Know How to Seduce a Fireman? Ms. Davis has a clue... #Romance #Excerpt

Check out Vonnie's hot new release!!!

The heat is on…

Book 1 in the ‘Wild Heat’ series – the hottest new fireman trilogy of the fall!

Cassie Wolford has crushed on fireman Quinn Gallagher ever since he moved to Clearwater three years ago. There’s just one problem: he’s always made it clear dating is out of the question. But once a Wolford sets their sights on someone, that person doesn’t stand a chance! Cassie decides it’s time for Quinn to get a dose of his own medicine… and sets out to show him what he’s missing!

Quinn knows only too well what Cassie’s up to but he can’t give her what she wants. He isn’t good for anyone, much less someone as sweet as his angel. Fighting her off hurts like hell, but giving her false hope of a happy ever after would be damn cruel. That’s why he has to leave Clearwater.


Unfortunately, someone from his past has different ideas and when Cassie’s life is threatened this former CIA operative is staying put, prepared to crawl through hell and back to keep her safe. And it looks like he might just have to.

Amazon

Excerpt:

Einstein whined and licked her face.

A pink wrapped gift on the nightstand caught her eye. Was it for her? Or was it something Wolf had left for Becca? But why would he put it here and not in Becca’s bedroom? She reached for the oblong package and fingered the silver ribbon. A small gift tag read “To Cassie, from Quinn. Happy Birthday, Peanut.”

Her heart rate kicked into the happy-to-be-me category. He’d bought her a gift. Even if it was something cheap and goofy, he’d thought enough of her to buy it and have it wrapped. So why didn’t he bring it to her birthday party? Her eyes narrowed. Oh yeah, his mystery female visitor.

Pushing that thought aside, she slid the metallic ribbon off the box. No way could he have wrapped it so carefully. She slid her fingernail along the taped edge and folded back the iridescent pink paper. The embossed logo on the white jeweler’s box impressed her. Had Quinn really gone to Zales to buy her a gift? She snapped the lid open and gasped. From a delicate gold chain dangled a filigree heart pendant. An angel nestled within the open scrollwork edging the heart. Small brilliant diamonds covered the angel’s outstretched wings.

She blinked back tears. “Oh, Quinn, you do care. No matter what you say, you do care.” When he’d kissed her last night, he’d called her his angel. Is this how he thought of her? As an angel who’d wormed her way into his heart? She slid two fingers beneath the pendant, the warmth of the gold soaking into her skin like the sun’s rays on a bright June day. So beautiful. So fragile looking and yet solid, just like her feelings for him.

She pressed the white box to her heart and sighed. Her first jewelry gift from a man, and the man was Quinn.

Einstein sniffed what she held and then laid his chin on her shoulder, his black eyes studying her. She ran a finger between his eyes and down his muzzle. “I have an admirer. He’s just too scared to admit it yet. Poor schmuck.” She giggled with glee and the dog licked her face. “Poor chicken shit schmuck.” The canine’s tail beat a happy rhythm on the bed.

About Vonnie Davis: 

Vonnie Davis is an award-winning, international author who writes contemporary, historical and paranormal romance, often with strong elements of suspense.  She likens herself to a croissant: warm, crusty, wrinkled, a tad flaky—and best served with strong coffee.

Blog  /  Website

#WriterlyWisdomWednesday: Vonnie Davis on Dialog #WriteTip

HOW DO YOUR CHARACTERS TALK?

Thank you, Terri, for allowing me to visit your blog today to discuss the backbone of any good story—the dialog. Can you imagine reading a book without hearing the characters speak? Dialog doesn’t just add verbal liveliness to a story, but tells us about the person talking and a little about the person being spoken to. It also drives us through the literary dream world we’re creating for our readers.

To write dialog that pulls the reader deeper into the story, there are some things the author must know about the characters.

Age—Teenagers use slang that grandmas, like me, seldom use. “You see what I’m sayin’?” “True that” I love it when an author takes the time to incorporate a young child’s speech patterns into a story. “But, Mommy, I like da wed shoes.” Let me tell you, I’m in love with the child already and I’m reaching for my charge card.

Sex—Men speak differently than women. They typically use shorter sentences or grunts. Sometimes, a stronger peppering of cuss words too. Women will often use the phrase “I feel like…” A man, not so much. Also, we talk differently around members of the opposite sex than we do around a group of our own sex. Listen to people talk in the mall or in a restaurant. There’s “girl talk” and then there’s “woman to man” talk. No, it doesn’t always contain flirting, but there are subtle differences.

Education—Has your character graduated from high school or college? Vocabulary levels will differ to a degree between the two education levels, not much, but enough to be noticeable.

Character’s Background—Different parts of the country speak differently. Some say soda; some say soda pop, or simply pop. Some areas drop the g’s off the endings of words (something more prone in an older person than someone younger). English speaking people of other nationalities are less prone to use contractions.

Location of Your Story—If your story takes place in another country, pick a half-dozen to a dozen words to use in that country’s native tongue. Words readers will find easily recognizable. For example, in my stories set in Paris, I used oui for yes, cherie for sweetheart, mon ami for my friend, or café au lait for coffee with cream. In my Scottish paranormals, I made a list of words to consistently use to add flavor and sense of place. Remember any words written in a language other than English go in italics.

Dialog tags are a sign of weak writing, so avoid them. I was shocked the first time my agent sent back a manuscript with every dialog tag crossed out and a note in the comments section—“You can do better. This is a sign of weak writing. Use your action beats to indicate who is speaking. This will strengthen your writing.”

Well, folks, I didn’t even know what an action beat was! I had a good pity cry over that…and I don’t mean a few weepy tears, either. How was I to keep dialog straight? My readers would be confused? How would removing “he said/she said’s” strengthen my writing?

So, I practiced and worked and rewrote until I could turn an 85,000 word manuscript over to my editor for her to read and edit with zero said tags. My biggest challenge was the tag “he/she whispered.” I don’t know why that one was so hard for me to master, but I was all kinds of tickled when I finally figured it out.

Yes, writing without said tags requires more work for the author, but it creates a more vibrant visual for our reader. Let me give you a quick example.

1.) “Was that Aaron’s truck I just saw leaving?” Taylor asked when he stormed in.

2.) Taylor stormed into the kitchen and tossed his keys on the counter, their clanging disturbing the quiet and making Emma wince. Taylor’s brown eyes narrowed and his face reddened with anger beneath his dark scruff of beard. “Was that Aaron’s truck I just saw leaving?”

Now, which example gave you the better visual? The deeper emotion—both his and hers? Which one drew you deeper into the scene? Hopefully, the one without the “said tag.” Yes, example 2 was more work for me, but my goal is to create page turners that pull you deeper into the literary dream world I’m creating for you. To do that, I must work at it, even if it means rewriting it a dozen times.

As a reader, I find dialog tags annoying, especially the he/she said after a question mark. Think about it. A question mark only has one function. One. To indicate that the previous string of words were asked in a questioning manner. So why would you insult your readers’ intelligence by slapping on he/she said afterward as if they were too dumb to know what that “?” meant? We cannot insult our readers this way. We entertain, we transport them to other worlds, we even educate to a degree, but we never, ever insult their intelligence.

~~~oOo~~~

Vonnie Davis is an award-winning, international author who likens herself to a French croissant: warm, crusty, wrinkled and a tad flaky—and best served with strong coffee. With an English degree and a career as a technical writer, making the shift to romance writer should have been a breeze. Too bad she hadn’t a clue. Now she realizes the learning curve of a good writer is continual. She began her career with smaller presses, but now writes paranormal and contemporary romance, both with a splash of suspense, exclusively for LoveSwept/Random House and HarperImpulse. She lives in southern Virginia with her husband who doesn’t seem to mind her craziness; perhaps because he’s a writer too.

Although the title to this novella is Santa Wore Leathers, it is a romance for all seasons. Plus it kicks off my Firemen’s Wild Heat series with many of the hunky fire and marine rescue personnel you’ll meet in this novella.

Take one man-shy reporter, a gorgeous ex-Navy SEAL turned firefighter, add in a thong-stealing dog… and Christmas will never be the same again!

There’s only one thing on Becca Sinclair’s Christmas list this holiday season – her very own column in the local paper. And if she can build a huge blog following, her wish just might come true.

Enter Dan ‘Wolf’ Wolford aka the man-whore next door and the new star of Becca’s popular, post-divorce blog about men. A Navy SEAL turned commander of the Florida Marine Rescue Unit, Wolf’s the very definition of the word alpha – and with an endless rotation of women on his doorstep, this hunk on a Harley has Becca and her female followers all hot and bothered!

All Becca wants for Christmas is her newspaper column, right? But when she finds herself the target of Wolf’s irresistible attentions, her snarky comebacks become less and less convincing and, suddenly, she’s not so sure anymore…

BUY LINKS: 

Amazon  / Barnes & Noble

Santa Wore leathers??? #Romance #Novella

hehehehe

LOVE the title of this book!

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BLURB:

There’s only one thing on Becca Sinclair’s Christmas list this holiday season – her very own column in the local paper. And if she can build a huge blog following, her wish just might come true.

Enter Dan “Wolf” Wolford aka the man-whore next door and the new star of Becca’s popular, post-divorce blog about men. A Navy SEAL turned commander of the Florida Marine Rescue Unit, Wolf’s the very definition of the word alpha – and with an endless rotation of women on his doorstep, this hunk on a Harley has Becca and her female followers all hot and bothered!

All Becca wants for Christmas is her newspaper column, right? But when she finds herself the target of Wolf’s irresistible attentions, her snarky comebacks become less and less convincing and, suddenly, she’s not so sure anymore…

#GuestPost : Vonnie Davis, #Romance Author #Excerpt

Welcome to my fellow SMP author, Vonnie Davis! She's here to promote her newest release, A Man for Annalee, an historical romance. Take it away Vonnie!

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Werewolves, corporate executives, special ops, English gentry…and cowboys. Contemporary or historical, cowboys snag romance readers’ hearts. As a relatively new writer with three contemporary and two historical Westerns published or soon to be released, I enjoy penning stories about this rare breed of man. I adore the cowboys’ love of animals, their code of right and wrong and their raw sexuality.

While Linda Lael Miller’s western romances are embraced by the NYT’s Best Sellers list at the time of their release, mine barely garner a blip on the publishing radar screen. And that’s okay for now, because I love doing research, especially when I’m working on a historical. Sometimes the personal satisfaction of doing what you find irresistible to your soul is worth being unknown.

I also include Native Americans in all my western stories. You see, I have a grandson who is half-Native and I do this to honor this part of his heritage. His grandmother, a member of the Mi’kmaq tribe, is my “go-to-lady” for all things pertaining to The Red Way. With her vast network of members of other tribes, she can add the authority of truth to any Indian references.

This week, my historical novella, A Man for Annalee, released from Still Moments Publishing. Set in a fictional town of Cicero Creek, it is full of quirky characters and its own brand of danger.

Here’s the blurb:

Annalee Gallagher loses her parents, home and business in the Great Fire of Chicago. When she travels to Cicero Creek in the Wyoming Territory to start a new life, more heartache awaits her, so do the attentions of several men—for good and for evil. Why was her stagecoach attacked and was the shot that zinged over her head one night, a wild bullet or a bad aim?

Boone Hartwell, the marshal of Cicero Creek, suspects someone is out to kill the new spitfire in town. She amuses him and touches a lonely part of his soul, but can he keep her safe? More importantly, can a white man raised as Cheyenne win her heart? Can he rise above all her other suitors? For one thing is for certain in his determined mind: He’s the man for Annalee.

In the segment I’m about to share, people from surrounding ranches, as well as townspeople, have come to my heroine’s new home to help with repairs and cleaning. This gathering also serves as a social activity for these pioneers who lived an often isolated life. Annalee, my heroine, arrives and hears men working behind the cabin…

Click on image to add on Goodreads

       Annalee rounded the back corner of the house. Suddenly she stopped dead in her tracks and shrieked. There stood an Indian. A bloodthirsty Indian just like in her dime novels. Red skin, evil looking, with a hatchet in his hand. She backed up a step, her hands involuntarily rising to cover her hair.

       “Annalee.” Boone leapt from rafters over the porch. “Meet my brother, Two Bears. He’s making shingles for the roof.”

       Her gaze went from the hatchet Two Bears was holding to Boone’s face. “Sh…shingles?” Her voice squeaked as her heartbeat gonged in her head like the church bells in the tower of St. Francis Church back in Chicago.

       Boone spoke in a calm voice, his grin widening as reached her. “Levi, Two Bears, and I have been fixing your back porch. We decided on building a roof over it. We thought it would help protect you from the elements.”    

       “E…elements,” Annalee repeated lamely, quite unable to take her eyes off Two Bears. His long black hair was parted in the middle and braided. The braids were wrapped in what appeared to be otter fur, similar to what she sometimes used to trim hats and make muffs.

       Boone trailed a finger down her cheek. “Plus, I’ll string a clothesline between the poles of the porch, so you can hang laundry out to dry. Lee draped his clothes over bushes, but ladies have different ideas about that sort of thing.”

       She slowly nodded. “Hang…” Goodness, but the Native’s pierced earlobes  were hung with pounded silver coins on brass wire. Around his neck was a choker of white beads, four rows of them, and in the middle of the choker was a diamond-shaped medallion of turquoise beads. A man wearing a necklace and earbobs, who could have imagined such a thing? Sewn onto his deerskin shirt were rows of white and turquoise beads. He wore fringed deerskin leggings and moccasins, also intricately beaded.

       His entire countenance bespoke Native culture, violence, and hostility. She didn’t think her heart would ever beat calmly again. An Indian. On her property. A true-to-life Indian standing right before her, with bloodlust in his black eyes. And, dear God, he was holding a hatchet.

       Two Bears stared at her, too. “You are Red Badger?”

       “You can talk?”

       “Most humans do.” Two Bears glanced at Boone, and if she didn’t know better, she’d have sworn he smiled slightly. He gestured with his hands when he spoke, “You take hands off hair now. Me done scalping for day. Me scalp six people on way here this morning.”

       Annalee’s voice squeaked again, “S…Six…” The world spun and darkened.

****

       She fainted into Boone’s arms. He held her close, worried she was harmed in some way. “Now, look what you’ve done.” Boone scowled at his brother.

       Levi and Two Bears were laughing. Levi slapped the Native on the back. “Did you see the look on her face?”

       Two Bears nodded and laughed some more. “Sheer terror.”

       “You’re a lawyer, you don’t need to talk like that. You frightened her into another swooning spell.” Boone tightened his grip on Annalee, protectively drawing her near his chest. He was staggered at the depths of his feelings for this petite spitfire. Realization slammed into him that he’d go against anyone or anything to keep her safe. In his heart and soul, this woman was his.

       Two Bears stood at his elbow and studied the woman. “It’s the way Easterners expect us to talk.” His gaze lifted to Boone’s. “You’ve chosen well, my brother.”

PURCHASE LINKS:

Still Moments Publishing  /  Amazon

Find Vonnie online at www.vonniedavis.com and blogging at ww.vintagevonnie.blogspot.com

Follow me on Twitter -- @VonnieWrites