The Dynamic Trio - Blog

A few months ago I purchased magnetic signs from VistaPrint for my car. They feature Midnight Treat and were so pretty when they arrived my husband suggested I take them on holiday. We’ve slapped them on the rental car. Here’s a photo of shelleymunro.com on tour.

After leaving San Francisco, we headed to Yosemite National Park. We’ve visited before, but it’s so pretty we decided to go again. We’d heard about the fires they’d had and were concerned about visibility. We passed loads of fire engines and a huge camp where hundreds of firemen were camped, but they were all returning home and visibility was excellent at the park. We saw some sort of deer and some tiny chipmunks. No bears today, although we had wasps when we tried to have a picnic lunch. We have a Mazda rental car and it’s a little feisty. The petrol flap wouldn’t open until Mr. Munro used some Kiwi ingenuity and then, when we stopped to get out of the car inside the park, the alarm went off. Loudly. Insistently. That’s why we didn’t see any bears. They heard us coming!! After much cursing and swearing on Mr. Munro’s part, we finally managed to get the car alarm to stop shrieking. I think we have it sussed now, although only time will tell.

Here’s a photo of El Capitan. The huge mountain dominates the skyline. Isn’t it pretty?

Just had my first margarita since I didn’t get around to having one in San Francisco. Yum. I like them very much. We’re not big on cocktails in New Zealand, and they’re very expensive. I’m still hanging out for a cinnamon bun. Soon. Very soon! Oh, and I should mention the conference was lots of fun, although I’m very tired.

I can’t believe it. Despite the weathermen telling us we’re in for yet more storms and rain, today is sunny and warm. Everyone is drying out a little after the weather bomb from the weekend. Me - I’m looking forward to sunshine and heat so I can wear shorts. No one knows me over there in the US so it doesn’t matter if I dazzle anyone with my winter-white legs. I’m actually packed and very organized. I think I’ll even have time for a final bike ride tomorrow. We’re meeting up with friends at the airport. I can’t wait to see everyone.

It’s my nephew’s birthday today, and I spent the morning making cupcakes and updating my website. I have release dates for two Ellora’s Cave releases. Fringe Benefit will come out on 14 November and Cat Burglar is out on 31 December. That takes my total releases for the year to ten. Hard to believe I’ve done all these books, but I have worked hard this year. I’m ready for a six-week break.

There are blurbs and excerpts up for the two new books. Just follow the links from the coming soon page. I’ve also put up new articles- one for readers and one for writers. They’re under the extras tab.

I have several guest bloggers coming during August so don’t forget to pop over to my blog. Lorelei James, Nina Pierce, Josh Lanyon, JK Coi, Nancy Anderson and Laura Baumbach are all coming to visit while I’m away. If everything goes well I also hope to post some photos and a few snippets about our trip. You’ll be able to see what I’m up to over in the USA.

I’m off to do a final few things. Be good!

I’m a bit late with my post today since I’ve been out on the town doing last minute chores and getting my hair cut. Conversation this week at Munro house has centered on packing and what things we’re taking with us on our trip. Packing for both the conference and six weeks of holiday comes with challenges. I’m definitely not gonna be a fashion icon.

It’s also been a busy month writing wise. I’ve completed edits on Tea for Two, my first Samhain release, which is out in October. I’ve also completed edits on Cat Burglar (another Middlemarch story) and Fringe Benefits - a threesome Quickie. Not that the lovin’ is quick. It’s a Quickie title. I’m waiting for release dates on the two EC stories and once I have those I’ll update my website with excerpts and blurbs.

Assassin, book four, in the Middlemarch series is out on 6 August. I hope you’ll enjoy this story since it ties up all the lose ends in the story arc.

Don’t forget to enter the Hussies Summer Sizzler contest. The link is on my website.

I’m spending the rest of the afternoon packing and doing small odds and ends. It’s pouring with rain, in fact, we have bad weather heading our way. They say it’s going to be the worst storm to hit New Zealand in a decade - a real weather bomb - so it seems as if hanging around inside is the way to go.

I hope everyone has a great weekend. Are you doing anything exciting?

I’ve been thinking about handshakes today because I’ll be meeting people at the conference I’m attending and figure there will probably be a little handshaking along the way.

It’s said the handshake originated during Medieval times when men started to shake hands to show they weren’t carrying weapons. These days handshakes are a courtesy thing. They’re a polite way of greeting a new acquaintance and, like all things related to body language, we’ve come to judge people on their handshakes.

I bet we’ve all experienced the limp handshake, the tight squeeze handshake or the sweaty palm one. There’s also the four finger shake where people grasp your fingers and don’t grip your entire hand. I decided to do a little research because we all want to make a good impression.

This is the correct way to shake hands.

1. Extend your right hand.

2. Point your thumb upward and extend your arm slightly downward.

3. When thumbs meet wrap your hand around the other persons hand.

4. Grasp the hand firmly and squeeze once. Remember no limpness or squeezing contests!

5. Hold the shake for two to three seconds. You can pump the hand up and down. (This is meant to convey sincerity)

Notes - maintain eye contact during the handshake and remember that in some cultures a handshake isn’t the done thing. Research ahead of time.

I’ve noticed in my own handshaking experiences that some women don’t shake hands. To me this is weird. I shake hands with both men and women. I’ve also noticed that offering a hand to shake sometimes throws a male.

What do you think about handshaking? Do you have any tips to add? Any thoughts on the subject?

Every day I take our little dog for a walk, and we’re both a source of amusement to everyone who sees us. I have no idea why. I mean a writer and a dog going for a walk shouldn’t provoke smiles. Scotty is 14, almost 15 now. We used to go for a walk morning and night. These days we’re guided by her enthusiasm. I go out armed with my iPod, lead and doggie-do bags. We walk reeeeaaaly slow, but no matter how slowly I walk I end up with the extension lead at full stretch and Scotty dragging her paws. Some days are good ones and she surprises me with a brisk trot, but those days are few and far between. I try to jam my impatience away because she is old and she loves to check her pee-mail. The vets says a walk is good for her, and I agree, being of the use it or lose it school of thought. Once we hit the reserve I let her off the lead and walk ahead, pausing to wait for her while bopping to my ipod. It’s okay to look silly cause it’s during the middle of the day and most people are at work.

This week I lost Scotty.

She’s totally deaf and her vision seems to be going. Sometimes she has a senior moment and loses me. She panics and for an old dog has a real turn of speed. Anyway, when I couldn’t find her, I panicked. I imagined her running in front of a car, but I couldn’t see her.

When I told my husband, I said to him, “I ran here. I ran there. I couldn’t find her anywhere.”

It’s true. I channeled Dr. Suess with a lot of running here and there. I ripped off my iPod and luckily, I heard the tiny tinkle her dogbone name tag makes. I called in my high-toned shout of panic and she appeared from some bushes, wet to her belly and eating something. Jeesh! Color me relieved. Since then I’ve kept her in sight at all times. For an old dog she has pace when it suits her.

I’m working on my sci-fi romance at the moment, doing tweaks and polishing a partial and synopsis. I’ve had this story simmering in my head for years. I’m worried that I’m not going to do the idea justice. Does anyone else have this sort of worry? I’m forging ahead, trying not to second-guess myself too much. I figure I have to write it sometime. That time is now…

Periodically new ideas with promo potential come along. Twitter is one of the latest things around. So what is Twitter, you ask? Basically it’s a tiny blog that you update throughout the day. When I say tiny I mean a small, since 140 characters is the maximum amount you can write in each post. The idea is to twitter several times a day to let your friends, family and co-workers know what you’re doing.

Here’s a video that explains everything:

I haven’t signed up yet but thought I would once I return home from my holiday. I’ve had a brainwave - a way to use Twitter for promo, so it will be interesting to see if it works. You can find Twitter here.

Do you Twitter?

I’m busy with edits at the moment. As luck would have it, they’ve all arrived at once, which means I’m going to be a little quiet for the next few days.

Today is the start of my spotlight week at Long and Short Reviews. Here’s the link. I’m giving away a few prizes, so come along and check it out.

Add some Sizzle to your Summer and enter the contest at The Hussies. There are lots of prizes up for grabs including a download from me. Here’s the link.

Author Island also has some wonderful contests. How would you like to win a book every week for a year? Or would you like to win a Kindle? These are just two of the contests over at Author Island. Here’s the link.

On Friday a young female orca washed up on the West Coast. She was loaded on a trailer and taken across Auckland, with a police escort, for release from Takapuna beach on the East Coast. Boat traffic seemed to confuse the orca, and DOC staff are asking the public to ring them in the case of a sighting. Here’s the full story here.

Did you have a fun weekend?

The following ad for Cadbury appeared on our television just over a week ago. The gorilla caught my attention quickly followed by the music. I watched the entire ad, spellbound, even though I had no idea what it was advertising. I think it was the combination of the lifelike gorilla playing the drums and the awesome Phil Collins soundtrack. I even mentioned the ad to hubby. Whenever it plays, I stop to watch. Here’s the ad from youtube.

Today I went to itunes’ New Zealand store to download a couple of songs. I’d decided to download the Phil Collins song as well. I couldn’t remember the name but figured I’d find it with a search. I didn’t have to search. Other New Zealanders had the same thought as me and the song is currently at #2 on the top ten songs downloaded from itunes. Such is the power of advertising.

This made me think, so here’s a note to the writers of the Grey’s Anatomy series. Don’t you think it’s time to feature something regarding erotic romance in your show? I have the perfect books for your characters to read. Good plot, great characters. Well written. You can use them for free in your show. Email me and we’ll talk…

I have a new interview up at Manic Readers. BTW, if you’re an author you can sign up for a free page at Manic Readers. Here’s mine.

Finally, we had a fine day today, and I went for a long cycle ride. Unfortunately all that fresh air was a bit too stimulating for my brain, because I had two ideas for stories and one in particular is screaming, “Write. Me. Now.” Not gonna happen. I’ve done a note to jog my memory at a later date, and I’m ploughing ahead with my sci-fi story.

We went out for lunch with friends yesterday and had both great food and company. I take my camera with me everywhere and decided I needed a photo of my cherry beer. I’d taken a couple of sips. A passing waiter asked if I’d like some froth on top for my photo. “Yes, please!” I said and he took away my drink, returning seconds later with some nice froth on top. Wasn’t he nice?

Did you have a fun weekend?

We’ve been having the most horrendous thunder and lightning storms here in New Zealand for the last three days. I hate being cooped up inside and start to suffer from cabin fever fairly quickly. I think I’d go nuts if it snowed here as well. It’s still raining at the moment, but at least the thunder and lightning have stopped.

I have a new sale with Ellora’s Cave. Fringe Benefits is a hot little Quickie featuring a friends with benefits story along with a threesome. I’m not sure of a release date as yet.

On 2 July I have a new release from Ellora’s Cave called Price of Love. This is a feline shifter story, although it’s not connected with my Middlemarch Mates. If you’d like to go into a draw to win a copy, hop over to my website and enter my celebration contest.

And finally both Lauren and TJ have new print releases from Samhain Publishing. Making Chase and Serati’s Flame are officially out. Go and grab a copy of each - you won’t be disappointed.