My post on my life inspiration is on Mina Khan's blog. Check it out! (Bonus: It has a picture of The Boy…! :) )

Instead of my usual how I'm doing with my writing and life, I decided to post about what I'm grateful for this year. :)

1. My awesome family for being supportive and fabulous, despite a lot of ups and downs this year.
2. My great writing buddies, esp. M&M Writers — Amanda Bonilla, Amanda Carlson, Shawntelle Madison and Sandy Williams.
3. Book bloggers and reviewers and Twitter and Facebook buddies for great book recommendations, wonderful conversations and support.
4. My agent for being awesome and patient.
5. My readers who are just plain awesome (and have excellent taste! :) )
6. Romance Divas and the Indie Romance Ink gang for invaluable information and keeping me sane.
7. Finishing house hunting, which was extremely stressful and took a reeeeally long time!

I'm hoping for a healthier and more productive 2013. (I was sick 9 out of 12 months in 2012.) And I can't wait to move in 2013! :D

A Happily Ever After of Her Own cracked three separate genre and subgenre lists on Amazon. Thank you so much!

P.S. If you haven't had a chance to grab a copy, the book is still on sale (66% off), but only until November 30. Thanks!

I'm on Book Lovers Inc today, discussing how I created a sexy and heroic frog for One Kiss. Go, read and comment for a chance to win a copy of One Kiss! :)

I saw this meme(?) over on Leah Braemel's blog, and I wanted to participate (she tagged only one person and whoever wants to join the fun).

10 Questions:

What is the working title of your book?

None. I don't always have a decent working title for the book until I'm done. I'm calling it “Kerri & Ethan” (the BFFs of h/H from Carnal Secrets). If you have any brilliant suggestions, feel free to leave me a comment and let me know!!!!!

Where did the idea come from for the book?

I always wanted to write Kerri and Ethan's story. I just needed a good idea that would work for both first.

What genre does your book fall under?

Contemporary romance

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie?

I have no idea for Ethan Lloyd (hero) because I actually found a stockphoto that I thought was a good representation of him. Maybe Matt Damon (I'm very partial to his acting).

As for Kerri Wilson (heroine), Christina Hendricks.

What is a one sentence synopsis of your book?

A driven woman, who copes with fear of rejection by seeking companionship and intimacy from men she won't form any long lasting attachment to, has a fling with an arresting man who wants to strip her to her very soul.

Will your book be self published or represented by an agency?

I'll send it off to my agent when it's ready and see where we want to sub it to (or self-pub). It'll depend on how we can reach the most number of readers. :)

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

About a month, but I spent four weeks on character sheets and plotting, etc. before I started drafting it.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

I'm a terrible judge of this since I'm so biased. I'd say any really sexy contemporary romance novels with boss/employee, well-meaning matchmakers and a horrible family scandal that kicks off the story.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

My Husband Got a Family. It's a very long Korean drama, but I loved it so much.

What else about your book might interest the reader?

If you like reading about a sexy billionaire whose greatest strength and weakness is his intense need to provide for those he loves and a woman who has everything but a job, home and man, you'll enjoy Ethan and Kerri's story.

Mini Excerpt:

This is an unedited except. It may be changed or even deleted from the final book.

“I see.” Kerri nodded. She wasn’t too worried about the job itself. She knew she could handle it. But the rest of the package she wasn’t so sure about. A place to live. A no-strings-attached temporary arrangement with a guy who made her wet with just a look. “I need to think about it.”

“I understand.” Ethan glanced at his watch. “I’ll give you a minute.”

“A minute?”

He raised his eyebrows. “Not really a difficult decision, is it? Just a yes or a no.”

“Can I take the job but refuse to live with you?”

“Sorry. Package deal.”

Of course.

He rose and came over to her seat. One large hand rested on the back of her chair and another on the table, effectively trapping her. The blood in her veins warmed and surged. If he pulled back just a little and bent his head, he could kiss her mouth. That seemed like a delicious option, and she angled her face just so, letting her lips part slightly in invitation.

He didn’t even flicker an eyelash. No, he wouldn’t kiss her no matter how blatant the signal…not unless she gave him the answer he wanted.

Did she want to sever whatever connection they had?

Manageable or not, he wasn’t going to be a permanent fixture in her life. He’d be a temporary arrangement—a fling. After her doctor’s orders had rendered virtually all of life’s pleasures off-limits, surely she could indulge just a little bit? Ethan’s family’s business couldn’t be that complicated; it wouldn’t take more than a few weeks to go through their books.

“Time’s up,” he said. His eyes were locked on hers.

He hadn’t even glanced at his watch.

I'm supposed tag four writers, but I know everyone's really busy w/ holiday stuff, so I'll let people who are interested in participating join in. All you have to do is link back to this post and answer the questions above. :)

I had to comment on the deal that Simon & Schuster Archway Publishing is offering to authors. No matter how S&S tries its best to package it as “self-publishing” it is a vanity publishing venture, designed specifically to make profit by taking money from authors, not selling books to readers.

I've created a handy cheat sheet / chart below for you. You can see that S&S's Archway Publishing offers the worst of the both traditional publishing and self-publishing: You'll pay for everything; you'll have no control over anything; and you'll have to split your profit with the publisher.

Do not sign up for it. There's no reason to pay someone $2,000-$25,000 to format and upload your book on Kindle. (Since S&S plans to outsource everything for Archway Publishing, you won't get the kind of editing and cover art that S&S's traditional publishing program offers.)

Furthermore, you do not need to use service providers like S&S's Archway publishing to get noticed by a traditional publisher if that is one of your goals. They are already watching Amazon's Top 100 list. The self-published novelists who got snapped up by traditional publishers did not use vanity publishers.