What Women Want - A Special Guest & A Giveaway!!

I have a special guest on my blog today, Keri Ford. Keri writes sexy, country, contemporary romances and is celebrating her latest release, Rough Ride. Take it away, Keri!.

*****

Thank you Kaily so much for inviting me here today for a stop on my Roughneck Blog Tour!

I’m dishing on things women want. And not the movie. But in general. What do we want?

Me? With a husband, toddler and a dog—I want a maid! Have someone in to wash my clothes, clean my house, bathe my dog. Now that’s the stuff. Practical stuff. Either that or I’m just lazy.

We’ll stick with practical.

Gretchen Jones, heroine of Rough Ride isn’t so much into material needs like I am. She just wants someone to fill that empty space in the bed next to her. Lightly snore during the middle of the night to have something else to listen to besides the whine of the air conditioner and hum of the refrigerator. Feel a heartbeat against her back. His breath on her shoulder. Someone to beat the loneliness.

Not just any man will do. She wants Lane Iverson. And to get him, she’s going to have to work for it. In her own way, on her own terms. Terms Lane isn’t sure he can resist!

Leave me a comment! Let me know what YOU want! Today’s winner gets an ecopy of And She Liked It by Voirey Linger. Thanks so much Voirey for donating your book to my tour! Learn more about Voirey at her website, twitter and Facebook!

Blurb

You do for family, no matter what. Lane Iverson knows that better than anyone. Harboring a secret about his mother’s death, Lane is counting the days until he finishes helping his brothers with some work and can head back to his hiding hole hours away. As long as he doesn’t have to face his three brothers every day, the guilt is easier to carry.

There is only one thing that can risk his plan. All of five foot tall with these deep eyes and a voice that shudders through him. The completely addicting, Gretchen Jones. She’s been watching him the entire time he’s been in town. With courage from her friends behind her, she confronts what she wants. To her surprise, that’s the easy part. Keeping her heart protected when she knows he’ll be leaving? Not so easy, but her only choice.

Links

Read Chapter One http://bit.ly/H0azIz

Amazon http://amzn.to/IQiTz8

Barnes & Nobel http://bit.ly/J9Rzth

AllRomance Ebooks http://bit.ly/JN35rh

TMP http://bit.ly/JrZkK1

Goodreads http://bit.ly/KgZbaL

*****

Well, now know what I want! I want to read that book :). Check out Keri's website for more information about her books and The Roughnecks Blog Tour with all the giveaway, sneak peeks and blog stops: http://bit.ly/Hb1hwS

You can also connect with Keri:

Website http://bit.ly/Heo4Vr

Twitter http://bit.ly/HRgGgu

Facebook http://on.fb.me/HenzL0

Wanna Score Some Great Stuff?

Most of those in the writing community know about the Brenda Novak Auction for the Cure of Diabetes 2012! It's been going now for several years and it's purpose is to raise money towards diabetes research. It's such a wonderful cause and the items available are just fabulous. Seriously. Fabulous! There are items for readers and writers alike and everyone in between. The auction runs through the end of May with some items up for bid throughout the entire period, others come up for a specific day, so it pays to keep a close eye on it.

I have my own personal connection to diabetes. I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes during my last pregnancy (twins!) where prior I had no issues. Although I'm now fully recovered, I was able to experience for that peroid of time, in a small way, what it's like to be diabetic. And it aint fun, let me tell you. For a needle phobic? Having to test blood 4 times a day? Torture LOL. Just like a lot of people, there is diabetes in my family as well. It probably affects most people at some stage either directly or indirectly, right?

I'm fortunate now that I'm in a position to contribute myself to this wonderful auction. I have 3 items out there for bid:

I was one of a group of Carina Press authors who donated 2 Kindles to the auction. They're also loaded with a BUNCH of ebooks!
Amazon Kindle 3G
Amazon Kindle Fire/with Cover

I also donated my time for a first chapter/30 page critique!

AND I donated an awesome and amazing Steampunk 8GB USB drive! It also doubles as a pendant.

What are you waiting for? GO! Because it's such a wonderful cause, I'd appreciate it if you'd spread the word :).

And the winner is...

Wow! I had such great posts for Valentines Day memories. I hope everyone had a fabulous day and enjoyed doing whatever you wanted to do. I loved reading all the comments, especially considering I don't celebrate it. That is, my hubby doesn't celebrate it. But that's fine. Really. He doesn't need a special day. He does just great for the entire year...but don't tell him I said that :).

And now, the winner of my giveaway (chosen by random number generator) was LISA wolphcall(at)bellsouth(dot)net. Lisa, I'll be contacting you shortly to coordinate your gift card and to figure out which of my books you'd like!!

With Love Valentines Day Blog Hop AKA...Win Stuff!

Welcome to the With Love Valentines Day Blog Hop! This is a wonderful event with a bunch of author's participating and so MANY great prizes up for grabs. Thanks to the wonderful Drea for organizing it :). For those of you who might land here and don't know me, I write hot and steamy romance, contemporary as well as paranormal/urban fantasy real soon. My stories have tough alpha heroes who might be a little rough and rugged around the edges, but when they fall for the heroine? Man, they fall hard. They'd do anything, endure anything, sacrifice anything. For her. Sigh...

So what am I giving away? I'm giving away a $25 dollar gift card to an online book store (winner's choice) AND a copy of any 1 book from my ebook backlist! Not bad, right?

How can you win? Follow me, friend me or follow this blog and leave a comment here through the 14th telling me the most unusual, special, funny, touching thing you ever got or did for Valentines Day! I'll select a random commenter from this post as the winner!

Ready to go hopping and see what else is up for grabs? Click on the badge below and check out the other great participants!! Good luck and have a wonderful Valentines Day!!

What's 'hot'? You tell me & win a book!

I'm over with author Gail DeYoung today talking about what I think makes a guy a 'hottie'. Trust me, I spend a LOT of time pondering this because the heroes in my books have to appeal on many different levels. Readers are diverse. Preferences are diverse. And still...there are a core group of attributes that most women find appealing when it comes to guys. Go check out my post over with Gail HERE and tell me what YOU think makes a guy a true hottie. I'll be picking a winner at random from Gail's blog comments to receive an ebook from my backlist, winners choice. GO!

And the winner is....

Congratulations to kaisquared!!! Chosen by random number selection, you've won a $25 gift card to the online book store of your choice along with your choice of one of my ebooks!! I'll be sending you an email to work out the details :). Thanks so much to everyone who stopped by. I loved hearing about your favorite holiday memories and the things you most enjoy about the holiday season!

Stuff Your Stockings Christmas Blog Hop!!

Welcome to the Stuff Your Stockings Christmas Blog Hop! This is an amazing event with so many authors participating and so many great prizes. Thanks to the wonderful Drea for organizing it :). For those of you who might land here and don't know me, I write hot and steamy romance...with an emphasis on hot. My stories have tough alpha heroes who might be a little rough and rugged around the edges, but when they fall for the heroine? Man, they fall hard. They'd do anything, endure anything, sacrifice anything. For her. Sigh...

So what am I giving away? I'm giving away a $25 dollar gift card to an online book store (winner's choice) AND a copy of any 1 book from my ebook backlist! Not bad, right?

How can you win? Follow me, friend me or follow this blog and leave a comment here telling me what you enjoy most about the holidays! I'll select a random commenter from this post as the winner!

Ready to go hopping and see what else is up for grabs? Click on the badge below and check out the other great participants!! Good luck and happy holidays!!

And the winner is.....

Patty (skyjax02 at yahoo.com)!! Congratulations!! I'll be reaching out to you for your book choice. Thanks so much to everyone for the birthday wishes and for stopping by! You're all so awesome. Made my day, that's for sure :)!

So it's my birthday & I'll give away stuff if I want to...

So what am I doing to celebrate? You had to ask LOL. I have to rush my daughter to the dentist this morning. She lost a filling yesterday. I was at the doctors office myself yesterday (5 hour door-2-door trip) and he gave me the wonderful news that I have bronchitis and possibly phemonia. Sigh... I'll be getting a chest x-ray early this afternoon. I'm OK with taking my clothes off on my birthday, more than, but for an x-ray? :) I could have done without that. I also have air conditioner repair men under foot all day at the house. One of our units completely broke down and they need to rebuild it. For 4 hours! Thousands of dollars worth of repairs. So thankful I had the forsight to buy an extended warranty plan for it. And to top it all off, tonight it's my daughter's Girl Scout court of awards so we'll be rounding out the evening with s'mores and hot chocolate. Of course it will probably reach 80 degrees here today so not exactly the welcome snack it could be. I live an exciting life, don't I? I really know how to celebrate in style, yes? You probably wish you too could have this much fun on your birthday!

Anyway, it is my birthday but I thought I'd turn the tables and be the one giving away stuff! Through 11:59 pm Eastern tomorrow (cause I'm hoping tomorrow will be better, MUCH better), I'll pick a commenter on this blog to win either a signed copy of my print anthology OR any 3 of my ebooks. Winners choice. Not bad, right?

You can leave a random comment or tell me what's the best or worst birthday (or present) you ever had! GO!

And the winners are...

By spreadsheet random number generator (RANDBETWEEN for spreadsheet freaks like me LOL), the winners of my Halloween giveaway are:

shadow_kohler
Kathryn Merkel
flchen1
mahalia2010

You each get to choose any one of my ebooks!! Let me know which one you'd like (Picture This, Pay Up, Play Me or Point Blank) by email to kaily @ kailyhart . com and I'll send it right off to you. If you'd like to check out an excerpt first, you can see them all here.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween if you celebrate it where you live ,and if not, I hope you at least got to over indulge with the sugar (although I really could have done without that).

It's Halloween & I'm giving stuff away...

I love Halloween. It's probably one of the things I've most enjoyed about living in the US. It's all about FUN and I get such a kick out of how much the kids really get into it SO.. it seemed appropriate to join a Halloween Blog Hop to celebrate!!

It starts TODAY, Friday, October 28th and goes through Monday, October 31st and I'm giving away books!! I'll be picking four winners, yes FOUR winners from comments on my blog through Monday. Each winner can have their choice of any of my ebooks. All you have to do is tell me what YOU love about Halloween (or don't). I'll announce the winners on Tuesday. Here!


There's a ton of other authors participating all giving away something on their own blogs. Be sure to check them all out  HERE to follow the Hop around and see what else is up for grabs!!!

Below are some of the more interesting pumpkins I've seen so far. Some people have WAY too much time on their hands if you ask me :).

Wanna win a book?

While I've been distracted this week with back to school preparations, I decided it was about time to give away a book. It was, right? Head on over to Passionate Reads for the details (it's really easy I promise). The winner will get a choice of any of my books, including the most recent release, POINT BLANK. Go. Now!

I should be back to my regular schedule next week...

Contest! I'm giving away...

...a $25 Amazon Gift Card! I'm over at Whipped Cream Reviews all week with a different post each day. Stop on over to see how to enter and you might learn something interesting about me with each of the posts ;).

Wanna talk BDSM? Wanna win something?

I have a special guest here today with an 'interesting' topic :) to keep things moving while I'm making my way to the Annual Romance Writers of America conference in New York. I'll be checking in and hopefully posting some progress reports. Until then, take it away, Randi!

I want to thank Kaily for letting guest blog today. I’m Randi Alexander and I write cowboy erotic romance. My first book, Chase and Seduction was released May 27 from The Wild Rose Press' Cowboy Kink line.

The Cowboy Kink line is - just as it sounds - a line of kinky erotic romances focused on cowboys. Each of the books is written by authors who have their own version of 'kink.' And with cowboys, you know a lot of the kink has to do with ropes and whips.

But I want to talk BDSM today. If you're not familiar with the acronym, it stands for Bondage and Discipline / Dominance and Submission / Sadism and Masochism. It's not specific to sex, but in erotic romance, it is sexual in most stories. The reason I'm sounding like Wikipedia is that I've had a few people in a variety of age ranges ask me what BDSM was.

While I'm not familiar with it personally, except for a little 'slap and tickle' now and then, I did write some light BDSM into Chase and Seduction. The excerpt below is the opening of the scene, which takes place outdoors, making it extra-kinky.

I've read a few erotic BDSM books, where there is meticulous detail paid to the bondage, the discipline, the role playing. While it was titillating, it wasn't what I wanted to see my characters doing. It just didn't fit the character backstories I'd written for them. But Chase does have a kinky side, which he gladly introduces Reno to, but it's not BDSM. The outdoor 'slap and tickle' scene is just a little extra treat I threw into the book, and it's one of my favorite sex scenes.

But many readers love erotic romances with heavy bondage, discipline, dominance, submission, sadism, or masochism. They sell very well, and are exciting, seductive, and just as romantic as my light BDSM. And that's where I need your help.

I have a story in mind, and I'm considering including some BDSM. What do you like to read? Do you prefer a story without it, or with a little 'slap and tickle', or do you like a full-throttle BDSM story? I'm excited to hear your comments.

And, as promised, following the story blurb, I've attached the beginning of my BDSM scene.

Country music superstar/actor Chase Tanner has yet to be denied anything–and he’s never wanted anything or anyone more than gorgeous screenplay writer Reno Linden. So when the film they are working on is finally finished, Chase decides to turn up the volume on seducing Reno. 

Reno Linden lived a quiet, rural life until she was thrust into the Hollywood scene when her book was adapted to film. Chase Tanner is larger than life, sinfully sexy and hell-bent on getting her into bed. Skittish after a failed wedding engagement, Reno risks the plunge into Chase’s arms, and is surprised that her good girl self can keep up with bad boy Chase. 

Though Chase returns to his cowboy roots often, and Reno cherishes the time spent with him on his ranch, the two find their careers pulling them in different directions. Will their attraction survive the glitz and stress of fame? 

EXCERPT: Over 18 only please.
“Woman! Don’t make me come after you!”
Reno straightened, showing him her profile. “You could never catch me, old man.”
“Old?” Chase leapt to his feet, and she jerked, dropping the flower.
He stalked toward her. “I’ll show you old.”
She let out a shriek and bolted in the opposite direction, laughing crazily.
He took a hop, then ran hard and fast, and was upon her in seconds. Grabbing her around the waist, he lifted her off her feet. “There’s no getting away from me, Reno.”
She slapped at his hands. “Let me go, you evil letch.”
He released her, only to grab one wrist, bend and grab her opposite knee, and lift her over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry, her warm skin rubbing against his, kindling a fire in each nerve she touched.
She squealed and laughed. “Chase, you put me down.”
Dominating her this way sent a rush of desire through him, and her weight felt like a feather as he strode back to their blanket. Reaching up, he swatted her behind. “You hush now.”
Her indrawn breath was followed by a soft moan. Then she asked, “And if I don’t hush?”

To celebrate the release of Chase and Seduction, I'm giving away, to one lucky *commenter, an e-copy of my novella Her Cowboy Stud. Just leave a comment today and we'll choose a winner tomorrow. *Commenter must be 18 years of age or older to win.

I'm also giving away a cowgirl hat to one subscriber to my newsletter. For more details, and to sign up for this contest, please go to my website, RandiAlexander.com  And while you're there, you can read the first chapter of Chase and Seduction.

Good luck, and thank you!

RandiAlexander.com

WildAndWickedCowboysBlog

So I Should Probably Give Away a Book...

So I will. Give away a book, that is :). From now through Tuesday midnight (EDT) anyone who makes a comment on my blog gets an entry. Winner can choose any one of my books.

So tell me...why do you read? What's the primary reason you want/need/have to lose yourself in a book?

Me & Desiree Holt. Oh, and there's prizes!!! Good ones!

Okay, so there's not really a Desiree Holt and me. Not quite like that anyway LOL. I know she's read my books and I was fortunate enough to meet her at last year's RomantiCon. Fangirl moment, anyone? What an awesome lady! She was so nice and incredibly fun and she's filled with just so much energy. I guess she has to be because you know what? Desiree just published her 100th book. 100! One. Zero. Zero.  Downstroke released from Ellora's Cave April 8.

BLURB

It’s been twenty years since security specialist Charley Roper and country star Dallas Creed had their bitter parting. Now a killer has brought them together again, but neither is ready for a reunion—despite signs that their explosive chemistry hasn’t waned with time. She can’t forget the feel of his hands on her body. He can’t forget the hot touch of her mouth. When they finally tumble into bed, the sex is just as good as they remember, hot enough to singe the sheets. But is it enough?

Thrown together during an exhausting, frenzied concert tour, with a killer nipping at their heels, Dallas and Charley find themselves on a hot, suspenseful, erotic roller coaster ride. Can he convince her to trust her heart to him one more time, to reach out for a richer, deeper, more mature love?

More importantly—can Charley keep Dallas alive long enough for either of them to enjoy a second chance?

You can view more information and buy it here.  I haven't picked this one up yet but I recently read another of Desiree's books, Eight Second Ride. Whew. OMG. Hot. It featured a hot guy, rockin off the charts sex, but underlying all that was an emotional thread which gave depth and richness to the story. It's clear to see why Desiree is an icon in this industry and why she is so highly regarded.

100 books. It boggles the mind. Really. What an incredible accomplishment and what a tremendous contribution she's made to the romance industry. So, I'm going to join her celebration in recognition of her awesomeness and help her give away books and a Netbook!!

As part of the celebration, Desiree is giving away a prize every day of one copy of one of her novels of the reader's choice from her backlist. Post here to enter for today!! Names will be drawn from those who post comments. At the end of the month, one lucky person will win a grand prize of a refurbished Netbook with digital DVD drive. After you post here, go to Desiree's web site at http://www.desireeholt.com/ and enter to win the grand prize of the netbook at the end of the month. You'll also find other blogs participating in this event for more chances to win!

And the rest of the winners are...

I ended up with a LOT of entries. More than I thought I'd have and tracking became...challenging :). Thanks to everyone who commented, followed and friended me! I really appreciate it. Now, drum roll please....




The 4 winners of fabulous Jimmy Thomas calendars are...

                                            Celia Kyle
                                            Regina Carlysle
                                            JoAnne Kenrick
                                            Desere Steenberg

And the autographed copy goes to JoAnne!!

Congratulations, ladies. Again, I'll try and track you down, but send me your mailing details at kaily@kailyhart.com and I'll get your calenders out to you as soon as I can!!! Thanks for playing!

** If anyone is interested in how I arrived at the winners, I dumped all the posts, friend and follow lists into a spreadsheet and used EXCEL's RANDBETWEEN function to return 4 numbers randomly corresponding to the row number of the entrant. I used the same method to determine who would win the remaining autographed calendar. Yeah, I know. I can't help it. There's a post circulating around somewhere about me and spreadsheets. What can I say? I have a computer background and I LOVE spreadsheets :).

The first winner is...

Wow, very few people managed to guess that my favorite month on the calendar was... AUGUST. It was really hard narrowing the pictures down to only 1. Jimmy Thomas is seriously hot and the pictures are gorgeous. I tend to like the ones in the earlier months on the calendar, but August stood out for me. There's a sense of real passion and abandon in the shot, not just from the woman, but also from Jimmy. As a couple they're totally focused on each other which is really hot and there's a sense of action. You can imagine what's going to happen next, right? AND of course..I just love a guy's back. I think a man's back is one of the sexiest parts of his body, especially when it's hard and muscled. You can almost feel the ripple of muscle under his skin in the photo. Whew! Is it getting hot in here??

Anyway, the winner of the first autographed Jimmy Thomas calendar is...

                                 Terra Pennington

Congratulations, Terra! I'll try and track you down, but send me an email at kaily@kailyhart.com with your postal address and I'll get your calendar out to you as soon as I can.

The remaining winners to be announced shortly!

Last Day for my Giveway!

If you haven't heard about my giveaway (and how could that have happened?), today is the last day! It's easy to enter and you can enter multiple times to maximize your chances. All the details are here but if you comment on any of my posts on my blog or on Facebook , that's an entry. If you friend (Facebook) or follow (Twitter) me (if you don't already), that's an entry. If you sign-up to follow my blog (if you don't already), that's an entry. Giveaway closes at midnight Eastern tonight! I have 5 Jimmy Thomas calendars I can't wait to give away, 2 signed by Jimmy himself. For one of the autographed ones, just guess which month has my favorite picture of Jimmy and you could win that one! Technically, it's possible therefore to win 2 calendars. I'll announce the winners sometime tomorrow March 28!! Good luck!!

Oh, and PLAY ME just went live on Amazon. Love that!!

Comments about PLAY ME

I still feel kinda weird doing this, but it's part of being a writer and I know I need to get with the program in that respect. Right? I haven't received any 'official' reviews yet from review sites (it's still early days) but I've received a lot of great comments directly and from readers online about PLAY ME. Really, these mean a lot more to me than those official ones, although I'll take them too! I know it takes a lot for a reader to reach out to an author or post something on line and I really, really appreciate it. So...I thought I'd share my favs:

Thanks again.... keep writing.... I love your voice.... I love your men!!!! - Rita

SEXY
HOT
SWEET
and my FAVORITE kind of Hero---a little grouchy, a little edgy, and a whole lot of marshmallow when it comes to that RIGHT woman.  - Taryn

This is my third book for Kaily and I can't wait for more! They keep getting better and better! - Jennifer

Interesting people, funny dialog, and hot sex. I thought it was great. - Leslie

There was plenty of well written dialogue as well as perfectly delivered lines throughout to keep the reader entertained. There’s also plenty of hot, steamy sex. - Dreama

Thanks so much, you guys!!! It's very touching and makes me want to write just that much faster :).