Digital Digest: Interview with Erin Quinn

I'm talking about writing and other stuff over at Digital Digest. Come on by and say hi! Leave me a comment and I'll enter you for an autographed book!

Digital Digest: Interview with Erin Quinn: "I nterview with Erin Quinn Author of The Mist of Ireland Series By Shannan Albright I want to thank you Erin for taking the time out of yo..."

And the winner is....

Congratulations to LeAnne of Birch River West Virginia.  LeAnne has won my Thank You to My Readers prize pack with books, Mists of Ireland swag and a bookstore giftcard!  Want to learn about events like this so you can enter?  Sign up for my newsletter

Life or something like it

I wonder if anyone in today's world doesn't feel like every day is a juggling act.  Family, career, responsibilities, friends, pets....  Some days it's just flat out impossible to keep all my balls in the air. 

The past month has been especially hard.  I've been on the road a lot.  I like to travel, but I am a quintessential homebody.  I look forward to just being home.  My husband travels way more than I do and I know I'd be miserable in that kind of job. 

So for me, traveling (in a non-vacation capacity, of course) is grueling.  It messes up my schedule and it exhausts me.  I don't sleep at the same times, I don't get up at the same times, and I don't do anything else at the same times either.  In June, I did a week-long series of meetings in Santa Clara, California and then I turned around, spent a few brief days at home and did another week-long conference (Romance Writers of America National conference where I met on of my favorite authors, Nalini Singh!) in New York City, New York.  A few days back from that and I was off to Utah to stay with my critique partner and brainstorm our new books.  I get a couple of weeks respite before I head to Denver, Colorado to see my sister and attend RomCon.  (If you're in the area, you should come see me there.  It's a fun conference and not too hard on the pocketbook either.  Plus if you use my reg code you get $20 off).

Anyway, during all this, my oldest child has been in Spain acting as an au pair to five year old twins and my youngest has been in summer mode (which means she and her girl friends have sleep overs almost every night, stay up late and sleep until the afternoon).  I see her for about 10 minutes a day.  My husband and I have managed to high-five each other as we pass at the front door.  The dogs and I have managed to spend some quality time together...but only just.  :)

And somewhere in there I've been trying to help spread the word about the two releases I have coming up.  Haunting Beauty will be having a re-release in mass market paperback (originally published in Trade paperback in 8/09.  If you've been meaning to read it, you'll find it in bookstores again in September!)

Haunting Embrace, the last in my Mists of Ireland series (at least for now) will be out in October 2011.  I am really excited about this one!  The trailer will be coming soon so I can share the story line with you.

Anyway, that's my summer in a nutshell--juggling.  How has yours been?

What's new?

So much going on in my world.  I'm really excited about the upcoming Romance Writers of America’s National Conference, June 28-July 1, 2011 in New York City, New York.  If you’re registered for the conference, I hope you’ll come see my workshop “Set It In Emotion” which takes place on Wed, 6/29 at 2p.  If you’re not registered you can still stop by and say hi.  I’ll be signing books at the Literacy Book Signing.  More details.

I’ll also be at RomCon, August 5-August 7, 2011 in Denver Colorado and I am happy to offer my readers a $20 discount on their registration fees--just enter equinn in the discount code field when you register. Not only will I be there, but I will be hosting a cocktail party along with fellow authors (drum roll please) Lora Leigh, Sylvia Day, Erin Kellison and Shayla Black! I’m so excited.


Haunting Warrior, Book 2 in the Mists of Ireland Series, is a finalist for RomCon’s Readers Crown Award which will be presented at the convention as well! RomCon 2011, August 5-August 7, 2011, Denver Colorado.  More details.  But don’t forget to use equinn as your discount code.
If you're one of my loyal readers, you'll want to stop by and enter my Readers' Reward Thank You contest.  I've extended it to July 4.  Also, don't forget my monthly contest (no purchase necessary).


Hope you all are having a great summer!
 
PS:  I've got bookmarks and other swag--want some?  Just send me an SASE.  Email write2erinquinn (at) aol (dot) com and I'll tell you how.

Welcome Deena Remiel

I am so lucky to know so many talented and wonderful authors!  I'm pleased to introduce you to Deena Remiel who fits all my criteria--she's smart, witty, fun and very talented.  And pretty darned nice on top of it!  Needless to say, I'm thrilled to have her on Quinn's Essentials talking about her Brethren Series!  Be sure to leave Deena a comment and you might be a lucky winner of her eBook Trinity!

A little about Deena:  It was the mystique of Arizona’s history and landscape that called to Deena and catapulted her career as an author. When she’s not writing novels and poetry in the wee, small hours of the morning or in the deep, dark of night, Deena teaches language arts to middle school students. She currently lives in Gilbert with her husband and two children, but New Jersey will always tug at her heartstrings.

Welcome Deena!  Tell us about your Brethren Series!

________________________________________

There’s been a lot of talk these days about Michael, Brethren Protector. And rightly so. He’s the hero in TRINITY, Book 1 in the Brethren Series, and there’s a ton to discuss there- his tortured past, the fact that he’s an immortal and an angel, just to mention a few. But now, I feel it’s time to focus attention on Emma Livingston, our heroine. She’s a complicated woman, and given her background, there is much to discuss and admire.

Emma is one fierce mother. Who she is and who she becomes has been shaped long before she was ever born. Sad part about it is, she never knew. But the truth of her lineage and what she has inherited comes to light in a very disturbing set of circumstances. This knowledge threatens the well-being of her daughter, Hannah.

This is where her fierceness comes into play. Hannah is being stalked and terrorized in her dreams by Satan’s henchman, Agremon. Satan needs this child to succeed in his plans for world domination. Now if you were Emma, would you stand for that? Didn’t think so. And neither does she. Doing whatever she must, she protects her daughter from Evil, no matter the consequences to herself.

{…“Hannah! Oh my God, Hannah! He’s gone after her! Michael, we have to wake her up! I won’t let him take my baby girl!” Frantic to go to her daughter, she tore away from him and immediately fell to the floor. But sheer determination got her to her hands and knees scrambling toward her daughter’s bedroom…}

Time and again, throughout the story, Emma reveals herself as a woman who distrusts many and tries to insulate herself and her daughter from the harsh realities of the world. Going through a divorce, while being pregnant, can do that to a person. Having one’s best friend being the other woman makes it that much worse. Therefore, deciding to join forces with the Brethren was not an easy one. And all along the way, she is conflicted. To trust or not to trust, that is the question. Years of cynicism have not been kind and prey upon her conscience.

{…“Emma, I’m so sorry. I thought we would have more time before they arrived. I….” He reached for her arms.

She shrugged him off, not wanting to be calmed or comforted at the moment. “Don’t you give me that bullshit, Michael! You’ve had plenty of time to tell me everything…
                …There is no way that Hannah is going to get near any more evil than she’s already had contact with. You’re a Protector, you say. Well, protect her, then, damn it. Don’t get her involved in this...”}

Emma’s dedication to her daughter’s safety makes her lose objectivity in certain situations and she winds up making impulsive decisions with dire consequences. Decisions that any one of us would make if we were in her shoes.

{…“Enough of this!” Emma snapped, stepping forward. She whipped her head around to Namirha. “We have a deal, Namirha. I suggest you tend to it.” Through their threaded connection, she told Hannah to do whatever Namirha told her to do. Hannah’s face flushed a brilliant red.

“What have you done, Mother? What have you done?” she shouted angrily.

“The only thing I could, angel. I saved your life…”}

So, if you’re fierce in your love for your family and friends, Emma will appeal to you, warts and all. To read more, you can find TRINITY at these locations:

• Decadent Publishing 
• Amazon.com
• Barnes and Noble
• 1 Place for Romance 
• All Romance eBooks 

Learn more about Deena and her books here:

www.deenaremiel.com
www.decadentpublishing.com
http://brethrenbeginnings.com
http://paraposse.blogspot.com
http://plotmamas.com

Leave Deena a comment to be entered in a drawing for a eBook giveaway of Trinity!

Talking about the heart....

I blogged over at site called Book Boost and thought I'd share the link with you here.  I'm talking about writing from the heart.  There's an excerpt from my new release, Haunting Desire, and there's a giveaway!  Pop on over and say hi!  http://thebookboost.blogspot.com/

Welcome Barbara White Daille

I am so excited to be welcoming Barbara White Daille today!  Not only is she Multi-published and award winning, Barbara is one of the nicest people in the world.  (And she has a great "THE CALL" story!  Maybe if you ask her real nice, she'll share it.  There's a giveaway list at the end so be sure to read down!


A little about Barbara:  Originally from the East Coast, award-winning author Barbara White Daille now lives with her husband in the warm, sunny Southwest, where they love the dry heat and have taken up square dancing.

From the time she was a toddler, Barbara found herself fascinated by those things her mom called "books."  Once she learned the words between the covers held the magic of storytelling, she wanted to see her words in print so she could weave that spell for others.

Barbara hopes you will enjoy reading her stories and will find your own storytelling magic in them!

Anyway, without further ado, please give Barbara a warm welecome to Quinn's Essentials!

___________________________

Hi, Erin and readers! 

Erin, thanks so much for hosting me at your blog today.  And thank you for asking me to talk about the hero of my latest book.

Sam Robertson, from my Harlequin American Romance, A RANCHER’S PRIDE (May 2011), has to be one of my all-time favorites.  I’ll explain why in a minute.  But first, here’s a bit about his story:

Sam Robertson's life just changed. In one short day, he found out that he's a daddy; that his beautiful little girl, Becky, is deaf; and that her aunt, sign language teacher Kayla Ward, intends to fight him for custody.

There are plenty of reasons Sam shouldn't fall for Kayla. A city girl like her has no place on his ranch, particularly when she's his ex-wife's gorgeous sister. But thanks to the judge's orders, Sam's spending a lot of time with Kayla, trying to give Becky the stable home she's never known.

Despite their ongoing custody battle, Sam and Kayla's love for Becky brings them closer than they ever expected, and Sam knows that no matter who wins in court, he could still lose—Kayla or his daughter.

~~~

From the moment I first saw Sam, I knew he’d be a challenge.  He’d experienced hard times and a lot of negativity in his life based on issues with his ex.  As a result, he’d become a shade bitter, somewhat reclusive, and...well, really, a prime candidate for a tortured hero. 

So, I’m afraid I tortured him. 

I did what authors are supposed to do to keep readers interested in their characters:  Hit ’em while they’re down.  Pile on the conflict.  Make things worse.

What hooked me about this story was the idea of taking a well-loved plot twist—having a hero suddenly “inherit” a child, one he had never known he’d fathered—and make his conflict even more heart-wrenching by having the child speak a language he can’t understand.

I have to tell you, how Sam would react to all this really worried me! 

He might have had the weaker case—and the weaker determination—because he’d never had a relationship with his daughter.  To up the ante, I whispered in his ear that this could be the only child he would ever have.  And to my relief, the challenge made him fight harder—of course!  After all, he’s real hero material.

Not one twist in the story comes easily to him, though. 

The title of the book, A RANCHER’S PRIDE, fits the story perfectly and describes Sam’s entire dilemma:

First, he’s a very proud man who doesn’t want to accept help from anyone—especially not from the heroine.  Having to rely on her at times during the story only adds to the conflict between them. 

In addition, his pride has been battered from actions his ex-wife had taken in the past and that affect him even today. 

Finally, though he struggles along the way, he soon comes to love his daughter, and she becomes his pride and joy.

Sam learns.  He changes.  And he grows.

The scene in the book when he first attempts to make a connection with Becky—when he waits, heart in his throat, to see how she will respond—made me cry.  I recently re-read the book and cried again. 

Okay, I’ll confess!  I’m tearing up just thinking about it. 

All of the above is what makes me love Sam Robertson.  I hope readers love him, too.

~~~

Barbara’s question to you:

I’ve had lots of great feedback about the picture of Sam on the cover!  He’s a real hottie, isn’t he?  His looks are what attract Kayla to him instantly, and I’ll admit I wasn’t immune to them, either. 

But let’s go beyond a hero’s soulful eyes, chiseled jaw, and six-pack abs—just for a few minutes, I promise.  Please tell me, what non-physical aspects of a hero attract you most?

~~~

A RANCHER’S PRIDE (May 2011) was just released and has received wonderful reviews, including a 4-1/2 star Top Pick rating from RT Book Reviews.

You can find Barbara online at her web site and blog:  www.barbarawhitedaille.com where you can check out her Virtual Book Tour schedule for A RANCHER’S PRIDE!

You can also reach her via Facebook and Twitter:  http://www.facebook.com/barbarawhitedaille and https://twitter.com/BarbaraWDaille

Barbara’s looking forward to chatting, so please feel free to take a look at her question to you and to leave comments or questions for her!


Leave Barbara a comment or ask a question and be entered for the giveaway of one of The Sheriff’s Son, Court Me, Cowboy or Family Matters--Reader's Choice of one!