Author Yearbook 2009/2010

2009/2010
Author Yearbook

© 2009 Author Yearbook, All Rights Reserved

This file may be freely redistributed in electronic format only without any
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Author Yearbook

AUTHOR PAGE
Laura Baumbach 4

Lynda S. Burch 8

Sam Cheever 12

Rowena Cherry 18

Anne Krist 22

Shades of Romance 30

Lori Soard 32

Mary Wine 37
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Laura Baumbach is the author of

numerous short stories, novellas, novels
and screenplays.

Her favorite genre to work in is

manlove or m/m erotic romances.
Manlove is not traditional gay fiction,
but erotic romances written specifically
for the romantic-minded reader, male or
female.

She is an award-winning author of

erotic romance and fiction. Named best
writer in the male/male category, she
captured three top ten Predators & Editors spots in three
different categories for 2006. Her action/adventure erotic
romance The Lost Temple of Karttikeya won the coveted
EPPIE Award for best GLBT novel of 2008.

She works as an emergency trauma nurse by night and an

author by day, with her husband and two sons filling in her
free hours.

You can learn more about Laura and her books by visiting her
website at www.LauraBaumbach.com.
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MLR Press LLC

ISBN: 978-1-93453105-1

Gabriel Sandalini and Miguel Ortega are men working at

odds, lieutenants in rival crime families poised to merge.
The merger will be sealed with the marriage of boss Ricco
Botelli’s sister, Gina, to drug lord Don Jesus Sanchez. The
two families are already counting the profits.

Gabriel and Miguel are more than a little familiar with

each other. It might have been steamy, virtually
anonymous sex, but the men recognize each other
immediately the next day when Botelli and Sanchez meet.

Gabriel is especially rocked. He’s a detective working two

years undercover for the SFPD, and he’s not at all happy
to be drawn to the violent Ortega. But, both men have a
secret to keep from their employers, and keep it they will,
especially after they’re sent to Mexico together to set up
new drug supply lines. A violent confrontation with a rival
gang proves to each that the other is to be trusted within
their violent world, but
Miguel’s criminal record sickens Gabriel.

When Miguel (born Antonio Lorenzo) makes inquiries

with his real employer — the FBI — he learns about
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Gabriel’s undercover assignment. But, before they can talk

about it they’re caught in their lie and a savage act of
violence changes one man’s life profoundly. The outcome
leaves him devastated. Each act of kindness from his new
lover is an affront, and each thoughtful gesture leaves him
sullen and bristling at his loss of self-sufficiency. When
even love provokes pain, suicide seems like a perfectly
reasonable choice.

About the Mexican Heat action series

Mexican Heat is the first title in the MLR Press Crime and
Cocktails trilogy that follows Gabriel and Antonio as they
learn how to deal with each other in a relationship that
they not only thought they’d never have, but also a
relationship in which one partner must learn to accept a
profound personal loss.

It doesn’t leave him helpless — far from it — but it does

leave him dependent on the only other man who
understands how to help him re-hone his skills. Their
enemies, seeking vengeance throughout the series, have no
idea how the tables have been turned.

Visit Laura's website at www.LauraBaumbach.com

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Lynda's career path has encompassed

biological and chemical research
science, a real estate agent and broker,
talent agent, photographer, and a
homemaker. She has been writing
stories since elementary school. Lynda
has written, composed music and
illustrated dozens of Children's
Musical E-books.

Lynda, her husband, son and extended

family call the St. Louis, Missouri area
home. Lynda also writes suspense
under the pseudonym of Lynda
LaPorte.

Lynda S. Burch, owner and publisher, launched Guardian Angel

Publishing, Inc. in Fall 2005- publishing for children ages 0-12 with
an assortment of eBooks. Burch has been listed in Who's Who in
American Business for her innovative small publisher's business
model. She is a member of Romance Writers of America, Missouri
Romance Writers of America, Electronically Published Internet
Connection, Missouri Writer's Guild, Society of Children's Book
Writers & Illustrators and Writers Hall of Fame ® of America.

Her hobbies include swimming, snorkeling, landscaping, needlework,

and angel crafts. Walking Florida beaches and soaking up sunshine are
her favorite retreats. Chocolate is her favorite treat. She maintains that
she is solar powered with no battery backup.

You can learn more about Lynda and her books by visiting her website at
www.LyndaSBurch.com or www.LyndaLaPorte.com.
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Wings ePress
ISBN: 1-59088-097-8 (ebook)
ISBN: 1-59088-923-1 (paperback)

The harsh emotional anguish of the death of a child and the

cold betrayal of a destroyed marriage lead Lori Paige to accept
a research grant in the U.S. Virgin Islands. The warmth of the
sun and the slow motion of Caribbean time lands Lori Paige's
research not on the beach of tranquility but deep into an
intricate weave of seduction, danger and the search for truth.
She came to find peace and dive the peaceful waters to study
abnormal fish deaths but instead found herself deeply involved
in much more.

Amid the wonder and beauty of the tropical paradise, both

above and below the sea, Lori discovers the remarkable revival
of a past love, enveloped by escalating danger. Coincidence
reunites Lori with Hugh Richmond, the government agent who
walked out of her life long ago. Now his sudden disappearance
from the island forces her to take action. Lori must face her
greatest fears to save herself and rescue the man destiny has
placed in her path. Can she trust the undercover government
agent whose disappearance broke her heart many years ago?
Can she trust her own heart? Can she unravel the island's
secrets? Can she find paradise, or is she only on the edge?

Order your copy at www.wings-press.com

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Author Yearbook

Download a Free Musical E-Book by Lynda!

Visit Lynda's website at www.LyndaSBurch.com

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Award winning author Sam Cheever

mixes in a little fun, a little magic, and
a little real-life spice to create her sexy
fictional characters. Sam’s fun-loving
creations fight their way through a
dizzying array of dangerous challenges
without letting little things like
dangerous bad guys, angry,
manipulative gods, evil dark world
denizens, or killing Furies dampen their
zest for life and hot love!

In her real life, Sam lives on a hobby

farm in Indiana with 9 dogs, 4 horses, 2
barn cats, 2 daughters, and one husband. Not necessarily in
that order. When asked why, why, why on the 9 dogs (yes,
they all live in the house!), Sam simply shrugs and says she’s
stupid. But what she really means to say is that she’s a dog-
aholic. She of course can’t be blamed for her addiction. She is
a victim. And along those lines, if anyone knows of a support
group for this addiction please write Sam at
samcheever@samcheever.com and fill her in.

You can learn more about Sam and her books by visiting her
website at www.SamCheever.com.
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DANCING WITH TAD

ISBN: 978-1-60435928-2

Clancy trudged wearily to the front door. She threw it open and
immediately wished she’d looked out the window first. As her
hazel eyes widened to the popping point, the thought danced
through her mind that perhaps they had emptied California
because of an earthquake or something, and all of its residents
had been dispersed to other, unsuspecting states. She hadn’t had
time to watch the news yet. So if California was emptied, she
wouldn’t know it.

She opened her mouth and moved her lips, but nothing came out
except a creaking noise. When she tried again, the creaking
finally gave way to a crackling, but barely discernible, “Here
Jack, come Jack, come…”

“See Jack run.” The aberration on her front step said with a
smile.

She chuckled weakly.

Black lips surrounded the smile. The middle of the smile was
capped in what looked like tri-colored gold, one gold color on
each of three teeth. The black lips and multi-colored smile were
only partially visible behind long, thick, fuzzy strands of black --
like vertical blinds in the Munster’s house. One, light blue eye
peaked out from between two of the blinds. The eyebrow above
the eye was pierced with a scary looking cross
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stud, and a large silver hoop shone behind the fall of dreds over
its nose.

“Hi.” It said to her.

When a small amount of drool fell on her foot, Clancy forced her
lips shut. Then she opened them again, intending to return the
greeting, but her mouth had other ideas. “Are you the Kohlrabi
Kid?”

“Huh.” Its face behind the dred blinds scrunched, and then its
shoulders pinched upward. “Whatever.”

And there it was. The modern teens’ multi-faceted and

intellectual response to anything and everything it doesn’t
understand or can’t deal with. It said nothing and it said
everything. It said: I don’t care. Or, that’s too tedious for me to
waste brain cells on. Or, you’re an idiot. Or, I don’t want you to
know that bothered me. Or, lady, you belong in a rubber room.
Adam came down the hall from the kitchen and stopped dead,
staring. “Wow!”

It turned its one, light blue eye on the young boy and nodded,
sending the dreds into spasms. “Dude.”

Adam said, “Here Jack, come Jack...”

The aberration looked from Adam to Clancy and sent the dreds
dancing again on a negative head movement. “What’s up with
this Jack shit?”
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Just then, the canine crew made its appearance at the front door.
The five assorted sizes and shapes exploded happily into the
house, causing the aberration to hop from foot-to-foot to avoid
total capsizing and the resultant full body floor touching.

The last one in, Jack felt it was his duty to greet the aberration
with a traditional doggy hello. Coming on at full speed, his six-
inch-long pointed, wet nose poised and ready, and four foot long
tongue dangling soggily, Jack hit him with a full frontal nose in
the crotch greeting.

“Shit on a brick,” said the aberration. “It molested me!”

“Meet Jack.”

Pulling Jack from his crotch, the aberration sent the dreds into
spasms again. “Yeah, I can definitely see why you’re so obsessed
with it.”

Then, with one blue eye on Jack, the aberration turned to Clancy
and said the two most horrible words in the English language. In
fact, it might have been the only question that could have put
Clancy off Oreos for a week. “Jennifer home?”

The entire Clancy household went completely silent -- deeply,

unnaturally, eerily silent. Even Jack stopped his incessant panting
to stare, head tilted in confusion, at the aberration in their
doorway. Frick stopped humping his favorite blue pillow and
stared. Frack, bobble eyed as always, was sitting next to Jack
with his eyes even more unfocused than usual. Mush, who had
been in a defensive crouch since entering the house -- legs
spread, feet planted firmly, head lowered, her soft brown eyes
hardened to shiny little pebbles -- began to growl low in
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her throat and lifted her lips, showing just the tiniest bit of teeth.
Willie whimpered suddenly, tucked his tail, piddled a Lake
Michigan sized puddle, and then hit the floor belly up right in the
middle of it.

“I think I messed myself.”

Clancy swung her eyes to her son just long enough to shoot him a
glare. “Jennifer’s not at home right now. Can I give her a
message?”

The aberration swung its gaze around the room and then pinched
its bony shoulders upward again. “Whatever.” It turned and left.

Clancy calmly closed the door and locked all three bolts on it.
Then she turned to Adam and they shared a look across the
space. The canine crew waited expectantly for a clue as to how
they should feel. Five pairs of brown eyes, in assorted sizes and
shapes, glommed onto Clancy and searched her face and body
language carefully. Five wet noses sniffed to see if they could
smell any fear. Clancy, feeling like Jesus on the Mount, closed
her eyes, pulled a large chunk of the air from around her body
into her lungs, and then let it out slowly. Then she looked at
Adam, still standing at the bottom of the stairs. “Tad’s having a
block party.”

Adam blinked. “I think you should lock her in her room until
she’s forty.”

Purchase this book or learn more at

www.SamCheever.com.
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Award winning author Rowena Cherry is a

self-described lifelong lurker and fact
magpie.

Rowena's youth was spent on the tiny

British island of Guernsey: a mystical,
idyllic setting with its prehistoric earth-
goddess, historic Martello towers,
underground gun emplacements, and
legends of faery men emerging from a cleft
in the Hommet Headland to mate with
human women.

A school chess champion and winner of the

Duke of Edinburgh's Gold Award,
Rowena went to ancient Cambridge
University for her four-year combined honors degree in English and
Education, after which she taught at exclusive boarding schools, first
in Dorset, then in London.

Eventually Rowena met and married her auto designer husband, who
whirled her off to Germany to live the glamorous life of an alien
abroad.

Reassigned to America, she rode in pace cars at the Indy 500 and
Brickyard and has flown in corporate jets to exotic locations. Her life
so far has been fantastic inspiration for romance novel scenes and
alien-world building.

Rowena lives in Michigan with her husband and daughter. You

can visit her website at www.RowenaCherry.com.
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INTERVIEW WITH ROWENA CHERRY

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Why did you choose to write about aliens?

I write what I know. I have been an "alien" all my life, although I was not
explicitly called an alien until I married an American and came to the
attention of the IRS and the INS.

Other nationalities called me a "mainlander", a "furriner", a "grackle"

(though that is usually a term for a tourist) or an "auslanderin". My family
moved to insular little Guernsey when I was about twelve. One has to live in
Guernsey for at least 15 years to be accepted as "local", so I was an outsider
from the age of ten.

Actually, that wasn't the start of it. My mother taught at every school I
attended, which automatically made me a "teacher's pet" and excluded me
from invitations to participate in normal mischief. Later, when I graduated
from university, because I wasn't island-born, I was told that my local
classmates would get preference for any jobs on the island, so I had to find
work in England.

Now, that is entirely rational and fair. To this day, if I wanted to live in
Guernsey, I'd have to buy an open market home that costs twice as much as
the homes for locals—and my mother and my brother now count as locals—
because there is a shortage. Also, I'd have to apply for permission from the
Royal Court, which I might not be granted.

In the 1980s my American auto-designer husband—whom I'd met in

London—was assigned to Germany, and we lived in a German spa town.
Their mud baths were not muddy at all, and were called Moor Bader. A
Moor Bad was the inspiration for Tarrant-Arragon's "Murk Bath" which
fascinates his sister's pet tigers in KNIGHT'S FORK.

Living abroad and having to learn a foreign language can focus the mind on
the logic and etymology of languages, which is useful both for writing
comedy, and for writing from the point of view of an alien.

For instance, perhaps we take certain prefixes for granted. We know (and
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so do my copy editors with whom I
occasionally do battle) that it is correct
to write "nonsense" but my omnipotent
alien god-Prince prefers "unsense".

Tell us about your favorite characters…

My heroes!

Two male characters I really love…

Tarrant-Arragon and Rhett.

Both misunderstood, both role players.

Rhett is a combination of Male

Cinderella, Dirty Harry with a sword,
and touch of Kerr Avon and Adam
Adamant. He minds everyone else's
business. Sexually aloof, judgmental,
unattainable. I just had to knock him off his high horse. Release his inner
stallion.

I loved writing about Prince Tarrant-Arragon. He is my ultimate hero…or, as

RAVENS HEART author Jennifer Dunne says "Tarrant-Arragon is pure alpha-
wolf." I wanted him to be a god and an Emperor's heir, to be intelligent,
intellectual, and decidedly Machiavellian… and I wanted a clash of cultures
between my hero and heroine.

I made him a lawyer. The ultimate lawyer, of course. What I like about
lawyers is the ruthless cut and thrust of their wit, their deadly precision with
language, their deductive reasoning, the verbal traps they set, the way you
can never take what they say quite at face value.

Visit Rowena's website at www.RowenaCherry.com

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Author Yearbook

Anne Krist is thrilled with the reception of her first book, Burning
Bridges. Anne had long wanted to write a story that incorporated
something of her past during the Vietnam era. When she heard a
chance news report about bags of lost mail, she built the story of
young love found during those tumultuous times, and then lost. Like
her heroine, Anne found her own true love in Virginia Beach where
her father was stationed in the Navy. They also walked the beach at
Sandbridge and made plans for the future--which, fortunately, they've
been able to keep for more than thirty years.

It's a little known secret (until now), but Anne is the "sweet" sibling in
her family. Her saucy sister, Dee S. Knight, writes naughty, sexy
stories for several different publishers. Anne can't talk about Dee
without blushing; Dee doesn't mention Anne's name without a smirk.
Family dinners are quite interesting. Join the "sisters" as they dispense
weekly advice on their blog, A Little Sisterly Advice
(http://alittlesisterlyadvice.blogspot.com).

Anne hopes you enjoy a "book of her heart," Burning Bridges.

www.AnneKrist.com
www.DeeSKnight.com

Haunting letters resurrected from the past promised love for Sara
Richards. Now, putting her life back together without burning any
bridges will be the hardest thing she’s ever done. Be sure to get a
copy of Burning Bridges by Anne Krist.
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Author Yearbook

A reader, Virginia
"I just finished reading BURNING BRIDGES. Thank you for writing such a
powerful story about how real love can overcome all obstacles. … How nice that
characters of middle age were written as attractive and sexual human beings."
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Excerpt from Burning Bridges by Anne Krist

The brown mailing envelope lounged against the back door,

appearing deceptively like a friend passing the time. Sara Richards
snatched it up with one hand while fitting the key in the lock with
the other. A quick glance showed the addressee to be Mary Ellen
Noland, her mother. Tape held the flap end closed and her
mother's scrawl crossed the other end. "Call me when you've read
this."

Strange. She hung up her keys and dropped her purse on the
table, examining the return address. Department of the Navy. Her
father had been dead over ten years. What would the Navy be
sending her mother now?

She loosened the tape and pulled out a letter then spilled a second
envelope onto the table. The smaller pouch was addressed to her,
Sara, from the U.S. Postal Service and had been forwarded to the
Navy. Frowning, she skimmed the letter: Recently recovered bags
of mail.hidden in a storage shed in Virginia Beach since
1970.enclosed FPO letters sent to Sara Noland.forwarded from
Oceana NAS to the Department of Navy.sent in care of Mrs. Mary
Ellen Noland for Sara Noland.

Boneless, she dropped into a chair and stared at the USPS

envelope. 1970. So long ago and yet like yesterday. Only one
person would have written her from overseas, and he hadn't sent
any letters. In fact, he'd disappeared, forgetting she lived and
leaving her to face the disastrous following months alone.

Then he'd died.

No, these letters couldn't be from Paul Steinert.

But who else?

Sara's Siamese, Pi R Squared, rubbed his head against her ankle

and pled for food, but she ignored him. With surprisingly steady
hands, she opened the postal service pouch. Someone-her
mother?-had slit the end of this also, and then taped it closed.
Three smaller envelopes fell out. She'd seen his handwriting only
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once but recognized it immediately. Her hand flew to her mouth.

Blood roared in her ears, blocking Squared's plaintive meow.

An image filled her mind. Not how he looked the first time she'd
seen him, but after they'd been meeting for several weeks. The
wind off the ocean ruffled his short blond hair and love filled his
eyes, eyes bluer than an autumn sky. That was Paul as she
dreamed him after he left and later, when she damned him for
forgetting her. When she heard he'd been killed in action and all
during those interminable months when she longed for one last
chance to hold him, she pictured him there, on the beach at
Sandbridge.

For the first time in years, the pain of his death crashed over her.
Her grief now was nothing compared to the agony when she'd first
heard, when she'd wanted to die, too. Worn down over the years,
his memory was a dull ache, familiar, like a friend she counted on
to be there.

She picked up one of the small envelopes. On a back corner, he'd

noted it as number twenty-nine. Checking the other two, she saw a
twenty-eight and thirty. He'd written thirty letters? How could that
be? She hadn't received even one. Thirty letters couldn't have been
lost due to a foul up in the mail.

Mechanically, she dumped a packet of dry food in Squared's dish

and then called her mother.

"I thought it would be you. Have you read the letters?"

"No. What happened, do you know?" Scattered on the table, the

three packets drew her gaze and she stared as though trying to
read their meaning through the sealed paper.

"Only what the Department of Navy letter said. Some bags of mail
were lost. I suppose if I weren't still receiving part of Dad's
retirement, they wouldn't have found me."
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Sara closed her eyes and leaned against the wall. "I mean, do you
know what happened to the rest of the letters?"

"What?" There was no mistaking the naked fear in her mother's

voice.

"The envelopes are numbered. I have twenty-eight through thirty.

What do you think happened to the others?" Tension radiated
through her shoulders and neck. Her mother was about to say
something she didn't want to hear, she knew it.

"Sara, you have to understand, Dad and I only wanted what was
best for you. You were a child, a high school senior with a
wonderful future in front of you. You'd been accepted at William
and Mary. The last thing you needed was to get mixed up with a
sailor who would love you and leave you. Which, I might add, is
exactly what he did."

Sara could barely suck air into her lungs. Her fingers whitened with
the hold she had on the phone cord. "What did you do, Mother?"

"More than anything, we didn't want you hurt." Moments passed.

"Your father made the decision, but I was in favor of it, I want you
to know that. He's not here, so if you're going to get mad, I
suppose it will have to be at me." She ended with a sigh. "After-
that man-left Virginia Beach, we determined it would be best for
you to make a clean break. We never had any doubt that he was
wrong for you. So we intercepted the letters."

The blood drained from Sara's face and she pulled over a chair. If
she didn't sit she'd fall. "You did what? How could you do that?"
Her voice broke.

"You put your letters in the mailbox and I took them out after you
left for school. And his."

All too well, Sara remembered days of rushing into the house to
sort through the stack of mail on the hall table, never finding a
letter from Paul. Each day with no news added a stone to her wall
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of doubt that he loved her and depleted her store of faith that he'd
stand by her.

Sara moaned. "Do you know what you did with your meddling?"

"Sara, you were seventeen, a child. Do you know what that

means? He could have gone to jail. Your father was in favor of
going to his commanding officer-even to the police. It was
fortunate for your friend that his ship left."

Sara envisioned her mother sitting alone in her living room. About
this time each afternoon, a gin and tonic sat on the table beside
her. She'd wear a skirt and blouse and her hair and make-up would
be flawless. Sara also didn't doubt that her mother's posture was
rigid and her thumb rubbed the tips of her index and middle
fingers. Those were indications her mother's emotions-anger,
frustration, fear, whatever-were threatening to override her normal
control. Today she deserved every terrible, panicky feeling she was
experiencing.

Mary Ellen sighed. "Try to see it from our point of view. You were a
good girl with a good future. He destroyed all of that in a matter of
weeks. You were our responsibility and we protected you the best
way we knew how."

"Protected me!"

"Yes, protected you. We loved you more than anything on earth."

She quieted, as though considering the next bit. "He died in service
to his country. That was at least an honorable thing."

A sob broke from Sara.

Her mother softened her tone. "I have no doubt he might have
been a good man, but not for you, and not at that time. I don't
regret ending the relationship, whatever else happened."

"I can't believe you did this. I don't even know what to say to you."
A headache inched its way forward to throb behind her eyes. She
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Author Yearbook

used her free hand to block the light coming through the kitchen
windows. "The horrid things I thought about him, the certainty I
had that he'd forgotten me.all wrong. I mailed the first letters from
school. I wish I'd kept on doing that and asked him to write me at
Cindy's house. Who knows what might have happened?"

"Sara, it's been so long. I thought you'd be able to understand

after all this time, but maybe I was wrong. Put the whole episode
with that man behind you, darling. Just throw those letters out.
What difference could they possibly make now?"

"I don't know."

"Darling? We shouldn't talk about this over the phone. I can be

there in a few minutes and then-"

Sara's eyes shot open. "No! I may never forgive you for this,
Mother. In fact, I'm hanging up before I say something I probably
shouldn't."

"Sara, let me-"

Sara slammed the receiver back in the cradle. Vaulting from the
chair, she paced around the kitchen table. Squared stopped eating
and turned to watch, his Siamese-blue eyes following her path. In
agitation, she picked up the letter from the Navy, glanced unseeing
at the words then tossed it back. Stomping to the sink, she poured
some water then drank it all without taking a breath. Finally, she
turned and stared at Paul's envelopes.

"It's true," she told Squared. "There's nothing these letters can do
for me now. Paul is dead, no matter what these say."

Now that you've gotten a sneak peak of Burning Bridges, you'll

want your very own copy by going to AnneKrist.com or purchasing
from Amazon and other online book retailers.
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Author Yearbook

5 Stars, Reviewers' Choice Award Winner, eCataRomance

“Rarely does a story come along which touches one in countless ways
from every affecting scene, yet this writer does so with her first
release. With surprising twists and believable interplay between
characters, BURNING BRIDGES is an unforgettable love story filled
with passionate desires and potent emotions.”

5 Hearts, Reviewer Top Pick, one of the Best Romance picks, Fall
2009, Night Owl Romance
“I absolutely adored this story by Ms. Krist. She grabbed me from the
very first page and had me riding a roller coaster of emotions
throughout the entire story. There was a powerful "WOW" factor…”

5 Pixies, Recommended Read, Dark Angel Reviews

“…a strong and poignant love story… Displaying unwavering talent
when dealing with delicate situations, Anne Krist's BURNING
BRIDGES stayed with me long after I finished.”

5 Stars, Review Your Book

“I did not want this story to end. Fans of romance should place
Burning Bridges at the top of this summer’s reading list.”

5 Ribbons, Romance Junkies:

“…an emotionally captivating tale from beginning to end."

5 Cups, Coffee Time Romance

“Ms. Krist has a heart-warming, emotional story on her hands. … This
is one I highly recommend!”

5 Hearts, The Romance Studio

“Anne Krist has certainly made a name for herself with this
phenomenal first novel. … [I] did not want the story to end. I cannot
possibly recommend this book highly enough. It’s extraordinary.”
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Author Yearbook

Shades of Romance
Magazine

SORMAG – Shades Of Romance Magazine

was started because of LaShaunda
Hoffman’s love of AA romance novels and
the lack of support for them. SORMAG was
an extension of an online forum called
Aspiring African-American Romance Writers
she started on delphiforums.com in 1999.
In 2000 SORMAG became a bi-monthly online magazine. We featured
our first online conference in 2001 and now we host one every other
year. Our next one is scheduled for 2009. As the romance writers
began to expand into the mainstream market the magazine evolved to
feature not only romance but all literature. In 2005 we advanced to
the blog concept and fell in love with the interactive freedom it gave
us.

We celebrate eight years online this year and will continue to feature
the hottest books and authors on the literary scene.

SORMAG SERVICES

Interviews

Reviews

Book Spotlights

www.sormag.com
2009/2010
Author Yearbook

FRENEMY
by Lori Soard

Free Serial Novel

Kate, Savannah and Brooke

have been best friends for
five years, until a grown
woman begins to cause
problems between them. At first, Kate thinks she is misunderstanding
the situation, but what starts as tension soon turns into deadly
intentions.

EXCERPT

Why would someone on the outside want the window closed on the
inside? Our cheerleading retreat had started two days ago when our
coaches brought us down here. Twenty girls on the squad, most of us
new; three moms who were coaches (including my own) and a friend
who had lent us her house for the retreat. We were a small squad,
small school, small community, and a family. Life couldn’t be better,
or so I thought.

Until… the window incident. I truly believe the window was what
started it all, but I’m still trying to wrap my brain around the strange
circumstances of the last year and a half. Still trying to understand how
something that was once so right could go so wrong. Stupid window!

Read more for free at www.LoriSoard.com/Frenemy

2009/2010
Author Yearbook

Lori Soard has a PhD. in Journalism

and Creative Writing, but she's hardly
the stuffy professor type. Her
romantic comedies keep readers
turning pages and she likes nothing
more than laughing at the twists and
turns of life.

In addition to writing romances, Lori

writes articles and works as an editor.

"I can remember making up stories

from a very young age," Lori shares.
"My dad would start a story about a
lovable, clumsy giraffe and I'd fill in
the details." This was a nightly ritual
in Lori's childhood home. In addition
to storytelling, her father would also have her memorize word lists
from Reader's Digest as a game.

I always loved books, was around storytelling through my dad and

from my mom's side of the family, who were from Appalachia and
passed on an oral storytelling tradition. An only child whose vivid
imagination and creativity was nurtured, it's little wonder that Lori
grew up to be a writer.

"I truly love what I do for a living. God has blessed me in so many
ways."

You can learn more about Lori and her books by visiting her
website at www.LoriSoard.com.
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Author Yearbook
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Author Yearbook

Excerpt from Finding Ms. Right by Lori Soard

...Jenna touched up her lipstick in the hand-held mirror she kept

under the counter.

“Percy, should I take the book’s advice still? It seems really silly
to me, but it hasn’t failed me so far.”

Percy cocked his head sideways, twitched a black ear and purred.

“Lot of help you are.” Jenna pulled the book from the bottom
shelf and laid it open on the counter.

Rule number nine: How to converse with a gentleman: Agree

with everything your caller says. Offer little of your own input.
Gentlemen love to talk about themselves. Appropriate responses
are “Really?” and “That’s fascinating.”

Percy leapt to the counter and waltzed across the open book,
sprawling himself comfortably across its pages.

“Percy, get up!” Jenna gave him a gentle nudge, but the animal
only stretched to his full length and laid his head on his paws.

Jenna glanced at the clock nervously. Six minutes until five.

Slade would be here any minute. She needed to have the book
out of site before he arrived.

“Kitty, kitty.” Jenna walked to a spot a few feet from the counter,
leaned over and rubbed her thumb and forefinger together.
“Come on, Percy. Good kitty.”

“Meow.” Percy blinked his eyes, his whiskers pulling back in a

feline parody of a smile.
2009/2010
Author Yearbook

Jenna glanced at the clock again. Four minutes until five. What
was she going to do? She hesitated to just pick Percy up. If she
startled him, he might dig his back claws in and damage the
book.

The very expensive, antique book. Jenna groaned. She’d been

carrying it around with her, treating it like a library book. And if
the advice in that book didn’t work, she might very well have to
sell it or risk losing the store altogether. If the advice didn’t work
after the hoops she’d been jumping through, she would be happy
to see the last of that red book jacket. She pushed away the
thought she’d be too heartbroken to do anything, much less sell a
book.

“Please, Percy.”

Percy rolled over on his back, still half-sprawled on the book.

“I’ll give you some yum-yum kitty treats.”

Percy yawned.

“A bowl of milk?”

He flicked his tail.

“A can of tuna?”

The bell over the door jingled. Jenna didn’t need to look to know
who it was. The pleasing scent of lime aftershave floated across
the three feet separating her and the door.
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Author Yearbook

“Are you talking to that cat again?” Slade sounded amused. “Hi,
Percy.”

Jenna bit back a scream as Slade crossed the room and scooped
the cat into his powerful arms. Cradling him gently, he stroked
Percy under

the chin. Percy closed his eyes contentedly, his throat echoing
hollowly.

Slade walked back toward her. He hadn’t even glanced at the

book Percy had been laying on. Her legs felt so unsteady, she
was certain they wouldn’t hold her upright. Taking Slade’s arm,
she tugged him toward the door.

“I’m ready if you are.”

“Don’t you have to close up or something?” He frowned.

Jenna shook her head so furiously a few wisps escaped from her
neat bun and flew into her eyes. She tucked them back into place.
She needed to calm down. He didn’t suspect anything. The book
was still a secret. There was nothing to get so distressed about...

You can get a copy of this book at www.AmberQuill.com

Also available at Amber Quill Press:

The Elixir (romantic suspense)

2009/2010
Author Yearbook

I write to reassure myself that reality really is survivable.

Between traffic jams and children’s sporting schedules,
there is romance lurking for anyone with the imagination to
find it.

I spend my days making corsets and petticoats as a historical

costumer. If you send me an invitation marked ‘formal
dress’, you’d better give a date or I just might show up
wearing my bustle.

I love to read a good romance, and with the completion of

my first novel, I’ve discovered I am addicted to writing
these stories as well. Dream big or you might never get
beyond your front yard.

I’d love to hear what you think of my writing.

You can contact Mary and learn more about her books at
www.MaryWine.com
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Author Yearbook
2009/2010
Author Yearbook

In Bed With A Stranger

by Mary Wine
Publisher: Brava
ISBN: 978-0758234636

A deception brought them together . . . but nothing can tear them apart

AN IMPERFECT MATCH

Brodick McJames is an earl in name only. To secure his clan’s

future he needs an English wife. Mary Stanford, daughter of
the Earl of Warwickshire, will suit perfectly. He’s never met
her, but what matter? She’ll grace his bed eventually, and once
she bears his child he need see her no more.

Anne Copper resembles her noble half-sister, but she was born
illegitimate, and can never forget it. The best she can hope for
is to stay a serving girl in her own father’s house. But when
Lady Mary finds herself betrothed to a Scot, it seems there’s a
use for Anne after all . . .

The woman who arrives in Alcaon is not what Brodick

expects, and the passion that grows between them promises far
more than a marriage of convenience. When fate draws two
together, it may take more than a noblewoman’s plot to part
them . . .

See a video about this book at MaryWine.com

2009/2010
Author Yearbook

Coming in February 2010!

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Author Yearbook

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contests and more, visit the Author
Yearbook website at
www.AuthorYearbook.com