzn.to/25aByzU

Escape
Tara Nina

Paoni Warrior Shia must capture or kill Kal, an escaped Lanius—the worst of alien criminals—but she has no idea who she is truly up against.
Kal knows his imprisonment was unjustified. Turning the tables, he takes Shia captive, igniting her curiosity and a lust she can’t control. But siding with him will put both her heart and her life on the line.
 Reader Advisory: This story has graphic sexual language and scenes—no closed bedroom doors (or other rooms) here!
An adult scifi romance from Ellora’s Cave
Publisher’s Note:  This story was previously released in the Alien anthology.