A Guest Post from Author D. R. Grady

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Have you been plowing through your summer reading list? Do you like getting new recs? Well, if you said yes to either of these questions, today is your lucky day. I’d like to introduce author D. R. Grady as she recommends some summer reads you’ll want to check out.

It’s hard to find a great new read these days. There are so many choices, and so many great potential favorites, how do you know if something is funny, or smart, or fingernail chewing worthy?

By word of mouth, of course! Here are some of my favorite authors. Hopefully this helps you figure out what to read this summer.

Paranormal/Fantasy:
Christine Feehan – her stories can be intense and dark
Vickie Burkholder – more fantasy based stories

Paranormal on the lighter side
Jayne Castle – The Harmony books have dust bunnies! (set in another world)
Eve Langlais – Kodiak Point Series (set in Alaska)
Dana Marie Bell – Halle Shifters Series (set in Pennsylvania)
Vivian Arend – Takhini Shifters Series (set in Alaska)

Contemporary Romance:
Jayne Ann Krentz – some of her contemporaries veer into the paranormal (Also writes historical romance as Amanda Quick)
Jennifer Crusie – laugh-out-loud funny contemporary romance

Shorter, affordable stories
Noelle Adams
Gretchen Galway
Susan Hatler
Betty Neels

I also recommend anthologies. These compilations are typically affordable, involve shorter stories, and offer a nice sampling of authors.

Try: The First Sentence: A Collection of Romance Novellas (The Sentence Collections Book 1) 

Of course, I also recommend my newest contemporary romance:

 The Trouble The Trouble With Nerds coverWith Nerds

 Odd things keep happening to Dr. Sara Newton. She’s a soon-to-be-unemployed pediatrician with an alleged stalker, a hot cop on her heels breathing dire warnings, and way too much student debt.

It doesn’t help that the hot cop is Clay Morrison, her best friend’s older brother. The man has made her heart pound and her palms sweaty since puberty. The trouble is, he only interacts with her when he’s expounding on new security measures. He sees threats everywhere.

Clay Morrison is frustrated. He hates his new job, misses his Army Ranger days, loves his well-meaning, pushy family—and when did sweet Sara Newton grow up? She won’t admit she has a stalker, and she won’t keep out of his thoughts. He can only protect someone in denial for so long. No matter how attractive she is…

Clay and Sara are circling each other, trying to meet in the middle. Then a brand new threat sends them in a completely different direction.

 The Trouble With Nerds Excerpt

Clay placed a hand at the small of her back and ushered her out of the hospital. He didn’t move it until they reached the front passenger door of his massive SUV. Sara calculated the distance between the passenger seat in relation to the ground.

“I’m wearing a pencil skirt.”

“I can see that.” No indication whether he approved of this state or not.

Maybe she could step into the huge vehicle sideways? There was no way she could avoid flashing the fact she did still possess a few pairs of underwear if she had to step up into his SUV.

She sighed.

Clay opened the door, scooped her around the waist, and swung her into the vehicle. All without breaking a sweat. He buckled her seatbelt with professionalism. Then shut her door in the same detached manner.

Did I miss something?

Her breathing had only just resumed normal operations when he strode around the vehicle. The man didn’t use the running board to climb in. Like a normal person. He stepped into the driver’s seat as though this beastly SUV was car-sized. Muttering under her breath about tall people, Sara settled into the seat.

“Dinner?”

Her heart tripped a beat. “What?”

He repeated the question.

“What about it?”

“Do you want to go somewhere for dinner?”

 

Buy link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XJ3CK1GDRGrady

D.R. Grady writes paranormal, romantic suspense, and contemporary romance. All are clean, satisfying reads, usually involving at least one nerd. She lives with her husband near Hershey, PA. She adores chocolate, laughing, collecting bags, books, and shoes, and writing stories that resonate with others.

Website: http://www.drgradybooks.com
Twitter: @drgradybooks

Amazon Author page: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B007HR0ULS
Facebook Page: D.R. Grady https://www.facebook.com/drgradybooks
Google+:  D.R. Gradybooks   https://plus.google.com/u/0/114138197846185543554/posts

 

 

 

My Summer Movie Must List

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It’s ridiculously hot outside. RIDICULOUSLY hot. As in you have to be sitting in a pool with water up to your eyeballs to stand being out there. Anyway, you get my meaning. So, what happens after you’re sunburned or what if it actually rains? Then, it’s time to go to the movies. Where the snacks are plenty and the air conditioning blows true (fortunately, on someone else’s bill).

To help you decide what to watch while you munch on some snacks and suck up all that cool air read my breakdown below. Please keep in mind this is the adult guide. All kid friendly movies can be found on a future list.

June – It’s not too late – there are plenty of good choices left.

Wonder Woman –On the off chance you haven’t seen this gem yet, go! This is easily DC’s best. Grab your girls and catch the ultimate chick flick.

The Bad Batch – Go for the cast. Jason Momoa people… I repeat it has Jason Momoa.

The Book of Henry – This one might require a tissue or two.

Baby Driver – Another cast bursting with talent oh and it’s about a heist which is always the bad batch

 

fun.

Kill Switch – Could be the first interesting sci-fi flick of summer.

The Beguiled – Based off a book and with a stellar cast, Colin Farrell is going to wish he’d ended up somewhere else.

July

Atomic Blonde – Hands down the July movie that I would consider my must-see. Come on, it’s Charlize Theron kicking ass with a little James McAvoy on the sideatomic blonde.

The Big Sick – You’ll laugh, you might even cry, but it’s original and should definitely be checked out.

Dunkirk – Oscar bait in July? If Christopher Nolan has anything to do with it, then possibly so.

Spider-Man Homecoming – This kid was a lot of fun to watch in Civil War, so why not go see him in his own movie? Not to mention Iron Man himself, Michael Keaton and Marissa Tomei are also part of the cast.

Wish Upon – This is for those of you who need a little horror in your life. You can let me know if it was worth the $$.

August

The Dark Tower – I can’t wait for this one. Like millions of others, I’ve read the books and while I know they’ve taken serious liberties with the movie, for once, I might be able to look past that little issue. Bring on the gunslinger.the dark tower

Tulip Fever – If you like old school forbidden love, this one’s for you. Oh and little actor named Christoph Waltz is in it.

Detroit – A little history that plays like a thriller starring Finn from Star Wars – go.

The Hitman’s Bodyguard –  Okay, this might be terrible, or the humor might work. Since it stars Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson, I’m willing to give it a try.

Okay, so that’s my list. What’s on yours? Or if you have a chance to see any of these gems, let me know what you thought. I’ll be in the pool if you need me…

 

 

Author Tip – How to deal with unclaimed gifts

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On this week’s post I wanted to pass on a little wisdom I picked up recently. For those of you who are published there’s a pretty good chance you’ve given away copies of eBooks. I, like you, have given away a lot over the past two years and honestly, until someone mentioned it to me, didn’t even think about the fact there might be some that were unclaimed.

So, what can you do about the unclaimed books? It turns out you can get the money back via Amazon gift card. That’s right, you can recoup the money to use another time. How you ask? By following the steps in the image below.

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I was able to get almost $30 worth of books back and I know others who were able to get much more. In other words, it’s worth your time to check into it. Let me know if you were successful in the comments below.

Best of luck in your efforts!

Cover Reveal – Raise the Curtain

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Hi All,

I know it’s been awhile, but rest assured I’ve been working like crazy. A Face In the Crowd is now available in audio book format and there’s a new book on the horizon. In less than 8 weeks you’ll be able to check out my debut YA novel, Raise the Curtain. It’s always been a dream of mine to publish both adult and YA novels and that dream is coming true in June. Check out a little bit about it below.

RaisetheCurtain_400

Blurb:

Seventeen year old Alexa Cross is desperate to get to Broadway, but when she receives a failing math grade, hopes of a scholarship disappear. Now, she’ll need her father’s help to achieve her dream. The only problem is he doesn’t consider her choice of careers to be sensible and after the pain her family has suffered, Alexa can’t go against his wishes. Trapped between a family she loves and her love of the stage, Alexa will have to find another way to achieve her dream or settle for what her father wants.

West Howell does his best to keep his head down and go unnoticed. It’s easier to be cut off than to try to explain to people why he’s so screwed up. After all, he can’t afford to get into any more trouble. When he’s recruited to tutor the hot, prissy girl from math, he never expects to fall in love with her. Or that she might be the one person who can relate to him.

Together, they may find a way to heal each other and get what they both desperately need, as long as Alexa’s father doesn’t decide that the one thing worse than his daughter’s love of the stage, is her love for West.

I hope you’ll follow me in this new endeavor and as always thanks for your support.

Hugs!

When You’re Stuck In A Rut

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Hello, long lost readers. *waves* It’s been awhile and for that, I’m sorry. While the leaves changed colors and we pulled our cute boots out of the closet this author got caught in a rut. Some people may call it writer’s block or maybe they feel their muse isn’t in the mood to work, but whatever the case, I couldn’t seem to put the right words on the page. So, you know what I did? I gave myself some time off. After all, isn’t that one of the perks to being my own boss? I can take the time I need to get back to a place that will allow me to write a book people may actually want to read because isn’t that the whole point?

That may seem like the opposite of productive, but you know what? It worked. I let myself off the hook. I Christmas shopped, got coffee with a friend, and watched cheesy Hallmark movies while I wrapped gifts. At first, it was hard. Writer me wants to write, NEEDcat-spaS to write every day. When I don’t, it’s like the entire day has been a waste. I had to remind myself that I’ve put out four books in two years, more than I ever thought possible, so why not take a break? Why not regroup so I don’t just write to write, I write a story I can by proud of?

My writing hiatus, just like a vacation from a desk job, had an end date. The deal I made with myself was that as soon as the kids went back to school, I went back to work. I’m proud to say that I stuck to it and in the last two weeks since we’ve all returned to the real world, I’ve signed a contract for a YA and started a new book. The point of all of this is to remind other writers out there that it’s okay to take some time off. It’s okay to take a break and find inspiration out in the real world. Let yourself off the hook and then come back with a vengeance.

Then, together we’ll shout, “Look out 2017, we’re coming for you!”

Finding Inspiration

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keep-going1There are days as a writer where the words flow to the point I forget to eat lunch and then there are those other days, the ones where you spend more time staring at the wall than actually getting any writing done. Those days are the worst. I read an article about writing by Kristan Higgins and she mentioned that one way to combat writer’s block is to stop writing for the day in the middle of a scene that way when you return to your work in progress, you’ll know exactly where to pick up. It’s good advice, but what happens when you’re ready to write the next book and the words won’t come. Or maybe the brilliant idea you thought you had turned out not to be so brilliant. What then?

That’s when you need a shot of inspiration, but where do you go to get it? Do they sell inspiration at the liquor store? Maybe, but there are other ways to find it. The first thing I like to do is walk away. That’s right. Stop sitting at the computer and do something else. For example, you could take a walk, or go to a coffee shop, or if you have the time, go out for drinks with your friends. The reason this can be good is because it puts you in the land of the living and there is no better inspiration than getting out there. The waiter has a terrible tattoo? Great! Ask him about it. Your girlfriend had a bad date? Even better (for your writing, not her love life). There are stories to be had and characters to meet out there in the world of people.

Maybe you don’t need something as dramatic as all that. Maybe you just need a little kick start. That’s okay too. Try making a playlist of some of your favorite love songs. Is there a line in one that sparks something in you? What about your favorite movie? Why is it your favorite? What about the characters speaks to you? Pinterest boards of favorite couples? Brilliant. There is no wrong answer. You just have to open your eyes and give your muse a kick in the butt. Inspiration is everywhere. What are you waiting for? Get out there and find it.

Feeling inspired? I hope so.

Getting Back to Work

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The temperature is still high, but since school is back in session the summer break is over. While I miss hanging out with my little guys and sleeping in a little later, I also miss working. I long for the chance to get to work on the next story that’s been circling my mind for the last couple of months and escaping into a world of make believe. Sure I stayed up at night on occasion to get a little time in, but I’m a morning person. And let’s be honest, trying to work with a bunch of loud, rowdy boys in the house is impossible. I can’t hear my muse over the sounds of Nerf wars and super hero battles.

Today, that all changes. I’m back in my writing cave and peace is restored, unless you’re one of my characters. Those guys are going to get put through the ringer.

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