Monday, December 21, 2009

Happy Holidays!

Congratulations, Natasha! You’ve won the Catherine Asaro’s The Fire Opal. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address.

This blog I’m back to giving away historicals! I’ve got The Spy Wore Silk by Andrea Pickens. It’s the first book in a fun series, so give it a try! As always, to be eligible for the drawing, you must type in your email address. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on my next blog in two weeks!

I’ve talked about how my holidays work before, but here’s the update. My two brothers live back East, so my mom alternates years between the daughters and the sons, meaning, one year my sister and I get Thanksgiving with her, and the next year we get Christmas. This year our turn was Thanksgiving, so we’re shipping her off to my brothers today. But we had a wonderful celebration on Saturday. We’ve got a limit on gifts, $20 per person. And the trick is to see how many gifts you can fit into that limit. The dollar store, buy one/get one free, the thrift store, it’s an art. I have to admit my sister is a lot better at it than I am. It took us about two hours for all five of us (Mom, sis, her hubby, myself, my hubby) to open our presents. And it was loads of fun. Then it was a yummy feast. We had turducken (it’s a roll of turkey, duck and chicken with sausage stuffing in the middle), roast potatoes, broccoli and Hot Chocolate Pudding for dessert (YUM!). Now, I have to admit we all agreed that next year we’ll go back to the traditional roast beef and Yorkshire pudding and skip the turducken. I always remember the hot chocolate pudding from my childhood. It’s like a brownie with a hot fudge sauce. Add a dollop of whipped cream, mmm. Love it! But we haven’t had it in a long time. It was just as good as I remember! And I’m going to share my mother’s recipe with you.

Mom’s Hot Chocolate Pudding
Pudding:
1 C cake flour
2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 C sugar
2 T cocoa
1/2 C milk
1 t vanilla
2 T melted shortening
1/2 C chopped walnuts (optional)
Sift flour, baking powder, salt (Okay, I didn’t sift it and it turned out just fine). Add sugar, cocoa, and nuts. Add milk, vanilla, shortening. Stir lightly and pour into 1 1/2 qt casserole.
Sauce:
2 T cocoa
1/2 C brown sugar
1 3/4 C hot water
Beat in small bowl. Pour over uncooked batter. Bake at 350˚ for 45 minutes.

Any traditional recipes you’d like to share?

I’m blogging Monday, Dec 21, with Lucienne Diver. http://varkat.livejournal.com/ And with her, I’m going to share my mother’s recipe for English Trifle, another favorite yummy dessert! Hmm, did I tell you my mom was British? Oh yes, and very proper, too!

Happy Holidays everyone!!!!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!

Monday, December 7, 2009

Dream Job!

Estella! Congratulations! You’ve won the Raintree series from Silhouette Nocturne. Here’s the line-up, Inferno by Linda Howard, Haunted by Linda Winstead Jones, and Sanctuary by Beverly Barton. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address.

This time I’m going to give away a Luna book, Catherine Asaro’s The Fire Opal. Catherine writes wonderful fantasy books! If you haven’t tried her yet, here’s a great opportunity. To be eligible for the drawing, you must type in your email address. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on my next blog in two weeks!

I had lots of editing to do this past week. I received my edited file of my February Loose-Id release Take Your Pleasure, which I told you all about last blog. After I’m done with the edits, I always print out a final copy and read the whole through again, to make sure I didn’t miss anything. I’d been to a friend’s black belt test during the day (yay, she was awarded her third degree black belt! An amazing feat!), and I had about 20 pages left to read, and it was after dinner, time for a nice relaxing bath, but I really wanted to finish those 20 pages, too. So heck, I gave myself a glass of white zinfandel, a couple of dark chocolate Hershey kisses, poured in the bath salts and carried my red pen into the tub. And I finished the edit! When I mentioned this to my friend Kathy Coatney, she said what other job could you be working while luxuriating in the bathtub! Heh, then it hit me, I’ve got a dream job!

And here’s another dream-job moment, a book signing I did yesterday for Yours for the Night with my friend Shelley Adina. I’m in the middle, Shelley’s on the right, and Laurel is on the left. Laurel’s the friend who just got her black belt! We’re working, but don’t we look like we’re having a ton of fun, too! I worked as an accountant for 20 years to get to this point, but now I’ve attained that dream job!

What’s your dream job? Are you doing it now, working toward it, retired from it? Maybe it’s being a mother, a rewarding job from which we never retire! I’d love to hear.

Happy Holidays everyone!!!!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!

Monday, November 23, 2009

Take Your Pleasure

Well, let’s face it, I missed a week! I honestly did intend to do the blog on the 16th, but I was vacationing down in Palm Springs, and the Wi-Fi at the resort where we stayed was terrible. Lost my internet connection about every 3 minutes. And downloading e-mail!!??? Oh my God, it took hours. And that was if I could even get into it. Okay, excuses, excuses!

This time I’m going to give away the Raintree series from Silhouette Nocturne. Here’s the line-up, Inferno by Linda Howard, Haunted by Linda Winstead Jones, and Sanctuary by Beverly Barton. It’s a great series, you’re going to love it. Although I’ll tell you up front that the Linda Howard is a well-loved copy (I couldn’t find it new). To be eligible for the drawing, you must type in your email address. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on my next blog in two weeks!

And now for my news! I’ve sold a naughty novella to Loose-Id! I’m honored to be a part of a great group of authors and a wonderful publisher. Take Your Pleasure will be out in February. Here’s a little tease!

When Natalie Beaumonde catches her boyfriend with another woman, Lincoln Masters comes up with a plan for Natalie to show her wandering man the error of his ways. Being a Master himself, Lincoln’s the perfect dom to help her execute the punishment. But Lincoln, who just happens to be Natalie’s boss, has an agenda of his own.

While I’m at it, Laced with Desire, a Berkley corset anthology with Jaci Burton, Joey Hill, and Denise Rossetti, will be out the same month, just in time for Valentines! (hmm, does Valentines have an apostrophe?) I love this cover, and I’m so proud to once again be writing with these wonderful ladies. Heck, here’s a little tease for my story (hint, when you read Yours for the Night, Simon Foster from Dominique’s story Payback will make another guest appearance in this story!)

La Petite Mort explores the lust of a former supermodel who needs to finally fulfill a no-holds-barred sexual fantasy. Finding two men to do it with is easy. But are they up to giving her all the pleasure she’s been denied?

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!!

Monday, November 2, 2009

Please welcome Nalini Singh!



Congratulations to Linda Henderson! You are the winner of Annie Solomon’s Dead Ringer. I’ll be sending you an e-mail for your snail mail address.

Quickly, Yours for the Night is out tomorrow! Enter Courtesans: A glitzy, sensual world of powerful people and the courtesans they’ll pay anything to have. It received an RT Top Pick! Whoohoo! Be sure to check out the excerpt at http://www.jasminehaynes.com/. Also, I’m doing a blog tomorrow, Tuesday, Nov 3rd, at http://authorsoundrelations.blogspot.com/ where I’ll be holding a drawing for a copy of Fair Game, my previous release.

I’ve got a special treat for you for this blog. Nalini Singh is joining me for the day. I adore Nalini’s books. She is the absolute best! So if you haven’t tried her, get out there and buy this book!!!! If you have read her, well, say no more, you already know what I’m talking about! Nalini has generously offered to give away a signed copy of one of her books (go to the end of this blog to find out which one!). To be entered in the drawing, leave a comment answering Nalini’s question. Now you have to comment within 24 hours (that means today, Monday, Nov 2nd until this same bat time, same bat channel Tuesday morning). And please, leave your e-mail address so we can contact you.

So without further ado, here she is!



BLAZE OF MEMORY
BERKLEY BOOKS
Out 3 November 2009

Nalini Singh returns to the Psy/Changeling world and its “breathtaking blend of passion, adventure, and the paranormal” as a woman without a past becomes the pawn of a man who controls her future…

Dev Santos discovers her unconscious and battered, with no memory of who she is. All she knows is that she’s dangerous. Charged with protecting his people’s most vulnerable secrets, Dev is duty-bound to eliminate all threats. It’s a task he’s never hesitated to complete…until he finds himself drawn to a woman who might yet prove the enemy’s most insidious weapon.

Stripped of her memories by a shadowy oppressor, and programmed to carry out cold-blooded murder, Katya Haas is fighting desperately for her sanity itself. Her only hope is Dev. But how can she expect to gain the trust of a man who could very well be her next target? For in this game, one must die…

Excerpt: http://www.nalinisingh.com/blaze.html

Reviews

“...When it comes to delivering stories that grab you by the throat and don't let go, Singh is in a class by herself!" - Romantic Times

“...BLAZE OF MEMORY had me in tears with the tenderness that Dev and Katya exposed in each other. This story adds immensely to the series…You will want to revisit this love story again and again." - Romance Junkies

Contest

Leave a comment with your answer to the question below in the next 24 hours to go into the draw to win a signed copy of Branded By Fire, the previous book in the series. (Or if you prefer, you can choose a mass market copy of the An Enchanted Season anthology).

Excerpt: http://www.nalinisingh.com/branded.html (warning, excerpt may singe your eyebrows off).

Contest Question: Who is your absolute favorite romantic hero?

Monday, October 19, 2009

Castle

Congratulations to Cheryl Casting! You are the winner of The Madness of Lord Ian MacKenzie by Jennifer Ashley. I’ll be sending you an e-mail for your snail mail address.

This time I’m going to give away Annie Solomon’s Dead Ringer. A wonderfully suspenseful read, ladies! To be eligible for the drawing, you must type in your email address. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on my next blog!

Have you been watching the TV show Castle with Nathan Fillion and Stana Katic? I don’t watch a lot of network TV. The commercials, we don’t have a TiVo or the like so I have to watch or remember to tape, etc, etc. And yeah, sometimes the shows are just crap. If they aren’t crap, hubby and I prefer to watch them when they come out on DVD (Yay, Netflix!). Even The Office, which we love, yup, we wait a whole year to get the DVD (okay, okay, I watched the wedding episode, but that was it). Of course, with The Office, they have all the deleted scenes on the DVD, and those deleted scenes have a LOT of stuff that really explains the show, too. But I digress, I was supposed to be talking about Castle. I love Nathan Fillion. First saw him as the evil (hot and sexy) Caleb in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, then oohlala, he was Mal in Firefly (how could they cancel that show after only 13 episodes, they’re insane!). I even loved him in that silly movie Slither. So I thought I’d give Castle a try, even though honestly, I thought the commercials looked stupid, but whatever. Castle is a best-selling mystery writer who gets permission to shadow a female cop so his mysteries can have authenticity. I think in the first episode, some of the murders are like murders that occur in his books. Then he ends up working with her on all her cases. I started watching last season. Now I’m hooked! I love this show! I stay up late on Monday nights to watch it (or I actually remember to set the recorder). It’s funny, witty, sexy. Yeah, some of the cop stuff doesn’t ring true, but for the most part, they do a good job with that. But I’m not a stickler anyway if the show is enjoyable. The mysteries are interesting, and most of the time, I can’t figure out who the bad guy is until the characters do because there are so many twists and turns. There’s great chemistry between Fillion and Katic (the cop). It’s a fun role reversal that the woman is the tough cop and the guy is more flighty. The show is funny. And even the semi-sappy stuff with Castle’s daughter is actually very good. He’s the child and she’s the parent. Part of the reason I enjoy the show is how he thinks like a writer when helping to solve the cases. It rings true to how a writer’s mind works. Like when there’s a really unique way that someone’s been murdered, Castle says, “cool.” Just like I would! I would like to see more of the poker games with his writer buddies like Michael Connelly, Sue Grafton, etc. They don’t have a poker game in every show, but I always enjoy them when they do. Just my opinion, I don’t think this is a real guy show. It’s more a girlie show. My husband doesn’t watch it with me.

If you’ve seen the show, what do you think? If you’ve got a hubby or a boyfriend, do you think they’d like it?
Oh and some blatant promotion since this is my blog, Yours for the Night, RT Top Pick, will be out on Nov 3!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!

Monday, October 5, 2009

Weddings, Part 2!

Congratulations to Rosemary! You are the winner of Dime Store Magic by Kelley Armstrong. I don’t have to e-mail you for your address because I already know it!

This time I’m going to give away The Madness of Lord Ian MacKenzie by Jennifer Ashley. Ladies, this is one great book! I loved it! I picked up the book because my readers group at my local Borders highly recommended it, and boy, they were right! To be eligible for the drawing, you must type in your email address. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on my next blog!

So I’m doing “Weddings, Part 2” because my friend Judy, whose photo was in the last blog, found an old picture of her wedding party and scanned it for me! Wow! I won’t tell you how long ago it was. Because boy, then you’d know how really old I am! But I thought it would be a fun follow-up to the last blog. As bridesmaids, we made our own dresses. From left to right, that's Madeline, Nancy, Judy, me, and Margaret.

Just a few things to tell you. First, there’s an excerpt for Yours for the Night up on the website, http://www.jasminehaynes.com/. I hope you’ll check it out. Romantic Times gave it 4 ½ star review and chose it as a Top Pick for November. Second, I’ve got a new two-book contract with Berkley. You’ll be seeing a third “Courtesans Tales.” So that’s Yours for the Night next month, Hers for the Evening in May 2010, and Mine until Morning towards the end of 2010. I’ve really enjoyed writing the stories about my courtesans and creating that glitzy, high-powered world they travel in. I'm still working on the idea for the second book in this new contract. More on that later!

If you read the excerpt, I hope you’ll let me know what you think!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!

Monday, September 21, 2009

Weddings and Dresses

Congratulations to Alexa! You are the winner of Karin Tabke’s Master of Surrender. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address or you can email me at skully @ skullybuzz dot com.

Okay, so let’s do some paranormal! How about Dime Store Magic by Kelley Armstrong. She’s wonderful! To be eligible for the drawing, you must type in your email address. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on my next blog!

I attended the wedding of my very good friend’s daughter last weekend. All the girls were so beautiful, the men handsome, the bride gorgeous, her mom splendid. Hah, it was a barefoot wedding! They got married in a park, and the ground was very sandy, so we all took off our shoes! And on the cake topper, the bride was reclining against the groom dressed in finery on the beach, and no shoes! It was all so very lovely.
Then just this morning, another friend of mine sent me a photo of herself in her wedding dress. Okay, I won’t tell you how long ago she was married because I was in her wedding! But she was going through her closet and her daughter is over 21, and she wanted to see how the dress was faring. It certainly has held up well, as has my friend Judy! Doesn’t she look gorgeous, and the dress still fits!!!! The photo brought back wonderful memories of her wedding. We, the bridesmaids, made our own dresses (hmm, no, I don’t still have the dress, but I wish I had a photo of it to post but that was pre-digital days!). We were all best friends from high school. And, of course, seeing her wedding dress made me think of my wedding. My husband and I went to Tahoe and were married in the Minden County courthouse by the judge. He’d just finished sentencing a few prisoners, then popped over to marry us! Haha, someone made a joke about him sentencing the prisoners, then coming over to sentence us! My wedding dress was a tailored cream-colored suit with a teal blouse. Nope, I don’t have that either. The cats used it to climb up to the top shelf in the closet. Um, needless to say, there were several things in my closet that had to be thrown out. But before it was ruined, I wore that suit to work a lot, it served double duty. You can really tell I’m a frugal accountant, can’t you?

So, did you keep your wedding dress? Did you wear your mom’s wedding dress? Would you save yours for your daughter? Or would you make sure yours did double duty like mine did?

Here’s a little update on my husband’s mancation. He had a wonderful trip, and we emailed all the time (well, when we were awake at the same time!). And now he’s home. Wow, that was a very, very long three weeks! I’m so glad he’s home. But the kitchen table is a bit messy again, LOL!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!

Monday, September 7, 2009

SWAT!

Congratulations to Dena Walton! You are the winner of A Dangerous Beauty by Sophia Nash. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address or you can email me at skully @ skullybuzz dot com.

Next up, I have an autographed copy of Karin Tabke’s Master of Surrender. She writes such hot, sexy books. To be eligible for the drawing, you must type in your email address. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on my next blog!

Okay, SWAT! No, I don’t mean flies. I’m talking about the SWAT team. Lest you should think they are only the stuff of TV, movies, and fiction, they really do exist. I was out watering my yard on Saturday, and down the street comes a SWAT van and 6 sheriffs’ vehicles in a caravan. This is a quiet neighborhood in the mountains. It’s at a dead end, so it’s not like you can even pass through the neighborhood on your way to somewhere else. I live on a corner halfway down the hill. And lo and behold, the SWAT van stops right along the side of my house. And really, I’m thinking to myself, did I do something bad that I don’t remember doing? Maybe one of my multiple personalities did it. Then all the SWAT guys jump out with their guns and do that crouch run that you always see on TV. Thank goodness they went down the hill, not up to my house. Of course, I rushed in to get the camera because I knew my husband wouldn’t believe me unless I had proof. Unfortunately, I was too late to capture them in that crouch run with their guns. Then the neighbors started pouring out their houses to see what was going on. I swear, people even drove here. Gosh, are we rubberneckers or what! I thought the cops would have told us to get back in our houses, but no, they let us watch. In the end, we learned that there was a robbery in the next town over, and they thought the suspect was holed up in a house two doors down from mine. He wasn’t. So they packed up their stuff and went away, excitement over. Honestly, though, two things struck me, first that I could actually wonder if I’d done something to warrant the SWAT team, and second, that we are all so nosy and excited about someone else’s business. Well, I guess it could have been my business if there was a meth lab in the house that might explode.

Here’s a little update from the last blog, my husband is still gone, and darn, it’s getting kinda lonely around here, even with Star for company. Maybe that’s why I was so fascinated with the SWAT team.

BTW, don’t miss my blog Tuesday 9/8 at The Tote Blog. I’ll be giving away one of my own books, just haven’t decided which one yet!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!

Monday, August 24, 2009

European Vacation!

Congratulations to Fedora Chen! You are the winner of Black Out by Annie Solomon. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address or you can email me at skully @ skullybuzz dot com.

Next up, I have A Dangerous Beauty by Sophia Nash. This book has the most gorgeous cover! To be eligible for the drawing, you must type in your email address. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on Labor Day, September 7th! (Oh my GOD!, where has the summer gone!? I know I said that last time, but I have to say it again.) Good luck!

Okay, so about the European Vacation. It’s not mine. It’s my husband’s. He’s leaving today for a three-week trip to Germany and Norway. He’s going with an old friend of his that he’s known since grade school. They’ll be visiting his friend's relatives in Germany and hubby’s relatives in Norway (he’s a Viking God, remember!). They’ve been planning this trip forever! But I never really considered that I’d be all alone for three weeks! I’ll get to watch all the chick flicks sitting in my Netflix queue and the third season of Dexter (he doesn’t like the serial killer movies). I can eat brussel sprouts and edamame and chicken livers and lamb kabobs. I can watch endless reruns of CSI. I can lay in his spot on the sofa and eat his half of the popcorn as well as my own. The kitchen table will stay clean. I won’t have do to any ironing! This will be all such fun! For about four days. Then I’ll remember that there’s no one to share my mocha with in the morning (he makes my mocha for me!). No one to talk with or snuggle up to in bed at night just before I go to sleep (except our dog Star but she snores). No one to appreciate my cooking or to kiss me goodbye when he leaves for work. No one to call me on his lunch break or when before he leaves on his hour-long drive home. No reason to look forward to five o’clock. There’s all these little rituals we have, dinner, the TV shows we watch together, the talks we have about the day. When someone is there, you take all those things for granted. But when they’re gone, you realize how much you rely on those rituals, look forward to them. BTW, Star is going to miss him a lot, too. Because Dad is the one who gives her all the treats. When Dad goes into the kitchen, Star jumps up to follow. When Mom goes to the kitchen, Star doesn’t even open her eyes! Suddenly three weeks seems like a very, very long time for both Star and me!

So what rituals do you have, whether you do them yourself or share them with someone else?

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!

Monday, August 10, 2009

Laced with Desire Cover

Congratulations to Susan Chaballa! You are the winner of Jordan Dane’s No One Heard Her Scream. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address or you can email me at skully @ skullybuzz dot com. Thanks also to Rosemary Gunn for stopping by and talking about her new book Open Proposal.

Next up, I have Black Out by Annie Solomon. To be eligible for the drawing, you must type in your email address. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the August 24th blog! (Oh my GOD!, where has the summer gone!?) Good luck!

I’m so excited to be able to show you the cover for the next anthology in the “Unlaced” series. In fact, I’m debuting the cover here for you before I even put it up on the web site! I loved the classy pink cover for Unlaced, and this one is very hot and sexy, too. Laced with Desire will be out in February 2010. I love writing with these ladies, they’re so great. Here’s a little rundown on our stories!

Jaci Burton breaks the rule of mixing business with pleasure when two professional rivals cross paths at a tropical resort. She figures she can handle a fling with no strings attached. He’s out to show her that she figured wrong.

Jasmine Haynes explores the lust of a former supermodel who needs to finally fulfill a no-holds-barred sexual fantasy. Finding two men to do it with is easy. But are they up to giving her all the pleasure she’s been denied?

Joey W. Hill reveals the erotic bond between a master and the beautiful submissive who stole his heart. Recapturing their night of unparalleled passion won’t be easy—until a specific piece of lingerie comes into play.

Denise Rossetti goes beyond the limits of desire when she pairs a battle-scarred vet of love and war with a woman who’s just as fearless and twice as dangerous. What happens between them is positively combustible. But what a way to go.

My story is called La Petite Mort. LOL, does everyone know what that means?

BTW, you can preorder Laced with Desire on Amazon! And it’s 32% off the cover price!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!

Monday, August 3, 2009

Open Proposal by Rosemary Gunn

Hi, all.
I have a very special guest today, Rosemary Gunn. I had the honor of reading Open Proposal in its infancy, and it’s a fun, sexy wonderful erotic romance. Now Rosemary is working today so I’m not sure when she’ll be able to pop in, but I’m leaving her blog up all week for you to enjoy. Congratulations on the release, Rosemary, and many happy sales!!!
Jasmine
PS I love that Rosemary calls me Jas!

And Rosemary speaks!

Good morning! Before sharing my story, let me say a huge thank you to my wonderful friend for inviting me to participate in my first guest blog: Thank you, thank you, thank you!! Jas, you’re the best!

Now, on to the reason I’m blogging here today: the release of my very first book!! Open Proposal is available today at http://www.liquidsilverbooks.com/rbooks.com/! Isn’t that cover amazing? Thanks to April Martinez for creating such a memorable work of art to illustrate the three characters of this story. All that luscious flesh…mmm, yumma!

Here’s the thing. Like many others, I’ve been writing a long time. Unfortunately, most of the stories never actually made it to The End. Last year my best friend said, “I don’t think you’re ever going to finish writing something that I can read.” That’s right. My best friend had issued a challenge. What else could I do? I stepped up and met that challenge. Less than three weeks later, the first draft of Open Proposal was in her hands.

The funny thing is, when I first started writing it, there weren’t three people involved. It was simply going to be the story of a woman (Samantha) deciding to have a hot affair with a male colleague…sort of a wham-bam thing. Then Eve knocked on the door, and the entire story changed. That’s usually how it works. I fell in love with all three of these beautiful people and certainly hope you will, too.

This is the back cover blurb. It’s an eBook though, so technically there isn’t a back cover:


Samantha and Eve have it all: a beautiful home, successful careers, and a loving relationship. When the use of a sex toy brings Sam's latent desires to the forefront, the women decide to find someone who can give Sam the one thing that Eve cannot.

Roman--Eve’s best friend from childhood--is surprised by their unusual request, but agrees to play anyway. Eve has always been able to count on Roman to be there when she needed him.

What she hadn’t counted on were her own feelings regarding him. Will an open proposal mark the end of a friendship or the beginning of something more than any of them could have anticipated?

Looking forward to chatting with everyone today and will be popping in and out. Be sure to check out my website http://www.rosemarygunn.com/ and also become a follower on my blog http://rosemarygunn.blogspot.com/

Monday, July 27, 2009

RWA National Conference

Congratulations to Crystal Broyles! You are the winner of Scandalous by Night by Barbara Pierce. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address or you can email me at skully @ skullybuzz dot com. Thanks everyone for checking out my new site!

Next up, I have Jordan Dane’s No One Heard Her Scream. I had the pleasure of meeting Jordan at the conference this past week. What a sweet lady! To be eligible for the drawing, you must type in your email address. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the August 10th blog! Good luck!

As I mentioned in my last blog, I was in Washington DC for the Romance Writers of America’s National Conference. I also did some brainstorming with my critique partners, Leigh Wyndfield and Terri Schaefer, and hung out with Kathy Coatney, my friend I do my daily email page count check with. It was great seeing them! Here’s a picture of them in our room, left to right, Leigh, Terri, and Kathy. We got a lot of work done, too, I swear it!






The literacy signing was so fun. You can actually find people because everyone’s in alphabetical order. Here’s the 3 musketeers, I’m on the right.
I managed to snap a photo of my agent, Lucienne Diver, when she found a moment between signing copies of her book Vamped.






Here is the highlight of the trip for me. Undone, my story in the anthology Unlaced won the novella category of the National Readers Choice Awards! I was ecstatic, especially since my editor Wendy McCurdy was there, too. I couldn’t have done it without her! It was a special moment as my critique partner and wonderful friend Terri Schaefer was able to present the award to me.




Just for fun, here’s a picture of Terri and Kathy laughing over a naughty text message someone, who shall remain nameless, received at the National Zoo. They were so cute!

That’s my photo journal of my trip to RWA in DC!

I’m having a special guest blogger on Monday, August 3rd. My great friend Rosemary Gunn will be telling you about her first book, Open Proposal, from www.liquidsilverbooks.com. I had the pleasure of reading this sexy novel in its infancy and I know immediately it was a winner. So I hope you’ll all stop by!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!

Sunday, July 12, 2009

A New Website!



Congratulations to Virginia Horton! You are the winner of Jodi Thomas’s Twisted Creek. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address or you can email me at skully @ skullybuzz dot com. Now, in my previous blog I mentioned that I’d be away this upcoming week so I’m afraid I won’t be able to mail until I get back. But the book will get there, Virginia!

Next up, I have another historical, Scandalous by Night by Barbara Pierce. To be eligible for the drawing, you must type in your email address. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the July 27th blog! Good luck!

Now, you all may have noticed that I have a sexy new header on my blog. I love it! And you'll find it also on my new site. I'm dying for everyone to check it out. http://www.jasminehaynes.com/ You can still get to Jennifer Skully and JB Skully from the home page, but this new site is so much more Jasmine, I think. LOL, but if you read the bio, you'll see a lot of Skully in there, too. Remember when I asked your a few blogs ago what you'd like to see in an author's bio? Well, hopefully everything you wanted to know is covered in the "About Jasmine" page. I also think finding out about my books is a lot easier on the bookshelf link, too.

I would love to hear what you think! While I'm in Washington DC, I hope to be able to check email and blog posts, so I'm sure you'll hear from me. If not, I'll tell you all about the trip in my next blog! I'll be seeing my critique partners to do lots of brainstorming and having fun!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!

Monday, June 29, 2009

Fair Game on Nalini Singh's Blog

Hi, all! Just a quick update blog to let you in on a free giveaway.

I know some of you have mentioned loving Nalini Singh's books, and I'm no exception. Her writing is wonderful and her characters compelling. Once I start a Nalini Singh book, I can't put it down.

Now, today, Nalini is giving away a copy of my book Fair Game and Emma Holly's Kissing Midnight. So check out her blog for a chance to win! Here's the link: http://nalinisingh.blogspot.com/ And check out Nalini's new release, Branded by Fire.

Bonding with friends!

Congratulations to Estella! You are the winner of Cole’s Dark Needs at Night’s Edge, part of the “Immortals After Dark” series. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address or you can email me at skully @ skullybuzz dot com.

Next up, I have a contemporary by Jodi Thomas, Twisted Creek. I love her Texas historicals so it was really nice to see a contemporary, too. To be eligible for the drawing, you must type in your email address. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the July 12th blog! Good luck!

July 12th. Yes, that’s Sunday instead of the usual Monday. I’m off to meet my critique partners for brainstorming and bonding! We do this a couple of times a year. It helps our creativity, of course, but it also does a great deal for us emotionally, all that bonding time. I equate it to a bunch of guys getting together for a fishing or camping trip. They’d never say they were “bonding” but that’s what they’re doing. I have a friend who meets once a year with her college chums. Lots of laughter, story-telling, catching up, commiserating if need be. Another friend gets together once a year with her sisters and cousins, girls only. They don’t bring their kids or husbands. You can let your hair down, kick back, let it all out. I love this idea. It’s a mental health weekend, I think. One comes back rejuvenated and ready to take on the world. Hopefully.

Do any of you have groups of friends you get together with regularly, not necessarily for a whole weekend or a getting-away trip, but even once a week or once a month for dinner or lunch. Heh, sort of like the girls in Sex and the City!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!
http://www.skullybuzz.com
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Monday, June 15, 2009

Paranormal Romance!


Thanks so much to everyone for stopping by last week, sharing your stories, and hearing all about Fair Game. Congratulation to Snulfers, you are the winner of Lori Handeland's, Any Given Doomsday. I'll be contacting you for your snail mail addresss or you can email me on skully at skullybuzz dot com.


Next up, I have Kresley Cole's Dark Needs at Night's Edge, part of the Immortals After Dark series. I love Kresley Cole's writing. To be eligible for the drawing, you must type in your email address. I'll also be adding you to my newsletter for updates on releases and contests. I'll announce the winner on my June 29th blog.


And speaking of paranormal romances, that's the subject of this week's blog. It seems to me that the hottest thing going in romance right now is the paranormal. They run the gamut from vampires to shapeshifters, faeries to witches, demon hunters to vampire slayers. Sometimes the hero or heroine is the vampire, sometimes the vampire is the bad guy. I'm a huge fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I've got all seven seasons on DVD and recently finished watching the whole series again. I have some favorite paranormal authors I follow also. But I'm interested in hearing what you like to read and why. Are you still into the vampire/shapeshifter world building? Have you tired of it? Are you looking for something new and different? Are you interested in reading more of what I'll call paranormal lite, psychics, ghosts, reincarnation, etc.


So let's talk about paranormal romance and what you love or hate about them, what you'd like to see more or less of.


Jasmine, Jennifer, and JB

Monday, June 1, 2009

Fair Game is out tomorrow!

Congratulations to Cheryl Casting, you are the winner of Duke of Sin by Adele Ashworth. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address or you can email me at skully @ skullybuzz dot com. And thanks everyone, for the help on my new bio! I've gotten it written, and it will be revealed when my redesigned website is up sometime next month!

Next up, I have an autographed copy of Lori Handeland’s Any Given Doomsday. This is the first in her new Doomsday series. I loved it as much as I loved her werewolf series. You must type in your email address to be eligible for the drawing. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the June 15th blog! Good luck!

Okay, shameless self-promotion, which I can do because it’s my blog! Fair Game is out tomorrow! And I just got my author copies on Saturday. It’s got such a sexy red cover and my name is really big on the spine, too! Stands out on the shelf whether it’s face out or spine out. Fair Game is Josie’s story. She’s Faith’s cousin from The Fortune Hunter and Show and Tell. And her hero is Kyle Perry. They have some very sexy times together. Though I don’t profess to be writing literary material, I do try to provide more than just a bunch of hot sex. In Josie’s story, I bring out a couple of issues I’ve faced in my working career. First is the life-threatening illness of a coworker, how you deal with it. And second is the Peter Principle. This is a business principle I learned about in college which basically states that people are promoted to the level of their incompetency. Meaning that you’re really good at this job, so they promote you to that job, and suddenly, you’re not so great anymore. And yes, I experienced that, too. Being a good Cost Accounting Manager did not mean I was going to be a great Director of Materials. Thank God I realized that before my bosses did. So give Fair Game a chance and see how Josie handles these issues, including how she mixes business with pleasure--that naughty girl--and the delectable Kyle Perry.

I’d love to hear about any of your difficult work experiences you’d like to share.

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!
http://www.skullybuzz.com/
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Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Sedona



Congratulations to Carrie Booklover1335, you are the winner of Deliciously Wicked by Robyn DeHart. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address or you can email me at skully @ skullybuzz dot com. And thanks everyone, for the help on my bio!

Sorry I’m late, everyone. I was overwhelmed by vacation and needed an extra day to get myself in order. And to download my photos so I could post some for you! For this week’s prize, I’ve got another historical, Duke of Sin by Adele Ashworth. I adore Adele’s historicals! So, post a comment, and I’ll enter you in the drawing for Adele’s book (you must type in your email address to be eligible). I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the June 1st blog! Good luck!

Okay, Sedona, Arizona. Wow, it’s gorgeous out there! We stayed at a swank timeshare resort (thanks to my sister!!!). And here’s the view from our back patio at sunset. Would have been a tiny bit better without the net (which you can't see in this photo), but then I might have gotten a golf ball in the head! That almost happened once, the ball whacking the wall about two inches above my forehead. So the net was kinda nice. Okay, I’m geographically challenged, and I didn’t realize Sedona is only a couple of hours south of the Grand Canyon (but I can read road signs). So we took a day trip up there. I haven’t been since I was 12 (which is way too long ago to remember) so I was able to experience that momentous feeling of awe as I stepped out for my first view. And here’s what I saw. Amazing. I know a picture is supposed to be worth a thousand words, but somehow, a photo still doesn’t do the Grand Canyon justice. It’s just too...grand! This last photo is me on top of Cathedral Rock in Sedona. There’s a vortex up there. I’m not exactly sure what a vortex is, something mystical where you’re supposed to feel all these healing powers roll through you. I don’t know if I felt that, but it was awesome and there was a cool wind blowing at the top that just made me feel relaxed and perfect. Note to self, when making a 3.5-hour, 7-mile, 95-degree hike to the top of a huge red rock, wear a hat and carry more than 2 bottles of water. And I know how I’m incorporating Sedona into Hers for the Evening, the second in my “courtesans” books. So look for that next year!

And don’t forget, Fair Game is out on June 2!

Look at that!!!! Pcitures now! (for those of you who saw this post the first time without them!)

Monday, May 4, 2009

Q&A

Congratulations to Rosemary Gunn, you are the winner of Shadow Runners by Liz Maverick. I’ll be mailing out your prize before I leave on vacation! And I also want to thank Bella Andre for being with us last week! We did a book signing together in Silicon Valley on Saturday!

For this week, I’ve got another historical, Deliciously Wicked by Robyn DeHart. So, post a comment, (you must type in your email address) and I’ll enter you in the drawing for Robyn’s book. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the May 19th blog! Good luck! I’ll be out of town until May 18th so instead of my usual Monday, I’ll be doing the blog on Tuesday, the 19th. I’m going to Sedona with my Mom and sister. It’s a research trip. Honest! You’ll see Sedona featured in Hers for the Evening, coming out probably spring or summer next year.

Okay, for this time, I’m going to ask everyone for their help. I’m working on a new website. You know, everyone’s got to update. And I want to write a new bio. But I’m totally stumped on what to say. So, I thought I’d ask you guys. Maybe do a little Q&A. What would you like to know about the authors whose books you read? Although you guys already know everything this is to know about me since I blab so much on my blog!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!
http://www.skullybuzz.com/
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Tuesday, April 28, 2009

What makes firefighters so smokin' hot?

As I mentioned in my Monday blog, I've got Bella Andre guest blogging today. She's going to be giving away an autographed copy of Game for Anything and Game for Seduction to one lucky poster. Be sure to leave you email address so that we can contact you. And isn't the cover of Wild Heat HOT!!!! You're going to love this book! So take it away, Bella...


Thanks so much, Jasmine, for letting me sneak onto your blog for the day. I'm thrilled to be here!

I've written books about architects and chefs and football players, but this past year, I think I've finally met the ultimate men of my dreams. Firefighters. Hotshots, the elite of the elite, the men who run into the wildfires that everyone else runs away from.

Excuse me while I fan myself.

Of course, when I first started thinking my firefighter trilogy, I knew a little bit based on my husband's experience as a volunteer firefighter in our town. But after months of reading pretty much every book ever written on wildland firefighting, and trolling the internet for blogs and interviews, and personal (ahem!) interviews with hotshots, I realized the reason for their extreme "hotness" went way beyond their muscles.

They're sexy because they're heroes. Because they'll not only die to protect the woman they love, but because they put their lives on the line every single day for strangers, to save houses and buildings, and to protect our forests and wildlands.

If you've got any hot firefighter stories to share, I'd love to hear them. Who knows, they just might end up in my next book!

;-) Bellahttp://www.bellaandre.com/

In WILD HEAT, the first book in Bella Andre's HOTSHOTS: Men of Fire series, Logan Cain is a firefighter addicted to risk. Maya Jackson is the sultry beauty he never saw coming, targeting him as her number-one suspect in a string of deadly wildfires. But when Maya's life is threatened, Logan vows to protect the woman sworn to bring him down. And as desire ignites, nothing-not the killer fire or the killer hot on their trail-can douse the flames....Allison Brennan called it "a breathtaking, terrific, hot, hot, hot romantic suspense." Brenda Novak said, "WILD HEAT has one sexy firefighter - and a love that burns up the pages." And according to Catherine Coulter the book is "a roller coaster ride. Don't miss it."

Monday, April 20, 2009

Trekkies!

Congratulations to house-mouse, you are the winner of The Prize by Brenda Joyce. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address (or you can email me on skully at skullybuzz dot com if you see this first) and mailing out your prize!

For this week, I’ve got a futuristic romance, The Shadow Runners by Liz Maverick. Gosh, I think she’s got a character named after me in this one! So, post a comment, (you must type in your email address) and I’ll enter you in the drawing for Liz's book. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the May 4th blog! Good luck!

My hubby and I are currently watching all the Star Trek movies and we’re working our way through Star Trek: The Next Generation, too. Up last night was First Contact. Of course, in the credits is Gene Roddenberry, because the whole Star Trek world is based on his idea, even as we move forward with new characters and new threats, like the Borg. It suddenly struck what an amazing thing this man did. His concept, his world, has taken over 40 years of television and movies. And yes, we even have a new Star Trek movie coming out in May. You may never have watched any iteration of Star Trek, but you’ve heard of it, you know what it’s about. Is it brilliance? Is it luck? I have to think it’s that he created a world so interesting and compelling that we have to keep stepping into it over and over. We can’t let it go. And that is the goal of every writer, I think, to create something that people have to keep coming back to. I felt myself in awe last night. And as I writer, I have to believe those characters and that world were actually real to him. I know mine are to me.

So, who do you admire and why? I chose a writer probably because I am a writer, but I’m sure there are any number of people in your life that you admire.

I’ve got a very special blog coming up that I don’t want you to miss. Next Tuesday, that's April 28th, Bella Andre will be my guest. She’s got a new book coming out, Wild Heat. It’s fantastic. She’ll be giving away a copy of Game for Anything and Game for Seduction to one lucky poster on that day. So don’t forget to stop by for her special blog.

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!
http://www.skullybuzz.com/
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Monday, April 6, 2009

Forever Friends



Congratulations to Cindy (cholub 1968), you are the winner of Demon’s Kiss by Eve Silver. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address (or you can email me on skully at skullybuzz dot com if you see this first) and mailing out your prize!

For this week, I have a historical, The Prize by Brenda Joyce. I really love her Francesca Cahill series. So, post a comment, (you must type in your email address) and I’ll enter you in the drawing for Brenda’s book. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the April 20th blog! Good luck!

We moved around a lot when I was a kid, from Canada to Michigan to Southern California to Northern California. We finally settled when I was in high school. I’m always envious of people who have friends from when they were in kindergarten. But I do have friends from high school and from all my work years. And recently I’ve been making a concerted effort to get together with them. The first picture is of me and my two high school buds, Judy and Margaret. We’re missing Nancy, but she lives down in Southern California. We spent 3 hours at Olive Garden catching up. They finally had to kick us out! But it was so much fun. Judy and Margaret have known each other since they were 2! This second picture is from Southwall Technologies. Most of these lovely people I worked with for almost 20 years. We’ve worked at a couple of different companies together. LOL, accountants tend to travel in packs. Personally, I think we look like a commercial for IHOP! That’s me, Angela, Joe, Lynn, and Kathy. This was a 3 ½ hour lunch! IHOP kicked us out, too (just kidding, but they did stop refilling the water glasses). But what a wonderful time we had.

So, do you have long-time friends from when you were a child? Maybe a best friend you’ve had all your life. Or newer friends. I’d love to hear all about them.

And don’t forget my special contest running this month. It runs through April 10th, and you can win a $50 Visa gift card. Here’s the link, it’s Fresh Fiction, and just follow the instructions! Good luck to everyone! http://freshfiction.com/contest.php?id=1682

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!
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Monday, March 23, 2009

Mom’s 85th Birthday



Congratulations to Cindy Marciel, you are the winner of Pitch Black by Susan Crandall. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address (or you can email me on skully at skullybuzz dot com if you see this first) and mailing out your prize!

For this week, I’ve got Demon’s Kiss by Eve Silver, a paranormal. So, post a comment, (you must type in your email address) and I’ll enter you in the drawing for Eve’s book. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the April 6th blog! Good luck!

So, here’s the scoop. Every time my mom reaches a milestone birthday (every five years), the family takes her on vacation. But it’s all a surprise. We get the whole family together, including grandchildren and great grandchildren, and meet up somewhere to surprise the heck out of her. Honestly, she is really surprised every time. We’ve taken her to Las Vegas, Atlanta, and Hilton Head. So where to go this time? We want to do something fairly close to the West Coast (because it’s our brothers’ turn to come out here). My sister was thinking the Albuquerque hot air balloon festival. I was thinking Tahoe. BTW, we plan waaaaaay ahead, so this if for September 2010. She also doesn't do computers so she'll never see this blog!

So I’m looking for ideas. Where would you take your 85-year-old parent or grandparent for a fun family get-together? She can still get around very well, but long hikes are still out of it. And no sky diving, either. She leaves that to my sister and I!

I’ve got a special contest running this month that I don’t want you to miss. It runs through April 10th, and you can win a $50 Visa gift card. Here’s the link, it’s Fresh Fiction, and just follow the instructions! Good luck to everyone! http://freshfiction.com/contest.php?id=1682

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!
http://www.skullybuzz.com/
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Monday, March 9, 2009

Great Screen Kisses

Congratulations to Maureen Emmons, you are the winner of Lord of Desire by Paula Quinn. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address (or you can email me on skully at skullybuzz dot com if you see this first) and mailing out your prize!

For this week, I’ve got Pitch Black by Susan Crandall, a romantic suspense. Susan is a wonderful writer. So, post a comment, (you must type in your email address) and I’ll enter you in the drawing for Susan’s book. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the March 23rd blog! Good luck!

A friend of mine came over for movie night a couple of weeks ago, and we watched Cloverfield (that was for my husband) and Becoming Jane (the requisite chick flick). At the end of Becoming Jane, our hero, played by James McAvoy gives Jane the most amazing kiss. It was so good, I had to search out other movies with James McAvoy. I found Penelope. Okay, Penelope is a bit strange, it’s a fairy tale, the moral being that you need to be loved for yourself. Honestly, this was a very cute movie. And James did it again, wow, loved that kiss! So this got me to thinking about all the great movie kisses. Of course, there’s Scarlett and Rhett in Gone with the Wind, the quintessential movie kiss. And what about Colin Firth kissing Bridget in Bridget Jones’ Diary? It was the kiss AND what he says.

I could go on and on, but I’d love to hear about your favorite movie kisses, just in case I missed them!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!
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Monday, February 23, 2009

High Maintenance People

Congratulations to Susan Chaballa, you are the winner of Lori Devoti’s Unbound. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address (or you can email me on skully at skullybuzz dot com if you see this first) and mailing out your prize!

This time I’ve got Lord of Desire by Paula Quinn. As you know, I love historicals. So, post a comment, (you must type in your email address) and I’ll enter you in the drawing for Paula’s book. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the March 9th blog! Good luck!

So, high maintenance people. A friend and I were talking about what this actually means. She said it was spending tons of money to have your hair done, your nails, cosmetic surgery, Botox, shopping addictions, etc, etc. I, on the other hand, felt it was more about emotional high maintenance. After all, if it’s hair and nails, why, that applies primarily to women. Hmm, maybe I also wanted to deny it because I have my hair and nails done, although I haven’t done any surgery, honest. But really, to me, a high maintenance person is one who always needs emotional sustenance. There’s always a problem, at work, at home, boyfriend, girlfriend, kid problems. One spends a lot of time on the phone listening to the same issues, different day. These people tend to see everything negatively instead of positively. The glass is half empty instead of half full. Something good does happen, and they’re waiting for the other shoe to drop. You want to help them, but there’s nothing you can say that will make them feel better. You have to be very careful about what you say, too, because they take offense easily. Especially on email. And when you hang up the phone or shut down your email, you’re emotionally exhausted. This, to me, is high maintenance. It knows no gender barrier. I do love writing about high maintenance people, because they make a story very interesting. But in real life, they’re exhausting.

So let’s talk about your definition of high maintenance. What do you think it means?

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!
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Monday, February 9, 2009

Hearst Castle



Congratulations to Dena Walton, you are the winner of Virginia Kantra’s Sea Witch. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address (or you can email me on skully at skullybuzz dot com if you see this first) and mailing out your prize!

This time let’s do a Silhouette Nocturne, Unbound by Lori Devoti. I love the Nocturnes, they remind a bit of the old Shadows Silhouette did back in the 80s. I have a complete set of those! So, post a comment, (you must type in your email address) and I’ll enter you in the drawing for Lori’s book. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the February 23rd blog! Good luck!

So remember, I went to Hearst Castle with my family? Here’s the scoop.

We took two tours. The first one was the main tour that shows you the downstairs rooms, including the dining room. I love all the tapestries Hearst collected, especially as I do needlepoint myself. Hey, maybe in 500 years, they'll be saying "and this is a 20th century tapestry by Jasmine Haynes." The second tour was up the upstairs, Mr. Hearst's personal suite that he shared with Marion Davies, plus we saw various other bedrooms that famous people slept in, like Clark Gable, and the kitchen.

Fascinating. Did you know that you could "rent" the Neptune pool (see photo) for an afternoon's swim for $5000? A family from Texas paid $9000 for two evening swims. The foundation that supports the renovations also had an eBay auction for a one-night stay at the castle. It included a breakfast out on the terrace. And it went for $28,000! But you don't stay in Mr. Hearst's room. The auction was for a room in the servants' quarters, up in one of the towers! I still thought it was totally cool, and you just might see a story about that in one of my courtesan books! In fact, ideas having been brewing. BTW, the auction and the benefit dinners they have, not the tour ticket cost which goes to the state, fund all the restoration efforts.

And that's my trip report!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!
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Sunday, January 25, 2009

Yours for the Night

Congratulations to Gladys, you are the winner of Tawny Weber’s Double Dare. I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address (or you can email me on skully at skullybuzz.com if you see this first) and mailing out your prize!

This time I’ve got an autographed copy of Virginia Kantra’s Sea Witch. She’s a great writer and a really nice person, too. I’ve met her at several RWA functions over the years. So, post a comment, (you must type in your email address) and I’ll enter you in the drawing for Virginia’s book. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the February 9th blog! Good luck!

Because all of you have been so great supporting me by coming out to read my blog every other week, I’m going to give you a special sneak peak of my new cover for Yours for the Night. It’s not even up on the website yet. This one is out in November 2009. I turned in the manuscript to my editor on Friday. For those of you who aren’t writers, you can see how early the publisher starts on things. I just got the cover, but the back cover copy (BCC) was given to me at the end of October. I have to admit that I didn’t really like what I was given. I felt it made my girls sound self-centered, all about me-me-me. Okay, let's be honest, I thought it made them unappealing bitches. I didn’t think readers would want to read about them. They do have valid reasons for the life they’ve chosen as “courtesans.” My editor understood what I was saying and let me rewrite it! So that final draft is going in on Monday. Of course, then I’ll have revisions and edits and galley proofs of the actual manuscript. Fair Game is out in June, and I just did the galley proofs on that one! So by the time a book is out in the stores, it’s anywhere from 4 to 6 months since I last saw it. And by that time, I can read it and almost have forgotten the story!

I’d love to hear what you think of the cover for Yours for the Night. BTW, this is the first book, there will be at least one more (no title or cover or release date yet), and hopefully more to come!

Oh, one more thing. I’m posting this on Sunday night because my brother is in town visiting and my mom, sister and I are taking him down to Hearst Castle. I won’t have a computer or access to email until late on Wednesday when I get home. So if I don’t reply to your posts right away, that’s why! I’m not ignoring you, honest! Now, Skully, don’t forget your camera!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!
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Monday, January 12, 2009

Believe in Yourself

Congratulations to Debby Guyette, you are the winner of the historicals by Kathryn Caskie and Nicole Jordan! I’ll be contacting you for your snail mail address (or you can email me on skully at skullybuzz.com if you see this first) and mailing out your prize!

This week I’ve got Tawny Weber’s first Blaze, Double Dare. She was at the booksigning yesterday, and she’s great. We all had a really nice lunch beforehand, too. I love those kind of group booksignings. It was a party! So, post a comment, (you must type in your email address) and I’ll enter you in the drawing for Tawny’s book. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. I’ll announce the winner on the January 26th blog! Good luck!

“Magic is believing in yourself. If you can do that, you can make anything happen.” Goethe

The other day, my husband came into my office with that quote typed on a piece of paper and stuck it on my computer. He loves Goethe, a German author from the 1800s. He wrote Faust. My husband is always reading me quotes from one philosopher or another. This one really resonates. To me, it’s about the power of positive thinking. It’s not just a mantra or an affirmation. If you really believe in yourself, then you act like it. If you believe you can write a book, then you actually make it happen. If you believe you can get published, then you take steps to make that happen. You write and you revise and you polish and you take classes and you find a critique group and you never stop. After I joined the Romance Writers of America, it took me 8 more years to finally sell my first manuscript. If I didn’t believe in myself, I would have stopped at 7 years and never made that sale. But a positive attitude in every aspect of your life can make great things happen. If you believe a job is great, then it’s great. If you think it sucks, it sucks. You see what you expect to see. Which is why I always try to find something positive in any situation. Negativity attracts negativity, but being positive attracts positive people, things, and events into your life.

So tell us all about things that happened in your life which you believe came about from the power of positive thinking, ie, believing in yourself.

And just a bit of promo here. Jan 16th and 17th, please join Romance Divas for “The Sexual Journey: Character Growth in Erotic Romance,” a lively workshop with authors Zane, Joey W. Hill, Denise Rossetti, Tina Burns and me. This workshop will be held in the Diva's Secrets Steamy section which requires special permission. Please contact an administrator when you have created an account. There are no requirements other than your statement that you are over 18. This is for readers and authors alike so come and join us.

Oh, and don’t miss the Fair Game excerpt on the site if you haven’t already read it!

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!
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