Hello everyone! I realize it has been a while since I last posted, but I’d been writing and gearing up for the Romantic Times Booklovers Convention in Pittsburgh, PA, not to mention my RWA chapter’s conference that was held two days before RT began.

My chapter conference was, as always, wonderful. The information, the workshops, speakers, and the friendships I’ve gained are always appreciated and welcome.  RT was many things. It was exciting, exhausting, and busy, and yet, I left Pittsburgh feeling as though I’d made new friends with authors and readers alike, not to mention the gorgeous cover models that converged in PA for a reunion that I’d been fortunate to attend, and a new respect for the planners of such a huge event as the Romantic Times Booklovers Convention. They’d put a lot of time and energy into the week, and some are still there closing out the last day of the convention. Kudos to those who helped pull the event off, especially considering that the hotel was under renovation. But that, my friends, is another story for another day.

And, yes, I am looking forward to next year’s RT in Orlando. This was my first time attending RT and I enjoyed it so much, I want to do it again. Of course, I think I’ll need the next 12 months to recover from the lack of sleep.  Well, maybe not that long, but at the moment I admit I’m pretty tired. Still, I wouldn’t have missed the chance to talk to some of the authors, models, readers and booksellers in attendance. In the coming days and weeks, I’ll post more on the RT experience, including photos, and relive some of the best moments with you all.

Until next time, write well and read often,

Frances Stockton

Seductive Persuasion, coming from Cerridwen Press

Rhiannon’s Pride, coming from Cerridwen Press

Welcome one and all to Frances Stockton’s blog! If this is your first visit to my posts, I hope you will take a moment and look back at previous topics. If you’ve visited before, thank you for returning. I truly appreciate that you’ve taken the time to visit today.

The other day I started thinking about a topic to write about in this post. A topic that is near and dear to my heart, something I’d like to share with you all. I freely admit that my favorite genre to read is romance! Whether I’m reading a sub-genre such as paranormal, historical or romantic suspense, the primary thing that attracts me to those books is that the stories involve the complexities of a relationship, the beauty of falling in love, and the joy of believing that the hero and heroine will live happily ever after. While it’s true that I’m a romantic by nature, some of my favorite things are drinking Chambord and champagne with my husband on a quiet New Year’s Eve, going for walks on the beach, spending that precious time together when our daughter goes to bed at night. The little surprises he brings home from business trips, his quiet, supportive manner toward my writing, all of this made me fall in love and have my own happily ever after.

Ever since I was thirteen, and read my first Silhoutte Romance by non other than the fabulous Nora Roberts, I was hooked and I finally put pencil to paper, literally, I did not think at the time that I could be a real writer unless I used long-hand. Which is funny, because my handwriting is, admittedly, pretty bad. I was fortunate that I had a teacher show me how to turn my paper in a way so that instead of writing across the page, I wrote toward my body. It was a trick I’d perfected in those early days of writing romance. Now I can’t claim that the book I’d written at thirteen was very good, it was rather like a modern day Laura Ingalls Wilder meets Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys. But what was amazing was that I’d attempted to plot, to develop tension and conflict before I understood what that meant. The funniest thing about writing back then was my complete lack of understanding the fine art of describing a kiss. For those scenes, and I admit there were quite a few pages of them, but I’d decided the best way to show the reader the hero and heroine kissed was to put the word ‘kiss’ next to the dialogue. That told me as the writer, this is what happens here. The tricky part came when I had the couple sharing a passionate kiss, in other words, a long kiss. So, thinking I understood how to get my point across, I spread out the word kiss. Turning it from ‘kiss’ to ‘ki–ss’, and sometimes ‘ki———————–ss’. I know this seems a bit silly now, yet I believed I’d accomplished something amazing. In fact, I think I did. Because of that story, I wrote more. Many years later, shortly after moving to New England with my husband, I joined RWA and the New England Chapter. It was a decision that would change my life.  Because of my chapter, I learned about POV switches, GMC, creating and writing a synopsis, query letter, and short proposal. Because of the friendships I’d gained, my understanding of the publishing industry become clearer. One thing led to another and I sold my first book to Ellora’s Cave Publishing for Cerridwen Press. I was so happy when I heard the news, I was literally dancing around the house as I called my husband right away and my parents. My father was speechless. My parents were proud.

For some reason I cannot understand, there seems to be some who think a publisher like Ellora’s Cave, which specializes in digital format, then later puts the books out in trade paperback form, is just an epub. Frankly, I don’t think any publisher today is just an epublisher or a print publisher. More and more readers are buying Kindles, Sony readers, and other means to download their favorite books and keep them all in one spot. Eventually, I’m going to buy a Sony, (though between you and me, I’m hoping for one for Christmas next year) because the idea of traveling with a Sony filled with lots and lots of books, but authors I know at Cerridwen Press and Ellora’s Cave, appeals to me. I hope you too will give digital books a chance and help to save a tree in the process.

If you read this post, please feel free to share your thoughts. Tell me some of your favorite things, for I’d love to hear from you. Also, don’t forget the Cerridwen Press Spring Scavenger Hunt going on right now, featuring several amazing CP authors. If you’d like to find out previous clues, please visit www.cerridwenpress.com and follow the links for the CP blog to keep abreast of what’s been posted already. Or, visit http://www.jayellwilscon.com/clues.htm and you’ll have everything you need to participate in this fantastic contest.

We hope to hear from you. Thank you once again for visiting and come back soon to read more. Also, if you’re on MySpace, send a friend request. I’d love to add you!

Until next time, write well and read often,

Frances Stockton

http://www.myspace.com/francesstockton

Well, a contest, of course! Yes, that’s right. A group of mainstream fiction Cerridwen Press authors are coming together to celebrate spring! I know it’s only February, but I wanted to alert any and all readers, friends, and family that this contest will be BIG! There will be excellent prizes, including downloads, CP tee shirts, goodies, card decks, and a big time grand prise that I’m not going to name…just yet! LOL…you’ll have to keep coming back to my website or check out http://www.myspace.com/francesstockton for more details.  Rules will be provided soon, and while it’ll take a little work to participate, the ultimate result is you get to interact and learn about the authors at Cerridwen Press (you can check CP out at www.cerridwenpress.com and see how many different genres are available) the chance to win lots of great ebooks, and a whole bunch more.  Again, details will be forthcoming, just be prepared to celebrate spring with style.

Until next time, write well and read often,

Frances Stockton 

Hello everyone, and welcome back! It’s been awhile since I last posted. But between the holidays and cleaning the house, I’ve been a little bit distracted. However, I am pleased as punch to let you all know that I have a cover for my second book coming out with Cerridwen Press! 

In all honesty, I absolutely love the cover and I couldn’t wait to share it. I’m going to attempt to post here on my blog, but I’ve also sent updates to my wonderful web masters Justin Knupp and his wife Amy, so the cover will also be on the home page soon!  Still, I couldn’t resist posting it here, too.  If you’re interested, I’ve blogged about it on MySpace and posted it to my pictures there. BTW, the cover was created by Syneca and I’m so proud of what she has done.  I’d asked that the emphasis be placed on the hero to differentiate it from the beautifully designed cover for Seductive Persuasion, hoped for long hair on Dante Luciano, a master artist during the Late-Renaissance, and I wanted a tattoo of a lion on his chest. On each of my panthera Abcynians there is a distinquishing mark that pronounces what the character turns into when changed.  The mark can be anywhere on a true panthera, however, converted mates will have a smaller version of the panthera on his/her body, namely on the place where they were bitten during conversion.  Dante has his on his chest and it is meant to be proud and princely.  Well, Syneca did a marvelous job. To say that I said a prayer to the cover gods is an understatement, and a goddess answered! 

So, without further delay, I shall attempt to upload the cover.

Until next time, write well and read often,

Frances Stockton  

While I admit that this post may be rather short this time around, I wanted to take a few moments just to say Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to anyone who visits this blog and my website.

I am truly appreciative of the time you’ve invested in reading my posts, and it’s been an honor to share my first two sales during 2007. It has been a fabulous year, filled with great books to read, new authors on my must have the moment their books hit the stores, and working with my editor at ECPI. While I admit that I’ll be quiet in the coming days in order to celebrate Christmas and New Year’s with my family, please know that I’ve every intention of continuing to post, introduce readers and others to the talented authors at Cerridwen Press, and, of course, post more information regarding Seductive Persuasion and Rhiannon’s Pride, my first two books coming from Cerridwen Press in 2008. There will be excerpts, contests, fun, special guests, and announcements galore.

Until next time, have a safe and Happy Holiday and a Happy New Year!

Frances Stockton

Hello everyone! As I sit and write this post, all is quiet around the house, my daughter’s asleep, the dog is resting by my feet, as usual, and my hubby’s at a Bruins game with a co-worker. I just heard from him and he’s on his way home, so that’s wonderful, but it has been a nice night to just sit back and reflect upon books.

While it’s a busy time of year with a variety of festive winter/December Holidays happening and a New Year fast approaching, it seems amazing that a week from now, Christmas will almost be over. Unless you celebrate the twelve days of Christmas and Boxing Day. And I believe Kwanzaa starts on the 26th, but, nonetheless, the Holiday Season seems to be rushing by! It feels like only yesterday when we decorated the house, but I have the feeling that by New Year’s Day, we’ll be ready to take it all down again until next year. Besides, the light up deer on our front lawn aren’t looking so good. They’re trapped in about a foot and a half of snow and ice, the doe’s head no longer goes up and down and the male’s head and antlers are blinking on and off, while his body is staying lit. I grew up with lights that didn’t blink, as did my husband, and we usually don’t have twinkling lights, but that buck is making me laugh outload. Then, of course, next year will roll around just as quickly and I’ll wonder if I’ve completed all the things on my holiday ‘to do’ list. Ditto for my husband.

So as I sit and relax at home. I thought I’d post a question as well as share my favorite books of 2007. I would love to hear from readers, writers, friends and family and learn about the books that you loved to read this past year. 

But first, let’s talk about Holiday reading. Has anyone read any new books that are particularly about the Holidays? A romance perhaps, or a true story, or a Holiday survival guide? I love to read. I read all the time. My collection is all around the house. But oddly, I don’t always read something with a Christmas or Holiday theme during this time of year. Perhaps because I tend to feel like a kid and get so excited about the big day that reading about it just makes me all the more anxious and excited for Christmas morning. I know a lot of authors have anthologies out this time of year, especially Mary Balogh. I love her books and an anthology makes for a great stocking stuffer. Hmm, I think I’ll drop a hint to my husband on that one. And if anyone has any recommended reads this time of year, please do share your thoughts.

As to my favorite books for 2007, there were so many that I can hardly name them all. My keeper shelf is so full at the moment, I’ll have to move them around and shuffle things about, but the books that become my favorites will remain on my shelfs. Fortunately, we have more shelves in the club basement with easy access and visibility.

Now as I write this list, I want it to be known that I’m writing them in random order, as they’re all great, and admittedly different. Some are Paranormal, of course, and Historical, as well as Romantic Suspense/Mystery. But because they are different, they are of equal importance and all are highly recommended reads!  

Among my favorite books were: Simply Magic by Mary Balogh, Secret Fantasy by Cheryl Holt, Knight of Darkness by Kinley MacGregor,  Annette Blair’s Sex and the Psychic Witch, JR Ward’s Lover Unbound and Lover Revealed, Die For Me by Karen Rose, and Cry No More by Sherrilyn Kenyon.  Again, these