Merry Chick Lit Celebrate the Season - Six Sassy Shorts

Christmas is coming and what a better way to celebrate than to read a great chick lit holiday romance compilation book while supporting a charity! Merry Chick Lit celebrate the Season with Six Sassy Shorts and it's published today.

This compilation book is available for 99 cents on both Amazon and Barnes & Noble and will soon be available in paperback from. However you can buy it now at amazon and Barnes & Noble 

The book was created to benefit the charity Rocking the Road for A Cure, a NY based breast cancer charity that sends out volunteers to help women with breast cancer with their everyday actives such as shopping, errands, laundry, cooking, cleaning, etc. All proceeds for the book will go to this charity.

BOOK BLURB:

Merry Chick Lit Celebrate the Season with Six Sassy Shorts

In the spirit of giving, six chick-lit authors "present" a charming collection of seasonal shorts sure to inspire holiday cheer-plus love and hope throughout the year, with all proceeds donated to Rocking the Road for a Cure!  Featured authors & stories include: 

Carolyn Ridder Aspenson 

In "Santa's Gift," journalist Jessica thinks Santa's just a silly myth for children, so when he asks what she most wants for Christmas she tells him the one thing she knows he can't deliver--true love. Or can he...? 

Sarah Hitchcock 

In "The Christmas Lights," one competition pits two families against each other...who will win this war? 

Francine LaSala 

Pretty Izzy knows exactly what she wants for Christmas: hunky sales manager Jake Harrington wrapped up with a shiny silver bow--and nothing else. Except Santa may have other plans in "Carol of the Belles." 

Nikki Mahood 

In "Spinster Christmas," Cara's looking forward to spending Christmas alone until she learns her old--and she believes very gay--crush needs a place to stay. Though it soon becomes clear that while still hot, Ronan isn't gay after all... 

Holly Martin 

Ella's dreams of making a better life for her and her daughter seem further away than ever in "Iced Dreams." But as Christmas approaches, and she wishes for a fairy godmother to wave a magic wand to fix her life, things begin to change in ways she never imagined! 

K.C. Wilder 

In "The Mermaid," Allie's content to spend Christmas by herself at a vacant beach house to make good on a promise made to her true love lost, Jeff. Until Jeff's gorgeous college roommate Tim crashes in on her with his own promise to keep...

Information on the charity:

Rocking the Road for a Cure

                       

Rocking The Road For A Cure is tickled PINK to be selected as the recipient of proceeds from your purchase of Merry Chick Lit.

We are a growing 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in the New York City/Long Island area, dedicated to improving the quality of life of people undergoing the often energy-depleting and emotionally draining treatments for breast cancer.

Our name came from our founder and President, Dawn Frey, a musician, who learned through personal experience that “it takes a village” to get through the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer, and not every individual has the support network they need.  Rocking The Road For A Cure provides free, in-home housekeeping, health and wellness services to restore strength and confidence, and to rebuild spiritual, emotional and physical well-being.

So, when you settle back and relax to enjoy reading Merry Chick Lit, please know that you have helped us help a breast cancer patient to also settle back and relax…and heal.

Rocking The Road For A Cure   http://www.rockingtheroadforacure.org

Here's their Facebook page: www.facebook.com/merrychicklitbook and website at http://merrychicklit.blogspot.com

Interview With Janet G Ross

I'm thrilled to be chatting to Janet G Ross, author of Jumping Ship. 

Welcome to my blog, Janice. Please can you describe Jumping Ship in twenty words?

Thanks for interviewing me, Georgina. Jumping Ship is a novella that sets the framework for a journey of romance, mystery, and culture throughout the Caribbean.

What is your writing process, are you a plotter, or do you start with an idea and see where the story takes you as you write?

I typically start out with an idea and take it from there. This was not entirely the case with Jumping Ship or several other stories that I’ve been working on. As my writing gets more complex and I venture into mysteries, I am forced to become a plotter. With Jumping Ship, there are twists, turns and details that needed to be as precise as possible. This novella takes place at different times and different countries even. That is just a sample of what is to come, as I continue on in the series. But this method is enjoyable for me.

Jumping Ship is a pre-release novella to the Island Hopping Series, I presume based in the Caribbean, an incredibly beautiful part of the world that I was lucky enough to visit last year. What is your favourite place that you’ve used for a scene in this book?

The most beautiful place that I’ve used so far in the series is the Seawalls of Guyana. One day, as I was out shopping, I heard a worker rambling on and on about her home country. I didn’t immediately know the country that she was referring to; however, she started referring to a place that she went to “fly kite” during Easter time. She spoke about the wind and the feel of the breeze. I smiled and had a hunch. I went up to this woman and asked what country she was referring to in her lament. Her response was, “Only the most beautiful country in the world, Guyana.” I felt pride and love for my place of birth and my beautiful Seawalls. It’s more that just a physical love, it’s a permanent connection with the land.

How many books will there be in the series?

There are 7 additional books: Island Hopping Trinidad & Tobago, Grenada, Barbados, St. Lucia, Martinique, Antigua and Guyana.

The book is based in nineteen seventy-five, why did you choose to set Jumping Ship at that time?

Actually, the Island Hopping series will travel as far back as the 40s through the late 90s. As for Jumping Ship, I had a decision to make about how much detail to give and what time period would be most crucial. Two of the main characters, Pet and Mikey, embark on their journey in 1975. I wanted to feel a connection to their brief time together in Guyana. This was the year after I was born and, although I was an infant at the time, I feel like I existed during their encounter.

Can you tell us a little about your journey to being a published author?

The journey of being a published author has been an unimaginable experience. As naïve as this might sound, I never thought about the marketing and relationship building that would be necessary ahead of time. I just knew that my number one priority would be to write and publish. What an eye opener! But in all honesty. I’ve met and developed some remarkable relationships, gathered as much knowledge as I can, extended myself to others, and continue to grow. Being a published author has developed into a way of life for me.

What’s the most important advice you would give to someone who might be considering writing their own book?

The best advice that I can offer to someone that is considering publishing a book is to be committed. There will be days that they might get frustrated, feel depressed, and want to give up when things don’t appear to be taking off they way that they’d expected. When that happens, try not to focus on everything that is not going their way. Look for opportunities to build relationships with others and support each other. It will not only take their mind off of the problems, it will help to refocus and place them in the presence of like-minded people.

What are you working on at the moment?

Currently, I am finalizing my Damaged Girls series and fine tuning the details in Island Hopping: Trinidad & Tobago.

Jumping Ship is currently available through Amazon:

US: http://www.amazon.com/Jumping-Ship-Island-Hopping-Series-ebook/dp/B00EMCLFC4/ref=cm_cr_pr_pb_t

UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Jumping-Ship-Island-Hopping-Series-ebook/dp/B00EMCLFC4/ref=pd_ecc_rvi_2

Press Kit

Jumping Ship

A pre-release novella to the Island Hopping Series

66 pages

The year was nineteen seventy-five. Pregnant seamstress, Petrina Dugal, became a runaway at the age of twenty-six. She ran away from a brutish husband, Roger, and a well-loved South American home in Georgetown, Guyana; at the heart of her rebellion – an enigmatic lover named Michael Chen. Pet and Mikey allowed love to blossom in front of her police officer husband and an intrusive community. Were they not aware of the dangers? Or did the pursuit of love trump obligations?

Pet and Mikey’s journey to their new life took them through a multitude of the Caribbean’s treasure trove of islands – Antigua, Martinique, Barbados, Grenada, Trinidad & Tobago, and Saint Lucia. More than a month later their voyage landed them at JFK airport, in New York USA. And they disappeared, as though their existence was a myth. During this time, barren couple, Pearl and Edward Bailey stumbled upon a newborn baby girl. Her cries could only be heard by a true mother, which Pearl immediately became. Bundled up with their new child, they discovered a parcel of artifacts and a scribbled note that read: Sakkara.

Sakkara Riley grew up with two loving parents – adoptive parents to be exact. She never knew the circumstances surrounding her discovery, until the age of sixteen. The personal artifacts that were handed over had haunted her from that point on. After eight more years, including much research and probing, she was given the opportunity to begin her journey of self-discovery.

“Jumping Ship” provides the introduction to Sakkara’s attempts to commune with her true heritage.

About the Author

Janice was born in Guyana, South America and migrated to the USA in 1980. Although her citizenship certificate now reads the United States of America, she considers herself a citizen of the world. Sure she has not physically been around the world and back, she’s travelled in her mind and dreams.

Janice is an author. She enjoys writing about social issues and personal experiences. Her latest release, Jumping Ship is a dedication to her country of birth and an introductory novella to the Island Hopping Series – due out in 2014. It’s poised to be a colorful and emotional experience of life, love and family.

Janice enjoys reading. And is drawn to stories with distinct characters that she can love or hate - characters she can form alliances with or characters that she can swear off and despise. She is also weak for a good cultural tale, preferably in the form of historical fiction - whether present day or in the past. Janice love to be taken off guard by clever language or settings.

Janice is also a devout supporter and promoter of other authors through social media. She hosts a weekly show, Cultural Cocktails, on the largest social radio network, Blog Talk Radio.

Links

Website

Facebook

Twitter @JGRWriter

Cultural Cocktails Blog Talk Radio

The giveaway on this tour is 1 x $50/£30 Amazon Gift Card plus 5 ecopies of Jumping Ship.

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Tilly Tennant Asks...

What if your crush crushed back?

 

Like many teenage girls during the brief but brilliant chart reign of Norwegian popsters, A-ha, I wondered what it would be like to date lead singer, Morten Harket.  Eyes like the crystal clear waters of the fjords, cheekbones cut from Nordic glaciers and hair that seemed to defy gravity, from the moment he reached out of that comic book during the video to Take on Me, I was lost. The first concert I ever went to see was A-ha at the BIC in Bournemouth. My dear old Granddad steadfastly waited outside in his car the whole time, refusing to leave the venue until he had got me safe back with him.  I can still remember leaving at the end of the night, feeling like something very important had happened on that stage, and that I would never be the same girl again.

 

I often laugh with old friends now about those times, but it was these events that sparked the original idea for Hopelessly Devoted. What if you had this crazy, debilitating crush now, as a much older woman with a normal job and a family to raise?  And what if you didn’t just have a crush on your pop idol, what if you met him? What if he actually liked you too? Where could it go?  Bonnie, the heroine of Hopelessly Devoted, is just that: an ordinary thirty-something woman with a teenage daughter and a mundane shop job who finds herself slap bang in the middle of a very strange turn of events when her daughter, Paige, wins a radio contest to meet the members of the boy band, Every Which Way. Paige has a huge crush on one of the members, Holden. The trouble is, so does Bonnie. 

  

Hopelessly Devoted

 

There’s only one man for Bonnie, and that’s Holden Finn. The problem is, Holden Finn a twenty-something pop megastar with his boy band, Every Which Way, who doesn’t even know she exists. Not only that, but half the women of the world want to be Mrs Finn, including Bonnie’s teenage daughter, Paige. But the real men in Bonnie’s life only let her down, and a man you can never have can never let you down… right?  When Paige wins a radio competition to meet Holden and his band, it seems all that is set to change. Bonnie is about to find out that you should be careful what you wish for, and that happiness can come in the most unexpected shape…

 

Hopelessly Devoted  is due for release December 2013 but you can get your hands on a free copy by entering the Hopelessly Devoted blog giveaway. Not only that, but you’ll also win an exclusive unreleased Christmas novella, Mishaps and Mistletoe, which is only available by entering the draw.

 

About Tilly:

 

Tilly Tennant was born in Dorset but now lives in Staffordshire with her slightly nutty family. Tilly is married to Mr Tennant (not that one, though a girl can dream). After years of dismal and disastrous jobs, including paper plate stacking, shop girl, newspaper promotions and waitressing (she never could carry a bowl of soup without spilling a bit), she decided to indulge her passion for the written word by enrolling on a degree in English and creative writing. She wrote her first novel in 2007 during her first summer break at university and has not stopped writing since. She also works as a freelance editor, and considers herself very lucky that this enables her to read many wonderful books while getting paid for it.

 

Tilly Tennant on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TillyTenWriter

Tilly’s facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TillyTennant

Follow Tilly’s blog http://tillytennant.com/

 

The giveaway is 3 ecopies of Hopelessly Devoted plus 3 ecopies of an exclusive Christmas novella, Mishaps and Mistletoe.  This novella is not available to buy this year! The Rafflecopter has actions to follow you via Twitter so hopefully you will gain followers.  This is the Rafflecopter code:

 

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Inspiration for The Blog Affair by Alissa Baxter

I'm thrilled to welcome Alissa Baxter, author of The Blog Affair to my book blog. Alissa has popped by to tell us about her inspiration for The Blog Affair. Over to you, Alissa...

I moved from Durban to Cape Town as a single woman, and the experience of living alone in one of the most beautiful cities in South Africa inspired my novel, The Blog Affair. A lot of the situations in the novel are based on things that really happened to me. For instance, when I arrived in Cape Town, I decided it would be nice to join a tour of the city, as I wanted to explore all the sites without having to find them by myself.

Like my main character, Emma Bradshaw, I don’t have a particularly good sense of direction. So I phoned up a tour company and booked myself on a tour. The tour operator told me that they picked up tourists from their hotels, so I asked them to pick me up from a hotel in Sea Point. I drove there from my house in the suburbs, only to discover to my horror that I was the only person on the tour that day. My hope of fading into the background, while enjoying the tourist sites came crashing down and I spent the whole day having to talk to the tour guide who was old enough to be my father. I felt self-conscious as it looked as if I was on some sort of date with a man thirty years my senior. I slotted this scene into my book as it was great comedic material, although it didn’t feel so at the time!

The Cape dating scene also gave me lots of interesting fodder for my book, and I soon realised that it would be an ideal location to set a chick lit novel. In The Blog Affair twenty-something Emma has a pattern of falling for unsuitable men and writes a blog about these so-called “serial datists”.  When an anonymous male reader of Emma’s blog challenges her on her ideas about men, Emma realises she must confront her past before love can blossom again in her future.

I’m excited about the format of the book which combines blogs and instant messaging, and illustrates how technology has changed the way we communicate with each other. On the one hand, social media is a very open platform where people often reveal intimate details of their lives. There is also a more secretive side to online communication, however, where people can post their innermost thoughts anonymously. It was exciting to examine this brave new world in which we are living and to create a fun story centred on it.

AUTHOR BIO:

Alissa Baxter was born in South Africa, and grew up with her nose in a book on a poultry and cattle farm. After school and university, where she majored in Political Science and French, she published her first novel, The Dashing Debutante. Alissa travelled to London, England, and did an odd assortment of jobs while researching her second novel, Lord Fenmore’s Wager, which she wrote after she moved back to South Africa and settled in Durban. Alissa then relocated to Cape Town where she wrote her third novel, Send and Receive, before moving to Johannesburg, where she currently lives with her husband and son.

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/alissa.baxter.writer

Twitter: https://twitter.com/alissa_baxter

Blog: http://alissabaxter.blogspot.com

Good Reads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1146980.Alissa_Baxter

Website: www.alissabaxter.com

 You can buy The Blog Affair at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk

Thanks, Alissa.