Two Turkeys.

Happy Thanksgiving Q & A With

Josh and Lisabea

As usual, when I pop by the Island, I like to bring my pal Josh Lanyon for an alcoholic bev and some witty repartee. Today we're offering ten questions to each other and to readers, PLUS a prize or two.

So Josh asks five, and I, Lisabea/LBea/LB Gregg ask five, but we all have to answer ten. Here we go!

(I am in Blue; Josh Lanyon is in brown, because he's just STUNNING in brown).

JOSH LANYON WANTS TO KNOW--

Josh: Okay, here are my questions and answers:

1 - The last fluid to pass your lips.

Do we count the rinsing away of toothpaste? No! The SO just appeared with Irish Coffee. TGIF! Yum.

LBea: Coffee. It's always coffee! I need to add some new fluids to my life.

Josh: 2 - Who was the last person you had an argument with -- and why?

I'm in the middle of a huge argument with someone though I haven't told her yet. Believe it or not, I actually hate confrontation, so while I can fly off the handle when it's not that big a deal, when the hurt goes deep I've generally got nothing to say. It's lockdown time. She's dead to me.

As for why...? YOU KNOW WHAT YOU DID TO ME, LISABEA.

Kiiiiiiiding.

LBea: I'm not speaking to you. I am your bf. You would never hold back.

::bites nails::

Josh's Daily Vitamin

Josh: 3 - Is Irish Coffee a vitamin? (LBea interrupts: YES) Seriously, I take a boring vitamin supplement because my diet is shit. Well, not literally. And I take vitamin B and Omega fish oil stuff.

LBea: I was taking vitamins, but I always forget. I'm more likely to take Motrin.

Josh: 4 - What holiday chore do you most dread?

I dread them ALL. Mostly because I haven't done any of them. I guess I dread starting the list of chores the most, because once I'm in that mode, it will be okay. It's like war. Thinking about battle is much worse than...hmmm. Maybe not such a good analogy. I do hope the turkey won't be shooting back this year.

LBea: My new holiday dread is wall papering the hallway ever again.

Josh: 5 - Name one book you read as a teenager that influenced you.

As a teenager...I read voraciously. And I tended to take everything very seriously. I think this is true of a of books we read when we're young. It seems like...this is gospel, this is how the world is, and these initial storytellers carry great weight. Which is why it really is a huge responsibility as to what we let children and teens read. I remember I read a great deal from the Scholastic bookclub. Anyone remember that? And one book was about this guy named David and his friend...and I can't remember the friend's name, but he's a conscientious objector and he dies in Viet Nam. There's something about David's father accusing the friend of being gay, but to be honest, a lot of that went right over my head at the time. I mean, I was still waiting for the Black Stallion to show up in my life.

LBea: Snort. I'll send you a My Little Pony.

I've said Dancer's of Arun before--but I'm going to go with Fern Michael's Captive Surrender (or was it Embrace?). I was in high school and it was my first lady pirate romance. I wrote an English paper about becoming a lady pirate and I received a glowing A from my teacher who thought I was 'so interesting'--but sekretly I was reading pron!

LBEA BOLDLY ASKS--

LBea: 6) What's your fav. real Christmas song and your favorite pretend Holiday song? I know this is precipitous. I don't care.

I'm such a WASP--Once in Royal David City is my fav real song. And I love Mariah singing O Holy Night in that video when she's in church with her bubbies hanging out and she's in a Jessica Rabbit Red Dress vamping it up for baby Jesus. Now that's what I call Christmas!

Josh - The Rebel Jesus. But here's where I confess that I love Christmas music. It is SO uncool. But I do. Pretend fave? Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. I love all those jazzy, vintage-y Chestnuts Saved From the Fire faves. Ideally sung by Ella or Frankie or Der Bingle or Satchmo.

LBea: 7) What's the last thing your love said to you this morning?

You're so hot I can't keep my hands off you. I want you all the time.

What? I am not making that up!

Josh: "How's your head?"

He was talking about my headache of the night before, I hasten to add. Serious here!

LBea: 8) Thanksgiving Question: Dressing in the bird, or on the side in some pansy little dish?

Stuff that mother! In the bird! Also stuffing should have lots of sausage. Mmmmm...sausage.

Josh - You don't know where that bird has been! Side dish. It's an ongoing bone of contention in this household, by the way. I am all about the side dishes.

LBea: 9) What movies can you watch again and again, you know the lines, can jump in at any time, and will stop everything to watch it on TV even though you have it on DVD (and VHS)?

Monty Python's Holy Grail--and School of Rock, Moonstruck, The Bird Cage, and (Colin Firth) Pride and Prejudice. I like to laugh and I love love.

Josh - And we love to laugh at you. WITH YOU. Seriously, though...Gunga Din, Young Frankenstein, The Big Sleep...any episode of The Professionals.

Adrien English

LBea: 10) What's your newest addition to your Desert Island Keeper list?

Mine is The Dark Tide. BOOYAH!!!!

Josh- What?! You can't pick a book that isn't published yet. Pick something else. (LBea: No. Make me.) Meanwhile...what am I supposed to pick when I haven't read anything in months??? Books I am taking with me to DIY island...Dash and Dingo by Sean Kennedy, Three Wrong Turns in the Desert by Neil Plakcy...okay, I will take recommends on this. OH, I know. Ginn Hale's sequel to Wicked Gentlemen. When's that coming out? ( I am NOT making fun of you, Sweetbea).

So. Answer the Ten Questions by Monday Morning 7 am (I can't do midnight Sunday, sorry. Am too tired) and you may be selected to win a copy of Dangerous Grounds II: Old Poison! And an LB Gregg your choice Smithfield novella.

The Questions Again:

1 - The last fluid to pass your lips.

2 - Who was the last person you had an argument with -- and why?

3 - Is Irish Coffee a vitamin?

4 - What holiday chore do you most dread?

5 - Name one book you read as a teenager that influenced you.

6) What's your fav. real Christmas song and your favorite pretend Holiday song?

7) What's the last thing your love said to you this morning?

8) Thanksgiving Question: Dressing in the bird, or on the side in some pansy little dish?

9) What movies can you watch again and again, you know the lines, can jump in at any time, and will stop everything to watch it on TV even though you have it on DVD (and VHS)?

10) What's your newest addition to your Desert Island Keeper list?

YAY.

Of All the Fool Things.

While the shit has hit the fan in the romance world with Harlequin's new vanity press label--and I try to visualize RWA without Harlequin--I've been prepping for a special guest arrival tomorrow.

TOMORROW.

Imagine my surprise that I had no idea this Harlequin/Vanity Press/RWA situation erupted! Actually--not hard to imagine because I've been out of it for a month.

I have nothing to report--but I do have a list of what you shouldn't do two days before your guest is scheduled to arrive for an extended stay.

ANOTHER TOP TEN-

-Damn it I don't have time for ten!!

TOP FIVE LIST WITH LB!

hold your applause until the end, please.

Number Five

Don't go upstairs to clean the bathroom and wind up painting it instead.

No I don't have this soap dispenser!

Number Four

Don't look at twitter, google reader, FB or your email

or you'll get SUCKED into the void.

Number Three

Don't Check Your Books!

Best Sellers for Aspen Mountain Press

Based on data gathered within the last 20 days.

1. Cover Me [Men of Smithfield] by L.B. Gregg [Erotica/Mystery/Crime]

2. Happy Ending [Men of Smithfield] by L.B. Gregg [Erotica/Romance]

3. Gobsmacked [Men of Smithfield] by L.B. Gregg [Erotica/Romance]

I keep checking to see how my books are 'doing'.

This is an utter waste of time. Still. LOOK! At Fictionwise!!

Number Two

Don't Go To Target

Chris Pine has arrived.

Number One Thing
Not to Do Two Days

Before Your Guest Arrives.

Don't decide to Wallpaper the Front Hall with Holiday Wrapping Paper.

Oh, la! You think I'm joking! I'm halfway done. I'm out of sticky dots. Target is far away. And...I'm starting not to care anymore because--I have to clean the house. Of wrapping paper, paint, and sticky dots. Floors to mop. Towels to wash.

PORN TO HIDE.

So. Are you ready for Thanksgiving?

We all have our go-to authors, our comfort reads, and our favorite tropes.  You know, those people and things that make you snatch a book off the shelf and fork over your hard earned money.  Maybe you are a sucker for the "friends to lovers" plot line.  Perhaps you squeal in delight on Julia Quinn's release date.  These books give us the warm fuzzies.  They help us to forget a terrible day at work.  They make a good day even better.

But what about those others?  The doozies. After reading romances for years, you learn what makes you tick, and what makes you sick.  You are walking through the book store.  A cover jumps out at you from the shelf to your left.  Mantitty, low riding pants, some mysterious landscape in the distance.  It lures you over with visual promises of smexin goodness.  Picking up the novel, you turn it over to peruse the back blurb.  What you see there send chils down your spine.  With shaking hands you replace the book on the shelf and slowly back away. It was a close call.  You avoided disaster by a hair's breath.  You almost bought a book containing an element so horrifying it would throw you off your readin game for weeks.  Oh, I don't mean a TSTL heroine or some other element that you wouldn't know about before reading.  I mean the big canon ball that will sink you pleasure cruise of reading.  It's the opposite of auto-buy material.  It is the Dealbreaker.

For me it's cheating.  A book where the heroine is engaged and meets another man who makes the earth shift beneath her (and her naughty bits quake)... Oh. Hell. No.  I know for some people this isn't a problem.  For me it is a dealbreaker. Doesn't matter who wrote it, I just can't read the book.

So what kills it for you?  What element will make you back away and run in the opposite direction?

Those Days When You're Just Not Feelin' It

As some of you know, I have been suffering from The Great Reading Slump of '09. It was BAD. Nothing could tempt my reading palette. That was back in July, August, and even September. Like a nasty flu bug, I have still not fully recovered. The books I have read are few and far between. The good news is that I have fully enjoyed them. Perhaps in this case quality is far better than quantity.

Not everyone has suffered through a full-blown slump. Sometimes you pick up a book and your mind starts to wander. The hero isn't tempting you. The witty banter isn't captivating you. Bottom line: you're just not feelin' it. It's like we tell men, at some time it happens to everybody. So what do you do when the ennui hits? Do you power through and read or do you direct your focus elsewhere?

For me, it's crafty shtuff. I pick up a skein of yarn and a crochet hook and let my mind wander. Other times it is paint and a canvas. I get my hands moving and my mind begins to clear. Often that's all it takes to bring me right back to reading.

What clears your mind or distracts you from the ennui? What is your prescription for those times when you're just not feelin' it?

Enabling. How do YOU do it?

I have been reading Romances for half of my life. For years they were my guilty pleasure, my dirty little secret. While many of my friends were voracious readers, none of them read Romance. In fact, many of my "friends" scoffed at me, poked fun at me, and even ridiculed my literary choices. (Real great friends, huh?) As I've grown older new individuals have entered my life. You know what? They read romance! Yes, it's true. Now, I know all of you read them. That is what has brought us together, this shared love of novels filled with love, passion, drama, sly humor, sexy heroes, and strong heroines. But here are these people in my day-to-day life that read Romance. It is a lovely thing.

But get this: some of those friends who ridiculed me in the past? Some of them are starting to get interested. Oh yes! There are those who throw all reservations aside and dive in head first, asking to borrow books or what you recommendations might be. Then there are those others. The ones for whom it is a new guilty pleasure. You have been there. That was me at 16. And 21. And.... They are resistant yet intrigued.

So how do we hook these friends? What has your approach been? Is it with a particular author? Do you have a sneak Romance attack move you could share? Just what is it you do to enable those around you? How do you bring your friends over to the Romance Side?

(Best sneak attack ever!)

Whoops September Babies My Bad

I TOTALLY BLEW IT AS BIRTHDAY LEADER OVER HERE and I'M SO FREAKIN' SORRY. When I switched positions I kind of let the blog slip MY FAULT Swear it won't happen again. So to make it up to you September Babies here are your gifts! Enjoy and I hope you had a fantastic Bday!!!!

Please, Please, Please send me any and all naked menz pics so I can a fresh selection to post for the Bday parties! Seriously I need some help I'm running out! You can send them to saraijohnson@hotmail.com Thanks!

All He Desires

Okay before we let you go.... Tell us a bit about your new book:

This month we're celebrating the release of our second novel, the spicy Victorian-set ALL HE DESIRES. And guess what?

The book begins on an island! The Isle of Crete, to be exact. Not precisely tropical, but warm enough, and certainly romantic. Our heroine, Caroline, gets to visit ancient Roman sites (with erotic frescoes - ooh lala) and picnic on feta, olives, and baklava, and swim in the Mediterranean (with barely any clothes on) -- all in the company of the mysterious and oh-so-smexy Alex Trentham.

Why Crete?

We love exotic locales, especially in historical settings. The research is fun, plus we get to escape the dreary Pacific NW winters (at least in our imaginations). Our first book featured a botanical expedition to Tunisia -- lots more balmy weather and lush settings for our characters to enjoy. Plus, it's easier to get the characters to stretch the bounds of propriety when the scent of orange-blossoms flavors the air and the warm beach beckons. They can shed some items of clothing (corsets and waistcoats are the first to go) and wander in the starlit ruins without fear that the censorious eyes of the ton will be focused on them.

Some day we'd like to be able to travel to the places we write about. We dream of renting a place on the shore of some tropical islands. That's the dream -- to walk on the beach talking about plot and characters, go back to the villa or cabana and write (and "research...") and let the stories flow without the pesky details of commuting to work and packing lunches. Until then, we let our books do the traveling for us and hope that the readers of Desert Island Keepers will join us.


Thanks for having us here at DIK. We've had a great time, and once we get that island villa thing sorted out, we'll let you know!

Thanks for visiting! (psst Anthea, you can come visit Rain Tairen Soul in my cabana anytime! (^_~) . I won't tell Lawson)

More Anthea Lawson!

As we continue with the cocktails, let's learn more about the writing team of Anthea Lawson:

Which 3 books you would bring to a Desert Island and why?

Anthea

My huge Complete Works of Shakespeare. I'd finally have time to read all of it! And there's a couple blank pages in the back I could write on or use to start fires.

For practicality, something like The Complete Idiot's Guide to Surviving - and prospering! - on a Desert Island.

For sheer pleasure from my keeper shelf, Julia Quinn's When He Was Wicked. I haven't re-read it for a while, but I love the character growth and the super hot love scenes. Not to mention the excellent writing and the tortured hero - sigh...

Lawson

Can I just bring a kindle and a solar battery charger? It would be so sad to be on a desert island and have all the time in the world to read, and have only three books.

Nope! We need to fill the library! (^_^) And that's cheating!!! Name your books buddy!

Anthea which 3 heroes would you bring and why?

MacGyver, no question! Wouldn't you want him along if you were stuck on a desert island?

Rain from C.L. Wilson's Tairen Soul books (my current glom reads). Master of all elemental magics, who could take me flying over the warm azure waters? Yes please.

And finally, I'd bring my real-life hero Lawson. Together, we can do anything!

Lawson which 3 heroines would you bring and why?

I would make it a family vacation and bring Lily Strathmore, the botanical artist from our first book, PASSIONATE

Caroline Huntington from our second book, ALL HE DESIRES (she knows all about being on an island)

There is no way I could leave behind Clara Becker from the book we are working on now. They are all the kind of women who would seriously object to being left behind. Besides, I know I could count on Lily to bring her Aunt's folding travel bathtub.

Come back tomorrow for even more fun!

Welcome Anthea Lawson!!!

Please give a warm welcome to our newest victim guest!

Anthea Lawson

She's a newly published author (see her site here) And her new book is out on bookshelves everywhere!!

Read an excerpt of All He Desires here





Okay enough of the Shaymless Aymless Promo stuff... Lets get to the details.



Anthea Lawson is a pen name (she's got hubby helping with the "research" *snickers* Makes you wonder they researching).








And Now the
QUESTIONS

DIK questions (mostly answered by Anthea with Lawson making wisecracks from the peanut gallery and dodging all the hard questions.)

Thanks for having us here at Desert Island Keepers!

* Favorite Reading Position - On the couch in a patch of sun. Not so easy to find in the NW in winter~

L: Doggy Position, no question. Hey! Stop snickering. The Doggy reading position is where you sit on the couch and your big dog flops down at your feet. You rest your foot on the happy beast and give him a little massage with your feet while you read. This position is not to be confused with Kitty position where your cat sits on top of your book and rubs his head insistently against your chin as you struggle to read. Hmmm I wonder if Amazon has thought of including a kitty ejector button on the Kindle. It could play the sound of a can of cat food being opened.

* Best love song - Run by Snow Patrol. Such a sweet, poignant song. It always brings tears to my eyes.

L: I'm a guy. It is impossible for me to answer this question with a song title since, like all guys, I lack the "Best Love Song" gene. Best love song? The one that works -- final answer.

* Favorite Heroine - For some reason, Freya Bedwyn (heroine of Mary Balogh's Slightly Scandalous) has been on my mind recently. Maybe because she is such a strong, prickly character who isn't classically beautiful and has a rougher time opening her heart and accepting love.

* Author everyone loves but you don't - Stephanie Meyer (ducking the slings and arrows!) Though she is obviously a compelling storyteller for many people.

* If you could be in one book/series/world which would you pick - Narnia :)

L: The one about the rakish Duke who falls in love with the beautiful, intelligent, yet seemingly unattainable woman, has a lot of really hot emotionally satisfying sex, and lives happily ever after. That sounds pretty good to me. I get to be the handsome rakish Duke and we skip directly to the part of the book where the wicked author stops torturing and begins rewarding the hero.

* How old is your inside voice - 24

L: Which one of my inside voices are you referring to--and does the one that sounds just like my father count?

* Favorite sex song - Push It by Salt n Pepa ;)

L: Push It is a sex song? Wow, I always thought they were talking about rearranging the furniture. Push it, push it good....right over there under the window.....and now the couch, over there by the entertainment center. Oh yeah!

* If you could be a hero who would you be - Anyone played by Colin Firth in a BBC production! But Batman is a close second...

L: Hey, what do you mean "could be a hero" (Striking an Alpha pose and looking off into the distance in a very wounded-hero-like way)

* What heroine is most like you - I think I'm a bit like Jane Austen's Emma in terms of being convinced that I'm always right, and then having to accept (sometimes ungracefully) when my utmost convictions are proven wrong.

L: The one that's six-feet tall and shaves?

* What heroine would you like to be - Any optimistic, plucky heroine from any era, though I prefer the idea of swooshy skirts... Weird, because I pretty much wear jeans all the time.

* Boxers, briefs, boxer briefs, kilt, commando - Ooh that's a tough one! Either kilt or commando...

L: Aye bonnie lass, those are boxer briefs beneath me kilt. And aye again, briefs beneath my boxer briefs, and aye a third time for the boxers beneath the briefs. A cold wind blows o'er the moors and even a hero will nae risk frostbite under the kilt.

* Favorite book set on a tropical island - Island of the Blue Dolphins. A classic YA read~ (sniffle)

L: Treasure Island, it makes me say "Yar!"

* What hero is most like your significant other - (listening, nodding) Ahem. I have been informed -- that is, the hero most like Lawson is Aragorn as he might be played by Hugh Jackman. (Not Frodo! Of course not!)

L: I'm much too tall to be Frodo.

* What hero would you like to be your significant other -
Sound of a struggle in the background, a feminine voice trying to answer the question but the words come out muffled and indistinct as if someone's hand was covering her mouth, preventing her from answering.

L: Ummmm, next question....

* If you were stuck on a desert island what 3 things would you bring - A large swiss army knife, my glasses (hard to get food when you can't see anything more than 2 feet away), and a big cooking pot. Oh, could I smuggle a solar-powered G3 networked laptop in?

L: My iphone (we've got book proposals out, don't want to miss the call when it comes); an antique oil lamp housing a wish-granting genie (that's a no-brainer, don't you think?); an assortment of board games (It's not like I'm going to waste a wish asking the genie for board games).

* Favorite drink to bring to the DIK party - I used to love Brandy Alexanders, but now I'd go for a perfect margarita.

L: I think I would bring a G&T: Simple, refreshing, and high in vitamin C.

Stay tuned in for home fun facts about Anthea Lawson tomorrow!

Our Last Day with Lori

I know, I know we are all upset by this news but we knew it had to come. So let's rally together and help our heroes get over the loss of Lori but the possibility of a new hero joining our mixes. Anyway take it away Lori one last time!

The Truth About Getting Published

“Are you excited?”
This is by far the number one question I’m asked since my debut book, Wild Heart, was released November 3rd. Not wanting to be thought of as an ingrate, I paste a smile upon my face and say

“Yes, of course.” But, to the people who know me well, it’s a different response.

The truth?

I’m scared as hell.

It took me over six years to get a contract. But selling a book is just the first step in becoming an author. After that it’s waiting. Lot’s of waiting. Added to that six years, it took over a year from the time I sold my book until Wild Heart hit the shelves at bookstores. In those months there have been plenty of things to worry about; edits, book cover and worst of all…reviews. Let’s face, nowadays reviewers don’t hold back and they can be brutal. Fortunately, so far it hasn’t happened to me…that much. I still remember one of the first reviews I received from Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell. Of course I was nervous, but I was also excited.

“This is a great debut and I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next.”

This is just a snippet of the wonderful review Linda gave me. But as thrilled as I was, I knew eventually, inevitably, someone wouldn’t care for the novel I’d created. That day came a couple months later from a reviewer at Night Owl Romance. The woman who reviewed my book pretty much despised it. Since then I’ve had more reviews and none have been negative (knock on wood). Now, I can think about that Night Owl review and laugh. But no matter how hardened you are, no matter how much you expect to get at least one negative review, its still like a punch in the gut; like someone telling you your newborn is ugly.

Reviews have come and gone and my fears have now morphed into something new—sales. I found out about a week before my book came out what my print run would be and it was smaller than I would have liked. Your print run is the number of books they have printed to send out to stores. Print run, but even more so, sales numbers, are the thing an author has to worry about the most. Especially for a new author, if people don’t buy most of your books, you’re screwed. You’re certainly not going to get another contract with your publisher and it’s going to be hard to find another publisher who will take a chance on you.

Sadly, that, my friends, is what I’ve been worrying about now. From the moment I sold my book, I feared that I’d be the type of author who received one contract and then you never heard from her again.

So what keeps me going with all these worries in my head? Lots of people! My critique partners for one, who ran out and bought my book the moment it hit shelves. The same people I can complain to and who listen to me without judgment. My fellow authors are another source of comfort; authors who understand exactly what I’m going through and who can offer me advice. But most importantly, readers keep me going. People who leave comments on my blogs, who support my writing and encourage me to keep going.

To honor you readers, I’ll be giving away 3 copies of my debut book, Wild Heart. Leave a comment for your chance to win!

Read the excerpt below for a taste of Wild Heart!

His lips parted slightly, and his brows wrinkled as if he dreamt something he didn’t particularly care for. Ella’s heart clenched for the boy who’d seen his parents murdered and for the man plagued with nightmares. Hadn’t he said as much to her in the folly? Always nightmares. Gently, she spread the blanket across this lap. And then, because she couldn’t help herself, she reached out and slipped her fingers into the hair at his forehead.

Leo’s eyes opened to reveal cold, glowing orbs. Before she could guess his intentions, his fingers wrapped tightly around her wrist and jerked her toward him. Ella landed on his lap with a gasp. He blinked, and just as quickly as he lashed out, his body relaxed.
“Ella,” he whispered and released his grip.

She swallowed hard and resisted the urge to rub her wrist.

“Merda, did I hurt you?”

She shook her head. “I thought…I thought you might be cold.”

“I mistook you for someone else. In the jungle I—”

“You don’t have to explain,” she whispered.

His palm, large and reassuring, rested on the small of her back and burned through her dress. He stared into her eyes and she found she couldn’t move.

“Are you better?” he asked.

She nodded. “Yes, of course, I’m fine now.” She looked at her lap and cleared her throat. “You don’t have to…”

“What?”

“You can sleep in the bed with me,” she whispered.

She felt his body tighten, but his face betrayed no emotion.

“Are you positive?”

She knew what he asked her, the meaning behind the words. She knew what this could lead to. Instead of fear, excitement flooded her body.

Okay ladies remember you can visit Lori Brighton at: www.loribrighton.com or at her blog at: www.loribrighton.blogspot.com

Don't forget to pick up your copy of Wild Hearts at Amazonor Barnes and Nobles

Thank you Lori for coming out and visiting us we hope you come out again to visit!