Signing books!

Posted by Leslie on August 6th, 2010 | No Comments

A Tarnished Heart: #teasertuesday

Posted by Leslie on June 22nd, 2010 | 3 Comments

A splash of color raced up her neck and onto her cheeks. “You made those plans, not me. But I don’t know why I thought you would help any way. You won’t risk yourself for anyone.”

The carriage rolled to a stop, but Markham refused to let her alight from it. Had he not risked himself for her last night at the ball? As Lucinda confirmed, they continued to discuss the scandal all night. “Why do you say that? Last night—”

She drew her belongings close to her heart. “You care about society and what they think of you. That’s what motivated you last night. Not protecting my honor.”

The door opened but Markham waved the footman away and yanked it closed. “I was protecting you from that man.”

When she finally looked up at him, the shadows darkened her eyes again. “You were preventing further scandal to yourself. You can’t really care for me, or anyone else, unless you can feel…and you have no emotions.”

Of course he showed no emotions, he was an excellent learner. Emotions led to rash decisions and impulsive actions. He learned that lesson when Emily paid the ultimate price.

“I have emotions. I just don’t share them freely the way others do.”

But did he really? He spent many a hard hour learning not to feel. Sentiment makes you weak. Yes, his father had taught him that well enough, only he didn’t listen as a young man. He would heed the warning now.

“Oh, have we arrived already?” Lady Harkmoor collected her things. “I wasn’t asleep. Don’t think I wasn’t paying careful attention.”

Miss Parker sighed. “Please let me out, my lord.”

Markham moved aside. His stepmother’s cousin exited first and then Miss Parker, taking all vitality and warmth with her.

His head spun with the need to understand her. He’d need more than careful skill to peel back the layers of her secrets, to find the core of her heart. He would need time and patience.

But he had neither.

#Excerpt Monday: The Iron Heart

Posted by Leslie on June 21st, 2010 | 2 Comments

Once a month, a bunch of authors get together and post excerpts from published books, contracted work or works in progress, and link to each other. You don’t have to be published to participate just an writer with an excerpt you’d like to share. For more info on how to participate, head over to the Excerpt Monday site.

From my steampunk work-in-progress:

Bennett clenched his teeth to keep from moaning out loud. If she continued down this path, control would surely loosen from his grasp.

Then her palm was on his stomach again. It rested there briefly before slowly inching its way down. It slid over his belly button and was almost to the blanket.

He had to stop her!

Bennett reached out and snatched her. Ignoring her gasp, he pulled her on top of him.

Her face hung over his, eyes wide.

“Yet again you play a dangerous game, Ella.”

She grinned. “You weren’t asleep.”

“No.”

“And so you were testing me to see how far I would go.”

Her body, even clothed, was divine atop his. He resisted the urge to bury his fingers in her hair and yank her lips to his.

“Perhaps I was.”

She raised an eyebrow. “And reaching below the blanket was too far?”

He wanted it more than anything in the world. He wanted her hands on him, her mouth on him, her body to envelope him.

But where would that lead? Ella would want him to marry her. And that would be a mistake of gigantic proportions.

Reluctantly, he rolled her off him.

She didn’t pout. “I’m surprised you wanted me off of you after what I could feel down there.”

Yes, his body clearly wanted her. His common sense told him something else.

“You need to go, Ella.”

Not easy to find = rare?

Posted by Leslie on May 28th, 2010 | No Comments

Can’t seem to find paper copies of BEAUTY in the stores. None of my friends have found it in their stores and none of the searches I’ve done have turned it up either.

But by some quirk of fate (or me asking at the store), my local Borders got a few copies in. I stopped over today with my daughter and saw two on the shelf. I signed them and the clerk put a sticker on them.

Here’s a picture of me holding the books:

As to WHY they aren’t anywhere yet — I don’t know. When my first book came out with Samhain back in 2007, they took a few weeks to get into stores, but they were OUT THERE somewhere. The distribution is no where NEAR what most Mass Market books are/were, but I still felt I had a decent showing.

This time I don’t know what’s going on. I spent more money on promotion (including an ad in Romance Sells, which goes directly to book buyers) and yet three plus weeks after release, they aren’t sitting on a shelf in a brick and mortar store.

My contest is still open. Who ever sends me a picture of BEAUTY TEMPTS THE BEAST on a bookstore shelf will get a gift card to their store of choice. SO KEEP LOOKING!!

Because I Am Desperate

Posted by Leslie on May 17th, 2010 | No Comments

I am holding another contest! I want to see that BEAUTY TEMPTS THE BEAST is actually in a brick-and-mortar store somewhere! I will give away a $15 gift card to any bookstore you wish (including Amazon) to the first person on Twitter and Facebook to send me a picture of my book in a store.

You can @reply me on Twitter or even email it to me at leslie at lesliedicken dot com. Please include the name of the bookstore and the city/state.

If you’re the first, I’ll let you know and message you about your gift card preferences.

Hope to hear from you soon!

Contest!

Posted by Leslie on April 27th, 2010 | 1 Comment

Just one week from today BEAUTY TEMPTS THE BEAST is officially released in print. To celebrate I’m holding a Twitter and Facebook contest to win a free copy!

Rules are easy!

For Twitter just tweet the following: “@LeslieDicken I want to read BEAUTY TEMPTS THE BEAST. #bttb” (be sure to include my name or the hashtag)

For Facebook, reply to this note with: “I want to read BEAUTY TEMPTS THE BEAST!”. (Or something similar)

Next week, I’ll choose a winner from Twitter and an winner from Facebook. Then I’ll mail you an autographed copy. Outside the US is fine.

I hope you’ll tell me WHY you want to read it, but it’s necessary for the contest.

Any comments on this blog post will get added to the site with the lesser amount of entries.

Good luck!

One of the thrills of being an author

Posted by Leslie on April 19th, 2010 | 1 Comment

is getting a box of books with your name on them. Samhain sends its authors a box of 10 author copies a few weeks prior to the release of the print version. There is NOTHING like holding your own book in your hand. Don’t get me wrong — I love ebooks for many reasons. But having a book in my hand still gives me a unique thrill.

Stay tuned…I’ll do a contest to give away one or two of these books in the next week or so (or sooner!).

Change in plans

Posted by Leslie on April 17th, 2010 | No Comments

We were supposed to go boating on the Chesapeake Bay today but high winds caused a small craft advisory. So instead we went down to DC and walked around the American History Museum. After that it was straight to my son’s first soccer game (which they won).

I think after dinner — if I have any energy left — I’ll attempt to get some words written. I’m beat and I’m not even the one who ran up and down the field!

Mini-blurb for The Iron Heart

Posted by Leslie on April 12th, 2010 | 2 Comments

Being forced to write a synopsis for The Iron Heart, has also forced me to create a mini-blurb to describe the essence of the book. I’m sure it’ll be polished again and again, but here it is now:

In a steampunk world where the wealthy have personal flying machines and clockwork automatons are on the verge of creation, a killer stalks the dark alleyways of the metropolis. Ellie Wilder won’t stop until the man who killed her cousin is captured. Bennett Pierce knows the killer intimately, but will he reveal his terrifying secret before Ellie becomes the latest victim?

Thoughts??