Yes, I said I was going to have a contest and here it is!
I'm giving away a free autographed copy of Where One Road Leads and it couldn't be easier to win. All you need to do is to go to my new website It's All About The Romance, check it out and leave a message in my guestbook and you'll be entered to win. I'll announce the winner on Saturday. So go on and enter!
I'm very pleased to announce that my three chapters of That Kind Of Magic is off and away to Canada. Now I have to wait, but I've already plunged back into editing of Dreamer's Sea. Did I mention how much I hate editing? I submitted several chapters to my crit group before taking a break and working on TKOM. I don't know if I should pick up where I left off and send more in or go it alone. I love the input from the group, but it's such a loooong project and with the length of this particular manuscript I'd be submitting chapters for months. If I go it on my own I may miss areas that need fixing, but I could get through it faster. Then again, I may be able to do just fine on our own.
There's not much on tv these days. That's great for my writing but I'm very sad. We lost a completely awesome show this past week thanks to the poor treatment by ABC (long hiatuses while bad shows were playing, being moved from time slot to time slot 6 times in 2 seasons.... the writers strike). Men In Trees was still awesome and had such a loyal following and now we're all sad. I wish the cast well and thank them for some of the best tv on tv. I'll miss Elmo and all the Elmoians.
Here's one of my favorite videos from the show. Jack and Marin are awesome and Jack 9aka James Tupper)is so handsome. He's my model for my hero in Dreamer's Sea.
Now I have to get back to editing. Remember to get on over to my website and leave a comment and you may win an autographed copy of Where One Road Leads!
I have to say congrats to The Long And The Short Of It for their relaunching of their fabulous review site, including their erotic review site Whipped Cream Erotic Romance Reviews. And they put Where One Road Leads on the site. Thanks so much ladies! I think we're returning to normal here at the Hebert household. Even though we're in the grip of a heat wave, I'm at least getting my work done. My husband went back to work last night though he's only on light duty and if things don't look good with his arm on Friday they may put him in a cast. Not too much fun, but I have my house back in the evenings. I love my DH but during the 12 years we've been married he's always worked nights and I've been spoiled by our schedule. I have more chances to get my work done. As for me I had some minor surgery (really minor, only took 15 minutes from start to finish) last week that has left me with stitches and a headache on a daily basis. But at least I have everything ready to be printed to be sent off to Harlequin. I'm pretty excited! I hope they like it. What a tremendous step it would be to be published by Harlequin, one of the goals in my life. School is almost over, just two more weeks. I think I'm actually happy, I don't have to get them up early. I'm going to get a contest together for Where One Road Leads starting next Monday. And I'm pleased to say there's a limited number of copies that can be purchased through my website It's All About The Romance. So far just Sweet Forever and WORL are available. I hope to have copies of Finally Home soon. Well, it's nice to be back!
So I thought I'd come out of hiding and post today. I really didn't realize that it's been so long since my last post. Whatever is wrong with me?!?!
Anyway, in the past few days I've had some movement in my writing career. Is it good or bad? Well, nearly any writing movement is good.
First of all, I need to announce that WHERE ONE ROAD LEADS is being released in print today. I was supposed to have started a contest for a free autographed copy, but I was away from home all weekend so I haven't organized anything yet. But it will be forthcoming.
My sister is out for a visit. She and my mom were at the airport picking up her mother in law and they stopped in the airport Borders to see if they carried my book. Well, it wasn't on the shelf but they were very excited when the cashier was able to pull it up on the computer LOL. Now if they'd only put it on the shelf. My sister's MIL was so excited to meet an actual author. She's is such a hoot.
This past weekend we went camping. No tent for us. We rented a cabin at a campground. It was actually fun. A little cold at night, but that's okay. We want to do it again next year. The kids had a blast. It was a very family oriented place. Kids galore! But I'm glad to be home and clean.
Oh, and one more piece of news. This weekend I stopped to check my mail.
The ENVELOPE from Harlequin was there.
I figured it couldn't be good news since it came back so fast. After all, generally it takes well over a month and it's only been about 3 weeks. So I repeated over and over that it would be a rejection.
Well, they want to see a more complete synopsis AND the first 3 chapters of That Kind of Magic!! I'm shocked and amazed and excited!!!
So today, after my meetings and I gather children, I'll be working on that synopsis.
They did tell me it would take 5 months to hear back from them. Okay, at least I have a time frame.
I'm sad that there's only 2 days left of this contest. I'm having fun! Thanks so much to everyone who's concerned about my arm. I really appreciate it! I'm sure it'll be better soon. Today's excerpt is from Sweet Forever
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Excitement ran through Ben as he waited for Hayden to collect her things. It was a double-edged sword, though. The reason for Hayden coming to stay with him was less than pleasant. He wanted Lu to be her old, spunky self. He was afraid that these episodes with her heart were becoming too frequent. He wouldn’t enjoy the other downfall, having Sally under his roof, either. The woman was as obvious and persistent as a horsefly. And as annoying.
What a difference between her and Hayden.
He looked forward to seeing Hayden every day. Just the thought of having her at the breakfast table every morning, looking at him with those russet brown eyes and the shy smile that made him want more.
How the hell was he going to be able to concentrate on the guests who’d start arriving on Friday with Hayden distracting him?
"I’m ready."
Hayden stood by the door, bag in hand and two blank canvases tucked under each arm. Her dark brown hair caught glints of sunlight that flooded in past the sheer curtains. The rays enveloped her body in some kind of ethereal glow. And for the first time in his life, Ben was star-struck by a woman. He realized that he was already half in love with her, and if she gave him the chance he’d fall the rest of the way.
Without much more than the need to be near her in his head, Ben closed the distance between them, took the canvases and bag from her, set them gently to the ground and took her face between his hands.
Before he lowered his mouth to hers, he let his fingertips slide over the smooth skin of her cheeks, pushing aside a lock of hair that curled over his thumb. He touched her lips tentatively, to find out if she’d pull away. But she didn’t. She didn’t lean into his kiss either, but she let his mouth touch hers in a feather light caress. Her sigh couldn’t be disguised though and he let the tiny gesture embolden him. He let one hand drift into her soft hair, sinking his fingers into the tangle of curls. His mouth pushed more insistently on hers, inviting her to be a participant in this kiss. The heat of the contact spread from his lips downward until his whole body felt like it was on fire. He was certain she could hear his heart pounding.
His hands dropped away from her head and glided down over her shoulders and her back, one finding a resting place on her hips and the other remaining on the small of her back. He pulled her closer so her body snuggled in against his. She was a perfect fit.
Against his shirt, he could feel the pressure of her arms snaking around his waist, and he smiled against her mouth. Her embrace was a good sign, a very good sign. He wanted to taste her, to know every inch of her. His desire for her reached an alarming peak. Made more alarming by the urgency that she seemed to be returning the kiss. No longer shy or testing, Hayden pressed herself closer to him, her hands climbing up his back to his shoulders and into his hair, pushing his Stetson askew until it finally tipped off his head and fell to the floor.
Everything inside him, from the hard beat of his heart against his chest and the rush of blood through his veins, centered around her. Her kiss sent the pit of his stomach into a wild swirl, akin to a roller coaster, and the unexpected sensation drove him on. The velvety softness of her tongue stroked against his and he greeted it hungrily, tasting the sweetness of her mouth.
Without any warning, Hayden ducked away from him, the palms of her hands going up against his chest and pushing him back.
"No, what are we doing?" she asked faintly, putting a finger against her lips. She looked past him out the window. "We can’t do this. It’s not right."
Ben wanted to take her back into his arms, if for nothing else than just to comfort her, make her see that it was all right. But that move wouldn’t be productive. Not yet.
"Why isn’t it right? What in the world has got you scared about what’s going on between us? You can’t blame the moonlight this time, Hayden."
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QUESTION: What is Ben not looking forward to about this upcoming stay at his ranch? Actually, I'll accept one of two answers to this one.
************************************************ I've been busy busy busy with edits for Dreamer's Sea but when I can I've been writing a sequel to Sweet Forever and I'm loving it. It'll be my next major project after DS is finished. I'm trying to write it as a stand-alone book so one doesn't have to read Sweet Forever first (but it'll help). It feels good to get back to having horses in my stories. There was a time when all my stories had horses. I diverted from that path with Where One Road Leads and my current manuscript, Dreamer's Sea. Okay, it's getting late and I have to think about getting ready for work. Everyone enjoy the day! I'm looking forward to all the responses!
Well, I have my desk top back but my arm still hurts. Thanks for all the notes of concern. I appreciate it. I know I have to rest, but its so hard to do that when I have a 104k manuscript to edit.
Anyway, onto the important stuff. Got lots of responses over the past two days for the questions. It's fabulous! Thanks all! I hope you're enjoying the excerpts!
Today's excerpt is from my third book Where One Road Leads which is currently available in e-book format from Samhain Publishing. It'll be available in print in late May (and we'll have another contest then :D).
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He pulled his cruiser into the short dirt drive at the Fayes’ white farmhouse and got out. For a moment he took it in, the overgrown lawn and hedges that hadn’t been trimmed in ages, probably since before Mrs. Faye had begun to lose her battle with cancer. The place looked nearly lifeless.
A Jeep Wrangler was parked next to the garage. The vehicle was scarred and dented. A haze of dust and a spattering of dry mud diminished its silver-blue paint. Its abused exterior made him wonder where life had taken Krista after that fateful night. She’d done a stint in the Women’s State Prison, but after that, he had no clue. He’d never cared. But now he wanted to know. The wanting pressed at his head like a nagging ache. Once satisfied, he planned on going back to not caring.
More important than finding out where she’d been for the past fifteen years, though, he wanted to know when she was leaving.
A big dog trotted out from behind the house, his thick black and tan tail whipping back and forth and his tongue lopping out of the corner of his mouth. Matt could’ve sworn the dog was grinning. The animal gave a throaty, deep woof that wasn’t one bit threatening.
"Gus, get back here. I’m sorry, I know he should be on a tie-out but—"
The woman stopped short, her mouth open as the rest of her sentence remained unsaid.
It was as if the whole world had fallen silent. Matt glared at Krista as she struggled to regain her composure, shutting her mouth tightly so it formed a thin line.
He looked her up and down, assessing her physical condition. She looked healthy anyway. Most of her figure was lost in the baggy green T-shirt that fell down to her hips. The lower portion of her body was clothed in faded blue jeans. She wore her baseball hat backwards, giving him a clear view of her face. No make-up, just a fair complexion with a smattering of light freckles across her nose. Her eyes were bluer than he’d remembered, but then he hadn’t been the one gazing into them fifteen years ago.
The only thing that marred her pretty face was the scar that ran up from the left corner of her lip to her cheekbone before arcing down toward her ear and the other one that began directly between her dark golden blonde brows and disappeared into her hairline. These weren’t thin lines. No, the accident had taken its toll on her as well.
But it had left her alive. He wished he could say the same about Eddie or Liz or the out-of-towner from Rhode Island who was an unfortunate passenger in the second car.
"Matt," she acknowledged through a tense jaw.
"Krista." He was going to say she looked well, but he didn’t want to start making polite small talk with her. Best to get right to the heart of the matter. "How long are you here for?"
Krista laughed shortly and shook her head. "Well, if I was expecting a warm welcome in this town, I guess I would’ve been disappointed. Glad I’m more of a realist." There was a smile on her face but it was as frigid as her tone of voice.
"Small towns remember things for a long time. Some things we never forget," he replied as coldly.
The trace of a cynical smile on her lips disappeared. "Neither do I," she replied evenly. "Sorry to disappoint you, Matt, but I’ll be here for a while. I’ll try to stay out of your way while I’m around."
With a grip on her dog’s collar, Krista turned and walked toward the back of the house without so much as a goodbye.
For a long moment, Matt stayed put, staring in the direction they’d gone, not sure if he was more angry at the confrontation or puzzled. He settled for both.
The last time he and Krista had words, she’d been in tears, begging for him to believe her, that it wasn’t just her fault. She’d been a scared, hurt girl, the damage to her body fresh, and he hadn’t cared a bit for her because she had been the one behind the wheel. She had taken away three lives, one of which was his own flesh and blood.
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QUESTION: How long has Krista been gone?
Email your answers to cerihebert@comcast.net for your chance to win a free signed copy of Sweet Forever which is NOW AVAILABLE from Samhain Publishing!
Thanks! Tomorrow will be another excerpt from Sweet Forever and another chance to win!
More Miracle. See, Marianne, my cat likes to lay all over my stuff just like your puppy does.
I have the great advantage of having a super helper with my galley corrections. Okay, fine, I'm horrible with punctuation. I don't know if I use too many commas or not enough. I think I need to go back and take some classes. But my helper knows this stuff and now my galley corrections for Where One Road Leads is ready to go back to my editor. Print release date is May 27th! I can't say how excited I am! I think I've mentioned how much I love this story!
In the meantime I got a bunch more written on Dreamer's Sea and have cleared the 96K mark. Time to move the goal. I know there's not much more to be done on it but I'm at the beginning of a very important scene and it's morphing in my head from one thing to something much better. I'm eager to get it written down. Now I know that I'll probably trim a LOT out of the story, but better to have too much to work with than not enough.
Unfortunately today is one of those days when, once I get out of work, I'll be running around like a madwoman, meetings, picking kids up, dropping kids off and picking them up again. I can't wait for cheerleading to be over with, but we have Special Olympics coming up really soon (at least I know we have plenty of snow for it this year).
First of all I want to wish my friend and fellow writer Marianne a very happy birthday!!! I took the day off today with the intention of driving up north to VT to visit my father in law who is recovering from some heavy duty surgery but unfortunatly Mother Nature has foiled those plans with a little freezing rain and sleet (blech). So I can go into work like a good doobee or I can stay home. Hmmm..... what to do...... Yeh, I'm staying home. I have more than enough to keep me occupied, like working on the galley corrections for Where One Road Leads and working on Dreamer's Sea (which is up over 87K now). I've got another story stuck in my brain too. The sequel to Sweet Forever. Blame it on the horse magazines my daughter has acquired. I haven't done a real horse-centric story since Finally Home and even though my SF sequel will feature a horse crazy heroine I'm still ready to come up with something new set in the world of grand prix show jumping. But first (well, first after DS and my galley corrections) I'll concentrate on my cowgirl. Oh, and I have That Kind Of Magic which I'd love to get edited. I guess too many ideas is better than not enough.
That the day after the elections, by say 5pm, every single campaign sign should be removed and recycled in some way. I'm tired of looking at all the signs out there, and this year they seem to have been going to an extreme. Fifteen Hillary signs in one little island. At least that many Edward signs and Obama a close third. Not so many signs from Republicans. I'm just glad it's over. It's nice to be in the limelight for a little while, but now we can go back to being a quiet little state. Well, I'm up over 85K on Dreamer's Sea and still have quite a bit to go. I've bumped my goal up to 90K. Boy, and I was worried that I couldn't get it over 60K. But I really need to turn my attention to WORL to get those galleys done by the end of the month. So, I may have to push my goal of finishing DS back a little bit. But that's okay, it's for a good cause.
Focus, I need to focus. I'm still behind. But I've been bouncing back and forth between The Staying Kind (my NaNo piece) and the galleys. The galley and the corrections need to be back to my editor by the 16th but I've had a volunteer who is better with punctuation then I am offer to look it over so I can keep going on the NaNo. The weekend is coming and that means less writing. We're heading up to my father in laws on Sunday so that really means no writing. Can I make it up today? I hope. We'll see.
I really do like this story. I'm going to be such a drama queen again. Problems galore for my hero, a tragic past for my heroine. A troubled teen and an aunt who is a bit eccentric. And horses. I'm going to get some horses in my story again. I've missed them.
I hope that I'll have another agent-worthy story when this is all done. I crave getting out into the big bad world of print publishing. It would be so awesome and fulfilling.
Of course having Sweet Forever, and sometime next year Where One Road Leads, in print will help.
I have finally remembered my ideas on a possible NaNoWriMo project. All last week I was trying to remember what I wanted to write about. I had had an idea but for the life of me I couldn't remember what it was. Put it down to too much going on in my life right now. But yesterday I remembered what it was and began to expand on it. I think, before I lose it again, I'll need to start taking notes. The only question is.... will I do NaNoWriMo this year. I've had 2 successful years in a row. My first attempt was Where One Road Leads. Last year's project was Dreamer's Sea which I'm now polishing up so I can find me an agent. I can't complain about either projects (though I really thought DS was hopeless when I finished NaNo last year). So IF I can finish the editing (which includes adding a LOT of new stuff to boost it from the 56K it is right now to, I'm hoping, 65K by the time it's ready to send out) on DS by the end of October I can start sending it out to be critiqued. OR put it aside starting November 1st and do NaNo. I'm not sure I can do NaNo AND do all the critwork necessary on DS. I really should work soley on DS. But I love the NaNoWriMo challenge and the thought of getting another book out of it. Well, I have a month to think about it. My friend Marianne is having some contests over at her blog. And don't forget that my short story Little Matchmakers is still posted over at The Long And The Short Of It until Wednesday, though it'll be archieved after that. LASR has some wonderful short stories. I highly recommend them. For more contests go to Judy's blog. Boy, lots of good stuff all over the place. I think I'm going to have to have another contest here in the next few weeks. Now it's 6am and that means TIME TO GET READY FOR WORK. Blah.
I received this review over at Romance Reviews Today WHERE ONE ROAD LEADS – Ceri Hebert Samhain Publishing – www.samhainpublishing.com ISBN: 1-59998-548-9 July 2007 Romantic Suspense Quail Ridge, New Hampshire – Present Day After fifteen years, Krista Faye is going back to her childhood home in Quail Ridge. As a photojournalist, she has faced many dangerous places in the world, but none is more frightening to her than Quail Ridge. She is leasing an old mill and making it into a youth center, but she will be facing her demons from years ago. Police officers Matt Burgess and his father, Ed, own the old mill. Because Krista’s boss leased the property, Matt and Ed are not aware that Krista is behind the opening of the youth center. Matt blames Krista for the car accident that took the lives of his little brother and Krista’s best friend fifteen years ago. Krista was sent to prison, lost the baby she was carrying, and still has scars from the accident. There was more to the accident, but many people believed the version Ricky, the fourth person in the car, told. Krista still blames herself and mourns her friends. When Kristi’s house and youth center are vandalized, Matt begins to have second thoughts about Kristi’s guilt. Could Ricky have had more to do with the accident than he admitted? As things heat up between Krista and Matt romantically, a confrontation with Ricky sets off more vandalism. But if Ricky was out of town, who could hate Krista so much that he would want to kill her? WHERE ONE ROAD LEADS is an enjoyable story about a woman who paid dearly for any sins she may or may not have committed. She is brave, but vulnerable, hoping everyone will forgive her for the part she played in the accident. She hopes to do something good for the town, but there are some people who are unwilling to forgive and forget. Matt realizes that he has been wrong to blame Krista for the death of his brother. He finds her to be a good, compassionate woman, and not the cruel hard-hearted woman he had envisioned. Ricky is a spoiled man whose father always bailed him out of trouble, and who feels no remorse for anything he does. The book is an easy-to-read, compelling romantic suspense to while away an afternoon. The characters are likeable, and the pacing is good. Readers are sure to enjoy this one. Marilyn Heyman I've also done a read through of my 2006 Nano manuscript and it's not as hopeless as I thought it was. In fact I really like it. The characters are strong and the descriptions vivid. I have to get back and start rewrites/edits. I have high hopes for this one. And when I'm done with it I'll use it to lure in an agent. But first I have errands galore!
Location: Southwestern, New Hampshire, United States
I'm 44 year old mom of 3. I work as a customer service rep for a publishing company, and I write. I have five published novels and working on adding to that.
THAT KIND OF MAGIC--AVAILABLE NOVEMBER 17,2010
What's a witch to do when she refuses to use magic to find love? Beautiful Wiccan Charlotte Noone has a shop for magical supplies and a goddess who's pushing her to find the man of her dreams. When Patrick Riordan, a straight-laced non-believer enters her life, Charlotte falls madly in lust with him. Despite their very different lives, neither can stop the erotic journey they’ve embarked on, but will it be enough to break through their barriers so they can accept that love itself is magical?.
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