Hi everyone! There's an in-depth interview with yours truly over at Authors Interviews here 

and a fun post over at SOS Aloha about Remembering Bannockburn here

Really quickly, if you remember, I had a story in the Shades of Pink anthology last year (Highland Eclipse, now available separately). I'm trying to finish up The Broken Highlander to go into this year's edition of the anthology, and was curious if you guys were anthology fans, or if you prefer to be able to buy the short stories and novellas separately?



Happy 4th of July, guys, be safe and have fun!

I was tagged by Seleste Delaney/JulieParticka in this tour about the writing process.

1. What am I working on?

Currently I'm working on several projects. I'm still working on Liam's story Highland Betrayal, which I kept getting stuck, so I finally had to chuck a good 15K words, but I'm back on track.

I'm working on a prequel to my Nightkind short story, and this one is called The Broken Highlander. It's about the time Nevin spent right after he was turned.

But I'm primarily writing something new. Contemporary Romance author Heather Lire and I are writing a Scottish Romance complete with meddling gods and sexy Highlanders. Be prepared for a debut from Kenzie MacLir this Fall.

2. How does my work differ from others of its genre?

My books are different in that the heroine knows she's traveled through time, yet she still has to come to grips with that. Even knowing ahead of time what she's in for, it doesn't prepare her fully, and it can be jarring to find herself without the comforts of her century.

I also don't let my hero just bail on his duties in real life. So often you see a romance that really just focuses on the hero and heroine and their romance. In Romanclandia, it must be awesome to not have to worry about a job, or money, or anything other than sexy times. But I try to keep my hero and heroine not just focused on each other, but on the action surrounding them as well.

3. Why do I write what I do?

I write Scottish Highlanders because that's what I see when I close my eyes. I can't help myself. These are the heroes and stories begging to be told. I love the Highlanders. It's hard to imagine these big, tough warriors being the underdogs, but they were! Outmanned and outgunned by the English, this makes their triumphs all that more impressive. The fact that they could wield such deadly strength in battle, but temper that strength for their women, makes me all melty inside. These are the heroes I want to write. Strong, but protective, not smothering. Possessive, but not obsessive. I love when he goes all caveman, but I don't want him so territorial we worry he might pee on her leg.The balance is delicate, and it's not easy. The challenge is fun! And besides, who doesn't love a sexy man in a kilt?

4. How does my writing process go?

My writing process starts when I get home from dropping the kids off at school, and I grab that first cup of coffee. While the caffeine kick starts my brain, I usually goof off on twitter for a few minutes before bringing up my current work in progress (WIP). Providing the baby lets me, I usually read over what I've written most recently and I jump back in. Sometimes I might start at the beginning of the previous chapter to read how smooth the lead-in is. Sarah MacLean told me she starts with the black moment and works her way out. I'm trying that for the first time now, but since I'm a pantser, it's actually really hard to do!

I'm a slow writer, since I self-edit as I go, and since my writing partner Heather, in her words, "...just vomit(s) the words onto the page, then edit(s) later," it's been really interesting to work with someone whose style is so different from my own. And yet it's been really fun and refreshing.

So, yeah. There you go, 4 things about my writing! Go check out some of the other authors who've been tagged, and see how we all differ, and where we overlap. Thanks for stopping by!

Author Jackie Barbosa's 17 year old son was killed last week in a head-on collision on his way to school. Understandably, she is completely beside herself.

Follow her twitter for updates

I've known Jackie online for a couple years now, and as I grieve with her and for her, there is something we can do. She is establishing a memorial fund for her son.

All the information and donate button for the Julian Fraire Memorial Fund can be found here

Another thing that can help is to buy her books. From Jill Sorenson's blog:

"Jackie is an excellent writer of smart, sexy books. I reviewed her debut novel, BEHIND THE RED DOOR at Romance Divas. If you like contemporary romance, you might want to try SKIN IN THE GAME, with a football coach heroine. Or her recent novella, CAN’T TAKE THE HEAT. I wish her peace and comfort in this difficult time."



I want to say I've read Behind the Red Door, and I liked it.
So if you get the  chance, pick up one of her books, donate to her son's memorial fund, or just offer her your condolences on twitter. I've gone through something similar and I want to say that every sincere comment can make a difference.

So Kallysten tagged me on facebook with this photograph of an award statue from the National Breast Cancer Foundation! Wow, this is so cool! Shades of Pink raised over $10,000 and I am so thrilled to have been a part of it!

Guys, head on over to Got Fiction? book blog for a giveaway of Highland Eclipse!

In honor of my new release, all you have to do is comment to be entered! I mean, Highlanders, Special Ops, time travel...it's gonna be great!

And poke around, rumor has it there's a giveaway of a signed Karen Marie Moning book tomorrow ;)

The wonderful ladies over at Under the Covers Book Blog featured Highland Eclipse on their Covers to Covet today! Wow! So now I can share with you the fabulous cover for Eclipse Agent Declan Wallace and Lady Fiona McClure.





You can add this to your Goodreads shelf now too by clicking here

Previously published in the Shades of Pink anthology, Highland Eclipse is a short story set in the Magic of the Highlands world as the beginning to a new series about the Time Ops Eclipse Agents.

A member of an elite Time Ops team called the Eclipse Agents, Declan Wallace’s job is to jump through time. He maintains order in the timeline, he hunts down those who would time jump for their own purposes. But sometime Fate intervenes.

After a lifetime of living with illness, Lady Fiona McClure is proving to herself that she is finally healthy in an attempt to swim across the loch. If she makes it, maybe then her overprotective father won’t treat her as a child anymore. When she is snatched and dragged ashore by a man who thought she was drowning, her heart races for reasons that have nothing to do with the swim and everything to do with the man standing before her.

With a mission to finish, Declan can’t allow distractions, and Lady Fiona is definitely a distraction. But he’s discovering that living for the next mission isn’t as exciting as it used to be. Staying in the past is forbidden, but Fiona McClure is his destiny.

So I've got a gorgeous cover made for me once more by LFD Designs but the catch is...I can't show it to you. Not yet at least. There will be a big reveal over at Under the Covers Book Blog and Got Fiction? Book Blog on Friday.
But I'll announce the release date will be February 25, 2014. It's about a month away.

This is the story Highland Eclipse which was in the anthology Shades of Pink. It's not very long, but it's the start to my cross-over series called the Eclipse Agents. It's a Time Ops Romance and it's going to have some visitors from those MacRae men.

I'm still working on Liam's story, which I have scrapped and started over. I kept getting stuck at the same place, and I felt if that was the case, I needed a change. So providing the baby lets me, I'll be working hard at getting both Liam's book Highland Betrayal, and another Nightkind story out this year.

And this weekend I'll update the website with the new and utterly gorgeous cover for Highland Eclipse.

In the meantime, don't forget to stop by Under the Covers Book Blog this Friday, and Got Fiction? Book Blog as well.