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Author Interview @MarilynBaron – Homecoming Homicides #RLFblog #Suspense
Homecoming Homicides Genre Psycho Meets Miss Congeniality—Dark Romantic Suspense with
a Humorous TwistAuthor Marilyn BaronBook heat level: PG13Professional crisis manager Philippa Tannenbaum is spokesperson
for the law enforcement task force charged with solving a high-profile case. She
never dreams her position as Homecoming Pageant Director and her second-place finish
in the previous year’s competition has placed her on a serial killer’s hit list.
Always a runner-up in life, she wants to finally come in first at finding the killer
targeting the current crop of beauties.Her friend Luke Slaughter, a Graysville city cop, shows up at
Philippa’s office, assigned to partner with her in solving the case and to protect
her 24/7 for the duration. Unfortunately, he’s also the man she hooked up with for
a one-night stand when she broke up with her fiancé. Working with her is going to
be less than easy, for a number of reasons…Buy This Book
Publisher The Wild Rose PressAmazon http://amzn.com/B00I27AS2I.
After the exclusive Kindle release, the worldwide release date will be May 9, 2014.Interview with Marilyn Baron
Why did you write this
book?Some years ago, my daughter was a contestant in the Homecoming
Pageant at the University
of Florida. At the end of
the pageant, a seemingly innocent man—he was more of a big hulk of a boy—approached
each girl to get her autograph on his pageant booklet. That sparked my imagination
and was the inspiration for this story. I wondered what would have happened if he
were a serial killer? I went to college at the University
of Florida in Gainesville and I named my fictional town Graysville,
so I was very familiar with the setting.What is your favorite
genre to read?Romance and thriller/espionage novels.What is your favorite
character from fiction (not including your own characters)?In romance, Roarke from J.D. Robb’s In Death series or Jamie
Fraser in the Outlander series. In spy novels, Daniel Silva’s Gabriel Allon.Do you enjoy films and/or
TV shows? Which are your favorites?In addition to reading (I’m in two book clubs) I go to a lot
of movies and watch a lot of TV for relaxation. My all-time favorite movie is Casablanca. The TV shows I
watch include Downton Abbey, The Good Wife, NCIS, Blue Bloods,The Big Bang Theory,
Two Broke Girls and I’m looking forward to watching the next season of The Americans.What are you working on
at the moment, and what are we likely to see from you in the coming months?I’m working on Book Three of The Psychic Crystal Mystery series
called Murder on the Repositioning Cruise. I’ve just signed another contract with
The Wild Rose Press for a new women’s fiction called Stones, which finaled in the
GRW Unpublished Maggie Awards for Excellence in 2005 in the Single Title category,
formerly titled The Colonoscopy Club.Please tell us about your
latest series.Homecoming Homicides is Book Two in the Psychic Crystal Mystery
series. Book One, Sixth Sense, won the Maggie Award for Excellence in the Paranormal/Romance
category.Here’s the blurb for Sixth
Sense:Reluctant psychic Katherine Crystal, dubbed “Crystal Ball
Kate,” is thrust into the national spotlight when she accurately predicts the
death of a movie actor’s young son in a private plane crash. Besieged by requests
to use her powers to help others, she realizes why her parents had warned her never
to let anyone know of her visions.By-the-book Atlanta
police detective Jack Hale harbors a deep-seated distrust of psychics and ignores
Katherine’s warnings when she calls to report her premonition. Jack is forced to
partner with Kate, who uses her eerie sensitivity to evil to help him catch a serial
killer in Sydney, Australia, but that’s only the beginning
of the story. Jack and Kate are drawn into the investigation of a mystery surrounding
Kate’s birth and find murder and romance among a secret society of psychics in the
quaint seaside spiritualist community of Casa
Spirito, Florida.Murder on the Repositioning Cruise – Coming Soon
Former Atlanta
police detective Jack Hale and “Crystal Ball Kate” from Sixth Sense, are
back, this time with Kate’s mother, Psychic Juliette and the cocky sheriff in Homecoming
Homicides, for a suspenseful romp on the high seas.Juliette Spencer and Sheriff Will Bradley are posing as husband
and wife on a two-week transatlantic cruise to catch an art thief, investigate a
murder and calm the fears of a superstitious crew. Juliette will be fine if Sheriff
Bradley’s amorous advances in close quarters don’t cause her to jump ship or throw
him overboard.Author Bio
Marilyn is a public
relations consultant in Atlanta.
She’s a member of Marketing for Romance Writers, Romance Writers of America, and
Georgia Romance Writers (GRW) and the recipient of the GRW 2009 Chapter Service
Award. She writes humorous women’s fiction, romantic thrillers/suspense, historicals
and paranormal. She has won writing awards in Single Title, Suspense Romance and
Paranormal/Fantasy Romance. Marilyn blogs at Petit Fours and Hot Tamales http://www.petitfoursandhottamales.com/. She and her sister, Sharon
Goldman, just released a play about Alzheimer’s called Memory Lane. You can find out more about Marilyn’s
books and short stories and listen to a medley of the music from Memory Lane on her Web
site at www.marilynbaron.com or view it on YouTube at http://youtu.be/Hgi_mIdt5MA.Author Social Media
Website www.marilynbaron.comTwitter https://twitter.com/MarilynBaronAmazon Author Page http://www.amazon.com/Marilyn-Baron/e/B008PJFQPC/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1 -
13 Tips for Sharing Links @vickibatman #RLFblog #authortips
Bug Stuff… and Other Stories As
authors, we write or create something, and we want to share with the BIG WIDE WORLD.
But how?I’ve collected
a few tips to ease your way:1. In each blog, there should be buttons for Facebook, Twitter, Goggle+ and
more to click on. When you do, an automatically generated blurb appears. Use this! Send our happy camper to Facebook
(you can send to multiple pages, too). And remember
on Facebook to intrigue readers by beginning
your post with a question. That gets more visibility.Don’t forget
to use other buttons and forward our camper to Google+ , LinkedIn, Stumble Upon,
Twitter, and a whole variety of others.Author and
fellow Plotting Princess, Michelle Miles, recommends a Jetpack
plugin called “Publicize” to have it go out to Google+, Twitter, and Facebook
when it’s published.2. Copy your post with link on your Facebook page. In most cases, a picture
from the blog will appear as well–which makes your post more desirable. Again,
remember to begin the post with that all important question.On Facebook,
you can share on other pages you are
an administrator on. This is very desirable.
Click share, find pages you manage from
the drop down menu, click on the appropriate page, and post.3. Take that just posted text, which includes the link and copy, and paste
onto your writer group pages on Facebook. You
do belong to other groups—right? They want to know your good news, and in a
lot of cases, they might share the link with their friends. Sharing is a good thing.4. Do you belong to a Tribe in Triberr? Consider signing up and have your RSS
feed automatically networked (check Networked Blogs) to the tribes where your
mates will share the twitter post.5. Do you have a Twitter manager like Tweetdeck or Hootsuite? If so, create
an @mentionyourname column. You can edit and retweet your tweets throughout the
day. Easy peasy. Just avoid being spammy.Have you considered
setting up columns for your friends and other organizations? Do it! You can retweet from there, too.
And I’m betting a lot will reciprocate. And while we’re at it, try saying thank
you to a new follower or someone who tweeted your tweet. Nice is always appreciated.One note about tweets: try to
tie it to reader emotion. You want the reader to respond to your tweet. A generic tweet is ignored.6. Still using Yahoo groups? I do, and whenever I blog, I share the post and
the relevant link with those groups. After all, you do want some commentors!It does help
to begin your subject line with your name
and an intriguing title for your post.
Even a post ending in a question can hook someone. Be fun and playful.7. Create a tweet and ask your friends to tweet for you. Be sure to include
relevant hashtags ( # ). Just don’t overdo.8. Join a tweet group which posts daily tweets and retweets for each other.
And if you do, abide by the rules.For example: via @VickiBatman Hate to squish bugs? Bug Stuff
and other stories coming soon. http://vickibatman.blogspot.com #agroup
#amwriting #indie #ebook.Remember: 140 character limit. So you might want to sign up with Bitly (https://bitly.com/ ) and make that
link smaller, thus having more characters for the tweet.Aside: I just
tweaked the above tweet and added my Bug Stuff cover and it looks fantastic!!!9. Are you a member of Google+ ? It’s becoming the newest thang! In Google+
you group your friends. Alisha Paige, writer and Plotting Princess, says to remember
to use the Public button so your post
goes out to new friends.10. Are you on Goodreads? If so, your blog can be RSS fed to your page.11. Are you on Author Central? If so, your blog can be linked to your page.12. Lots of your sites will allow you to set up your twitter stream. Go to Unstoppable Heroes to see Kayelle Allen’s:
http://kayelleallen.com/blog/13. Join Marketing for Romance Writers and
use their street team. It’s free to members!The cyber
world changes constantly, and just when you think you have it down, something new
will pop up. Perhaps, these tips will prove useful to you.Do you
have any tips you’d like to share?By the Author
Bug Stuff… and Other StoriesAmazon http://amazon.com/Stuff-other-stories-romantic-comedy-ebook/dp/B00HPA8PVY
About the Author
Vicki Batman has three men in the house and often muses why God
did that to her.Author Social Media
Website: http://vickibatman.blogspot.comTwitter: http://twitter.com/vickibatmanFacebook: http://facebook.com/pages/Vicki-Batman-sassy-writer-of-sexy-and-funny-fiction/133506590074451?ref=hlPinterest: http://pinterest.com/vickibatmanAmazon Author Central: http://amazon.com/Vicki-Batman/e/B005AY5ZN8 -
One Red Shoe @dmburton72 #RLFblog #thriller
One Red Shoe Cover Love at Romance Lives Forever is a short intro to a book
and includes a cover, blurb, buy links, and social media contacts for the author.
Today’s featured book is One Red Shoe by Diane Burton.Wannabe writer rescues wounded spy while risking her heart.Daria Mason’s life is too predictable. Nothing ever happens in
her small Iowa
town where everybody knows everybody else. But when she travels to New York City looking for
a little excitement, she never expects to bring home a wounded spy.From the moment agent Sam Jozwiak steals intel vital to US security from
a Russian Mafia kingpin, Murphy’s Law takes over. No matter how he covers his tracks,
the kingpin’s assassins find him. What’s worse than getting shot in the butt? Accepting
help from an Iowa
tourist.Sam and Daria flee cross country with the assassins right behind
them. Sharing danger and excitement—and a few kisses—with Sam soon has Daria convinced
he’s the man for her. He thinks she’ll be better off once he’s out of her life for
good. With their lives on the line, can she convince him they belong together?Buy This BookAmazon http://amzn.com/B00FDXRHZAAuthor Social Media
Website: http://www.dianeburton.comTwitter: http://twitter.com/dmburton72Facebook: http://facebook.com/dianeburtonauthorPinterest: http://pinterest.com/dmburton72 -
Tax Tips for Authors – 3rd Edition @emlynley #RLFblog #taxes
Tax Tips for Authors Bigger, longer, and more of what you really need.
EM Lynley is back sharing 2014 tax tips for authors.“If you make money from writing, you need this book!”
– Neil PlakcyStymied by Schedule C? Not sure if you should take the new home-office
deduction? Wondering just how many books you can deduct, how much of that trip to
RT, or even whether your writing is a business or a hobby according to IRS rules?The end of January means the 1099s are flying fast and furious
from publishers and distributors. Whether this is your first year filing a tax return
with writing income, or you’ve been doing it for years, chances are there’s something
you’re just not sure about and don’t know who to ask. You either guess and cross
your fingers, or decide not to deduct it, just in case.A few years ago I was in exactly the same boat. My first novel
was published five years, almost to the day (Feb 1, 2009) and I chewed a few fingernails
those first two years of filing my own returns. I didn’t want to pay anyone to do
it for me, so I actually enrolled in 90-hour Basic Tax Course at H&R Block so
I would have all the answers to do it myself.Now, from January to April I’m a tax preparer, and the rest of
the year I write (fiction and financial articles). I decided to meld my two halves
and write a book to help other writers get the answers you need to file your own
taxes, or at least keep better records to make the task easier for your accountant
or tax pro.Despite the name, Tax Tips for Authors packs much more than tips
to help you keep accurate records and your tax return. I have a full walkthrough
on Schedule C, show you how to calculate estimated quarterly payments, let you know
if you need to send 1099s to anyone else, and how to prove to the IRS you are running
a business rather than a hobby.If you self-publish, you have even more issues to think about.
If you haven’t gotten published yet, you may still have deductions coming to you.The book is filled with examples of every type of deduction and
various scenarios,The 3d edition (January 2014) is only available from Amazon or my website. (Smashwords and ARE and not yet the most
up-to-date version).A print edition is coming in mid-February. Here are the topics I cover:- General Legal Issues
- Hobby vs. Business
- Recordkeeping Basics
- Tackling the Schedule C
- Deducting Expenses on Schedule C
- Line-by-Line Walkthrough of Schedule C
- Home-office Deduction
- Self-employment Tax
- Quarterly Estimated Tax
- Self-published Authors
- Unpublished Authors
- FAQ
Contest
Ask a tax question and be entered to win a copy of Tax Tips for
Authors. (Please do not mention any personal financial information).DISCOUNT OFFER
Everyone here wins with a 10% off coupon for a future Tax Tips
class. We’ll cover everything in the book with extensive Q&A. Use coupon cone
RLF10FEB to register at my website: http://bit.ly/eml-taxclass.Stop by and like the Tax Tips for Authors page over on Facebook
for more tips and information. https://facebook.com/taxtipsforauthorsAuthor Social Media
Website: http://emlynley.comBlog: http://emlynley.com/blogLiveJournal: http://emlynley.livejournal.comTwitter: http://twitter.com/emlynley -
Character Sketch: Carolyn Woods from A Taste For Killing @HKSterling #RLFblog
A Taste For Killing Genre: Mystery/Suspense Romance 18+Author Name: H.K. SterlingBook heat level: (based on movie ratings): RMystery and Romance blend together when competing detectives
Carolyn Woods and Jack Heart are both hired to solve the murder of Pete Wallace,
only to realize they are working the same case. To complicate things, Carolyn and
Jack have an on again-off again relationship. Then there is Evan Jones, a handsome
architect— but he’s also a suspect. Can Carolyn manage to solve the case as more
and more murders pile up? Will her relationship with Jack hinder their investigations?
And what about Evan Jones? He seems like the perfect man, but could he actually
be the murderer? One thing is for sure: someone close to both Carolyn and Jack has
A Taste For Killing.Buy This Book
Publisher: Breathless PressAuthor site http://hksterling1.blogspot.com/The book will be available on the following sites on February
21 as well as the Breathless Press site: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Are Kobo, SmashwordsAbout the Character
Name: Carolyn WoodsAge: 33Gender: FemaleBirthplace: New YorkProfession: DetectiveDescribe her body build, skin tone, height and weight. Include
any unique features such as dimples, freckles, or scars: Carolyn is of average height,
has brown hair, doesn’t wear a lot of makeup but when she fixes herself up she looks
good.Who is the significant
other in your character’s life?Carolyn has two significant others: Jack Heart and Evan Jones.How does your heroine
dress?Carolyn dresses down, usually in street dress most often due
to her detective work in the seedy side of the city and wanting to blend in. However,
she likes flirty dresses if going on a date.How educated is this character?
Is she book smart, self-taught, widely-experienced?Carolyn has a Bachelor’s Degree but is mostly street smart. She
handles a gun well too!Does she scrape by, live
comfortably, live extravagantly?Carolyn scrapes by and lives on a third floor walk-up in the
city. She also drives a car that is falling apart.What is your character’s viewpoint on wealth? Not necessary,
nice to have, important, obtain at all costs?Carolyn is not impressed by wealth. Although she would like to
have a car that wouldn’t break down, in general she judges people on their personality
and their moral center rather than on their wealth. Her job brings many wealthy
as well as non-wealthy characters across her door.What special skills does
your character rely on?Carolyn relies on her gut instinct a lot. She has to in her profession.What does she have a knack
for doing?Carolyn has a knack for finding trouble easily.Are any of her skills
a source of pride? Embarrassment? Which ones and why?Carolyn is proud of her work and her skills and feels like she
and her career can stand up to anyone in a professional that is dominated by men.
She is occasionally embarrassed when she is attracted to men. Then she suddenly
becomes a bit of a klutz.How well does she know
the neighbors? Coworkers?Carolyn runs into Jack Heart often as they are both detectives
and sometimes accidentally end up on the same case. There is an air of competition
there, but they also help each other out.What inner doubt causes
your character the most difficulty?Carolyn’s self-confidence is low once you get past her defenses.
She’s always in some state of worry inside her head. She also self-reflects often
negatively about herself.What past event causes
your character the most fear?Carolyn has had a lot of cases that have put her personally in
danger, so she is always trying to prevent that.What is your character’s
biggest need at the beginning of the story?She’s just trying to solve the case on the surface but underneath
she has doubts about her relationship.How does your character
handle challenges?Carolyn tackles challenges head on! Sometimes she tackles them
too fast without thinking which lands her in trouble.What is your heroine’s
breaking point?Disillusionment with people too often can break her. She requires
at least one good person in her life to be her rock and her center that she can
count on.How emotionally expressive
is your character to others?Carolyn says what’s on her mind. She doesn’t hold back. Sometimes
that alienates people. Others like her honesty.
Taste For Killing About Your Writer: Questions for your character to answer about you.
Why do you think your
writer chose to write about you?I’m a good detective! And recently, my love life has improved!What do you wish your
writer had not told others about you?I wish the writer wouldn’t tell others my inner thoughts sometimes.
It’s embarrassing!Why do you think your writer loves to write?I think my writer likes to put us characters together like a
stew and see the interactions and what come out.
HK Sterling What do you wish your
writer would write next?Oh, more romantic scenes, for sure.What other character from
your book do you think your writer should write a book about? Care to tell us why?Yes, Jack Heart is a good detective. He deserves his own story
too.Is there anything you’d
like to say to your writer?My writer is definitely not my alter–ego. We are very different.Author Bio
H.K. Sterling is an author with Breathless
Press known for stories with a kick and twist endings. She likes to focus her writing
on suspense, science-fiction, shorts, and anything that is spicy and unexpected.
H.K. lives in Virginia
with her husband who graciously puts up with her passion for writing. You can contact
H.K. on the following social media:Author Social Media
HK Sterling “Undercover Blog”:
http://hksterling1.blogspot.com/Twitter: http://twitter.com/HKSterling -
Cover Love: Taking It Off @samaraking #RLFblog #contemporary
Taking It Off Cover Love at Romance Lives Forever is a short intro to a
book and includes a cover, blurb, buy links, and social media contacts for the
author. Today’s featured book is Taking It Off by Samara King.Elyse Langston is taking it all off and after shedding one hundred
pounds who would blame her for scheduling an exclusive boudoir photography session
with Zion to celebrate
her success?She wanted to celebrateElyse Langston is taking it all off and after shedding one hundred
pounds who would blame her for scheduling an exclusive boudoir photography session
with Zion to celebrate
her success? Her boyfriend – make that ex-boyfriend – Collin is not happy about
her recent weight loss and dumps her. If there ever were a remedy for single girl
blues, it would be watching Zion
master the lens…as well as every inch of her body!He wanted to ignore the temptationZion
is no stranger to the female form. Beautiful women strut and strike a pose before
him daily. His no strings attached demeanor has been the fortress he’s needed to
keep his mind off the complicated matters of the heart and on building his clientele – until Elyse strolls into his studio.Buy This Book
Author Site http://samaraking.com/books/blush-novellasAuthor Social Media
Website http://samaraking.comTwitter http://twitter.com/samarakingAmazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Samara-King/e/B0057AAIAA
