Sylvia Day

*wince* She can be brutal! I don't think I'll be able to read her review of my work. I'd probably expire!! LOL Good for you surviving the experience! I'm filled with admiration. No joke.

Yes, she is! She's stationed here in California, thank God!

That's my biggest fear with getting my work published--the reviews. The negative reviews. I'm really sensitive. Thin-skinned. Criticism makes me nauseous. Truly. It is because of this, that I try to watch what I say about others. Of course, I don't always succeed, but I try very hard to be conscientious. I think I'll have to avoid reading reviews and just let my friends tell me about the good ones. Otherwise I'll be a basket case. I don't hold much stock in bad reviews anyway. In Secrets vol. 9, the first story by Kathryn Anne Dubois was a take on Tarzan. I thought it was so cute! But I read reviews about how it was the worst of the bunch because the premise was so unrealistic. Pahleez!! It was fun and sexy. I can suspend disbelief for a good love story. Blue was honest and sweet and hot, the love obvious. Bad reviews suck! :thumbdown:

Okay. I just finished A Blue Christmas. I take back what I said about Brava and tame sex earlier in this thread. I spoke hasitily without covering all my bases! (I hate when I do that! :oops: )Alison's story is HOT, just as you said. And by far, the best of the bunch IMHO. I could be accused of being biased, but I'm tellin' ya the truth. I loved it! I can't believe it got blasted for being "not romantic"!?! I found it very romantic. The way he came after her... *sigh* I have a soft spot for high school sweetheart stories. My high school sweetheart and I were pretty hot and heavy and angst-ridden... the whole works.

Linda, All authors are readers. I am a voracious reader. :study: I devour books, mostly romance!! Very interesting!! I loved it, truly. So much so that I strongly urged my sister to join. She went Air Force and is also a translator, although of Arabic, not Russian. I know what you mean about them being kids. My sister was only 17 1/2 when she joined the Air Force. She couldn't even vote or buy alcohol, but she could serve. I am tremendously proud of her and everyone who has or is serving in the nation's armed forces. :salut:

Ooohhh!! :shaking2: No, I haven't ordered yet!!

Royalty checks it is then! B&N has Mother Please, Indiscreet, Wicked Games, Striptease, JBR, and The Bane Affair (on pre-order). I will be looking forward to my next shipment!! :bounce:

Awww, man!!! I should've said something!! I'm going through your backlist, Alison, getting ready to buy a bunch of your books. If you'd like to donate to the Sylvia Day "Alison Kent Keeper Shelf", I would be thrilled!! (If not, expect a few more royalty checks! )

I'm excited, Ellen. I always love to read stories with twists that are outside the "norm". I just finished reading Miss Wonderful by Loretta Chase. From the get go, I was drawn in by the unusual characters. The hero falls in love all the time and he's a dandy. He rides home two hours in a horrible storm because he can't imagine spending the night without something to wear the next day!! The heroine is the world's worst dresser and can't seem to wear anything that isn't absolutely atrocious!! I loved it!! And I'm certain I'll love your story too!! I enjoy humor in romance and admire the talent it takes to pull it off. I aspire to add a bit of levity to my mss and pull it off!!

Have you read any of Alison Kent's Blaze books? Multiple sources cite her as the best of the bunch. I can tell you that she's delightful, as she's a frequent visitor to my blog. (Of course, I haunt hers!)

Funny you should mention those authors. I just bought Jingle Bell Rock with shorts by Janelle Denison and Alison inside. I was looking at Captivated, too, with Bertrice Small, Susan Johnson, Thea Devine, Robin Schone. I'm ordering that next! Research should always be this fun!! :D

Jordan!!! ROTFLMAO!! You crack me up! You and I, we can't keep hiding under rocks. We'll never get any work done!! LOL I took your post in the humorous light it was meant in, and I didn't take it to mean a big deal either. Actually, I think those posts on Lori's board worked out well for both of us, as Sasha said! So I apologize to you, if my post caused any misunderstanding!! You and I should be all well and good now. (And out from under the rocks!) You know... I was reading some of the Brava contemps and the sex is pretty tame. I need to order some of their historical anthologies and compare. My work may be a little too hot and require some hosing down first! :elephant:

LOL! :oops: There are actually quite a few authors who visit and post on the board here. They are all wonderful about responding! (Well, they're just wonderful in general. ) Thank you, Linda, for your sweet comments about the site and myself. I hope you'll become a regular and share with us often! I just received Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase today. I love her wit and I'm certain I'll enjoy every moment of it. I'll be certain to post about it when I'm done. I love great dialogue in a story. Janet Evanovich had now been added to my TBR list! Is there a book in particular of hers that you recommend?

Thank you, Linda! It's nice to have you on the board! I hear so much about Janet Evanovich and I've yet to read a book by her. I think I'll have to correct that! :study: Have you seen Carly Phillips new site? It's been up for a couple of months now, I think, but I just love it. The satin background is too cute!

Wait!! Just to be clear, I'm not the one who contacted Kate or directed her to that particular thread. I don't know who did that. I've never e-mailed or posted to Kate Duffy in my life. (Not yet anyway!) My apology was in reference to my posts. :D

*wince* *cringe* Yeah... that was me... oops! :D

I'm always interested in male protagonists that "never get any". Ellen also mentions that he never got any in high school either. I prefer to write romance heroes with vast experience so I know they satisfy in bed, so I'm curious as to how the sex scenes play out in the entire ms. I'd buy it for that reason alone. Intriguing... :D

Brava Contest Finalist Thread

Definitely!! I'll post it here in the forum, on my blog, and in my newsletter. You won't be able to miss it!! LOL :D

Yeah!! Welcome, Debbie! It's wonderful to have you. Looking forward to chatting with you and hearing your opinions!!

Thank you both! :oops: You're so sweet. What a lucky gal I am to know wonderful women like you :!:

Wow, Sasha. That's huge. Thank you. Doesn't nearly cover how that touched me, but at times the written word is woefully inadequate. This is one of those times.

Kim, When you're done with it, and if you really liked it, maybe you'll share it with us in the "Books We Loved" forum? I prefer to buy books based on reader recommendations, rather than go in blind. I think that's why I like anthologies so much! I get a feel for a new author, before plunging in with a full length novel.

Thank you, Kim. :)

Oh, don't be sorry! I'd be worried if people didn't ask! :)