SPRING IS IN THE AIR

Do you have any springtime rituals you can share? Like spring cleaning or a trip? Maybe special plants in your garden?  We asked our authors to answer from their heroine’s POV. 

B.J. DANIELS, CARDWELL RANCH TRESPASSER, available now

Heroine: Hilde

Hilde doesn't have time to garden. But owning a fabric store, she buys beautiful flower prints for spring and decorates her store with plants and flowers and bright colors. Her favorite flowers are tulips.

CAROL ERICSON, RUN, HIDE, March 2013

Heroine: Jenna Stark

“My springtime ritual since my covert ops husband, Cade, returned long enough after our honeymoon to tell me to RUN is double checking my escape plans.  Each spring, I make sure I have enough cash to make a run for it if I have to.  I do a trial run of my escape route from my house or apartment, or wherever I happen to be living.  I check to make sure I have enough ammo.  Oh, and I color Easter eggs with my son.”

DANA MARTON

My #1 spring ritual is starting seeds inside. I scour organic seed catalogs and try to pick heritage seeds that have been passed down through generations. I love reading the little notes that might say, "This pepper was passed down to me by my great grandmother who brought seeds over on a steamship, and it has grown in our Pennsylvania garden since."

What can I say? I'm a writer so I'm a sucker for a good story. :-) Happy Spring!

P.S. I'm gearing up to making a big batch of new release announcements and give away prizes on my Facebook page, so come and Like me to make sure you don't miss anything! 

JULIE MILLER, ASSUMED IDENTITY, June 2013

Heroine: Robin Carter

Spring is absolutely my favorite time of year!  I run the Robin's Nest Florist Shop in downtown Kansas City, and my green thumb has given me great pleasure as well as the financial independence a single mom like me craves.  My favorite flower is an iris, and with the rainy spring we're having in KC, the iris bulbs I planted last fall in the window boxes in front of my shop are blooming like crazy.  Typically, I spend a lot of my springtime out in my garden at home.  I bought an old farmhouse outside of the city and have renovated it and designed the landscaping all myself. While I have made time to plant barrels of red and white geraniums, along with rich blue lobelia--and a rainbow of impatiens in pots all over my front porch, I have scaled back my gardening this year because I want to focus on mommyhood.  I suppose every career woman runs up against her biological clock sooner or later, and without a decent relationship in my life, I turned to adoption.  I was recently blessed to welcome Emma into my life. She's just four months old, and has completely turned my world upside down--but in the best way.  So while there are a lot fewer plants in my garden this spring, there's a freshly painted nursery, lots of new clothes and toys, and a lot less sleep with my precious little night owl filling my time now.  Being a mom is my favorite job, ever!

Of course, I'm still dealing with some unexplained bookkeeping errors that happened at my shop while I was away on maternity leave.  Plus, I've got a surly delivery driver working for me whose seems even moodier now that I'm back at work full-time.  And then there are the Rose Red Rapist attacks that have happened in my neighborhood.  Ever since one of my employees fell victim to his vicious rape and murder, I've implemented new security routines at my shop--and I'm super vigilant whenever I bring Emma to work with me.  I'm aware of every stranger in the neighborhood now.  I swear there's someone out there in the shadows, watching me.  Very unsettling.  It'd be nice to have a man in our lives just to walk us to my car and help me feel safer.  But I didn't get to where I am today by relying on a man to make things happen.  I just have to be extra careful--with Emma's safety as well as my own.  A single mom's work is never done, I guess.

ANGI MORGAN, PROTECTING THEIR CHILD, May 2013

Heroine: Kate Danver McCrea

Spring on a ranch is exciting. New calves and colts take up a great deal of time, but I also continue my mother's vegetable garden. My dad began planting jalapeños. When they turned the tomatoes "hot", I moved them to their own bed. When Cord and I aren't exhausted, we like to take a drive east of Marfa to catch a peek at the lights. And let's not mention the cleaning and planning. And even after all the hiking we've done…there's nothing like getting up at daybreak and taking a long quiet walk and enjoying the beautiful cactus flowers.

 

ROBIN PERINI, BEHIND THE LIES, April 2013

Heroine: Jenna Walters

“Spring is baseball season. What else is there? No one knows, but I sneak out with my son in the backyard and play catch or attend a AAA game. You can’t beat a baseball hot dog. My dad taught me that before he died. ”

PATRICIA ROSEMOOR (with Sherrill Bodine), WRITTEN IN THE STARS, August 2013

Heroine: Cordelia Ward

Cordelia is a marine archeologist, so I imagine she's always waiting for spring to take that first dive of the season. She would, of course, be looking for sunken treasure.

AIMEE THURLO, FALCON'S RUN, July 2013

Heroine: Abby Langdon

Spring is Abby Langdon's busiest time of the year. After the long winter months, Sitting Tall Ranch comes to full life. The Ranch is a place for kids who are victims of illness, poverty, or abuse. At the ranch they can forget their troubles, at least for a while.

Spring is the time when the horses are shedding their coats and the camels look horrible, with huge clumps that need to be brushed off. The hair, of course, can be processed into wool that makes camel hair sweaters which just can't be beat.  Myka Solis from Independence, New Mexico has already asked for the wool. (Myka is the heroine is our Christmas Heartwarming Harlequin,  Ring of Christmas, coming out in November). Spring means sheep shearing, grooming very fuzzy animals, mending the tack, and carrying out any repairs on the stalls and enclosures. It's the busiest time of year for Abby and her small staff of volunteers. When the kids come, all the animals have  to look their best!

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SPRING RITUAL? 

Valentines. Romance. And...Sighs

Did you miss the Intrigue Authors' newsletter? Each month we have a question to answer--

February. Valentine’s Day. Romance. Sigh. 

Where is the most romantic place you've been or how did your Valentine’s sweetheart make a simple place special?

LENA DIAZ: For our 15th anniversary, my husband took me out to eat at an expensive restaurant. When we walked in, the waiter led us to a group of about thirty people. I hesitated by my chair. Obviously there was a mistake. But then I started actually looking at the faces of the people sitting there and realized I knew them. All of them. My husband had secretly planned this dinner with both of our families for months, and they were all there to celebrate our anniversary. I was so touched. It was so sweet. Then he sprang the real surprise. He gave me a beautiful diamond ring, and a pamphlet for a Chalet in the Smoky Mountains. We were going on a week-long anniversary trip the very next day! He had arranged vacation with my boss for me, had my mom all set to watch our children, and had a pet-sitter for our dog. I thought it was the most amazing, wonderful, romantic thing ever. Until we got home that night and I realized he'd forgotten one very important thing. Laundry. We stayed up most of the night washing clothes and packing. But everything worked out, and we had a wonderful anniversary vacation together. 

CYNTHIA EDEN: When my husband and I first started dating, we were in college—and neither of us exactly had a lot of cash to spend. For our very first Valentine’s Day, we decided to enjoy ourselves…without money. We are lucky enough to live close to the beach, and we went to that beach, right before midnight. The moon was shining, it looked like a million stars were glittering down on us—and we danced under that moonlight. We kicked off our shoes, climbed up onto an old, rickety dock (good thing we didn’t fall in the water!), and slow danced. No cash needed, but it was sure a very special night. I hope that you have a very, very special Valentine’s Day! 

DELORES FOSSEN: For our wedding anniversary, my husband took me to Cascais, Portugal. It's an amazing coastal town only about 30 miles from Lisbon, but it's off the beaten path. Neither my husband nor I speak Portuguese, and we thought we could muddle through with our Spanish. Let's just say, our muddling wasn't very good. Still, we had a wonderful time strolling along the beach, eating some incredible seafood and just having some down time together.  

RITA HERRON: The most romantic place I've been -- my husband took me to Bermuda once for my birthday. We rode the scooters, went to the beach and took a boat ride that was lovely. But the best Valentine's Day was one year when he gave me a used convertible - I had been groaning about driving the minivan so he bought this BMW for me. That night we had a sick child so we sat in the car in the garage, listened to music and toasted with champagne.  

MALLORY KANE: Well, in our younger days, we spent a few years building a fiberglass sailboat. It was fun, but also a lot of hard, sometimes grueling work. Once we finally got the boat turned over--you have to build the fiberglass hull upside down--we were ready to start on the interior. When we finally got the interior glassed, the lead into the keel and built a plywood subfloor, it was around February 14. So with a space heater and a blanket, we 'christened' the boat. It certainly wasn't the most glamorous place, or the most comfortable. But we'd built it ourselves and we thought it was very appropriate place and way to spend Valentine's Day...  

DANA MARTON: The most romantic place I've been with my husband is probably Venice, Italy. Of course, even during our romantic trip, my mind skipped to books. A chance encounter with the seedier side of Venice (after getting lost) showed me that even the most beautiful/romantic city in the world has a side where tourists don't normally go, where hundred-year-old palaces are crumbling into the water, where I wouldn't want to be caught alone at night. That day inspired GUARDIAN AGENT, which then went on to being the first in the AGENTS UNDER FIRE trilogy. Honestly, a romantic suspense author can feel perfectly romantic and still be plotting murder in the back of her mind. It's an occupational hazard. :-)  

CASSIE MILES: Funny valentine...I had my V-Day present all picked out and wrapped -- black satin boxer shorts guaranteed to be delightful.  I told him I wanted something pink and pretty, thinking roses would be nice.  We went out to dinner at Little Saigon and lingered over the sweet Vietnamese coffee.  Back at home, the kids were gone for the night which was always a great mood enhancer.  He opened his present and gave me a fashion show.  Then, it was my turn.  The box wasn't big enough for roses, and it was too heavy.  Inside, I found a matching set of vintage, plaster flamingos.  He said they were rare birds, just like me, and deserved to be treated in a special way.  I agreed.     

JULIE MILLER: The most loving, romantic thing my hubby does for me (besides make me laugh and awesome foot massages!) is that he makes sure we have "us" time. Yep, no grand, glorious bouquets or impulsive weekend getaways here.  But from the time we got married 25 years ago, we've had a standing weekend night tradition of the two of us sitting down together with nachos or popcorn that he's made, and we watch some incarnation of STAR TREK or other favorite show together.  We're working our way through Deep Space Nine now, but we've watched all the Trek shows, Dr. Who, Torchwood, Hercules and more. It's our time.  Even during the craziest of schedules--deadlines, school demands, doing plays, family demands, etc.--he makes that time for us.  Of course, we do lots of other things together as time and interests and budgets allow, but we always have Saturday or Sunday night that's date night just for us. (The picture is from us doing a play together--Sorry, no Trek pix of the two of us on file... although we DO have Star Trek uniforms!)   

ANGI MORGAN: It wasn't Valentine's Day or an anniversary or anything special. Just a well-deserved real vacation. We'd had this wonderful dinner at a restaurant on the beach (sand in our toes, really) on Anna Maria Island in Florida. We'd come there, specifically to look for some tiny seashells we'd been told about, but the light got away from us and the sun dipped into the gulf right when we got to the beach. We kept walking though, chatting about nothing and enjoying an approaching storm. I asked if Tim was ready to go and he said no, we hadn't gotten the shells. It was much too dark to see, but he ran back to the car and got the beach towels. We sat and he clicked on the light from his smartphone. We picked through the shells, dropping them into a water bottle. The battery ran out, just as the first rain drops fell. It's the simple things that I find romantic. The next night it was a fruity drink and walking through the surf at sunset. Loved it.

ROBIN PERINI: This particular February I can’t think about romance without thinking about my Mom and Dad. The reason: this February is their 50th wedding anniversary. My dad met my mom on a blind date in March of their senior year of college. They were engaged by July and married the following February. Fifty years ago. They still hold hands; they are still each other’s best friend; they still love each other. When you think about ‘in sickness and in health’ and ‘to love and to cherish’, they embody these vows. They truly are an inspiration. To me and to everyone who knows them, I think. So this Valentine’s Day, I want to say, Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad. I love you! Thanks for showing our family what love is all about!

AIMEE THURLO: To us, romance is what happens every day, not when we go out for dinner, or maybe on a special trip. The most romantic things happen daily, when he brings me a bowl of buttered popcorn even though I didn't ask, or he gets up to turn the lights off at three in the morning when I was the one who left them on.

So much of the time these days romance is equated to sex, but although that can be part of it, romance is expressed in tenderness, in caring. My favorite time of the week is when we watch our teams play football. He bought me a New Orleans Saints cap, and a Raven's cap. (After watching Blind Side I always root for the Ravens) We get on our daybed, side by side with the dogs all around us, and watch the game. We scream at the players and roar when there's a touchdown, and hold hands after the popcorn runs out. It's not candlelight and roses, but it's love...the kind that's lasted forty three years come this July.  

REBECCA YORK:   I lost my heart in San Francisco.  Or, my husband already had it, and one of the most romantic times I can remember with him was a trip we took to San Francisco. It’s a lovely city with great views, great restaurants, great walks, and a great hotel room where we had a very memorable private party.   

~ ~ ~

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READERS, COME ON, SHARE YOUR BEST SPECIAL PLACE OR VALENTINE'S DAY DATE !!

ENTER THE V'DAY GIVEAWAY

What's On Your Office Wall?

If you missed the Intrigue Authors' Newsletter, each month we ask the authors a question. 

WHAT’S HANGING ON THE WALLS OF YOUR WRITING AREA? Don’t forget to let us know why J

JANA DeLEON:  A television. :)  I started writing in cafes and acclimated myself to writing with noise. Now, I can't work if it's quite. I tried music, but I'm a classically-trained violinist and get distracted by music, so I queue up Netflix to something I've already seen and type away.

LENA DIAZ: Most of the wall space in my office is taken up by bookshelves crammed with research books, writing craft books, and of course romance novels. But I do have two areas not covered by books. The first is a collection of family pictures. My favorite is a silly one where my two kids and four of my nieces and nephews are lying on the floor like the petals of a flower, or the spokes of a wheel. The photo is taken from overhead. It's absolutely adorable. We had the same picture taken several years later to show how they've all changed and grown. Such fun and so very special. My other non-bookshelf covered wall isn't nearly as exciting, but it's still fun. It has some of my writing awards. It's my inspiration when I'm having trouble with a story.  

CYNTHIA EDEN: Currently, I’ve got a framed painting of the Eiffel Tower on my wall—it’s the work of my six-year-old son.  Every time I look at it, I smile…then I go back to writing about danger and suspense in my Intrigues!  

ELLE JAMES:  Most of my walls are taken up with book shelves, windows and my desk unit. The one wall I have room for pictures is covered with a map of the world. I love dreaming about the next place I want to go visit, or I look for the next location for the next Intrigue I want to write. I have a bucket list of places I want to go to before I die. I think I could live to be 200 and still not see them all! The map is an inspiration in many different ways.

MALLORY KANE: My office is a big room on the back of our house that includes my crafting area, my writing space and a conversation spot for friends. On the walls are a couple of prints and a poster from the Jackson, Mississippi Zoo that features 2 tigers painted by Walter Anderson. It hangs over the fireplace made of Crab Orchard stone. The reason the room is my writing and craft room is because of the windows. They make up the entire rear wall of the room and look out over our back yard.

I've included a picture of the print and the view. It's an incredibly inspirational place to work. I truly love it. I hope all of you have a happy and healthy new year.  

DANA MARTON: No office. I like to be in the middle of things, so I write in a corner between the living  room and the kitchen. Wishing everyone a very happy New Year! 

CASSIE MILES: On my wall:  Since I have the attention span of a 3-year-old and am easily distracted, I keep the walls around my computer mostly blank.  There is, however, one bulletin board with revolving photos.  Current postings: family pictures, Elvis, a sailboat, a flying pig and a leopard scarf.   

JULIE MILLER: I have lots of sentimental items in my office because I like to surround myself with things that are meaningful to me. When I go to work, it's like nestling into a secure place, rich with pictures, family heirlooms and collectibles that I find both comforting and creatively motivating, making it a place where I like to go and spend a lot of time (which is useful for getting work done!).  I have an antique child's bed that dates back to the Revolutionary War era that has been handed down through my family against one wall.  Above that is a Monet print from the Jeu de Paume in Paris.  Besides reminding me of a wonderful trip, I find Monet's use of color very soothing.  At a recent trip to the Nelson-Atkins Museum in Kansas City, I studied a Monet painting and thought of how it just made me feel good to look at it.  

Another wall holds a bookshelf where I keep reference books, keeper books I've read over the years, and lots of knick-knacks and pictures.  Then there's a pie safe where I store my old manuscripts and other stuff related to my writing business. On top of that sits part of my Pepsi collection.  I also collect Beauty & the Beast memorabilia, dolls and antique toys.  So things don't get too cluttered, I rotate what's out on display throughout the year.  That makes it all seem fresh and new.

ANGI MORGAN: I’m fortunate to have my own office in the house. I’m surrounded by my husband’s support as he built the desk and cabinets and also keeps me up-to-date with electronics. The walls and shelves are full of pictures of where I’ve traveled, mementoes, writing prizes or awards that spurred me to keep writing while waiting to sell. The first copy of my first book hangs there, too. The one unusual thing hanging on the wall, is an old shelf my grandfather made. As a kid, I’d carefully dust all the little knick-knacks my grandmother had collected. When she passed, she left the shelf to me. I haven’t had the heart to re-finish it yet, so it still has the paint streaks from when a cousin painted around it, instead of removing it from the wall. LOL 

ROBIN PERINI: I'm lucky enough to have an office. Above my computer area I have way too many books, including a dictionary, a thesaurus, an emotional thesaurus and the coolest book ever, Word Finder. It's out of print, but it will give you lists words that modify other words. I was able to find a 1947 edition. If you come across a copy and are a writer...grab it!

Above my desk next to my reference books is a 2x3 foot white board, that I use as a plotting board/story board. If I'm writing an Intrigue, the story board has four rows, with 3 boxes in the first and last rows and four boxes in the middle two rows (14 chapters). Inside each box I have post-it-notes with scenes from my current book. (Yep, I plan my books out). Of course, the great thing about post-it notes is I can move them around. I will admit that sometimes things just happen. In Christmas Conspiracy (October 2012), Deke came out of nowhere and ended up being a really important character.

I also have my favorite writing reminder quotes...and of course, one of my mottos...'Put on your big girl panties and deal with it!' A verbal kick in the pants can come in mighty useful!   

JENNA RYAN: What's hanging on my office walls? Two large and very soothing abstracts, and directly in front of my desk, a totally kooky impressionist cat. She's snooty and smug, and I have her there because every time I look at her, she makes me smile. Stress just slides away. I wouldn't part with her.   

AIMEE THURLO: When I look at that wall, I see memories, and life. The cuckoo clock was an incredible find for me. I lost my mother when I was six and my grandmother and I would travel to the US from Cuba (my birthplace) and have many adventures. Finding a cuckoo clock was one. I always like the Swiss girl types. To me it was almost enchanted, since Cuba and snow... well, it wasn't happening.

Next to that is the quote I received from Tony Hillerman when we wrote Black Mesa for Intrigue. Tony had helped me a lot with that book, including sharing some of his sources. When it was done, I called to thank him, and he asked me to send him a galley and if he liked it, he'd give me a quote. Tony was larger than life, and the thought terrified me. I hemmed and hawed, and finally said, "Tony, it's not a mystery, it's more like a romance." His answer?  "What? You think I read only Hemingway?" He gave me a wonderful quote - two in fact - and I've kept and framed his handwritten note.  In the center is a plant that represents life. It was given to us as a gift after a talk at one of the state libraries, and represents the present and ongoing renewal.   That's what I see when I look at my wall.

JOANNA WAYNE: The largest thing hanging on the wall of my office is a poster of Hugh Jackman. It's one I got when I saw him in New York in person last year. If you've ever seen him, you know why he's there. He's HOT! Great inspiration for writing my sexy heroes. I also have pictures of my grandsons because I love seeing their smiling faces. I have the cover of Alligator Moon hanging there because it's one of my favorite of all my books. And I have a picture of my hubby and me to round everything out and to remind me that I'm loved even when I'm in a terrible deadline mood. 

REBECCA YORK: I take my laptop and work all over the house.  On cold evenings, I love to work in bed, and cats just have to crowd in and make it difficult to type.  Here I am with Ozzie and Harriet.  I might also work in the sun room which is full of plants and flowers.  It’s also a great spot on cold winter days because the greenery is a respite from the frigid air outside.  I’ve got various outdoorsy things on the walls like a ceramic lizard and a parrot sitting on a vine plus some primitive farm scenes I picked up in China a few years ago. In summer, the cats and I go out on the screened porch or “catio” which I made so we could all enjoy the great outdoors together without being able to escape.  We’ve got one geranium flag picture hanging up to block the sun when it comes in from the east but basically we look up and see birds and squirrels.   

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READERS, WHAT'S HANGING ON THE WALLS OF YOUR WORK AREA?