Happy Holidays!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and that you're looking forward to a sparkling new year.

Nick of Time - Top Pick!

I'm excited, NICK OF TIME is a Romantic Times Top Pick! Yay!
Here's what they said:

"Elle James' Nick of Time (4.5) is a terrifically suspenseful holiday tale with lots of action, chills, humor and just the right amount of romance."

—Pat Cooper

It's my Birthday!

Yay! I made it another year! And you couldn't pick a better fall day to have a birthday. It's cool, it's sunny and the leaves are changing. I should be working, but I'm having more fun doing whatever. And I have a new book out next month. I got my author copies today. What a great birthday present!

What do you like to do on your birthday?

Roses Newsletter is up!

Roses Colored Glasses

October Newsletter

http://rosescoloredglasses.com/NewsOct08.htm

What’s inside?

Announcements!
From an Editor's Perspective
Superstitions as Plot Devices
Building Suspense
Fantasy or Paranormal?
Face the Fear
Weather as Setting
It's NaNo Time!
Dear Rose

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Upcoming Workshops

Join us for this fabulous Roses Workshop
Roses Self-Editing Workshop!
October 19-25th
Clean up your manuscript with these tips and tricks

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Back in January to kickstart your writing year!
Roses Plotting Bootcamp
Jan 5 - 31st

No One Heard Her Scream

I just finished a book by a new author I had to share! No One Heard Her Scream is incredible. Jordan Dane has launched herself into a promising career as a suspense novelist with flare and an incredible story. Run, don't walk for your copy of this book. It'll keep you up at night reading into the wee hours with seat-of-your-pants suspense, action and characters to die for. Great job, Jordan! Check out Jordan's scheduled releases back to back. http://jordandane.com/

A relentless detective with the San Antonio Police Department is barred from an investigation into the disappearance and murder of her younger sister and forced to take another assignment. Skeletal remains buried in the wall of an old theatre destroyed by arson make an intriguing new case. But when the bones turn out to be of a woman, close in age to her sister, the hunt for a killer gets personal—a vendetta for justice.

A seductive enforcer to the mob, with secrets of his own, stands between the detective and a powerful man she believes is linked to the murder. Will the reluctant henchman become an ally or betray her to his treacherous 'benefactor'? Drawn into the sinister world of human trafficking, the modern-day slave trade, the detective unravels a grim trail of destroyed lives—leaving her little hope for vindication in the death of her sister and a nameless young woman buried alive.

Fun in NYC!

It's been a week since I returned from the Novelists Inc conference in New York City and I already want to go back! NYC is such an exciting place to be. I started the trip by driving 4.5 hours to where my sister lives, so that we could drive up to Little Rock the next morning at o-dark-thirty to take the red-eye flight to Chicago andfrom there to New York City. Once we arrived, the fun began with our first taxi ride.
OH MY GOD, the taxis!!! I swear they are all kamikazes out to prove who's the bravest or most insane! We took the taxis from our hotel to visit our editors at places like Harlequin down near ground zero and Kensington and Avon Publishing. The traffic was insane. I could never drive there. Oh wait...most normal people don't! I strapped on my seatbelt every time I got into one of the yellow tombs of death and held on for dear life. For the most part, the drivers weren't originally from New York, or from the US for that matter which made giving directions interesting.

On our first day out, we managed to flag a cab to get us to our first visit at Avon. When we left, it was rush hour and we couldn't flag a cab to save our lives. So we opted for a ride in a bicycle-powered rickshaw. The entire way we giggled and pretty much felt sorry for the guy pedaling the weight of two hefty women uphill for several blocks. Don't worry, he got a hefty tip for his efforts. Of course if we thought kamikaze taxis were bad from the inside...trying riding in a rickshaw with none of the metal of a car protecting you from those kamikaze taxi drivers! It was fun and dangerous, giving us the same thrill as a dueling-with-death roller coaster ride.
We stayed at the Affinia Manahattan Hotel about 10 blocks from Times Square and basically around the corner from the Empire State building. the photo of the taxis above is a photo taken from our hotel window. When they say NYC is a city that never sleeps, they were right. Taxi drivers not only drive crazy, they think everyone else does and they honk all day and all night. If you're a light sleeper, bring your earplugs! Not only that, but we had a fire department at the base of our hotel and a police department around the corner. It was non-stop noise. Gotta love it! Thank goodness I can sleep with all that going on. I consider it the pulseof the city.
On the second day of our visit, we traveled across town to the Harlequin New York offices. They're located in the old Woolworth Building. The entrance was fabulous with tile mosaic ceilings and beautiful wood molding. The Harlequin offices were newly remodeled and beautiful in pleasant, modern, soft blue-green tones. It was fun to walk down the hallways and peer into the offices of all the editors we've met over the years, to see where they work. Thank goodness the editor we met with walked us down to the subway and showed us how to get to our next stop, Kensington! After the taxi drive there, we were still kinda shaky about getting into another! The subway was an entire new adventure for me. I've been to NYC two other times and never gave it a shot. Let me tell you, I'll do it again! It was easy and fun and the people were helpful. I guess they figured we were pretty lost. One woman yelled across the car, "This is your stop!". If she hadn't, we would have missed our exit!
Other fun things we did while in NYC was to eat hotdogs from street vendors, shop for purses we didn't need and take in a show on Broadway. We couldn't get tickets for Wicked or Spamalot, but based on a recommendation from a friend, Sylvia Day, Delilah and I went to the Saturday matinée to see David Hyde Pierce in Curtains. Talk about a hoot! I loved it! NYC is the best! But the most fun we had was visiting with other writers and talking the language of writing. A lot of us writers live a solitary world in our offices and don't get out much so the hustle and bustle of the big city can be overwhelming. But if you take along a friend or meet up with some, it makes it an adventure worth traveling half way across the country. Like I said, I'm ready to go back for another visit!

Love Those Cowboys!

A Cowboy...is a Cowboy... is a...huh?

I’m excited because the book I have out with Harlequin Intrigue this month Texas-Sized Secrets has a cowboy in it! What’s more sexy than a man in leather and a cowboy hat, rough-ridin’ over your heart?

When I decided to write an entry on cowboys, I went hunting for inspiration. And boy did I find it! I’ve decided to dedicate this blog entry to the different types of cowboys.

Singing Cowboys – Legendary favorite Gene Autry - love the shirt!

Dancin' Cowboys - yum!

Riding Cowboys – yee-freakin-ha! (not me, buddy, never in a million years)

Roping Cowboys - love how he makes it look easy

Drinkin' Cowboys - looks like he was ridden hard and put up wet!

Outlaw Cowboys - I'd go to the dark side with him any day!

Naked Cowboys - NYC's finest!

Dallas Cowboys – uh, well, okay

and last but not least....

Sexy Cowboys – yeah, I saved the best for last

Heath Ledger

Last night I found out Heath Ledger died! He was only 28 and a rising star. I first fell in love with this actor when I saw him in the remake of Taming of the Shrew, 10 Things I hate About You, playing opposite Julia Stiles. That movie became one of my all-time favorite romances. He was equally appealing in A Knights Tale. He was a talented man who will be missed.