Why I Love RWA, Harlequin and Caro Carson

Many years ago I was an aspiring writer in Orange, Texas struggling to craft a coherent sentence. I didn’t know a single published writer and imagined them to be glamorous goddesses, who lived in Manhattan and lunched with publishers.

After I’d written nearly a million unpublished words, a worried girlfriend, a lab tech, said, “Hey, maybe you should try to meet somebody in the business.” Eventually I attended a writer’s conference in Houston where I met Rita Estrada, Sondra Stafford, and Parris Bonds and become a part of a group of writers who founded Romance Writers of America (RWA), an organization conceived to nourish romance writers, shorten their journey to publication and success, and to support a published community of romance authors.

More than thirty years later at an RWA conference after I’d become a multi-published Harlequin author, I met Caro Carson, a younger, unpublished writer. We’d both signed up to volunteer at a luncheon. When we weren’t needed for the event she told me she’d graduated from West Point, had been an officer in the Army and now dreamed of being published by Harlequin. At the time she’d been working to achieve her dream of publication for many years. I admired her more than I can say.

          Caro had a dream.

          She struggled.

          She kept perfecting her craft.

          When she failed to sell a story, she either rewrote it or began another.

          She did this for ten years.

Her story is the story of many beginning writers and that of many giants in the romance publishing industry.

Nobody is born published. Romance writers who succeed are smart, determined women who keep working and keep perfecting their craft until they break out. If they don’t believe in themselves, nobody else ever will either.

Since she published, I have read Caro’s Doctor, Soldier, Daddy, as well as the first two books in her Texas Rescue Series:  Not Just a Cowboy and A Texas Rescue Christmas.

I have loved every one of her books. Caro writes about real people with real problems. Her characters connect almost immediately on a soul-deep, authentic level. Caro writes about the kind of love many women can only dream of finding. Books like Caro’s will nourish their dream.

Caro specializes in heroines who are intelligent professionals like her main character in Not Just a Cowboy.  If you like virgin-romances, I was blown away by the tenderness in her truly touching virgin-sex scene in A Texas Rescue Christmas. The hero in this book may see himself as handicapped or damaged, but his talents at loving with a true heart make him an unforgettable character.   I wish Caro Carson was a stock I could invest in because she is definitely a rising star.

I love RWA because it supports writers like Caro have faith in themselves and hold onto their dreams. And because it gave me the opportunity to meet her.

I love Harlequin for bringing this talented author to its worldwide readership. Since I belong to that readership, I became her fan.

Being a writer is about constantly re-inventing oneself. So, even though I've been a writer for a long time, I feel like a beginner who has a big dream, a writer who's willing to work and to fail and to continue working--all in the hope I'll succeed one day.

Like Caro, I’m beginning a new career, only this time in self-publishing. Once again I’m a beginner who has a big dream, a writer who’s willing to work and to fail and to continue working—all in the hope I’ll succeed one day.

I salute your talent, Caro. I’m so glad you had the courage and determination to believe in your writing ability long enough to become the wonderful storyteller you are. This wasn't a selfish battle. Romance readers everywhere who are inspired by love stories like yours will be the richer for it. Writers everywhere will also be inspired by your dedication, talent, and success.

With only a handful of published books to your credit, I am in awe of the excellence, originality, and heart-warming quality of your love stories.

You inspire me to work harder at my own craft, and I’m sure you will inspire other writers.

I dedicate this blog to all struggling writers who have big dreams like you and equally beautiful stories to tell.

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Looking for more romance stories? Check out Ann Major's recent publication, HER PREGNANCY SECRET. A thrilling story of innocence, betrayal, and love that will have you gripping from beginning to end. 

How the Author of the Midnight Louie Series Found Inspiration in my Home Town

I love going to writers’ conferences because so often I meet writers whose works I admire. When I met Carole Nelson Douglas - famed, cat-loving author of the fantastic Midnight Louie series - at the Novelists’ Inc. Conference last month. I’m afraid I turned into a pure fan-girl.  Carole’s every bit as much fun as her wonderful books are. You can visit her website here.

In case you don’t know, Midnight Louie is a twenty-pound, black, tomcat with a larger-than-life, muy macho personality. On top of that, he’s a detective when he isn’t prowling or napping or getting himself locked up on death row at the pound.

In book one, Cat in An Alphabet Soup, he’s in the process of forming a significant relationship with a woman, Temple, who’s been jilted by her human, magician lover. I, for one, think a woman with Temple’s romantic history could do far worse than to take up with a tomcat. I am a cat lover and a mystery lover; I also never mind a dash of humor. So, I love her Midnight Louie series that Carole has relaunched in e-book format with new covers.

Carole, who lives in north Texas, always wanted to have a cat as a child, but her mother told her she couldn’t have one until she grew up.  Since becoming an independent adult, she has shared her life with many lucky cats.

Apparently Midnight Louie was inspired by a real cat she learned about after reading an ad in a newspaper that read, “Midnight Louie, who's at home on your best couch as in your neighbor’s trash can… to the right home… for a mere dollar.” Intrigued, Carole, who was a journalist, interviewed the woman and then wrote her article using Midnight Louie’s tough-guy voice.

Carole Nelson Douglas and Midnight Louie

But never did I suspect that a building in my hometown had inspired her when she imagined her fabulous Midnight Louie series!

When Carole found out that I lived in Corpus Christi, she told me that she was so enchanted by the Executive House on Water Street, with its lovely views of Corpus Christi Bay, that she created Circle Ritz in Las Vegas as the fictional home of Midnight Louie and his feisty human roommate, Temple Barr.  Carole chose Las Vegas as her setting because she wanted “showgirls, bookies, busted gamblers, and other colorful characters attracting lots of tourists.”

Executive House in Corpus Christi, Texas

 That news was amazing since one of my best friends, Sherron Hubler, has a condo in the Executive House! I couldn't believe how small our world was. The Executive House is a six-story, circular condo building, each floor originally having been divided into ten, pie-shaped units.  I, myself, have twice considered buying a unit there!

Sherron Hubler in her Executive House condo in Corpus Christi, Texas  

Sherron moved to The Executive House when she downsized because she loved the water view and had good friends in the building. Since I love visiting Sherron in her charming condo with gorgeous views, I immediately felt closer to Midnight Louie and his pie-wedge unit in the Circle Ritz.

Carole said she fell in love with this building during a trip to Corpus Christi in the 80's. Out of curiosity, she revisited the building in the 2000’s when she was attending the World Fantasy Convention. A friendly resident was kind enough to give her a tour of the building as well as a tour of her apartment.

It’s always fun to learn how Texas inspires the writing of other authors, especially something so close to home! You can read another article discussing Carole's inspiration for Midnight Louie and Circle Ritz here.

If you’re looking for a new mystery series and haven’t read a Midnight Louie book yet, I highly recommend beginning with Cat in An Alphabet Soup. It's a fun, romantic mystery read that will be sure to have you chuckling at Midnight Louie's antics. Carole also recently released the newest Midnight Louie ebook, Cat in a Yellow Spotlight which is highly entertaining. 

Cat in a Yellow Spotlight

Poor Temple Barr hasn’t had much luck with men in the past. Here’s hoping the new male in her life, Midnight Louie, will prove more dependable. Unfortunately, Sherron, who loved her cat, had to give her pet up before moving into the Executive House. She can always enjoy Carole Nelson Douglas's new Midnight Louie ebooks!

Romance in Texas

I want to welcome you to my blog by telling you a little bit about myself. As a child, I always loved stories. I loved reading them and making them up. For many years, I had trouble telling the truth. I tended to embellish, let us say.

My father wanted me to major in French and Spanish, but in second year French, I rebelled and quit going to class because I didn’t want to learn to say the same thing I could already say in English and Spanish in another language. He said, “What do you want to major in?” and I said, “English.” He swore I could never do anything of any value with an English major. But I’ve had so much fun.

I taught English until I had my first child. Suddenly when he was born and I was home all day, I thought that if I ever wanted to write, now was the time. Incredibly with a small baby and real estate to manage I wrote 8 hours a day. I really don’t remember ever dreaming that some day I wanted to be a writer, but I liked lots of creative pursuits.

Babies nap and have their quiet spells. I trained my darling son to a playpen, and he would play in the late afternoon at my feet while I typed. I did this even though my mother-in-law warned me he would be stupid because I wasn’t stimulating him enough. I believed that he needed to develop his imagination. He turned out just fine, and I became a writer.

It took me three years and a million words to get my first book, MIDNIGHT SURRENDER, published. And I’ve been writing ever since. Not that there haven’t been a lot of bumps in the road, the latest being, I bought myself out of my last multiple book contract and have decided to self-publish.

 

This is my most recent book.
Find it on Amazon here!

 Having a publisher that gets you onto bookshelves all over the world has been a wonderful experience. But I’ve had to write to very specific guidelines for the lines I’ve written for and, therefore, had to fulfill very specific editorial visions. Vast as my ignorance is in the self-publishing arena, what I am enjoying the most is having more control, especially about the kind of stories I choose to tell.

In the near future I will be publishing a series of contemporary romance novels set on a legendary ranch in Texas that will not be all that different from what I was doing for Harlequin and yet they will be completely my own.