tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31080490072486175002024-03-06T08:44:44.969+02:00Romy SommerOn a quest for Happy Ever Afters - both on and off the pageRomy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.comBlogger184125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-18686131645049508512020-02-03T12:01:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:26.726+02:00My Best Friend's Royal Wedding now only 99cents<div style="text-align: justify;">
My publisher has dropped the price of my new release, <i>My Best Friend's Royal Wedding</i>, to just 99 cents (US). If you haven't already got your copy, grab it now, as I'm not sure how long they'll keep it at this price.</div>
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<a href="https://smarturl.it/royal-wedding" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="276" data-original-width="978" height="90" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H_xwS8BbNgc/XjfsD-2xxvI/AAAAAAAANGU/WEeDfOCwGH8FeRsrYP2EH_nDhUmI83xOwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2020-02-03%2Bat%2B11.46.12.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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And if you have already bought and read the book, check out the books Pinterest board to see some of the behind-the-scenes inspiration for the characters, places and even the foods and clothes in the book.</div>
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<a href="https://za.pinterest.com/romysommer/my-best-friends-royal-wedding/" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="294" data-original-width="968" height="97" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uAIeN5HP2r0/XjfugsbC2iI/AAAAAAAANGg/Cdwc5dvQ3ekirp_cqAuqz8MFUQmdsFuiQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2020-02-03%2Bat%2B11.56.30.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>What are the reviewers saying about <i>My Best Friend's Royal Wedding</i>?</b><br />
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"This was absolutely amazing and I loved it from start to finish! Couldn’t put it down. It has insane chemistry, hilarious banter and fabulous characters that totally were perfect for each other."<br />
Melinda, Goodreads<br />
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"Love love loved this book! If you like Hallmark movies or rom-coms, you'll love this."<br />
Katie Brewer, Goodreads<br />
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"Enemies-to-lovers romance is my favorite trope in a rom-com…You can read through this one super quickly and it will give you all the feels :)"<br />
Erica, Instagram<br />
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"Just like a movie! Romantic, delicious, sizzling and funny. Loved it!"<br />
Petra, The Pages and Ink
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-27513143769158915662019-08-18T20:46:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:27.630+02:00Limited time offer: ROSA's anthology is only 99c for the next few days<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://smarturl.it/ROSA-Anthology1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1217" data-original-width="908" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5dT7gIevC3Q/XVmbIb04MHI/AAAAAAAAMuA/zhHiUvezc_MxgpuSqLqgjEUrAU8xrhuNACLcBGAs/s320/Cover%2Bon%2BKindle.png" width="238" /></a></div>
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The ROSA anthology, <b><i><a href="https://smarturl.it/ROSA-Anthology1" target="_blank">Wedding Season</a></i></b>, in which my short story <i>The Fire Inside</i> appears, is on sale for a short time only at 99c / 99p. If you haven't already got your copy, grab it now!</div>
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<i><b><a href="https://smarturl.it/ROSA-Anthology1" target="_blank">Wedding Season</a></b></i> is the first anthology produced by ROSA (Romance writers Organisation of South Africa), a collection of romantic short stories, all themed around weddings, and written by ten of ROSA's published members.
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The proceeds of this anthology go to ROSA's scholarship fund and the Read to Rise literacy charity, so this is also a good cause worth supporting.</div>
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-21739581141217312722018-07-25T10:00:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:27.087+02:00Exclusive excerpt of Last of the Summer Vines<b>This excerpt, which I haven't yet shared anywhere else, is the moment when Sarah meets her new business partner and co-heir Tommaso di Biasi:</b><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--ukTeC-wmP4/W1d6tqJh1VI/AAAAAAAALGo/8FiAbEowwvoEnNLUkovI07uLV00CvPB9ACLcBGAs/s1600/LOTSV%2BCover.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="936" data-original-width="614" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--ukTeC-wmP4/W1d6tqJh1VI/AAAAAAAALGo/8FiAbEowwvoEnNLUkovI07uLV00CvPB9ACLcBGAs/s320/LOTSV%2BCover.png" width="208" /></a>The kitchen hadn’t seemed so far away when I was a kid. I made my way down through the darkened house, not switching on any lights. Even if I could remember where the switches were, I didn’t want to turn myself into a target on the off-chance there was an intruder.<br />
The vast kitchen with its high-beamed ceiling was eerily full of looming shadows, and the yellow lamplight spilling from the single overhead lamp did nothing to dispel the gloom. I filled the electric kettle, then rinsed out the teapot to brew a fresh pot. But tea wasn’t going to be enough to silence my grumbling stomach. Had the considerate person who’d left milk and made up my bed also left food?
There was nothing in the kitchen itself, but John always loved biscuits with his tea. That would be better than nothing. So I headed into the pantry, and was still groping for the light switch when I heard a sound that turned my veins to ice. I froze. The outer kitchen door creaked open.<br />
The wind blowing open an unlatched door? Ghosts?<br />
But it was worse than ghosts. The high-pitched creak turned into an ominously final bang as the door shut again, and then there were heavy, booted footsteps across the kitchen floor.<br />
My heart leapt into my throat. It was beating so hard, I was sure I was at serious risk of a coronary. Forget the stress of a corporate job. This was a million times worse.<br />
With my heart thudding loudly enough against my ribs that the intruder could probably hear it on the other side of the pantry door, I clung to the door handle, steadying myself, relieved to be hidden here in the pitch dark. With my free hand, I groped behind me, and my fingers hit cold iron, rounding on a solid, heavy handle.<br />
The door handle twisted unexpectedly beneath my fingers and I squealed, louder even than the handle had, giving myself away.
The pantry door swung open, and all my blood drained to my toes.<br />
‘Sarah?’ He was a big man, tall, broad-shouldered, and built like a bouncer.<br />
He reached past me, and I flinched back, swinging with all my might just as the tiny pantry flooded with cold white light.<br />
In the moment before my weapon connected with solid flesh, I glimpsed the intruder. He was dark-haired, bearded, and terrifying. He grunted and staggered back, clutching his head.<br />
‘What the hell?!’ His accent was thick, not immediately traceable, but he spoke in English without even thinking, I noted, as I gripped the heavy metal object close to my chest.<br />
And he knew my name. Oh heavens.<br />
Probably not a burglar after all.<br />
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<b>If you'd like to read more of <i>Last of the Summer Vines</i>, you can download it from <a href="http://smarturl.it/SummerVines-2" target="_blank">Amazon</a>, <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/last-of-the-summer-vines/id1367318396?mt=11&ign-mpt=uo%3D4" target="_blank">iBooks</a>, <a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/last-of-the-summer-vines-romy-sommer/1128980922?ean=9780008301132" target="_blank">Nook</a>, <a href="https://www.kobo.com/za/en/ebook/last-of-the-summer-vines-a-feel-good-romantic-comedy-the-perfect-summer-escape" target="_blank">Kobo</a> and <a href="https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Romy_Sommer_Last_of_the_Summer_Vines_A_feel_good_r?id=s1lKDwAAQBAJ" target="_blank">Google Play</a>.</b><br />
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-17491956057221410572017-09-18T22:57:00.001+02:002022-11-28T23:20:26.544+02:00Double page magazine spreadI'm currently featured in a double page spread in the October edition of South African magazine <i>Your Family</i> (on sale now). I am so honoured to have been included in this article on local writers, and really pleased how it turned out - it's the first time an article has correctly quoted me all the way through!<br />
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If you'd like to read the full article in a more legible version, <a href="https://www.magzter.com/ZA/Caxton-Magazines/Your-Family/Lifestyle/242194" target="_blank">the magazine can be purchased digitally here</a>.<br />
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-14055849062853223212016-08-12T11:22:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:26.182+02:00The end of an epic journeyNot epic in terms of scale, but rather in terms of major events in my life.<br />
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Day 7 of my first trip to the US (hopefully the first of many) started slowly, with a lie-in and a continental breakfast. Since I only needed to be at the airport late in the afternoon, I decided to explore this new city.<br />
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But with less than a day in Atlanta, how best to see as much as possible without blowing my constrained budget? I wanted to see as much as I could of the city and the answer was the electric car tour run by <a href="http://www.atlcruzers.com/" target="_blank">ATL-Cruzers</a>. Advertised as a one and a half hour overview of Atlanta's attractions, I figured I could see a large swathe of the city without missing my plane.<br />
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I took an Uber into town (the only way to travel in Atlanta if, like me, you're too intimidated to drive on the wrong side of the road) and arrived early enough to stroll around the downtown area, taking in the Olympic Centennial park, Peachtree Centre and a Starbucks frappuccino before the tour.<br />
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The electric car tour was great fun, and the tour guide very informative. I really felt as if I got a glimpse of the city, which is smaller than I'd originally thought, with a population about one eighth the size of my home town of Johannesburg, and a land size of about one fifth that of Jo'burg's.<br />
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In an hour and a half we toured the downtown area, Martin Luther King Jr. historical district, The Old Fourth Ward, Inman Park, Midtown, the university campus part of town, and finally back to Centennial Park.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martin Luther King Jr's final resting place</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martin Luther King Jr's childhood home</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shotgun houses in the Old Fourth Ward (Martin Luther King Jr Historical District)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inman Park historical trolley barn</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Delta Park Lock Box:<br />
keeping miscreants in holding from 1890 to 1905</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leafy suburban streets</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Candler Mansion</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beath-Dickey House</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A carriage mounting block from the good ol' days</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The house in which Margaret Mitchell wrote <i>Gone With the Wind</i><br />
while recovering from a broken ankle</td></tr>
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When the tour was done, I had one more thing on my To Do list: taste some traditional Georgia food and the famous sweet iced tea of the South. A Google search led me to Mary Mac's Tearoom, an elegant restaurant en route back to my hotel, where I not only sampled sweet iced tea, but also Southern fried chicken, fried green tomatoes, cheese grits and fried okra.<br />
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By now the clock was ticking loudly so I hurried back to my hotel for a quick shower and change, packed up my bags and headed to the airport. The Uber arrived not a moment too soon. No sooner had I got under cover, then the heavens opened in the kind of downpour we usually have here at home - the kind of downpour I had written into my Georgia-set novel <i>When September Ends</i> (which is still trying to find a home!)<br />
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A few things I learned during my single day in Atlanta:<br />
<ul>
<li>almost everyone in Atlanta is from somewhere else</li>
<li>most of the traditional Southern foods appear to be brown and battered</li>
<li>Their sweet ice tea is a vast improvement on the Californian concept of iced tea, but still nowhere near as nice as South African ice tea</li>
<li>Cars only have license plates at the back of the car, which makes it difficult to recognise your Uber when it arrives to pick you up.</li>
</ul>
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I really hope I get the chance to return to Atlanta some day. Not so much to see more of the city (I'm not that keen on visiting the CNN Center, World of Coca Cola or Turner Field) but I have friends there I didn't manage to see, and I'd love the chance to explore further afield, not least of all to visit the town of Madison where my novel <i>When September Ends </i>is set.<br />
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But for now it's Adieu USA. Until we meet again...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The plane that brought me home</td></tr>
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-18315344103063808222016-08-05T15:57:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:26.634+02:00Goodbye San Diego, Hello Atlanta!As much as I wish the RWA conference could carry on and on and on, the sad reality is that eventually we have to pack away our glad rags and go back to yoga pants. Besides, most writers are introverts at heart. I think we'd implode if we sustained that level of excitement, enthusiasm and sociability for too long!<br />
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I woke on Sunday morning with a terribly deflated feeling, which would have been worse if I didn't have something to look forward to: Atlanta.<br />
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But first, breakfast with my lovely fellow HarperImpulse author, Lynn Montagano. This time I was even able to hold up my end of the conversation. And thank heavens Lynn has mastered the art of the selfie because I'm useless at it!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lynn's selfie of us</td></tr>
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At last it was time to pack my bags, shop for presents to take home, and head for the airport. Continuing the theme of meeting people in queues and elevators, it was while waiting in the queue for a cab outside the front of the hotel that I got chatting to Mills & Boon editor Kat Cheshire, who is as lovely as every other M&B editor I've ever met.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Farewell Marriott Marquis & Marina San Diego</td></tr>
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Just in case it had already escaped me, the curb-side check in at the airport in San Diego reminded me why I find the USA so impressive - it's <i>organised</i>! That level of organisation and convenience really appeals to my OCD side!<br />
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Then it was "Goodbye San Diego..."<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from the plane during take-off</td></tr>
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And "Hello Atlanta."<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.wikipedia.org/" target="_blank">Wikipedia</a></td></tr>
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Travelling across the States in daylight is an amazing experience. Seeing the country from the air not only reinforces how large the country is, but also how varied. From the arid browns of California and Texas to the surprising green of Oklahoma City and the forests of Georgia, it really is colourful. (Through from the air all rivers look brown!)<br />
Georgia is especially attractive - so many trees, with pockets of humanity carved out of the extensive woodlands.<br />
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It was evening but still light in Atlanta, so I was able to soak in the sights on the Uber trip from the airport to my suburban hotel. From the first, I loved this city. It's as muggy and humid as Durban, the town I grew up in - and just as green. Its streets and highways have the same sprawl as my current hometown of Johannesburg. But the architecture and atmosphere are so different from anything we have back home in South Africa that it feels exotic as well as familiar.<br />
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I stayed at the The Highland Inn, as different from the Marriott in San Diego as night from day. It's an old building, with uneven floors and a sense of being lost in the past, but it was a clean and comfortable place to sleep for the night.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Highland Inn courtesy of Trip Advisor</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Highland Inn courtesy of Trip Advisor</td></tr>
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For dinner I decided to treat myself to a quintessential American experience: a burger and fries in a real diner. Within a block of my hotel was The Majestic, a local landmark that could have stepped straight off a movie screen. And the burger and fries were quite possibly the best I've ever tasted!<br />
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Sadly, I didn't have my camera or cell phone with me (everything was charging back at the hotel!) so I'll have to rely on these Google images:<br />
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To walk off my meal, I went for a long stroll along Ponce de Leon Avenue, enjoying the sultry evening air and the relatively safe feeling of being able to explore the neighbourhood after dark. (Though I did see quite a few homeless people sleeping on the streets in Atlanta, something I hadn't noticed in San Diego).<br />
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Still too buzzed from the conference and the excitement of a new place (not to mention the time zone changes) I returned to the welcome air conditioning of my hotel room and the first book in Robyn Carr's <i>Virgin River </i>series, inspired to read it by her <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pJqCJXn8I0&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">Lifetime Achievement Award acceptance speech</a> the evening before.<br />
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-9287393278088120462016-07-24T22:40:00.001+02:002022-11-28T23:20:25.908+02:00San Diego Day 5 - Rita Day!<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sherry Thomas (image courtesy of <a href="http://www.kristanhiggins.com/" target="_blank">Kristan Higgins</a>)</td></tr>
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My fifth day in San Diego started with a lovely, healthy breakfast while listening to featured guest speaker <a href="http://www.sherrythomas.com/" target="_blank"><b>Sherry Thomas</b></a>. Sherry was born and raised in China and moved to the US only in her early teens. Her earliest encounters with the English language were not happy ones, but luckily for her many, many devoted readers that all changed when post partum depression and romance novels came together to convince her she needed to write her own books.<br />
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The standard of speakers and workshop presenters at the RWA conference is very high. Every one of them have been highly entertaining, incredibly well spoken, and often moving - Sherry Thomas was definitely all of the above.<br />
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After breakfast I managed to slide in a Skype chat with my other daughter (the one I didn't manage to reach the day before) before Maya and I hurried to catch <b><a href="http://www.storymastery.com/" target="_blank">Michael Hauge</a>'s talk on Story Structure</b>, with particular reference to the Will Smith movie <i>Hitch</i>.<br />
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I'd somehow managed to miss the fact that this was a double session, over two hours in length, which meant I had to miss another workshop I'd hoped to attend, but it was well worth it. Even if this was the only talk I attended at #RWA16, it would have been worth the trip!<br />
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Michael played us clips from the movie, using it to illustrate classic story structure with a particular focus on the internal journey of the main character. The talk was riveting, which was just as well since he had a lot of competition from the person behind me clicking away at her laptop keys, and the chatter from the people waiting to do their pitches outside. Fortunately in the second half of the session, someone figured out how to boost Michael's microphone so I no longer noticed all the background noise.<br />
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Michael Hauge's talk was something of a personal revelation for me, though his subject matter wasn't entirely new to me. At one point I even drew a little lightbulb in my notebook as my entire current WIP shifted into sharp focus and I realised exactly what my story needs. I've heard from others who've heard him speak that he has this effect on everyone!<br />
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I've mentioned in earlier blog posts that there were queues for everything at RWA16. To illustrate my point, here's a glimpse of the queue for one of the publisher book signings (image courtesy of Patrick Haggerty) which shows just how excited everyone in this place was about BOOKS!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image courtesy of Patrick Haggerty</td></tr>
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Since there were again lengthy queues at every outlet offering food in the hotel, I grabbed a quick lunch of yesterday's left-overs in my hotel room, then hurried down to the main ballroom for the Awards Ceremony rehearsal.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Award ceremony rehearsal</td></tr>
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The awards' organisers introduced us to the schedule and procedure for the evening, and gave a few tips for our acceptance speeches (such as don't drink too much alcohol in case you have to make a speech!) then I got the chance to walk up on stage and speak into the microphone. I'd barely breathed on it, and the sound echoed around the room. Terrifying! That was when I started to hope that maybe I <i>wouldn't</i> win an award. How the hell was I going to make a calm, rational, moving speech to a room of several thousand people with my own voice echoing back at me?!<br />
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After the rehearsal, Maya and I decided to blow off the rest of the afternoon workshops to go sightseeing. We had a lengthy wait outside our hotel for the next <a href="http://www.trolleytours.com/san-diego/" target="_blank">Old Town Trolley</a> bus, snapping pictures of ourselves at the waterfall in front of the Marriott hotel to pass the time.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me in front of the Marriott.</td></tr>
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While we were waiting we also spotted what we believed had to be a good omen for the Rita awards that evening: (Hint - check the cab names!)<br />
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Whether or not it was Maya's deliberate plan to keep me too busy to get nervous about the awards ceremony that evening, it worked. The trolley bus tour of San Diego was just over an hour and a half long and gave us a glimpse of the city as well as a good insight into its history. I was so enchanted I completely forgot to take pictures.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7peqw9VceTw/V5UWwE3trvI/AAAAAAAAGgo/HVqxNkTZreY3o3K28lSYfn4lnRX9RxkjwCLcB/s1600/gaslamp_quarter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="243" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7peqw9VceTw/V5UWwE3trvI/AAAAAAAAGgo/HVqxNkTZreY3o3K28lSYfn4lnRX9RxkjwCLcB/s400/gaslamp_quarter.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image courtesy of <a href="http://www.trolleytours.com/san-diego/" target="_blank">Old Town Trolley Tours</a></td></tr>
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The bus took us on a tour through the <b>Gaslamp Quarter</b> with its art deco (and older) buildings, across the awe-inspiring Coronado bridge to the picturesque <b>Coronado island</b> which began life as a late Victorian resort thanks to the Hotel del Coronado (location for the film <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053291/?ref_=nv_sr_1" target="_blank">Some Like it Hot</a></i>), then through <b>Balboa Park</b> where we ogled the magnificent organ pavilion, on to <b>Little Italy</b> with its tiny Victorian fishermen's houses, and finally to <b>Old Town</b> with its colourful markets. En route back downtown we passed the <b>Maritime Museum</b> where a tea clipper, replica Spanish galleon and submarines vie for attention.<br />
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At Seaport Village, close to our hotel, we hopped off the bus and went in search of gelato, which we ate, ice cream dribbling down our fingers, as we hurried back to the hotel to start getting dolled up for the big night, the climax of the entire conference, and my main reason for making the more than 16,000km journey to San Diego.<br />
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In the rush to get dressed and made up my nerves returned with a rush, and stayed until after my category winner was announced! I was in such a state I didn't even think to take many pictures of the event!<br />
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The VIP guests (presenters, nominees and their plus ones) were allowed entry before the general audience so we could grab the best seats. Once we'd found places to sit, Maya and I went in search of our friends among the nominees, Maisey Blake, Heidi Rice and Scarlet Wilson.<br />
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The lovely Heidi Rice has long been an idol of mine, so having my picture taken with her on such an incredible night was a dream come true!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IsNIbQC_yDQ/V5UbJmLreXI/AAAAAAAAGg0/AIl0wr_2eaUHhZPPWN5QRUPX3oKG6dyCQCLcB/s1600/20160716_192943.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IsNIbQC_yDQ/V5UbJmLreXI/AAAAAAAAGg0/AIl0wr_2eaUHhZPPWN5QRUPX3oKG6dyCQCLcB/s400/20160716_192943.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me with Heidi Rice (I have no idea why <br />
it looks as if I'm trying to walk away!)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FjIBS7q0Eqo/V5UcpcUkU3I/AAAAAAAAGg8/hDRbdbnuUBwS-kpAkjhiSOVkvQNyMlHtwCLcB/s1600/20160716_193719.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FjIBS7q0Eqo/V5UcpcUkU3I/AAAAAAAAGg8/hDRbdbnuUBwS-kpAkjhiSOVkvQNyMlHtwCLcB/s400/20160716_193719.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me, Maya Blake and Scarlet Wilson</td></tr>
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Once we'd said our hellos and wished everyone the best of luck, we returned to our table to meet the people we were sharing it with. By this time the doors had opened, and excited writers, all dressed up in the finest of evening glamour, began to fill the room. This was when I suffered my first disappointment of the night. No dinner was to be served (not that I could have eaten anyway, in the state I was in!) only a small plateful of desserts for our table to share, and there was no alcohol (not that I could drink any), only water on the tables. I only discovered, after the awards ceremony was over, that there was a cash bar in the foyer outside! And so, sipping water and nibbling on a tiny praline chocolate square, I anxiously awaited the ceremony's start.<br />
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This year's awards emcee was Roxanne St Clair. While I think she lacked a little of last year's emcee's easy delivery, she did a great job keeping us entertained and the ceremony moving forward. I wish I'd been able to enjoy it more, but with my category up second to last there was little chance of me being relaxed enough until then to enjoy the evening!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-czDkGhDzBgc/V5UjkcNblDI/AAAAAAAAGhI/aScCYBZ0L44NoZEkzpCU-szg5fU-9XeCACLcB/s1600/Maisey.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-czDkGhDzBgc/V5UjkcNblDI/AAAAAAAAGhI/aScCYBZ0L44NoZEkzpCU-szg5fU-9XeCACLcB/s320/Maisey.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Maisey Yates with her Rita award<br />
(Image from Maisey's Facebook page)</td></tr>
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The evening got off to an excellent start with my new friend Maisey Yates winning an award for her book <a href="http://www.maiseyyates.com/books/copper-ridge-2/" target="_blank">Brokedown Cowboy</a>. It was downhill after that, though, with neither Scarlet nor Heidi winning in their category. The ladies seated at the table with us also didn't win in their categories.<br />
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The presentation of the Nora Roberts <b>Lifetime Achievement award</b> to Robyn Carr half way through the evening provided a welcome break. Kristan Higgin's moving introduction and Robyn's acceptance speech were both incredibly absorbing and moving.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4K2kcDZUX4w/V5Uj92RdZRI/AAAAAAAAGhQ/3b0AJK3flGgBK8lf_ojQ5-hLl4MsV5sYwCLcB/s1600/Robyn%2BCarr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4K2kcDZUX4w/V5Uj92RdZRI/AAAAAAAAGhQ/3b0AJK3flGgBK8lf_ojQ5-hLl4MsV5sYwCLcB/s320/Robyn%2BCarr.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Robyn Carr (Image courtesy of RWA)</td></tr>
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At last we were in the second half of the awards presentations, and my category was within sight. But by now I needed the toilet and was too scared to leave the room,in case I couldn't get back before my category came up. So while half of me was praying to win, the other half was praying I'd lose so I wouldn't have to make a clumsy acceptance speech in front of so many people while urgently needing to pee!<br />
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Just two awards left to go to mine and finally my anti-stress tablets must have kicked in. My tension eased. I felt serene. I could do this. I was okay with this. I even began to enjoy myself.<br />
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My category, at last. Jill Shalvis took the podium and announced the nominees in my category. I felt a little thrill as she announced my book. Then she cracked open the envelope... I held my breath.<br />
"And the winner for the 2016 Rita award for Contemporary Romance: Mid Length goes to..." <i>not</i> Romy Sommer.<br />
[Massive congratulations to Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy for their book <i>Him</i>]<br />
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And I was okay with it. No shock, no regret, no anger, no sorrow, even though I'd travelled half way around the planet just for this moment. Maybe I was having a delayed reaction?<br />
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The final award was presented, the evening was over, and I made a mad dash to the toilet - surprise, surprise, there was a queue, but I didn't mind since the fabulous rock star paranormal author Nalini Singh was also in it.<br />
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Maya and I headed to the bar for a very well-earned drink. She earned hers by putting up with my tension all night, I earned mine for - hell, do I need a reason?!<br />
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We took our drinks to the hotel's Marina Bar where we joined a group of friends for celebrations, chatter, laughter and farewells, since many of us were leaving the next morning. I'd love to say we had a massive big blow-out party to end all parties, but sadly the excitement of the day (of the entire 5 days!) was finally getting to me and I was exhausted.<br />
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Maya and I returned to the sanctuary of our hotel room where she packed for her crack-of-dawn flight out of San Diego, and I completed a quick interview via email for The Times newspaper back home. Barely able to keep my eyes open a moment longer, I whispered good night to Maya and sank deep into sleep.<br />
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<i><b>Update</b></i>: I can happily tell you that the reaction wasn't delayed. It simply never came. Cliched as this sounds, it really was an honour to be nominated, just to be there on this amazing night, to experience this incredible conference, meet all these lovely authors, and to come away feeling energised and excited about writing again.<br />
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Maybe because I was always a long shot in this category, maybe because I know there will be future chances to win, maybe because I was relieved not to have to make an acceptance speech, but I'm completely fine with the fact that I didn't win, and very happy for the two women who did. Strangely, I am more upset for those of my friends who were nominated and didn't win!<br />
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-88087835648301100202016-07-21T16:43:00.003+02:002022-11-28T23:20:29.410+02:00San Diego Day 4 - FridayBy Friday, I was discovering a trend in San Diego's weather - every morning would start overcast and dull until about 9-10am when the sun would burn through the cloud. San Diego really has ideal weather - not too hot, not too cold, not too humid, mostly sunny and bright.<br />
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My room-mate Maya and I had a bit of a slow start, and before we emerged from our room I managed to get in a quick Skype with one of my daughters before she went to bed. We then had to hurry to grab some of the free <b>breakfast</b> on offer for conference delegates - only barely making it as the staff were clearing up. We didn't manage to get in to the featured guest speaker but at least we got free food!<br />
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In the elevator on the way back to the conference venue for the first session of the day, I met and chatted with author Kristan Higgins - though I couldn't shake her hand since I'd just painted my nails and they were still wet!<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c1q6wlNyjJ0/V5C4RhyyizI/AAAAAAAAGdc/BFzkCz8ck4IGz7KBRxvZDDxAz2WrE8VkACLcB/s1600/Courtney%2B%2526%2BAlisha%2Bfrom%2BCourtney.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c1q6wlNyjJ0/V5C4RhyyizI/AAAAAAAAGdc/BFzkCz8ck4IGz7KBRxvZDDxAz2WrE8VkACLcB/s1600/Courtney%2B%2526%2BAlisha%2Bfrom%2BCourtney.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtney Milan & Alisha Rai <br />
(photo from Courtney's Facebook page)</td></tr>
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The first workshop I attended was on <b>how to build an audience</b> by <a href="http://www.courtneymilan.com/" target="_blank">Courtney Milan</a> and <a href="http://alisharai.net/" target="_blank">Alisha Rai</a>. Courtney opened the talk by saying "In a world of 7 billion people, if only 0.001% like you, you have a career!"<br />
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Alisha and Courtney were entertaining and provided a lot of useful information, and the talk was very interactive.<br />
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Unfortunately, I couldn't get an even half decent picture since I sat at the back near the door so I could skip out of the session before the end to go to my <b>pitch to agent Laura Bradford</b>.<br />
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The level of organisation and attention to detail at the RWA National Conference has to be seen to be believed! With more than 30 delegates pitching every ten minutes, a small army of volunteers is required to keep the pitches flowing with military precision.<br />
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For example, at 10:30 all the delegates pitching at 10:40 are lined up outside the venue, in the alphabetical order of the person they are pitching to. Everyone is ticked off against a list, and any no-shows are replaced by hopeful delegates hanging around in the waiting room. At 10:40 on the dot, the door is opened and the pitchers are sent in. The editors and agents are seated in alphabetical order, with easy to read name cards at each place, so there is no confusion, no disorder as everyone takes their seats. Five minutes into the pitch a volunteer warns the room that half the time is gone, and again at one minute to. At exactly 10:50, all pitchers are asked to leave the room via the back door, while the next thirty plus pitchers are ushered in through the front door.<br />
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My pitch to Laura Bradford was quick and painless. Since I am already multi-published and Rita-nominated, I didn't need to convince her too hard to read my submission. I pitched her the story, she asked to read it, and since I didn't have many questions we were done well before our time ran out.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CC2qif-b_sw/V5DMjo32cqI/AAAAAAAAGeE/JqhMjuBDIfE_bT9uL6zqcfDpjQLO7--qgCLcB/s1600/Nora.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CC2qif-b_sw/V5DMjo32cqI/AAAAAAAAGeE/JqhMjuBDIfE_bT9uL6zqcfDpjQLO7--qgCLcB/s1600/Nora.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nora Roberts at the #RWA16 Literacy<br />
Signing (photo courtesy of RWA)</td></tr>
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From the pitch, I hurried to the <b>chat with <a href="http://www.noraroberts.com/" target="_blank">Nora Roberts</a></b>. Wow - this woman is incredible! Not only is her career impressive, but she is a very inspiring person to hear speak. She's direct, witty, and tends to talk in exclamation points, in a deep, gravelly voice.<br />
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For an hour she took questions from the audience, on everything from her writing process ("Generally I'm a three draft girl") to what she does in her spare time, to how she researches (as she goes along "because I don't know what I need to know until I need to know it") to which book is her favourite ("My favourite book is always the one on sale right now. My least favourite is the one I'm writing right now, because it's always the hardest I've ever written.")<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F4FmoxyujJw/V5DS_xHUdCI/AAAAAAAAGeU/QC7HtPkAbGwL5nPQqkVsIAaUotl1vDpOACLcB/s1600/Nora%2BRoberts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F4FmoxyujJw/V5DS_xHUdCI/AAAAAAAAGeU/QC7HtPkAbGwL5nPQqkVsIAaUotl1vDpOACLcB/s200/Nora%2BRoberts.jpg" width="156" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My crappy picture of<br />
La Nora</td></tr>
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I was amazed to discover that her 'In Death' series of books, published under the JD Robb pseudonym, were originally conceived as a trilogy, and were her chance to explore relationships after marriage.<br />
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For me, though, there were three things I took away from this session:<br />
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<ul>
<li>The first is that even Queen Nora, after 200 published books, still finds writing challenging. "Every book is its own challenge," she says. "You've never written <i>that</i> book before."</li>
<li>Secondly, she doesn't believe that writers should write what they know, but rather "You write what you want to find out."</li>
<li>Finally, it's all about the story. "Don't ever read the reviews!" she says. "All that stuff is bullshit." Focus on the story, and on what you want to say.</li>
</ul>
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For lunch, I met fellow Harper Impulse author <a href="http://www.harperimpulseromance.com/authors/sun-chara/" target="_blank">Sun Chara</a> and her friend Barb Heintz in the hotel lobby, and together we headed out of the hotel. Gorgeous as the Marriott is, it was nice to get out and enjoy the San Diego sunshine. As we strolled towards Seaport Village, the woman walking along beside us asked if we knew where Roy's Restaurant was. My companions thought it was back at the hotel, but like us the woman preferred to get out of the hotel for a little while. So Sun invited her to join us for lunch. And that was when we realised who the woman was: <b><a href="http://ritaclayestrada.com/" target="_blank">Rita Clay Estrada</a></b> - THE Rita the Rita awards are named for!<br />
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We had a truly delightful lunch (I had a chicken & avo salad so large it fed me for two meals!) during which Rita regaled us with stories of the early days of the RWA.<br />
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One of the reasons Rita and her friends began this organisation in the late 60s and early 70s was to fight for the right of romance authors to own their own names. Reminiscent of the control wielded over actors by Hollywood's Studio System in the 1930s and 40s, publishers controlled their authors to the extent that all authors wrote under pseudonyms given to them by the publishers, the same name often being used by several different writers in succession! We owe these pioneers a huge debt for fighting the battle which won female writers freedom from this patriarchal control.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me with Sun Chara, Rita Clay Estrada and Barbara Heintz.</td></tr>
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Rita also told us how the golden Rita statuette was designed, and that the statuettes are manufactured by the same company which also makes the Academy Awards!<br />
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We ended lunch by committing to give Barb the proverbial kick in the ass to start submitting her work to publishers, and <a href="http://www.farrahrochon.com/" target="_blank">Farrah Rochon</a> (seated at the neighbouring table) took our picture. Everywhere one turns at #RWA16 there are romance rock stars!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vbnE6BTn3LY/V5DVKQBqWZI/AAAAAAAAGeg/e1ng_ETv3GUTbVYraPSp5iDlQA1g4jF6gCLcB/s1600/Certificate%2Bwith%2BKristan%2BHiggins.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vbnE6BTn3LY/V5DVKQBqWZI/AAAAAAAAGeg/e1ng_ETv3GUTbVYraPSp5iDlQA1g4jF6gCLcB/s320/Certificate%2Bwith%2BKristan%2BHiggins.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me with Kristan Higgins at the Rita and<br />
Golden Heart Finalists' Reception</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
In the afternoon, I attended the <b>reception for Rita & Golden Heart nominees</b> on the terrace at the conference venue. All glammed up, we sipped champagne, nibbled on a selection of desserts, and mingled. Each nominee was presented with a certificate by one of the RWA board members, while a professional photographer snapped our pictures. In a moment of serendipity, my certificate was presented to me by <a href="http://www.kristanhiggins.com/" target="_blank">Kristan Higgins</a>, who I'd met that morning!<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LqMzI2FPsIw/V5DbL20Fd4I/AAAAAAAAGe0/Ls8GILWG_PMFzQ-RB0ntXebX6MGy3sSFwCLcB/s1600/Margarita.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-LqMzI2FPsIw/V5DbL20Fd4I/AAAAAAAAGe0/Ls8GILWG_PMFzQ-RB0ntXebX6MGy3sSFwCLcB/s200/Margarita.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Maya's Massive Margarita</td></tr>
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The sun beat down on that terrace, and we were all soon sweltering, so as soon as the official part of the reception was done I headed to the cooler climes of the poolside Tequila Bar to meet Maya, Sun Chara and Lynn Montagano for cocktails.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and Maya Blake at the Tequila Bar</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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By this time I was pretty exhausted and hoping for an afternoon nap. Better yet, a very early night! But Maya somehow managed to twist my arm into gate-crashing the Harlequin party that evening. I won't tell you how we managed to get past security (since I would hate to be the reason more people gate crash in future years!) and I also won't share any pictures. But I will tell you that Harlequin really knows how to throw a party!<br />
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The one common theme that seems to run through most RWA conference events is dessert. At every party the two things that are guaranteed are alcohol and desserts. At the <b>Harlequin party</b> there was a table entirely dedicated to ice cream sandwiches, there were Smores, and a whole variety of other sugar-rich delights.<br />
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Gifts were presented to Harlequin authors who had achieved remarkable milestones - I was amazed at how many authors had written 50, 75 and even 100 books!<br />
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The Harlequin authors are all effortlessly classy, so friendly and welcoming, and these ladies know how to dance! There was so much dancing that at one stage I thought maybe San Diego was experiencing an earthquake.<br />
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Sadly, I was too exhausted to get completely into the spirit and after a couple of hours I hopped a taxi home to the Marriott and left Maya to party on. I was so tired I very nearly fell asleep in the bath and went to bed with hair still wet. I didn't even hear when my roomie eventually returned from the party.<br />
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So that was the end to a thrilling fourth day in San Diego. But the real excitement was still to come: Day 5 and the fabulous Rita Awards Ceremony.<br />
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Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-5061449743514434222016-07-20T23:57:00.003+02:002022-11-28T23:20:25.817+02:00San Diego Day 3 - the conference is ON!On this first day of the full-on conference, breakfast wasn't provided, so I decided to grab a quick coffee and snack at one of the stores downstairs in the Marriott - only to find the queues at least 20 people long! So I had to sit through the first session of the day uncaffeinated!<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-A7c1O6cp53c/V5DCJ-Am63I/AAAAAAAAGdw/nmx_rIFNIRUDV05c98HxTzTPkppDjptvgCLcB/s1600/20160717_082156.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-A7c1O6cp53c/V5DCJ-Am63I/AAAAAAAAGdw/nmx_rIFNIRUDV05c98HxTzTPkppDjptvgCLcB/s320/20160717_082156.jpg" width="179" /></a>In spite of that, I really enjoyed the talk, which was historical author <b><a href="http://juliaquinn.com/" target="_blank">Julia Quinn</a></b> talking about Dialogue. I love Julia Quinn's books and they introduced me to a new, fresh side of Regency romance. She's a great speaker too, amusing and gracious, and though her talk really didn't introduce me to anything new, it was well worth attending to hear her speak.<br />
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After a little break I joined the queue for the <b><a href="http://juliaquinn.com/" target="_blank">Beverly Jenkins</a></b> luncheon, and Oh My Goodness! - the queue had to be seen to be believed! It wrapped around the entire conference centre! Fortunately, I bumped into the lovely ladies from the <a href="http://occrwa.org/" target="_blank">RWA's Orange County Chapter</a>, some of whom I'd met at the pizza party the evening before, and they invited me to join them in the queue (and their table for lunch.)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me with Nikki Price, president of RWA's Orange County Chapter</td></tr>
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The food was alright but not amazing (except the rather delicious strawberry shortcake) - and what is it with this Californian trend of drinking their iced tea bitter?!<br />
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We were seated to one side of the ballroom so I couldn't see much of Ms Jenkins but the RWA organisers think of everything - not only was there a big screen, they also supply a transcript on the screen for the hearing impaired. (Which made hugely entertaining reading with all the inaccuracies and mis-spellings. I'm still not quite sure why the word 'manslaughter' came up so many times!)<br />
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Beverly Jenkins was every bit as incredible as I expected. She's warm and funny and sharp, very intelligent, and very real. She's a person who calls it as she sees it. She spoke about the history of African-American stories and fiction, then a little about herself and her journey, and rounded off her talk with advice for other writers. The talk earned her a standing ovation. Keep an eye out for it on YouTube.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo courtesy of RWA</td></tr>
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Some of the best ways to meet people at conference are to chat to those in queues with you (like the lunch queue or the toilet queue!) or the people around you in the elevator. Since almost every elevator was packed wall to wall with RWA delegates, and since we all wore name tags with our names, genres, achievements etc, it was easy to start up conversations.<br />
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I met a lovely group of ladies with whom I rode in the elevator to get to the post-lunch sessions. We managed to get lost trying to find a short cut to the venue, which gave us a lot of bonding time!<br />
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After lunch I attended a session on the A-Z of Contemporary Romance, led by authors <b><a href="http://www.raeannethayne.com/" target="_blank">RaeAnne Thayne</a></b> (who I only later realised was nominated in the same Rita category as me!), <b><a href="http://jillshalvis.com/" target="_blank">Jill Shalvis</a></b> and <b><a href="http://sarahmorgan.com/" target="_blank">Sarah Morgan</a></b>. They discussed their writing process, gave career advice, and spoke about mistakes they'd made and learned from along the way.<br />
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Amongst the great advice they gave, were such gems as "Contemporary romance is all about emotion" (Sarah), "Figure out your strengths as a writer, then amplify them" (RaeAnne), "We all have dips. Write through those low patches" (Sarah) and "Focus on your own career. Don't look around at what others are doing. You don't know what disappointments they've had which you can't see" (RaeAnne).<br />
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I also loved Jill Shalvis' story of how she printed off the NYT bestseller list, wrote her own name in place of Nora Roberts' - and within a year she had achieved that same ranking on the NYT list!<br />
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After this workshop, I met with agent <b>Mackenzie Fraser-Bub</b>, who recently opened her own agency, then my friend Maya Blake and I briefly popped in at the end of the Kensington book signing to catch our long time friend <b><a href="http://www.jackieashenden.com/" target="_blank">Jackie Ashenden</a></b>. We were in luck - Jackie had just two books left which she signed for us.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me with Jackie Ashenden and Maya Blake</td></tr>
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In my role as ROSA chairperson (and as a member of RWA) I then sat in on the RWA's <b>AGM</b> to see how the big guns do it. I was impressed with how well organised and professionally the meeting was run (kind of like everything RWA organises!). The entire meeting only lasted half an hour.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">AGM photo courtesy of RWA</td></tr>
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At 6.30pm, dressed up to party, I met with four of the other HarperImpulse authors in the hotel lobby. - <a href="http://nancyhollandwriter.com/" target="_blank">Nancy Holland</a>, <a href="http://www.harperimpulseromance.com/authors/lynn-montagano" target="_blank">Lynn Montagano</a>, <a href="http://www.harperimpulseromance.com/authors/sun-chara/" target="_blank">Sun Chara</a> and <a href="http://www.katherinegarbera.com/" target="_blank">Katherine Garbera</a>. After a quick photo session, we hopped in a free electric car sponsored by a local brewery and headed off the The Nolen Rooftop venue for the <b>Avon 75th Diamond Anniversary Party</b>.<br />
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We arrived in the gorgeous afternoon light, and snagged ourselves glasses of champagne and the best spot in the place. As the sun set over the city, we enjoyed the beautiful table decorations, little lights shining in specially engraved cups of diamonds. There was more champagne, a photo booth, lots of great conversation, networking, more champagne.<br />
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We met historical author <a href="http://www.jenmcquiston.com/about-jennifer/" target="_blank">Jennifer McQuiston</a>, a couple of book bloggers including the famous Sara of <a href="http://harlequinjunkie.com/" target="_blank">Harlequin Junkie</a>, and in the toilet queue (didn't I mention it was a great place to meet people?!) I met a film producer who is looking to option romance novels from Avon (yes, of course you can have mine!). Her partner is South African, so I was introduced to her too and (small world!) it since turns out we even know mutual people back in South Africa!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lynn Montagano, Jennifer McQuiston and Sun Chara</td></tr>
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Back at the hotel after the party, I settled into bed with cheesecake. The perfect end to a perfect day. It really couldn't get any better, could it? Yes, it could! More tomorrow...<br />
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-19021437768735878112016-07-15T23:08:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:26.817+02:00San Diego Day 2 - Literacy SigningDay 2 in San Diego started with a heavy grey sky and rain - this wasn’t the weather I expected in California! Happily, by the time my room-mate (the lovely <a href="http://www.mayablake.com/" target="_blank">Harlequin author Maya Blake</a>) and I lazily emerged to face the world, the sun was once again shining. We made the most of this one chance for a slow start, first visiting the goodie bag & swag rooms, then wandering along the marina and enjoying a late breakfast burrito in Seaport Village.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The goodie room (courtesy of Pam Jaffee on Twitter)</td></tr>
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Then we stopped at the Cheesecake Factory for a take-away slice of the most mouth wateringly amazing cheesecake anyone can imagine! Maya chose the lemon meringue and I had carrot cake cheesecake and they were both delicious. Even the cream topping was delicious, light and fluffy and sweet. The slices are enormous – enough for 2-3 meals!<br />
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By this time we were hot and a little tired out from our long walk so we headed back to our room for an afternoon nap. I’m still blaming the jet lag for this – it has nothing to do with my advancing age!<br />
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Rejuvenated by the nap, we headed downstairs to the Literacy Signing, a charity event for which readers come from all over to get books signed by the 400 authors present. Some readers began queuing in the late morning already!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The view of the room behind me - and this is just half the room!</td></tr>
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The RWA is so super organized. Our places were already laid out ready for us, with books on display, and I even had a ‘Rita nominee’ flag at my place. I was terribly nervous that as a mostly unknown author no-one would ask me to sign books for them, but that little Rita flag, as well as being seated at the end of a row next to a popular author, really helped. I am so incredibly grateful to everyone who stopped to chat or get one of my books signed! It was also wonderful to be able to introduce my books to new readers and to meet an author I really respect who’d read and loved my books. (Thanks Robin Bielman!)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo courtesy of Maya Blake</td></tr>
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The signing lasted two hours, after which Harper Impulse author Lynn Montagano and I went to unwind with cocktails and wonderful conversation at the Tequila Bar beside the pool.<br />
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Needing some food to soak up the cocktail, I gatecrashed Harlequin Presents author <a href="http://www.sharonkendrick.com/" target="_blank">Sharon Kendrick</a>’s pizza party where I met some amazing authors (Hi Nikki and Sabrina). It was completely surreal to end the day in a conversation about Boris Johnson and writing for Presents with such luminaries as Sharon Kendrick, Susan Stephens, Jane Porter, Caitlin Crews, Maisey Yates, and Lynn Raye Harris! I may have died and gone to heaven.<br />
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At midnight I fell into bed and set my alarm for Day 3.<br />
<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-31526824773012727232016-07-13T17:59:00.003+02:002022-11-28T23:20:27.903+02:00San Diego Day 1 - AcclimatisingFrom my front door to arriving in our hotel room in San Diego took about 33 hours. Since I can never sleep terribly well on a plane, I was pretty shattered but determined to push through until night-time - and the day was too beautiful to waste!<br />
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San Diego reminds me of the idyllic Durban of my youth - though cleaner, less humid and with fewer Art Deco buildings than Durban! It's sunny, friendly and there are palms and bottle brush trees everywhere.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Marriott Marquis & Marina Hotel, the conference venue</td></tr>
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The Marriott Marquis & Marina hotel, the venue of the RWA2016 conference, has to be seen to be believed. It makes our biggest South African hotels look boutique! With numerous restaurants, bars (and a Starbucks), swimming pools, 38 conference rooms (including 4 ballrooms), plus more than 20 floors of rooms, it's pretty impressive.</div>
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The RWA conference has completely taken over the hotel. There are romance writers and romance novels everywhere - even on the room key cards and elevator doors!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Romance on the front of the Marriott hotel</td></tr>
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I've had a lot of "OMG!" moments since I arrived, but probably the most surreal was when I was standing at Starbucks and in walked two officers in <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075488/?ref_=nv_sr_1" target="_blank">CHiPS</a> uniforms. If you're old enough, you'll know what I'm talking about. They weren't as good looking as Erik Estrada and Larry Wilcox, but I'm pretty sure my jaw still dropped!</div>
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I took a long walk along the waterfront, to the picturesque but touristy Seaport Village, ogled the massive warship USS Midway which is now open to the public, ate very tasty tacos from a street kitchen overlooking the bay and generally soaked up the sights and sounds. San Diego is a lovely place, and I'd highly recommend it as a destination.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seaport Village</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Taco street kitchen</td></tr>
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A big thank you to my fellow <a href="http://www.harperimpulseromance.com/authors/lynn-montagano" target="_blank">HI author Lynn Montagano</a> for meeting me for coffee, even though by that stage I was in a zombie state and not entirely coherent. Thanks to the Harlequin authors who let me tag along to dinner. I feel so honoured to be surrounded by so many 'real' authors - I hope one day I'll grow up to be like them!</div>
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Today the conference gets underway with the Literacy book signing. After a few hours sleep at least I now know what day of the week it is. More on that tomorrow...<br />
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Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-10456113725858241682016-03-26T14:01:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:25.999+02:00'Not a Fairy Tale' has been nominated for a RITA!The RWA's Rita<sup>®</sup> Awards are the romance novel equivalent of the Oscars, and a pretty big deal in my world. I've entered two years running and had high hopes for this year's entry, <i>Not a Fairy Tale</i>. Since the announcement of the shortlisted novels was due out yesterday (Good Friday, and what a good day it was!) I expected nominees to be contacted on Thursday. Thursday passed by without an email, so I shrugged my shoulders and forgot all about it. After all, it was a long shot anyway - what were my chances realistically in placing in such an exalted competition?<br />
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So when, half way through a marathon of <i>Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries</i> on Friday afternoon, I went to check my cell phone and saw a missed call from a US number, my heart stopped.<br />
I don't know a lot of people in the US who would call me rather than email. It could only mean one thing...<br />
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I listened to the voice message that had been left, did a dance, then composed myself to return the call. Thank you Damon Suede (a member of the RWA Board of Directors) for making my dream come true. As I paced up and down the front garden, hearing him say the magic words "You have been nominated for a Rita Award" I still couldn't quite grasp that this was really happening.<br />
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Since I'd taken so long to return Damon's call, it was mere minutes before the RWA announced my name and the congratulations started flooding in. I've been overwhelmed by all the support and wishes I've received!<br />
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Last night we cracked open a bottle of champagne, but today it's back to business as normal. I have two young daughters who have very little respect for romance novels and writing awards and as a result refuse to stop fighting in honour of the occasion, and who still expect to be fed, watered, taxied and entertained.<br />
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One thing has definitely changed, though. After a desultory writing year, I feel very, very motivated to throw myself back into writing. After all, if my peers think I'm good enough to be nominated for a Rita Award, I'd better prove that I'm worthy of it!<br />
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If you haven't already read <i>Not a Fairy Tale</i>, this is the story of stuntman Dominic Kelly (who first made his appearance in <i>To Catch a Star</i>, where he very nearly stole the show!) and actress Nina Alexander, a woman who has already lost everything once and who refuses to get attached to anything or anyone.<br />
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<a href="http://www.romysommer.com/#!contemporary-romances/cnec" target="_blank"><i>Not a Fairy Tale</i></a> is available from all major online retailers, in <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Not-Fairy-Tale-HarperImpulse-Contemporary/dp/0008135576/" target="_blank">paperback from Amazon UK</a>, and in book stores around South Africa.<br />
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-25728530254925578342016-03-01T10:00:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:27.358+02:00Sign up for your FREE copy of Prohibited PassionI am running a special offer, available exclusively to subscribers to my newsletter. <a href="http://www.romysommer.com/#!newsletter-sign-up/wb7ao" target="_blank">Sign up here</a>, and you will receive a FREE copy of my 1920s novella, <i>Prohibited Passion</i>.<br />
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-2798662415434921022015-10-11T11:30:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:25.607+02:00Cover reveal: An Innocent AbroadYesterday I revealed the gorgeous new cover for <i>Dear Julia</i>, and today it's the turn of <i>An Innocent Abroad</i>. This cover was also designed by the talented <a href="http://sallyclements.blogspot.co.za/" target="_blank">Sally Clements</a>.<br />
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Another re-release, this story was previously published by The Wild Rose Press under the pen name Rae Summers, and I am so happy now that I have my own name on the cover! <i>An Innocent Abroad</i> is available on <a href="http://smarturl.it/Innocent.Abroad" target="_blank">pre-order with Amazon</a> and goes on sale from 10th November.<br />
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Ingénue Isobel Harrington, fresh from finishing school in the summer of 1922, experiences a sexual awakening during a visit to Italy's Amalfi Coast.<br />
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Sent to visit distant relatives in the hope she will ensnare a wealthy and aristocratic English husband, Isobel falls instead under the spell of enigmatic local, Stefano.<br />
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Is their forbidden romance destined to be nothing more than a holiday affair, or will Isobel be brave enough to defy convention and her parents' expectations to follow her dreams?<br />
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<a href="http://smarturl.it/Innocent.Abroad" target="_blank">Pre-order your copy of <i>An Innocent Abroad</i> here.</a><br />
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-26678405195062824702015-10-10T11:30:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:27.449+02:00Cover reveal: Dear JuliaThose of you who have followed my blog for a while will know that my 1920s historicals were previously published under the name Rae Summers. Several months ago the last of my Rae Summers novels was unpublished and the name is no longer.<br />
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I am very excited today to bring you the new cover for <i>Dear Julia</i>, which is <a href="http://smarturl.it/Dear.Julia" target="_blank">available now for pre-order on Amazon</a>, under my own name at last. This book goes on sale on 28 October, and will remain exclusive to Amazon until end January.<br />
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Thank you so much to my friend <a href="http://sallyclements.blogspot.co.za/" target="_blank">Sally Clements</a> for designing a cover which captures my heroine, Rosalie, far better than the previous cover. Rosalie might well be my favourite heroine I've written so far - I hope you agree!<br />
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Rosalie Stanton is a city girl who loves parties and ‘fixing’ people. When she finds a long-lost love letter in a house she’s redecorating she sets off on a quest to find its rightful owner.<br />
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Commander William Cavendish has lived as a recluse since his return from the Great War. 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.<br />
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Rosalie is just as determined to fix William and re-introduce him into society as he is determined to resist her. They both might have met their match.<br />
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<a href="http://smarturl.it/Dear.Julia" target="_blank">Download <i>Dear Julia</i> from your nearest Amazon store here.</a><br />
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-63878891331700816382015-06-19T13:10:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:28.442+02:00Report back on my trip to the UK - Part 3Not strictly the UK, but on Friday 12th June I flew to Dublin to meet up with fellow Minxes. These ladies are not only my writing friends and critique partners, they've become like family. We stayed up late every night, drank copious amounts of wine and coffee, and talked, talked, talked.<br />
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But all too soon it was over, and I can't wait until I get another chance to meet with them again - one weekend was definitely too short a time!<br />
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-51717786838227161462015-06-18T10:30:00.001+02:002022-11-28T23:33:20.337+02:00Report back on my trip to the UK - Part 2My next big day in London, Donna (who has been my friend since we were the tender age of 3 years old) and I travelled back into London from Bishops Stortford. We wandered the area around Oxford Street, New Bond Street and Regent Street. While Donna shopped in Whole Foods, I made a phone call home to check on my father, who had been admitted to hospital earlier in the week.<br />
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Then while Donna attended a training seminar, I met with author and honorary Minx Zara Cox for tea at Fortnum & Mason. It was a really warm day and after climbing five storeys I was feeling hot and sweaty, so not exactly fitting the ultra-elegant interior, but it was a superb afternoon tea and we had a wonderful chat.<br />
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After braving the crowds in Hamleys and around Piccadilly Circus, I re-joined Donna in Leicester Square where we enjoyed a couple of glasses of Prosecco and people watching while the Minions arrived across the square for the premiere of their newest movie, to the screams of their adoring fans.<br />
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We then hurried to the Victoria Apollo for Wicked, the musical. I love musicals, so I'm easily impressed, but I really enjoyed this show. This is the story behind the Wizard of Oz, of how Glinda the Good and Elphaba (the Wicked Witch of the West) became the characters we love and hate - and there are flying monkeys!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Tomorrow I'll post about the second half of my trip: the Minxy meet-up in Ireland.</span></div>
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Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-49644687214016658112015-06-17T10:30:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:28.171+02:00Report back on my trip to the UK - Part 1And Ireland too (I am aware the Republic isn't part of Her Majesty's Kingdom!)<br />
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I arrived in London around midday and it took a few hours to get across the city and out to Bishops Stortford, so I was pretty finished by the time I finally arrived. My first evening was spent quietly with my childhood friend Donna, catching up over steak and wine.<br />
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The next day I travelled back into London for lunch with my editor, Charlotte Ledger, at the lovely <a href="http://www.therooftopcafe.co.uk/" target="_blank">Rooftop Cafe</a>, across the road from the new HarperCollins offices. Hidden behind a nondescript office building entrance, this little gem was a wonderful surprise, with a great view and even better food. We enjoyed a delightful yet healthy lunch (really yummy asparagus!), accompanied by Cava (Spanish sparkling wine) and lots of chat. We didn't talk much about business but it was wonderful just to get to know each other.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Rooftop Cafe near London Bridge</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The view from the Rooftop Cafe towards The News Building</td></tr>
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After lunch, Charlotte gave me a guided tour of the HarperCollins offices in The News Building (previously known as Baby Shard) which began with the most wonderful surprise: a display of my books, including the very latest which I hadn't yet seen in paperback format.<br />
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I was also introduced to the two cover artists who designed my covers, met Kimberly Young (head of Women's Fiction at HC) as she was dashing between meetings, and was thoroughly impressed by the light, airy offices filled with books and surrounded by the most spectacular views. What I wouldn't do to work for a company that provides its employees with their own book store!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The view from The News Building</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The famous Wall of Books at the staff book store</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and the lovely Charlotte in the staff book store</td></tr>
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Then, feeling guilty at taking up so much of Charlotte's time when she has the workload of three people, I left her to work and went to browse through Southwark Cathedral and Borough Market, where I stopped to enjoy a refreshing glass of Pimms laced with summer fruits.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Southwark Cathedral</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The News Building (left) and The Shard (right) from the yard of Southwark Cathedral</td></tr>
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I then wandered the area of Southwark, past the Golden Hinde, the ruins of Winchester Palace, down Clink Street where the infamous prison once stood, to the Thames.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Golden Hinde II, modelled on Francis Drake's famous ship</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ruins of the palace of the Bishops of Winchester</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I don't really need to caption this photo, do I?</td></tr>
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The late summer sunlight was deceptive and I nearly ran late for my next appointment: dinner in Belgravia with HarperImpulse author Brigid Coady. Unbelievably, after having had a big lunch, I managed to pack away another big meal, this time accompanied by Prosecco (Italian sparkling wine).<br />
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Brigid and I had such an amazing chat that neither of us thought to take photographs - which is probably just as well since this blog post is already long enough!<br />
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More to follow on my London adventures tomorrow...<br />
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-36568719941083176832015-04-24T18:00:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:27.993+02:00Let's Misbehave is now in Kindle Unlimited!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Available to download exclusively from Amazon: <a href="http://smarturl.it/Misbehave">http://smarturl.it/Misbehave</a></div>
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-75709493620670801102015-04-15T10:37:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:29.139+02:00HarperImpulse Fortnight<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Book blogger Bunny Lovell is running a <a href="http://bookswithbunny.blogspot.co.uk/2015/04/harper-impulse-fortnight.html" target="_blank">HarperImpulse Fortnight</a> (#HIFortnight) on her blog and social media from April 27th to May 10th.<br />
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She has issued a challenge to readers: read and review (either on your blog / Goodreads / Amazon / all three) at least one HarperImpulse book during #HIFortnight.<br />
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I'll be taking up the challenge. It's about time I read and reviewed some of the HI titles on my Kindle! I'll also be doing a guest post on Bunny's blog, so watch this space.<br />
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Come join in the fun! Check out the <a href="http://www.harperimpulseromance.com/" target="_blank">HarperImpulse website</a> to get an idea of all the various titles on offer, or follow the hashtag on Twitter.<br />
<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-25617160930470278962014-10-04T15:00:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:27.267+02:00Vote for your favourite bachelor<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Gahm-bh465E/VC_tcDFZRlI/AAAAAAAAEOI/MVPL0isitkw/s1600/TRR%2Bbachelor%2BAuction2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Gahm-bh465E/VC_tcDFZRlI/AAAAAAAAEOI/MVPL0isitkw/s1600/TRR%2Bbachelor%2BAuction2.jpg" height="320" width="232" /></a><br />
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Please come join in the Bachelor Auction on the Harper Impulse blog to let us know which of the secondary characters from my previous books you'd most like to see get his own book:<br />
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<a href="http://www.harperimpulseromance.com/the-bachelor-auction/" target="_blank">The Bachelor Auction</a></div>
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-82678510634759739602014-09-28T11:30:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:29.319+02:00First reviews<br />
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<a href="http://smarturl.it/CatchStar" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-S_ljc5dHMfc/VCe5q_EM-hI/AAAAAAAAENE/7A4EOpGPW-g/s1600/To%2Bcatch%2Ba%2Bstar%2Bnew%2B(Medium).jpg" height="320" width="209" /></a></div>
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The honour of posting the very first review for <i><a href="http://smarturl.it/CatchStar" target="_blank">To Catch a Star</a></i> goes to Sienna at <a href="http://losttobooks.blogspot.com/2014/08/arc-review-to-catch-star-by-romy-sommer.html" target="_blank">Lost to Books</a>. Thanks so much Sienna! Click the link for the full review, but I'll share my favourite line:<br />
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"I think this was my favourite from the whole series."</blockquote>
South African reviewer Desere Steenberg has also reviewed<i> To Catch a Star</i>. I'm very excited that I'll be meeting Desere in person next month so I can thank her (again!) for <a href="http://rbh-contemporary.blogspot.com/2014/08/to-catch-star-by-romy-sommer.html" target="_blank">this lovely review</a>.<br />
Favourite line? Hard to choose, but I'm going with this one:<br />
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"The backdrop settings were as magical as they were simply screaming romance and without a doubt more than once I felt as if I was right there seeing it all."</blockquote>
<i>To Catch a Star</i> is available now from <a href="http://smarturl.it/CatchStar" target="_blank">Amazon</a>, <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/to-catch-a-star-romy-sommer/1119951764?ean=9780007594634" target="_blank">Barnes & Noble</a>, <a href="http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/to-catch-a-star-harperimpulse-contemporary-romance" target="_blank">Kobo</a>, <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/mx/book/to-catch-star-harperimpulse/id898897161?l=en&mt=11" target="_blank">iTunes</a> and <a href="https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-tocatchastar-1601655-237.html" target="_blank">All Romance eBooks</a>.<br />
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<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-2958048021048816462014-08-25T14:30:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:25.727+02:00Written Fireside Blog Hop Part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CBz-mP3XrGo/U_cDxagE-gI/AAAAAAAAEKY/KlIW6zmdfrg/s1600/wf%2Bhop%2Bpic15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CBz-mP3XrGo/U_cDxagE-gI/AAAAAAAAEKY/KlIW6zmdfrg/s1600/wf%2Bhop%2Bpic15.jpg" height="247" width="320" /></a></div>
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Yesterday I posted the first instalment of my contribution to the <a href="http://writtenfireside.blogspot.com/2014/04/christmas-by-fire-blog-hop.html" target="_blank">Written Fireside August blog hop</a>, and here's the second instalment.<br />
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Watch out for the complete collection of short stories from Harper Impulse this Christmas, and don't forget to enter the Rafflecopter contest below for a truly amazing prize: $70 in Amazon vouchers plus at least a dozen books.<br />
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<b>Part Two:</b><br />
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Charlotte stared sightlessly out the window until rain began to spatter against the grimy glass. Just her luck. The one day she hadn’t brought an umbrella.<br />
She climbed off the bus at her usual stop, raising her collar against the sleety rain and tucking her gloved hands deep into her pockets. <i>Jingle Bells</i> spilled out from a store, and the Christmas lights strung overhead reflected in the puddles.
The pedestrians hurrying along the busy pavements all seemed to be heading in the opposite direction, an inexorable tide she had to fight against. Something she seemed to be doing a lot of lately.<br />
No-one understood what she’d done.<br />
Her parents thought this was just a blip and soon she’d come to her senses and move back in with Daniel. Their well-meant interrogations were a small price to pay for free room and board.<br />
Her old friends hadn’t been so kind. They’d sided with Daniel and been voluble in their disapproval.<br />
“Is this some sort of early midlife crisis?” Jenny had asked. “Or maybe it’s wedding jitters. We all had those.”<br />
But it wasn’t wedding jitters. Charlotte had stared down the tunnel of her future and wondered how she’d ever come to this point. It wasn’t that she didn’t want marriage and motherhood. She just didn’t want them packaged up in a terrace house and a pocket handkerchief garden, with a daily commute to a job she didn’t enjoy, a week’s holiday in Tenerife every year, and a man she wasn’t passionately and hopelessly in love with.<br />
When the date of their wedding had come and gone, and she still hadn’t gone back on her knees to beg Daniel’s forgiveness, even Jenny stopped taking her calls.<br />
So she made new friends. Friends who knew her simply as ‘Charlotte’, not one half of ‘Daniel and Charlotte’.<br />
She reached the stage door and shoved it open, feeling the same sudden rush of excitement she felt every time she stepped over the threshold. A rush that, weeks down the line, still hadn’t abated.
This was what made all the heartache worthwhile. Here, in the musty, over-crowded bowels of the theatre, all the tears and <i>if onlys</i> and <i>might have beens </i>disappeared.<br />
Amidst the panicked preparations, the smell of grease paint, the bright lights, there was no time for anything but magic.<br />
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“What are your plans for Christmas?” Brian asked, batting his fake eyelashes at the mirror to check they were firmly stuck on.<br />
Charlotte finished painting her lips. “Turkey at home with my parents, I guess. We’ll eat too much, watch the Queen’s speech and fall asleep watching re-runs.”<br />
“Sounds scintillating. You’re welcome to join me and Jack for dinner, if you like?”<br />
“Thanks, but no thanks.” Their flat might be in the heart of Theatreland, but it was so tiny a person could almost touch both opposite walls at the same time, and it smelled strongly of the Indian restaurant downstairs. “Three’s a crowd and all that.”<br />
Maybe she’d make up for the bad, bad girl she’d been this year by taking mince pies to old Mrs Johnson down the end of the street. Mrs Johnson usually went away to California to visit family who lived there now, but this year she was too frail to travel.<br />
“You know what you need?” Brian turned laughing blue eyes on her. “You need a booty call. You need to spend your Christmas Day making panty melting sex with a handsome stranger.”<br />
<i>If only</i>.<br />
Charlotte pictured midnight dark eyes and a suggestive smile.<br />
She shook her head. “I don’t think Santa is going to be leaving a hot date in my stocking any time soon.”<br />
Brian shrugged. “You never know.”<br />
“Five minutes to curtain up. Places everyone.” The stage manager’s voice crackled over the speakers.<br />
Charlotte rose and gazed at herself in the mirror. Out with Charlotte and her hopes and fears, and in with Dandini. Wigged, powdered, and dressed in tights, she could just have fun.<br />
She pulled her tongue out at her reflection. Cross-dressing for a Southend panto might not be the height of an actress’ ambitions but at least it was professional, paying work.
And considering that this time last year she’d still been sat in an office listening to middle-aged housewives drone on and on about the lack of excitement in their lives, she’d come a long way.<br />
Charlotte straightened the lapels of her blue satin coat and hurried up the narrow stairs after Brian. “What do you think Steve will have in store for us tonight?”<br />
Their director loved improv. To keep his cast on their toes, every night he arranged some unexpected surprise for them. Fireworks at the end of the first act, a pizza delivery in the middle of the second act, a cell phone ringing live on stage.<br />
Brian shrugged. “It’s going to be hard to top the Can-Can dancers.”<br />
But Charlotte was sure Steve would find a way. Tonight was their last performance, after all. She swallowed the lump in her throat. She’d only made it through the day because she’d spent most of it wrapped in a fantasy that involved a certain dark-eyed stranger.<br />
Tomorrow there would be no more show and no more reason to catch the Number 25 bus.<br />
In the shadowy light they took their places. The lights dimmed, the music began. Beyond the curtain, the crowd hushed. Charlotte’s heart was in her throat, her pulse beating a wild staccato rhythm.
Then the curtain started to rise, the audience began to clap, and something settled inside her.<br />
This was the theatre. Everything would be alright on the night.
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<script src="//widget.rafflecopter.com/load.js"></script>Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-21642184600708355762014-08-24T14:30:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:26.997+02:00Written Fireside Blog Hop<div style="text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CBz-mP3XrGo/U_cDxagE-gI/AAAAAAAAEKY/KlIW6zmdfrg/s1600/wf%2Bhop%2Bpic15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CBz-mP3XrGo/U_cDxagE-gI/AAAAAAAAEKY/KlIW6zmdfrg/s1600/wf%2Bhop%2Bpic15.jpg" height="247" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><i><b><br /></b></i></span>
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><i><b>Fifteen authors, </b></i></span><br />
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><i><b>Fifteen stories, </b></i></span><br />
<span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;"><i><b>One shared starting paragraph.</b></i></span></div>
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<i><b><span style="color: #990000; font-size: large;">Read a taste of what's coming for Christmas...</span></b></i></div>
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<a href="http://writtenfireside.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Written Fireside</a> began as a series of round-the-campfire type tales, a serial story written by a number of different Harper Impulse authors. I had a huge amount of fun taking part in <a href="http://writtenfireside.blogspot.com/search/label/for%20clara" target="_blank">For Clara</a> and <a href="http://writtenfireside.blogspot.com/search/label/his%20way%20home" target="_blank">His Way Home</a> and I'm delighted to be taking part in the latest story.<br />
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But this time we're doing something a little different. This time fifteen authors have each written a short story starting with the same opening paragraph, which was written by Georgia Beyers, winner of <a href="http://www.harperimpulseromance.com/competition-join-the-written-fireside/" target="_blank">Harper Impulse's Written Fireside contest</a>. All fifteen stories have a Christmas theme and will be published by Harper Impulse as a free Christmas read.<br />
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<span style="color: #990000;"><b>BONUS:</b> as part of this blog hop, you also get a chance to win, by entering using the Rafflecopter link at the bottom of this post!</span><br />
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<b>So my apologies for the very unseasonal post, but here is the teaser for my contribution to the Written Fireside anthology:</b><br />
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Charlotte sat at the bus stop wondering whether she would make the naughty or nice list this year. Last year she had rescued a stray kitten and therefore considered herself most definitely ‘nice’. This year she had broken Daniels heart into a million tiny pieces, so ‘naughty’ seemed to be the only answer. There’d be no Santa Claus coming down her chimney anytime soon.<br />
At least she’d left Daniel with Socks to cuddle up to at night. He would have been totally destroyed if she’d taken Socks too. Not that she’d had much choice – her father was allergic to cats.<br />
She hadn’t really had much choice when it came to leaving Daniel either. He was the one who’d laid down the ultimatum: <i>it’s either him or me</i>.<br />
He hadn’t expected her to choose her new agent over a six year relationship and a diamond ring.<br />
But she had.<br />
She pulled her coat closer and tucked her frozen hands beneath her arms.
One day Daniel would thank her. He’d meet someone new, really fall in love, and realise what they’d shared had been nothing more than a friendship with benefits.<br />
The benefits hadn’t even been that good. Not good enough to give up on her dreams or the hope that there was something more than a mortgage and okay sex out there for her.<br />
Jenny put it down to her reading too many romance novels. Her former BFF said it led to unrealistic expectations and one day she’d regret leaving Daniel.<br />
But as much as she’d hated hurting him, and as much as she missed Socks’ soft purr waking her every morning, she hadn’t regretted it yet.
Not that her life had turned out like a romance novel either. She was now unemployed and living back in her girlhood bedroom in her parents’ house in Wickford, facing Christmas in a neighbourhood that seemed to consist entirely of old people these days.<br />
The number 25 bus rolled to a stop before her, and she sat up straighter, watching with mounting anticipation as the doors wheezed open.
Her heart hammered.
Mrs Murtry appeared in the doorway, hauling her little basket cart packed full of Christmas shopping. The woman had more grandchildren than Queen Victoria who she increasingly resembled with each passing year.<br />
“Good evening, my dear,” she greeted Charlotte.<br />
Charlotte rose. “Good evening, Mrs Murtry.” And please get <i>off</i> the bus.<br />
At last the old duck managed to get her cart onto the pavement, and Charlotte’s attention focused back on the bus’ entryway. The empty entryway.<br />
Her heart sank.
<i>Where was he?</i><br />
“You getting in or not?” the bus driver asked, impatient to be off.<br />
“I’m coming.”<br />
Charlotte stepped onto the bus, scanning the seated passengers. Weary commuters heading home from a long day at the office, shoppers weighed down by their Christmas shopping, and a group of teenagers making a racket at the back of the bus.
No handsome stranger with midnight dark eyes.<br />
She slid into a vacant seat. All week he’d got off the bus just as she got on. Five days of the brush of an arm, a melting smile, a frisson of delicious tension, and a few very naughty fantasies.<br />
Yesterday she’d checked his left hand. No ring.<br />
He’d caught her looking and winked.<br />
Today was the day she’d decided to go for broke. Today she planned to say ‘hello’.<br />
Except today he wasn’t on the bus.<br />
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<b><i>There'll be another instalment tomorrow, so check back here, same time, same place.</i></b><br />
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<script src="//widget.rafflecopter.com/load.js"></script>Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3108049007248617500.post-14318987183027353112014-08-04T14:30:00.000+02:002022-11-28T23:20:26.273+02:00Written Fireside's August Blog Hop has started!Fifteen Harper Impulse authors are writing fifteen Christmas short stories all from one starting paragraph. We're sharing our story snippets throughout August and have a giveaway - 14 books/ebooks and a $70 Amazon gift card.<br />
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Any mentions on blogs, shares on Facebook, tweets, hollers over the fence to your neighbor about it, would be greatly appreciated.
Come on by, bring some friends, enter our #giveaway and read the <a href="http://t.co/hePeeMNT8c" target="_blank">first snippet from Lori Connelly</a><br />
<br />
You can enter the Rafflecopter giveaway here: <a href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/667520627/" target="_blank">http://www.rafflecopter.<wbr></wbr>com/rafl/display/667520627/</a> <br />
<br />Romy Sommerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14989655739656698541noreply@blogger.com0