Weekend Wildcard: Ten Days in Orlando

Love Inspired author Terri Reed gives her account of what she did in Orlando.

Terri Reed here, finally recovered from an exhausting but thrilling ten days away in sunny, HOT, Orlando for the Romance Writers of America's 30th Annual national conference.

I had a wonderful time on so many levels.

 I visited Disney's Animal Kingdom with my critique partner Leah Vale, danced with Donald Duck  and chatted with Safari Mickey .

The conference was at the beautiful Swan Dolphin hotel on the Disney property. Here I am standing on the bridge of the Boardwalk with the Swan Dolphin in the background.

I signed my May 2010 release Covert Pursuit at the Literacy signing with 500 of the genre's favorite authors. All proceeds from book sales go to ProLiteracy Worldwide and Orlando and Nashville literacy organizations. We raised over 55,000 dollars.

I attended many informative workshops and actually gave a workshop, which is always a stretch for me. I do okay in small groups or one to one, but speaking into a microphone to more than three people unnerves me. Though I think I did okay.

This year's keynote speaker was the fabulous, New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts.  Her inspiring speech made me think about all the fabulous writer friends and contacts I’ve made over the years. I can’t imagine my life without the joy of knowing the many wonderful writers and readers with whom I’ve crossed paths.

On Friday night I attended the Harlequin author party at the beautiful Waldorf hotel and danced until my feet hurt. Here’s me with my editor Emily Rodmell.

The week culminated with the prestigious RITA and Golden Heart award dinner and ceremony. I wore an ice blue strapless gown with a little bling in my hair (I couldn't bring myself to do an actual tiara). I felt like Cinderella. Here’s me with my senior editor Tina James.

Next year New York here we come!

The 31st Annual Romance Writers of America Conference will be held in New York City, June 28 - July 1 at the Marriott Marquis.

This month I have a new book out titled Treasure Creek Dad, part of the Alaskan Bride Rush continuity. #



What’s a Father to Do?


Single father Jake Rodger’s daughter isn’t happy about moving to tiny Treasure Creek Alaska. So the former big city businessman trades his suits for hiking boots and he books a father-daughter wilderness tour to acclimate her. But Veronica isn’t buying it. Perhaps guide Casey Donner is just the person to help the girl appreciate the Klondike state’s natural beauty. But could tomboy Casey, in her ponytail and cargo pants, also be what this city boy needs for a lifetime of love?

Film on Friday: As Good as It Gets

Michelle Styles investiagtes a feel good movie with a character you should  despise but don't.

There are times when only a feel good movie will do and As Good As It Gets is a great movie. First released in 1997, it won 2 Oscars -- Best Actor for Jack Nicolson and Best Actress for Helen Hunt. My husband gave this dvd a few Christmases ago. I think Jack Nicholson as Obsessive Compulsive  romance novelist appealed to his sense of humour.  It is ultimately a feel good love story about how someone who is angry at the human race learns to love and give of himself.
Melvin Udall by any measure is dysfunctional. The film never really explores why he is dysfunctional and why he has become immersed in such compulsive obsessive behaviour. I suspect being a novelist, he can feel so much emotion that in order to cope with his emotions, he has cut himself off from emotion. He takes pride in being combative and making the smart remark. He thinks only of himself rather than how he might wound others. Many of his statements are outrageous but you can also understand the pain then as he doesn't want to be the way he is. Particularly when he tells the dog -- Don't you ever be like me.
He wants his life just how he wants his life to the point of tracking down his favourite waitress played by Helen Hunt when she doesn't show up for work.
When his homosexual neighbour, Simon is hospitalised after an attack, Melvin is forced to look after Simon's dog. This is a dog that Melvin professes to hate but who soon becomes vital to Melvin's existence and becomes his gateway to engaging with humanity.
His relationship with Carol remains complicated and at the end they go off to the corner bakery in the middle of the night but you know they will be okay.
One of my favourite lines from the film is : I might be the only person on the face of the earth that knows you're the greatest woman on earth. I might be the only one who appreciates how amazing you are in every single thing that you do, and how you are with Spencer, "Spence," and in every single thought that you have, and how you say what you mean, and how you almost always mean something that's all about being straight and good. I think most people miss that about you, and I watch them, wondering how they can watch you bring their food, and clear their tables and never get that they just met the greatest woman alive. And the fact that I get it makes me feel good, about me.
Another is when Carol asks him to give her a compliment and he says: You make me want to be a better man.

So if you need something to cheer you up and reaffirm your faith in human nature, I would humbly suggest re -watching As Good as It Gets as it is sure to brighten your mood. Watch the trailer and see.

Michelle Styles writes historical romance for Harlequin Mills & Boon. Her latest release is An Impulsive Debutante. She has never made flipant comments when people ask her where she gets her ideas...but soemtimes the temptation has been there.

What are you reading Thursday by Kate Hardy

This week, PHS columnist Kate Hardy talks about her best reads this summer.

I have to admit to a huge TBR pile. As in three shelves on a bookcase – oops. However, it’s the school summer holidays in the UK (and my work hours are very strange indeed, to fit round the kids), so reading is a bit of a luxury at the moment. It has to be fitted in between writing, doing the usual publicity things (I have a nonfiction book out tomorrow as well as my new Modern Heat, so this week has been full of interviews and talks), and doing things for the M&B New Voices … so time is a bit tight! Worst still for a writer, I’ve probably spent more time watching films than reading, this last four weeks (and yes, I did only take them to Shrek because of Antonio). Best film this summer: Inception. Utterly brilliant. Romantic elements, and the kind of film that sets off lightbulbs in writers’ heads.

Anyway, before I talk about my best reads this summer, I’d be failing in my duty if I didn’t mention M&B's New Voices – if you’re unpublished and haven’t yet entered the competition, do check out http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/. And the editors at M&B are fast-tracking Medical Romance submissions this month, so if you're interested it’s worth checking out the Harlequin blog. Good luck to all who give it a go!

Righty – so what have I been reading?

Robert Harris’s Pompeii isn’t officially a romance (though the hero was definitely category romance material, and there was a love story going on underneath the worries about work), but is a very compelling story about the events leading up to the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79. And as we were in the shadow of Vesuvius for the first week this summer (it’s very visible from the whole of the Sorrentine peninsula) and visited both the volcano and the ruins of Pompeii, it was a very appropriate place to read it! Great characterisation, fast pace, good plot (though the eel scene is a little on the gory side, so be warned) and I enjoyed it thoroughly. (Recommended by my agent, and her recommendations are always spot on.)

I’ve also indulged in some category romance – Liz Fielding’s SOS: Convenient Husband Required was a great read. Excellent characterisation (Liz always writes wonderful heroines, and May is no exception), a strong hero we can understand and sympathise with, dialogue I wish I’d written, and a good twist on the ‘marriage of convenience’ theme. As always, with Liz, it’s the deft and subtle details that hook you in. Watch out for the rose petals. Very enjoyable. I also loved the intensity of Lynn Raye Harris’s The Devil’s Heart – really drew me in to the characters’ world, and I particularly liked the heroine.

Best book of the summer for me: Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall. Again, it’s not officially a romance, though there are certainly love stories going on within it. It’s a very strong portrayal of one man’s psychology, set against a very turbulent political period. It’s beautifully written with superb characterisation; I actually found myself sympathising with Thomas Cromwell (despite the fact that thinking about the sheer destruction of the Reformation – the loss of books and architecture in particular – tends to send me into a major rant). I’ll be looking out for Hilary Mantel’s backlist now because I enjoyed this so much, and I really hope there’s going to be a follow-up.


In the UK, Kate’s Modern Heat Red Wine and Her Sexy Ex (aka the first of the French duo) is out on the shelves tomorrow (out December in the US and Australia). In Australia, Kate’s Medical Romance Neurosurgeon…and Mum! is on the shelves, and you can also find it at the eHarlequin website in the US. (And if you like spooky tales - especially of castles and monasteries - you might like her new nonfic, Essex Ghosts and Legends, written as Pamela Brooks for Halsgrove.)

You can find out more about these books, and Kate, on her website (http://www.katehardy.com/) and her blog (http://katehardy.blogspot.com/)

RWAus Conference: Nikki Logan

Romance Writers of Australia celebrated their 19th annual conference at Coogee Beach, Sydney, over the weekend of 13-15 August.

Like the US, conference is a big date on the Australian calendar and anticipation starts building from new year. So the first day of conference was thrumming with energy.

I've cherry-picked a few of my favourite workshops to highlight.

Well known Australian radio/television presenter, standup comedian and now author, Wendy Harmer, gave an inspiring presentation for the published author group about writing romance/rom elements within Australia's east-coast literature scene in which her work has been simultaneously derided and applauded and the extra scrutiny of her as a popular, public figure. Funny, fast-paced and entirely irreverent.

Wendy was preceeded by Dr John Barletta, an amazing and engaging psych professional who analysed the state we all aim for with our writing. We call it being in 'the zone' but in psych terms it's called 'flow' - that place on an aptitude continuum where skill and challenge and engagement hover in perfect harmonic suspension and allow us to fully immerse in our work and be uber-productive. The good news? You can
train yourself to get there.

The screenwriter of Australia's massively successful television drama series 'UnderBelly' chatted to us about her scriptwriting process but more particularly about the challenges of fictionalising 'true crime' - not the least managing the expectations of research subjects who come from Australias leading violent crime families.

Debora Dixon held a full house of pubb'd and unpubbd writers enthraled with all things GMC with a Heroes Journey chaser. Deb is a fantastic presenter and her talk was informal and comfortable.
Vicky Lewis-Thompson spoke on the virtues of 'feeling fear but doing it anyway' and forcing yourself out of your comfortzone with an hilarious range of OMG bad-dream moments in publishing. It was a wonderful equaliser for everyone in the room who'd ever said something dopey in a lift or walked into a pitch session with their dress bundled into their knickers.

We enjoyed a ten strong panel of US and Australian publishing reps and agents and compared their opinions of the status of the international industry, then split down into individual workshops.

I'm always a particular fan of specialist sessions at conference - where you can see and hear things that you normally wouldn't have access to. One of my favourite sessions was by a forensic specialist from the New South Wales' coroner's office; while graphic, it was very honest and open and took participants through some of the most familiar and shocking parts of being a coroner.

Right afterwards we had a fantastic session by a weapons and defence specialist and his team of 'meat-men' who came along to teach us everthing we wanted to know about staging fight-scenes. He showed us how you can make a weapon from nothing, what kinds of blades work best for different situations, how to strangle, buckle, take down an assailant. Amazingly eye-opening (I may never go outside again) but wonderful for our stories.

Every year RWAus runs a charity fundraiser lunch on the final day of conference. This year it was a Silver theme for ovarian cancer. 250 women (and one man) managed to raise over $10,000 for development of an early detection system for Ovarian Cancer thanks to an amazing $5K donation from Harlequin Australia.

All in all a fabulous conference with a high level of new participants. RWAus conferences just go from strength to strength. All speakers acknowledged the very high level of support, comraderie and positivity at Australian conference and this year was no exception.

Roll on 2011...

And a big congrats from the PHS to all the R*BY award winners:

Short Sweet:

Sharon Archer 'Marriage Reunited: Baby On The Way'



Short Sexy:

Amy Andrews 'A Doctor, A Nurse: A Christmas Baby'



Long Romance:

Sophia James 'Mistletoe Magic'



Romantic Elements:

Tracey O'Hara 'Night's Cold Kiss'

Temptation Tuesday - Ice Cream

Donna Alward returns to Temptation Tuesday with a summertime indulgence - soft, cold, awesome ice cream!

I love ice cream.  I never used to, to be honest.  Not that I disliked it, but I didn't LOVE it.  We would go months without having it in the freezer.  Then I was pregnant with my second child until the end of July many years ago and ice cream hit the spot on those hot, hot days.

I definitely have some favourites.  Top of the list is a really good vanilla.  I know, it sounds boring. But I love vanilla. Especially vanilla made with little bits of actual vanilla bean in it.

Then I like variations built on a vanilla base.  We're talking butter pecan, toffee bits, rum and raisin, and my new favourite Homespun Sticky Bun.  It's the addition of cinnamon that gets me, and the little bits of dough. Anything vanilla with streaks of caramel has me in heaven.

One year we went camping and each night we got ice cream.  The campground went through so much that a flavour of one day might not be there the next.  So we often all got different flavours and tried them all.  The Nestle flavs were hits - like Turtle and Rolo and Coffee Crisp.

My husband likes chocolate ice cream.  I do too, though I normally choose a caramel or vanilla base.  Flavours like chocolate truffle, or Tin Roof, anything with cappucino in the name.  How about Black Forest with a streak of cherry running through it?

I've canvassed the kids and my eldest says her fave is Brownies on the Moon (chunks of brownies are ALWAYS a good thing), and my youngest likes the super sweet Bubble Gum or Cotton Candy (not sure where she gets that from, yuck!).

Now the only question is regular cone, waffle cone, or bowl? (Note: Eldest is regular cone, the rest of us are waffle cone people!)






Donna's looking forward to her next release coming from Mills and Boon Cherish (Romance).  Proud Rancher, Precious Bundle is out in October in the UK, paired with a story by Barbara Hannay.

Male on Monday: Send in the Marines

Harlequin Intrigue Author Paula Graves talks about why US Marines are just that little special and why she thinks of them as the ultimate in hero inspiration!

I know Male on Monday is supposed to introduce you to one hot guy. But today, I just can't limit it to one. Instead, I thought I'd talk about a whole group of hot heroes I love.
See, I have a thing for the U.S. Marines.

The dress blues, the high and tight haircut, the great bodies, the matter-of-fact confidence that they're the best in the world at what they do—there's not much about a Marine that I don't find wildly attractive.
So I thought I'd do my Male on Monday post as an homage to the U.S. Marines.

While I've always had a Southern girl's abiding love for the military, I think my passion for Marines in particular dates back a few years to a Moonlight and Magnolias writers' conference in Atlanta. What was a great conference to begin with became extra-special when we realized there were a few dozen Marines attending a seminar in the same hotel.
Marines and romance writers? Talk about your match made in Heaven! And the amusing part was, they were as fascinated by us as we were by them. Though probably not for the same reason!

The Marines we met that day behaved as true gentlemen, treating every woman there with a combination of respect and delightfully male appreciation. And they had a way of looking at you that made you realize just how lucky you were to be a woman.
So when I decided to make the hero of my August Harlequin Intrigue a retired military man, there was no question in my mind: he was going to be a Marine.
Luke Cooper is One Tough Marine, a former Marine Intelligence officer whose past has risen up to haunt him on two fronts, from the escalating threat from a drug lord with a blood vendetta against Luke to the sudden reappearance in his life of the woman he can never have--and can't forget.
Luke embodies everything I love about a Marine--honor, strength, fidelity, loyalty, competence, and a passion for women, or in Luke's case, one particular woman.
Do you have a thing for the Marines the way I do? Whether the answer is yes or no, tell us what kind of hero revs your engine!

You can find out more about Paula Graves and her books on her website. Her latest Intrigue -- One Tought Marine -- is out now.