Congratulations to Liz S.!

Congratulations to Liz S. of Illinois, winner of the 2013 Earth Day Giveaway!  Liz gets her choice of EARTH, WATER, or my brand-new paranormal romance, THE SERPENT IN THE STONE, in PDF format!  She chose a copy of EARTH, Book One in the Elemental Series.



Thank you so much to everyone for participating in this year's Earth Day Giveaway.  It was lots of fun to hear about what things you've all done to help your planet, big or small.  Keep up the great work, and keep checking back here for other great contests!

THE SERPENT IN THE STONE Free On Kindle!

Now through April 27, just FIVE DAYS ONLY, get THE SERPENT IN THE STONE for free on your Kindle! Click here to get your very own copy!

 



About THE SERPENT IN THE STONE
(The Gifted Series: Book One)
Coming 6/28/13 from The Wild Rose Press
ISBN # 9781612178165

Sara Markham is used to secrets. She has two of her own: her paranormal powers, and her father's unsolved murder twenty years ago. The first is a secret she can't divulge, and the other she yearns to unravel.

When her archaeology firm is tapped to excavate a ruin in Shetland, Sara accepts eagerly, hoping it will help solve the mystery of her father's death. But she doesn't anticipate Ian Waverly, a wildlife biologist whose questions worry her even as his rugged magnetism fascinates her. Ian's more connected to her gifts than she knows, and far more than he wants to admit.

Enemies on sight, Ian and Sara struggle to fight the attraction that blazes between them. But when they are confronted with a decades-old web of lies and corruption, they discover the truth: only together can they heal the heartaches brought by the very darkest of secrets.

Excerpt from THE SERPENT IN THE STONE

"What - exactly - are you?" Ian demanded.

Alarm bells clanged at the hostility in his voice. Sara had to force her voice past them. "You've seen me shapeshift. I can read minds sometimes."

"I've got time for the long version." He put the necklace back into his pocket. The shuttered look on his face raised panicky flutters in her belly.

She drew a long breath. "Telekinesis. I caught you with telekinesis."

"How did you get telekinesis?"

"It's not like they hand it out in stores! It just happened one day. I didn't know what it was, and I was too scared to tell my parents. I was afraid of it for a long time."

"When did your father die? How did he die?"

Her thoughts flew to the amulet in Ian's pocket. "What has any of this got to do with my father?"
"Maybe nothing. Could be more. This stuff might be genetic."

Icy dread crawled across her skin. "I'm done talking to you."

Quick as lightning, he reached forward and snatched the boat keys from the ignition. "This necklace has to be important if you're willing to risk being shot to fix it, Sara. That's not even going there about you risking me being shot at. You're not getting it back until you talk."

She felt naked. Worse than she had at the inlet. Then, she'd seen desire in his eyes.

Now, she saw only hatred. "This isn't about me," she said, startled. "It's about you."

"Never mind me," he snapped.

"What is it?" she asked. "What happened to you?"

"How did your father die?"

Pain and betrayal surged anew through every cell in her body, and that little girl from twenty years ago gave a silent wail of outrage. "He. Was. Murdered."

Happy Earth Day!

Wishing all of you a very happy and green Earth Day, wherever you are. It's gonna be a gorgeous one, here in my neck of the woods. Hope yours is great, too! Do a little something for your planet today, even if it's something as small as choosing a reuseable coffee cup over Styrofoam.

In Support of Boston

As many of you already know, yesterday there were explosions at the Boston Marathon, killing three and injuring many others.  It was a senseless, cruel act, and I am stunned.  While I don't like to post about such negative occurrences, as I'm sure no one does, I feel something must be said today in support of those affected.  I'm outraged, and I want justice for what happened, and I feel helpless to do anything.

But I'm not.  And you aren't, either.

The best thing we can do is pull together, stay calm, and get back to as normal a routine as possible so that the authorities can do their jobs quickly and efficiently.  In this day and age, with so many people connected to the Internet, and camera phones, and other devices that provide instant information, the cowardly criminals who did this are bound to be caught.  They're only going to win if we let this break us.

For my part, I went home, turned off the television, and played a board game with my family.  I remember, from 9/11, what watching all of that video over and over was like.  Today, I decided that any income I receive for the next quarter for my writing will be donated, 100%, to the Red Cross to aid them in support of the Boston tragedy.

We're in this together, folks.  If everyone does a little, we can accomplish a lot.  As horrible as yesterday's events were, I am still amazed, grateful, and so very glad to see that there are those still who believe that we are all a part of the human race.  So many people were there on the scene, right away, to offer assistance, comfort, support, and protection, and it didn't matter if the person was a friend or a complete stranger.  As capable as people are of great cruelty, we are also capable of great heroism.  Saying a prayer for all of you today.  Take care.

~ Nicki

Bestselling Romance Author Patricia Kay Coming to CNYRW!

I'm getting pretty jazzed about our May meeting of the CNY Romance Writers.  On May 11th, we'll be hosting a one-day workshop with bestselling romance author Patricia Kay.  She will be discussing "scene and sequel" and writing with emotion.  It's a conference full of good information, packed into an awesome day of fun and energy with fellow authors.  It's going to be a blast!

If you want to read more about the workshop (or better yet, become a CNYRW member and get the awesome benefits for a year!), check out the CNY Romance Writers link above.

The Butterflies (and Flowers) Are Returning!

Spring and autumn are my favorite seasons, because the cooler-but-not-too-cool temperatures encourage me to get outside.  Last weekend, I put up most of my windchimes, though a few need repair.  I also started trimming back and cleaning up my gardens in preparation for spring.  Today, I relaxed a bit outside and read a book, and during one of my trips across the lawn, I spied a Mourning Cloak butterfly (Nymphalis antiopa).

This pretty little surprise (and early, I thought) was sitting on the lawn, taking a rest from trying to fly in our breezy weather.  I tried to catch a picture of it, but it fluttered off into the wind before I was able to do so.  (This picture is from Wikipedia.)

The next little treat I noticed is that my bulbs are coming up.  The crocus in my front yard have popped up, the daffodils are just starting to sprout, and these little beauties are in my butterfly garden already:

This is Glory-of-the-Snow (Chionodoxa lucilae).  I'd forgotten I even planted it last fall, so it was a nice surprise to see it had already sprung up.  More than anything, the butterflies and flowers let me know the warm weather is approaching.  Happy spring!