Quote of the Week!

"The best time for planning a book is while you're doing the dishes."

~Agatha Christie


"I love being a writer. What I can't stand is the paperwork."

~Peter De Vries

To me, these two quotes have a lot in common--A writer never truly stops working.

As Agatha Christie's quote says, the best time for planning and plotting is when your mind isn't truly focused. Doing the dishes, dusting, vaccuming...all these mundane chores are a time of great creativity. Walking is good too. When you allow your mind to wander, you just never know where it's going to end up.

The second quote by De Vries made me laugh. I love to write. The act of putting words on a page, of allowing creativity free reign is an incredible feeling. But writing is probably about 30% actual writing and 70% paperwork--editing, rewriting, proofing, promoting, etc...

A writer is always working, even when it looks like all their doing is the dishes. It's a 24/7 profession, but I wouldn't chose any other job over it.

Have a great Monday and a wonderful week!

Earth Hour

Tomorrow, March 28 at 8:30 p.m. local time, people all around the world will be switching off their lights for one hour to bring awareness to the problem of global warming.

To read more about this initiative, go to http://www.earthhour.org/about/

Turn off your lights...it's only one hour, but it means so much more.

Where is Spring?

I thought that spring was "officially" here. I guess no one bothered to send Mother Nature the memo. At least not in my neck of the woods.

The month of March had been quite lovely up until this past weekend. Ever since then, it's been snow, freezing rain and rain...and mostly the first two. It looks more like January. There are no signs of daffodils or flowers of any sort. They're all in hiding.

On the upside, it's a great time to stay inside and get some work done, which is what I've been doing. I'm trying to get some projects completed and turned in so that, when the good weather finally does arrive, I can get out and enjoy it.

Hope spring has shown up in your neck of the woods. My african violet looks ready to flower. That's something. :-)

Two Five Blue Ribbon Reviews from Romance Junkies!

What a wonderful way to start a Monday! Romance Junkies just gave my two latest Ellora's Cave release 5 Blue Ribbon Ratings!

Reviewer, Chrissy Dionne, has this to say:


"Threads of Destiny is an utterly enchanting story full of heat, heart and even tears...a beautiful story which I’ve happily added to my ‘keeper shelf."

"There are some self confidence issues that are dealt with compassionately and make J.T. even more sexy and desirable – and I didn’t think that was possible! Tempting Tori is a passionate quick read that incorporates plenty of emotion so that the characters take on a life all their own and endear themselves to the reader."

You can click on the links to read the reviews.

Ellora's Cavemen Anthology Sale!

Ellora’s Cavemen: Jewels of the Nile IV


BIG SALE!

The ebooks (all 20 – Tales From the Temple, Legendary Tails, Dreams of the Oasis, Seasons of Seduction, and Jewels of the Nile) are on sale at Ellora's Cave for $6.99 each (regular price $9.99).

That's 20 books, each with 6 quickies, for a total of 120 Quickies at $1.165 per story (in groups of six). That's a great deal! If you haven't checked out the Ellora's Cavemen Anthologies, now is the time to do so.



Ellora’s Cavemen: Seasons of Seduction III











Ellora’s Cavemen: Legendary Tails IV







Ellora’s Cavemen: Dreams of the Oasis IV

Welcome to Spring!

Good morning and welcome to the first official day
of Spring!

I know that in some places the flowers are already starting to poke up out of the ground.

We're expecting snow this weekend. LOL But at least the hope of Spring is now here.

Enjoy!

New Contest!

To celebrate the upcoming release of my next Jamesville book--PAST PROMISES--from Samhain Publishing, I'm holding a contest and giving away a download copy.

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For details on how you can enter for a chance to win, check out my website at http://www.njwalters.com/ and click on the "contests" page.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

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Welcome to St. Patrick's Day!

I hope you all have a wonderful day and find your pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!

Quote of the Week!

"All that we are is the result
of what we have thought."

~Buddha

Everything originates with thought. Our lives are made up of our thoughts. That's powerful and definitely something to think about.

Have a great Monday!

Sunday, Sunday!

Good morning and welcome to Sunday. It's been a cold weekend, but most of the snow has disappeared. It's been a very busy week for me. I did edits on my Samhain book, Past Promises, which will be released on April 14th. I finished the rough draft of my latest work-in-progress (WIP). And, I had a new release from Ellora's Cave--Tempting Tori.

Is it any wonder I had to take a few days off and do nothing. My head is spinning so hard, I'm not quite sure which book I'm working on. LOL Today, I start the first rewrite of my WIP. The first of many, no doubt. This is where I, hopefully, turn the manuscript into something really special before I submit it to my publisher.

Hubby and I are probably going to take in a movie this afternoon. We haven't been to one in a while and are both looking forward to it.

Hope all of you have a wonderful Sunday.

Tempting Tori

I'm thilled to announce that Tempting Tori is available today from Ellora’s Cave Publishing!

This is one HOT Quickie with a very sexy cowboy!

BLURB:

Standing in the barn, looking out over his ranch, J.T. Courage knows there is nowhere else on earth he’d rather be. He has his brothers, a successful horse business and a new home on the land that’s belonged to his family for generations. The only thing missing is someone to share it all with. And he has just the woman in mind.

Victoria Abrams is leaving the man she loves. She can no longer pretend he will one day see her as more than a friend or housekeeper. But J.T. is not about to let the sexy woman who has tempted him for months with her lush body and beautiful face slip away without a fight.

Guest Blogging at The Romance Studio!

I'm guest blogging over at The Romance Studio Blog today. In keeping with Read An EBook Week, I'm talking about...you guessed it...EBooks.

Drop by and say hi!

Reader's Appreciation Week at the Samhain Cafe

As part of the Samhain Cafe Reader's Appreciation Week, I'll be at the Cafe this morning from around 11 EST until 12 EST. I'll have some excerpts, give away a prize and generally be there to have a good time.

Drop by if you can and join in the fun. If you can't make it then, don't worry. There will be authors there all day with tons of fun and prizes.

Reader Appreciation and Read an eBook Week!

March 8th to March 14th is Read an eBook Week. Times have changed and many more people are being turned on to eBooks, thanks in part to all the great eBook readers out there. The Kindle, Sony Reader and eBookwise are all popular with readers. Then there is the fact that many ebooks can now be downloaded to your iphone. Technology is amazing.

This is also the week that Samhain Publishing is saying thank you to all their readers. All this week at the Samhain Cafe, authors will be posting excepts and contests and be giving away prizes. Check it out and join in the fun!

If nothing else, try an eBook this week. Even if you don't have a reader, you can buy many versions of the books that can be read on your computer. MS Reader and PDF are both accessible. You just need to download the free software and you are ready to read.

Here's to eBooks!

Edits Cave

I'm in the edits cave, have been since Wednesday morning. Things are moving right along, which is always a good sign.

Only one more day until Friday!

Past Promises--New Cover

Check out my new cover for Past Promises, which is releasing from Samhain Publishing on April 14th!

BLURB: Sometimes the only way to leave the past behind is to ignore the voice of reason—and leap.

Jamesville, Book 7

For Linda Fletcher, the sign in front of her new business says it all. Past Promises Antiques is her declaration of independence from her powerful and manipulative family—and a vow to herself that her future will be different.

She never considered herself the no-strings-affair type, but the chemistry between her and her newly hired handyman is too intense to ignore. Moving to Jamesville was a bold step, so what’s the harm in taking one more—into his arms?

Levi Mann’s shadowed past keeps his bags packed light and his feet on the move. But one look at Linda, and he finds himself willing to hang around—just long enough to figure out what it is that triggers their explosive passion.

March Newsletter Now Available

If you’re not already receiving Awakening Desires—the Newsletter of Romance Author N.J. Walters—then you’re missing out on all the latest news, author interviews, excerpts and tons more! You’re also missing out on a chance to win every month!

The March 2009 issue is now available!

Check out the this month’s author interview with the talented Charlotte Boyett-Compo.

As well, each month, some lucky newsletter subscriber wins a prize. All you have to do to be eligible to win next month is to go to Awakening Desires Newsletter to join and read back issues.

There were some slight technical difficulties this month so the newsletter has been posted twice. Sorry for any inconvenience. :-)