Lyn Cote Requests--Help me choose an image?

I'm trying to decide on an image. Which of these two would you most likely click to find out more about this book? A or B?

A

B

Any other comments would be helpful. THANK YOU!--Lyn

Does Hair Color Matter? by Cindy Flores Martinez

Whenever I need to create a book cover for a new story, I struggle to find the ideal photo with a model whose hair color is like my heroine’s hair color. I’m facing the same situation with my latest book cover. So, the experience made me start thinking about the topic of hair color and book covers.

The heroine in my soon-to-be-published story has a Spanish last name. So did the heroine in my last story. But the photo that I chose for my last book cover created strong opinions. I was told that the model wasn’t right because her hair was brown. People sent me alternative photos with models who had black hair. I ended up choosing a photo that showed only legs!

For those who don’t know, I’m Latina. I’m mostly Native American and Spanish. Here’s a picture that I took today of my own hair for this blog post.

As you can see, it's brown. Because of it, I've decided to choose a photo for my book cover with a brunette model to represent my Latina heroine. Will it matter?

What do you think? Does the model’s hair color on a book cover affect your opinion of the heroine in the story?

A People Map of the United States

This month, I’m sharing a fun map of the United States.

But there’s a difference, because this visual map has replaced the city names with their most notable resident. (Thanks to Wikipedia.) And, check out the UK version too.

I was born in upstate New York, and discovered that Tom Cruise was born in Syracuse, New York. Who knew? I must have missed him growing up. Ha-ha.

Now that I live in the Charlotte, NC, area, I see that Michael Jordan was born in Charlotte, NC, and Woodrow Wilson in nearby Columbia, SC.

Are there any notable residents in your city? Please share your findings in the comments.

And be sure to check out my sweet romance, Maeve, which will go on sale for 99¢ beginning tomorrow, Wednesday, August 12^th. After I wrote this book, I wanted to take a trip to Corsica, France! (I still do.)

 He’s all business. She loves to laugh. When business conflicts with pleasure, what could possibly go wrong?
 

Maeve Doherty needed a hard-earned break from Ireland’s rainy weather, as well as caring for her younger brother. When the offer from Perfect Match to enjoy a week on an island of her choice arrived, she hesitated.
 

But not for long.
 

She’d always wanted to visit Corsica. Besides, who passed up free?
All right, so she'd spend the week with a match. On her dating profile, she’d added that she was a workaholic. Hopefully, so was he.
 

Edward Newell had one thing on his mind when he reached Corsica, and it didn't involve meeting a perfect match. Dating? Love? Romance? Not for him.

Maeve is also available in Paperback.

Josie Riviera is a USA TODAY bestselling author of contemporary, inspirational, and historical sweet romances that read like Hallmark movies. She lives in the Charlotte, NC, area with her wonderfully supportive husband. They share their home with an adorable shih tzu, who constantly needs grooming, and live in an old house forever needing renovations.

Follow her on Instagram.

And remember to join our Sweet Romance Reads Facebook cafe.

Why? by Christine Bush

 

This past weekend, I had the joy of attending a very interesting writing conference.  It’s a yearly conference called “Deadly Ink”, focusing on the mystery genre.  I, like several other attendees, write in several different genres. Many of my stories are “romantic mysteries”.

The conference was thought provoking on many levels.  Hearing the voices and ideas of writers from so many different niches led to a lot of fascinating discussions. One was addressing “reader motive”.

This seems to vary among genres.  Why do readers select a certain kind of book? Beyond the details of a favorite author, location, or theme, what is the reader looking for?

I’m an avid reader as well as a writer. I DO choose to read stories in many different genres. And this weekend I came to see that my motives vary in choice according to my emotional needs at times.

I like cozy mysteries because unraveling the clues and facts to “solve the crime” is a mental challenge, and the format (no graphic crime details or sex scenes) is comfortable to me.

I read “thrillers” and “suspense” when I am ready to be more “charged up” by the high concepts of the books.

Noir mysteries and true crime fiction explore the darker side of life.

I’m generally not a reader of paranormal books, but in our discussions, escape to a different “world” came in high on the list.

 

Why do I read romance? Especially sweet romance?  These stories bring me hope, remind me that love is alive and well, and that problems can be conquered. 

 

 To me, these are not just inspiring stories, they are “comforting” stories.  There’s no violence to gross me out, and no gratuitous sex scenes to divert from the emotional side of romance.  Sometimes I need that.  It’s not a spoiler to know there’s going to be a happy and satisfying ending.

 

Whether I’m tired, overwhelmed, struggling with grief, or facing tough life issues, the time in the pages of a good romance gives my mind a needed rest.  From short novellas, to long multifaceted novels, romance brings me escape, hope, comfort, and peace.

How about you? What do you read and why? I’d love to hear!

 

 

Christine Bush is a USA Today Bestselling author of romance, romantic mystery, and suspense.  She can be found living in the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania with her husband and 2 lazy cats, and spending time with her 13 grandchildren.   When she’s not writing, she’s teaching Psychology at a local college, and working with clients in her private practice as a Marriage and Family Therapist. She loves to hear from readers and writers!

Christine's  “Sunny Smile” is a sweet romantic mystery set on the Navajo reservation!

https://www.amazon.com/Sunnys-Smile-Christine-Bush-ebook/dp/B071NS96NP/

www.ChristineBush.com
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Christine-Bush-Author/213919128638762
http://www.amazon.com/Christine-Bush/e/B001KHSLRG/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1392688497&sr=1-2-ent

 

 

 

 

My New York Adventure...by Kristin Wallace

The summer’s big trip this year was spent in New York City. First, I attended the Romance Writers of America (RWA) national conference. I got to spend quality time with my closest writer friends, celebrated my birthday, learned tons of information, and celebrated the best in romance fiction. 

 Then my parents flew up and we got to spend a few extra days in the city. We did the tourist thing on one of those big double-decker buses and saw more of the city than I have before. I marveled at the architecture. (The buildings are one of my favorite things about New York. We have NOTHING like them in Miami.) We toured The Met Museum where I went ga-ga over the room of Impressionist paintings by Monet and Rembrandt, most of which I’d only ever seen in books. Plus, a super cool exhibit celebrating the history of rock & roll, with guitars that were owned by some of the best rock musicians of all times like Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix.

However, the highlight was a visit to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. I’ve been to New York four times, but this was the first time I actually made it. We did a guided tour so we had someone explaining more of the history of both places for our small group. I’ve always been fascinated by the history of Ellis Island especially. This processing center welcomed 12 million immigrants from 1892 – 1954. Our guide told us that about 40% of Americans today had ancestors who came through Ellis Island. The photos below show Ellis Island as it was when the processing center was being used vs. today.

The bravery of those men and women can’t be understated. And once they got to the mainland, things certainly did not get any easier. On our tours, we saw neighborhoods where many of the families settled, the former tenement buildings that housed multiple families, sometimes in a single apartment. 

 

What an inspiring trip and a chance to check off two items on my bucket list. 

(I’m curious. Can any of you trace relatives through Ellis Island???)

Kristin Wallace is the USA Today Best Selling Author of inspirational and sweet contemporary romance filled with “Love, Laughter and a Leap of Faith”. Her latest book, SECOND CHANCE HERO, is available now. 

AMAZON  /  APPLE BOOKS  /  B&N   /   KOBO 

Waxing Nostalgic about My Childhood Vacations

Today would have been my father's 95th birthday. I was thinking of him and about the mini vacation my husband and I went on this past weekend. That led to my waxing nostalgic about childhood vacations. Unfortunately, I don't have photos of our vacations. Dad recorded the trips on 8 mm movie film that wasn't kept. So I've used some generic pictures.

When my three brothers and I were young, the factory Dad worked at always closed for two weeks in August. So we always vacationed in August, and Boy Scout leader Dad was, we always camped. We also always had a station wagon. Dad and the boys slept in a four-person tent, and Mom and I slept in car with the backseat folded forward. When it rained, we had the better accommodations.

Also, no matter where we went, our vacations included an educational element. Dad wasn't highly educated, but he had a love of learning. (I followed his lead and did the same with our family vacations.) I don't remember all our vacations, but here are some I do.

North Pole, NY. Where we live now, the Adirondack Mountains are only an hour and a half away, up Interstate 87. When we went as children, it was a seven+ hour trip from Western NY, where we lived, on state, county, and local roads. The drive included our playing a continuous game of punch bug, whenever we spotted a Volkswagen bug. This trip, we got to go on a nature hike with a forest ranger at the state campground we stayed at, and hiked Ausable Chasm with our parents. And, of course, we visited Santa's Workshop. I remember seeing live reindeer.

Watkins Glen, NY. We hiked the glen which I remember for the waterfalls you could walk behind. The trip also included a tour of the Corning Glass Museum. We saw glass blowers at work, and I got a little glass ballerina necklace.

Cooperstown, NY. We visited the National Baseball Hall of Fame and, of course, the Farmers Museum and the Fenimore Museum.

Circleville, Ohio. We had cousins who lived here, and every few years visiting them was our vacation destination. One year, we visited burial mounds built by early native Americans near Circleville.

Manhattan, Kansas. We had other cousins who lived here. The summer I was 15, we drove out to visit them. (My husband and I also visited my aunt and uncle in Kansas on our "honeymoon" cross-country trip to go to college in Los Angeles. But that's a whole other blog.) My uncle took us on a tour of the Tuttle Creek dam works near their home. We also went to a spot purported to be the dead center of the US. And we had our first Mexican food at a small Mexican restaurant my aunt and uncle liked.

Detroit, Michigan. I took my last summer vacation with my parents and brothers the summer before I turned 20. Dad had seen the Detroit carworks as a child and wanted to see them again and show us. As part of this trip, we visited my father's elderly aunt who lived a ways outside Detroit--with no advance notice, even though he hadn't seen her in years. I remember my mother fretting about this. Dad knocked on is aunt's front door. She opened the door and shouted Herbie (his childhood knickname) and welcomed us all in as if she'd been expecting us.

Do you have any childhood vacation memories? Please share.

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The long, hot summer...and things to do! Roxanne Rustand

Hi everyone,

Roxanne Rustand here...spending a week with the grandkids and their pets, while my hubby watches over our place back home.  He has our dog, three horses and all of the friendly barn kitties for company, but this week I have him beat!

Three kids, three pretty kitties (the photo below is of Pinky), a cockapoo, four guinea pigs, fish, and an axolotl.  


What in the world is that, you might ask.  And I'm not sure!  

It looks like a pale pink salamander with bizarre, fernlike appendages along the side, but unlike a salamander, it lives solely in water, like a fish. 

As an animal lover, I feel right at home with all of these creatures--but I'm thankful that I don't actually have to be the one to feed the axoltl, who eats...earthworms.  :)  In fact, the kids are really good about being responsible for all of their pets.

I'm looking for fun things to do with the kids (ages 7, 13 and 17)  this week and I would LOVE  some ideas! I want it to be a memorable and happy week for all concerned.  If you have some ideas, I'm all ears!!

Leave a comment and be in a drawing for a copy of my June 2019 Love Inspired novel, HIGH COUNTRY HOMECOMING!

All the best,
Roxanne