Where to Find Romance--In a Book, That Is

No, I'm not conducting a dating service.

I'm discussing mainstream romance novels, and the different genres available.

Ah, romance--a story of a man and a woman and a relationship with a happy ending. Can anything else compare? Of course not. That's why romance is the best-selling genre in the mass-market paperback area. Look how much space romance takes up in your favorite bookstore. Or even better, in your favorite e-bookstore, like The Wild Rose Press (TWRP). Shameless promotion here, TWRP is my publisher.

Where to find your romance? First, pick your time: past, present or future. Well, you didn't need me for that breakdown. The present is, well, the present, but there can be as many futures as an author can dream up. As for the past…now, here is a treasure trove, and my area. Historical is any time before the present: Egyptian, Roman, Viking, medieval, Elizabethan, Georgian, Regency, Victorian, Edwardian, up to about World War II or later, depending on the publisher.

Then there are the types of stories you can locate in each time. From the Romance Writers of America (RWA), here are the categories for the RITA and Golden Heart contests: Suspense/Adventure, Historical, Inspirational, Novel with Strong Romantic Elements, Paranormal, Regency Historical, Romantic Suspense and Young Adult.

Next up are the heat levels. These stories are romances, so there will be some physical love…or not. I direct you to the heat levels at TWRP, from sweet (all sex behind closed doors), through sensual, spicy, hot, to GLV (erotic romance). My novellas, Lady of the Stars and Pumpkinnapper (shameless promotion again), fall into the sensual level, which is about mainstream.

And finally, location. Location, location, location may be the mantra for real estate, but not necessarily for romance. Most historicals are set in Europe, but everything else can exist anywhere.

Future vampires, historical werewolves, first loves and later loves, adventure, suspense, mystery and religion, on earth and across the universe, all wrapped up in romance. Oh, my.

Thank you all,

Linda

Welcome to The Sweetest Romances's Scavenger Hunt

Welcome to everyone participating in The Sweetest Romances's Scavenger Hunt.

The Scavenger Hunt is part of tonight's chat with guest Loree Lough at http://sweetestromancechat.blogspot.com/2009/06/welcome-to-our-chat_9789.html

If you want more information on The Sweetest Romance, please visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/The_Sweetest_Romance/

For those who want to cut to the chase, my clue is bar, and the next blog on the list is http://jdp-news.blogspot.com/

Since today's post is part of a scavenger hunt, I decided to do some searching about the word "bar". I like words. I like reading their meanings and their derivations. In my stories, I want the best word to fit every sentence. I may not always succeed, but I do make an effort.

Today's word is "bar". What is a bar?

dictionary.com lists 36 meanings, from

"a relatively long, evenly shaped piece of some solid substance, as metal or wood, used as a guard or obstruction or for some mechanical purpose: the bars of a cage."

to
"a barroom or tavern"


to

"the legal profession",

and various others in between. Its forms include nouns, verbs, prepositions and idioms.

The word is old, as most of the basic English words are, and dates from the 1200's, from the Middle English "barra" rod.

Have some fun sometimes, finding all the different meanings of the everyday words we take for granted.

Whatever definition you choose, "bar" is the word you're searching for in the Scavenger Hunt.

Good luck!

Thank you all,
Linda

August 1 Deadline for Register for the Muse Conference

The 4th Annual Muse Online Writers Conference will be held on October 12 - 18, 2009. The August 1 deadline for registering is fast approaching.

The Muse Conference is FREE. Yes, I said FREE. Dozens of writers, agents, publishers, and publicists donate their time to anyone and everyone for a week. The courses are held in an online forum, and there are also chats where you can ask a question and receive an immediate answer.

I attended last year (here's my post on it) and I can attest to the wealth of information available.

Follow this link to register. You won't regret it.

Thank you all,
Linda

LADY OF THE STARS Reviews

I've decided to list all the Lady of the Stars reviews in one place. For each review, I've also noted if it contains spoilers. My stories usually contain surprises, and, if you're like me, you don't want to know the surprises until you read the story.


And, Lady of the Stars finalled in Science Fiction Romance in the 2010 EPIC eBook Awards.

First, my 4 star review from Romantic Times Book Reviews: "This is a quick read and a delightful short romance. The time-travel aspect is well done, and the characters are nicely fleshed out. The ending brings everything to a comfortable and relatively believable conclusion." Read the full review here. (contains spoilers).

Next, 4 1/2 books from Long and Short Reviews (LASR): Lady of the Stars has my favorite elements...It is about time travel, has very believable characters, and it has a good story line...(The hero and heroine's) mutual love for one another was a natural development. Then when I was just getting settled in their life -- WHAM! My heart is ripped from my chest and I felt the tears coming on. What a moving scene. I thoroughly enjoyed this first story by Ms. Banche and look forward to her next release. I just know I'll love it as much as I did Lady of the Stars." Read the full review here. (contains spoilers)

4 Kisses, A Recommended Read from TwoLips Reviews: "The unfolding of this story and the concept of the gazebo as the means to travel through time were intriguing.  Linda Banche created main characters that were both intelligent mathematicians and astronomers...I found the story sweet and delightful."
Full review here. (contains spoilers)

5 stars from Stephanie Burkhart, author of The Count's Lair
"Banche's love scenes are sensual and tasteful...What I enjoyed the most was how Banche wove the elements of suspense, time romance, and romance together. I was on the edge of my seat wanting to know what was coming next."
Full review here: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/158219627

Entertaining, Engaging from Writers and Readers of Distinctive Fiction (WRDF):"The most important part of a romance--the romance--was marvelous."

-->

From Mary Ricksen, author of Tripping Through Time:
"I just finished reading Lady of The Stars, and I loved it! Linda Banche has written an engrossing story that I could not put down until I had read the whole thing. Husband bellowing, dogs barking, doorbell ringing, I couldn't stop. Caro and Richard were meant to be, in the past and in the present. I loved this romance and want the author to give me more! Time travel is my favorite and I have read them all. This is time travel romance at its very best."

Goes Well With: A steaming mug of Earl Grey tea, from Nights and Weekends:

"All told, though, reading Lady of the Stars was an enjoyable way to pass the time.

Full review here. (contains spoilers)

Some reader reviews:

From Carol:

"I just finished Lady of The Stars. I loved it. Very charming love story and I loved the time travel. Loved Richard and Caro."

From Rachel
Loved this Book, Linda!! Great plot and I especially like the way you tied it all together in the end, hard to do with time travel and make it plausible; but you did it.
Highly recommend this book ...

And from Nina:

"Wow!! What a wonderful story. I can see why it received four stars. Well deserved. The ending was priceless. Do you have any more?"

I also have the following books:

-->Pumpkinnapper, Mistletoe Everywhere, Gifts Gone Astray, and An Inheritance for the Birds.
Blurb and Excerpt here.

Lady of the Stars BUY Link:

http://www.thewildrosepress.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=87_112&products_id=1111

Also available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, All Romance Ebooks and other places where ebooks are sold.

Thank you all,
Linda

Yankees

To most of the world, a Yankee is a citizen of the United States. But within the US, there are Yankees, and then there are Yankees.

A Yankee can be a Northerner, a citizen of one of the states that made up the Union, or the North, in the American Civil War.

If you're already in one of the Union states, Yankee-ness increases as you head north and east until you reach New England, the six states in the northeast corner of the United States. Derivations vary, but according to dictionary.com, "Yankee", first used in 1750-1760, is a corruption of Jan Kees, (John Cheese), the name by which the urbane Dutch inhabitants of Nieuw Amsterdam (New York) referred to their rustic Connecticut neighbors.

But even in New England, the degree of Yankee-ness increases to the north and east. Boston Brahmins and the residents of northern New Hampshire and Maine are Yankee-er than their fellow New Englanders

And at the very pinnacle of Yankee-ness, those Yankee-est of the Yankees, are those who trace their ancestry to the Pilgrims who arrived in Plymouth, Massachusetts, on the Mayflower in 1620.

These nuances can be fun or annoying, depending on your point of view. In the end, none of them matter. On this Yankee-est of days, July 4, Independence Day, all Yankees, of whatever type or degree, wish our country a Happy Birthday.

Happy Fourth of July to Yankees everywhere.

Thank you all,

Linda