BOOK CLUB FRIDAY--LOIS WINSTON, WRITING AS EMMA CARLYLE

new cover

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

I’m both traditionally published under my own name and indie published under my own name and as Emma Carlyle. For my indie books I’ve been lucky enough to have a very talented son creating my book covers for me. Even though I have a degree in graphic design and illustration, that degree was earned back during prehistoric times when we drew by hand. Most of the skills I learned in college are now obsolete, and my life has taken me in a different direction, one where I never learned how to illustrate on a computer. So I’ve come up with the vision for my covers, and my son has executed them using computer programs I don’t know how to use.

For the most part I’ve been quite happy with this partnership. Except when I’m not. Sometimes his execution is not quite my vision. Such was the case with the cover he created for my romantic suspense, Someone to Watch Over Me. The cover has always bothered me because it seemed more thriller than romantic suspense.

old cover

I’ve also not been happy that I’m so dependent on someone else. I like having control over my life and career. It’s one of the reasons why I’ve embraced indie publishing. So I decided it was about time I learned how to create book covers on the computer. Last weekend I made a concerted effort to learn the mysteries of Photoshop and create a new cover for Someone to Watch Over Me.

So what do you think about my first foray into the world of designing in the twenty-first century? Do you agree with me that the new cover says “romantic suspense” more than the old cover?

Someone to Watch Over Me

Dori Johnson is in hiding from the Russian Mafia. Six years ago she committed a series of felonies in order to create new identities for herself and her younger brother and sister. They’ve kept a low profile, living in fear of their lives ever since.

When Niles York, Dori’s boss, offers her the opportunity of a lifetime, she turns down the job, not wanting to risk discovery. However, her brother and sister convince her that after six years, she’s unrecognizable, and she can’t pass up such an opportunity. Reluctantly, Dori agrees to become the face and spokesperson for York’s new retail venture.

Jake Prentiss suspects Dori is hiding a secret, and he’s not going to let her jeopardize his friend’s business. As a former government operative, he calls in  some favors and starts digging into Dori’s past. What he finds has him convinced she’s out to sabotage York Enterprises. Too bad he’s falling for her.

Dori is falling in love with Jake, but she doesn’t trust him. He works for the government, and she’s a criminal. But then her life is threatened, and she has to make a decision that could either get her killed or put her behind bars for a very long time.

Buy link

BUY A BOOK; FIGHT BREAST CANCER

As I've previously mentioned, author Lois Winston, who writes those books about moi, decided I didn't take up enough of her time and recently took on a pen name to publish books not about moi. There are now five Emma Carlyle penned romances, romantic suspense books, and chick lit books available. To celebrate, instead of throwing a party with caviar and champagne, Lois has taken a cue from her fellow author and good friend CJ Lyons. She's decided to make a charitable contribution. And you determine how large a check she writes. 

For the month of August, Lois will be making a donation of $500 to breast cancer research for every 1,000 Emma Carlyle books sold. Blurbs and buy links are listed below and can also be found at http://www.emmacarlyle.com along with excerpts of each book.

HOOKING MR. RIGHT (romantic comedy):

After writing a doctoral thesis that exposed fraud in the pop-psychology genre, thirty-two year old professor Althea Chandler has to sacrifice her professional integrity to save her family from financial disaster. She secretly becomes best-selling romance guru Dr. Trulee Lovejoy, a self-proclaimed expert on how to catch a man, even though Thea's a miserable failure when it comes to relationships -- especially those with the opposite sex.

Burned by a failed marriage, Luke Bennett finds himself pursued by Dr. Lovejoy toting women after a gossip columnist dubs him New York's most eligible bachelor. When he at first mistakes Thea for one of the women out to snare him, sparks fly, but the two soon find themselves battling sparks of a less hostile nature, thanks in part to an alley cat named Cupid. Luke believes he's finally found an honest woman. Unfortunately, Thea is anything but honest. She's got more secrets than the CIA and a desperate gossip columnist out to expose her. Cupid definitely has his work cut out for him.

(Note: This book is currently only available through Amazon as it's part of the Kindle Select program.) Amazon 

LOST IN MANHATTAN (romantic suspense):

One by one members of the Montgomery family have died in tragic accidents. Sarah Montgomery, the last surviving member of the aeronautics dynasty, suffers amnesia and extensive injuries that leave her unrecognizable when she's hit by a cab. Industrialist Trent Caldwell already harbors guilt over the death of his wife and now feels responsible for Sarah's injuries. After her surgery, he brings her to his home to recuperate. Mrs. Kearn, his housekeeper and surrogate mother, sees in Sarah someone capable of bringing Trent back to life. She begins playing matchmaker. 

But the Montgomery family deaths weren't accidents. Someone harbors a deadly secret and using skills perfected as a youthful IRA operative, has systematically eliminated the family out of a need for revenge. Realizing Sarah's true identity, the assassin now has one more kill to make in order to fulfill a promise made long ago.
Amazon  Nook  Kobo  Smashwords 

SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME (romantic suspense):

Dori Johnson's life is built on lies and deceit. Six years ago she committed a series of felonies in order to flee Philadelphia and save herself and her siblings from a ruthless Russian crime boss. They've lived under the radar ever since. But now Dori's been offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that her siblings insist she take. Within days her carefully constructed world begins toppling around her, and when her life is threatened, the one man who can help her is the one man she doesn't dare trust.
Amazon  Nook  Smashwords  Kobo

FINDING HOPE (romance):
Being offered a position at a prestigious architectural firm is a dream-come-true for thirty-four year old widow Hope Morgan. For twelve years she's attended college while working full-time and fending off family efforts to find her a new husband. Hope's long-exiled libido escapes confinement the moment she sets eyes on Ben Schaffer, her married boss. When Ben's wife walks out on him and their young sons, Hope steps in as temporary nanny, a bad move, considering all those traitorous hormones.

Ben finds himself developing feelings for Hope, feelings he knows better than to act on, given the mistakes of his past. But Hope refuses to take no for an answer, and her three-year-old accomplices are a triple threat of determination when it comes to finding everyone a happy ending. Amazon  Nook  Kobo  Smashwords 

FOUR UNCLES AND A WEDDING (chick lit):Back when thirty-one year old Polly Faith Harmony's feminist mother burned her bra, she wasn't thinking ahead to the day she'd want grandchildren.  Behind Polly's back, her mother enlists the help of her four great-uncles -- the Catholic priest, the Episcopalian priest, the Jewish rabbi, and the gay Unitarian minister.  The  five relatives  embark on an all out campaign to find Polly a mate in time to beat her biological clock.  Like all loving relatives on a mission, they play dirty. My Big Fat Greek Wedding morphs into My Big Fat Multi-Ecumenical Wedding in Emma Carlyle's Four Uncles and a Wedding.Amazon  Nook  Kobo  Smashwords 

INTRODUCING EMMA CARLYLE

If you checked out the blog yesterday, you noticed my reference to author Lois Winston’s other books, the ones not about moi. I know; it’s hard to imagine she’d want to write about anyone other than me. However, being the gracious person I am, I have decided to devote today’s blog to Lois so she can tell you about her latest adventures in the world of publishing. -- AP

Thank you, Anastasia. I have to admit once upon a time I never thought I’d be doing what I’m doing. “Never say never” is my new motto, especially when it comes to the swiftly changing world of publishing.

Years ago I began my writing career penning romances and romantic suspense books. Several of them sold before a certain glue gun wielding amateur sleuth started demanding so much of my time. The unsold romances and romantic suspense novels grew virtual cobwebs in my DEAD MANUSCRIPTS file.

Lately, though, I’m seeing more and more authors turning to self-publishing for their backlist books as well as manuscripts that never sold to NY publishing houses for various reasons, most of which had nothing to do with the quality of the writing or the stories.

This was the case with my old manuscripts. Many of them won awards, often multiple awards. Two of the books finaled in Romance Writers of America’s Golden Heart contest. All of them received rejection letters from NY, often praising the manuscripts but not offering contracts. Books get rejected all the time for reasons that have nothing to do with the books themselves.

So I’ve decided to do what so many others are doing. I’ve entered the world of indie publishing. I’ve taken the pen name Emma Carlyle and am dusting the cobwebs off those award-winning rejected manuscripts. The first two books are already available. Hooking Mr. Right, which probably holds the record for the most awards for an unpublished book that never sold, is now available on Kindle. Finding Hope, a Golden Heart finalist under the title Liberating Hope is available for Kindle and Nook. More titles will follow.

I’ll still be writing the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries for Midnight Ink. I love writing about Anastasia. She’ll just have to get used to sharing the limelight with Thea, Hope, Polly, and my other heroines. 

Hmm...I'll try, but it won't be easy. I'm used to having your undivided attention. -- AP