Party Time: Finding Her Rhythm Release Week

Half of the Children are gone to the Romantic Times Book Lovers' Convention this week. Since they're partying without us, I thought we'd have a little party while they're gone!

This week I'm celebrating the release of my new ebook, Finding Her Rhythm! My rock star hero is perfect for a good time (in more ways than one)!

As much as he loves the stage, Michael Korvello's favorite kind of party is one-on-one with his new flame, Taylor Jemison. Not your average groupie, Taylor is curvy, quiet -- and the new nanny for Michael's teenage children. Boy, is her life about to change! But first, Michael must find out the truth about Taylor's past, and protect her from an ex bent on taking her back, even if he has to tear Michael's family apart to have her.

Strong, protective, and sexy as hell! I'd party with Michael anytime! If you could party (or even just hang out) with any romance hero today, which one would you choose and why?

Dani

*One lucky commenter will win an Amazon or B&N gift card!

MOANDay: Ooh la la!

MoanDay this April is no joke! Hope these hotties can inspire you today!

Happy MoanDay!

Angel

PS. Today, Andrea's blogging at Get Lost in a Story about reality tv. Come over to get another entry to win!

MOANday: I'm Cheating!

In a lot of ways, actually! No, its not what you think. I'm just fudging the date of MOANday a little for March. I'm out of town at the moment, and wasn't sure if I would be able to comment today, so I decided to display the eye candy early. Win-win, don't you think?

Also, I'll admit that I stole this hottie from my online buddy, Gina Leigh Maxwell. She shared his pic as her inspiration for one of her heroes and I immediately claimed him as my own!

Enjoy!




Angel

MOANday: Tom Hardy

I chose this month's MOANday inspiration because he's currently starring in the Valentine's movie This Means War. This movie looks like some guy tried to make a Valentine's movie interesting for both the guys and the girls (although I think girls still win, because we get 2 hunky hotties to check out and not just one), just so the men wouldn't be completely bored on their Valentine's dates.

Tom Hardy is an English actor who's been around quite a while, having performed in Band of Brothers, Black Hawk Down, and as the villain in Star Trek: Nemesis. More recently he was part of the cast for Inception. Maybe he'll also be inspiration for your very own Valentine hero!

Happy Love Month!

Angel

Coming Soon!

Join us Wednesday for guest author Tracy Sumner!

Rocket City Rednecks

I've recently discovered a new TV show - Rocket City Rednecks. I started watching it because I heard the guys on a local radio station. They're from Huntsville - the Rocket City and birthplace of the space industry for those unfamiliar with our area - and so I thought I'd support some locals and check it out. And I was hooked! Anytime you can combine rocket scientists (with PhDs), thick southern accents, explosives, guns and drinking beer I'm in.

On the radio these guys sounded like the biggest hicks - and I can say that since my own personal scientist sounds pretty similar. They definitely play into the stereotype of a redneck. There's plenty of mention of kegs, camo, hunting and trailers. Although that's were the expected ends. It's clear after the first five minutes that these guys are some of the smartest scientific minds we've got.

What I really love about the show is that the tasks they tackle have real world applications. The first episode I saw they built a rocket and launched it with moonshine. Sure that plays into their image, but it also has far reaching potential - like the ability to power our next generation rockets and space shuttles using a renewable resource like corn. Or building an iron man suit that could protect our troops while in combat zones. Or freezing watermelons because they closely resemble the structure of a comet and figuring out what could actually be used to destroy/deflect one if it was heading for a direct collision with the Earth. They might look like they're just goofing off in the garage on a weekend, but the stuff they come up with has potential.

The five guys on the show are either family or lifelong friends. They share a male bond that's interesting to watch in a research sorta way. And there's just something about a cute, smart guy who respects his daddy the way that Travis does. Seriously, if that isn't hero material, I don't know what is.

So, if you haven't watched Rocket City Rednecks yet I suggest you try it. I don't think you'll be disappointed. It airs on National Geographic at 9 Est/8 Ctl on Wed nights. I can't wait to see what they do next!

Are you a science geek? Have you seen the show? Do you watch something similar like Mythbusters?

Instigator

MOANday: Sean Bean

To follow up on last month’s MoanDay hottie, Viggo Mortensen, I’m inviting his fellow Lord of the Rings co-star Sean Bean to model for us today.



Yum!



I admit, I found his looks much more versatile than his co-star's. Here is the ultra-sophisticated businessman for those Presents novels.



Tortured hero on the run for romantic suspense.



Historical Soldier



Even the evil villain in a modern thriller.



But again, my current obsession leads me back to a noble, knight impression.

Don’t labor too much today!!!

Angel

MOANday: Viggo Mortensen

I’ve recently started watching the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. Yes, I’m late to the party, but they weren’t something that really interested me before. Now, I’m looking for options for my Harry Potter-loving daughter, who is moving beyond kids movies but not ready for a lot of adult content. A friend loaned these to me so I could see if they’d be suitable for her, since she's interested in magic.

My favorite part? The rugged men. Nope, not the hobbits, elves, and miscellaneous magical creatures. I find myself following the hotties more than anything. I think part of it is my current obsession with Knights of the Round Table. And this guy would be a perfect match: Viggo Mortensen.



I love this look on him! Long hair, scruffy chin, haunted eyes. Yum!



I have to admit, I’m not a fan of many of Viggo’s other looks: no blond hair, gray hair, really short cuts, etc. His features change drastically with his hair color and cut. But this one is pretty nice (if I can’t have the knight look).



But I have to admit, it’s the long hair that gets me. :)

So tell me, do you have an actor you really only care for in certain movies or dressing certain ways? We're often comparing our characters to So-and-so as a specific character.

Angel

MOANday: Halloween Edition

I know it’s a day late, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to pay homage to some of the hottest guys from horror films. Often these films are ensemble casts and rarely have the traditional Hollywood hottie, but there are a few that provide welcome respite from all the blood and gore. I hope you enjoy, even if you aren’t a horror movie fan.

I’m very excited by last night’s premiere of The Walking Dead on AMC. This is a mini-series based on, you guessed it, Zombie Invasion!!!! But at the center of the story is a policeman played by Andrew Lincoln. You got to love a hottie in uniform, especially when his dearest wish is to find and protect his family.




The Saw movies were never my favorites. I’m a bigger fan of true mystery than gore, but Cary Elwes was a pleasant surprise when I finally gave in to watching the first one. I remember him from funnier movies like the Princess Bride and Robin Hood: Men in Tights, and though he spends most of this movie shackled to a wall, he plays the serious roles just as well.




I’m a huge fan of numerous Stephen King made-for-television mini-series and movies, as my next two choices will avow. The first is a remake of Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot, starring Rob Lowe, who attempts to save a small town from the evil vampire that has made his home in the mansion where Rob Lowe’s character was frightened as a child.





The other is Rose Red (my all-time favorite!) with actor Julian Sands playing a telepath with mind-bending abilities. I cried the first time I watched it, because I didn’t want him to die. :)




And last, but not least, actor Taye Diggs, for his role as a (former) baseball player who ends up at a mysterious birthday party and gets locked up in a possessed house. Lucky for him, he is adopted, or else the house would have eaten him. I have to confess that there are parts of this movie where I still have to close my eyes. And Geoffrey Rush revising Vincent Price's character as the murderous husband? Creepy!!!




I know I’m one of the few horror fan buffs around here, but I hope viewing these hunky heroes helped you overlook my Halloween indulgence. Until next month…

Angel

MOANday: Oops!

I completely forgot that today was my day to blog. :) After being gone all last week and having family over for the entire weekend, it's a wonder I didn't forget that it is the beginning of fall break and try to send the kids to school today. But I still have some gorgeous, if random, eye candy. Enjoy! I hope your fall is starting off with cooler temps, just like ours is.













Coming Soon!
This Wednesday we welcome guest blogger Leanne Banks!
Thursday starts a week of blogs celebrating our recent trip to the mountains. Join us as we Embrace Our Inner Tourist!

Angel

MOANday: Paul Bettany

As many of you noticed, last week was completely and totally hectic. National Conference is over and we are on our way home. But I wanted to leave everybody with some yummy eye candy for today! MoanDay is a must, no matter where the Playfriends are!



I recently celebrated my wedding anniversary, and the hubby that knows me so well came home with a dozen deep peach roses, a card, and a horror movie. :) We spent the evening curled up on the couch watching Legion (on another day we truly celebrated our anniversary by getting our first ever tattoos, but that’s another post). Having only seen Paul Bettany as the villain in The DaVinci Code, I was fascinated with his persona as Michael, an angel of God.



Did I mention my recent fascination with tattoos? (My husband’s looks so hot on his arm… but I digress…)



He’s also played historical characters, such as Dr. Stephen Maturin in Master and Commander beside Russell Crowe.



Then there was his role in Wimbledon (never saw it, but from the looks of this picture, I should pick it up from Netflix…)



As I mentioned earlier, he plays the albino, misguided villain in The DaVinci Code. And is still sexy in a creepy, driven sort of way.



Whatever he’s playing, I think Paul Bettany has the potential to be sexy and intense… just how I like my heroes!



So delight in this piece of beauty while I’m dragging myself through the Orlando airport. Enjoy!

Angel

P.S. Don't forget to join this month's contest, which is a bag o' conference goodies that I'm bringing home just for one lucky winner! Check out the blog sidebar to enter.

Coming Soon!
This Friday, August 6, we welcome author Natalie Anderson, and next Monday, August 9th, we get to enjoy a visit from my fellow Ruby Sister, Autumn Jordan. I hope y'all will join us for these special guests.

MOANday-Firefighters

I realize its a little late, but MOANday is actually here this month! :) I've got a new wip running through my brain and I'm thinking of including a few, um, everyday heroes. :)












What do ya think?

Angel

Tomorrow I'll be guest blogging over at Ruby Slippered Sisterhood. Come join me!

Looking for a Hero?

I’m taking a class this month taught by author Angela Knight on Writing the Erotic Romance. She opens the class by focusing on the hero, who he is and what readers are looking for within this genre. She says, “The engine that drives a hot erotic romance is the hero. He’s the handsome, broad-shouldered sexual athlete who seduces the reader and makes her wonder what it would be like to know his love.”

This got me to thinking about my own writing. My first book started out with my identification with the heroine, similar to my experience as a reader, where I could put myself in the heroine’s shoes as I traveled throughout the story with her. But as I worked my way through that first story, I discovered the joy of falling in love with my hero for myself. If you think that experience is fun as a reader, its is so much more immediate as a writer. My stories have been hero-focused ever since.

That’s not to say that my heroines are neglected—they are well-rounded characters who often grow into their own strength throughout my stories. My heroines are coming into their own, finding their footing, and learning to trust themselves and their instincts. But my heroes? Well, they’re just delicious. :)

The heroes are the characters that fascinate me, and I often delve into their pov because that’s what I like to read. Often dark, occasionally brooding, naughty senses of humor, and masters of their own lives, my heroes often have that one special thing the heroine needs (No, not that! Dirty minds. Okay, well, not ONLY that. :) ) My hope is that someday, someone besides myself will fall in love with my heroes too.



So let’s talk heroes today. Do you have a favorite romance novel hero? What is your favorite type (soldier, policeman, CEO, Sheikh, cowboy)? What do you least like in your heroes?

I’ll start off: I’m a sucker for the bad boy types, and my favorite heroes are any of JR Wards Black Dagger Brotherhood warriors and Linda Howard’s Gray Rouillard From After The Night. I least like them to be total assholes. I’m all for strong heroes, but he has to convince me that he has the heroine’s best interests at heart, and that he has a tender side (even if she’s the only one to ever see it).

Angel

P.S. I'm blogging tomorrow with the Ruby Slippered Sisterhood and I'd love to see you there!

MOANday-Russell Crowe

I recently realized that I’d been derelict in my MOANday duties. For some reason, we’ve never had Russell Crowe on MOANday before, but that’s going to be remedied this month. He came to my attention during a trailer for the new Robin Hood movie. Now, as a big fan of the Kevin Costner version (not necessarily because of KC, but I loved Alan Rickman!), this movie will have to be vetted by some of my trusted movie-going friends before I see it in the theaters, but Russell Crowe sure does look hot in it. Don’t you agree?



I seem to prefer the historical movies he’s been in, maybe because there’s more muscles showing. :) His previous appearance in Gladiator:







He just gives the appearance of a regular bad ass, you know? I happen to like that type of hero.



So what about you? Are you a fan of Crowe and his movies? Are Rough and Tough heroes your type, or do you go more for betas?

Angel

Coming Soon!

Join us on Wednesday when author Katherine Garbera visits the Playground!

MOANday-Sam Worthington

Today I'm celebrating good news on my tax returns, warmer weather, and 8 more weeks until the kids are home for the summer (may it simply crawl by...) with a hot weather hunk!

This month’s hottie has garnered lots of notoriety as a modern, ancient, and futuristic warrior in movies like the most recent Terminator, Avatar, and the newly released Clash of the Titans. I SO hope to see this movie in theaters, though I’m not holding out much hope that I’ll find time to go. Still, I can post him here for our viewing pleasure… I mean, inspiration. ;)




What guy doesn’t look better wet?



Even all nasty from fighting, he's still hot, hot, hot!



May this month's hottie spark visions of hot summer days and hunky heroes for all!

Enjoy!
Angel

MOANday-Matt Damon

MOANday is here once more and I’ve selected a long-standing Hollywood hottie for this month’s viewing pleasure.

While I was a fan of his movies, I never really considered Matt Damon leading hero material until I saw him in the Bourne movies. The action and complexity of that character really drew me. Seeing previews of his new flick, Green Zone, reminded me of this. I probably won’t see it in theaters, since war movies aren’t a big thing for me, but he has the same look in the trailers as he does in the Bourne movies. So enjoy a little Matt Damon this month:







Yum-O!!! :) Happy MOANday, I mean Monday!

Angel
Coming Soon!
Join us on Wednesday, March 3, when author Julie Cohen comes to play on the Playground!

MOANday-Robert Downey Jr.

It’s that time again! MOANday has returned with Robert Downey Jr from Iron Man and Sherlock Holmes. He’s had a long and rocky career, but keeps coming back strong, which is incredibly sexy, don’t you think?











He’s a combination of strength, humility, comedy, and dark good looks. What could make a better hero?

Angel

~PC hijacks MOANday to ask everyone to hop over to the RomCon blog and say Hi! (link should be fixed now!)~

MOANday-Joseph Sayers

With all the holidays and having been out of town, my internal clock was off and I didn’t realize it was Monday. How could I miss MOANday? January’s hunk comes courtesy of my sister, who gave me the heads up about a model named Joseph Sayers. Enjoy!






Yummy! May he inspire many sexy heroes this year!

Don’t forget to check out the rest of theme week, including Free Book Friday. Next week, we’ll be running a contest on the blog to introduce the new look on our website. That starts Monday!!!

Angel

Guest Blogger Donna Alward

I'm so pleased to have Donna Alward on the blog today -- she does a fab job posting my guest blogs over at the Pink Heart Society. :-) She's also a great writer and and I had a blast getting to know her at the RWA National Conference this summer. Welcome, Donna!

Real Heroes

Today is Remembrance Day here in Canada. At 11 a.m. on November 11, World War I ended and today we remember those men and women who died in combat and who continue to serve in our military.

What has always struck me when I’ve spoken to veterans or watched programs on television – be it fictional or documentaries – is that no one is willing to accept that they are a hero. There is this insistence that it is the men and women that died that are the true heroes. And I can understand how someone would feel that way. Those people gave their lives. They will not be coming home. They have left mothers, fathers, siblings, wives, husbands, children behind. They have sacrificed in the ultimate way a person can sacrifice themselves for their country – with their lives.

And yet, I humbly assert that there is more to a hero than someone who has died on the battlefield.

When I looked up hero in the dictionary, I got this: 1. a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities. 2. a person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal.

Nowhere does it say one needs to die to be a hero.

Those men and women who returned home are heroes too. They are left to deal with the consequences of battle, the deaths of friends, possibly their own injuries…they bear their own scars and do it willingly. They have done, and continue to do, the jobs we turn away from and pretend don’t need doing. They put themselves on the line. If that isn’t a hero, I don’t know what is.

When I go to the cenotaph, it is not only to remember the dead, it’s to honour those still living, and those willing to put themselves in the line of fire for my freedom.

To me, those are the real heroes. Is it any wonder I enjoy writing military heroes in my Romances?

My current release is A Bride For Rocking H Ranch in Montana, Mistletoe, Marriage, out this month. My next military hero is coming up in March in the second book of the Cowboys and Confetti duet (Once Dance With The Cowboy is book 1, and out in January). In March you’ll meet Noah Laramie in Her Lone Cowboy. Noah is a man of extraordinary character who is soldier, brother, cowboy and lover. I hope my readers love him as much as I do.


Visit Donna at www.donnaalward.com

So let's talk about men in uniform today. Or cowboys. Or both :-)
One commentor will win a copy of Donna's current release.

MOANday-Nathan Fillion

My current crush comes from a television show on Monday nights: Castle. I was late jumping on the bandwagon, because I’d gotten out of the habit of watching television on a regular basis. I would mostly just tune in to something vaguely interesting while I did something else, like write or read (weird, I know). I’d stopped watching most of the shows I was addicted to, because they had changed or been cancelled. Then my husband brought home the first season of Castle on DVD!



He’d always been a fan of Fillion from back in the Firefly days, when he played Joss Whedon’s version of a Space Cowboy:



I, on the other hand, appreciate him for other reasons. ;) I'm a sucker for bulging biceps...




He’s a superb actor with a great sense of timing, and reminds me of my hubby with his innuendo filled one liners.



But my favorite parts of the show are seeing him staring broodingly at the computer screen while he’s typing away. That’s probably the least interesting to other people, but I find a touch of communion with the character there, because I understand what that moment feels like.




So Nathan Fillion gets my vote this month because he’s relatable, and hunky!!!

Angel
Coming Soon!
This week is Theme Week! Stay tuned.

Tomorrow, welcome guest author Annie Burrows.

MOANday-Channing Tatum

Several of the movies I’ve been to lately have opened with the trailer of G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. I couldn’t help but notice this ultra hottie in it.



In addition to modelling for clothing designers like Abercrombie & Finch, Channing Tatum has played in CSI: Miami, Step Up, Fighting, and most recently, in Public Enemies with the Playground's very favorite Johnny Depp. In looking up information on Channing, one significant fact stood out. He was born in Cullman, AL, which is where our local RWA chapter holds its meetings. Goes to show Alabama CAN raise some prime specimens!



Are you an action film kind of girl? Or romantic comedies? Suspense or horror? What upcoming movies are you most looking forward to seeing?

Angel

Coming Soon!

Join us on Wednesday, August 5th, as we celebrate the launch of Honorary Playfriend Lynn Raye Harris's debut Harlequin Presents!!!