Today's topic is book challenges. I always intend to accept some challenges, but since Christmas I haven't had the time to do anything but edit. I had a short story published at Christmas and at one time was doing edits on three books at once. Edits for publishers, I mean. I've gotten it down to two books now, but I'm still strapped for time. Still, I wanted to participate today. Why I Love Wednesday originates at
http://www.reflectionsofabookaholic.com. If you aren't familiar with this, do please check it out.
Since I haven't had the time to accept any challenges, I've decided to share a short excerpt from my own multi-cultural novel Purple Heart. Purple Heart is available at either Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or The Wild Rose Press.
In this excerpt my hero whose best friend was killed in Iraq (He's going to reform. I promise.) interacts with my heroine, a woman from the Middle East.
He opened the door, and his expression darkened when he saw Jenna West. “Can I help you?” he coldly asked. He hoped she wouldn’t make a habit of bothering him. If she did he’d have to move to the Botany Arms, and he didn’t like that at all.
The woman gave him a big, sunny smile. “I know you probably haven’t had time to go to the grocery store, so I thought I’d offer you some lunch.” She held out a casserole dish. “I hope you enjoy it.”
How dare she try to be nice to him! He didn’t want or need her charity, but if he didn’t take it he’d seem like a jerk. “Thank you. I’ll return your dish,” he stonily answered.
“You’re welcome. I was glad to do it.”
She hastily took herself back to her own half of the duplex, and Mike tried to decide what to do with the casserole. He was starving to death, and it smelled great, but he didn’t really want to eat something that she had cooked. She might be dirty.
His stomach growled, and he actually took a plate out of the cabinet before he decided that he wouldn’t risk it. He dumped the whole thing into the garbage and ran some water into the dish. Boy, it had smelled good.
With an exclamation of disgust, he grabbed his grocery list and pulled on his coat. He didn’t have a bite to eat in the whole house.
My topic today is favorite author blogs. Have you ever looked at http://www.savvyauthors.com? I like this blog because it has a lot to offer. They feature author interviews, articles on the craft and industry of writing, contests, workshops, legal issues, marketing and promo, contests, author interviews, and the writing life. The articles on the front page look especially interesting today if you'd like to check them out.
Matt didn’t answer, but the sound of running water had stopped, so Violet pushed open the door. In the dim light she couldn’t identify the black object near the door, but she could plainly see the other items. A trail of lacey, pink undergarments led the eye toward the bed. Violet identified Stacey at once even though she saw only one slender, bare shoulder and a head full of tousled, blonde hair. The blood drained from her face as she started to tremble. She would have given anything she possessed to be away from this awful place, but she couldn’t move.
