What Do You Love About Romance Novels?

The romance, the tension, the sex?

It occurred to me while reading With This Kiss by Eloisa James, that what I love most about romance novels is the tension. Romance novels can be very obvious, I mean really, we all know where this is going. But when I start a new book I am meeting these characters for the first time and I am so excited for them to meet. Sometimes they already know each other, sometimes its going to take two chapters before the "meet" but, whatever, I am reading as fast as I can until I reach that moment of first awareness. That electric moment when one or both characters realize that they are attracted to each other. It never fails, I do the high school girl giggle every time. I love the tension of each conversation, each look, each bewildered internal self monologue--I love reading/watching them fall in love.

It is what keeps me coming back every time, and even rereading some books over and over. Sometimes (gasp!) I will even stop reading after the bulk of the romance is over, for example: they have confessed/made love, will live happily ever after but still have to find the killer. Blah blah blah, I don't care about a killer, for me the story is over. Thankfully my fave authors don't do that so I get complete satisfaction from first page to last page. But, I am curious if other readers feel the same way or if others love romance for different reasons? Hmmmm.

A pessimist at heart?

This year so far has been a dream come true. I retired as a vet  tech to stay home with my son and because of that I can devote more time to my dream of being an author. I was able to do this because my husband also had his dream come true and today is his first day at his new fire station. Its really an exciting time for both of us and I am so grateful because I prayed so hard for all these things to happen and my prayers were answered. The past few years have been a struggle for us. Most months things are so tight we run out of money before payday and credit cards have been maxed out just to keep food on the table and gas in the car.

The changes that are coming will put an end to the worry and stress but part of me is scared that for every good thing that happens something bad will too. Hopefully I am wrong and just a worry wart, hopefully we are coming out of our desert period and have found an oasis. I'm tired of the financial uncertainty and have already started make big changes to our money habits starting with overhauling our credit card debt. Its just one step in many to come. Maybe its because we have a child now or maybe its because my husband and I are getting older but I think about the future a lot and the kind of life I want for myself and my son.

Both my parents worked hard for every penny but our family was still middle to low income, especially after my parents divorced. I saw my mother struggle a lot with money and yet still provide us with things like new school cloths, and dresses for homecoming and prom. Now as an adult and knowing how much things like the luxury of new cloths cost I feel guilty. I wish I could help her out and someday I will be able to. I don't want my son to have to want for anything or see us struggle. I want him to feel safe and secure in his life. I want to give him more experiences and more of my time than my parents were able to give me because they had to work to keep me fed and a roof over my head.

I think I need to retrain my brain and just embrace all the positive changes that are happening. Today is the beginning of a new adventure and I am going to make the best of it. Day one has officially started and so far we (my little bear and I) have started a garden and done some weeding. Well, that's what i did, little bear brought his toys outside and tried to find interesting places to hide my phone. Its been so long since I've played in the sun so it was a good start to the day.

Support your local firefighters!

What firefighters do.


What we imagine they do :) he he he

My last night as a veterinary technician.

Tonight is my last day at work. I have worked the graveyard shift of 8pm to 6:30am at a specialty animal hospital for over a year now and this career is finally coming to an end, thankfully, on a good note. I will be a stay at home mom and  continue to write my novels hoping to achieve the success of my favorite authors. But tonight I want to say goodbye to all the things I loved and hated about being a vet tech.
Goodbye

• Anal Glands
• Smelly dog and cat pee
• hemorrhagic (bloody) diarrhea
• the smell of parvo
• Angry cats (and you thought birds were bad hehe)
• endless unsocialized/separation anxiety barking
• Shitty owners who can't afford to rub  two pennies together but just bought a $3000 toy maltishipoodlecock whatever that is, too tiny to sustain its self without feedings every 2 hours, 24hr heat support, and has been vomiting for a week and now at 2am its all my fault and I am a greedy asshole for expecting them to pay for treatment. I hate you and I want to shoot you in the face.
• California Pets Pet store, who sold the above abomination and have 3 more just like it with the same problem. Also at 2am after some dumb ass teenager has been shoving food down its throat for the last 8 hours even though the puppy is barely conscious.
• snuggling with your dog. Yes I love your dog like my own and if he lets me (meaning he doesn't try to rip my face off) I am going to spoil the shit out of him. I will also hug and rub and let him lick my face and stuff. Sorry if I destroyed all your training in a single weekend.
• Head butts from happy purring kitties.
• Knowing I eased an animals suffering even if I couldn't save their life.
• Sifting through vomit for whatever it is you think your pet ate.
• Pot dogs. I don't care what you say about not having pot in the house. There is no judgment, just admit it and we can move on and fix it quite easily. I can spot a pot dog a mile away now.
• Lifting 100+ lb dogs.
• Puppies and kittens!!! and old dogs who just want to camp out on the piles and piles of blankets we give them.
• Owners who won't euthanize their cancer riddled, SUFFERING pets, that can't even move and are covered in sores from laying in their own  urine and poop. They are nothing but skin and bones and need to die with peaceful dignity not in violent spasms at home. I know you love them but its time to let them go.
• Jokes only fellow techs understand/Animal humor.
• Dirty looks from angry kitties
• Pilling an animal. God I hate giving tramadol! It must taste awful because once it is discovered in the meatball that jaw is on lock down.
• Standing for hours in surgery.

Goodbye awesome clients and pet parents, goodbye shitty owners, goodbye my kitties and puppies no matter how old you are. Some of you have made a very big difference in my life and some of you I wish very bad things to happen to (clients not pets). This has been a decade long journey but one I will never forget.

Goodbye amazing doctors and coworkers. You have taught me so much and I am honored to have worked with you. In my heart you are my friends and you are my people.

California Dreamin' Romance Writers Conference

YAAAAYYY! I am a big Julia Quinn fan and will be doing everything in my power to go to the book signing. This will also be my first time meeting her and attending  conference so I am super excited. It all comes down to dh's schedule and a babysitter but I'm pretty sure it will happen.
JQ will keynote the inaugural California Dreamin’ Writers Conference, sponsored by four southern California RWA chapters: East Valley RWA, Orange County RWA, Los Angeles area RWA, and San Diego RWA. Sherrilyn Kenyon will also deliver a keynote speech. For more information, please visit the conference website at http://socalrwa.org/.

   

Research, research, research...

 As an introvert it is difficult for me to take criticism so you can only imagine what negative reviews do to me. As a Virgo I am a perfectionist, although  long ago accepted I am not perfect. To better my self as an author I am compiling a binder of facts about the period I write so that I will have information at my finger tips instead of just googling as I go. Its kinda neat researching all the little aspects of the period and taking an in depth peek into a time I find so fascinating. I have started watching Downton Abbey and it is actually a great source of information even though it is quite a few years outside my period. I love the subplots of the servants and have a better appreciation for how the smooth running of a large household is undertaken. Looking at gowns and bonnets I am even considering making a dress for myself. I don't have much sowing experience but I am self taught and made my own belly dance costumes in my pre baby days, so why not? I always start off knowing I might completely screw up which takes the pressure off. Its more for fun really.
I only have five shifts left in my veterinary technician career of ten years. Its scary and exciting but with more time and energy I hope to get a lot more writing, blogging, baking, cleaning, and yard work done through out the week as long as little bear lets me. I've been working the grave yard shift for over a year now and I can't tell you how wonderful its going to feel to sleep in my bed every night. I think that first night home I will put on fresh sheets and turn my bedroom into a cocoon of pillows and blankets in celebration. Now if only my dogs would keep off the bed, I would get better sleep and not have my legs go numb from being crushed.
So far 2013 is being pretty good to me. I hope and pray our good luck continues and our hard work will continue to pay off.

Support you local firefighters!

Procrastination!!!!!!

Ive fallen behind in my daily man meat so here is some Garrett Hedlund!


He is a good 'ol farm boy who used to chase cows to train for high school track. It doesn't get anymore country than that. He stole my heart wearing a skin light light suit in Tron. Sigh.....

Modern Historical Fiction

Sounds weird right? Would you call it an oxymoron?
Either way, in the genre of romance there is a gamut of ways an author can portray a certain era. They can hold tightly to each and every tiny detail or loosely rely on general facts and use a little creative license as well. Which do you prefer?
Lets start with what defines historical fiction from the almighty information source Wikipedia.

Definition
Historical fiction presents readers with a story that takes place during a notable period in history, and usually during a significant event in that period. Historical fiction often presents actual events from the point of view of fictional people living in that time period.
In some historical fiction, famous events appear from points of view not recorded in history, because the government who records and finds data from the past, had not cared enough to brighten the readers of this century with fictional characters either observing or actively participating in these actual events. Historical figures are also often shown dealing with these events while depicting them in a way that has not been previously recorded. Other times, a historical event is used to complement a story's narrative, occurring in the background while characters deal with situations (personal or otherwise) wholly unrelated to that historical event. Sometimes, the names of people and places have been in some way altered.

As this is fiction, artistic license is permitted in regard to presentation and subject matter, so long as it does not deviate in significant ways from established history.

If events should deviate significantly, the story may then fall under the genre of alternate history, which is known for speculating on what could have happened if a significant historical event had occurred differently. On a similar note, events occurring in historical fiction must adhere to the laws of nature.
 Thank you Wikipedia.

At the top I have two books I have read from two fantastic authors. Both books are great, in my opinion, but are very different. They are both historical romance novels but the style of one is very different from the other. The Reluctant Suitor by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss is set in 1815 while Romancing Mr. Bridgerton by Julia Quinn begins in 1824 (with the exception of the prologue). The difference is only nine years but from the way each book is written it may as well be a hundred. JQ novels are styled with a lighter more modern flow in description and dialogue that makes for an easy and fast read. KEW is more formal and the dialogue and description more true to the time. Does either style make the story more enjoyable or less historical? No. Its all a matter of personal preference. I read KEW long before discovering JQ and now prefer the latter. KEW is too heavy now to enjoy. In  my hectic stressful moments I want to escape with something light and easy especially if I'm sneaking it in at night with only the light of my nook or the baby monitor to read by.
The moral of this story is to each their own and if you are taking the time to pick apart dialogue that is to modern or a teddy bear mentioned in one chapter then you are missing the point of reading a romance novel to begin with. As a fellow reader my advice is to move on, you are wasting valuable reading minutes bitching. As an author, I read your review and heed your advice if helpful. There is much more to come and I will only get better so stick around.

In regards to my editing; Mine, All Mine was edited my two professionals so I don't know what to tell you. I consider my sister my biggest critic and she thought it was fine. If you think you can do better...Check out Tinderboox.com. Its free to join and then you can edit my next book and get a piece of the pie. It is a community for authors, editors, proof readers, and cover designers to come together and collaborate and make money, yes that's right, money.

No one edits this blog but me so I apologize if your eyes are bleeding.
Happy Reading!