• The Last Slayer, an Urban Fantasy with Romantic Elements


• Carnal Secrets, a Contemporary Romance


• Destiny Entwined, an Erotic Romance


• A Happily Ever After of Her Own, a Paranormal Romance


• How to Format Your Manuscript for Kindle and Nook: 3rd Edition

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1. So...My Super Secret Good News
2. The Second Half of 2011 Is Here!
3. Get 38% Off on The Last Slayer!

It's new, so it doesn't have lots of books displayed, but I think it's a good site to bookmark for those of you with a Nook!

• The Last Slayer, an Urban Fantasy with Romantic Elements


• Carnal Secrets, a Contemporary Romance


• Destiny Entwined, an Erotic Romance


• A Happily Ever After of Her Own, a Paranormal Romance


• How to Format Your Manuscript for Kindle and Nook: 3rd Edition

No related posts.

Where to begin? Who? Why? What?

For me, it's all about that tiny flicker of a lighter in the darkness of an auditorium. It's always one tiny thing. I don't have a big idea. I never say I'm going to write a book about...anything. I never think, wow, what a great piece of history and I really want to tell that story. I never write an outline or figure out a plot or begin with a couple who need to get together.

When I look back at the dozens of stories, the hundreds of poems, the novels and novellas, I realize that every single one of them has started in a similar way.

What turns my mind to story is a phrase, a title, a single word, a quick glimpse out the car. It's a nugget, a quick flash of gold in a stream, a sentence heard in passing. It might be a piece of graffiti, a small part of a quote or a story. I've written a novel because of a phrase I read in The New Yorker; a series of stories based on a piece of graffiti on a city wall; another book because of the 30 second glimpse of an abandoned drive-in outside a bus window.

The year I spent $10,000 on a dead dog.

A friend used this phrase the other day and I've been carrying it around in my head ever since, knowing that it will stick with me until I begin the story. I have absolutely no idea what the story will be, don't know if it will be a short story or a novel. I don't know if that sentence will even end up in the story -- often it doesn't. Or it starts the story and then gets cut as I get further into the writing of it.

Why does this happen? I think, though I really can't be certain, that the thing that grabs me by the throat is a feeling. I can't tell you what that feeling is, can't be as clear as sorrow or joy or fear, but it keeps me writing until I reach the end. And then the thing that got me there may or may not belong in the story I've written.

The series of ten linked stories I'm writing right now began with a brief mention on the radio of Stevie Wonder. I started singing Part Time Lovers -- don't ask me why that song because my favorite is I Just Called to Say I Love You -- and voila! Ten stories, 80,000 words, all from that single title.

Inspiration is as individual as a snowflake and what works for me probably won't work for you. For me, I just try to respect that process, try to pay attention to the singularity of the moment when that phrase or glimpse passes by. Because I don't ever want to miss one of them -- they're miracles.

About Josée Renard:

Josée Renard writes women's fiction, magic realism, paranormal and erotica. She writes short fiction, poetry and novels. Josée blames her good friend Anna Leigh Keaton for getting her into writing erotica -- she loves Anna Leigh's books and wanted to try one herself -- now she can't stop. She blames her mother and her two grandmothers for her reading and writing obsession -- all of them were avid readers, and they passed the books and the obsession on to her.

She also writes women's fiction as Kate Austin. You can check out her alter ego at www.kateaustin.ca.

Josée has generously agreed to give away one e-copy of Treat Myself. Comment to win. The winner will be drawn on September 12th. (open international)

• The Last Slayer, an Urban Fantasy with Romantic Elements


• Carnal Secrets, a Contemporary Romance


• Destiny Entwined, an Erotic Romance


• A Happily Ever After of Her Own, a Paranormal Romance


• How to Format Your Manuscript for Kindle and Nook: 3rd Edition

Related posts:

1. KISS OF THE ROSE Giveaway Winners
2. Giveaway: CONFESSIONS OF AN IMPROPER BRIDE by Jennifer Haymore (Open Worldwide)
3. Interview & Giveaway

Congratulations, Tia! Please check your email for information on how to claim your prize.

• The Last Slayer, an Urban Fantasy with Romantic Elements


• Carnal Secrets, a Contemporary Romance


• Destiny Entwined, an Erotic Romance


• A Happily Ever After of Her Own, a Paranormal Romance


• How to Format Your Manuscript for Kindle and Nook: 3rd Edition

Related posts:

1. June! June!

So here are the rules and information:

Why read Confessions of an Improper Bride?

Because Jennifer Haymore is an awesome writer.  And don't the blurb and excerpt intrigue you?

Excerpt (from Jennifer Haymore's website)

"There you are, Miss Donovan."

It was Langley's voice. With a sigh, Serena dropped her hand and turned. There he was, standing not an arm's length away, with Jonathan Dane at his side.

Jonathan's wide, sensuous mouth hadn't changed in shape, but its turn seemed more cynical, more inclined to smirk rather than display the genuine, joyful smiles she remembered. His lips were parted, and she could see the hint of teeth behind them.

She remembered those lips. How often she'd kissed them, had run her tongue over those teeth.

"Good evening." Serena's voice emerged smooth and deep and contained no tremor. It reminded her of her voice when she was with Jonathan before, when she was aroused and could only think she wanted more, she wanted him to take her to the pinnacle.

He had taken her to those heights, not only physically, but emotionally as well, and she had counted on it never to end. But then it had ended with an abruptness that had shattered her.

He gazed at her as if startled, a slight frown forming between his brows. "Serena?"

The cheerful roar of the ballroom faded to nothing behind the din of her shock. She glanced at Langley to see him blanch. Everyone standing nearby had turned to gape at them.

She stared up at Jonathan, unable to speak, to breathe.

He stared back at her, his eyes dilated in the shadows until they looked black. She remembered them, though. They were midnight blue, like the deepest ocean on a sunny day. They always appeared quite dark whenever there wasn't enough light to illuminate their true color. In broad daylight, his eyes were exotic, their dark cobalt sparks contrasting with the gold streaks in his hair and the broad slashes of his eyebrows. Such a handsome man.

Langley gave an awkward laugh and clapped Jonathan on the shoulder. "No, this is Meg, man. Meg Donovan, my betrothed."

Jonathan shook his head, as if flinging away a fog that had descended over him. He blinked hard, and seeming to come to his senses, he bowed. "Of course," he murmured. "Of course. Forgive me. Miss Donovan, it is a pleasure to see you again."

The low timbre of his voice made something within Serena clench. She remembered that voice, had dreamed about it more times than she could count. That voice had whispered in her ear, caressed the most private parts of her body, told her wicked things she was certain she'd never hear again. The words he had uttered to her had made her first fall madly in love and later tremble in ecstasy.

It had nearly killed her when she learned all those words had been lies.

Was he still a liar?

Such characteristics were usually ingrained in a person by the time he reached adulthood. If a man was a liar at twenty-two, he probably was at twenty-eight as well.

Serena couldn't answer him. She simply stared. Langley gave her an apologetic look, as if asking for forgiveness that he hadn't warned her about the arrival of the man who had defiled her sister. Serena sucked in a steadying breath. Suddenly, she felt perilously close to bursting into tears.

Langley came to her rescue. "Were you going to take some air?"

She nodded dumbly.

He gave her a gentle smile. "May I accompany you?"

His kind words made her find her voice, and she waved her hand. "No, no, please. It looked like you two were headed toward the punch bowl." She gave them a game smile. "I certainly wouldn't want to deprive two gentlemen of their punch."

Langley returned her smile and inclined his head. "But I won't have you outside alone." He clasped Jonathan's shoulder. "If you'll excuse--"

Just then, an arm slipped through hers. Lady Montgomery squeezed her wrist. "Oh, do come onto the terrace with me, Miss Donovan. I was just thinking about taking some air myself."

Serena swallowed hard, then smiled at her savior. "Thank you. I'd love to join you outside."

She gave a faltering, watery smile to Langley, silently thanking him for his thoughtfulness. The two men bowed, Langley looking understanding and Jonathan looking as bewildered as if he'd just been awakened from a year-long sleep. They turned toward the punch bowl, Langley holding on to Jonathan's shoulder, guiding him away and across the room.

Keeping her arm tightly entwined about Serena's, Lady Montgomery flung open the door and led her toward freedom and the outside.

Why are you giving away a copy?

Because I think more people should read Jennifer's awesome historical romance novels.  Also Jennifer is one of the sweetest people I know, and she was instrumental in helping me publish Carnal Secrets. Without her, the story would still be languishing on my hard drive.

Note:  I'm not getting paid to do this or receiving any other form of compensation.  I just like Jennifer. 

So how do I earn entries?

Super easy.

• Two entries if you subscribe to my newsletter.  (If you've already subscribed, you don't have to do anything to get two entries automatically.)
• Tweet why you want to read Jennifer Haymore novels and/or Confessions of an Improper Bride. One entry per tweet per day. Use #JenHaymore so I can track you!
• Tweet about this giveaway. (You get only one entry for this, not one entry per day for tweeting over and over again.)  Please use #JenHaymore so I can track you.

The giveaway ends on July 24th (midnight, US Eastern Time).  The winner will be announced on my blog on July 25th and will be contacted via Twitter (for Twitter entries) or email (for newsletter subscriber entries).  The winner has until midnight US Eastern Time July 31 to contact me with a mailing address.

The book will be shipped by BookDepository regardless of your location. (Just to be clear, you're getting an unautographed final book, not an ARC or early copy.) If I can, I'll gift an e-copy if you prefer an ebook and have a US Kindle account.

Good luck!

• The Last Slayer, an Urban Fantasy with Romantic Elements


• Carnal Secrets, a Contemporary Romance


• Destiny Entwined, an Erotic Romance


• A Happily Ever After of Her Own, a Paranormal Romance


• How to Format Your Manuscript for Kindle and Nook: 3rd Edition

Related posts:

1. CARNAL SECRETS Giveaway! (Open International)
2. KISS OF THE ROSE Giveaway Winners
3. Guest Blog: The Year I Spent $10,000 on a Dead Dog, or What Inspires Me by Josée Renard (Plus Giveaway!)