New Address

If it's seemed lately like I've abandonned the blog... I have! I have migrated my site including blog over to my new home at Wordpress (no offense to blogger, you guys have been great, but it's over. Try to contain your sobbing). Just go to http://www.samilee.com/, and my site and blog are all at one address. And when you get there, you'll notice I still love red.

All the best,
Sami

Six Sentence Sunday - WIP

I'm posting 6 from my current WIP, the sexy tropical island love fest I've called Moonlight Mirage. It'll be out with Samhain Publishing in September, and it's about one woman, two men, and a distinct lack of inhibitions. Enjoy.

Still without uttering a word, he slanted his mouth over hers and kissed every last ounce of breath from her lungs.



Hayley’s pulse raced as his kiss claimed her. That’s what it was, a claiming. This was Mitch branding her, obliterating every last memory of the way Ty’s body had so recently possessed hers. The all consuming power of Mitch’s kiss, the bold, sensous thrust of his tongue, caused more of a physical response in Hayley than anything Ty had ever done to her. If there had been a shred of doubt remaining that she’d made a mistake in sending Ty away, Mitch’s kiss would have eradicated it.

Here's the link to the other Six Sunday participants. Thanks for stopping by!

Sami

Hump Day Honey

Yes I've been AWOL from the blog... and twitter and FB and everywhere. Neck keep in edits and a fast looming deadline. Yes there's me with a deadline, so professional. But I managed to find time to search the Net for some much needed inspiration pics.

I got the idea for this Hump Day Honey from Mamamia. Check out the hilarious article here.

He looks good close up...

He looks good from farther away...

He looks dapper dressed to the nines...

And he even looks delicious scruffy

Let's face it, he's beautiful :)

Sami

A bit of Friday Fun

This could also be entitled, Shit Writers Say to other Writers :). Very funny stuff.

Have a great weekend,
Sami

Six Sentence Sunday - Fijian Fling

My first ever short story (still my only one actually), also my first officially 'erotic' romance, was published as part of Samhain's Midsummer Night's Steam anthology back in 2007. It was short, not so sweet, and very fun to write. I hope you enjoy this short snippet from chapter 1.

“A strawberry daiquiri, thanks.”



He signaled to the bartender before taking a seat on the lounger adjacent to her and stretching out his long legs. They were carpeted with soft-looking, shiny black hair, the muscles of his thighs and calves taut and strong. Her attention snagged on the juncture of his thighs, her eyes taking on a will of their own. Good grief. Had she really just checked out his crotch?
 
The buy link is here if you feel inclined to read the whole thing for the low low price of $2.50 :).
 
Follow the other authors participating in six sentence sunday here.
 
Cheers,
Sami

The Big Cover Reveal

Six Sentence Sunday - Born Again Virgin 1

I thought this week it might be fun to go back to where it all started, my first ever published novel that was released through Samhain Publishing in 2007. Wow, I only had one toddler back then, now I have a kid in grade two and another turning 4 this year. It seems like ages ago I got that email letting me know I'd finally written something someone wanted to publish. Oh, the nostalgia of it :).

Hope you enjoy this snippet from Born Again Virgin:

She’d taken leave of her senses, obviously. She must have left them in the car. Why on earth had she asked KD to stay for dinner?

She sat across from him at the small outdoor table on her back verandah, the warm twilight air creating the kind of intimate atmosphere that only those close to each other usually shared. The wooden table seemed an inadequate and easily surmountable barrier between them. Funny, when she’d been sitting across from Stefan at lunch this very day, she hadn’t fought down the insane urge to swipe their crockery off the surface, scramble on all fours atop the table and shove her tongue down his throat.

Here's the list of other Six Sunday participants. Thanks for stopping by.
 
Sami

Cheesy Classic Alert!

Because it's always appropriate to wear full make up and a floaty white dress while scaling a canyon. Oh man sometimes I miss the 80s

Have a great weekend,
Sami

Six Sentence Sunday - Erica's Choice # 3

There'll be a big cover reveal happening here soon, but this will be my final installment of the Erica's Choice snippets for a while, I'll move on to something else next week. But I thought it only fair to post a scene from the beginning of the book that's in Erica's POV, since I've already featured both the heroes. So here goes - this is Erica after Griff has just suggested she might want to indulge in a little three-way action. Enjoy

Erica glanced toward the bar to see Corey still waiting for the drinks. As though sensing her scrutiny, he turned and met her gaze. His smile was hot with promise, making Erica throb with awareness. Her mind raced with possibilities that Griff made more vivid with his rumbling words. “What do you think? Reckon he’ll be willing to share you?”

 Have a great Sunday. Here's the list of other participants at the Six Sunday site.

Cheers,
Sami

January Round Up

You might have noticed I’ve been doing Six Sentence Sunday for the past couple of weeks. As Sunday in the US is also Monday in Oz, for now I’ve been giving Motivation Monday a miss so as to leave the Six Sunday post up. This has caused me to rework the blog schedule. So I’m taking the opportunity to cut my blog posts down to two per week. After Six Sunday I’ll do one other post in the week, which could be hump day honey, from the vault, a teaser post or something completely different. Yes that sounds specific doesn't it?

In addition I thought I’d do a little round up at the end of each month, sharing the interesting or funny stuff I discovered around the web. You might have seen some of these before if you follow me on twitter or facebook, but then again maybe not if the timelines don’t match, or if like me you can't be on social media all the freakin time. BTW, if you’re not with me on twitter or facebook…. Why the bloody hell not? The links are right there on the sidebar.

What I discovered in January:

I had completely forgotten to follow Annabel Crabb on twitter. Mistake now rectified. For anyone who doesn’t know, Annabel is a totally awesome Australian journo who specialises in political news and expressing her opinion articulately and with class and elegance, even when she’s totally dissing some doofus politician. Here’s an example of her brilliant mind at work in the article behind every successful woman there's a wife. Go read it, it's awesome, or follow Annabel yourself @annabelcrabb

The most terrific discovery is.... I have, yes I HAVE signed a contract for that little novella I mentioned a few weeks ago. Woohooo! Two books slated for publication in 2012. I will talk more about that story in a separate post soon but I’m working with two of my best writing buds on a series and it’s going to ROCK.

I've also seen a the draft cover for Erica's Choice, and my oh my, is it gorgeous! Watch this space for the big reveal in future.

What made me laugh:

Best thing I read:

Lisa Heidke's Stella Makes Good. She's nice, funny, and she writes a mean women's fiction novel. I'm officially jealous. Feel free to friend me on Goodreads if you're interested in what else I've read or want to let me know about a great book you love. I've just set up an actual author page, not just a regular page. Look at me the professional.

What got my goat:

More and more I grow concerned for my girls and their views of themselves. When I'm wearing my angry mummy hat I check out organisations like Collective Shout. When K Mart tries to sell slutty undies to tweens, orgs like this actually give a crap.

What else I’ve been up to:

Along with the Down Under Divas I had a great chat in the Samhain Cafe last week. It's fun yahoo group where authors meet readers all the time. If you want to join here's the link.

I was also lucky enough to be a guest on Rachael Johns' blog Ramblings of a Romance Writing Mama. I wrote about writing, all it's associated neuroses and Stephen King's book On Writing, which honestly changed my life. Check it out now if you missed the post before.

1 month down, 11 to go!

Sami

Six Sentence Sunday Erica's Choice #2

Last week I introduced you to Corey Wachawski, hero number one of my menage story due for release later this year. Today I thought I'd let you meet Dale Griffin, "Griff" to his friends. He's hero number two but no less integral to the story. This is his first meeting with the heroine he ends up sharing with his mate Corey.

Up close she wasn’t merely pretty, as he’d judged her. She was beautiful in a way that was soft, classic, like a fifties ingénue, with a body made for every modern-day sin Griff could imagine. And there were a lot of those. The way her mouth hung open in surprise had Griff’s mind instantly turning down Bawdy Street. He saw the pink, wet flesh of her tongue resting beyond the plump outline of her lightly glossed lips and was filled with a raw, powerful need to suck it into his mouth.

“This is Erica—Erica Shannon.”

Thanks for stopping by. If you want to check out the list of other authors participating in this week's six sentence sunday, head on over to their website.
 
Cheers!

Adam Hills Advance Australia Fair

It's Australia Day so it had to be done. I have a little crush on Adam Hills :)

Happy Aussie Day everyone!

Sami

Writing Update

Well it's been raining again up here in 'sunny' Queensland, shades of last year's pre-flood downpouring. But I'm no longer complaining, as the clouds had an unexpected silver lining today. The local school and daycare centre were open but the roads to the office were close to impassable. Hence the kids went where they had to go but I stayed home. Honest to goodness, it was an unexpected day off from all my usual responsibilities. Heaven! And great for the word count. I wrote almost an entire chapter on a book I'll soon be talking about... contract and release news will be revealed in due course (yes I am teasing).

I'm happy enough with myself that I thought I'd share a snippet of what I wrote today--unedited of course, so please forgive any mistakes. Happy hump day all,

Abruptly, Hayley stood, breaking the erotic spell that had wound around him. “What are you doing in here, Mitch?”

“Running?” Mitch tried not to sound irritable as he stated the obvious, but the strain of his cock chaffing against his jocks made it nearly impossible.

“Inside. On a treadmill.”

Rising to his feet and trying to subtly adjust his shorts to conceal his erection, Mitch drawled, “That’s how I usually do it.”

“Sure, when you’re in the city. But did you notice the long stretch of sand right outside this window?”

“Oh, yeah. They call it a beach, right?”

Having moved several paces away, Hayley at last turned back to face him. She gave his response the sarcasm it probably deserved. “Did you consider jogging on it? Or wait, let’s go for broke. Would you consider taking a leisurely stroll on the shoreline?”

“Hayley, you know strolling’s not my style.”

Her smile was tinged with sadness. “I know.”

Mitch, you idiot. Had she been asking him to go for a walk with her? And had he really responded with mild loathing like some creep with an 85 IQ? Hey babe, I’d rather act like a complete asshole than go for a walk with you. Shit!

 

Sami

Six Sentence Sunday - Erica's Choice

So it's my first venture into the world of Six Sentence Sunday -- be gentle with me :).

Yes, Corey's a fireman :)

The sentences I've chosen are from my upcoming release (August 2012, but who's counting the months?). They occur right after one of the book's heroes has just turned down a sexy invitation from a local girl because he's of course more interested in the heroine. I think it shows a lot about Corey's character, his innate innocence and his quiet fascination with a woman he's afraid to talk to. Here goes:

Corey wasn’t about to tell her work had nothing to do with his refusal. He simply didn’t want to spend the night with Madison.

The woman he did want to spend some quality time with was sitting across the pub right now with her nose in a book, her sleek red hair sweeping down to conceal her face, as out of reach as the moon. She probably thought he was some kind of man-slut because every time she came in here some random woman slipped him her phone number, or even her panties. Jeez. What did girls think he was going to do with a pink satin G-string?

Well that's it, I'm no longer a Six Sentence Sunday virgin. There are a whole bunch of other authors participating as always, so head on over to the Six Sentence Sunday site to find out who they are.

Cheers,

Sami

Random Post

I'm test posting as I scheduled a couple of posts over the past week and neither of them have appeared. The random hottie is just a bonus.

Sami

2011 - My Year in Review

Yes I have made a few goals for 2012, but as is my want when a new year starts I prefer to look back on the one just finished to review what I achieved in the preceeding 12 months.

1. First and most gratifying for me, I contracted another book. Yay! After struggling with the intricate web of storyline that is Erica’s Choice for the better part of 2011, in November I finally received word that Samhain wanted to buy the book. After the contract drought I’ve had, this one is particularly sweet. The fact that I ventured into completely new territory with the book (mmf territory) and somehow made a success of it is also something that gives me immense satisfaction.

2. I’ve made another partial submission which I can’t talk about yet as I’m not sure of its fate. But it’s a submission, with a synopsis and everything. Very professional of me! I may even have TWO books coming out next year, fingers crossed. For me that’s pro-freakin-lific.

3. In April I attended my first ever Romantic Times Convention, which also meant my first ever trip to the USA. I participated in my first ever book signing, met scores of fascinating people and had such a good time I’ve decided to go again in 2012. Yes, I’m doing it again this coming April. Why? Because life is short. And because Lexxie Couper talked me into it.

4. In August I ran a workshop for the Clayton’s Conference. Writing Hot Scenes seemed to go really well and despite my nerves I think I held it together. It was exciting to discover that over the years I had gathered more knowledge about writing love scenes than I ever would have thought possible. It was even more thrilling to realise that I could deliver a course that enabled others to benefit from that knowledge. Go me!

5. I’ve continued with my work on the Market Watch column for RWA’s Hearts Talk, and I’m proud to be able to contribute to the organisation which has brought me together with so many like-minded australian authors. I do so enjoy seeing my little byline in the newsletter each month :).

So those are my most significant writing related achievements. Not too bad as far as I’m concerned. Bring on 2012, I'm ready.

On a sadder note the end of 2011 brought with it some heartbreak. Our sweet, cantankerous, stubborn geriatric dachshund Presley left us just after Christmas. His poor old body was giving out on him and I had to make the dreadful decision to end his suffering, something every pet owner dreads. 

A little piece of my heart will always belong to you boy, I miss you terribly. I hope you found your brother and you are both once again chasing shadows with abandon. Be in peace.

"He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion." - Unknown

Sami

From the Vault - 2 of my favs

One of my fav songs and fav movies in one clip. Classic!

Sami

Christmas Competition

The Divas are running as seriously sinful Christmas Competition. Just hop on over to the Divas blog and post a comment on your favourite Diva book and you're in the draw to win a wicked prize that needs a content warning :).

Good luck!

Sami

Motivational Monday



In life we don’t get what we want, we get in life what we are. If we want more we have to be able to be more, in order to be more you have to face rejection.

Farrah Gray

Hump Day Honey

Oh I know I've posted pics of this particular guy more than once, but as I'm currently writing a blonde, blue eyed hero who reminds me very much of him (funny that), I thought I'd make him my hump day honey for this week.

Sigh.

Sami