IMPORTANT: Hello...and Goodbye...for Now...

I've been pondering how to write this. There's really no good way. But I think I owe it to readers. So here it is:

As readers, and often as writers, we forget that publishing is a business. I don't read to be immersed in business affairs and it's sure not the reason I write. I have another daytime career, as most of you know. Reading and writing for me are forms of escape: Inventing and entering other worlds, so that the weight of the real world never becomes too crushing. It's my let-off-steam valve.

Which is why I've never, to date, delved into the increasingly popular world of self-publishing. I've never wanted all those headaches, frankly. I have enough trouble keeping my regular day-to-day life organized, without taking on other responsibilities and obligations. I never was and likely never will be created in the bean-counting mode. And, lucky me, I've been blessed, as an author, to have landed with great (for me) publishers (for the most part), who take care of all that sort of thing and leave me free to indulge in those aspects of the business I actually like.

But publishing is a business. I got a jarring reminder of that this week.

As most of you know, HER CAPTAIN was just released by Fated Desires Publishing on December 15. For weeks and months, I've been promoting the book, one of the best I've written in my opinion, so I wanted it to do well. I did  guest blogs, I hired a blog tour company, I appeared all over social media until most of social media was sick of hearing from me, I ordered swag, including some coffee mugs and a stack of postcards to sign at the upcoming Wild Wicked Weekend con in San Antonio in February.

Then, less than two weeks after HER CAPTAIN was released, I received word from Fated Desires that all FD books are coming off the shelves by the end of next month. FD is folding up its tent and riding off into the long goodnight. I wish the owners, Carrie Ann Ryan and Lia Davis,  the very best. Sorry they couldn't make a go of it, for whatever reasons.

I have two books there. IF YOU CAN'T STAND THE HEAT and HER CAPTAIN.

This is an especially tough situation for HER CAPTAIN, since it just came out.

Both books will eventually find new homes. I know this already, but can't divulge anything yet. And besides, there are no details yet to divulge. When I can address that, believe me, I will.

The transition won't be seamless for me. I expect many, if not most of the other FD authors will self-publish right away, same cover and brand and all. Many of those authors have dipped their toes into the self-pub waters already. But I haven't and I won't. So for IF YOU CAN'T STAND THE HEAT and HER CAPTAIN there will be new editing. New covers. And a chunk of time when they'll be off the shelves.

That's all well and good for IF YOU CAN'T STAND THE HEAT, which released earlier in 2015, but it's going to be a little bit more messy for HER CAPTAIN, since I still have some promo obligations coming up...such as a January/February ad in BTSeMagazine.  That's right, I'll be running an ad and talking about a book, that may very well not be available any place at that time.

So I find myself in the weird position of saying...if you've put HER CAPTAIN on your wish list or your TBR list or your Want to Read list...GET IT NOW.  Because in a few weeks, it will be no more.

 (At least temporarily).

Amazon | ARe | Kobo | Google Books | iTunes | Barnes and Noble

Tick...tick...tick....

HER CAPTAIN, my Capricorn story for Fated Desires Publishing's Tempting Signs series, releases in one week and one month (five weeks, if you're doing the math). Have you Pre-Ordered your copy yet? 

HER CAPTAIN is a heart-warming, sexy contemporary...one of my best yet. The only demons are the internal ones; the only wolf is in the whistle. But there's a big storm, a holiday festival, lots of pie...and a totally hunky ex-Navy SEAL. Here's the info:

Capricorn Slate Claybourne, an ex-SEAL and former sniper who has seen and done things in country that no man should endure, returns to hisbucolic hometown on Pieberry Island, desperate for the mundane, everyday routines he once wanted to escape.

A broken soul-dead man unable to be around people, his body still a lethal weapon when his night terrors wake him from sleep, Slate’s failed to keep the promise he made to the commander who died in his arms: to look after the older man’s baby girl.

But animated Aries Holly Harper is not the pigtailed tot Slate expected her to be, when she lands on the island to take over the decrepit Pieberry House, determined to turn it into an inn for summer tourists, and even more determined to yank Slate back into the land of the living.

First she crashes into him at the island’s holiday Winter Festival, dumping a towering stack of pies at his feet, then she drags him off to a fortune teller against his better judgment. Except for the sizzling attraction smoldering between them, they’re incompatible in every way.

But when a furious December nor’easter traps them together at Pieberry House, will Slate and Holly overcome their pasts and discover they are two halves of a whole?

Releasing 12/15/15. Available for Pre-Order Now!

‪#‎Amazon‬ : http://amzn.to/1FF3Er8
‪#‎iTunes‬: http://apple.co/1IIsTGU
‪#‎Google‬: http://bit.ly/1MoTeOq
‪#‎Kobo‬: http://bit.ly/1TsHSwV
‪#‎Nook‬: http://bit.ly/1FxbYsW
‪#‎ARe‬: http://bit.ly/1MlhhMx

 HER CAPTAIN will be blog touring with Goddess Fish Promotions from 11/23-12/18. Stay tuned!

Virginia Nelson's FOREVER DEVOTED

      Forever Devoted

A Tempting Signs story

By

Virginia Nelson

    Can Robbie believe Gray is actually Forever Devoted?

  

    Tempting Signs Series – Taurus

Available 4/21

Buy links: #Amazon | #ARe | #Nook | #Kobo | #iBooks | Add it on #Goodreads

Blurb:

Robbie Jacobs is content being just one of the guys. For years, she’s run with her ‘Pack,’ a group of rowdy boys she went to high school with, used to party with, and now leans on in times of trouble. She has a couple gal pals, sure, but none of them are as close as the Pack… 

Gray Smythe has been the unchallenged leader of their group of friends for years. Stoic, determined, he’s managed to be there for them all through some crazy shit. But when Robbie, the only girl in their group, gets into a car accident, the line between friendship and lover suddenly gets a hell of a lot thinner.

One stubborn Taurus man who’s sure he knows what’s right and wrong and one woman fighting to win back her body and a chance at love… Will Robbie believe Gray is actually Forever Devoted? 

About the Author

Virginia Nelson believed them when they said, “Write what you know.” Small town girl writing small town romance, her characters are as full of flaws, misunderstandings, and flat out mistakes as Virginia herself. When she’s is not writing or plotting to take over the world, she likes to hang out with the greatest kids in history, play in the mud, drive far too fast, and scream at inanimate objects. Virginia likes knights in rusted and dinged up armor, heroes that snarl instead of croon, and heroines who can’t remember to say the right thing even with an author writing their dialogue. Her books are full of snark, sex, and random acts of ineptitude—not always in that order.

Links

Website | Blog | Facebook | FB Author | Amazon | Pinterest | Tumblr

 

NEW RELEASE! IF YOU CAN'T STAND THE HEAT

IF YOU CAN'T STAND THE HEAT

NOW AVAILABLE!!

Derek Dunne is a Cordon Bleu-trained food critic for the prestigious New York Monitor, whose scathing review of a popular Italian bistro has driven away all but the most loyal neighborhood patrons.

Lucrezia Serafina DiCicco is a clumsy business school drop-out, working as a chef and scrambling to keep her family's restaurant afloat, after her father develops diabetes and is banned from his kitchen for his own good.

Now, with The Monitor folding, Derek is searching for his next career path and longing to get back to his first love—cooking—while Lu is desperate for an influx of cash to save the struggling restaurant…even as her father puts his foot down about non-family employees.

Derek and Lu embark on a marriage of inconvenience to save the restaurant. But can Lu ever really trust the man who nearly destroyed her family, once noted her initials spelled “LSD,” and her food was like a “bad trip?”

Or will it be their hearts on the chopping block? 

EXCERPT

She brushed her hands on her apron and straightened her shoulders as she strode toward the bar. Not in the mood. So not in the mood. As if the hunky stranger had come here looking for a hook-up, rather than to send back his too-salty pasta fagiole or rubbery calamari or register some other grievance.

She looked a fright besides. The moon might resemble a pizza pie but amore did not live anywhere in the restaurant anymore, except in its name. As that bastard Derek Dunne had pointed out in his review. Vicious…but truthful, she had to admit.

As she approached the customer, she positioned herself with her back to the mirror over the bar, so she didn’t have to gaze at her sorry reflection. At least no one else was at the bar to gawk at her frazzled condition.

The man swirled a pool of condensation on the burled wood with his index finger. Strong hands. No rings, she noted. Up close and personal, his looks were even more devastating, the essence of hearty masculinity radiating raw, contained power, his body taut with  muscles beneath a finely-tailored suit that stretched across broad shoulders, his blue eyes intense enough to put her in a near trance. She gazed at his long, blunt fingers playing restlessly on the bar and imagined him sliding them across her heated flesh. Making her wet. Thrusting inside her. His thumb stroking her clit until it swelled, the pleasure so unbearable he had her writhing with passion, screaming for release.

Holy cannoli! What the heck was wrong with her? Was she that desperate? Yeah, probably. And yeah, he looked that good. Good enough to eat. With or without whipped cream and chocolate sauce. Oh, yeah. That image helped cool down her roaring libido. Not.

Suppressing a shiver, she cleared her throat. “I’m Lu DiCicco. You wanted to see me?

 Available  now at: Amazon | iBooks | ARe | Barnes and Noble | Googleplay | Kobo
‪

Deena Remiel's FINDING LOST

Deena Remiel's FINDING LOST, from Fated Desires Publishing's new special line, "On the Run."

BLURB

How could anyone be miserable in paradise? Carrie Samuels could write a book about it. Far away from her family and friends, she’s fled to Isla Mujéres hoping to escape a relentless stalker who knew how to torment and leave no calling card. What started out as a short-term solution has turned into a long-term jail sentence on a tropical island.

Painfully handsome, with a killer smile and well-hewn body, Dillon McMahon left his past behind and plans to spend the rest of his life off the grid on Isla Mujéres, the perfect place to dig in. Living next door to a sexy, quirky, and mysterious woman makes it all the sweeter.

When Carrie and Dillon’s pasts collide with the present, it threatens their budding relationship and sends them into a maelstrom of danger, abduction, and attempted murder. Sometimes, no matter how far you run, you just can’t hide.

 EXCERPT

          “Change your name, and your hair color. Then move far away from here and lay low. I’m sorry, but at this point, that’s the best advice I can offer you.”

Laura slumped in the rickety wooden seat next to the detective’s desk and pounded her sweaty palms against the armrests. He couldn’t be giving up on her case! But the truth of the situation mocked her with every hopeless word the defeated man spoke. Just like all the others, he’d been bested. One psychopath had managed to render New York’s finest and a host of private detectives impotent.

“I don’t understand. How can this monster make my life a living hell day after day and not get caught? How can he continue to terrorize me like this and not leave any trace of who he is?”

            Detective Roberts gnawed on a sunflower seed and spit the remnants into a paper cup. Had he gotten a little grayer around the temples since the last time she’d been to the station? “He knows what he’s doing, how to play the game. I’m thinking he could be one of us, or someone who’s been in law enforcement. It’s uncanny the way he can do so much and not slip up. It’s pissing me off.”

“You’re pissed?” she scoffed. “What about me? According to you, my life is about to be over as I know it.” She grabbed a tattered tissue from her purse and blew her nose. As she took a quick look in the makeup mirror, her complexion told a sorry story of incessant stress and sleep deprivation. What a mess. She plunged the mirror back into her bag and noticed paper clips strewn across his desk. One by one she gathered them into rows and columns. Then she gathered each row and deposited them back into the paper clip holder.
            “Listen, I’m not giving up on you or on trying to find the sick bastard. I just think it would be best for you to disappear into a whole new life. As long as your stalker remains a mystery, it’s not safe for you to be… you. I could suggest what I’m sure all the others have— change your routines, move to another part of the city, or hire security…”

“I’ve done all that already, and he’s still around.”

“The last, most severe response is to skip town and start fresh somewhere else. Keep a low profile in some invisible job where nobody knows who you really are.”

“Do you realize what you’re asking me to do? I own a thriving book store. I have family and friends. I can’t just give it all up. Then he wins.”

“Isn’t he winning now?”
           She raised a brow and turned away, preferring to straighten the various piles of paper on his desk and align each container to another rather than face the truth. 

  Purchase Links:

http://amzn.to/11EohjW
http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/finding-lost-1
https://itunes.apple.com/br/book/finding-lost/id909739463

Sign up  for Deena's newsletter, INNER SANCTUM  http://bit.ly/1A2Cbcb 

BIO

By writing paranormal romance and suspense, Deena spends her days and nights playing in the Garden of Good and Evil. She’s been known to have downed a few beers with her angels, and even put Satan in his place a time or two. She’s come to learn, however, that the human villains she creates can be more evil and depraved than the supernatural characters she conjures up. Gilbert, Arizona is home now for her family, but she hails from Philadelphia, PA and lived for many years in Manalapan, NJ. When she’s not writing, she’s teaching kids how to do the same.

 Leave a comment with your email address and be eligible for the drawing for a chance to win a book from Deena's backlist!

Countdown...IF YOU CAN'T STAND THE HEAT

Let the countdown begin!

IF YOU CAN'T STAND THE HEAT releases on 2/24/15!  So excited! Can't wait for you to meet my mouth-watering hero, Derek Dunne, in this sizzling contemporary romance for Fated Desires Publishing's new "Give Me a Taste" foodie romance line!

You can pre-order IF YOU CAN'T STAND THE HEAT now at most of the usual places!
  

                                              Amazon:  http://amzn.to/1rVyf7B 

                                              Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/1yoXbqS

                                              ARe: http://bit.ly/1EO8vEf

                                              iBooks:  http://bit.ly/1ACDm5B 

                                              Kobo: http://bit.ly/113L5tI

                                              Googleplay: http://bitly.com/129Mvmv

BLURB:

Derek Dunne is a Cordon Bleu-trained food critic for the prestigious New York Monitor, whose scathing review of a popular Italian bistro has driven away all but the most loyal neighborhood patrons.

Lucrezia Serafina DiCicco is a clumsy business school drop-out, working as a chef and scrambling to keep her family's restaurant afloat, after her father develops diabetes and is banned from his kitchen for his own good.

Now, with The Monitor folding, Derek is searching for his next career path and longing to get back to his first love—cooking—while Lu is desperate for an influx of cash to save the struggling restaurant…even as her father puts his foot down about non-family employees.

Derek and Lu embark on a marriage of inconvenience to save the restaurant. But can Lu ever really trust the man who nearly destroyed her family, once noted her initials spelled “LSD,” and her food was like a “bad trip?”

Or will it be their hearts on the chopping block? 

EXCERPT:

She brushed her hands on her apron and straightened her shoulders as she strode toward the bar. Not in the mood. So not in the mood. As if the hunky stranger had come here looking for a hook-up, rather than to send back his too-salty pasta fagiole or rubbery calamari or register some other grievance.

 

She looked a fright besides. The moon might resemble a pizza pie but amore did not live anywhere in the restaurant anymore, except in its name. As that bastard Derek Dunne had pointed out in his review. Vicious…but truthful, she had to admit.

As she approached the customer, she positioned herself with her back to the mirror over the bar, so she didn’t have to gaze at her sorry reflection. At least no one else was at the bar to gawk at her frazzled condition.

The man swirled a pool of condensation on the burled wood with his index finger. Strong hands. No rings, she noted. Up close and personal, his looks were even more devastating, the essence of hearty masculinity radiating raw, contained power, his body taut with  muscles beneath a finely-tailored suit that stretched across broad shoulders, his blue eyes intense enough to put her in a near trance. She gazed at his long, blunt fingers playing restlessly on the bar and imagined him sliding them across her heated flesh. Making her wet. Thrusting inside her. His thumb stroking her clit until it swelled, the pleasure so unbearable he had her writhing with passion, screaming for release.

Holy cannoli! What the heck was wrong with her? Was she that desperate? Yeah, probably. And yeah, he looked that good. Good enough to eat. With or without whipped cream and chocolate sauce. Oh, yeah. That image helped cool down her roaring libido. Not.

Suppressing a shiver, she cleared her throat. “I’m Lu DiCicco. You wanted to see me?