Romy Sommer

I'm behind the times with the news, since the whole world has known about it for a full week, but at last I'd like to congratulate my Minxy CP, Joanne Pibworth, on her sale to Harper Collins. Jo's book The Lighthouse will be published under the pen name Jodie James, and the lovely people at Harper Collins are running a contest on their Authonomy site to find the book a new name. You can find out more here . Jo's call story is up on her blog, but the post that touched me most was this one she did for the Seven Sassy Sisters. We Minxes shared the ups and downs of Jo's journey, but what's really moved me about her success, is what I've learned from her along the way. I love that in spite of multiple rejections from her publisher of choice, having to re-think her career as a writer, then the 21 agent rejections she received on this book before it sold, she has remained strong and cheerful. Those rejections stung, but she never let them get her down. ...

Welcome to the final instalment in the Dear Julia Launch Wave. Thank you to all the lovely authors who’ve hosted this wave, and to all you readers who’ve followed the story and tweeted. Here is the full list of participating blogs: Stop 1 - Minxes of Romance Stop 2 - Sally Clements Stop 3 - Rachel Bailey Stop 4 - Scarlet Wilson Stop 5 - Olivia Miles Stop 6 - Jennifer Shirk Stop 7 - Suzanne Jones Stop 8 - you are here! * * *  Dear Julia is set in the English countryside in the early 1920s, and is part of the Love Letters series from The Wild Rose Press. Read the opening extract here . Extract Eight On the first sunny day after the rainy spell, she dressed in her prettiest frock, a frosty pink silk and lace concoction, and set off across the fields towards the Manor. The sun warmed her bare head and arms, birds sang in the trees, and her spirit soared. Her objective was in sight. The Manor lay beyond the village, hidden from the road by a veritable forest...

My new 1920s novella, Dear Julia , released yesterday through The Wild Rose Press. To celebrate its release, I'm running a contest on my Rae Summers blog where you can win a free copy. Tomorrow is Launch Wave day. I'll be sharing the opening chapter, spread across 8 blogs. Check back here to follow the wave, which starts at Minxes of Romance and ends right here. * * * About Dear Julia The discovery of a long-lost love letter in a house she’s redecorating sends Rosalie Stanton on a quest to find its rightful owner. Since his return from the Great War, William Cavendish has lived as a recluse. His peaceful existence is shattered by the return of the letter that once held all his hopes — and by its bearer, the irrepressible Rosalie, who bears an uncanny resemblance to his lost love. As Rosalie sets out to lure William back into society, she realises that in him she might just have met her match. You can buy the book at Amazon, Amaxon UK and direct from ...

It's Monday morning and if you feel anything like I do after a not-so-restful weekend, then you need a laugh to start the week. So how about this? It's a sign I saw outside a shebeen (informal, unregistered pub) on Saturday. And a Zonkey, is a cross between a Zebra and a Donkey. You can see one here on this Minxes blog post . For those who need a little translation, the sign says: The shebeen is available for functions, parties, and happy time (i.e. happy hour). Welcome to South Africa!