Love Scenes and The Pain behind the Pleasure

To spice up Monday, I’m blogging about writing love scenes on the Indulgence blog. Hop on over and join the discussion! :-)

http://www.indulgencebooks.com/2012/10/29/love-scenes-and-the-pain-behind-the-pleasure/

Meet Carmen Falcone

Hi, folks!

Come join us! The talented Maria Perry Mohan has a new blog, and I'm her first guest!

We'll be doing a giveaway, too!

Maria's Book Blog: Meet Carmen Falcone:   I'm very happy to welcome author Carmen Falcone, from Austin, Texas, USA,  to my blog today.  Carmen's debut novel A VENGEFUL AFFAIR...

Four stars from RT Book Reviews!

 

 

I realize shameless self-promotion can get annoying really quick, but this is more than that.

 

I've been reading RT Book Reviews for years, even went to the RT Convention in Chicago, last April. Soooooo to see my name printed on the December issue makes my heart sing. It makes me sing too, and neighbors, I'm sorry about that.

 

Anyway, A Vengeful Affair got a great review! YAY!

 

I am so grateful to Entangled for believing in my story, and for being such an awesome publisher.

 

Okay, I'm done. Go back to reading the funny posts now :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gym Confessions: Week Four

 

I know what you’re thinking – you never thought I’d get this far, did you? Well, get in line. Even my hubby was surprised at my willingness to get sweaty with something other than, well…you get the picture, right? I worked out four times last week to celebrate my fourth week. Which means I got out of my comfy house on a rainy day and worked out on a SATURDAY, folks!

Yep. A Saturday.

To my surprise, the gym was almost deserted. I should like that, but actually I like it when people see me working out – it’s like having witnesses. I still hate to stretch in front of people, though, so that’s why I get these awful back pains the next day. My trainer always asks me if I’m doing my stretches at home, and I always say, of course, yes. She already knows too much about me – more than it is legally allowed: she knows my age, my weight, and next week that bitch will have my cholesterol level in her dossier. Basically, even my former therapist doesn’t know all these things about me. These things are personal, damn it!

So yes, this week I’ll be doing a health screen test. Suggested by whom? My trainer. (I love the way it sounds, as if I train every day!) She had to add that little twist when things were going so well. (All’s relative.) So not only did I find out sometime ago I have the body of a 63-year-old, I’ll also get more depressing news this Friday. I hope they’ll have paramedics on standby. And don’t worry, I’ll tell you all about it.  :)

I must vent to someone. I could never tell these things to my mother or sisters, for instance. My mom is very fit for her age (which remains a family secret, and people have disappeared under suspicious circumstances while trying to find out); my three sisters are all painfully skinny. Meh. I still like to think if we ever fought for world dominance, I totally could take them down. Not that I think about doing these things to them. Ever.

Well, if you think I’m more muddy and bitter than normal, you’re right. After all, this is Week Four. :)

Someone please throw a carb-filled calorie bomb treat at me. Right now.

There. Much better.

Take care and until later,

Carmen

We have a winner!

Drumroll, please…

We have a winner!

 

Thank you to everyone who helped me spread the word. I really appreciate your support!

And the winner is… Maria Perry Mohan! Congratulations! Let me know if you'd like your $25 gift card from Amazon, iTunes or B&N!

Please email me your info at carmenauthor@yahoo.com

Have a great day,

Carmen

Writing is not for weenies

 

 

Do you remember the first time in your life you got super excited over something? Or the first time you felt utter disappointment? I remember my late grandmother with tenderness; she always had candies for me, even if she hid them from my mom. I know what you’re saying: that the sweet old lady could be to blame for my horrible eating habits. But back then, such things like bad eating habits didn’t exist, and if they did, they didn’t have names. Or maybe they did. I don’t remember. Hey, I was five – cut me some slack.

My first truly meaningful sadness was losing my father when I was six. I didn’t know much of what went on…just that all of a sudden, everyone at school was asking me how I was doing and how my mom was doing. Then my male cousins broke the news the worst way possible, telling me my dad actually wasn’t returning from his trip to Europe. Ever.

Anyway, don’t reach for the Kleenex just yet, folks. The worst is over – or I hope it is, as I try to make this about writing. Yet flashes from my childhood keep coming back.

I found a picture of mine when I was five or six, a time in between the sweetness of the forbidden candies and the harshness of real life. I frown at the camera and my hand covers a piece of paper. That’s Exhibit A I’ve always wanted to be a writer.

Fast-forward well over two decades to the present, and I’m happy to say I’d be smiling if someone took a picture of me at my work desk – as long as I looked decent…which means, of course, out of sweatpants and into a slimming black dress, with my hair blown out and a hint of make up on my face. J Wouldn’t that be swell?

The publishing business sometimes brings us candies, and other times, bad news. For me, it has a lot to do with giving up control. The minute you write a book, it’s yours. Then, when you share it with the world, it’s still yours, but you’ve given everyone the right to criticize it – some will like it, some will hate it, some will love it, and some won’t even bother to read.

And though I’m obviously barely a freshman at being published, I’m certainly a senior in dreaming about it. It might have taken time, but don’t we value things more when they don’t come easily? Well, that’s why I try to tell myself, anyway. :)

So when you don’t place in contests, or when you receive rejection letters, one-star reviews or discouragement from the people who should do the exact contrary – such as your family members, spouses, kids, cousins, or the old lady next door who keeps asking you to babysit her cat when she goes out of town – remember: Writing is not for weenies. It’s a craft, it’s a dream, it’s a business. Work on your craft, keep on dreaming, and turn it into a profitable business.

Allow yourself to feel bitter, jealous, insecure, and pissed off for no longer than an hour. (Okay, a day, if you got really bad news.) Then, bring your chin up and your fingers on the keyboard. And if all else fails, you can always turn to candy.

Until later,

Carmen :)

A Vengeful Affair Giveaway Extravaganza!

***UPDATE: even if A Vengeful Affair doesn't reach the minimum goal, I'll still give away one $25 gift card on Monday, October 15th. So please help promote anyway and leave a comment below! Have a great weekend! :)***

 

 

I’m celebrating three months since A Vengeful Affair was released, and it’s still a Top 100 bestseller on Amazon Kindle’s Romance Series list! Thank you to my readers!

If A Vengeful Affair continues to climb, I’ll be giving away up to five $25 gift cards (Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes—winner’s choice!). That’s up to $125 worth of prizes, and your help will dictate how many gift cards will be given out.

So get your sneakers on and let’s climb! A Vengeful Affair is currently at #73, but we can do better!

How can you help?

ü  Copy and paste this post on your blog, and promote it on Facebook or Twitter.

ü  Buy the book if you enjoy sexy romances. J

ü  “Like” my page on Amazon. Tagging would be nice, too!

ü  Leave an honest review on Amazon, Goodreads or Barnes & Noble.

ü  Scream from your window! Well, I’m grateful for the yell, but please be social media savvy. J

 

Prizes:

If/when A Vengeful Affair reaches #60, I’ll give away one $25 gift card.

If/when A Vengeful Affair reaches #50, I’ll give away another $25 gift card.

If/when A Vengeful Affair reaches #35, I’ll give away an additional two $25 gift cards.

If/when A Vengeful Affair reaches #25, I’ll give away one more $25 gift card.

 

Please make sure you enter a comment below when you’ve done any of the things listed above for a chance to win :)

The contest will close on October 15th, 2012 at midnight CDT.

Let’s get the word out!

Until later,

Carmen

Gym Confessions: Week Three

Gym Confessions: Week Three

 

I knew there was something off when I went to the cardio area and the other thick-boned girl was still there. Why was she still hanging around? We had this unspoken agreement for one of us to leave whenever the other arrived, as neither of us wanted to draw attention. Yet, there she was, and with a shake of my head I got on with my day suspecting – no, knowing – the third week was going to suck.

Boy, was I right! My P.T. showed me a machine that could have a supporting role in a James Bond movie and asked me, “How do you tuck in your stomach?”

“I wear Spanx,” I said without delay.

She sighed. (Yes, poor thing.)

I asked her if there was a way I could keep my butt and just lose weight in my problem areas (stomach, arms, thighs). This might come as a shock, but there are parts of my body I’d like to keep as is – my derriere, for instance. Wouldn’t that be swell? I visualized myself as a Latin version of Jessica Rabbit.

As it turns out, I have to lose weight ALL AROUND, and tons of it, first. THEN I start to tone EVERYTHING. Phew. That’s a lot of work, folks. I could be writing, working, talking to someone on the phone, or fishing. I’ve never fished a day in my life, but if it kept me from working out, I’d be happy to give it a swing…although I doubt I’d be quiet enough. Okay, so with that in mind, I decided once again to give this workout torture a try.

By the way, I noticed on my stats page that  a large part of my blog audience (yes, all ten of you) is from Russia. Isn’t that awesome? I actually got this email from this Russian girl, Anna, who was looking for American workout tips and somehow ended up on my blog. Is that ironic or what? Anyway, she read my stuff and liked it, and was sweet to say hi. So since Anna was so nice to go through all that trouble, I thought it’d be only fair to share the only thing I’ve learned so far about working out. Are you ready?

If it’s not hurting, it’s not working. This is from someone who did stretches today with something called foam rollers. They look like those colorful, cute spaghetti-shaped floaters kids play with at the pool. But once you slide them underneath your knees and start rolling (slowly, of course), they become a nightmare. J Pretty much every time I’m stretching my arms and legs and it seems too easy, I know it is because I’m not “pressing enough” or “stretching enough.” When I stretch the right way, yes, it hurts. Just when I work out the right way (not slacking and actually increasing the speed and incline on the treadmill), it hurts.

Now it’s time to go back to my writing, where my characters will do another type of working out. J

Until later,

Carmen

Have a heart, vote for me :)

A Vengeful Affair won a five heart review from The Romance Studio. YAY!  

And that review is up for voting on The Romance Studio site http://www.theromancestudio.com/5heart_form.php

If you like it, please vote for A Vengeful Affair. It’s really easy and it only takes a few seconds. The winner gets their cover, buy link and a review snippet on their front door page the following week along with promotion on all of our social media outlets.

Voting will end next Monday, October 8^th .

Thank you in advance J

Hope you’re all having a fantastic week!

Until later,

Carmen J