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March Newsletter contest winners

3/23/2015

I've finally had a chance to choose my newsletter contest winners, and thanks to random.org it's a fairly painless process! I had a lot of entries this month, so I picked a few extra winners--there are six in all: one copy of Wolf Tales VIII and one of Sexy Beast VIII, but I'm also giving away four copies of Dark Moon. Winners are Sara from Virginia, Sandra from

South Carolina, Esther from Ontario, Canada, VeAnna from Arizona, Kerry from Connecticut, and Joyce from Indiana. With luck, your books will go in the mail tomorrow. I would have gotten this done yesterday, but I got busy working on the werewolf story, and then took a break and made the mistake of picking up NIGHT BROKEN by Patricia Briggs. I just finished it this evening and figured I'd better get my butt in gear and finish up the contest!

For those of you who are winners, I would really appreciate a mention on Goodreads or a review wherever you generally do such things. I hate to ask readers to do reviews and I know you're all really busy, but if you have a minute, they're always appreciated. And that's even if you DON'T like the book. I just want an honest review.

NIGHT BROKEN is a terrific book that actually came out in hardcover quite a few months ago, but I waited on the paperback. I'm running out of room for the big books! This is another series that my readers recommended, and I thank you one and all for insisting I read this author. So good!!

I need to get your books wrapped and ready to go out tomorrow, and I still have some work on the WIP tonight. Got my almost three miles in today, so I can sit without guilt--for a while, anyway!

My best to all of you, and thank you for entering the contest! One quick note--Facebook did a big list purge last week, removing pages they deemed inactive. I lost well over a hundred "Likes" on my author page, which is where I announce a lot of my contests and such, so if you get a chance, please stop by and make sure you weren't purged from my followers! Sometimes Facebook drives me batshit crazy, but it's still a great way to connect with readers.

Take care, and hope you have a wonderful week.

Kate

March 2015 Newsletter

3/16/2015

Not necessarily trying to tease those of you still in the grip of winter with my beautiful azaleas, but our yard has burst into bloom this past few days. On the downside, we need rain. Desperately! Here's hoping for a bit of precipitation over the next few months of Spring.

I've been reading--it helps me write, makes me relax and reminds me why I write. Over the past couple of weeks I've really found some great books--Jessica Scott's newest, BEFORE I FALL was absolutely wonderful. Jess is an Army captain who served in Iraq and will be teaching at West Point in the near future, and her military romances are beautifully done. Click on the title above for sales links and excerpts of all her books, but definitely check out all of Jessica Scott's books.

Another fantastic story was Nalini Singh's latest in her ROCK KISS series--ROCK HARD. This is Charlotte and T-Rex's story, and it's one you won't be able to put down. I've always loved Nalini's paranormals (who doesn't love her Psy/Changeling series or those sexy Archangels in the Guild Hunter series?) Find links to all of Nalini's books on the link in the Rock Hard title above.

Last night I finished Paige Tyler's latest, HUNGRY LIKE THE WOLF. Talk about 'edge of the seat' read! Really loved this one about her SWAT (that's 'Special Wolf Alpha Team' to the uninformed...) Team. A terrific heroine, an absolutely HOT alpha hero, and enough action to have you flipping pages very, very fast. And missing sleep. Yes, it kept me up way too late.

Funny story about Jayne Ann Krentz's TRUST NO ONE. It's been sitting here, taunting me, since it arrived back in January, a beautiful hardbound book that I knew I would love. That's the joy of knowing authors who are "autobuys..." You know, the ones you grab off the shelf without even reading the back cover blurb? So finally, this week, I decided I was going to read it whether I had the time or not, opened the book and after the first sentence realized that I HAD read it, sometime during the nightmare of revisions on INTIMATE, but I'd been so stressed out I hadn't retained that little tidbit of info. But this one is just so good that I settled in and read it again, and realized there's a reason JAK's books always go on my keeper shelf, and that's because they're books I read over and over again.

The weather has been so nice, I've been able to sit outside in the late afternoons with a glass of wine and a good book. I think that's worthy of a photo, don't you?

And the last book I can think of that I recently finished is Robyn Carr's latest in her Thunder Point series, ONE WISH.

One word? READ! This series is every bit as addictive as Robyn's VIRGIN RIVER series. Every time I meet a new character in one of her stories, I have this strong urge to invite them over for a glass of wine and a good, long, chat!

One other thing before I get to the contest, but it's something that has had me in sort of a strange dither (I do love that word!) for the past few months. A lot of you have heard me talk about living with MS--I was diagnosed in 1985 when I started falling and dragging my left leg, dropping things, and just in general noticing that my normal klutziness was off the charts. My symptoms were bad enough that my neurologist said I'd be in a wheelchair by the time I was 40...well, I'm 65 and still upright, and honestly, had been feeling pretty cocky about it.

Then I started stumbling again, and dropping things, and in general seeing all the same symptoms I had thirty years ago, so I went back to the neurology department (new hospital, different doctors) for a new MRI and some blood tests. Got my results and, to put it quite bluntly, it's been sort of a mindfuck. (excuse the graphic language, but that's the only way to describe it!) My neurologist says I don't have MS, have never had it, and while I have all the symptoms, I lack the definitive markers (lesions in the brain/spinal column) for the disease. The thing is, when I was first diagnosed, MRIs weren't available, so my diagnosis was made on the basis of a spinal tap (not fun) and a series of tests called "Evoked response testing," which essentially means they hook you up to machines that give you electrical zaps and test your nerve reflexes. Since I'd flunked everything, the original neurologist (he of the wheelchair diagnosis...he really was a jerk) felt very confident with his diagnosis, and the many neurologists I've seen since have all re-confirmed the MS.

So, now I know I don't have it, but the doctor says I do have all the symptoms and a disconnect between my brain and my feet which accounts for the stumbling, but no idea what's causing it. Going from multiple sclerosis to "undiagnosed neuropathy" doesn't change a thing, though I had grown comfortable with the neat little label they gave me. Now, I guess I'll just stumble along (quite literally) until we figure out what IS causing it.

And, enough about me--now it's time to give away some books. I've got one copy of Sexy Beast VIII (that's the one with Chanku Spirit in it) and one copy of Wolf Tales VIII, and a few copies of Spirit Wild/Dark Moon. You must tell me what book you want when you enter. I really don't have time to write back and ask you, and I've figured out how to add a place to write in the title. Choose one of the three--if it's not on the list, it's not available this month.

Now, I need to get this up. I've checked and the entry form is properly loaded (I hope--believe me, if there's a way to screw something up, I'll find it!) and it appears all my ducks are in a row...not necessarily a neat one, but the little suckers are all lined up. I hope you're getting some decent weather wherever you live, and that it's finally feeling like spring. Here's hoping for a gentler season than winter turned out to be!

Be well, take care, and don't forget to find time to read a good book. There are so many wonderful stories out there--there really are so many books, and so little time.

Best to you,
Kate

Are any of you having as much trouble with the stupid 'captchas' as I am? I find it really difficult to decipher them--it just took me six tries in order to submit my comment!

I'm a romance author--I really love those happy endings, though I don't mind putting my characters through pure, unadulterated hell before they get there...

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 Newsletter Contest:
Contests are back! I'm not totally settled, but really miss giving things away, so ready or not, I'm going to start slow. International entries are welcome, though I will have to limit International winners to ebooks. Postage costs are just too high. Your addresses will not be shared or sold--I respect your privacy. I will only collect addresses if I am giving away print books. I won't be doing that as much because I've got very few print books left in my stash, but I do have other things!

March Newsletter contest winners

March 2015 Newsletter﻿

I'm a romance author--I really love those happy endings, though I don't mind putting my characters through pure, unadulterated hell before they get there...

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March 2015 Newsletter