Our Last Day of Blogging!

What inspires the new idea for a book?

Mary: I have had a few ideas in my head for years. So that is what I am working on now. But no way could I be as prolific as you. You amaze me! So what inspires you. Where do all those books come from.?



Jianne: Gosh, it varies so much. I’m currently working a historical thriller set in 711 AD, and I must admit the time is what inspired me. That plus the love of Viking tales.



How long does it take to start and finish a book?

Mary: I am slow. My muse is a bit retarded, I have to admit it. I think the first one took me about a year. The editing would still be going on if my editor hadn't said uncle! My second one is taking longer, some life crisis' have gotten in the way. But now I am working on it again. You seem to be able to write so fast, it's like your muse drinks a lot of coffee! The more you write, the quicker you get. How long does it usually take you.



Jianne: My first book took a year to finish, the second six months, the third three months. Manacled in Monaco took six weeks to write, yet Notorious in Nice took six months to finish. Sometimes the muse flows and at other times it simply doesn’t.



Is there any genre you favor?

Mary: You know I love time travel. Then any kind of paranormal. I admit I'm stuck on them now. But I go through cycles and I will be on another type eventually. How about you?



Jianne: Not particularly. I like being able to try all genres, to stretch as a writer. The genre I most love to read and write is romantic suspense. I like a hint of mystery in my books.



How do you pick the setting for a new book?

Mary: I love to write about beautiful rural settings. The lake in Vermont, and Stowe for example. But I will admit I have some ideas for other places I have lived. You write about the Caribbean, which I can see in my minds eye because your imagery is so wonderful. You know I am so into the imagery. If I can't picture it how can I disappear into a book? What are your favorite places to write about?



Jianne: I love to write about places I’ve visited. My mom and I did a mother/daughter Mediterranean trip a couple of years ago and that inspired me to set the Mambo series in the Mediterranean. I grew up in the tropics hence the Witchy Women series are each set in a different Caribbean island. My new one, White on White, is set in Washington, a state I loved to visit when I lived in Vancouver, Canada.



How does writer’s block affect you?

Mary: I don't know if it's writers block or just being in a bad mood. It's so hard to write when you are worried about a family member. If I am happy it just flows. I go back and read the whole thing aloud, (like you suggested awhile ago), and then the story takes me over. Have you ever had an issue with writer's block?



Jianne: I’ve learned that when I’m stuck on a book it’s because something’s wrong with a character. Either I’m not staying true to the character or the character is not developed enough. So, when I hit a hurdle, I re-read the story to that point, and try to dissect what’s working. I discard what’s not and start in again.



Mary:Thank you all for coming to read out week of blogs. I'll admit I was a bit intimidated doing this, but it worked out just fine. Jianne it is such a pleasure to have you as a critique partner. You give me so much insight and I get to read your wonderful stories before the rest of the world. Good luck with your writing my friends and never ever quit! The world needs us now more then ever.

Below is a last excerpt from Jianne.

Notorious In Nice

Jianne Carlo just keeps putting out one hot, fabulous, book, after another. Notorious in Nice takes the innocent, Su-Lin Taylor, on a journey of love. She has a naive and eager need to learn more about sex and her man of interest, Terrance O'Connor, who has his eyes on her from the moment he meets her. Su-Lin unfortunately is too trusting and there are those around her who don't have her best interest in mind.
Her Aunt and Uncle are not what they seem to be. Jianne weaves a story that takes us to exotic places, amongst the wealth and splendor she learns that the people she believes in are not trustworthy. Someone wants to kill her and why anyone would want to kill her is the basis for a remarkable story of intrigue. Terry arranges for her and her relatives to take a trip on his luxury boat the Glory. And the excitement is on!

Hold on to your seats and get ready for one hot excerpt.

Notorious in Nice

Su-Lin’s been dreaming of Terry for days. They’d talked daily on the phone, and she can’t wait to see him again, but sexy Texan Harrison throws her off course.

“Welcome to the Glory,” he drawled in this sexy, send-shivers-up-your-spine voice. “Harrison Ford, first mate, at your absolute disposal. I saw you on the beach in Antibes a while back, sugar. Amazing performance. Surely you’re Olympic material?”
His palm enfolded her small hand, and he brushed full lips over the throbbing vein at her wrist. Bemused by the way he said the word “sugar,” like it had no R and a host of Hs, shug-ah, her lips curved, hoping he’d say it again. She paraphrased it in her mind, shug-ah, and drew in gulps of his Acqua Di Gio aftershave as her stomach did a giddy slide into his twinkling honey eyes.
She rushed out, “I made the team four years in a row but had to drop out. Then I shot up. I’m too tall for Olympic competition.” She stifled a groan, too much information. It still amazed her how rich people conducted a conversation. They asked questions as greetings but didn’t expect answers, far less the truth.
“An itty bitty thing like you?” Liquid caramel eyes glistened sympathy beneath arched eyebrows. “Shucks, sugar, that’s their loss. I took a shot of you on my cell. Remind me, and I’ll show it to you later.”
He had taken a picture of her? This man with rock-star looks and Indiana Jones charm?
Su-Lin fell back when her uncle stepped forward.
“I’m James Lockheed, and this is my wife, Emma, my niece, Su-Lin.”
“Nice to meet y’all. Terrence O’Connor’s the captain, but he’s tied up for the moment. I know you chartered the Glory for the coming three weeks, Mr. Lockheed, but Geoff, Terry’s partner, seems to have scheduled a cruise with another party for the same period.”
“Well, I hope we can settle this mix-up quickly.” Aunt Emma started tapping her Clarks pump on the teak deck.
Terry dragged both hands through his hair and turned to face her. “We meet again. Welcome to the Glory.”
Shock kept her speechless as she realized she wasn’t welcome on board his boat, not by a long shot. Gritting her teeth, Su-Lin lifted her chin. “A most gracious welcome. Thank you.”
He had the grace to blush, although that proved poor solace for her bruised ego.
“James and Emma Lockheed, Su-Lin, meet my brother, Thomas, and my father, the Earl of Arran, Nigel Gore.” He appeared to be speaking through clenched teeth.
“Nigel, good to see you again,” Uncle James said, extending a hand.
“You know each other?” Terry asked, gaze whipping between the two men.
“Business acquaintances,” the earl replied.
“Harry, Austen, show our guests to their rooms,” Terry ordered.
The cowboy, Harrison, intervened. “I’ll show you to your cabin, Su-Lin.” He crooked an elbow. “Terry has to show his father and brother to theirs, and Austen, our bosun, is showing your relatives to the upper deck.”
“Thank you.” She refused to sneak a look at Terry and smiled at Harrison Ford. “What’s a bosun?”
“The Glory’s foreman. He organizes the other crew members and reports to me.”
“Oh,” she said. “Like a manager.”
“Bull’s-eye, sugar,” he drawled, gifting her with a crooked grin.
Su-Lin wondered if this gorgeous man had any physical flaws.
“Has anyone ever told you that you look like Indiana Jones?” A Harrison Ford look-alike without the cragginess or the crooked nose.
“Pure luck, as my mama named me after him.” He winked at her. “I even took archaeology as a minor in college.”
By this time, they’d reached the end of the stairs leading below deck, and a long, carpeted corridor faced them.
“You’re at the far end. The Glory’s staterooms are divided evenly between this deck and the upper one. Our level is separated by this entertainment area.” Harrison paused and waved a hand in the direction of a bar, a sectional curved couch, and a wide plasma screen blaring CNN Headline News.
“Where is my aunt and uncle’s room?” Su-Lin asked.
“They’re on the upper deck, as are the rest of the guests. You’re next door to the captain’s cabin.” He pointed to the left. “ Someone will bring the bags down later. Join me for a drink on deck in half an hour, sugar? Wanna get married?”
“I beg your pardon?” Shaking her head didn’t seem to clear it. “I’m sorry, what did you say?”
“Wanna get married?”
She did that back of the throat thing to clear stuffy ears and shot him a smile-grimace. “Did you just ask me to marry you?”
“Durn right, sugar. My father left me a fortune, which I inherit the day I marry. My stepmama inherits if I’m not wed by thirty.”
“Oh,” she muttered, digesting this interesting but peculiar tidbit. “I take it your birthday’s coming up?”
“Yep. And that bitch ain’t getting a cent, not even if I have to marry a freakin’ octogenarian.”
Hysteria spurred a sudden fit of giggles. “Have I just arrived in some sort of parallel universe? This must be a surreal dream.”
“I’m serious.” He winked at her again.
“You’re impossible,” she said. “Why not marry a friend and then get divorced?”
“Proof of consummation is part and parcel of Daddy’s will.”
“Oh,” she muttered. “Hold on a second, there’d only be proof if the female was a virgin.”
“One of the requirements is an untouched woman.”
“What makes you think I fit the bill?”
One forefinger traced the outline of her mouth. Their gazes tangled and he shook his head. “Ah, sugar, you radiate innocence. And you have a hunger in your eyes. It makes a man burn to be the first.”
“Sod off, Harrison. Above deck, pronto. You,” Terry barked. “Come with me.”
Everything happened so quickly, Su-Lin’s mind reeled. He scooped her into his arms and then the two of them were alone in his cabin.
“You don’t go from blowing me to screwing Harry.” Carrying her high against his chest, he toed the door closed. “Do you hear me?”

How about one more for a real thrill?


Notorious in Nice

A woman, he needed a woman. Sex, a night of thrusting and pounding like an enraged bull, and then he would face reality, deal with the burdens of the past.
Determined not to be thrown off course, his glance slid left, drawn to Su-Lin like Mars drawn to the sun. To his surprise, she met his gaze and tipped the crystal glass, her full lips curling in a trembling smile.
His for the taking.
He forgot his father, his brother, his life, and homed in on a single goal, sheathing himself in her warmth. Trying not to be obvious, Terry wound his way through the crowd mingling on the upper deck until he stood inches away from her.
As if sensing his presence, her pouty lips parted, and she sipped at the bubbling champagne, glancing over one bare shoulder at him.
“There’s a minor issue in the kitchens, and your presence is required.” He took her crystal flute, set it on table and held out an elbowed forearm. “ Shall we?”
Those searching eyes, their startling color, the absolute absence of guile, made him hesitate for a brief, imperceptible moment. A woman, he reminded himself, she was a female, a hole to be filled, nothing more, nothing less.
Before they reached the last mahogany step fronting the lower deck’s main corridor, Terry scooped her into his arms
She didn’t resist but raised verdant eyes to his. “I’m not sure.”
That was all she said, and it stabbed at his conscience, those words.
“Don’t worry,” he replied. “It’ll be okay.”
He had to squelch all emotions to make it to the secluded cabin door without touching her, without drowning in her mouth. With a gentility he didn’t know he possessed, Terry laid her down in the middle of the queen-size bed.
She rose on her elbows but said not a word, watching him dash his tie away, flick his jacket to the floor. When he tore his shirt lapels apart and buttons went flying, she put up a tiny hand.
“What, darlin’?” He could barely breathe, get the words out, and wondered if he sounded like the barbarian he felt.
Her head drooped, and she stared at the white comforter. Without looking at him, she whispered, “I want to touch you.”
Jaysus.
He grabbed the head of his prick and squeezed so hard it hurt. He’d almost lost it, and they hadn’t even begun.
Calling on all his military training, Terry shuffled over to the mattress and sat.
“All you want.” That was all he could muster, and getting the words out almost undid him again. He took her small hand and placed it over a heart threatening self-destruction.
Her pink tongue snaked out to touch the corner of her mouth. She shifted closer.
Tacky, moist sea brine wafted to his nostrils, and not an iota of it made it to his lungs.
“I’ve never done this before,” she said, so softly he had to strain to hear her words. And then she could’ve bellowed, and he’d never have known. His heart sounded like immediate thunder in his ears, reverberations vibrating every nerve, every synapse.
She placed the other hand on his chest and breathed, “You’re so beautiful, like a Norse god.”
One finger traced the outline of his pectoral muscles, and his stomach contracted so hard his gut cramped and his prick leaked.
So close. So close.
“Darlin’ --” he began, but she cut him off by applying two fingers to his lips.
She shook her head.
“Please, no words?” And still she wouldn’t meet his gaze, and it bothered him, made him desperate for some sign of, what? Not consent. Approval, perhaps?
Terry stifled his response and waited, watching, body functions going into trained military hibernation.
With the slightest pressure of one hot little palm, she had him lying supine on the bed. Her hands flitted over his chest, lithe butterfly caresses skimming his scalded flesh.
Her touch left him wanting, impatient.
Delicate fingers flicked the right nipple, then the left, and she licked her lips when he flinched and his hips arched off the mattress.
Her gaze fixed on his arousal then, and with shaking fingers, she unbuckled his belt. Long minutes of agonizing torture followed, prolonged by her obvious nerves, her hands fumbling over his cock.

Notorious in Nice
eCard Details

A silly mistake pits a naked Terry with a nude Su-Lin in the men’s steam room. Totally smitten, Terry manipulates Su-Lin into a cruise aboard his luxury yacht, the Glory. Or so Terry thinks…
ISBN: 978-1-59632-904-1
Publisher Link
http://www.loose-id.com/prod-Mediterranean_Mambo__Notorious_in_Nice-907.aspx

Thanks Jianne, keep um coming!