Talk About a Surprise!!

So today, as I'm going through my email, I see a note from Loose Id. My author copies of Circe's Recruits should be arriving soon. ??

The entire Circe's Recruits series is in electronic format, so I was pretty confused. Still, a kernel of hope bubbled inside. Had they emailed me in error, or was my book going to be in tangible pages? I sent back a question and received my answer.

Circe's Recruits, containing Roane and Zack & Ace, is now in print and newly available from Amazon and B&N! There are also plans to release Derrick and Hale, either separately or together, but no exact dates yet.

I'm really excited, because I loved this series and reader response has been terrific--enough that I've written a second series of Circ books, the first of which will be out from Loose Id in Feb or March, 2010.

So check out Circe's Recruits. I think I'm actually going to ask my local B&N to stock it in the store, which might require a book signing. Whatever, so long as I can see my pretty cover!

Happy Wednesday!

Holiday Reads: SATURNALIA

I love reading in general, but at certain times of the year, I like a bit of holiday flavor with my romance. In my own stable of books, I have an unconventional Christmas story that's fun, sexy and involves a trio of lovers.

The heroine celebrates Christmas, but her heroes participate in Saturnalia, a Roman festival which gives tribute to the god Saturn, in thanks for plentiful harvests. I've taken A LOT of liberties with the actual festival, with the exception of the dates it's observed. Saturnalia: Lord of Misrule is a sexy short story from Loose Id.

Each year, Saturn requires special tribute, and he prefers abundance in sexual favor, suitable "sacrifice" for the god of nature and the harvest.

Matteo Silvano and Renato Fortuna are up to the task, both charged with continuing their town's prosperity. Used to sharing women, the two are drawn toward something deeper than friendship with the addition of uniquely lovely Allegra Valente.

And when the proper tribute is paid, Saturn will reward not only the town, but Matt, Renato, and Allegra with a very special gift that will last an eternity.

To read an excerpt, click here.

Marriage Is Like a Horse Race

The holiday season is a fun one, and it really makes you appreciate family. Then again, it can really make family seem like a four letter word. A friend sent this video to my husband, who passed it on to me. I find it hilarious. There's some coarse language, so make sure to play it when the kids aren't around. Enjoy!

Warning::::: Strong Language!!!

Warning::::: Strong Language!!!

Merry Christmas

Here's wishing you all a joyous holiday filled with e-readers, books, family and fun. Merry Christmas!

Ho Ho Ho

Sorry my posts have been so sporadic. Between edits, my mother's week-long visit, which was wonderful, our annual Christmas party, and more edits, I've been swamped. Only good thing is that most of my Christmas shopping is done.

(One place you might want to stop by today is the Samhain Cafe readers loop. Lots of authors are stopping by to post excerpts and offer contests. Click here to read more. )

I'm planning on going to see Avatar in a few days and can't wait. I've heard great things about the movie.

Now I just have to finish cleaning up my house so I can relax and truly soak up the holidays. That is, after I let my son get out of the corner for fibbing. sigh. Some things even the holidays can't cure.

Happy Monday.

Christmas Karma

Karma is a wonderful thing. While the holiday season puts many folks in terrific spirits, it also brings the mean out of them. (Disclaimer: I've witnessed most of these instances; I haven't necessarily been a victim of them all.) If you find yourself doing one of the following things listed below... DON'T. Words to live by.

1. cutting in line.
2. not letting cars go ahead who've been patiently waiting
3. taking the last item you know someone else has been eyeing, because it must be great even though you don't want it.
4. texting while driving
5. swearing in front of small children
6. dissing Santa in front of small children (come on, people!)
7. buying for yourself instead of family and friends
8. ranting when you should be happy...

Uh oh, I subscribe to number 8. Guess I'd better shut up and be pleasant, though it's killing me.

Back to edits... One manuscript done, another waiting for work. Ho ho ho.

Going Gonzo!

Yes, this is me (see picture to the right. I'm rather blue, aren't I?) . I successfully--read, finally--finished edits/revisions for a story I should have worked on eons ago. But man, where the heck did the year go? It's almost January 2010!! Yikes!

I've spent the last week cleaning, entertaining family, and writing into the wee hours of the a.m. It's been so bad I can't look at a computer without getting sleepy. Normally it would only take me a few days to fix a 54K word story. But this one took me a week.

I turned it in this morning and am not looking back. Now I have new edits due soon, a party to prepare for that we're hosting Saturday, and hardwood floors to clean. Ack.

To add to this, I have to shop for two teenagers living on another planet,where new cell phones and IPods cost next to nothing. sigh. More cleaning to do, more shopping to do, and lots of prep work. But it's fun, in a weird kind of way. And hey, it's Monday, and I had the kids dropped off at school with time to spare.

Hurray for me. Hope your Monday works as well for you. And if you're smart, buy gift cards.

The Changeover

I'm changing hosting sites and implementing my new website. So if you try to visit www.marieharte.com and something looks wonky, that's why. I should be completely up and running, without error, by Monday -- Tuesday latest.

Oh, and I received my latest print books, Creations Vol. 2 and Life in the Vrail Vol. 1. They look awesome! To celebrate my new website, I'll be having a contest where the winners win print copies of my books. More news on that later.

Chow!
Marie

Engaging Gren

Ugh. I've been in revision hell with Engaging Gren, formerly titled, Winner Takes All. While I loved the original story (not to mention the cover),it's been giving me fits. It has a good foundation but lots of "leaks." I've been busting my tail to fix several problems. All in all, the story is different in many parts, the least of which is the title. Here's the new cover for Engaging Gren, coming to Total E-Bound in January. Have a great weekend!

Is it Just Me?

Is it just me, or does anyone else think this is REALLY funny?

From Anonymous: "Good news is that I truly outdid myself this year with my Christmas decorations. The bad news is that I had to take him down after 2 days. I had more people come screaming up to my house than ever. Great stories. But two things made me take it down.

First, the cops advised me that it would cause traffic accidents as they almost wrecked when they drove by.

Second, a 55 year old lady grabbed the 75 pound ladder and almost killed herself putting it against my house and didn't realize it was fake until she climbed to the top (she was not happy). By the way, she was one of many people who attempted to do that. My yard couldn't take it either. I have more than a few tire tracks where people literally drove up my yard."

My husband forwarded this to me. Gotta love Marine humor.

LIFE IN THE VRAIL VOL. 1 Now available!!

Ack. Talk about getting your dates wrong! Today is the release day for my new print anthology, Life in the Vrail: Volume one. Life in the Vrail is the name of the "series" of books about characters set in the Vrail solar system. I hesitate to call my book a series because you don't have to read one to understand another. Characters overlap, but that's about as connected as the stories get.

Lurin's Surrender and The Thief of Mardu are combined in one pretty print edition in Volume One. Rumor has it Engaging Gren and Seriana Found might be seeing print in volume two.

All four stories were previously released with another publisher but have been extensively revised and reedited for Total E-Bound. Click here to read more...

And to see what else Total E-Bound has out, to include new audio books, e-releases, print books, and free reads, click here.

Happy Monday!!

The New Look

I've been working on my website for a while, but it's never had the look I really wanted. So I hired Psyche designs a while ago to make a website for a pen name I'd been considering. The pen name didn't pan out, but the web site sure did! The website is still under construction, but the blog is taking off. Huge thanks to Tina, and stay tuned for more...