Romancing the Capital

Romancing the Capital

Something Wicked This Way Comes…  

Posted By: Kali Willows

On  April 17^th & 18^th, 2015, myself and several of our Canadian authors from Romance Eh, will be attending a special event!

Romancing the Capital Ottawa Romance Convention. It takes place in Ottawa, Canada Several and is the very first one, of what we hope becomes an annual event for Canadian readers to indulge in. I’m one of those crazy authors who will be there!

In honor of this event, I’m happy to announce, my Canadian-based story: Romancing the Author was contracted for a submission call just for this sizzling occasion.

Along with a multi-author sponsored Mad Hatter dinner and dance, there is also a 50’s Sock Hop, panels, workshops and a spectacular book fair with 50 registered authors, the good times will be endless.

An event near and dear to my heart is the Author-Reader Speed Dating Extravaganza I am hosting.  With 25 registered authors and a room full of prizes to be won, it promises to be jam packed with fun and excitement while readers get a chance to meet some of their favorites and discover even more.

What is this new, steamy 1NS tale I’m bringing to the Canadian Capital, you ask? It’s my pleasure to introduce my newest 1NS story:

                                             Romancing the Author

~Blurb~

NFL star, Connor Caine has given up on romance. Starved for a real woman with curves, intellect, and a sharp wit, he exchanges playful messages with an online crush. But when he can’t connect with her, he’s urged to seek out a 1Night Stand while in the Canadian capital for business.

Steamy sex is plentiful for author Gemma Daveen—at least on the pages she writes. Publicized as happily married, she has kept a few well-hidden secrets. But her publicist knows better, and ravenous for sexual reprieve, Gemma soon finds herself booked for a 1Night Stand during a romance convention in Ottawa.

~Excerpt~

Connor: Do you wear jeans, Gemma?

Gemma: Sure, all the time. They’re 90 percent of my wardrobe, LOL. Why?

Connor: I’ve got a thing for belt loops.

Gemma: What do you mean? And were they crossing a line?

Connor: Have you ever had a guy slip his fingers into the belt loops of your jeans and pull you so close to him, he could taste your lips?

Gemma: No, but I like the sound of that. Had she really typed that?

Conner: Maybe one day, I can pull you by the belt loops.

Three hours flew by and, finally, despite her fascination, her eyelids grew heavy

Connor: I have a confession to make. I’ve bought your books and read them. You’re such a gifted author.

Gemma: You have? Her breath hitched.

Connor: Yes! I can’t get enough of your stories. You’re brilliant.

Gemma: Thank you. A weak response given he had just hit her cerebral G-spot. Conner loved her writing? He’d read her books? Incredible. No longer tired, she held her hands over the keyboard.

Gemma: I…have to come clean with something, too.

Connor: What?

All or nothing.

Gemma: I’m a sapiosexual.

Connor: Come again?

Gemma: A person sexually attracted to the intelligence in others. She held her breath for his response.

Connor: And where do I fit into this orientation of yours?

Butterflies somersaulted in her stomach.

Gemma: Top of the list.

***

~Buy Links:~

Amazon

iTunes

Kobo

Googleplay Books

***

Happy Reading!

Kali Willows

Some days you can't be prouder of your kids

For anyone who knows or loves a child with special needs, you know how special it is to have them get up and do something out of their comfort zone. Then to watch then watch them excel at it...it's one of those heart swelling moments.

My daughter is what we lovingly call an "Aspie", meaning she has Asperger Syndrome. (It's a high functioning form of autism) Many of you might recognize recent stories about Odin, the young man in Peterborough who didn't have anyone rsvp to his birthday party and his mom asked for help to make it a special 13th for him. He too is an Aspie and I can't read enough about how wonderful the world made his special day. Tee is a bit older than him, she'll be 18 in a couple months. Like many mom's the idea of her going to college makes me want to wrap her in bubble wrap.  

Seneca College has an amazing behaviour science program at the King Campus. One of the courses offered focuses completely con Autism and other spectrum disorders. We met the instructor at a Ride for Autism event in the fall and she contacted me to ask if Tee would be willing to be a guest speaker in her class. (The majority of their interaction with kids are non-verbal elementary students.)

Dad gets camera credits, I'm behind the artwork. lol

In short it was an amazing couple of hours. Tee was so nervous and I wasn't certain if she would get overwhelmed and "shut down" but the students in the class made us all so comfortable. Our entire family went  because the class was excited to learn the perspective of not only Tee but her parents and sister. 

Tee did an incredible job. She answered all their questions and talked about her art work and her plans for the future. It was a moment when I realized how much she has matured and capable of doing things completely out of her normal routine. Ry is incredibly good at public speaking and between the both of them I think they showed that our family is just as (slightly) normal as everyone elses. Or as normal as any other family with a sense of humor as twisted as ours. 

That doesn't mean I'm not still going to fight to wrap her in bubble wrap before college but maybe I'll limit the amount to 2 or 3 layers. :) 

Available for Pre-Order!
    Release Date: April 14th, 2015

Unconditional Devotion (Peacock Terrace Apartments 1)

A devastating battle with depression destroyed Hannah Robinson’s once-victorious career as a defense attorney. The relentless dark cloud of despair that shrouds her brings Hannah to question whether she can fight to go on any longer. That is until what had been an unexpected request from her neighbors leads to new-found joy that breathes new life into her dreary existence. 

Passion and seduction sizzles for Hannah and her dynamic neighbors, but as fate would have it, they will need far more than erotic satisfaction from her, despite her struggle with mental illness. 

As close as brothers since their days in the same neglectful foster home, Craig Ledet and Daniel Mire’s friendship stood the test of time. Their bond was fortified upon the arrival of a child neither of them knew about before. Blissful with the creation of an instant family, they are soon scourged by a vicious trail of events that leads them to court, extortion and kidnapping. 
Unconditional Devotion (Peacock Terrace Apartments Book 1)

Do you have plans for April 17 & 18th? Don't miss out on the first annual Romancing the Capital Conference in Ottawa, Ontario. There are only a handful of tickets left for what is going to be an amazing weekend!!

http://orc.evelanglais.com/

  

Happy Spring!

It seems we've all been talking about spring here on the blog, but then, there's nothing like a cold Canadian winter to get people excited about the change of the seasons. In my neck of the woods, we've had snow and more snow, and cold temps since Christmas. Having the temps rise and the snow disappear over the past week has been an amazing gift. The days are longer and the sunlight is more golden (it's blue in the winter).

I've been out in the garden, checking on the progress of my lovelies. The tulips are poking out of the soil this past weekend, and I can see the spires of snowdrops appearing. The irises are up (which surprises me) and the sedum buds are rounding. There's growth everywhere I look, and birds swooping through the garden too. The cardinals are busy, and the chickadees are at the feeder. There are woodpeckers, too.

Has spring appeared in your neck of the woods yet?

I've also been finishing the edits for my next release, Firestorm Forever, which is the final book in my Dragonfire cycle of paranormal romances featuring dragon shapeshifter heroes. Firestorm Forever will go on sale May 13. You can download the first chapter for free from my store, in EPUB or MOBI, or read a shorter excerpt on my website, right here.

One of the most exciting things about spring this year is the Romancing the Capital readers' conference, taking place in Ottawa in just a couple of weeks. Will Ottawa's famous tulips be in bloom? Even if they aren't, it'll be a wonderful time, with lots of readers and writers hanging out together. I'm so looking forward to this event, and hope to see you there.

Have you booked your place yet? I hope to see you there!

For Authors ... and Readers too!! #RomancingtheCapital #Romance #Giveaways

Happy Wednesday! And almost the end of July. Can you believe it? Time flies too fast, but in the grand scheme of things, it's a good thing because there's always so much to look forward to in life. Birthdays, new releases, and CONFERENCES!!

One conference I'm looking forward to a lot is "Romancing the Captial" conference in Ottawa, hosted by the awesome, Eve Langlais.  

I finally got my monies in for registration this morning. I'll be rooming and possibly traveling with Jessica E Subject, which I am really looking forward to, and I'm thinking ahead to giveaways, meeting readers and fun, fun, fun.

Which leads me to the following matters ...

READERS: What do you love to see as prizes? Keychains, bookmarks, pens...? Please give me some ideas!! 


and AUTHORS:  any Romance authors NOT attending the conference, please feel free to email me about donating to either of the TWO baskets I plan to give away at the conference. Whether print books, postcards, paper swag, custom-made items, I'm willing to put it all in the baskets. 
Authors that are attending, you're welcome to add things as well if you wish, though I am sure many of you will be doing your own giveaways *g*.  But feel free to email me if you wish.

I'm driving to Ottawa since it's only about 3 hours from my house, so I'll have lots of room. I'm sure Jessica won't mind sharing a seat if she has to!!! ROFL


Authors, if interested, email me at kaceyhammell@gmail.com with "Ottawa Conference" as the subject plz and we'll talk.
[I do live in Canada, just FYI, so s/h could be a factor in your decision, but if you're willing to send the items, I will make sure they get in the baskets.]
 

Readers, just hit reply below and let me know what goodies you love most!!



I hope to see many of you in Ottawa!!