WeWriWa: “Would You Break Your Precious Laws For Me?” CHASED BY MOONLIGHT

I’m double dipping this month because post dates for Paranormal Romantics and Weekend Writing Warriors are just days apart . . . and I have a Big 0 birthday to celebrate.

The reason I enjoyed writing my BY MOONLIGHT books SO much was because there were no easy scenes. Every one of them was strung with tension, thick with desire, quirked by humor or wrapped up in a backdrop of impossible issues that would keep any couple apart. But Max and Charlotte aren’t just any couple. She’s a tough NOPD cop and he’s literally the King of Beasts, at least in shapeshifting communities in New Orleans. When secrets from a past she barely remembers and a legacy he can’t escape pressure them to deny their relationship things heat up in this second book of my BY MOONLIGHT series. Here’s a nibble . . .

IN NANCY GIDEON’S SEDUCTIVE NOVEL, A TOUGH-AS-NAILS NEW ORLEANS COP MUST CHOOSE BETWEEN THE CAREER SHE’S DEDICATED TO AND THE DANGEROUS SHAPE-SHIFTING LOVER SHE CAN’T RESIST.

SHE’S SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY.

Mixing business with pleasure gets more complicated for Detective Charlotte Caissie when her sexy preternatural lover, Max Savoie, is accused of a high-profile murder. To prove him innocent she must distance herself, but her tangled emotions don’t make it easy for her to stay away from him. And neither does Max.

HE’S DESPERATE TO UNCOVER HIS PAST.

Left in charge of a criminal empire and protector of a clan of shadowy shape-shifters, Max walks a precarious line. Can he believe the cunning stranger who claims he can teach Max the things he needs to know to stay alive? A con man who would betray anyone to make a profit, who may be a ruthless killer?

TOGETHER, THEY’RE TEMPTING FATE.

The harder Cee Cee fights to clear Max’s name, the more he pushes her away. He’s protecting a dark truth that could blow the top off her investigation. And that means hiding his motives and lying to a woman who values truth above all. The woman who can save him . . . if he’ll let her.

 The Excerpt 

“Would you break your precious laws for me?” he asked with fierce intensity. “Would you look the other way while I broke them?”

Her mood cooled slightly, as did her tone. “I’ve bent them plenty already.”

“That’s not what I asked.” His voice lowered to a silky rumble. “The truth, Charlotte.”

“It depends on—” 

“Nothing. Don’t hedge your bet. Just answer.”

. . . and a bit more . . .

She scowled at him, furious because she’d been tiptoeing around their contrary careers and now he was shoving it in her face, demanding she make a choice. And he would know if she wasn’t being honest, damn him.

“Yes,” she growled. “For you, if you asked, yes, I would.”

A satisfying amount of surprise registered in his eyes, which irritated her enough to elaborate.

“I would hate it, but I would do it. It would destroy everything I built my life on, would strip me of every ounce of dignity and self-respect, but I would do it without hesitation, without regret, if you asked me to. That’s how much you mean to me. And if you care for me even half that much, you would never ask.”

Now THOSE are some difficult hurdles for even a regular couple to overcome . . . and there’s nothing normal about this pair!

I can’t wait to reissue this series to a whole generation of paranormal readers! Stand by for more . . .

Weekend Writing Warriors is a weekly hop for everyone who loves to write! Share an 8 to 10 sentence snippet of your writing on Sunday. Visit other participants on the list and read, critique, and comment on their #8sunday posts.

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Nancy on the Web

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WeWriWa: Paths Untraveled . . . A RISK-TAKING RANGER

Our lives are filled with choices – some hastily made and then regretted, some long dreamed of then left behind, and some lingering ahead just out of reach, tempting with the lure of that road less traveled. The hero in my new Texas-set romantic suspense - a well-travelled fellow, even without wandering far from home in his job as a Texas Ranger - is trying to understand his best friend’s new friend . . . who may be tempting him down an unexpected path . . .

“So, you and Lu . . .”

Nora laughed at that dangling supposition and answered easily, “Just friends, through thick and thin.” Her dark eyes probed his gaze for a long, beginning to get uncomfortable moment. “Just like the two of you. He’s about the best person I know. I’d always hoped we go into partnership after we got our degrees. We could’ve done some real positive damage together, but his path led right back here. Maybe you could clue me in on why that is?”

She leaned back in her chair, arms crossed patiently beneath her modest bosom as she waited for his answer, as direct and unnerving a female as Zayn could ever remember meeting. He didn’t want to like that about this woman whose existence his best friend had kept so stingily to himself.

The unknown presents dangers as well as temptations for Nora Prescott, who has good reason not to trust a smiling stranger. But this one might hold answers she needs to uncover before continuing on the road she’s chosen for herself . . . a solitary journey that doesn’t look quite as rewarding as the invitation in his dark eyes. Worth the risk? I guess we’ll find out as the story unfolds. Trying out potential title: A RISK-TAKING RANGER. Yea or Nay?

Here’s one of the unexpected paths I recently explored in Ireland, climbing countless steps, steep rocky trails, and uneven footpaths (to rival the treachery of the sidewalks in the Dingle shopping district!). The distant goal here was the cliff braved by Luke Skywalker (a bit out of reach for us, unfortunately!). I’m not one to shy away from that road less explored, having discovered during a trip to Tucson less than three months after knee replacement(second of two, years ago), that the hardest climbs yield the best views. Case in point . . .

Does your writing path look daunting and unreachable? Instead of taking the easy road, try stretching beyond what you thought was attainable by pushing ahead. You just might find it worth the risk!

Weekend Writing Warriors is a weekly hop for everyone who loves to write! Share an 8 to 10 sentence snippet of your writing on Sunday. Visit other participants on the list and read, critique, and comment on their #8sunday posts.

Spread the word, share the love, warriors - Hashtag #8sunday.

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Nancy on the Web

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Goodreads “Nancy Gideon by Moonlight” group

WeWriWa: The Worst Part of the Job . . .

We all have those things we just hate to do. We put them off until the last minute, try to pass them on to someone else to make it their responsibility, ignore them and hope they’ll go away. But sometimes we have to just buckle down and get it done because if we don’t, no one will. That’s where my hero is in my new romantic suspense. As a Texas Ranger, he’s had to deliver his share of heartrending news . . . but this time it’s worse. It’s personal.

Zayn studied the list as he got back into his car, hating like hell to have to return to his friend without something, anything, to go on. All the names were familiar, a generational echo of the families he’d gone to school with at his pseudo-niece’s age. None of them spiked alarm on his professional radar, but that didn’t prevent it from kindling in his belly.

He knew these people. Good, hard-working folks who paid their taxes, tended their yards and their children, and gave him and his professional brethren no reason for concern. They didn’t have criminal records beyond a few DUIs and traffic citations.

They didn’t abduct young girls.

But Zayn grew very afraid that someone had. If someone had taken Lenna Lupan during that school trip, the clock ticking down on his chances of finding her alive was in motion.

How could he share that knowledge with his best friend’s sister?

Having a loved one go missing has got to be the worst feeling ever. I remember when I used a royalty check to take my family to Disney World when my boys were young. It was our first big trip and their first time on an airplane. Of course, you try to cram everything you can into each day but my youngest, then still in single digits, only wanted to go back to the hotel pool to swim (Hey, we’re from Michigan and left 34-degrees at home!). So, just as we were about to go to the next Epcot exhibit, he was just . . . gone. All those worst-case scenarios went through my head – the kind that give parents nightmares. And then we spotted him, hiding, watching us to see what we’d do. Ignoring my need to wring his neck for scaring the stuff out of us on purpose, I told my now ex and my older son to just go on to the next exhibit while I waited, out of sight for brat boy to get worried and come running after us. Which he did. Busted! Oh, we went back to the hotel all right but not to the pool. He spent the rest of the day under hotel room arrest while the other two enjoyed that Mayan temple water slide. Of course, being a mom means dealing out punishment that you have to suffer, too. In this case, worth it!

On my most recent adventure, I found traveling with two other adults alleviates those petty problems (well, most of the time). But almost four weeks in Ireland, most of it spent under one roof, can make for short tempers even amongst the best of friends. Fortunately, we had some fabulous touring around the Dingle Peninsula to take our minds off petty issues. (Note the Sleeping Giant out in the background!)

On my first big out of the States adventure, I was WOWed by the scenery (and the jewelry stores!) And it doesn’t hurt to spend four days in Dublin in a place that looks like they have Ghostbusters on speed dial! This place even had lighted chandeliers hanging from the trees outside!!

But now, it’s back to the reality of a home office that desperately needs cleaning, pets to feed, and a new book that just won’t write itself! And excerpts to read! I can’t wait to get caught up on what you’re doing!

Weekend Writing Warriors is a weekly hop for everyone who loves to write! Share an 8 to 10 sentence snippet of your writing on Sunday. Visit other participants on the list and read, critique, and comment on their #8sunday posts.

Spread the word, share the love, warriors - Hashtag #8sunday.

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Nancy on the Web

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Goodreads “Nancy Gideon by Moonlight” group

WeWriWa: When Inspiration Strikes. . . A new addition to my ‘Cowboys and Lawmen’ series

Home again and back at the keyboard with a new WeWriWa post. One of the best things from my three-week Irish adventure was coming up with a new romantic suspense idea for my “Cowboys and Lawmen” series (tried for one set in Ireland but maybe it was “too soon!”). Talk about an unexpected pot of gold that has me over 80 pages in already. Here’s a taste . . .

Grabbing a clean shirt from his backseat where he kept a change of clothes out of habit and necessity, Zayn was buttoning it when one of the neighbors, who had a daughter the same age as Ela’s, raced up the drive, breathing heavily from the exertion . . . and, he sensed, from fear. Seeing her, Ela came outside, casting an expectant glance up and down the street, but before she could ask her question, the puffing woman wheezed, “Has Lenna come home?”

“Not yet.” Ela stiffened like a hare beneath the circling shadow of a hawk. “I thought she was riding with you and Dee?”

“We waited and waited at the school, but no one had seen her.”

Both men flanked the frozen figure, Lu gently pressing his sister’s shoulder. She shrugged it off, rejecting comfort in her alarm.

“Where’s my daughter?” Ela demanded, chest compressing to crush her shaky words. “Where’s my little girl?”

Maybe it was touring around the wild Irish coast that got me thinking about the rugged isolation of West Texas where every hint of shade hosts something that bites, stings or tears. Or maybe it was the thorny greenery surrounding our side patio.

The best thing about traveling with fellow writers was dedicated time set aside to actually WRITE! Each of us had a separate room, one on the first floor and two up above, each with a desk! As if they had writers in mind! Especially when you have a local energy bar to keep you going.

While away, I did take time to raise a glass (or two or ten) to my American colleagues who were sound asleep during the height of my day. Here’s to you – Slainte!

And here's a little bit of an early Halloween Treat! Midnight Shadows (Touched by Midnight - Book 7) is on sale for $0.99 from October 1st to October 15th!

Preview Book 7

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Published: May 3, 2011

Length: 224 Pages

Add to Goodreads TBR→

Looking forward to getting back into your WIPs!

Weekend Writing Warriors is a weekly hop for everyone who loves to write! Share an 8 to 10 sentence snippet of your writing on Sunday. Visit other participants on the list and read, critique, and comment on their #8sunday posts.

Spread the word, share the love, warriors - Hashtag #8sunday.

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Nancy on the Web

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Goodreads “Nancy Gideon by Moonlight” group

WeWriWa: WRITE WHERE YOU’RE PLANTED

Greetings from the Emerald Isle. Hope you’re following my adventures on Facebook. Edging into week two of three in Ireland and LOVING IT! After a two-hour drive to Chicago O’Hare, a hectic juggle to get through the International check in, and losing one of my carry-ons, my two travel companions and I spent a sleepless overnight flight listening to a screaming baby and watching the virtual plane icon cross the Atlantic. Greeted by an empty airport in Dublin and cold fog, an overstuffed cab ride to our hotel began not a day of recovery but one of exploration with friends who endured the long flight without loosing their senses of humor and adventure. Because that’s what friends do for one another. Now, two such friends who’ve grown up in vastly different backgrounds while cementing a three decades-spanning friendship are growing nicely where I’ve planted them at my little desk under the eaves of my temporary home in Ballyferriter, Ireland.

Hope you enjoy this snippet from my new romantic suspense.

The sound of his engine brought a shadow across the screened doorway, where it lingered until his vehicle pulled up behind an ancient aqua convertible and stopped. As Zayn dipped to exit the car, it wasn’t until he straightened and removed his hat, that the cautious figure stepped out onto the porch to call out, “Here as badge or brother?”

“A bit of both. Mind if I step in outta the sun?”

“Best be doing it before the neighbors see you and think I’m hanging with shady characters.”

Zayn gave a hearty laugh and took the steps in long legged strides to embrace the slighter man. “Was in the neighborhood,” he began.

His friend slapped his back and shoved away, laughing. “And smelled dinner. C’mon inside before somebody takes a shot at you thinking you’re here to check their papers.”

Three writer pals soaking up the lush countryside and fantastic accents over pints of Guinness. What better way to encourage creativity?

Slainte! (from the Guinness plant with writer/travelers Laurie Kuna and Loralee Lillibridge).

Weekend Writing Warriors is a weekly hop for everyone who loves to write! Share an 8 to 10 sentence snippet of your writing on Sunday. Visit other participants on the list and read, critique, and comment on their #8sunday posts.

Spread the word, share the love, warriors - Hashtag #8sunday.

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Nancy on the Web

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Goodreads “Nancy Gideon by Moonlight” group

WeWriWa: A Wounded Hero . . . and a $.99 S*A*L*E!

Coming home to a place you’ve never lived. That’s what it feels like to Jimmy Redbone, hero in my new project, An Untarnished Hero, because the woman he loves lives there. Though the cost to this wounded lawman for making the trip is mighty, so is his need to protect his wife from a danger he knows is coming. Hope you enjoy this new snippet . . .

Defying the bone-weariness dragging on every inch of his six-foot-one frame, Jimmy Redbone stood in the unwelcoming dust of his wife’s greeting, mesmerized by sight of her walking away from him with that prideful snap of her hips. For a whip of a thing, she packed a mighty wallop of arrogance. He’d liked that about her from the first defiant lift of her chin to the steady bore of those soul-scorching dark eyes. Hers was a beautiful spirit, impossible for even the most determined man to control . . . not her grizzly bear of a father or her fool of a husband. And he was here to make sure it wouldn’t be broken.

Slowly, he shook the travel dust from the black Stetson with a thump against his thigh and then, calling up the same iron determination that kept him upright in the saddle for eight grueling miles, turned from one source of misery to tackle the porch steps. He groaned mightily at the effort of mounting each of the four warped risers, his face popping sweat and knees trembling by the time he reached the top. A low growl from the ugly animal crouched there made him pause, but fear of collapse forced him to step around the beast and head for the door under its scrutiny. He slipped another glance toward the barn as he caught his breath, then let it out in a shaky sigh.

( . . . and the rest of the scene . . . ) 

She was right. He shouldn’t have come back, not without naming the reason for their long separation. That answer he’d hold as close to his chest as the worry pounding through it. At least, until truth needed to be told. But for now, it was time to sit down before he fell down.

While I’m hunkering down to my first round of edits for this contemporary romantic suspense, I’ve got lots of things keeping me busy, starting with a $0.99 sale until the end of January for MIDNIGHT KISS, the first book in my “Touched by Midnight” vampire romance series. If you haven’t sunk your teeth into this series yet, what more encouragement do you need? 

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo Books | iBooks

I’ll also be doing a giveaway as part of Abbie Roads’ FB Release Party for her new book, CAPTURING FATE. Over 100 authors will be participating, each offering a unique prize on January 29th. Stop in and leave as many comments as you like for a chance to win your choice of one of my books from several different genres! Each author is only posting once. I’m planning mine for 10:00 a.m. EST. 

I’ll be making a BIG book giveaway announcement next week. I know . . . I’m such a tease!

One thing about this isolation is I’ve been diving deep into binge watching series old and new. Bridgerton, The Expanse, Oz, Teen Wolf, and now, North and South. Yes, I’m an eclectic viewer. What have you been tuning in or turning the pages of lately? 

All masked up and nowhere to go! My COVID-19 portrait: greying hair, no makeup, in my writing bunker. Looking forward to that shortest month of the year that brings us ever closer to spring!

Happy 2021! And Happy Writing, fellow Warriors!

Weekend Writing Warriors is a weekly hop for everyone who loves to write! Share an 8 to 10 sentence snippet of your writing on Sunday. Visit other participants on the list and read, critique, and comment on their 8sunday posts.

Spread the word, share the love, warriors - Hashtag #8sunday.

WeWriWa: An Untarnished Hero

I grew up watching Westerns with my dad (who was MY hero!). I adored those strong, silent types who stood for good and demolished evil (by the end of each episode!) to rescue the girl, the dog, and the town before riding off into the sunset. Sigh . . . I often wondered what would become of that modern day hero if he stayed put, married the girl, and established roots beside her. How would he adapt to a life so different from the way he’d made his living? Jimmy Redbone, the stoic hero in my new WIP is that guy who, as a U.S. Marshal, dedicates his every waking hour to the service of his badge. Until he meets Willamina Sayers, a rancher’s daughter who’s determined to be that girl who won’t be left behind. Here’s a continued look at our hero’s rather single-dimensional life up until that fateful meeting . . .

During his years of lonely and more than a little dangerous duty, he’d had work associates, not friends. In four days, Jimmy felt closer to ranch foreman, Matteo Ramos than the agents he’d stood beside - some for better than a decade.

He’d lived detail to detail and didn’t own anything permanent except July. With no expensive habits to speak of, everything he made went into the bank. He woke up, showered, picked up his badge and gun and went to work. When on protective duty, he lived from cheap hotel room to rathole motel room on the road with folks who tried to bribe him, seduce him, or escape him while he did his best to keep them alive. He was a shield for the scum of the earth, a babysitter for drug addicts, money launderers and mobsters. Helluva good way for someone like him to make a living. But no way to build a life.

Willamina Sayers had been the exception, he admitted to himself, drawing in a deep, cleansing breath.

I’m so loving this story, having just reached the end of the first draft. What fun I’m having taking some of the shine off that unblemished surface! After angsting over a suitable title since Chapter Four so I can start thinking about promo (I know it’s a way down the road, but it’s never too early to start!), I finally found one that doesn’t show up a dozen times in an Amazon search. What do you think of AN UNTARNISHED HERO? 

While I take a short breather before starting the first round of revising, I look forward to seeing what you’re up to in your creative endeavors and how the new year is treating you so far.

Happy Not 2020 and Happy Writing, fellow Warriors!!

Weekend Writing Warriors is a weekly hop for everyone who loves to write! Share an 8 to 10 sentence snippet of your writing on Sunday. Visit other participants on the list and read, critique, and comment on their 8sunday posts.

Spread the word, share the love, warriors - Hashtag #8sunday.

The Nancy Horror Novelization Tour for IN THE WOODS!

You don’t need umbrellas or raincoats or funny props to follow this Horror show on the road (but I’d love to have you sing along!).

Buy The Book Tours has assembled 21 sites to host IN THE WOODS during this first week of March 2-7. I wrote the monster/knights-of-old/sorcery/serial killer/suspense novelization from an original horror screenplay by writer/director Lynn Drzick. Having just celebrated its 15-year anniversary as a little Indie film that wouldn’t die, we’ve breathed new life back into the book, now available on Kindle, to coincide with the Spring 2015 Blu-ray and Video-on-Demand versions of the film, complete with voice over commentaries by director Lynn Drzick, leading man DJ Perry and . . . me! Here’s a peek at IN THE WOODS . . .