So, wow. I have a lot to tell you all.

A couple of months ago, I was in a rut. My writing had kind of slipped sideways and I was spinning my wheels on a project. Round and round and round. And then I went to the RWA National Conference in Atlanta and it was like someone defibrillated my writing mojo. Within three days of getting back, I finished up that Tahoe novella, editing it down to a glossy sheen, and got my rear in gear for my next project. Pow! 10K words done in three days.

RWA is magic.

The power, the generosity, and the inspiration I got from those amazing writers–those amazing women–is impossible to quantify or even to explain. I deepened friendships with people I already knew, and made new friendships with people I’m so glad to now know. The literacy signing was a blast, I got love from my agent and my editor (always nice!), and fangirled some of my own favorite authors (*cough* Susan Elizabeth Phillips and Jayne Ann Krentz *cough*). I also moderated a workshop for the amazing trio of Jennifer Probst, Laura Kaye, and Katee Robert. I was in heaven! If you’d like to check out all my conference photos, head to Facebook (and please like my page while you’re at it!).

And I got books. Holy mackerel, did I get books! In fact, I need to get rid of these books and I have the perfect reason to do so because …. (drum roll, please) the fourth Star Harbor book, Slow Summer Burn, goes on sale in a mere two weeks!

I had so much fun writing this book because I adore both Val and Cam, and I think they work really well together, despite their obvious differences. I love opposites attract stories, and well, you can’t really get more opposite than these two: Val’s a DEA agent and Cam’s a socialite. He lives on a houseboat. She lives in a brownstone. He wears jeans. She wears diamonds. Needless to say, Cam’s parents don’t exactly approve of Val, but she could care less (nor can Val) and that’s what I love about them both!

But back to those books. Those dozens and dozens of books I got that are now piled up in my room that I really need to give away post haste. To celebrate the amazing time I had at RWA (not to mention my new release), I’m going to start the giveaway off with a bang by giving away one SIGNED copy of Jennifer Probst’s The Marriage Merger (loved it so hard and releases on 7/30!) and one copy of Elise Sax’s An Affair to Dismember (hilarious, and the next book in the series, Matchpoint, also releases on 7/30) to two random commenters. There is no catch, other than that you must be a newsletter subscriber to win (and you can sign up at the bottom of the page here). If you’re stuck for what to write in the comments, just let me know if you have an opposites attract story!

Stay tuned for some more great giveaways as the release day for Slow Summer Burn approaches!!