After a very long wait I’m happy to announce that Loose ID has offered me a contract on my latest erotic romance novella entitled Sophie’s Secret. I couldn’t be happier.

Michelle Cary deserves five stars for this exquisitely written novel. The story has everything that makes a novel a multi read. As a reader and reviewer I find this to be a compelling story that I have already had the pleasure of reading multiple times. This is a highly recommended book that just can not be missed.

Want to read the entire review? Just click the link below.
http://sensual.ecataromance.com/index.php?p=886

Now I’m generally not one to rant on my blog about things. In fact the last time I climbed atop my soapbox and touted accusations was well over a year ago. Last night however, I had a revelation about something that the more I thought about it, the more frustrated I became.

A couple of days ago one of my stories was rejected by a publisher. That’s not new or surprising considering I have more rejections than acceptances under my belt. I did what probably most authors do when they face a rejection. I pouted for awhile, doubted my abilities then moved on to something else. Only this time I couldn’t quite let it go. It was what the editor had said that kept my mind spinning. She’d called the story too narrative, too telly. Now, while I don’t doubt that it was probably more telly in places than I’d like and probably had many other faults that made it unacceptable, I couldn’t help but compare her words to stories of my writing idol, Nora Roberts.

In my humble opinion, Ms Roberts knows how to tell a great story, though I’m sure there are those of you out there who would disagree. Still, as I read and reread her work, I have to wonder if she were starting out today how many rejections she’d receive. Show don’t tell, well, Ms. Roberts can delve into the psyche of a character and bring it to life in a way that you don’t noticed she’d just spent an entire page inside the characters head, telling you the reader exactly what that characters thinking. Don’t head hop. Again, Nora Roberts is the queen of head hopping and she does it with such skill that it’s a pleasure to read. Her stories are based entirely on the emotions of the characters. The physical is secondary and subdued in a way that much is left to the imagination of the reader. She doesn’t need graphic language or raunchy sex to make a story hot. No her stories bring out the love, the heat of passion between two characters simply by conveying their thoughts and emotions. I read her work and I find myself asking where have the days of those type of stories gone?

Too often in today’s writing, the emphasis is on getting the characters together quickly then throwing up some conflict after to keep them apart. And although I love e-books and the future it represents for the book industry as a whole, I can’t help but blame them for the faster, raunchier, more attitude that has overtaken the industry, creating an invisible need to push authors to write faster instead of better. I, unfortunately, have allowed myself to be caught up in this need, thinking that the more books I have in print the better. Well, after thinking long and hard about it, I’ve decided no more. Yes, it’s true if you want to make a living writing e-books, you need to have a backlist of books and the bigger the better, but at what cost to the integrity of the stories themselves? No, I think from here on out my focus will be on making the best story I can and not worrying about the timeframe. I will continue to read Ms. Roberts work with a critical eye and learn from her as only she can teach. If one day I am half as good as she is I’ll be happy and if the editors out there don’t like it, then it will be their loss not mine. I write for the love of writing, not the money.

Stepping down off my soapbox now…

For Better, For Worse pulled me in from the first line and help me until the end. Readers interested in an enchanting, amazing read should pick up For Better, For Worse by Michelle Cary. I look forward to reading more of Ms Cary in the future.

Read the full review here. www.nightowlromance.com

No, I didn’t sub another manuscript for consideration by a publisher. Though that would be cool. Unfortunately, this waiting is much more important than that. As some of you may have noticed I’ve been a bit absent over the last few days. Well, on Friday I underwent a kidney biopsy so that my doctor can determine exactly what it is that’s causing my kidney problems. I spent the days that followed laying in bed, rest and being waited on by my husband and kiddos. I’m feeling much better today as I prepare to head off to work, but now the real waiting begins.

Two weeks! Yep, you heard me, I have to wait two weeks for my test results. So keep your fingers crossed and hope for the best because it would be anything from scar tissue from an infection to a degenerative kidney disease that could result in my need for a transplant down the road. I’m going to try and busy myself by finishing a manuscript I’ve been working on and keeping busy with work and kids. Hopefully the 25th will get here before I know it and I’ll have my answers.

Thought I’d give you all a little eye candy to start the weekend. Wouldn’t you just love to be that sheet?

Jeremiah Cortez thought he’d left the past behind him –

especially the part of his past concerning Phoebe Keller. Once she had stirred his world-weary soul. Now, years later, seeing the blond beauty again sparks dormant desires. But he has to push his emotions aside — he has new ties that can’t be broken.

Phoebe thought her feelings for Cortez were buried as deep as the artifacts she studies in her museum. An expert in Native American culture, she has her doubts when an anthropologist claims to have discovered a Neanderthal skeleton on a nearby reservation. But before Phoebe can pursue the matter, the professor in question turns up dead — and the FBI sends Cortez to investigate.

Now, as the two delve further into the murder, they find themselves entangled in a world of conspiracy, deception…and a love more powerful than anything they’ve ever known.

Okay, so I hit a wall at 20k and had to take a break for a little while. After reading a bit I’m back on track and had a wonderful day writing yesterday.