In-Between Days Blog Hop is Here!

Posted on November 4, 2011 by Jenna Jaxon

 

Welcome to Jenna’s Journal, one of the stops on the In-Between Days Blog Hop.  Eighteen authors from Decadent Publishing with upcoming or recent releases  have banded together to strut our stuff during the month of November. 

Each author has a day to promote her release (mine’s Monday, November 14), but you’ll be hearing about my 1Night Stand story, Almost Perfect, throughout the month.  My tentative release date is November 25th, so you know what I’ll be giving thanks for this year!

On my Blog Hop Day I’ll be offering chances to win copies of Almost Perfect and my soon to be released collection of Christmas stories, All Wrapped Up.

 

 

 

Today is Liz Crowe’s Blog Hop Day and she’s offering a prize as well.  Maybe even a copy of her new release Turkish Delights. (Sounds Yummy.  Looks yummy too–see banner above.) So click my Blog Hop Button (that sounds vaguely obscene) in the column to the right and hop on over to Liz’s blog for a little eye candy and more.

Happy Hopping!

Posted in 1Night Stand, Blog Tours, On All Wrapped Up, On Almost Perfect | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

All Wrapped Up–New Cover for My Christmas Collection

Posted on November 1, 2011 by Jenna Jaxon

As promised over a week ago, I am revealing the cover for my collection of Christmas short stories, now called All Wrapped Up.  I’m very proud of this cover, a true collaboration with graphic design artist Alexandra Christle, and have been champing at the bit to show it off.  We had some technical problems neither of us foresaw, but they have been resolved so now, without further ado, please take a look at All Wrapped Up.

I’m putting the finishing touches on the four short stories and getting ready to upload them to Smashwords sometime this week.  For those of you who haven’t seen the excerpts of the stories I posted on Sweet Saturday Sample during October, here are their titles and blurbs:

The Present

When Tess has to break the news to her sister’s boyfriend that he’s being dumped–on Christmas Eve– she finds herself a pawn for the boyfriend’s revenge.

Sing A Christmas Carol

A singing group’s decision to drop one member before the big carolling competition leads to an awkward situation when the guy sent to fire the girl falls for her instead.

The Kissing Tree

Two children discover a secret place on Christmas Day–with far-reaching effects.

‘Tis the Season

A Christmas dinner announcement shatters a young girl’s dream of a magical social season until a knight in shining armour proposes an alternate plan that will allow her dream to come true.

I’ll keep you faithful readers informed when the collection will be released, hopefully in a week or two, and let you know all about the fascinating world of self-publishing!  Until then, have a great week and Happy November!

Posted in On All Wrapped Up, On Holiday Stories, On Writing Historical Romance, On Writing Romance | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 17 Comments

Happy Hallow-scream!

Posted on October 31, 2011 by Jenna Jaxon

Happy Halloween!  As I’ve said previously Halloween is my favorite holiday.  I’ve always loved to scare and be scared.  We go all out at my house on October 31 with decorations and costumes.  I’ve been all sorts of things for Halloween–a cat, a pirate, a pole lamp, and my personal fave, Lizzie Borden complete with hatchet.

But I got the tables turned on me one year but good.

My kids were probably 8 and 10 and I had taken them trick or treating in our neighborhood.  My husband decided to take them out in the car and continue the candy fest, so I’m left home alone to watch a scary movie people had been telling me to watch.

The Ring.  I put the VHS tape in and started watching.  If you’ve seen it you know creepy is an understatement.  And I’m alone in the house watching a movie about a tape that people watch, then they get a phone call and seven days later they die.  Maybe not the best movie to watch under these circumstances.

About half-way through the movie my husband and children arrive home.  The kids go off to OD on chocolate and my husband says he wants to watch the movie with me.  I re-wind and start to watch again, still creeped out.  Hubby promptly falls asleep but I keep watching–in a very quiet house.

I am at the point in the movie where the reporter has discovered the little girl and wakes up her son to tell him that the girl had been removed from the well.  The little boy looks at her, terrified, and says “You shouldn’t have done that.”

At that moment my house telephone rang.

I stared at the cordless phone, sitting beside my husband, thinking “Don’t answer it.”  My hubby rouses from his sleep, grabs the phone and answers it.  Still half asleep, he thrust it toward me and said, “It’s for you.” 

I looked from the phone to the screen, grabbed for the remote to try to stop the movie, grabbed for the phone all the while  yelling, “Oh, sh*t! Oh, sh*t!” My hand hit the phone, sending it flying into the foyer so I scrambled after it, still cursing.  I picked it up, put it cautiously to my ear and said, “Hello?”

“What the hell is going on over there?!”  It was my cousin calling to see how things were going with the kids’ Trick or Treating.  Relieved that she hadn’t said “Seven days,” I started to laugh, then told her what had happened.  Later I finished watching the movie–even more creeped out–and vowed NEVER to watch a horror movie on Halloween again.

So that’s my Halloween story.  Scary for me, funny for everyone else.

Have you ever had a spooky/funny Halloween experience?  I’d love to hear about it! 

Happy Haunting tonight!  Save some candy for me. 🙂

 

Posted in About the Author, On Holiday Stories | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Six Sentence Sunday 10/30–As Long As You’re Mine

Posted on October 30, 2011 by Jenna Jaxon

October is almost gone and today is the last six sentences from As Long As You’re Mine.  My great thanks to everyone who’s been stopping by and commenting on ALAYM–I’m so glad you’ve been enjoying my snippets.  Once the work is finished and submitted, I’ll bring it back perhaps.  Rafael and Samantha deserve an encore I believe. 🙂

This is the end of their encounter under the copper beech.  Please enjoy!

In a moment she mounted and rode out from under the tree, the sound of the insistent hoof beats tapering off gradually. 

Rafael shook his head and walked toward Galahad.  He led the horse from under the shade of the riotously colored copper beech and mounted.  One bitter thought rang in his head as he touched his heel to the big horse: life as he had known it was over.  In three weeks, despite all his misgivings, he was going to marry Lady Samantha Easterling.  And soon afterwards he would discover whether or not that would be a fate worse than death.

Hope you enjoyed this snippet!  For more great sixes please go to Six Sentence Sunday.  Or join us for more fun next week with six of your own.  

If you liked my six, why not try some of my other work as well?  Heart of Deception, another historical romance, is available for purchase from Books To Go Now!, at the reduced price of just .99.  My erotic contemporary, Hog Wild, is available from New Dawning International Bookfair.  And both are available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and All Romance Ebooks. 

Below I’ve also included the cover for my latest erotic contemporary, Almost Perfect, due out November 25th from Decadent Publishing!  

Have a great week! 

Posted in On As Long As You're Mine, On Six Sentence Sunday, On Works in Progress, On Writing Historical Romance | Tagged , , , , | 22 Comments

Sweet Saturday Sample–10/29 The Kissing Tree

Posted on October 29, 2011 by Jenna Jaxon

I know I’ve got the wrong season. but I haven’t written a Halloween story yet.  So I have a final Christmas sample from my Christmas collection, All Wrapped Up, due out in early November.

It’s an historical romance that revolves around the Christmas tradition of mistletoe. It’s called The Kissing Tree. Please enjoy and thanks for coming by!

 

 

Laughter rang through the crisp, wintry air as Charlie steered his brand new toboggan down the snow-covered hill. They were heading into the woods at the edge of his family’s property.  Seated behind him, his friend Henrietta grasped his middle, hanging on for dear life, laughing just as hard as he.  The sled sped into the tree line, and Charlie fought for control, trying to avoid the looming oaks that threatened annihilation.  Almost deafened by a loud squeal from Hen, they fetched up against a solid tree trunk and tumbled out into the deep snow.

“Oh, Charlie!  What a grand run!”  Hen sat up, wiping her plump red cheeks with the back of her mitten. 

 

“We can do even better next time.  Now the snow’s packed down we’ll go twice as fast!”  Charlie jumped up, hitting at the clumps of white that clung to his brown corduroy britches.  He grabbed Hen’s wrist and hauled her to her feet.  “Well, you’re a mess!”  His hand shot out to beat at her snow-covered skirt.

 

“It’s all right.  I don’t care!”   She helped him swipe at the patches before they could melt and soak her clothes. 

 

“Are you ready to go again?”  Charlie strode over to the toboggan and righted it.

 

Henrietta nodded then cocked her head.  “What’s that?”

 

“What’s what?” 

 

“That noise.  Do you hear it?”

 

Charlie paused, sled in hand.  “Yes.  It’s voices, coming from over there.”  He pointed to a thick stand of trees to their right. 

 

“Oooh, let’s go see what it is!”  Henrietta turned and dashed toward the mysterious sound.

 

“Wait, Hen!”  Charlie dropped the sled and caught up to her in three strides.  He grabbed the long chestnut braid down her back, pulling her to a halt.  “Let me go first.”

 

“Ouch!  Stop it, Charlie!  Why do you always get to go first?”

 

“’Cause I’m the boy, and I’m two years older than you, that’s why!”

 

“Just because you’re ten you think you know so much!”  Henrietta pouted, folding her arms over her chest.  “I’m going to be ten one of these days, and then you’ll have to let me go first.”

 

Charlie grinned.  Henrietta might be a girl, but she was fun.  “And when you’re ten, I’ll be twelve, you widget.  I’ll always be older than you.”  He grabbed her hand.  “Come on, if you’re coming.” 

 

What do you think they’re going to find? Check out All Wrapped Up to find out. 

Thanks again for sampling my sweets.  Come back next week for another “Sweet Sample” or join in the fun with your own.  Follow this link to Sweet Saturday Sample to find more “sweet” offerings.  have a great weekend!

Posted in On Holiday Stories, On Sweet Saturday Sample | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 22 Comments

Another Halloween Treat: My Favorite Scary Movies

Posted on October 28, 2011 by Jenna Jaxon

Four days and counting to a hauntingly good Halloween!  So in the spirit of the season–no pun intended (LOL)–I’ve made a list of my favorite scary/Halloween movies.  I love to be scared–and these movies certainly did the job at one point in my life or another.  How many of these scared the dickens out of you as well?

First on my list is the non-scary but wonderfully funny Hocus Pocus.  LOVED Bette Midler and her sister witches.  Just watched this again the other night and will try to watch it again this weekend.

Theatre of Blood is another movie, with a nice blend of fright and comedy.  Being a theatre/Shakespeare buff, this movie is right up my alley–a dark one of course. 🙂  A crazed actor sets out to kill all the critics who have given him bad reviews.  (Every actor’s fantasy come true. LOL) Even better, he kills them using death scenes from the Shakespeare plays they panned him in.  Vincent Price and Diana Rigg star.  If you’re a theatre person, you’ll want to try to find this one.  It’s deliciously diabolical.

Another one that probably doesn’t make everyone’s list is An American Werewolf in London.  Great movie for the blend of horror and comedy.  I remember everyone was telling the jokes for weeks afterwards.  The special effects were awesome for the time.  Still scares the crap out of me when I think of the decomposing Jack. 

An oldie but a goodie–Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds.  This movie always fascinated me with its burgeoning horror and the knowledge that this could actually happen.  The scene where the mother discovers the man with the pecked out eyes makes me shiver to this day.  I’ve never quite looked at birds the same since.

Another fun horror flick is Tremors.  I love this movie–I’ve watched it enough I can recite the dialogue.  But I still watch it whenever it comes on TV.  The blend of humor and horror, and a young Kevin Bacon, makes this movie a treat any time of the year.

Cujo was a totally terrifying movie for me to sit through because at the time I saw the movie, my car was in the habit of not starting when I would go somewhere, leaving me stranded just like the woman and little boy in the movie.  My car was even white, just like hers!  And for once the movie had a better ending than the book (though the book’s a damn good read).

Aliens is my favorite of that series of deep space horror flicks.  I think I like it best because Ripley gets to kick some alien queen ass in the end.  The first one was probably the most frightening, but I enjoy this one more.

 Can you hear that iconic music?

 Jaws is considered one of the most terrifying movies of all time and a big part of it, IMHO, is because of the Jaws Theme, by John Williams.  I remember going to see this in the movie theatre and as soon as the music came up I had the uncontrollable feeling that something was going to come up behind me–in the theatre–and bite me on the leg.  Yep, that powerful.  Fantastic movie!

Another movie with iconic imagery and music is Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho.  Perhaps the first scary movie I ever watched.  The music was enough to freak me out.  Much less the stark cinematography.  It’s still hard to watch that shower scene.

But the one movie that kept me up, that made me sleep with the lights on for WEEKS after seeing it was The Exorcist.  The ultimate scare fest according to many Hollywood lists.  One site said to watch it in broad daylight in the afternoon and still expect sleepless nights.  I think they’re right.  And again the music makes the haunting experience–“Tubular Bells” is one of the freakiest pieces of music ever written.  I have the soundtrack and I’ve listened to it many times, but not at night.  It is creepy!

So this is my list of scariest movies.  But it’s not exactly complete.  There’s another extremely scary movie that I’m saving for Monday’s post because it has to do with my scary Halloween story I’m telling then.  So head back this way on October 31 for the final installment of my Haunted Halloween.

And after all these “tricks” listed above, I thought I’d leave you with a treat.  Not a movie, but probably my all-time favorite music video:  Michael Jackson’s Thriller.  Enjoy!

Posted in About the Author, On Holiday Stories | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

Reader’s Corner: My Favorite Halloween Reads

Posted on October 27, 2011 by Jenna Jaxon

 

Halloween is my absolute favorite holiday!  I always go all out with decorating and when my kids were younger we did elaborate parties with all kinds of spooky treats.  So today as  treat for both you and me, I thought I’d share my favorite scary books–the ones you can’t put down and then have to leave the lights on because of!

Probably the first scary story I remember reading was The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and let me tell you–Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman scared the crap out of me as a child!  But it’s so delicious to be scared, isn’t it?  I guess that began my love affair with the horror genre.

These are in no particular order–I’ve loved reading them all–except I am saving my absolute favorite for last.  (And I have tried not to make this a promotional event for Stephen King, but he is my number 1 horror author.)

The Masque of the Red Death.  I found this story wonderfully scary at a very young age.  I was always fascinated by Medieval history and the Black Death and I bet it stems from reading this Edgar Allen Poe masterpiece.

Endless Night.  One of the Agatha Christie books I devoured as a teenager that really creeped me out.  Not a mystery so much as a chilling tale.  Brrr.  Even the title is spooky.

The Lottery.  Can’t remember when I first read this Shirley Jackson classic story.  The one lottery you don’t want to win.  And such an indictment of human nature.  Shivering as I type.

The Exorcist.  Yes, I saw the movie (this one makes that list too), but I read the book afterward and it scared the beejesus out of me too.  More on that tomorrow.

Midnight.  This was the second Dean Koontz book I ever read, and while it’s not particularly frightening, the transformations are eerie enough to make me think of Halloween.  The plucky little girl is also my favorite Dean Koontz heroine.  I so wanted to be her!  She rocked!

The Mist.  NOT the movie, but the novella.  Great scary stuff.  The movie was just depressing and the novella does not end that way.  You really should read it.  I always imagined it taking place in my hometown supermarket, which had a huge plate-glass front.  And to this day seeing fog un-nerves me.

The Stand.  Probably the second Stephen King novel I ever read.  I picked it up to read on vacation and promptly came down with a cold while reading it!  Boy, was I ever creeped out.  I’ve since read the expanded version as well and loved the made-for-TV movie (well done for a Stephen King).  A definite fave. 🙂

The House Next Door.  By Anne Rivers Siddons.  I read this because Stephen King mentioned it  as a good, scary read.  He was so right!  Talk about a haunted house!  A great, haunting tale of the South.

The Shining.  The book was so much more frightening than the Jack Nicholson movie.  I remember the ending (again, not exactly like the movie) that chilled me so much I had to put the book down–as if the evil would come through the pages and infect me!  Definite daytime read. 🙂

And my absolute Favorite Scary Book–It by Stephen King.  Love, love, love the characters and their interaction.  Those were the kind of friends I wish I’d had growing up.  But without the clown or the spider (always imagined it to be like the queen in Aliens!).

So those are my favorite scary reads for this Halloween!  I’d love to know what your favorite scary book is. Leave a comment and be entered to win a copy of E. Ayers’ Halloween Treat A Skeleton at Her Door.  Happy Hauntings!

Posted in On Reading, Reader's Corner | Tagged , , , , , , | 28 Comments

E. Ayers At My Door (Blog)

Posted on October 26, 2011 by Jenna Jaxon

 

I am so very pleased today to have my good friend and fellow author E. Ayers with me at Jenna’s Journal to tell us about her inspiration for her brand new Halloween story A Skeleton at Her Door.

Hi, Jenna, thanks for inviting me here.

My newest novella, A Skeleton at Her Door, does have a bit of truth behind it. Many years ago, before cell phones, when my daughters were tweens, I was in charge of a huge Halloween bash for our neighborhood. Luckily, we had some wonderful creative people involved, and it was a huge success. But a few days before this big event, there was a knock at my door. I opened it to this fabulous skeleton. Where did he get that costume? I have no idea. Amazing!

I knew my neighbor was going to be a skeleton in this big upcoming event so I assumed, dragged him inside, and called my girls downstairs to come see this guy. Every muscle in this guy’s body showed and he had some muscles. My girls scurry down the steps, and the youngest, who was maybe ten at the time, sat on those steps and stared at this guy as if she were dissecting him in science class.

The guy is not saying a word. The makeup job on him was first class. His lips and a portion of his cheeks had been carefully painted to look like teeth, and it didn’t take much to figure out that he was afraid to talk for fear of messing up this facial artwork. My oldest, who was about thirteen, walked around him. I thought she was admiring the costume. That’s about the moment when my youngest says, “Mom, that not Bob Smith. Bob has blue eyes and this guy has brown eyes.”

Panic sets in! Who did I just drag into my house? I’m alone with my two “little” girls and hubby isn’t even due home for another hour. The guy rolls his palms up and shrugs. I offered him pen and paper. With gloved hands he writes a note. He had the address transposed. I told him the correct address. He waved, and left. I kept telling myself that 99% of people in this world are good, decent, honest people.

My youngest daughter glibly comments, “He looked good, real good!”

The oldest looked at me, blew out a breath through pursed lips, and fanned her face. “He was hot.”

At thirteen, she was not supposed to know about hot! Guess my little girls weren’t so little anymore. But that incident stuck with me.

So what would happen if a man in a skeleton costume had the wrong address today? And what if that wrong address belonged to a single mom? It’s called A Skeleton at Her Door.  

 AMAZON http://tinyurl.com/3v99xjw

 B&N  http://tinyurl.com/3zk5eya

and other major stores

Thank you so much for being my guest today, E.  I can’t wait to read about this “skeleton ” and what he does for this single mom.

And anyone who wants a chance to win a copy of A Skeleton at Her Door, just leave a comment below and include your name and email address.  It’s the easiest Treat you’ll get this Halloween!

I’ll be continuing the Halloween festivities the rest of this week with a look at my favorite scary books, my favorite scary movies, and on Halloween I’ll tell you a spooky story that’s true.  I know, because it happened to me!  ‘Til then, Happy Haunting!

Posted in Guest Bloggers, On Holiday Stories | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 29 Comments

November Blog Hop Preview–In-Between Days Blog Hop

Posted on October 25, 2011 by Jenna Jaxon

 

Beginning next Friday–November 4th–I’m participating in a month long blog hop featuring 18 Decadent Publishing authors.  We are all promoting our recent or pending releases, which means you’ll be hearing more about my 1Night Stand erotic contemporary Almost Perfect. 

There will be contests and giveaways by all the participants, so you’ll have  a month of opportunities to win not only Almost Perfect, but a host of other great books, gift cards, bookmarks, and general swag from Decadent authors. 

So plan on coming back next week when I post the linky list of authors and you can hop to your heart’s content!

And don’t forget–tomorrow I have E. Ayers as a guest blogger with her new Halloween treat A Skeleton at Her Door! 

 

 

 

Posted in 1Night Stand, Blog Tours, On Almost Perfect | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Almost Perfect Playlist

Posted on October 24, 2011 by Jenna Jaxon

Happy Monday to everyone!  I’m officially back from my hiatus.  My production is over and my pre-edits for Only Scandal Will Do are completed and sent to my fabulous editor at Lyrical Press.  So what am I doing now?

Well, for starters I’m blogging today at the Daily Dose of Decadence blogspot.  I’ve posted my playlist for Almost Perfect, a very eclectic list of songs that ran through my head while I was writing my 1Night Stand story.  Please stop by the site at http://decadentpublishing.blogspot.com/ and tell me what you think.  Almost Perfect is set to release on November 25th!

 I’m also putting finishing touches on my collection of Christmas stories called All Wrapped Up.  I had hoped to reveal my cover for this Christmas anthology today, but a last-minute technical problem has postponed that unveiling for a day or two.  I truly hope to have it to you–along with blurbs on all four stories–later this week.

I’m also continuing to work on two WIPs–my historical As Long As You’re Mine and my contemporary erotic Seven Days of Seduction.  I’ve missed working on them.

And on Wednesday I have good friend and author E. Ayers as guest blogger to tell you about her newest release A Skeleton at Her Door, just in time for Halloween!  You’ve also got a chance to win a copy of the book by coming by the blog and leaving a comment with your email address.  How easy is that?

So head on over to Daily Dose of Decadence, then come back tomorrow to win a copy of A Skeleton at Her Door. 

Have a great Monday!

Posted in 1Night Stand, Guest Bloggers, On Almost Perfect | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments