And the winner is...

It was extremely close and you gave us some lovely heroes to think about ladies, but unfortunately, just like in Highlander, their can be only one! And my friend and neighbour who hasn't even read my book yet (she's saving it for her holiday in two weeks time) says the winner is ...

Susie Medwell

Thanks again to all, I really appreciate the support. X M

GIVEAWAY!

So I was thinking?! (Hold the cheeky comments a moment.) And it occurred to me I actually haven't given away a copy of my book (myself), mostly because I have very few blog followers! So let's pretend more people than me actually read my blog (it's a stretch I know).

I'm not giving something away for nothing, however. What I want from you is your favourite type of hero and why? Feel free to use book/film/tv characters who ring your bell!

So do you like them tall, dark and brooding a'la David Boreanaz's 'Angel', or a slim, fair smartarse like James Marster's 'Spike'. Maybe you like a quirky genius such as {place choice of actor here} Dr Who, or the just plain sexy & often weird Johnny Depp as {insert odd character of choice here}.

What floats your boat and sends your heart racing is it Bill, Eric or Alcide (sorry but Jason is still Vinnie from Home and Away for me!) Then there's the ultimate question for ladies of a certain age (yes I'm in that age group!) George or Brad?

Do Avengers make you amorous?

Does Captain Jack float your boat?

Does Hawaii Five-0's Commander Steve McGarret get you hot and bothered?

A man who knows how to play games like Sonny Bill Williams-All Black

Want make this Ranger your King?

George vs Brad?

My apologies for the terrible captions above. X

Inquiring minds want to know! So write your answers below and I'll get an independent adju judge to decide who gets the free copy of Wolf's Heart - extra points for making us laugh or blush! For more details about the book please check out http://www.breathlesspress.com/wolfs-heart X M

The Power of Four

Doris O'Connor tagged me in this fun post, which is basically four things on various topics that you may not know about me.

So, here goes: Okay I may have bent the rules slightly on a couple of these?!

Four places I have worked:



Mount Ruapehu, NZ (Cafe tart)
Real Estate Offices, NZ (Receptionist)
The Parrot Pub, Surrey, UK (Bar wench/waitress)
Early Childhood Teacher, NZ (Scary huh!)


Four movies I could watch again and again:


Harry Potter & The Philosophers Stone (all of them actually but this one is special!)
Lord of the Rings (All of them again-extended editions with all the extras)
Grease
Fast Five (YUM!)


Four TV Shows I watch:


Once Upon A Time
Hawaii Five-0
NCIS: (Original & LA)
Psych (like how I snuck in 5 shows ;))


Four Authors I enjoy:

JK Rowling
Agatha Christie
Serenity Woods
Stephanie Meyers (So shoot me I liked them!)


Four Places I have travelled to:


Vanuatu
Dubai
Isle of Wight
Disneyland, LA


Four websites I visit daily:


Facebook
Hotmail
Amazon
Breathless Press


Four favourite foods:


Steak
Seafood 
Whittakers chocolate
Beef mince and vege on toast YUM!


Four places I'd rather be:


On the beach
On the beach in the Islands(Samoa, Rarotonga, Fiji, Vanuatu I'm not fussy?!)
On the beach in the Islands with friends and family
On the beach in the Islands with friends and family AND a truckload of seafood!


Four people I want to tag:


Juanita Kees
Melissa Lockhart
Stace McSweeney
Aimee Duffy




This is just a bit of fun, but if you've been tagged, please make your own list and link back to me. Can't wait to see what you come up with :-) X M

The BIG day!

Wow, here we are finally. About a year and a half ago I decided I'd give writing a go, to create a little time for myself. I had no idea what I was doing, no idea about conflict, layout, showing NOT telling, pov, my punctuation is still dodgy as hell. It was all a mystery to me, I just wrote. Then while lurking on the eharlequin boards I found Kiwibird (aka Faye/Serenity), she very kindly offered to have a look at my story. And what a great introduction to the craft of writing Faye gave me. She was funny, thoughtful and offered great advice, and most of all she gave me the confidence to carry on. Thanks again Faye :)

 I think I was lucky as I had no preconceived notions on writing, and I just did what felt natural. I'll never be perfect but I hope to keep improving. I'm also glad I had the opportunity to meet such wonderful people through competitions like Mills and Boon New Voices, and I've had such amazing support from my friends and family, I know not everyone has that. Thanks guys, you've been great.

 So tomorrow is the day the world can see what/how I write. It's scary and exhilarating in equal measures. I'm not worried if people don't like it, you can't please everyone, but my fingers are crossed that some people will like it, and when another comes out they'll try that too. Wish me luck.

X M

It Must Be Love

Photo taken using Fun Fotos

Wedding fever has hit lately, as I've had the privilege to help out a friend (not much, just offering a finger when needed lol) leading up to her special day. The wedding took place on Friday, the only beautiful day in ALL of April! (I've decided they bribed the weather gods somehow). They took nine weeks to plan the whole thing, and it all went off splendidly. Within the last week they also asked a friends sister if she could do a photobooth, which was fantastic and has created some brilliant memories. Now I'm not one for big, lavish expensive weddings (though I've got nothing against them, if you can afford it go for it!). To me it's about having the people you love and who love you involved in a day to cherish and remember. It's those special moments, like my cousin calling me Mrs Jolley for the first time and me going into fits of gigles. Or the groom, not overly loquacious by nature, saying something so desperately loving and romantic it makes tears well in everyone's eyes.

Okay decent grub helps and good quality photos to assist the memory as time wears on, are a must, yet sharing  such an emotionally rewarding day with friends and loved ones is what it's really about to me. So congratulations to my dear friends Melissa & Glenn, for letting us all share what was a wonderful day and joyous celebration of your love and happiness. X M

Titanic

Two blog posts in two days. For a woman who you're lucky to get a post out of once a month this is a great achievement! So what's brought on this rash of posts? Well tonight I'm going to a friends hens night and we will be dining only 1/2 a mile away from the great ships berth.

I happen to live in Southampton, yep, the place where the doomed liner set sail from. Despite this link, Southampton has been relatively quiet when it comes to this association, despite the tragic loss of life felt by it's community. Finally after 100 years there is a museum worthy of the legend that is the Titanic, a multi-million pound interactive endeavour that was opened on the 10th April, the day the Titanic left Southampton. Prior to this the only museum about the Titanic Southampton had was in an ancient woolshed across from the Isle of Wight ferry terminal. Not really up to James Cameron standard, me thinks!

Where is all this Titanic talk leading you ask? Well I read/saw something a few years back that has stuck in my mind, I can't remember the source, but the idea has been growing recently to become a new book. Apparently the wives of the White Star vessel's crew were left with nothing on the deaths of their husbands forcing many into the world's oldest profession. This to me has the making of a story, something outside the myth of the Titanic, but inextricably linked. 100 years ago Southampton lost many souls to the sea, but the legacy lives on stronger than ever as the new Seacity Museum reminds us of chivalry and heroism in the most tragic of circumstances. X M

Balance... What's That?!

Bewitched? I wish I could wiggle my nose that well!

If you're after great insight, you've come to completely the wrong place, I was kinda hoping you could tell me. I'm a mother of two, wife of one (this isn't BIG LOVE folks) and though I don't have a paying job to go to, like many of the writers I've met online, I still don't seem to have the time to do everything I want to do. My time management sucks. There are far more people in this world who have a crap load to do and get it done with time to spare, but I'm not one of them. I've really learnt to cut down on my social networking, a necessary evil if you're trying to advertise an upcoming release. If I write at night, I feel like I'm neglecting my husband. I can only write during the day on one of the three afternoons my son is at nursery. I've got a TBR (To Be Read) pile that is constantly increasing, yet is necessary in developing my knowledge of the romance genre and writing in general. So where does that leave, I've got no friggin' idea?! I just keep plodding along, getting new words down when I can, editing old words during the breaks, and praying for those immensely rare moments when I don't feel guilty because I need to do dishes or vacuum. (Thanks to my husband for a few hours of that over Easter). So no plan to improve my sucky time management, just a hope that I'll get that place one day, when the magic fairies leave the house sparkling and I rock out 3000 amazing words in an hour to spend the rest of my evening day being the 50s/60s housewife I was born to be. Martini's anyone?