Haunting Beauty, available for pre-orders

Haunting Beauty is up on amazon.com and you can pre-order it~ Yay! Also, check out the cool stuff I've added to my website. Just go to http://www.erinquinn.info and click "cool stuff" (clever name, huh?) You'll find mugs and t-shirts (even one for your doggie :-) )

I've had lots of entries for the ARC of Allyson James's THE DRAGON MASTER! The winner won't be selected until the end of the month so it's not too late to enter. You'll find details on the contest page of my site. Next month I will be featuring the wonderful Calista Fox. If you haven't read her yet, you are in for a treat!

Also, check out the Great Halloween contests on Romance Junkieks. You can win an autographed copy of one of my books there too!

Interview with author extraordinaire--Allyson James

As you might have seen, this month I'm featuring Allyson James on contest page and she is giving away an ARC of THE DRAGON MASTER. That's an advanced reading copy of the not yet released book! See http://www.erinquinn.info/ for more details on this and to enter.

Erin: Hi Allyson! Thanks for stopping by. I'm going to jump right in with the intense interview I have planned. Okay, tough and probing question number one: If you could have your choice, what superpower would you like to have? (or, What super hero would you like to be (cat woman or wonder woman, etc)

Allyson: The superpower I’d pick would be strength. Then no one would mess with me. Although walking through walls would be cool. Be handy if I was in a hurry. Or running really fast, which would save on gas.

Erin: Okay . . . note to self, don’t mess with Allyson. Ever. Even without the super powers, she will kick your butt. Moving on . . . Next question. On a bad hair day do you reach for a scrunchi or a hat?

Allyson: Scrunchi. I wear scrunchis every day, so I must have bad hair all the time. :-) Or I’m just hot.

Erin: Woman after my own heart. The scrunchi is one of the most brilliant inventions in all of womankind . . . So . . . Boxers or briefs?

Allyson: On men? (there are boxers for ladies too.) Thongs. Well, on the right guy. Or nothing. I like nothing best. Bare butts are great.

Erin: Ha! Well, I supposed if we’re talking about the men on the covers of your books, my answer is the same. Now for a more up close and person question. What is your most embarrassing moment?

Allyson: There are so many, one doesn’t stand out.

Erin: I think in another life, we must have been related. Weirdest place you ever “did it?”

Allyson: Same as above.

Erin: Intriguing. Note to self—maybe this is the key to writing such great books? Get out of the bedroom and into the closet. Or is that . . . Never mind. Okay, here’s another. Who would be on your “safe list” for sex? (Meaning, even though you’re married, you could still have sex with this one famous person if the opportunity ever arose.)

Allyson: This is a good question. I have no idea! I like the way certain guys look, but if I met them and they turned out to be jerks, I couldn’t do it. I realize we’re talking fantasy, but even in my fantasy, I can’t get past that. But James Marsters would be right up there on the list (he played Spike on Buffy for readers unfamiliar with him.)

Erin: Hmmm, in my fantasy the only talking they do is tell me they are farsighted (which in Erin-world means I don’t have to worry about them seeing my wrinkles, even the ones that look suspiciously like fat rolls) and that I’ve been on their list as well. Ah, the beauty of fiction . . . .
Do you like them big and bulky or deceptively sleek and cut? (talking about muscles on your men, girlfriend. Get your mind out of the gutter, you’re crowding me)

Allyson: Both ways. I like big guys mostly, but slim and trim looks great too (e.g., the guy who plays Sam on True Blood.)

Erin: I’m with you there. Are you a chocolate, potato chip or ice cream girl when the need to have one strikes? Or are you one of those super-freaks who goes running instead?

Allyson: Running? Oh please. Chocolate.

Erin: Truly, not just related, but possible sisters. Oh, and a book question—favorite hero you’ve ever written. Why?

Allyson: Now this is the hardest question of all! Keep in mind I’ve written about thirty-two stories now (putting together all the novels, ebook originals, and novellas). I have many heroes to choose from.

One of my favorites isn’t a romance hero—it’s Captain Lacey from my mystery series written as Ashley Gardner. I seriously want to revisit him and continue the series. He’s honorable, handsome, trim and muscular, smart, and generous.

Another is Hunter from The Gathering (by Jennifer Ashley). He’s funny and sexy, but with a dark side.

Then there’s Rees from Tales of the Shareem: Rees (by Allyson James). He’s to die for.
Oh, wait. I just finished a historical romance called The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie (out in April 2009), and Ian is a total babe.

And then there’s Seth, the Fire Dragon in The Dragon Master (Allyson James, Nov. 2008)

Oy, I can’t narrow it down more than that.

Erin: That’s okay—it was a trick question anyway because who can choose. I have to say that Rees is one of my favorite heros. He’s not just to die for, he’s to die of and happily. I had to sit in a tub of ice to read that book and let me tell you, it was not as comfortable as one my think.

Last question: Tell us about your next release and why YOU think we’ll love it.

Allyson: THE DRAGON MASTER, by Allyson James (Berkley, Nov. 2008). Why you’ll love it: A hunky man who turns into a Fire Dragon, a woman who discovers her own latent magical powers, some action-adventure, a little bit of magic, fun secondary characters, Chinese food, and lots of hot romance. I hope you enjoy it!

You can find the DRAGON MASTER at Amazon, B&N and any bookstore with books of quality on their shelves. To read an excerpt, visit Allyson’s site.

Thanks for stopping by! If you'd like to leave Allyson a comment, please do!

Also, check out an interview with me on Calista Fox's fabulous blog at: http://www.calistafox.blogspot.com/. I'm nowhere near as entertaining as Allyson, but I try and Calista is a fabulous hostess.

New cover and great contest!

My editor sent me the cover for my new book yesterday! Check it out! I couldn't be more pleased with how great it looks.

I've got a lot of stuff going on in October. Hard at work on the follow up to HAUNTING BEAUTY. Looking for a title if anyone wants to offer some ideas. I'd like to stay with the "haunting" theme, but can't think of anything to match with it. (I don't like Beast, so skip that one). Anyway, send me a comment if something comes to you.

Next on big news is the October Contest I just posted on my site. I'm giving away a copy of Allyson James' THE DRAGON MASTER to a luck winner--wait, not just A copy but an ARC--what's an ARC you might ask? Is an Advanced Reading Copy. That means you get to read it before anyone else, weeks before the bookstores will have in their shelves. Very cool, yes? And you also go one of my titles to keep it company. Just go to www.erinquinn.info to enter.

Check back later this week as I will be announcing the winner of the SDSU Writers Conference Scholarship AND I will have an interview with Allyson James. Does the fun ever end?

Where has this month gone?

Well I'll tell you where it's gone--to hell, ha ha. Actually it's just been one of those months that has moved at the speed of sound. Between family, work, school and writing, I've been torn in different directions. I've barely had the time to put in my page count, let alone blog, but that's life and I can't complain. I'm employed, have a roof over my head, have good friends and wonderful family. I am blessed.

One fun thing I did this month was talk to the Red Hat East Valley Divas. What a great group of women. I really enjoyed myself and they all love my books ECHOES and WHISPERS so it was a fabulous night for me.

Don't forget to check out my monthly contest! I have a few more days of September's contest featuring an autographed copy of one of my titles and an autographed copy of Cassie Ryan's hot and steaming Ceremony of Seduction.

Next month I'll be giving away an ARC of The Dragon Master (out Nov. 2008). That's right, a PREVIEW copy of Jennifer Ashley's November release. You will get to read it weeks before it gets to the bookstores.

And so it goes...

I've been busy lately between the day job, school and writing. Frustrating when the writing wants to be in the front seat and take all my free time but the other two won't allow it. It is what it is, so it does not good to complain--but when has that ever stopped me?

I'm supposed to get cover copy this week for Haunting Beauty! Can't wait to see what they have created for my new book. I'm now T-11 months until it comes out and it still doen't feel quite real.

If you haven't checked out my contest for this month, please do. I'm giving away two books, one of mine and one of talented author Cassie Ryan's. Details are at www.erinquinnbooks.com (click on contest link).

Also, entries for the SDSU scholarship will be closing soon. If you've thought about entering, now is the time!

Productive day...

I'm still so excited about the quote from Diana Gabaldon that I want to tell everyone I meet. Of course, the people who don't know me are really starting to give me strange looks, but who cares. Diana Gabaldon called HAUNTING BEAUTY "A complex, mysterious and very satisfying story!"

Today was productive although it didn't start out that way. I began with taking care of business. I updated my website, announced last contest winner and posted a new one. This month I'm giving away a copy of CEREMONY OF SEDUCTION written by Cassie Ryan who just happens to be a friend of mine. It's hot and steamy (as you might guess by the cover) and it's the first of a series so if you're a fan of erotic romance, be sure to enter.

Then I found myself doing a bunch of busy work and accomplishing nothing. It wasn't until this afternoon that I finally started writing with any focus. Once I got my head into the game, I made progress and that felt good. This is my first time to write a book that is part of a series and it comes with its own challenges--new ones that are a bit daunting. It's only natural for readers to compare book one to book two, right? Well it's only natural for authors to live in fear of readers comparing the first and second and finding one lacking. I hadn't really thought of that going in, but now that it has occurred to me, gulp, I'm shaking in my shoes.

Challenges, challenges, challenges....

Highlights and lowlights....

I've been hard at work on my WIP. First draft is done except for the ending, which I usually don't write until the end of the second draft anyway. I write about 3-5 drafts before I feel it's ready for readers, so I'm still early in the process. But I like what is going on with the story and I feel like it's all coming together as I envisioned. I'm so behind on my life, though! Sheesh. I need to send out my contest winners, update the website, take care of all the other little details. It's never ending.

This weekend I received some great news. Diana Gabaldon has given me a quote for HAUNTING BEAUTY! I can't believe it. She read the manuscript and she liked it. I think I'm as excited about her name being on my cover as I am about my own, LOL. This is what she said:

"A complex, mysterious and very satisfying story! I'm amazed that anyone can fit such a good story into so relatively few pages."

I'm just pleased as can be. Still waiting on the cover art so I can do a redesign on my website and start spreading the word about the book.

On the downside....day job continues to suck the life out of me. I need a vacation.