Celebrating May's Calendar Men book with Cheryl Wright

First of all I’d like to say thanks to Judith and Sarah at Romancing the Genres for inviting me back. It’s always great to be here.

I’d also like to say congratulations on your 8^th Blog-O-Versary. That’s a huge feat and one to be proud of.

I’ve been asked to talk about my latest book, which is Book Five – May – in the Calendar Men series.

This book was a little back-the-front for me. Normally I have a story in my head before anything else. This time I had no story idea at all, and it was fast approaching the time I needed to start work on it.

Not to mention my cover was required to get all the promotional images organized. That meant I had to get images sent to my cover artist so she could work her magic.

But I still had no idea what this book would be about.

I went searching on Deposit Images, where I buy most of my cover images, and as I scrolled through, I came across an image that caught my eye. 

The moment I set eye on that cowboy, I knew exactly what torture I was about to put him through.

Braxton Chalmers is one of my favourite male characters to have written. He is fun, he is playful, and he is oh so sexy. But he’s also serious, he’s strong, and he’s protective, not to mention loving.

But most of all, Braxton regrets losing Sierra, his childhood sweetheart when she moved to the big city to pursue a career. When she returns to the outback town of Oakdale for her grandmother’s funeral, sparks fly between the two all over again. This time Braxton does everything in his power to win her over. This book, which was released March 16, has lots of yummy surprises for readers.

Who doesn’t love a second-chance love story? Or a cowboy?

I also introduced Melanie Chalmers in this book. She is Braxton’s cousin, and dreams up all sorts of schemes, often making his life a misery – in a sweet kind of way.

Next month will see the release of the Calendar Gals series, and I again have the month of May, and my story centres around, you guessed it, Melanie Chalmers. She finds the love of her life in the most unlikely of places.

That book is currently on pre-order and will be released in a few days.

The Calendar Men and Gals series cross several genres and heat levels, and there’s something for everyone.

Thanks for stopping by today. To show my appreciation, I’m offering one lucky person the opportunity to win one of my kindle books - of your choosing.

All you have to do to be in the running is comment below and tell me if you prefer to read contemporary or historical romance. That’s it!

Good luck everyone!

What happens when your heart is devoted to the one person you can never have?
After Sierra West suddenly left town, Braxton Chalmers tried to move on with his life. But thoughts of her always taunted him, to the point no other woman could ever live up to her standards. 

Sierra West returned to the outback town of Oakdale after the death of her beloved grandmother. Seeing Braxton again has reignited past emotions. She can’t allow these feelings to surface again – she must return to the city once her business in Oakdale is done. 

Can they just remain friends? Or will fate step in and show them they were meant to be together?

Author's Promise: This is a heartwarming contemporary western novella with a happily ever after ending and no cliffhangers. It is a clean and wholesome story with nothing more than hugs, kisses, and holding hands. 

Bio:

Award-winning and best-selling Australian author, Cheryl Wright, former secretary, debt collector, account manager, writing instructor, and shopping tour hostess, loves reading. She writes historical and contemporary western romance.

She lives in Melbourne, Australia, and is married with two adult children and has six grandchildren. When she’s not writing, she can be found in her craft room making greeting cards.

Social Media Links:

Facebook Author Page:  https://www.facebook.com/cherylwrightauthor/

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Cheryl-Wright/e/B0088GDSKM/

Website:  http://cheryl-wright.com/

Blog: http://romance-authors.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/writercheryl

Moving Furniture

by M. L. Buchman

Sometimes themes gather in one place in my life. When they do, when they clump together in close proximity of place or time, I've learned to pay attention. I'm in the middle of one right now and I'm not sure what I'm supposed to be learning...yet. But it is time for this blog, which seems to be a part of this lesson. So, let's see what's going on.

WERNER

I was watching an interview with the legendary documentary filmmaker Werner Herzog. He has directed 65 films over the last 55 years and written most of them. He has won over 50 awards, including Lifetime Achievement awards. 

"I saw my first cinema at 11." He grew up in a very small town and a traveling projectionist finally passed through and showed a "terrible" samurai film in the town's one room schoolhouse. Herzog was not only amazed at how a film could show another place, but he noticed a particular three seconds.

In a battle, a man is shot with an arrow, and falls dead from a high rock. Later, in the same battle, the same three seconds occurs--the exact same three seconds, spliced in twice. None of his friends believed him. He stayed through a second showing to prove to himself what he'd seen.

"It was the moment that I understood that film had structure. That it was built up of pieces."

He had seen the furniture move.

STEELE

One of my favorite examples of this is Danielle Steele. Many think she is just a trashy romance writer. And every one of those people should look at the fortunes she's made--there are few writers who can boast such sales numbers. Danielle Steele doesn't only show you the furniture moving, she tells you that she's about to show it.

"Look. Look over here. Their relationship that was going along so smoothly is headed for trouble. See? See? They just don't know it yet. Here it comes..." Boom!

TEACHER

I was speaking with a writing teacher today and he was talking about trying to explain to students that the furniture doesn't merely move, it must move with purpose. And student after student was shocked, "Oh, I see it now." As if they didn't get what was happening.

The moving furniture can be anything: plot, theme, romance, Christmas, a meal... Think of the splendid Stanley Tucci movie Big Night. It is an entire movie centered around a meal.

ME

Everything has purpose. The better writer I become, the more clearly I see it. Just this morning, I was brainstorming my next book with my wife. 

"Well," I tell her, "they are both experts in explosives." (This is in my military romantic suspense Delta Force series.)

"I get it! When do they blow up the relationship? Short fuse or long and slow?" ...and the conversation spun on from there.

3 REASONS

So, I was puzzling at the collision of these different events: three of them in the same 18 hour period. (I'd read the Danielle Steele book several years ago, but remember it very clearly...another sign that she's a good writer, whether or not you like her writing.)

As I tried to explain this three-way collision to my wife, she laughed and said something that she's mentioned a myriad of times to me: "Right. Everything you do has to have 3 reasons." (She thinks I'm really good at that. Frankly, I'm just starting to understand it.)

What does she mean? Big Night is indeed centered around a single, perfect meal. But it is also about the struggles of two brothers. It is about hope and how to find it again no matter how far it has strayed. The meal isn't only the vehicle for the movie to progress forward, or the many plot points attached to it (which I won't give spoilers on), but the meal is also about how hope is possible under even the worst of circumstances.

That meal doesn't serve 3 reasons, it serves more like 30!

As a writer, I have studied the true masters of the craft. I have typed the opening of almost every novel in the house just trying to understand how they did it. I've typed in the last line of one chapter and the first of the next to study the craft of cliffhangers by a dozen different authors. 

And as I do this, after 50 novels, I feel that I am finally starting to understand how these pieces and objects move and intertwine. Watch any episode in the first 4 years of The West Wing and sit in awe at what Aaron Sorkin does with each layer. Watch Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, which he wrote after that--his craft is even more incredible. Everything--EVERYTHING--serves multiple purposes: the clock, the set pieces, the roles of the actors, everything.

Watch episodes 13 and 14, "The Harriet Dinner." I watched it 20+ times trying to understand what he did and it still mystifies me.

I'm slowing learning about the furniture in my own stories, especially this week. I hope this helps you learn about yours...or helps you enjoy and appreciate the writers you love even more.

M.L. Buchman started the first of over 50 novels while flying from South Korea to ride his bicycle across the Australian Outback. He was on a solo around the world trip that ultimately launched his writing career.

All three of his military romantic suspense series—The Night Stalkers, Firehawks, and Delta Force—have had a title named “Top 10 Romance of the Year” by the American Library Association’s Booklist. NPR and Barnes & Noble have named other titles “Top 5 Romance of the Year.” In 2016 he was a finalist for Romance Writers of America prestigious RITA award. He also writes: contemporary romance, thrillers, and fantasy.

Past lives include: years as a corporate project manager, rebuilding and single-handing a fifty-foot sailboat, both flying and jumping out of airplanes, and he has designed and built two houses. He is now making his living as a full-time writer on the Oregon Coast with his beloved wife and is constantly amazed at what you can do with a degree in Geophysics. You may keep up with his writing and receive a free starter e-library by subscribing to his newsletter at:

www.mlbuchman.com.