After six years, we’ve decided to close the Writeminded Blog. We want to thank everyone who has visited us over the years and we deeply appreciate all your support. Many of you have joined the Writeminded Readers Group, and were extending an invitation to join us there if you haven’t already. Jaci, Amy, Steph, Larissa and Maya will continue on at the group as usual. The only change will be that this blog page will no longer be active.

You can find us at the following places:

JACI

Website: http://www.jaciburton.com

Blog: http://www.jaciburton.com/blog

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/jaci.burton

Twitter: http://twitter.com/jaciburton

LARISSA

Website: http://www.larissaione.com

Blog: http://larissaione.com/blog/blog-home/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/larissaione

Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=63819364560

Twitter: twitter.com/larissaione

Forum: http://list.forumotion.com/forum.htm

STEPH

Website: http://www.stephanietyler.com

Blog: http://www.stephanietyler.com/blog

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/stephanietyler

Twitter: twitter.com/stephanietyler

Forum: http://list.forumotion.com/forum.htm

AMY

Website: http://www.amyknupp.com

Blog: http://www.amyknupp.com/blog

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/amyknupp

Twitter: twitter.com/amyknupp

MAYA

website: http://www.mayabanks.com

Blog: http://www.mayabanks.com/blog

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Maya-Banks/323801453301

Twitter: twitter.com/maya_banks

And of course we’ll ALL be hanging out at the Writeminded Readers Group, so hop over to say hello. We’d love to have you!

Love to all,

Maya, Jaci, Steph, Larissa and Amy

For the most part, I’m pretty lucky when I sleep (WHEN I sleep…I have terrible insomnia.) I dream, but rarely have nightmares.

When I was younger, I talked in my sleep, and I did a lot of sleepwalking. In fact, sleepwalking was the reason I got out of the Air Force. I walked out of my dorm room one night and nearly got hit by a car in the parking lot — all while I was asleep.

Fortunately, I haven’t had an incident like that in a long time! But over the last week, something else has been happening. I’ve been having nightly nightmares. Really, really bad ones that wake me up, heart pounding, throat raw like I’ve been screaming. Last night I wiggled closer to my husband and then spent half an hour watching the door. When I fell back asleep…more nightmares.

One of them was triggered by last night’s episode of CSI:NY. Did you watch that? Those freaking scary-ass clown masks! OMG, those were the scariest masks I’ve ever seen. And in one of my nightmares, someone came after me while wearing one. FREAKY.

Anyway, I’ve had some of the most disturbing nightmares of my life recently. What about you? Do you ever have nightmares? What’s the worst one you’ve ever had?

I’m in the midst of a complete website redesign. And you know, there is totally a reason why I don’t even try to do stuff like this by myself. I am hopelessly, completely stupid when it comes to anything internet or technical related. I remarked to my step mother just this morning that if my husband dies, I am fucked. He does everyone computer related. The only thing I know how to do is open my laptop and open a word document.

So anyway back to the website redesign. They decided I needed a Facebook page. Only see I have no clue about Facebook. I mean is it idiot proof? They set up my profile but did a fan page and explained to me how I could keep the profile separate for just close friends and family and the fan page would be for readers and people coming to Facebook to find Maya Banks. Okay, cool, but I’m secretly thinking friends and family on the profile?

Only when I poked around, to my astonishment, I’m like the ONLY member of my family who didn’t have a page. I mean even my nephew has one. My sisters are on there chatting it up with my stepmom who did a page for her and my dad and I’m sitting here thinking holy shit! It boggles my brain. Who knew I was the only unhip person in my family?

Yeah, so anyway, if you’re so inclined you can find my reader page at Facebook here. I’ll try not to botch things up too badly! :)

In other news, my oldest child has started a Driver’s Ed course and holy hell but that scares me. I mean, really, really scares me… I keep thinking there is no way he’s almost old enough to drive. As in get behind the wheel of a hulking piece of metal and get on the road with all the other crazies out there. Hold me please!

And yeah, the rain. We’ve had one pretty day and three days of rain. The one pretty day again. Followed by…more rain. It’s starting to piss me off. And while I’m being all demanding and whiny, I’m also ready for those nice 70 degree days. Sunshine…dry ground…no mud. Well you get the picture.

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BOUND BRANDED & BRAZEN’s release day is finally here! It’s out in the wild and available for purchase everywhere!

Bound by passion, branded by love, brazen enough to take it all…

In the wilds of Oklahoma, three sisters have a hot date with destiny. Valerie, Brea, and Jolene McMasters reunite on the family ranch that should have been called the Bar Nothing…

Bound…
When Valerie left for the big city, she kissed her foreman husband, Mason, goodbye—along with the best sex she ever had. Now, seeing him brings back sizzling memories. But their rekindled fire threatens to burn them both.

Branded…
Watching Gage wrangle untamed horses with a gentle but firm touch leaves Brea hot and bothered. But can she live out her fantasy with a man who may ask more than she’s willing to give?

Brazen…
Ranch hand Walker Morgan can’t afford to lose his job by getting too close to his new boss, Jolene, no matter how much she tempts him. But Jolene’s prepared to take the first step, because what Jolene wants, Jolene gets. And Jolene wants Walker.

You can purchase Bound Branded & Brazen at your local book retailer, or online, in both print and digitally.

Purchase at Amazon In Print
Purchase at Amazon for Kindle
Purchase at Borders
Purchase at Barnes & Noble
Purchase at Books A Million
Purchase at Chapters
Purchase at Indiebound
Purchase at Book Depository
Purchase at Fictionwise (e-book)
Purchase at Books On Board (ebook)
Purchase at Diesel Ebooks
Purchase at All Romance EBooks

And if you’re a member of the Rhapsody or Doubleday Book Clubs, you’ll be able to find Bound Branded and Brazen there, too!

And hey, if you want to blog, tweet or send me pictures of BBB out in the wild like in a bookstore or in your hands, feel free.

Linda Henderson, comment # 8

Calida, comment # 29

Michele Santiago, comment # 36

Congrats! if you send an email to maya @ mayabanks.com and give me your mailing address, I’ll get your book preordered for you!

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Before I forget…this weekend is your last chance to enter my website contest.  Winner gets a package of five new books…see my contest page for specifics and rules.  The contest ends Sunday at midnight so do it NOW. J

Earlier this year I took an online course by Margie Lawson and though I missed about half of the class due to revisions that drowned me, I did pick up some good stuff from her, as I expected I would. (If you’re a writer and haven’t taken a class from Margie before…you should.  Except Maya, because Maya doesn’t take classes…)

Anyway, one of the things I picked up was how to develop a new habit.  According to research (and the number varies depending on which research you go by) you need to do a task either 21 or 37 times in a row in order for it to become a habit.  The exact number element of this speaks to my OCD/counting sickness.  (Personally I’m liking the “21” people a little better….)  

If the task is writing 100 words a day, you have to write 100 words a day for either 21 or 37 days straight.  (If it’s writing 100 words a day on the weekdays, you have to do it for 21 straight weekdays, etc.)  If you get started, write your 100 words a day for 3 days and then miss a day, you have to start over at 1 the next time you write 100 words. 

So I’m testing the research out.

My habit-to-be is walking on the treadmill every weekday morning.  Today is the 8^th day in a row.  I shooting for 21 times, but there’s a problem…my family has a trip planned for spring break…we leave after 20 weekdays of treadmilling.  So I’m debating whether it would be cheating to do it one day on the weekend and count that. 

At any rate, knowing I have to do it so many times in a row has kept me on it so far.  No skipping because it’s absolute.  (And because I’m anal that way, I’ll probably start from 1 again after our trip.)

(Hmmm…I wonder if this could work with skipping dessert.  I can make it maybe 5-6 days but then I cave.  Every time.)

Anyone out there have a habit you’d like to start?  Have you tried this method before and if so, did it work?  If you were going to try it, what habit would you create for yourself?  Last but not least…what are you waiting for?  (Come to the dark side…)

Don’t forget to scroll down and enter Maya’s giveaway, open through this weekend sometime (to be exact.)

My master bathroom has been undergoing a renovation over the past month.

You see, it all started with ugly wallpaper. I’ve been wanting the ugly wallpaper removed. Biker Dude started taking it down two years ago, and multiple distractions got in the way so I lived with my bathroom having half peeled wallpaper. Eh. Didn’t care. But then he caulked the tile in the shower, decided he didn’t like the way the caulking project came out, and there was this crack in the tile in the shower (stay with me here, people, I really am going somewhere with this), so we talked about ‘eventually’ replacing the tile in the shower. ‘Eventually’ turned into a very loud banging the next night and me walking into the bathroom to find my husband removing the tile in the shower.

The retiling project was on like Donkey Kong. And so was the removal of the wallpaper. Finally. And so was taking out the carpet in the bathroom and the tile in the toilet area. We were renovating the bathroom. And by ‘we’ I mean my husband. I just chose paint and new tile. He did all the work except for the laying of the new tile which was done by the ’tile dudes’. The whole ’tile dudes’ saga is another story for another day.

Anyway, while all this havoc was being wreaked on my master bathroom, I was kicked to the curb and forced to move into the second bathroom. So here’s where my story of the warm shower really begins. I know, you were waiting for me to get to the point, weren’t you?

The master bathroom is freakin cold in the winter time. It has higher ceilings for one thing. And Biker Dude said it has something to do with the shower head. Whatever. For some reason I get 3.2 minutes of hot water before it’s gone baby gone. Why is that? No clue. But taking a 3 minute shower in a cold bathroom in the winter is not my idea of a good time. Anyway, I move into the 2nd bathroom and….oh heaven. It’s warm in there. The heater warms up the bathroom in 5 minutes. And I mean warm it up like a freakin hot sauna. And the hot water stays. And stays. And stays.

I loved it in there. I took hot showers that lasted forever. I never once ran out of hot water. By the time I dried off and got dressed I was sweating. I loved it.

The master bathroom project is finished and Biker Dude worked his ass off in there. We bought a new shower head and new rugs and counter top pretties and even a fancy new toilet. It’s gorgeous in there. So last night we moved everything back into the oh so beautiful…but…cold master bathroom.

*sniff*. I’ll miss my winter haven bathroom.

I haven’t taken a shower in the newly remodeled master bath yet. But if the hot water doesn’t last in there for more than 3.2 minutes I’m going to finish out the winter in the 2nd bathroom, and I don’t care how pretty the new bathroom is. I need a hot shower in the winter.

Okay, I realize this is Wednesday NIGHT but it’s still Wednesday so technically I still have time to blog. I’d like to say I let it slip because I was doing all sorts of fabulously fun things but the truth is I have until Monday to completely rewrite half of a book I fucked up beyond all hope. Okay maybe not beyond ALL hope because then really what would be the point of me foregoing sleep and eating and stuff like that in order to rewrite it?

I digress. I have deadline brain and it’s permanently scrambled. So anyway. Lisa Valdez. My topic.

See, awhile back. I dunno maybe a year to a year and a half ago, I kept seeing all this stuff about Lisa Valdez and her book PASSION. There was a furor and outcry. Readers hated the book. Readers loved the book. There was all this controversy and whispers of OMG what she did!

So naturally, being nosey and all, my curiosity was aroused. I went out and got the book and was prepared to read all sorts of OMFG and WTFery.

I read. And then I thought maybe I missed something so I went back and read again. Nope. Didn’t see it. I mean I still don’t see what the big hairy deal was with that book. The book has been made fun of, disparaged, lauded, talked about and much was said about how long the wait was until PATIENCE was released.

I never figured out what was so bad about the book or what about it could possibly incite such a reaction in readers. I asked others, because maybe I’m just clueless!

So anyway, fast forward to the here and now. I had the chance to read PATIENCE this week, which releases in April. I was very keen to read this book because I couldn’t wait to see how it would be rendered. Would it be watered down because of all the fuss and hoopla surrounding the first book? I admit that was my first question because I hate when an author tones down the natural direction of a book because of criticism.

Of course I can’t offer commentary as to whether that happened because for all I know maybe the book WAS toned down. I only know that I loved it. Really. And in my perception it wasn’t watered down. It seemed to me to be very full on, written with…well, PASSION lololol (I kill myself…)

It was lush and evocative and splendidly rendered. I hope that readers will give it a chance and not be swayed by past commentary and present commentary on the book and its predecessor.

Disclaimer: I don’t know or have any personal affiliation with Lisa Valdez. For all I know she could be my elderly neighbor (omgosh wouldn’t THAT be cool) or she could be the chick who delivers my mail (but then oh shit she would have seen me in my pajamas) I have no motivation for urging readers to get this book other than my own enjoyment of said book.

With that said (you totally knew this was coming) I’m going to give away three copies. And also to make up for my slackass blogging because Im in deadline hell and didn’t realize it was Wednesday…

To enter, just tell me if you’ve read Passion. (the first book) and I’d love to know what you thought. Or if you’ve even heard of Passion, Lisa Valdez and Patience. ANd if you planned on reading/buying Patience when it comes out or if you’re like some readers who…well…ran out of PATIENCE waiting on patience. (Im telling you I should have been a comedienne)

I’ll draw winners this weekend and preorder your book from Amazon!
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I got it! Right now it’s black and white, but the actual cover will have a metallic overlay, so it’ll actually be silver and black in person. I love it! It’s SOOOOO Sin!

HER TOUCH IS DEADLY

As the only female Seminus demon ever born, master assassin Sinead Donnelly is used to being treated like an outcast. She spent decades enslaved, and now vows she’ll die before she’ll relinquish her freedom again. Then Sin’s innate ability to kill her enemies goes awry: She creates a lethal new werewolf virus that sparks a firestorm of panic and violence.

HIS HUNGER CAN’T BE DENIED

Half-werewolf, half-vampire Conall Dearghul is charged with bringing in Sin to face punishment for the plague. And she’s no stranger: He’s bound to her by blood, and the one sexual encounter they shared has left him hungering for her raw sensuality. Worse, Sin is the underworld’s most wanted and Con soon learns he’s the only one who can help her . . . and that saving her life might mean sacrificing his own.

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Also, I’ve been interviewed by the fun ladies at Rip My Bodice, so pop on over and see what they did to me! (You’ll totally feel sorry for me.)

Thanks so much to everyone who helped celebrate my birthday by offering up grossly fattening cake suggestions. Y’all rock my world because you know what I love most–carbs and sugar.

Now onto the prize winners. I used random.org to select the winners and they are:

Lisa J - Comment #10

Fedora - Comment #23

Tracey D - Comment #57

Michelle Santiago - Comment #82

Sherry - Comment #84

Congrats! Email me at jaci at jaciburton.com with your full name and address and I’ll get your books out to you asap.

Winners will have 7 days to claim their prizes or I’ll draw for new winners.

And be sure to check over at my blog to see if you’re a winner there.