tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36085328268354323032024-03-27T02:23:56.963-04:00 WWW.JILLIANEATON.COM <center> <i> This blog has moved! Click my name to go to the new website. </i> </center> Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.comBlogger195125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-37627469035613470772014-05-16T09:30:00.000-04:002014-05-16T09:30:20.016-04:00The Write Year<div style="text-align: justify;">
Exciting news --- I have a new blog!</div>
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<b><a href="http://www.thewriteyear.blogspot.com/">The Write Year</a></b> (see what I did there? I'm so clever!) will be more of a personal endeavor that chronicles not only my writing, but also my life as a whole. The ups, the downs, the experiences and new opportunities I'm looking forward to in the coming year. Some rants. Some raves. Pictures of my adorable pets. Basically anything and everything I feel like posting that isn't directly related to my books will go there. </div>
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This blog will remain more or less the same. If you're looking for any updates on books, purchase links, new reviews, release dates, etc. etc. then this is the place you need to be. </div>
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Make sense? </div>
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I hope so! </div>
Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-57554556615333980292014-05-05T21:40:00.000-04:002014-05-05T21:40:20.560-04:00The Rookery RakesThe release of 'The Duke of St. Giles' may have just happened on the 27th, but I'm excited to announce the title of the next installment in the Rookery Rakes series!<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Edwardian Script ITC"; font-size: 36.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Dower Street<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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A novella of approximately 25k words, it will feature my first common class couple and take place at the same time as 'The Duke of St. Giles'. As with every book in the series, 'A Dark Affair on Dower Street' will be a standalone, but if you want to get the most out of it make sure you read 'The Duke of St. Giles' before June 3rd! </div>
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Synopsis Reveal: Friday, May 9th</div>
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Cover Reveal: Saturday, May 17th</div>
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Release Date: Tuesday, June 3rd</div>
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Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-84609578833342838192014-04-30T12:53:00.000-04:002014-04-30T12:53:03.313-04:00Organizational Skills<div style="text-align: justify;">
When I was a freshman in high school, I had English class with Mrs. White. Strict (but fair) and highly demanding of her students, Mrs. White remains to this day one of my favorite teachers. That being said, we didn't exactly get off on the right foot. I was, more or less, a disaster when it came to being organized. I always had math tests jammed in next to English reports, scribbled notes tucked in beside vocabulary lists, and an innate need to draw little creatures and animals on everything, whether it was a scrap piece of paper or a homework assignment. Suffice it to say, Mrs. White was not impressed. In fact, I think her exact words were something along the lines of, "Ms. Eaton, you need to work on your organizational skills." </div>
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So I did. </div>
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It took a while, but by the time I had her again for American Literature in eleventh grade I had a neat, tidy binder specifically designated for each class, no loose papers in sight, and I'd stopped drawing soon after I realized I wasn't exactly the next Picasso. Mrs. White was very happy and, I like to think, a little bit shocked. </div>
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About halfway through the first rough draft of <i>The Duke of St. Giles </i>I had a similar wake up call. As I was furtively searching for the piece of notebook paper that I'd scribbled down the first name of Emily's father on, I came to the conclusion that if I wanted to be a writer - an organized one, at least - I needed to get my shit together. So the next day I went to Staples and after wandering around for an hour or so (that place is dangerously distracting) I stumbled upon a little green binder/notebook thing that was absolutely perfect. It has little dividers I can pop in and take out, paragraph tabs, and (most importantly) STICKERS! </div>
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Since I got The Notebook (and yes, I fully intend on putting a picture of Ryan Gosling on the front -- don't judge me) it's saved me so much time. I can keep plots in my head, but it's the little details (a character's eye color, length of hair, correct form of address) that really get me. Now, courtesy of The Notebook, I don't have to remember that Emily's father's name is Edgar and Petunia has blonde hair, not brown. I only wish I'd gotten my butt in gear sooner. </div>
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So for all you aspiring writers out there, don't do what I did. The minute you start that first book, go out and get yourself a notebook and write down everything you don't feel like having to remember. For me that includes character descriptions, titles, names of estates, chapter headings, ages -- the list goes on (and on and on). </div>
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I'll leave you with a sneak peek at The Notebook along with a hint (if you look very, very carefully) at what my next writing project is going to be!</div>
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Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-55153802252799896562014-04-28T00:05:00.001-04:002014-04-28T00:09:48.132-04:00Zombie Status<div style="text-align: justify;">
As I write this, I'm sitting in my bed with a big white dog curled at my feet and a cup of Bedtime tea sitting on my nightstand. It's twelve minutes shy of midnight on a Sunday. I have to be up for work in less than seven hours. After a busy weekend filled with country fairs and lots of boyfriend time and a hangover that was ridiculously awful (and totally unwarranted) I should be in a coma, or at the very least curled up under the covers with a good book. Problem is, I'm too keyed up to read and I'm <i>definitely </i>too excited to even think about sleeping. Why, do you ask? Well, the answer is pretty simple. </div>
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MY NOVEL IS FINISHED! </div>
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(cue trumpets and flashing lights and confetti)</div>
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You know the one I'm talking about, right? The one that was <i>supposed </i>to come out on Tuesday except I wasn't quite done the edits yet and I decided to add on an epilogue at the last minute. The novel I've been slaving over for the past four months. The novel that I've alternately wanted to hug and tear to shreds, depending on the daily word count (for the record, it ended up being 82,000 words -- my longest historical romance yet!). Yep, <b>The Duke of St. Giles </b>is finally finished... and I am beyond excited. </div>
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Also nervous. </div>
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And stressed. </div>
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And hoping the past sixteen weeks I spent working on this puppy don't turn out to be for nothing. </div>
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For me, releasing a new book is the equivalent of Christmas morning. On the one hand, I can't wait to open presents (AKA have TDOSG go live on Amazon & Barnes and Noble). On the other hand, what if the presents I've been waiting <strike>AN ENTIRE YEAR</strike> four months for suck the big one? What if I don't sell a single copy or (horror upon horrors) I do sell some copies but EVERYONE HATES IT and my career as a writer is OVER and all of my carefully crafted plans come crashing down around me? </div>
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I know, totally melodramatic. But now it's only one minute shy of midnight, and I'm so jazzed up I know I won't get to sleep for at least another hour, and tomorrow is going to be total zombie status. But it will also be worth it, because when I wake up THE DUKE OF ST. GILES WILL BE ON AMAZON and I still can't even believe it's finished. Well, at least the writing part is finished. </div>
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The promotion and advertising and cover reveals and blog interviews and contests and requests for book reviews have only just begun. As they say, a writer's work is never done. </div>
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Since I'm already up, guess I might as well get busy.</div>
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Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-79479125092054283582014-04-05T07:52:00.000-04:002014-04-05T07:52:17.351-04:00Love is a Pain in the Ass<div style="text-align: justify;">
Love is a hard enough thing to figure out in real life, let alone within the confines of a three hundred page novel. In the classic historical romance, hero meets heroine, they overcome a large obstacle that either makes them a) fall in love OR b) prove their love and they live happily-ever-after with a prologue that usually involves babies. </div>
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And that's nice, and it's lovely, and it's familiar... but love isn't nice and lovely and familiar. It's hard and messy and frustrating and amazing and makes you cry almost as much as it makes you laugh. </div>
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As a writer, it's my job to weave a story with a clear beginning, middle, and end. Toss some headstrong characters into the mix, a plot of some sort, lots of fancy dresses, a few horses, one or two ducks (because ducks are AWESOME), a lot of emotion and WHAM - out pops a romance novel. </div>
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Except those headstrong characters don't fall in love all by themselves. They need a reason, and some chemistry (who doesn't love some good chemistry?), and often a good ol' fashioned push by <i>moi</i>. I just started reading a new historical romance last night (read what you write, my fellow author friends -- read what you write) and within the first chapter the hero and heroine, who had never met previously, were introduced at a ball, indulged in some witty banter, and decided they were both head-over-heels in love. </div>
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Erm, no. </div>
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Since I still have thirty chapters to go I am assuming that <i>problems </i>will arise, but I have to admit I'm a little jealous at the ease with which those two came together. In the first chapter of <i>The Duke of St. Giles </i>West calls Emily a chit (collective gasp of <i>oh no he didn't</i>!) and thinks she's off her rocker. Emily, in turn, considers throwing herself out of a moving carriage just to get away from him. Suffice it to say, <i>St. Giles </i>is not a love-at-first-sight sort of story. But it <i>is </i>a love story, which means at <i>some </i>point Emily and West have to do the deed. </div>
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No, not <i>that</i> deed (although they do that too).</div>
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They have to fall in love. </div>
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For me, as both a reader and a writer, love needs to be believable. </div>
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If it happens too soon it lacks credibility. If it takes too long it gets boring. It's a constant balancing act. Too little, too much, and you tip the scales in the wrong direction. I like to think real life is like that too. At least it has been in my experience. When someone else's emotions are involved you're constantly walking a tightrope. </div>
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There's a passage in <i>The Duke of St. Giles </i>that I'm rather fond of. I rediscovered it last night when I was doing some edits and wanted to share it with you today. It's plucked from the middle of the novel, where West is struggling to come to terms with what he feels for Emily and how much he's willing to risk for her. </div>
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<i>And West knew he was not good enough for her, and he knew a
hundred obstacles stood in their way, and he knew there was a chance she never
wanted to see him again… but bloody hell if it wasn’t worth a try. For Emily,
he would risk everything. For Emily, he would lose anything. And even if all he knew was lost to him
forever, he would make the same choice again if only for the chance to see her
face one last time. </i></div>
</blockquote>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ydd64NoD_N0/Uz_p_xGZShI/AAAAAAAAAcM/z4rgqhgFULU/s1600/happy-cuteness-overload.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ydd64NoD_N0/Uz_p_xGZShI/AAAAAAAAAcM/z4rgqhgFULU/s1600/happy-cuteness-overload.png" height="318" width="320" /></a></div>
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At least, that's the reaction I'm going for.</div>
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When people ask what I write and I tell them historical romance, there's almost <i>always </i>a little bit of a smirk and I know what they're thinking: <i>You write romance? For realz? That's cute. </i>If I were less of a lady I would pop a right hook while screaming "THAT'S RIGHT BITCHESSS" but I have a reputation to uphold here. Not to mention the thought of physical violence and yelling makes me ill. I know I'm a wimp. You don't have to tell me. My varsity basketball coach took care of that, thanks. </div>
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While to some I'm sure historical romance seems like mindless fluff, for those who write it and those who love to read it it's much more than that. It's about connecting and emotion and overcoming the odds and, ultimately, finding love with that one person in the whole entire world you just can't live without. That's a lot of feels to squeeze into one tidy package, but that's my job. One I (hopefully) do okay at. </div>
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Is love a pain the ass? </div>
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Definitely. </div>
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Is it worth it? </div>
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Always. </div>
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<i>Look for <b>The Duke of St. Giles </b>at the end of this month at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo! </i></div>
Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-90598016159441546432014-03-31T16:53:00.000-04:002014-03-31T20:25:06.063-04:00Movie Review Monday - Noah<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F1RnFyosyEo/Uzn7IeDNTlI/AAAAAAAAAbg/keEc0rQ_nnM/s1600/hr_Noah_6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F1RnFyosyEo/Uzn7IeDNTlI/AAAAAAAAAbg/keEc0rQ_nnM/s1600/hr_Noah_6.jpg" height="400" width="270" /></a></div>
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I am not a very religious person, so when my BFF asked me to go to the movies with her and her husband to see Noah, I was a little skeptical at first. I didn't want to have to sit through three hours of religious propaganda, but after reading a few reviews and finding out that A) The director of Noah is an atheist and B) The word 'God' is not used a single time, I asked the boyfriend if he wanted to come with us and we made it a double date. </div>
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Bad girlfriend move. At least I snuck him in some sour skittles... and he <i>definitely </i>gets next pick. </div>
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Can you tell I loved it?</div>
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At one point about three quarters of the way through the movie I turned to look at my BFF. She was crying. Her husband was laughing (at me, apparently, for shrilly announcing I was "<i>so </i>stressed out" by what was happening onscreen) and my boyfriend's eyes were half closed. </div>
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That pretty much sums up Noah in a nutshell.</div>
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I'm not some harsh movie critic. In fact, it doesn't take a lot to impress me. I thought <i>Austenland </i>(an off beat romantic comedy about a woman who is obsessed with everything Jane Austen) was sweet and charming. Rotten Tomatoes gave it 30%. I laughed my ass off at <i>Grudge Match</i> - the briefly talked about move starring Robert de Niro and Sylvester Stallone as ex-boxers. RT score? 30%. <i>The Losers </i>remains one of my favorite action-adventure movies of all time (49%) and I watched Evan Almighty (23%) last week on TBS for the tenth time and enjoyed every minute of it. Surely, then, I would at least <i>like </i>Noah which, going in, I knew had a 75% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes (heyoo!) and seemed to be generally liked by critics. </div>
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Except I didn't only <i>not </i>like Noah. I actively <i>disliked </i>it. </div>
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With a running time of two hours and nineteen minutes, it seemed to drag on for<i>ever</i>. In fact, I was convinced it was well over three hours long until I looked it up to make sure I was plugging in the correct details to this post. </div>
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Maybe it's my fault Noah didn't work for me. After all, my vague recollection of the story revolves around a kindly old man and his family building an ark to house all kinds of cute and cuddly animals. Everyone laughs and calls him crazy, and when the rain starts Noah and his family and all the animals are safe, while all the assholes who laughed at him are swept away. </div>
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Well let me tell ya, that story ain't this one.</div>
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This Noah is darker and grittier and some parts are just plain and simple made up. Like (<b>SPOILERS</b>!) the part where Noah leaves his middle son's girlfriend stuck in a claw foot trap so she can be trampled to death by crazy barbarian lunatics trying to get on the ark. Oh, and then there's that little gem of a moment where a tiny antelope is catapulted into the air only to be <i>ripped apart and devoured while it's still alive</i>. Noah vows to murder <strike>Hermoine</strike> Emma Watson's twin baby girls and holds a dagger over their tiny little newborn heads. An alpaca like creature has its throat slit on the ark and it's entrails ripped out. A lizard has his head bit off while he's still wiggling. That made me cover my eyes, and I don't even <i>like </i>lizards. It was all very gruesome and felt very unnecessary.</div>
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Look, I get it. People were awful back then and God wanted to wipe the earth clean and start all over. I knew death was going to be a big part of the movie going in. But I didn't need to be hit over the head with it again and again and again. </div>
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At the end of the movie I was left feeling bewildered and vaguely depressed. A lot of things depicted in the movie did not happen in the biblical version, and I couldn't help but wonder "so what's the point?"</div>
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Was all the madness and mayhem added in for shock value? Was the director trying to make us feel something other than disgust? Was having the camera zip across the skyline and depict days passing in rapid succession supposed to be edgy and cool? 'Cause it really just made me dizzy. </div>
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And don't even get me started on all the fade to blacks. </div>
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To me, Noah felt like a bloated action-adventure movie gone awry that would have been better suited for a television special than the big screen. I don't recommend it, and if I were grading I wouldn't give it anything better than a D. </div>
Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-43495812599706636472014-03-28T17:25:00.000-04:002014-03-28T17:25:39.530-04:00My Blog is Boring<div class="MsoNormal">
My blog is boring. There. I’ve said. Which means (sadly) it
must be true. </div>
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It’s a little perplexing because,
except for the occasional asleep on the sofa by eight o’clock thing I have
going on, I’m not really a boring person. I swear. And I like to think I’m even
kind of funny. Well, sometimes. At least that’s what my mom tells me, and for
all of those of you out there who are like “well duh, it’s your mom, she’s
always going to say nice things” how about NO. We’re talking about the woman
who called her own grandchild “simple”! Now, granted, the grandchild she was
talking about is furry, has four legs, and bites his own tail… but still, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">simple</i>? More like genius. More like
SMARTEST DOG IN THE ENTIRE WORLD. </div>
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But I digress.</div>
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So yeah, back to my blog being
just about the most boring thing on the face of the earth. </div>
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<br /></div>
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I think where I’ve gotten a
little lost is that, ultimately, this blog has been used as a tool to promote my writing
(see the cleverly placed books on the right hand side? See them? SEE THEM?!)
and not a personal diary, per say. But why would anyone bother reading a blog
that’s sole purpose is to promote someone’s writing? </div>
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Answer: they wouldn’t. </div>
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Clearly.</div>
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Which means I need to reassemble the
troops. Start brainstorming. Get my ass in gear. Et cetera, et cetera, et
cetera. So instead of mindlessly surfing through Facebook when I have writer’s
block, wasting hours upon hours of precious time looking at babies doing
amazingly talented things like smiling, I’m going to work on this blog. </div>
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I’m a big format person. While I
haven’t figured out everything yet, I sort of like the idea of certain days
being reserved for certain topics. For example: </div>
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Monday – New Excerpt from my WIP</div>
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Tuesday – Book review of a
novel I finished over the weekend</div>
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Wednesday – <s>Pictures of hot
naked men </s>Puppies. Pictures of puppies.</div>
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Thursday – Personal Diary Day</div>
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Friday – Cover Reveals (for
historical romance)</div>
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Saturday – Dunno</div>
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Sunday – Guest blog post???</div>
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That sort of sucks, but I made it
up on the spot. What do you want from me? I stuffed myself with Panera Bread
today. My brain is basically broccoli soup mush. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Anyways, that’s the plan stan. </div>
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So check back soon as I give this
big, boring blog a major facelift. Until then, here are puppy pictures. Puppy
pictures taken, by the way, from the <a href="http://www.thelehighcountyhumanesociety.org/">Lehigh Valley Humane Society</a> (located in
Allentown, Pennsylvania). Which means all these dogs are available for
adoption! </div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RMIEVs7Ehq4/UzXn4EjYHeI/AAAAAAAAAa4/rwxi6RCd3ZM/s1600/photos.petfinder-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RMIEVs7Ehq4/UzXn4EjYHeI/AAAAAAAAAa4/rwxi6RCd3ZM/s1600/photos.petfinder-1.jpg" height="200" width="150" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rAw9-evaiY4/UzXn5d3IovI/AAAAAAAAAbQ/YN170oY9AmY/s1600/photos.petfinder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rAw9-evaiY4/UzXn5d3IovI/AAAAAAAAAbQ/YN170oY9AmY/s1600/photos.petfinder.jpg" height="200" width="150" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-erNc8p9t0aY/UzXn4dneUEI/AAAAAAAAAbE/TemUvbmjjzw/s1600/photos.petfinder-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-erNc8p9t0aY/UzXn4dneUEI/AAAAAAAAAbE/TemUvbmjjzw/s1600/photos.petfinder-2.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-r3Z5L9PIYnU/UzXn4evn53I/AAAAAAAAAa8/YzggjsEoyFY/s1600/photos.petfinder-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-r3Z5L9PIYnU/UzXn4evn53I/AAAAAAAAAa8/YzggjsEoyFY/s1600/photos.petfinder-3.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-64630738996770680962014-03-08T15:37:00.002-05:002014-03-08T15:37:32.743-05:00The Duke of St. Giles - Cover Reveal & New Excerpt! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m1FhjnmMZ7g/Uxt-keKyN2I/AAAAAAAAAag/D-JCRvp0vVU/s1600/dukeofstgiles.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-m1FhjnmMZ7g/Uxt-keKyN2I/AAAAAAAAAag/D-JCRvp0vVU/s1600/dukeofstgiles.png" height="400" width="251" /></a></div>
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“I am afraid you are sadly mistaken, Princess.” In a move
too quick for Emily to anticipate he took her hips and slid her down the
mattress before swinging one leg over and effectively pinning her beneath him.
Ignoring her squawk of protest he lowered himself until their faces were mere
inches apart. Her eyes were wide and startled, her lips slightly parted. “I’m
every bit as mean and horrible as they say I am,” he whispered. </div>
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“Mr. Green this is h-hardly appropriate,” she stammered. </div>
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He felt her tremble, although whether it was with fear or
awareness he couldn’t be certain. Their bodies were separated by both their clothes
and the quilt, through which West could feel every line and curve of her body
as he settled himself intimately against her. She gasped. He groaned. </div>
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“W-what are you doing? You said I wasn’t your c-cup of
tea.” </div>
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“I lied,” he said simply. </div>
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Her dark brows darted together. “You seem to do that a
lot.” </div>
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He lowered his head until his mouth was a hair’s breadth
from her ear. Her curls tickled his cheek and the scent of her invaded his
nostrils, a subtle mix of lavender and vanilla. “Want to know something else I
do a lot of?” he murmured suggestively. </div>
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The sharp knee to his groin was as painful as it was
unexpected. With a muffled grunt West cupped himself and rolled back against
the wall. Throwing the blanket aside Emily scrambled off the bed and landed
hard on her rump, tangled in the folds of her own dress. </div>
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“I have changed my mind,” she declared, fixing him with a
glare. “You <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">are</i> mean and horrible
and… and…” </div>
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“Castrated,” he wheezed, making no effort to disguise his
current state of discomfort. “Did you have to knee me so bloody hard?”</div>
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Not looking repentant in the least, Emily sniffed and
stood up. “It is no less than you deserve, taking advantage of me like that.
You never should have put me in bed with you in the first place, let alone…
well, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">you </i>know.” Cheeks pink, she
went to the corner of the room where she’d laid out her cloak and picked it up.
Shaking out the wrinkles, she swung it around her shoulders and drew the hood
up, effectively concealing her riotous mane of curls. “I am ready to depart
with all haste, Mr. Green.” </div>
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“Well I’m not,” he grumbled as he stood up and stretched
one arm and then the other above his head, twisting his torso this way and that
until his spine popped with a satisfying <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">crack</i>.
“You’ll have to give me a few minutes for my bollocks to drop back—”</div>
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“<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Mr. Green</i>.” </div>
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“Aye?” he said, the very picture of innocence. He knew he
shouldn’t keep provoking Emily, but it was nearly impossible not to, especially
when she looked so adorable with her face flushed with color and her eyes
spitting blue fire. It reminded him of when he’d been a boy pulling the braids
of the girls he took a fancy to. Not that he had taken a fancy to Emily. She
was a job. A means to an end. Nothing more. Except…. His jaw hardened. No.
There was no <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">except</i>. He wouldn’t
allow it. Not now. Not ever. </div>
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“I will have Max bring the coach round to the front.”
Their shoulders touched as he picked up his coat from the foot of the bed
brushed past her on his way to the door. West flinched from the contact as
though he’d been burned, and there was a hard edge in his voice when he said,
“Do not leave the room. I’ll be back to fetch you in a few minutes.”</div>
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Without another word he stalked out and it took every
ounce of self-control he possessed not to slam the door behind him. </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>THE DUKE OF ST. GILES</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">COMING THIS APRIL!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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Add it to your TBR list <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20810711-the-duke-of-st-giles">now</a>!</div>
Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-28104662195074223672014-02-28T09:05:00.000-05:002014-02-28T09:05:27.826-05:00The Evolution of a Cover<div style="text-align: justify;">
One of the perks (at least I think so) of being self-published is that you have complete control over your cover design. For me, this has definitely been a learn-as-you-go process over the past two years. To illustrate that, I thought I would share with you the four separate covers I've made for my very first novella, <i>A Brooding Beauty</i>, ending with the <b>newest </b>cover which I debuted on Facebook just last night! </div>
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Prepare to cringe. I know I did. </div>
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<b>NUMBER ONE</b></div>
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I remember (embarrassingly enough) <i>really </i>liking this cover. I'm pretty sure I was the only one who did. It didn't last very long. By the time <i>A Ravishing Redhead </i>was released I'd discovered Big Stock Photo (where I now get all my stock images) and I was on to bigger and better things. Like...</div>
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<b>NUMBER TWO</b></div>
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I really loved this model. Turns out so did everyone else and their brother. This image is very popular for self-published historical romances, which is why I quickly nixed it. </div>
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<b>NUMBER THREE</b></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aL9ji_A26NM/UxCUivFkw3I/AAAAAAAAAZU/xXjD_YWRNuk/s1600/A+Brooding+Beauty.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aL9ji_A26NM/UxCUivFkw3I/AAAAAAAAAZU/xXjD_YWRNuk/s1600/A+Brooding+Beauty.jpeg" height="320" width="200" /></a></div>
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This cover has been used the longest (just over a year, I believe) and I picked it because of the model's expression: cold and a little haughty, just like Catherine. Still, trends change, and I didn't like how squished up all the font was. Which leads me to...</div>
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<b>NUMBER FOUR</b></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UPO6t6-hdEQ/UxCWyTACZjI/AAAAAAAAAZo/J39k1kxCnPc/s1600/abb.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UPO6t6-hdEQ/UxCWyTACZjI/AAAAAAAAAZo/J39k1kxCnPc/s1600/abb.png" height="400" width="250" /></a></div>
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The newest cover! I am mildly obsessed with it, and I hope readers will like it as well. I kept the same stock image from the last cover and just tweaked it a little bit by playing around with centering and zoom. I want potential readers to see the title first, my name second, the actual woman third, and 'Wedded Women Quartet' last. </div>
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I am happy to announce that ALL of my historical romance covers will be getting a similar facelift, which I hope will streamline things a bit so a reader glances at the cover and instantly says, 'Yep, that's a book by Jillian Eaton' (as if people know who I am... oh, I'm so funny). </div>
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So what do you think? Yay? Nay? Sound off in the comments! </div>
Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-19637900773527940072014-02-26T07:50:00.000-05:002014-02-26T07:50:30.854-05:00Dianna & Miles - WHERE ARE YOU?<div style="text-align: justify;">
Since the release of <i>The Spinster and the Duke</i>, I have been getting weekly e-mails demanding to know where the heck Dianna and Miles' story is. I'll be honest. When Dianna made her first appearance in <i>The Runaway Duchess</i>, her sole mission in life was to be Charlotte's best friend. Then - as often happens - I began to dream up a little backstory for her. Busy, neglectful parents. A kind, albeit absentminded aunt (who is, of course, Abigail Mannish, the heroine in <i>The Spinster and the Duke</i>). And a fiancee who, for reasons not yet explained, more or less dumped her at the altar before heading off for parts unknown. Oh, Miles. You naughty, naughty man. </div>
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After <i>The Runaway Duchess </i>was completed and published, I tried to move onto something else, but surprisingly it was Abigail, not Dianna, who I couldn't get out of my head. So I sat down and wrote a followup novella to accompany <i>TRD</i>. </div>
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<i>The Spinster and the Duke </i>was released last September. Since then I've released one novella and one full length (young-adult) novel. I am currently working on a new historical romance, the first in a trilogy, which will be released this April. While <i><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20810711-the-duke-of-st-giles">The Duke of St. Giles</a> </i>will take place in Regency England, it will introduce a whole new cast of characters, headed up by the oh-so-handsome (and very cheeky) West Green and the woman he kidnaps and holds for ransom, Lady Emily Wilmington. </div>
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Right now, that's where all of my creative energy is going. However, once <i>The Duke of St. Giles </i>has been released, I feel fairly confident in saying I'm ready to begin Dianna and Miles' story. </div>
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If you've followed my blog in the past, you know I am not the sort of writer who can force things. Ideas come as they come, and while I absolutely adore Dianna and think she more than deserves her own story, I haven't been ready to write it quite yet. </div>
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I will say I have a title in mind, and am planning on it being a full-length novel like <i>The Runaway Duchess</i>. For any and all updates make sure to follow me on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/jillianeatonbooks">Facebook</a>, as I tend to post there much more often than I do here. </div>
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I also want to say <b>thank you</b>. Thank you to all the readers who loved <i>The Runaway Duchess </i>and <i>The Spinster and the Duke </i>enough to send me an e-mail demanding to know if Dianna and Miles are getting their own happily-ever-after. I am happy to say that YES, they are -- although I'm not quite sure how 'happily' it's going to start. </div>
Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-61732366698772798812014-02-25T08:12:00.000-05:002014-02-25T08:12:02.317-05:00Speaking at Delaware Valley College<div style="text-align: justify;">
Yesterday evening I had the great privilege of being invited back to my alma mater (Delaware Valley College -- GO AGGIES!) to discuss my writing. I was super nervous (to say the least) and was half convinced the whole thing was one big mistake (after all, who would want to hear <i>me </i>talk?) until I saw this: </div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ywv5IAILo2o/UwyRLihhMiI/AAAAAAAAAYU/fm6zRJ_c85A/s1600/vp.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ywv5IAILo2o/UwyRLihhMiI/AAAAAAAAAYU/fm6zRJ_c85A/s1600/vp.png" height="320" width="239" /></a></div>
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Could have used that back in my college days to help with all the parking tickets... but I digress. </div>
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Returning to campus as a lecturer instead of a student felt very strange. I made the mistake of exploring the Student Center a little bit, but after I poked my head into the Food Pub and saw everyone inside looked approximately fifteen years old I promptly sat my ass down and shuffled through my papers in a desperate attempt to seem somewhat important.</div>
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Within a few moments Lynn Carroll, the fabulous Director of Alumni Engagement, arrived and I helped her carry food upstairs (yeah, you heard that right -- there was food!). I knew I would be speaking at the so-called 'Coffee House'. I was imagining a cozy room with muted lighting, big comfy sofas, and, well, coffee. Picture instead a basic college classroom, with awesome florescent lighting to showcase the big pimple that decided to appear that morning (isn't that always the case?!), four rows of long narrow tables, and a wooden podium that I hesitantly set my folder down on.</div>
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Lynn chatted with me while we waited for the students to arrive. She was warm, funny, and engaging - exactly what I needed to get my nerves under control. When people started to shuffle in I recognized a few familiar faces, including an old riding lesson student of mine (who I taught when she was in high school... she's now a sophomore in college... I am <i>so </i>old) and a few fellow equine studies students, one of whom adored my mare Poppy (who is leased to the DelVal Equestrian Center).</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">[picture courtesy of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/winterstormphotography">Winter Storm Photography</a>]</span></div>
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When it was time to start talking, I stepped behind the podium and began with explaining I'm <i>much </i>more comfortable writing than I am speaking (which is so completely true it's not even funny), so if I repeat myself or go off on a tangent or basically come across as a complete and total moron, don't hold it against me. </div>
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I already had a little lecture prepared, so I went right into that. I introduced myself, explained why I'd come to DelVal in the first place, and then talked about my two year journey in self-publishing. I got a few laughs... </div>
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"<i>After I published my first novella on Amazon, I was absolutely convinced I was going to be famous. Oprah would call and I'd become a wildly successful author overnight. Then a week went by and I sold one copy... to my Mom." </i></div>
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...but more importantly than that, quite a few of the students were actually taking notes. As in, people were <i>writing down </i>things that <i>I </i>was saying. </div>
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As I quickly discovered when I opened it up for Q & A there were quite a few aspiring authors in the audience, and they all had fantastic questions. We covered everything from marketing your novel to handling bad reviews to staying relevant in the digital age of ebooks. It was a wonderfully positive experience all the way around, and I am super glad I did it. </div>
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I also learned that I am, apparently, a big hand talker. Lynn Carroll took some pictures as I was speaking, and she posted them on the DelVal Alumni Page.</div>
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Seriously. <i>Look at those hands. </i></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3JcLlGfe2Hs/UwyVcF2nX4I/AAAAAAAAAYo/UMW9Q7T7W9k/s1600/2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3JcLlGfe2Hs/UwyVcF2nX4I/AAAAAAAAAYo/UMW9Q7T7W9k/s1600/2.png" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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They're completely out of control. </div>
Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-86651406426379043312014-02-22T10:10:00.001-05:002014-02-22T10:10:26.270-05:00First Excerpt from 'The Duke of St. Giles' <div style="text-align: justify;">
I'm excited to share the very first excerpt from my upcoming historical romance, <b><i>The Duke of St. Giles</i>,</b> with you today! To be honest it was difficult picking just <i>one </i>page to share with you. There are so many juicy interactions between Emily and West to choose from, I had a hard time narrowing it down to just one. Guess that means I'll have to share more in the near future!<br />
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<b>Excerpt from Chapter Two - The Duke of St. Giles</b></div>
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The battered coach creaked to a halt. There was a loud <i>thump </i>outside the door as the coachman
dismounted, followed by the muffled sound of voices as footmen from the inn
shuffled up to assist in unbuckling the trunks from the roof. In a less seedy
establishment West wouldn’t have bothered unloading all of his belongings, but
he knew the sort of crooks that frequented The Three Pigs, just as he knew
anything left behind in the carriage would be gone by morning. It was the main
reason he’d elected to travel in his oldest coach, a rickety old beast of a
vehicle that would neither incite jealousy nor attract attention. </div>
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“I told you,” he said, turning his attention back to
Emily. She watched him like a hawk, her blue eyes intent on his face and her
lips compressed in a thin white line. “We’re in Guildford.” </div>
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“I do not know where we are, but this is certainly <i>not </i>Guildford. You lied to me,” she
accused, jabbing a finger at his chest. </div>
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West shrugged. “So I did. But I could hardly let you know
exactly where we were going, could I? You have been <i>kidnapped</i>, Princess. I really don’t have to tell you anything.” </div>
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She didn’t like that, and he was rewarded when she grinded
her teeth yet again. “Are we even going to Southampton?” </div>
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The door opened with a whiny creak to reveal West’s
coachman and personal valet, a thin, weedy looking man with a thatch of greasy
blond hair protruding from the brim of his hat. His jacket was ill fitting and
there was a yellow stain on his sloppily tied cravat, but despite his questionable
hygiene Max was one of West’s most loyal men. He was a bit of a
jack-of-all-trades, often taking on two jobs at once as he was now. He was also
one of only three people West could trust with his life, and the only person he
would trust with Emily. </div>
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“Are ye ready?” Max asked, his watery brown eyes flicking
from West to Emily and back again. </div>
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“Certainly. If you would assist my wife out first—” </div>
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“Your <i>wife</i>?”
Emily squeaked. </div>
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West’s teeth flashed in a grin that would have been the
envy of the Cheshire cat. “I told you there were a few things we needed to
discuss. You can be my mistress if you like, but you’ll need to pick one or the
other. Unless, of course, you would like every male within ten miles breathing
down your neck. This isn’t Grosvenor Square, Princess. Any woman not attached
to man is considered fair game, so I suggest you play whichever part you pick
very convincingly.”</div>
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“Couldn’t I be your sister?” </div>
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“No.” </div>
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She scowled at him. “Why ever not?” </div>
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“Because they’d know it was a lie.” Uncoiling his long,
lanky body West leaped down from the carriage and extended his arm. “I would
never stare at my sister the way I stare at you.” </div>
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Their eyes met, angry blue clashing against amused gold.
West waited for her to throw a tantrum – something he knew all women were prone
to do when they didn’t get their way – but to his surprise she wrapped her
fingers around his forearm and jumped down beside him before he had time to
assist her. </div>
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Standing side by side their differences in height could
not have been more obvious. The top of Emily’s head barely reached his
shoulder, but what she lacked in size she more than made up for in temperament.
</div>
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“I will pretend to be your mistress,” she said, surprising
him yet again, “for if we are going for believability, I doubt anyone would
think it plausible that someone like myself would agree to marry someone like
you. You’re a rogue of the worst order, you know.” </div>
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He grinned. “Thank you.”</div>
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Her mouth opened. Closed. With a little huff of breath she
drove her heel into the ground, shoved her bonnet down over her head, and
stomped past him.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6dXQL9KWcJU/Uwi8hTeXsWI/AAAAAAAAAYI/_i9x3PIJcg8/s1600/carriage.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6dXQL9KWcJU/Uwi8hTeXsWI/AAAAAAAAAYI/_i9x3PIJcg8/s1600/carriage.gif" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">Look for </span><i style="text-align: justify;">The Duke of St. Giles</i><span style="text-align: justify;">, the first novel in the exciting new Rookery Rakes trilogy, on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo this April! Until then, make sure to add to your TBR list on <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20810711-the-duke-of-st-giles">Goodreads</a>. </span></div>
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Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-30694415958269299182014-02-20T11:42:00.001-05:002014-02-20T11:42:45.697-05:00A Brooding Beauty - FREE! <div style="text-align: justify;">
For now and into the foreseeable, I am super excited to announce that <b>A BROODING BEAUTY</b>, the first novella in the Wedded Women Quartet, will be completely <b>FREE </b>on Amazon and Kobo! Yep, you heard it right. Well, you read it right. You know what I mean. </div>
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Why am I doing this? A couple of reasons. </div>
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1) I enjoy giving things away. It's fun for me.</div>
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2) From a marketing standpoint, it makes sense. If a reader likes <i>A Brooding Beauty</i>, I hope they'll be encouraged to purchase the second novella in the quartet, <i>A Ravishing Redhead.</i> If they don't like ABB, well, no harm done. They're not out any money, and hopefully they didn't dislike it enough to leave a negative review. </div>
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3) I've discovered whenever I run free promotions my sales numbers go up. Yes, I'm technically losing income by giving away something for nothing, but often (knock on wood) it more than pays for itself in the long run. Even gaining a handful of new fans is worth giving away a 1,000 free books. </div>
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So there you have it. If you haven't read <i>A Brooding Beauty </i>and you're on the fence about it, here are what some reviewers have to say:<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3acTHwa30ZY/UwYvnhjvPGI/AAAAAAAAAXs/OYkxnLeDsNQ/s1600/flowerDivider.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3acTHwa30ZY/UwYvnhjvPGI/AAAAAAAAAXs/OYkxnLeDsNQ/s1600/flowerDivider.gif" height="44" width="320" /></a></div>
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"I thought this novella had a wonderful blend of story, heat, and love." Lisa Wolff (Rogues Under the Covers)</div>
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"I really enjoyed Jillian Eaton's way of story-telling."</div>
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Steffi (Swept Away by Romance)</div>
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"If you are in for a quick, sweet romance than this novella is for you." Arlena Dean (Great Minds Think Aloud)</div>
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"I was blown away by how much I enjoyed this novella!"</div>
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Nina (Nina's Literary Escape)</div>
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"This story was very well written in every aspect you could think of." A. Ellison (Amazon)<br />
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What are you waiting for? Pick up <i>A Brooding Beauty </i>free today!</div>
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And that's my sales pitch, folks. </div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brooding-Beauty-Wedded-Women-Quartet-ebook/dp/B0079Q4NIS/"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IT49sj7NwNI/UwYv9gpa-eI/AAAAAAAAAX0/uiZglteaHf0/s1600/A+Brooding+Beauty.jpeg" height="400" width="250" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Nook Users: I apologize! If I could make ABB free on Barnes & Noble I would. Unfortunately, they don't have price matching at this time. :( </span></div>
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Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-85400974663328123322014-02-14T18:10:00.000-05:002014-02-14T18:10:21.360-05:00New Historical Romance Trilogy! <div style="text-align: center;">
I promised you big news on Valentine's Day, and here it is! </div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-D0XHB42_UQ4/Uv6iShiPMYI/AAAAAAAAAUQ/M9gUJJZWGVc/s1600/Valentines-Day-Gift-Wallpapers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-D0XHB42_UQ4/Uv6iShiPMYI/AAAAAAAAAUQ/M9gUJJZWGVc/s1600/Valentines-Day-Gift-Wallpapers.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>A brand new, full length Regency Era trilogy entitled </b></div>
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<b>"The Rookery Rakes"</b>. </div>
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The first novel in the series is scheduled for an April release. It has a bit of everything: romance, danger, kidnapping, intrigue, scandal, a strong willed heroine and, of course, a to-die-for hero. Seriously. West Green may just be my favorite character yet. He's intelligent, charming, handsome... and ruthless.</div>
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I'm not going to reveal the cover <i>quite </i>yet, but I can give you the synopsis and the title! To keep track of updates as they occur, make sure to add it to your Goodreads TBR list. </div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><b><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20810711-the-duke-of-st-giles">THE DUKE OF ST. GILES</a></b></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Being kidnapped was not
nearly as fun and exciting as Lady Emily Wilmington thought it would be… <span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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And so begins the story of Emily and West. She was the privileged daughter
of a duke, raised in the lap of luxury. He was an orphan, raised in London’s
most nefarious rookery. Their paths never should have crossed, but as Emily and
West are about to discover fate doesn’t always adhere to the rules of
society…<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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It should have been an easy plan. Kidnap the girl, collect the ransom. Just
another day’s work for the Duke of St. Giles, a man whose ruthlessness is
rumored to know no bounds. But from the first moment West meets Emily, a woman
who is as infuriatingly stubborn as she is breathtakingly beautiful, he knows
nothing is going to go according to plan…</div>
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From the slums of London to the rolling hills of Southampton, join Emily
and West as they partake in a journey of danger, passion, and love that will
change both of their lives… forever. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-75525435713384954182014-02-12T13:10:00.002-05:002014-02-12T13:10:33.870-05:00Valentine's Day Book Bonanza! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jillian-Eaton/e/B007AVZEYO/"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FIXegwSBFpc/Uvu4CD0-h_I/AAAAAAAAAUA/3KbSAL-bI54/s1600/valentine.png" height="318" width="400" /></a></div>
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Exciting, right?! From Thursday, February 14th to Sunday, February 16th, all of my historical romance novels and novellas will be on sale for only $0.99! There may be even a few freebies thrown in here and there, so keep an eye out and have a beautiful Valentine's Day. </div>
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Stay tuned this Friday for an exciting announcement about my latest up and coming novel - trust me, you won't want to miss it! </div>
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Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-71167400569382269762014-01-27T09:44:00.002-05:002014-01-27T09:44:43.147-05:00Giveaway Contest! Want to win a FREE copy of <i>A Night Without Stars</i> PLUS a $10 Amazon Gift Card? Enter the contest below! Winner announced Saturday, February 8th. Good luck! <Br>
<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/ba63f12/" id="rc-ba63f12" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script> Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-6844485771883617752014-01-25T18:12:00.000-05:002014-01-25T18:12:21.994-05:003 Steps to Being a HussyA book hussy, that is.<br />
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After months of hard work, a little bit of crying, lots of cursing, and the occasional EEK I CAN'T DO THIS WHY AM I DOING THIS, <i>A Night Without Stars </i>has been released and is now available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo! </div>
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And for about five minutes I was like this:<br />
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And then I remembered all the work that goes into promotion and I was like this:</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7BryQlPoKAg/UuQ8Bxq-U7I/AAAAAAAAATE/x8lEPApzf6Q/s1600/sad-pug.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7BryQlPoKAg/UuQ8Bxq-U7I/AAAAAAAAATE/x8lEPApzf6Q/s1600/sad-pug.jpg" height="179" width="320" /></a></div>
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You see, in the world of self-publishing (or publishing in general, for that matter) writing the book and making it available to readers is only half the battle. The other half is making people aware that your book exists and they have to stop what they're doing RIGHT NOW and go buy it IMMEDIATELY. So how do you do that? Well, one way is through reviews. </div>
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Book bloggers can have a HUGE impact on your book's success (or failure). But bloggers are busy, elusive, magical creatures. They never come to you. You go to them and if you're very, very, lucky they may agree to read your book. If you've written something they like they might even give it a favorable review. If not, well, that's how the cookie crumbles sometimes. Either way, it's worth your time and effort to seek them out. </div>
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But how? Well, you have to be a bit of a hussy. Here's how in 3 easy steps: </div>
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<b>1) Find the book bloggers.</b> My preferred method is using Goodreads. I look up books that are similar to mine (in this case young adult paranormal) and read the reviews. Often if a reviewer has a blog there will be a link somewhere in their review. Yes, this is time consuming. Yes, you hit a lot of dead ends (links that no longer function, review sites that have been shut down or moved, etc) but it's worth it in the end.</div>
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<b>2) Read their review policy.</b> I know, total duh, right? But I see messages all the time from annoyed bloggers who vent about authors not following simple directions. Don't be an author that is vented about. It's bad for business. Half the blogs you visit will be closed to accepting new books. If this is the case, DO NOT E-MAIL THEM. It's rude. Not to mention annoying. Lots of blogs will have a checklist of books they do and do not accept. Some accept self-pub. Some don't. Some only want actual physical copies. Some are okay with ebooks. READ THE REVIEW POLICY THOROUGHLY. If your particular book passes, then feel free to contact them. If not, try the next one. There's no point in wasting your time (and theirs) sending a query that you know is going to get rejected. I found a blog this morning that I was super excited about. They were actively seeking books to review: check. They accepted self-pub: check. They preferred young adult: check. They were fine with ebooks: check. But at the very bottom I read one sentence that had me sighing and moving on with a regretful shake of my head: <i>we are so over books about vampires</i>. Could I still have sent them an e-mail about <i>ANWS</i>? Well, technically yes. Would it have been a good fit? Nope. And since my little book is already facing an uphill battle, why make it even harder?</div>
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<b>3) Send a professional, to-the-point query.</b> This is the part where you need to show a little restraint. Don't send them your book. That's not how this works. You e-mail them a query. Perhaps something similar to this: </div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Dear So & So (except you would never actually use so & so because you would take the time to read their 'about me' page and use their real names),</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">I would like to submit my recently released young-adult novel, 'A Night Without Stars', for review.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Title: A Night Without Stars<br /><br />Release Date: 01/24/14<br /><br />Length: 70k words<br /><br />Genre: paranormal young-adult<br /><br />Description: Sixteen-year-old Lola is a daredevil. She likes playing hooky, stealing cars, and making out with bad boy Everett James. The reason behind all her rebellious antics? Because she can. But what can one girl do against a horde of murderous vampires?<br /><br />Aided by her sometimes sober father, her best friend Travis, and Maximus, the mysterious strange who appeared out of no where to save her life, Lola must accomplish what the rest of the human race has failed to do in the after math of the world wide massacre: survive.<br /><br />But how do you survive when everything you know has been destroyed... and the one person you thought you could trust ends up being the most dangerous person of all?<br /><br />Format: PDF (compatible with kindle) or Nook Book<br /><br />Links:<br /><br /><a href="https://www.google.com/url?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.goodreads.com%2Fbook%2Fshow%2F13611785-a-night-without-stars&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNFKCBZR4X2GY7dEw0oMHzN7LgXyYA" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">https://www.goodreads.com/<wbr></wbr>book/show/13611785-a-night-<wbr></wbr>without-stars</a><br /><a href="http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FNight-Without-Stars-Jillian-Eaton-ebook%2Fdp%2FB00I0KA6LU&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNHTcqvhyTbtI6mhrt9J2p80vwpBYw" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.amazon.com/Night-<wbr></wbr>Without-Stars-Jillian-Eaton-<wbr></wbr>ebook/dp/B00I0KA6LU</a><br /><a href="http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.barnesandnoble.com%2Fw%2Fa-night-without-stars-jillian-eaton%2F1118200565&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNEwf91Bzkc-YKY6R8cDdAQFJxiIbw" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.barnesandnoble.com/<wbr></wbr>w/a-night-without-stars-<wbr></wbr>jillian-eaton/1118200565</a><br /><br /><br />Thank you for your time & consideration!<br />Jillian</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Occasionally a blog will request a cover to be included, or will want to know how you found out about them. Make sure to include everything they've requested and remember to put links where they can find your book.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">After the e-mail is sent (and it's ALWAYS an e-mail, never a goodreads message or a facebook message or, heaven forbid, a tweet) you play the waiting game. Personally, if I never hear back from a reviewer I do not e-mail them again. But that's personal preference. If they decline, I send them a short e-mail thanking them for their time. If they accept, I send along the book (in their preferred) method ASAP. Then you play the waiting game all over again. It's a long, arduous, time consuming process... but it's worth it in the end, even when you get the bad reviews along with the good. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">And that's it! That's how you become a book hussy. </span></div>
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Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-19253216774338629362014-01-11T11:04:00.000-05:002014-01-11T12:18:21.599-05:00Cover Reveal for A NIGHT WITHOUT STARS It's here! Exactly ten days before the release date of <i>A Night Without Stars </i>I present to you, without further adieu, the official cover:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O9cgMU95fWk/UtFo9KlZUzI/AAAAAAAAASs/qWYH8xZllw8/s1600/anws.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-O9cgMU95fWk/UtFo9KlZUzI/AAAAAAAAASs/qWYH8xZllw8/s1600/anws.png" height="640" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #181818; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sixteen-year-old Lola is a daredevil. She likes playing hooky, making out with bad boy Everett James, and stealing cars. The reason behind all of her rebellious antics? </span><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Because she can.</span></em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> But what can one girl do against a horde of murderous vampires?<br /><br />Aided by her sometimes sober father, her best friend Travis, and Maximus, the mysterious stranger who appeared out of no where to save her life, Lola must accomplish what the rest of the human race has failed to do in the aftermath of the world wide massacre: survive.<br /><br />But how do you survive when everything you know has been destroyed... and the one person you thought you could trust ends up being the most dangerous </span></b></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #181818; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">person of all?</span></b></span></span></div>
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The cover is very, very different from the original cover of <i>Pitch, </i>the novella on which ANWS is based. I wanted something edgier, while still being very bare and stark. It took me almost two months of searching until I found base image on bigstockphoto. As soon as I clicked on it, I knew.<br />
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Even though the "pretty dress" trend is popular in young-adult right now, ANWS is definitely not a pretty dress kind of novel. I love the raw quality of the photo, and was particularly drawn by the model's eye. Her expression is solemn, but there's a spark in her eye that instantly makes me think of Lola. </div>
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I wanted the font to be very simple and not distract from the main image, which is why I eventually decided on Century Gothic. I never planned on making the A's red. Initially I wanted the entire cover to be black and white, but it needed that extra "pop" to make it stand out. </div>
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I'm really, really happy with how it turned out and I hope you are as well! Look for ANWS on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo on the 21st of this month! Until then, make sure to add it to your TBR list on Goodreads. Just click <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13611785-a-night-without-stars">here.</a></div>
Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-45440339754188486502013-12-22T21:31:00.001-05:002013-12-22T21:31:31.759-05:00RELEASE DATE: A Night Without Stars<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yyb2ALX6IMA/Urefpf79QXI/AAAAAAAAASc/X8_FaC-Guic/s1600/night.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yyb2ALX6IMA/Urefpf79QXI/AAAAAAAAASc/X8_FaC-Guic/s400/night.png" width="299" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #181818; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sixteen-year-old Lola is a daredevil. She likes playing hooky, making out with bad boy Everett James, and stealing cars. The reason behind all of her rebellious antics? </span><em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Because she can.</span></em><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> But what can one girl do against a horde of murderous vampires?</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Aided by her sometimes sober father, her best friend Travis, and Maximus, the mysterious stranger who appeared out of no where to save her life, Lola must accomplish what the rest of the human race has failed to do in the aftermath of the world wide massacre: survive.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But how do you survive when everything you know has been destroyed... and the one person you thought you could trust ends up being the most dangerous person of all?</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>A NIGHT WITHOUT STARS</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>01 . 21 . 14</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">click </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13611785-a-night-without-stars"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">here</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"> to add it on goodreads</span></span></div>
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Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-8978991786520418782013-12-13T10:54:00.000-05:002013-12-13T10:54:18.572-05:00Busy, Busy Bee<!--StartFragment-->
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I’ve never been able to juggle.</div>
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The concept of keeping two things
up in the air while holding a third always mystified me – and resulted in more
than a few bruised apples. Lately I’ve been trying to juggle something a little
bit more difficult than fruit. Specifically, my job and my writing and my
personal life (because I actually have one of those now – yay!).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A few apples have been dropped along
the way, but for the most part it’s been going pretty well. </div>
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Since this blog focuses (mostly)
around my writing, I won’t bore you with the details of my job (cold, horses,
cold) or my personal life (awesome, awesome, awesome) but I can definitely let
you know what I’ve been working on writing wise. </div>
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First and foremost, I’m hustling
to get <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13611785-a-night-without-stars">A NIGHT WITHOUT STARS</a> ready for it’s January release (exact date to
follow!). The cover reveal is coming up soon, and I’ll continue to post little
excerpts here and there. I am super, super excited for this novel and I can’t
WAIT for all of you to get the chance to read it! If you haven’t done so
already, make sure to add it to your Goodreads TBR list.</div>
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With the recent publication of
<a href="http://www.kobobooks.com/search/search.html?q=jillian+eaton">THE RISQUE RESOLUTION</a> and <a href="http://www.kobobooks.com/search/search.html?q=jillian+eaton">THE SPINSTER AND THE DUKE</a> on Kobobooks, I now have my
work spread across three distribution channels (the other two being Amazon and
Barnes & Noble). I’m confident Amazon will continue to be #1 as far as
sales go, but I want to give readers as much flexibility as possible when it
comes to where they prefer to buy their books. </div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Runaway-Duchess-Jillian-Eaton-ebook/dp/B00DYZ9CJI/">THE RUNAWAY DUCHESS</a> will be
available in paperback this spring and is currently undergoing one final round
of print edits. </div>
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In February all the novellas from
the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wedded-Women-Quartet-Jillian-Eaton-ebook/dp/B00BAFKD4W/">WEDDED WOMEN QUARTET</a> plus <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Winter-Wish-Jillian-Eaton-ebook/dp/B00ALJOKPG/">THE WINTER WISH</a> will be available on Barnes &
Noble and Kobobooks in addition to Amazon.</div>
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The first novella in a new
historical romance quartet is scheduled for a tentative February release. More
information to follow. </div>
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I have an author interview with
Timeless Quills on January 6<sup>th</sup>. Once it’s up I’ll post a link on my
Facebook page. </div>
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In January I will start working
on my next full-length historical romance novel, which (happy dance) will
feature Miles and Dianna as the hero and heroine. If you don’t know who they
are, check out ‘The Runaway Duchess’ and ‘The Spinster and the Duke’. At this
point I’m not even going to try giving you a release date, but know that it
will happen at some point in the coming year!</div>
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So that’s it. That’s everything
I’m juggling in the writing department. </div>
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In an attempt to be more
organized I’m going to put together a calendar of releases, book cover reveals,
interviews, reviews, and free book deals. That will most likely go on my
Facebook page, so if you’re not following me PLEASE DO SO by clicking <a href="http://www.facebook.com/jillianeatonbooks">here. </a></div>
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As always, thank you for all of your love and support! You guys are the best. </div>
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Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-9833689606229541782013-11-30T11:48:00.000-05:002013-11-30T11:48:02.422-05:00EXCITING NEWS!<div style="text-align: justify;">
If you were a fan of my vampire themed novella <i>Pitch</i>, you're in for a treat. But before we get to the EXCITING NEWS let's go back a little bit. Back to May 15th, 2012 to be precise. </div>
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On May 15th, between publishing <i>A Ravishing Redhead </i>and <i>After Ever </i>(the only other young-adult novel I've ever written), I released <i>Pitch</i>. I don't remember where I got the idea for a story about a snarky sixteen-year-old battling vampires, but I do remember it remains one of the easiest and downright fun novellas I've ever written.</div>
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Lola, in all her pain-in-the-ass glory, was a blast to write. She was tough. She was feisty. She was flawed. She said and did things I would never have the balls to do myself, and even when I left <i>Pitch </i>behind and focused solely on historical romance, she never quite left the back of my mind. </div>
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A few weeks ago I reread <i>Pitch</i>. And I realized there was so much more to the story than what I'd written. So I sat down and started from the beginning. For those of you who loved <i>Pitch</i>, don't worry: everything that was in the original novella remains, with a few tweaks here and there. But now the story has been fully flushed out, the way it should have been from the very beginning.</div>
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And even though it has a new title, a new cover, a new release date, and a new length, the heart of the story remains the same: a young girl fighting forces beyond her control, struggling to survive in a world that has descended into madness. </div>
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What is the new title, you ask? </div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A NIGHT WITHOUT STARS</span></b></span></div>
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sixteen-year-old Lola is a daredevil. She likes playing hooky, making out with bad boy Everett James, and stealing cars. The reason behind all of her rebellious antics? </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Because she can</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. But what can one girl do against a horde of murderous vampires?<br /><br />Aided by her sometimes sober father, her best friend Travis, and Maximus, the mysterious stranger who appeared out of no where to save her life, Lola must accomplish what the rest of the human race has failed to do in the aftermath of the world wide massacre: survive.<br /><br />But how do you survive when everything you know has been destroyed... and the one person you thought you could trust ends up being the most dangerous person of all?</span></b></div>
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I've already posted one excerpt on my Facebook page. For those of you who missed it, click <a href="https://www.facebook.com/jillianeatonbooks/posts/420402318087316">here.</a> Every Sunday leading up to the release (scheduled for January 2014) I'll post another excerpt. If you like what you read and you haven't already, make sure to add <i>A Night Without Stars </i>to your TBR list on <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13611785-a-night-without-stars">Goodreads</a> and help spread the word! </div>
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But Jillian, I hear you asking, WHAT ABOUT THE COVER?! </div>
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Oh man. The cover. I am in <i>love </i>with the new cover. Head-over-heels in love. In fact, I think it's my favorite cover ever. It's dark and simple and haunting and -- well, I won't say anymore. The cover reveal will be <b>Sunday, December 15th. </b></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">If you have a blog and would like to participate in the cover reveal, send me an e-mail (jaeaton@mail.com) or PM me on Facebook. <b>Every blogger who participates will receive one free ebook copy to either keep for themselves or giveaway</b>. </span></div>
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As always, thank-you for all your love and support! Without the great reviews and the steady stream of e-mails asking about Lola, I don't know if I ever would have seriously pursued turning what I thought would be a little throwaway novella into a full length novel. You guys are the best! </div>
Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-73281405056295742172013-11-19T13:08:00.000-05:002013-11-19T13:08:25.644-05:00Things My Dad Has Taught Me<div style="text-align: justify;">
Today is my dad's 60th birthday. He's entering the "fourth quarter" of his life (something he's been reminding anyone who will listen for the past month or so) and I can't think of anyone who has influenced me more than him, with the exception of my mom. </div>
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I am a very lucky person. I have two wonderful, loving parents who have always supported me and each other. I grew up in a loving household. We fought, of course, but at the end of the day we always sat down for dinner together - no matter what. When I left for college in 2004 (holy smokes that is so long ago) I made the conscious decision not only to leave behind my friends, but also my mom, my sister... and my father. We still talk on the phone several times a week and often have interesting, insightful, and, okay, sometimes weird conversations (last night I called up my dad and he recited the Gettysburg Address to me - no joke) but we're there for each other.</div>
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Always. </div>
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So I wanted to share with you some things my dad has shared with me. Things he's told me outright, and things he's shown me through his actions. I hope these little tidbits of wisdom help you as they've helped me, and I hope you'll join me in wishing my dad the best birthday anyone could ask for. </div>
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<b>1) Life Isn't Fair. </b>Bad things happen to good people. Good things happen to bad people. Don't expect life to give you stuff. It won't. Work for what you want and keep getting up no matter how many times you're knocked down. Don't feel sorry for yourself. No one else does. </div>
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<b>2) Always be respectful.</b> Whether it's a coworker or the woman at the grocery store checking you out, take the time to smile and say hello. Be attentive. Be present. Listen. Everyone is trying to get through the day just like you are. If someone calls you, call them back. Write thank you letters. Remember birthdays. Treat everyone how you would like to be treated, even if they're a big pain in the ass. </div>
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<b>3) Never take the little things for granted.</b> It's easy to get lost in the big picture. Remember to take a deep breath, stop, and appreciate all the little things it's easy to overlook. Not losing your car keys. Getting an unexpected call from an old friend. Smiling at a stranger on the street and having them smile back. Expecting rain and getting sun. Being stuck in a traffic jam for two hours instead of three. Winning $2 on a $1 scratch off ticket. You're here. You're alive. At the end of the day, that's all that matters. </div>
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<b>4) Work with your hands.</b> Do something outside. Get your hands dirty once in a while. Garden. Build something. Mow the lawn. Pick up trash at the park. Don't be afraid to break a sweat. </div>
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<b>5) Don't worry about impressing anyone</b><b>. </b>Life is too short to worry about the opinions of others. Be the real you. Tell bad jokes. Wear weird clothes. Who cares if your hair isn't perfect? Say what you feel, not what you think other people want you to say. Do what you want, not what you think other people want you to do. Step out of the box. There's only one of you, so let yourself shine. </div>
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<b>6) Do something that makes you happy.</b> Even if it doesn't make you a lot of money. </div>
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<b>7) Love.</b> Love yourself. Love your significant other. Love your siblings. Love your parents. Love your children. Love your children's children. Love your friends. Love your pets. Build lasting relationships. Take the time to nourish them. Make those you love feel special, even if it's just with a kind word. At the end of your life money won't matter. The size of your house won't matter. The kind of car you drive won't matter. Your family and your friends -- they will matter. You put in what you get out. So put in lots of love. </div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 14px;"><a ajaxify="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=639904035821&set=a.537445483581.2034120.80000227&type=1&relevant_count=1&src=https%3A%2F%2Fscontent-b-iad.xx.fbcdn.net%2Fhphotos-prn2%2F1451386_639904035821_484030193_n.jpg&size=500%2C352&theater&source=9" class="_6i9" href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=639904035821&set=a.537445483581.2034120.80000227&type=1&relevant_count=1" rel="theater" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;"></a></span></div>
<a ajaxify="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=639904035821&set=a.537445483581.2034120.80000227&type=1&relevant_count=1&src=https%3A%2F%2Fscontent-b-iad.xx.fbcdn.net%2Fhphotos-prn2%2F1451386_639904035821_484030193_n.jpg&size=500%2C352&theater&source=9" class="_6i9" href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=639904035821&set=a.537445483581.2034120.80000227&type=1&relevant_count=1" rel="theater" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;"><div class="uiScaledImageContainer photoWrap" style="height: 355px; margin-left: 3px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; position: relative; width: 504px;">
<img alt="Photo: Happy Birthday to the greatest man I know! Even though you've gotten a little wonky in your old age (you DID recite the Gettysburg Address over the phone yesterday) I am the luckiest girl in the world to have you as my dad.
"He didn't tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it." - Clarence B. Kelland" class="img" src="https://scontent-b-iad.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/p480x480/1451386_639904035821_484030193_n.jpg" style="border-bottom-width: 0px; border-color: initial; border-left-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-top-width: 0px; min-height: 100%; position: relative;" /></div>
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Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-31175741330347753272013-11-18T10:47:00.000-05:002013-11-18T10:47:44.755-05:00Back That Ass Up<!--StartFragment-->
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Anyone who knows me knows I
really love old <s>crap</s> stuff. I still own a flip phone (which they don’t
even MAKE anymore, by the way – can you believe it?! I’ve had to buy my last
two off ebay). My Tom-tom GPS broke three months ago (it was six years old, by
the way) and for the past twelve weeks I’ve been getting around via printed out
MapQuest directions. I don’t own a tablet or a blackberry or one of those fancy
smancy iphones. I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">do </i>own a kindle,
but it’s the first version they ever came out and it was a gift. </div>
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The word ‘upgrade’ is not in my
vocabulary. </div>
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<br /></div>
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So it should come as no surprise
that my computer – the computer I do all my writing on, the computer that’s on
my Things to Grab if the Apartment Ever Catches Fire list (right behind my two
dogs and before my jewelry box although, who are we kidding, I don’t have any
expensive jewelry) – is also old. How old, you ask? Let’s just say it’s still
running Microsoft Office from 2003. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Well, it <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">was </i>running Microsoft Office. Now it’s just sitting on my desk with
the battery out looking all sad. </div>
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It’s funny how things can change
so quickly. Last night I turned my computer off. It was happy. I was happy.
Life was a box of puppies with fluffy white kittens thrown in. I settled in for
the night, purchased <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Risqué
Resolution </i>on my kindle (something I always do as soon as I release a new
book to see for myself, as a reader, how the formatting looks and if there are
any remaining typos), and began to read. The formatting looked awesome (YAY!)
but there were, in fact, a few typos (BOO!). One incident of “than” instead of “then”.
“It” instead of “in”. A minor character’s name spelled with an E in the middle
instead of an A. Nothing major, all things considered, but I want perfect. You,
as the reader, deserve perfect. So I bookmarked all my little mistakes, set my
alarm for extra early in the morning, and got up ready to fix everything and
upload the new and improved version. Except… </div>
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Except my computer wouldn’t turn
on. </div>
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Well, that’s not precisely true.
It turned on, but it wouldn’t boot up. I know a little bit about computers (I
mean, I don’t like to brag, but I did install a hard drive from scratch) so I
knew the next logical step was to remove the battery, wait one minute, and
reboot in safe mode. That has always worked in the past. ALWAYS. I was
confident. A minor glitch, I told myself. And as soon as I get the ol’ Dell up
and running I WILL backup all my files. I swear I will. I mean it this time!
Promise. Except…</div>
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Except it didn’t start in safe
mode. </div>
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And now I’m sitting here,
resigned to my terrible fate, typing on the barn computer (a Mac, by the way –
yeck!). I put in a frantic call to my dad first thing this morning (computer
genius extraordinaire) and am waiting to hear back, but I don’t think the news
will be promising. Things break sometimes, and there isn’t anything you can do
to fix them. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The worst part is I want to fix
the typos in TRR so BADLY, but I can’t. I can’t until I rush out and buy a new
computer and retype the entire manuscript and reformat and reupload and
resubmit. I repeat: yeck. </div>
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<br /></div>
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But it’s really no less than I
deserve. After all, I know computers aren’t foolproof. They crash and they
malfunction and they don’t work, sometimes for no reason at all. I should have
backed up all my files. But I didn’t. So I’m here to tell you, don’t be an
idiot like me – BACK YOUR SHIT UP! I don’t care if you send it to your e-mail
or use one of those card things for print out hard copies (actually, don’t do
that, that’s not helpful at all). </div>
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Seriously. Do it. </div>
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Now. </div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: HelveticaBlack, HelveticaNeueMedium, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px;"><img src="http://www.memecreator.com/static/images/memes/241283.jpg" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); border-bottom-left-radius: 5px 5px; border-bottom-right-radius: 5px 5px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-color: initial; border-left-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); border-top-left-radius: 5px 5px; border-top-right-radius: 5px 5px; border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1px; color: transparent; font-size: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; max-height: 400px; max-width: 400px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: middle;" /></span></div>
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Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-41643255470958396102013-11-07T09:52:00.000-05:002013-11-07T10:11:46.538-05:00Sexual tension, anyone?<div style="text-align: justify;">
(As you probably noticed, <i>The Risque Resolution </i>was <b>not </b>released on Tuesday. A last minute read through brought to light a few things I didn't think were absolutely <i>perfect</i>, so it's going through one last final round of edits which will push the release date back -- but only by a couple days!) </div>
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For me, the chemistry between James and Lily was there from the very beginning. To which you say well <i>duh</i>, you're the one writing the story, aren't you?? To which I say well <i>yes</i>, but ultimately it's up to the characters to decide if they're drawn to each other or not and let me tell you, Lily and James are very, very drawn to each other as evidenced by this short little excerpt. You could cut the sexual tension with a knife! At least that's what I like to tell myself. Anyways, hope you enjoy it. And look for <i>The Risque Resolution </i>in its entirety on Amazon and Barnes and Noble very, very soon! </div>
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<b><u>THE RISQUE RESOLUTION - CHAPTER 8 EXCERPT</u></b></div>
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<img height="41" src="http://momvantage.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/christmas-bough-bell-divider.gif" width="320" /></div>
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Sliding
out of his boots, James stepped forward. “I have tried to deny it, but you have
felt it too, haven’t you? In the ballroom, and then in the study.” His
expression bemused, as though he himself couldn’t quite believe what he was
saying, he shook his head. “You are without doubt the most antagonizing woman I
have ever met… and the most desirable.” </div>
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He
was coming closer, Lily noted. Close enough for her to see his face without
shadow. Close enough for her to touch. Close enough for him to reach out and
gently, so gently as to barely be felt at all, cup her jaw and tilt her head
up. His fingers threaded through the curls that framed her face and she leaned
into his hand, helpless not to rub her cheek against the calloused skin of his
palm. “T-thank you?” she managed to squeak, not certain if he was paying a
compliment, not certain if she remembered what he’d said at all.</div>
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James
growled low in his throat. It wasn’t an angry sound. More of a frustrated surrender,
although what he was surrendering she hadn’t the faintest idea. “You should
stop me,” he said huskily. His mouth hovered a hair’s breadth above her own, so
close she could see the dark line of stubble on his chin. Their eyes met, their
gazes held. For an instant Lily forgot to breathe, and when she finally
released the air trapped in her lungs it came out in a rush.</div>
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“What
if I do not want to?” she whispered. </div>
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</div>
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Something
flashed in James’ eyes. Something dark. Something dangerous. Something so
thrilling Lily felt her toes curl. “Then heaven help you,” he murmured before
he lowered his mouth to hers. </div>
Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3608532826835432303.post-18375621088272991262013-10-23T09:54:00.000-04:002013-10-23T09:54:22.195-04:00First excerpt from 'A Risque Resolution'<div style="text-align: justify;">
I have another confession to make. </div>
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I'm a just a little bit obsessed with the hero from <i>A Risque Resolution</i>. He has been, without a doubt, one of my favorites to bring to life which is funny, because of all my hero's (Henry, Stephen, Devlin, Gavin... the list goes on) he is most definitely the hardest to love.</div>
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Plagued with personal demons, Captain James Rigby has returned from the war a changed man... and not for the better. He's lost his arm, and with it his sense of pride and self worth. His parents are both dead, and the only other person in the world he loves - his younger sister, Natalie - is terrified of him for reasons she refuses to explain.</div>
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It will take a strong woman to help him heal. A woman just like Lily Kincaid, the feisty brunette who helped bring Sarah and Devlin together in <i>The Winter Wish</i>. But is Lily strong enough to help a man who doesn't want to help himself?</div>
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I guess you'll just have to wait until November 5th to find out, when <i>A Risque Resolution </i>will be released on Amazon and Barnes & Noble! Until then, enjoy a short excerpt (the first of three).</div>
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<b>A RISQUE RESOLUTION - CHAPTER TWO EXCERPT</b></div>
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<img height="41" src="http://momvantage.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/christmas-bough-bell-divider.gif" width="320" /></div>
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<span style="line-height: 150%; text-indent: 0.2in;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Captain
James Rigby, formerly of the second company in the eighth British battalion,
was done fighting. Had been done, if truth be told, for the past two years, but
it wasn’t until his arm was severed from his body that he was officially
declared unfit for duty and sent home to England.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Losing
a limb was a funny thing, James reflected as he sat in his study and stared
blindly out the window at the darkening sky. He’d watched the doctor cut it off
himself. Watched the bastard hack away at the rotting flesh and bone with all the
finesse of a butcher while he drifted in and out of consciousness.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">It
had taken three men to pin him down on the table. A fourth to force his jaw
open and pour the morphine down. Even now, five months removed, he could still
taste it, just as he could still feel his arm. Except when he glanced down to the
left there was nothing there save a coat sleeve tucked up and neatly pinned
under. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">He
closed his eyes, replaying the bloody memory that still haunted him day and
night. A memory he wished he could cut away as easily as the doctor had cut
away his arm.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">James’
remaining hand curled into a tight fist of frustration that pounded uselessly
against the top of his desk, shaking papers and sending a glass figurine
toppling over the edge. He waited for the figurine to break. Waited for it to
break, as he was broken. Waited for it to shatter, as he was shattered. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">But
the glass remained intact, and the irony that such a delicate thing could
survive a fall unharmed while he, a strong, strapping man of only twenty seven
had been reduced to little more than a cripple, did not escape his notice. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify; text-indent: .2in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">He
wanted to curse. He wanted to cry. He wanted to shout to high heavens about how
bloody <i>unfair </i>it all was, but he knew
once he started he might never stop, and so he bottled up the self pity and the
anger and the emotion and buried it in a place so dark it could not help but
fade into oblivion. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify; text-indent: .2in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">His
heart.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: justify; text-indent: .2in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; text-align: center; text-indent: 0.2in;">
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18649406-the-risque-resolution"><img alt="The Risque Resolution" height="400" src="https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1381240805l/18649406.jpg" width="250" /></a></div>
Jillian Eatonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04026404191987072928noreply@blogger.com0