Mostly Books
Harlequin’s new(ish) Dare line is trying something really different with their covers. I can’t stop looking at this one. Unlike so many other category romance covers, the people look so real.
Along with Entangled Publishing’s Autumn line, it’s good to see some characters who don’t look like they’ve just graduated from their teens!
Saturday Sunset in Canberra
Autumn leaves and bushfire smoke on Wednesday evening in Canberra. There was backburning (where they have controlled burns of the land to lower the bushfire danger) going on in the region.
‘I can get any novel I want in 30 seconds’: can book piracy be stopped?
^^That’s Mine^^
This is what has been happening in my personal life over the past few months. It turns out there are a few people in the world who think my writing isn’t awful – in the space of a few days I received two offers from two publishers to write historical romance, but only a crazy person turns down Harlequin!
It was really stupid to wait so long before submitting anything. I finally got around to it at the end of last year, and by the end of February/beginning of March it was all happening, and now contracts have been signed, cover design information has been submitted etc. I know how lucky I am that it happened so fast.
This is why I am many, many, MANY months behind with my book reviews. I’ve been trying to get my own books written behind the scenes! I’ve hardly had any time to read.
I AM going to review my remaining ARCs (that aren’t exactly *Advance* Review Copies now!), but it’s going to be very unethical to keep reviewing historical romance books after that. I will continue to post HR book news, however.
After seven years, there’s no way I’m ending this blog, but I will be making some old posts private.
My new website is HERE (sonyaheaney.com), but it’s not properly designed yet. One thing at a time…
Oh, and I have a Facebook page, but there’s not much there yet, seeing as the first book is still in the editing stage!
I have no idea how I didn’t know about this site until last night. It is home for all of Harlequin Australia’s imprints, as well as for Avon Romance books etc. However there’s a lot more to it than that.
There is a blog, and there are videos and giveaways. I really like the layout, too. In a time when so many book sites are dying out, I think this one really works, and it makes it easy to shop by genre across multiple imprints under the HarperCollins umbrella.
Check it out here: romance.com.au
Here’s your periodic reminder that Harlequin’s website is full of free online reads!
If – like me – you subscribe to the Harlequin newsletter, you probably got an email recently that advertises “Read Bliss“, which is a new YouTube channel that promotes romantic fiction and authors etc.
I’m still yet to discover what this channel is actually about, but Harlequin has always been great with their social media stuff, so it’s probably worth checking out.
The So You Think You Can Write blog makes for an interesting read when editors weigh in on trends in publishing. They also give advice on things they’re tired of seeing in romance books, and they recently had a post about phrases that need to be retired.
One phrase that is starting to annoy me in historical romance is “gloved hand/s”. When it first started showing up in books I thought it was a great description (especially as a reminder that our historical characters dressed very differently). However, now I see it in every single book, and it has completely lost its impact.
Here are some of the things editors are sick of (and you can read the whole post HERE):
Her mouth formed a perfect O.
She bit her lip.
His smile didn’t reach his eyes.
She looked up from under her lashes.
She touched his hand and felt a jolt/spark of electricity.
(I’ve got to admit to absolutely despising the last one. People aren’t electrical conductors!)
How have we already made it through a whole month of 2019? It’s scary how fast things are going…
My review of Duchess by Deception (Gilded #1) by Marie Force
Harlequin: Romance Plot Clichés
Out Now: Ladies of Intrigue by Michelle Griep
Harlequin’s So You Think You Can Write blog has had a lot of interesting posts to start the year, and this one about plot clichés is pretty funny – and easy to relate to.
You can find the whole post HERE, but below are a couple of the things editors don’t want to see:
“Anything to do with the heroine falling down or being clumsy.” Variation: “She’s daintily eating potato skins and some sour cream doesn’t quite make it into her mouth. The hero leans over and dabs at her lips, smirking over how cute she is.”
“Stories that start with the heroine driving back to her hometown and thinking about all the backstory that got her to this moment.”
This has been a dramatic week both personally and for the world, and so I’ve run out of time to even take a picture of my Christmas decorations! Maybe next week…
Darth Putin is a parody account the Russians periodically try to get banned.
This week Russia’s war in Ukraine finally made it back into the news.
Tomi Adeyemi apologises to Nora Roberts
My review of The Good, the Bad, and the Duke (The Cavensham Heiresses #4) by Janna MacGregor
Helene Young: ‘I chose a career as a pilot over motherhood. I don’t regret a thing’
Behind the Scenes of a Harlequin Cover Shoot
