@BarbaraMonajem 's latest book is on fire! Lady of the Flames #MFRWorg #historical #paranormal

What a wonderful day for the Princesses as we welcome author Barbara Monajem!

Barbara Monajem wrote her first story in third grade about apple tree gnomes. An embarrassing number of years later, she still sneaks magical little creatures into her books, although they’re romances for grownups now. She lives in Atlanta with assorted relatives, friends, and feline strays.

Speed Round:

Favorite movie: The Princess Bride
Favorite book: Oh, come on now. Impossible!
Last book read: Murder in Hindsight by Anne Cleeland (for the third time)
Favorite color: Red!

Stilettos or flip-flops: Sneakers
Coffee or tea: Both, but not mixed together. Tea plus coffee does not equal toffee.

# A Book is Born – by Phyllis Middleton

Ten years in the making.  One story.  Many revisions.  Many more times it was shelved.  Yet still, I returned to a story that I wanted to see published. I wanted that story out there for others to enjoy and maybe some will hate, but it’s there for the reading. I wanted THIS story to be the first.

My baby.  My debut novel, NINE LIVES, TWO DOWN will be available to the public tomorrow – March 27^th and it’s been on pre-order since March 20^th.  Needless to say, I was over the moon when I saw the email from my editor announcing the pre-order. 

Double celebration!  March 27^th  also  happens to be my birthday! Who knew fate would wait until my senior years to answer a dream.  What a weekend this will be – Life, Love, Laugh, and the Pursuit of Happiness!

#Reading #NancyDrew @kathyivan #MFRWorg

MY EVOLUTION OF READING – by Kathy Ivan

I've always been a reader, from a very early age.  I was one of those kids in school who when they got the reading list for the year had it finished in just a few weeks.  Books were my escape from life, from school, from everything.  They took me away to places I'd never get to see outside of their pages.  I got to meet people and make special friends, all between the covers of a book.

One of my fondest memories was when I was about seven or eight.  My mom loved to visit second-hand shops and used book stores and I'd often go with her.  On this one particular afternoon, she was browsing, and I wandered around the store, never too far from her sight but enough that I felt free to look at my leisure.  In my explorations, I found a tattered old cardboard box.  When I started digging, I found these lovely old volumes of books I'd never seen or heard of.  They all starred this girl called Nancy Drew.

Opening the first book, I remember falling under the spell of the story.  A girl and her friends were having adventures.  Solving mysteries.  They were having FUN!  Oh, I wanted those books so much, but I didn't have enough to get one of them, much less all that were in that box.  I was heartbroken, because I knew they'd be gone the next time we came in.  After all, these were special books, so everybody would want to read them. 

@VickiBatman - The artwork of #LittleGoldenBooks , an exhibit #MFRWorg #RLFblog #childrensbooks

As the self-appointed cultural guide in my family, I’m always looking for something for us to do. An ad in my local paper’s weekend section featured an exhibit coming to town entitled: Golden Legacy: Original Art from 65 years of Little Golden Books. 

I had to go. I read and owned several of these books when I was little and even bought them for my sons.  I had to take advantage of this enriching opportunity and take Handsome. Handsome was reluctant. But I plied him with his favorite hamburger and off we went. Disapointed?  Heck, no!

The exhibition presented the most extensive public showing ever of original illustration art from the Little Golden Books which celebrated its 65th anniversary in 2007.  (I apologize for glare on some photos.)

@sloanebcollins *Next week I'll be older than my mother* #MFRWorg #RLFblog #birthday #bucketlist

Next week I’ll be 14 years older than my mother. Somehow, she’s perpetually 36. (Okay, who’s doing the math?)  Yes, I have a big birthday coming up.  One that has me going “how the heck did this happen?” 

So I've been doing some musing on where I’m at in my life, things I've worked for, things I've accomplished, and what I still want to do someday. Which has led to my bucket list.  It’s changed over the years, but some things have stayed the same, and I can finally check them off.

We went to Hawaii a couple of years ago, and I've been to Ireland, so check check. I still want to go to Scotland.

Thank you, Princesses! #MustRead #amwriting #romance

The Plotting Princesses is a group of many fantastic Texan authors of many genres. What most of our readers don't know is how wonderful it is to belong to this group of writers. I'm so thankful for the sisterhood we all have, not only in plotting out books and talking shop but in supporting one another throughout life.

author DC Thome is pretty crazy-he has a *collection* of polar fleeces! #authorinterview #MFRWorg #RLFblog

The Plotting Princesses welcome crazy man, 

DC Thome. 

Let's get to know more:

I live in Wisconsin. I’ve been a journalist, a screenwriter and a novelist. At some point or another, my wife Mary Jo has been my editor for all three media.

Favorite movie: It’s a Wonderful Life.

Favorite book: Goodnight Moon.

Last book read: Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh

Favorite color: Grey, but people find that weird, so orange. 

Stilettos or flip-flops: On who?

Coffee or tea: Coffee. 

E-book or paperback: E-book. 

Pencil or pen: Pencil. 

Favorite song: Linus and Lucy by Vince Guaraldi

Streak or not: Sure. 

Favorite dessert: Flourless chocolate cake with raspberry sauce.

Champagne or gin: Champagne. 

Paranormal or Historical: Paranormal.

Ginger or Mary Ann: Mary Ann. 

Favorite TV show: Gilligan’s Island. 

Hot or cold: Hot.

POV: Third-person. 

I'd die if I don't have: My collection of polar fleeces.

 In San Fernando Dreams, a disillusioned movie starlet finds herself falling in love with a twin—but which one?

Keeping Warm When It's Cold Outside

It's been cold recently. Has anyone else noticed that or is it just me?
I like the occasional cold spell now and then. But, I don't like feeling cold for long periods of time. So I've been looking into ways to keep warm.
Exercise. Um... Pass?

Cooking. The problem with cooking warm, delicious comfort food (especially when you have the above exercise regimen) is it tends to expand the waist... thighs... etc. And while I'm a fan of a more Ruben-esque female form, one must be careful.

Bad Women of the West

As a western writer, I spend a lot of time reading books about the time period. Much has been written about bad men, but what about outlaw or bad women of the west? From the beginning of time women, just like men have gone astray. In the current book I’m writing my heroine who is a bounty hunter, is working as a card dealer in a saloon to catch the man she’s hunting.

The idea came from reading a book called The Lady Was A Gambler: True Stories of Notorious Women of the Old West by Chris Enss. The book tells the tales of fifteen women who either gambled or were dealers at the saloons or gambling halls. Interesting reading of how women were used to distract men and help them lose their money.

Another book I’ve found very interesting for research is The Bedside Book of Bad Girls: Outlaw Women of the American West by Michael Rutter. The story about Kate Bender at Benders Bloody Inn was one of the scariest tales I’ve read. It made me think twice about stopping at a hotel for the night.

My latest read is a book called Tough Towns: True Tales from the Gritty Streets of the Old West by Robert Barr Smith. This book is about how ordinary citizens took back their towns from the bad guys who invaded. I haven’t finished this book yet, but so far it’s been interesting reading.