Adventures in Vegas - Day Six

I seriously can't believe the week isn't over yet!

Friday was a weird day that turned into an awesome one.  We were able to sleep in this morning and pretty much skipped our trip to the Hash House a Go-Go.  I figured my scale would thank me.  I had a workshop to go to that my cover artist was leading so I got up and got ready for that and headed down for the long trek to the convention center.

And realized I should have grabbed a muffin.

My stomach was VERY loud during the presentation so I sort of slinked out and spotted my buddy Sara Humphreys and we went to grab a quick bite to eat before she went off to a workshop that she was on a panel for.  Hubby's debit card was hacked so while I was out being a social butterfly, he was walking all over the back streets of Vegas looking for a bank!  Yikes.  And didn't take his phone!  Double yikes!  Needless to say I was in panic mode when I couldn't find him anywhere and was THISCLOSE to calling the police.  Then he came strolling in two hours later like it was no big deal.

This was the face I gave him.

At that point, I was too annoyed to really do anything so we grabbed another quick bite and went up to the room to just relax.  There was plenty of stuff going on but this night we were going out with my cousin and his wife - who I hadn't seen in almost 15 years!  They live in Vegas so it was the perfect time to get together and visit.

They came and picked us up and we went to dinner on the strip and then went to the Fremont Street Experience.  If you haven't gone there, you should.  Old Vegas at it's finest and every stereotype imaginable.  Lots of crazy things to see plus a zip line overhead.  We skipped it since we were rock stars the night before!

All in all, another good day.  We were going to hit a few more sites but we gambled a bit - and I won a hundred bucks - but I was exhausted and had the giant book signing in the morning and desperately needed sleep.

Adventures in Vegas - Day Four

I'm not gonna lie to you, this was the first REAL day of the convention and I was already exhausted!  LOL!  And this day was all about the food.

Our day started off with breakfast at the Hash House a Go-Go with my street team!  Well, not the whole team but three of my girls were there so we all got to hang out and have breakfast together!  Such a treat!  It's so amazing to me that I've been friends with these women for a few years now and we've hardly met!  Actually, one of my girls I met for the first time!  And I have to say, bonding with these wonderful women over our love of reading still just blows my mind!

I roamed the hotel a bit afterwards and checked out the convention area again - and finally got to meet another amazing author who I love - Susan Hatler!!  I LOVE her books and we went and hung out and had a few drinks and played some digital poker!  I won a nickel!  LOL!  Seriously, that was my first attempt at gambling and I won a nickel.  But I had a great time doing it!

I had dinner with Susan Mallery's assistant and one of the girls from my street team and - again - it is just amazing to me that I have such wonderful friends that I met through my writing and my love of reading!  RT is the perfect place to make new friends, but it's wonderful to be able to connect to those you chat and share with every day online but never get to see!!

Then it was time for the big show - the Vintage Vegas Casino Night!  This was a big party put on by RT and it was a lot of fun.  We dressed up (kind of) and there was an Elvis impersonator, showgirls, a male dance (or what was being coined as Chippendale's Plan B), a mini casino and multiple "lounges" that were sponsored by a bunch of the publishers - including mine!  So I hung out in the lounge and met readers, took a ton of pictures and unfortunately, we never got to gamble because the tables were all full!
                                                                                             
And I got to hang out with my girl, Sarah Humphreys! She had me taking pictures and doing things I would have probably skipped...but...it was all well worth it!  Now I have all of these embarrassing photos to look back on and laugh at!  She is the queen of shenanigans and I love her for it!  If we lived closer together, there would probably be a LOT of trouble!  LOL!

Hard to believe we're only halfway through the week!!

Writer's Life - How do I deal with writer's block

So it happens to all of us - writer's block.  I have to admit that I'm pretty lucky in that I've found a way to deal with it that really works for me.  Check out episode three in my series with the amazing Sara Humphreys. 

Story Behind the Story - The Wedding Season

I love this little novella.  It's sweet, it's fun and...it's still only .99 cents!!  Love it!!  So here's a little behind the scenes of "The Wedding Season"!

Story Behind the Story - Return to You

Book four in the Montgomery Brothers series was not originally written for the series!  What???  Find out more in this episode of Story Behind the Story - "Return to You".  Enjoy!!

Writer's Life - Where Do I Write?

In our old house, my desk was set up in the corner of the dining room.  Now I have an entire room to myself and it's glorious!!  Check out my writing digs!!

Story Behind the Story - Ever After

After talking about "The Christmas Cottage" last week, I thought it was only right to talk about "Ever After" this week.  Enjoy!!

Writer's Life - The Writing Process

So another new feature that I'm doing with author-extraordinaire Sara Humphreys is Writers Life.  Each week we'll give you a sneak peek into what goes into the life of a writer.  Spoiler alert:  It's not all that glamorous! 

Story Behind the Story - The Christmas Cottage

A little bit of behind-the-scenes musings on my first big hit - "The Christmas Cottage".  Enjoy!

"Jordan's Return" - the Story Behind the Story

I get asked all kinds of questions about my books - where do you come up with the story?  Or what was your inspiration?  I feel like I answer those a lot.  So author Sara Humphreys and I came up with this idea to do a series called "The Story Behind the Story" and do it in video format where we tell you some of the little known facts behind our books.  Each video will feature a different book and tell you something about them that you maybe never heard before.

I'll be honest, I'm not 100% comfortable in front of the camera so...I'll just say sorry now! 

Enjoy!!

Time to Play Catch Up...Again!

So I went and did it again - and after I said I wouldn't.

I went MIA.

Sorry!!

Okay, so here's the low-down on what life has been like in the month of August:

First, I've been doing this fabulous scavenger hunt with author Sara Humphreys.  We're promoting my new release, "Made for Us" and Sara's upcoming release, "Brave the Heat" - coming September 1st.  If you haven't had a chance to get in on the action, there's a little less than a week left and you don't want to miss out!  It has been a BLAST!!  You can click HERE to go the Facebook event page.

Next, I have been writing.  Writing, writing, writing.  I worked on edits for the re-release of Jordan's Return (May 2016) and finished writing Shaughnessy 4 (Riley Shaughnessy's story), a Christmas novella that will be part of a charity project and am currently working on another Christmas novella I will release in November.

My fingers are killing me!

On top of that, I've had some health issues.  I have been anemic for years.  My GP never seemed to make a big deal out of it but when some other health things came up and those doctors found out about the anemia, they freaked.  So I've been going to a hematologist and getting iron infusions.  I go back tomorrow to see if they've helped but I don't think they have because I don't feel any better.  We'll see.

My youngest started his sophomore year of high school AND just got his learner's permit.  Yes, he's killing me quickly and painfully by growing up this fast and I am NOT happy about it!

I've been happily promoting the new release and for those of you who get my newsletter, you saw that I am already teasing you with sneak peaks at the next Montgomery book, "I'll Be There".  If you haven't subscribed to the newsletter yet, you really should.  Another one will go out on Monday with another exclusive look.  You can sign up for the newsletter HERE.

So...all that being said, I'm back.  Again.  And I promise to not stay away so long.  Again.

But don't hold me to it!  :) 

The Shaughnessy Brother Series Has Arrived!!

I cannot even begin to explain how excited I am about today.  "Made for Us" - book one in my new Shaughnessy series is finally LIVE!!  Woo-Hoo!!!  

Here's the thing - series books.  You either love them or hate them.  Personally?  I love them.  I like introducing characters that you get to follow before and after they have their story and you really get to know them.  For the Shaughnessys, there are six siblings - five brothers, one sister.  Each sibling is going to have a book of their own over the next two years.  "Made for Us" is eldest brother Aidan's story.  He's a building contractor and a bit of a control freak.  He has a routine and he sticks to it.  And all the while, he sees himself as the anchor of the family - the one who everyone turns to and who helped his father raise his siblings after the death of their mother.

He meets his match (and don't they all!) in Zoe Dalton.  She's an interior designer/decorator who finds herself working for Aidan.  They butt heads immediately because she's as strong-willed as he is.  Sparks fly immediately and that's when things get fun!

As for the rest of the family, they are quite the eclectic bunch!  Let me introduce you:
Aidan - oldest, building contractor
Hugh - owns a string of private luxury resorts, has a lot of OCD issues
Quinn - former NASCAR driver who now deals in classic car restorations
Riley - musician.  Okay, he's one of the hottest rock stars in the world!
Owen - Riley's twin, astrophysicist.  Extremely shy and socially awkward.
Darcy - the baby of the family, only girl.  She's kind of bratty at first but she's going to grow up to be AMAZING!!  I seriously can't even wait to start her story!

Believe it or not, Shaughnessy books two, three AND four (Hugh, Quinn and Riley) are already written but they won't be out until 2016.  I believe they will be released in April, August and December.  Don't hold me to that, they may be a little different but you can be sure that as soon as I have a release date, you'll know about it!

So it's a big day!  I'm going out to celebrate with friends - go to Barnes & Noble and do my pictures with the books!  I'm a goof, I know.  If you haven't ordered your copy of "Made for Us", what are you waiting for???  Go for it!!  Here's the Amazon link:  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00UTWFWMA?refRID=02KRAH3Y06XPYB5CSTY2&ref_=pd_rhf_eetyp_p_img_7 

And don't forget you can join me and Sara Humphreys for a month-long celebration over on Facebook where you have the opportunity to win prizes every day!  Stop by for the Scavenger Hunt!  Here's the link:  https://www.facebook.com/events/1492072517751546/

Have a FABULOUS day!!

 

Adventures in the City - Day Three

Just thinking about this day exhausts me!  It was one of those that seemed to have a ton of things going on at once.

I had the pleasure of having a bit of breakfast - and by breakfast I mean a giant black and white cookie - with the lovely Noelle Adams.  I was so happy to be able to meet up with her and just have some time to chat.  We don't live close enough to do it very often so when the opportunity arises, we take advantage of it.  A good friend and a good cookie.  What could be better?

Then I went and caught the second half of the Sourcebooks spotlight at the RWA conference and it's always exciting to see and learn about all of the new books coming out.  When it was over, Sara Humphreys and I got together for lunch and a brainstorming session about our upcoming scavenger hunt!  

**Scavenger Hunt:  Sara and I are hosting this super-fun event to celebrate our upcoming releases.  "Made for Us" will be out on August 4th and her brand new (and very first!) contemporary romance, "Brave the Heat", will be out September 1st.  So in between those dates we are doing this scavenger hunt with daily prizes!  If you haven't already signed up, you totally need to because we have some AMAZING prizes!  You can join the fun HERE!

Okay, back to the city...

Hubby and son met me at the Mariott Marquis where I was dining with Sara and then we did a little more sightseeing in Times Square on our way back to our hotel.  I took a little siesta because I was so tired and then got up to freshen up and get ready for the super-secret Sourcebooks author dinner.  The dinner itself wasn't a secret but the location was.  

So I casually walked (meaning very-slowly) the six blocks back to the Mariott dressed in my party dress and pretty shoes and joined the forty-something other Sourcebooks authors while we waited for our big surprise.  Within minutes we were boarding a very cool party bus - an excellent way to travel - and taken to Bryant Park right next to the New York Public Library where we had the pleasure of dining outside at the Bryant Park Grille.  The temperature had cooled down and I got to sit with some amazing ladies while we dined on fabulous foods.  Not a bad way to spend a Friday night!

Made For Us Pre-Orders

I remember when I started self-publishing how only traditionally published authors were allowed to have pre-order links on Amazon.  I was soooooo envious.  Sigh.  Then, as time went on, the indie authors were allowed to get them.  The only problem with that for me?  I was one of those flying-by-the-seat-of-my-pants writers and pretty much I published books on a whim.  Spur of the moment.  Whenever the urge struck.  I would write a book, edit and publish within a month so a pre-order link wasn't really working for me.

Well now it is!  

Now that I've slowed down and writing longer books that are being traditionally published - and don't even get me started on how much I am LOVING seeing my books in paperback in the stores! - all of my books go on pre-order about six months before they're released.  It's a little weird seeing the book on all the sites and knowing that it won't be available for so long but I do enjoy seeing how many people are ordering a title because they want to make sure they have it on the release date.

I still do it all the time with my favorite authors.  And when I do it way far in advance?  It's like a nice little surprise when it pops up on my Kindle.  It's like a little present and I think "Yeah, me!" for being on the ball and knowing how much I'm going to enjoy reading a new book.  

But then again, who doesn't enjoy a new book, right?

So "Made for Us" will be out August 4th.  SOOOOO much fun stuff is going to be happening with it!  Besides the actual release of the book - which in itself is very exciting - I'll be hosting a release party on Facebook on August 3rd - you can join here:  https://www.facebook.com/events/835345099883774/ and then I'll be doing a month-long scavenger hunt with author Sara Humphreys on Facebook that will lead up to her new release, "Brave the Heat" which will be released September 1st.  It is all going to be a lot of fun and I hope to see tons of people at these events - and by see I mean your names on my computer on Facebook!  Lol!

We are going to be giving away stuff at all of the events - signed books, swag, Amazon gift cards...you name it, we may very well be giving it away so you don't want to miss out!  To join the scavenger hunt, go to https://www.facebook.com/events/1492072517751546/

To pre-order your copy of "Made for Us" on Amazon, you can click HERE.

To pre-order your copy of "Brave the Heat" on Amazon, you can click HERE. 

Do you pre-order your books or wait for them to come out?  Do you go to events on Facebook?  Do you enjoy winning stuff?   Tell me about it!!