Kirkus Review Mention

 Searching for some news articles I had written, I googled myself and came across a Kirkus Review article that featured my book Paris Runaway. Not the initial review, which was flattering, but an article call "The Last Time They Saw Paris" by David Rapp in March 2018.

Hmmm. What could I have been doing in March 2018 that I didn't notice? Oh, I know. I moved to France and was trying to sort out my new life. 

The article is very flattering. Here's the link in case you want to take a look. 

But I'll let you see the first two paragraphs here: 

The city of Paris has long captivated American writers. F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and James Baldwin set key works there, and the City of Light’s rich history, gorgeous structures, and stunning artworks remain sources of fascination for authors in all genres. Here are a few eclectic works that Kirkus Indie has reviewed that take full advantage of the French capital’s many charms:

Beginning with -- moi!

 Paulita Kincer’s Paris Runaway (2016), 50-year-old American Sadie Ford finds out that her 17-year-old daughter has gone to Paris with the intention of losing her virginity to a French foreign-exchange student named Luc Rollande, so she hops on a plane to stop her. Along the way, she meets Luc’s attractive father, with whom sparks soon fly. Kirkus’ reviewer calls this novel an “enjoyable romp,” noting that “through [Sadie’s] wanderings, readers get a first-rate tour of the city, complete with the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes that make it unique.”

Oh la la! I can almost pretend I'm in the same league with Fitzgerald, Hemingway and Baldwin. 

I do think that Paris Runaway is a fun read with a lot of French scenery, wine and foods. If you haven't read it yet, here's the link to Amazon.com and another link to the book on Amazon.co.uk.

Here's the original Kirkus Review of Paris Runaway and the link. 
 

FranceBook Tours review: Lost in Lavender

There's nothing like a worldwide pandemic to send me reaching for some novels to help me escape, and that's just what I did with this novel Lost in Lavender by Lise McClendon. 

Lise McClendon

is back! on Tour October 20-November 2 with  

Lost in Lavender is one of 13 books the author has written about five sisters who have a love affair with France, and a few international men as well. This book, which can stand alone, focuses on the sisters Merle and Elise. Merle lives in France full time in an ancient village, while Elise, the youngest, signs up for a work experience on a lavender farm in Provence. Haven't we all dreamed of working in France, picking grapes or cutting lavender or smashing olives into oil? Apparently, it's not as easy an experience as one might imagine, but even that, the author manages to make romantic. The idea of tired muscles and warm baths with the scent of lavender makes it all seem worthwhile. Plus the handsome tractor driver turns out to be a distraction as well. 

The action in the novel takes readers across the country from Bordeaux to Provence, offering a chance to travel that we haven't had this summer. The descriptions of the scenery are just lovely:

The lavender fields were in full bloom, stretching in endless, bumpy rows toward the horizon. The purple was so vivid, as alive as blood in veins, the blossoms shivering in the wind. 

If the beauty of the landscape, the allure of the French language, and a bit of international romance weren't enough to pull you, there's a mystery as well that the sisters must extricate themselves from. 

If you're looking for a fun trip when you can't go anywhere, pick up Lost in Lavender. 

    

Lost In Lavender

(mystery/women’s fiction) Release date: October 15, 2020 at Thalia Press 254 pages

Author’s website | Goodreads

***

Buy the book

SYNOPSIS

Facing a crossroads– both career and personal– the youngest of the five Bennett Sisters, Elise, does what she does best: she runs away to think. This time she runs to a farm in Provence that produces heaven-scented lavender for oils. The area is famous for the beautiful purple flower, the symbol of this southern region of France. Her sisters are stumped. Elise never seemed like the farming type, or even gardening, for that matter. But she’s signed up for a farm stay vacation, an idea she got from an unlikely source, the trophy wife of one of her law partners. When she arrives, courtesy her older sister Merle who drives her to the Luberon from the Dordogne, she discovers she is the only guest at the picturesque family farm who is not a college student. The rest are all doing a French language exchange program and are 20 years younger than Elise, leaving her feeling like an outsider and wondering about her life choices. Not only is her judgment in men and careers awful, but she can’t even plan a decent vacation. Meanwhile in the Dordogne, Merle’s niece, Willow, arrives for some R&R before she starts law school. But she brings a few surprises with her, a boyfriend plus Elise’s fiancé. Or is it ex-fiancé? It will take several sisters– and of course Pascal– to unravel the facts as all descend on southern France for July in the heat and lavender. Suspense, romance, intrigue, and humor as the summer heats up for the Bennett Sisters again. Another delicious adventure in international travel and cozy mystery as the Bennett Sisters fight their way to truth, justice, and a perhaps a summer fling, deep in Provence. A summer fling in France never hurt anyone, now did it?

Works fine as a stand-alone

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lise McClendon is the author of thirteen books in the Bennett Sisters mystery series including A Bolt from the Blue, Blame it on Paris, and DEAD FLAT. She wrote two mystery series, the Alix Thorssen and Dorie Lennox mysteries set in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and World War II-era Kansas City (The Bluejay Shaman; One O’clock Jump). She also writes stand-alones as Rory Tate, including PLAN X, a thriller featuring a Bozeman, Montana policewoman. She edited the 2020 anthology, STOP THE WORLD: Snapshots from the Pandemic, bringing together 40 writers around the globe to discuss their experiences and emotions during this year, plus poetry and short fiction. Her short story, Forked Tongue, was included in the Anthony Award-winning anthology, The Obama Inheritance. As Thalia Filbert she wrote with four other well-seasoned crime writers the darkly comic culinary thriller, Beat Slay Love: One Chef’s Hunger for Delicious Revenge. Lise has served Mystery Writers of America in the past as a national board member and Montana representative. She lives in wilds of Montana near Yellowstone National Park.

Visit her website

Subscribe to her mailing list

Follow her on Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

***

You can enter the global giveaway here or on any other book blog participating in this tour. Visit/Follow the participating blogs on Facebook/Twitter, as listed in the entry form below, and win more entry points!

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

Tweeting about the giveaway everyday of the Tour will give you 5 extra entries each time! [just follow the directions on the entry-form] Global giveaway open to all 5 winners will receive an ecopy of this book

***

CLICK ON THE BANNER TO READ MORE REVIEWS AND AN EXCERPT

     

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Time to Write for a Month

 What choice do I have this month? It's November and France is on lockdown until December 1st. If ever there was a time to take part in NaNoWriMo, it's now. 

NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month. Apparently, I've taken part in NaNoWriMo nine times now, counting this month, but I've only won it twice. 

How do you win it? By writing 50,000 words from November 1st through November 30th. Somehow, I've managed to publish five novels even without completing NaNoWriMo every year. 

Since I moved to France, my writing has gone on a back burner. Four of my novels involve running away to France, so it's possible that since I ran away to France, I've lost the impetus to write about it. I think my social life is so busy now that I don't have time to write. Between working two jobs and meeting people for coffee, drinks, dinners, walks -- who has time to write? 

And I always loved going to a coffee shop to write. It was such a great excuse to leave home and any chores that waited -- laundry, dishes, dinner -- and immerse myself in writing. That's not really a thing here in small town France. A few of the cafes have WIFI, but of course they're all closed now for the month anyway because it's lockdown, confinement, quarantine. I can't see anyone unless we arrange to go to the grocery store at the same time. I can spend my time dragging the cat on his leash as an excuse to get out, or I can sit down and write. 

Now, the tough decision. What will I write? 

I'm 35,000 words into a novel that I began three years ago. It's call The Wedding Dress Theory and it's about a mother-daughter road trip through the United States as they try to repair their relationship. I think it's pretty good, but I'm unsure about the next scene, so I have let it flounder for a few years. And I can't overlook the irony that I now live in France but would be writing about a road trip in the U.S. Still, I could plunge in again and another 50,000 words would help me complete the novel.  

The next choice is that I've started to piece together stories about our move to France. I don't have a title for it. I know that lots of people have written about moving to France, but they are mostly Brits. Moving to France when you're British is like moving to Canada when you're American. You can be back home in a couple hours, and plenty of people do skip across the English channel monthly. So as an American who moved across the Atlantic, leaving behind children and parents, it's obviously a different experience. Any suggestions for a working title, that aren't "A Year in Provence," are welcome.

The other idea I've written a bit about is a hiking book, similar to Trail Mix, but this one is set in France and Spain on El Camino de Santiago, the famous hiking trail known as "The Way" in the movie with Martin Sheen. El Camino ends in Spain, but trails from around France, Switzerland, Belgium and Germany begin to connect to the trail. We've hiked two sections, and it couldn't be more different than hiking the Appalachian Trail and carrying all your belongings on your back, including a water filter, a camp stove, and a tent with a sleeping bag. Instead, we hike from one gite, B&B or hotel, to the next. It's not really wilderness most of the time because there are bars and restaurants nearby. But it is a challenge and can leave you with 3rd degree burns on the bottoms of your feet, as my husband found out. 

So, three options, and one of them should end up being 50,000 words by the end of November. That's 1667 words each day. And if I skip a day, then I'm in the red, trying to catch up by writing 3333 words the next day. 

So I'd better get going. I'm going to write 1667 words today about something, and this blog doesn't count. 

If you're doing NaNoWriMo, friend me. My writing name is creatively Paulita Kincer.  

Reviews Galore

My virtual book tour is moving at the speed of the internet.
It's always gratifying to receive positive reviews, to know that my words have connected with a reader.
The latest review notes the scenes in Paris in my novel Falling for Provence. Part of the story does take place there. And it made me a little verklempt remembering fond wanderings in Paris.

Meanwhile, I'm in the South of France now, can't complain, although my husband did say he wished we could do some traveling. Travel is tough during a pandemic. Spain may be closing its borders with France again as the virus revs up in Barcelona.
That's another reason why a virtual book tour is the perfect solution.
Don't worry if you can't travel this summer either. A book is a perfect way to journey with new people to new places. May I recommend:

The latest review is from  VVB32 Reads. Here's an excerpt:

Amongst family interactions and drama at a B&B in Provence, the protagonist affectionately known as Fia encounters some shady shenanigans. She gets drawn into an adventure and mystery beyond the scope of daily maintenance at the B&B which kept my attention to the end.

I hope you'll take a look. You can find my book on Amazon, Barnes&Noble or Kobo.
Or go to France Book Tours and enter a chance to win an ebook. 

Another Review for Falling for Provence

My virtual book tour continues on FranceBookTours. Click on the link to see the stops for this week.

This time, it's the blog "Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers." Here's the link.
You can register to win a free copy of the book at each stop on the tour, and can even get extra chances if you tweet about it.
I'm not sure if the blogger really liked it. I'd love your feedback on the review. An interpretation, if you will.
Here's an excerpt from the review:

The story takes us along for the ride as Fia gets her feet back under her, trying to create a new life for herself and her family, while coming to grips with everything that happened not so long ago.  The monkey wrench of love being thrown in sends her a bit off course, but sometimes exploring those deviations from our chosen path can have AMAZING outcomes.  This time...umm, well, I can't REALLY tell you because it'll ruin the surprise, but let's just say that she DOES get closer to someone, while also cutting ties with several other someone's, and the ending sort of leaves you scrambling for solid ground. -- "Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers"

Hmmm. Well, any press is good press. I hope she did enjoy it, and I hope you'll give it a shot too.

Here's another review from Amazon and the reviewer had a more definitive opinion on the novel.

"Kincer has written a marvelous escape to Provence in this book that will male you forget “the time of Covid” as you get caught up in the simple life that’s healing her soul. Kincer has developed a type of hybrid heist ala Dan Brown (Robert Langdon cryptographic series)and Ritter Ames (Bodies of Art series) that will sweep you into a world you can only imagine while you stay firmly in your ordinary life." -- Amazon review

Here's a photo from a recent trip to Provence to keep you coming back.

Mont Sainte Victoire on a clear day in Aix en Provence

Attention Seeking

I have to admit that I've been slacking big time at advertising my novels for the last year or so.
In an effort to get them out there, I had some photos made that incorporate the book cover into pictures, along with a blurb of a review.

I love the way he found a picture that use the same colors and foliage.

The Summer of France is about (surprise) a woman who runs away from her life in Ohio to run her Uncle's B&B in Aix en Provence. Could a crackly phone call from France save Fia Randolph’s jobless and family troubles? That’s what she hopes when her Uncle Martin asks Fia, her husband, and teenage twins to move to Provence and take over his bed and breakfast. She pictures long picturesque walks carrying crusty baguettes and bonding with the kids. But Fia didn’t bargain on being pulled into Uncle Martin’s World War II secret that wrenches her family further apart.  

The Summer of France is available on Amazon or Amazon.uk

This picture definitely feels like a dive down a forest trail, this one is my only novel set in the United States, so far. 

How does a woman know what she wants after spending 20 years thinking about her husband and children? Sometimes it takes an escape from everyday life, time to examine the forest before the trees become clear. Friends Jess and Andi figure life hiking the Appalachian trail can't possibly be worse than dealing with disgruntled husbands, sullen teens home from college, and a general malaise that has crept up in their daily lives.

Trail Mix is available on Amazon and Amazon UK

This photo might be my favorite, the way the book cover is slotted along the top of the building, like a glimpse of the Eiffel Tower between different sides of the building. 

I See London I See France is about another woman running away. When her husband of a dozen years walks out in a huff, Caroline Randolph walks out too – to Europe, with her kids after impulsively selling her minivan for travel money. Tired of being the perfect wife, she escapes to rediscover herself, and possibly rekindle the unrequited love of a Frenchman from her college days.  While shepherding her kids from London to Scotland then Paris to Provence, she finds herself at a crossroads. Does she choose love, or lust, in the arms of a European man, or should she try again with the father of her children and the man she truly loved, once?

It's available on Amazon and Amazon UK 

And, of course, my latest novel set in Paris needs a picture from Paris. I love the Metro sign in the foreground. 

When divorced mom Sadie Ford realizes her 17-year-old daughter Scarlett has run away to Paris, all she can imagine are terrorist bombings and sex slaves. After learning her daughter chased a French exchange student home, Sadie hops on the next plane in pursuit. She joins forces with the boy’s father, Auguste, and the two attempt to find the missing teens. The chase takes Sadie and Auguste to the seedier side of Marseille, where their own connection is ignited. Since the divorce, Sadie has devoted herself to raising kids and putting her dreams on hold, but when her daughter needs her most, Sadie finds that concrete barrier to life beginning to crack. In her journey, she learns the difference between watching the hours pass and living.

Paris Runaway is available on Amazon and Amazon UK 

If you haven't read my novels, I'd appreciate the support. Just click and download to your Kindle.
And if you don't have a Kindle, they're free to download on your computer or your phone. I love reading on my phone because if I wake up in the middle of the night and can't sleep, I don't have to turn a light on, I just pick up my phone and get lost in a story (with the screen on black and the print white to reduce ambient light).

Review of Paris Ever After

Author KSR Burns lured in readers with her novel The Paris Effect and the story continues in this sequel Paris Ever After, which hits the markets on May 1.
The book covers are magical and the story inside the sequel lives up to the magnetism of the cover.
The main character, Amy, left her husband in Arizona months before after he learned she had jetted off to Paris, a surprise trip, totally unlike her. But after her best friend died, she needed something to jump start her life. She thought she'd be home before her husband returned from his business trip but he discovered her secret trip. When he refused to talk with her about reconciling, she returned to Paris where she attempts to start a new life.
Amy is a bit naive and trusts people she truly shouldn't. It puts me on edge throughout the novel. She ends up living with a woman who had previously drugged her to keep her in Paris. She starts working with a guy who put her in danger climbing through the sewers of Paris. She takes risk that are not normal for a cautious woman like herself.
On her 30th birthday, her new Parisian life is set shaking when she spies her estranged husband checking into a Paris hotel, and her landlord's missing daughter shows up, taking over the room that Amy had lived in. Whatever she thought was settled, suddenly is not.
She has to figure out what her husband wants in Paris and where she will live if she chooses to stay.
Throughout the novel, the vivid background of Paris is a character of its own, along with the luscious meals that Amy shares with friends and frenemies.
This is a fast read that immerses the reader in the midst of French life, rooting for Amy to make good choices, whether that means staying in Paris or returning to her husband.

Book Review -- Abby's Journey

In the novel Abby's Journey by Steena Holmes, the author tells the story of Abby, a 20-year-old girl who has battled illness all of her life, suddenly healthy for a year.

Her grandmother swoops in with a surprise trip to Europe, especially the Christmas markets in Germany that her mother always dreamed of visiting. Her father, who raised her alone after Abby's mother died in childbirth, resists allowing her to go, fearing for her health and for what his life might be without her at home. This story changes perspective so the story is told through Abby's eyes, through the grandmother, Millie's, viewpoint, and through the father's voice.
What I liked about this book: This was a sweet book with some lovely descriptions. Anyone who enjoys travel will be carried away to Europe in the author's descriptive passages, like this one about the Christmas market in Salzburg from the grandmother's viewpoint:

Author Steena Holmes

Abby grabbed her hand to pull her close, and together they walked arm in arm, down the street. The roads were cobbled, and streetlights in the shape of stars were strung along the lanes, casting a soft glow onto the shops and people as they walked. 

The music, the setting, the large Christmas trees, the illuminated castle up on the hill -- it was all perfect. Everything she'd thought a Christmas market would be and should be. 

 The characters were well developed with many side twists so that Abby's Journey was not the only complication going on. The support of family and of a charming Canadian village added to the overall positive feel of the book.

What could have improved: The tension and drama in the book could have been intensified so that the reader got caught up more, wondering what would occur. I also had a hard time with the basic premise, which was carried out in the first book Saving Abby. In that book, Abby's mother became pregnant with her and realized she had a brain tumor. She refused treatment so that Abby could be born, thus leading to her own death and Abby growing up ill and without a mother. If it were my daughter, no chance that I would let her wait for treatment if she was pregnant. The life we have is more precious than the potential life, in my opinion, plus the sacrifices that the father had to make in order to raise his baby alone. So those controversies played in my mind while I read this novel.

This is definitely a novel that I enjoyed reading, in spite of, or maybe because of, some of the controversies that went with it.

The publisher has offered one free copy of this book to someone in the United States or Canada, so let me know if you're interested and I'll enter you in the giveaway. Make sure I can get in touch with you to get your address if you win.

Purchase Links

Amazon | Books-A-Million | Barnes & Noble

Connect with Steena

Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Tuesday Intro -- The Flower Arrangement

Every Tuesday, Diane at Bibliophile by the Sea posts the first paragraph of her current read. Anyone can join in. Go to Diane's website for the image and share the first paragraph of the current book you are reading.
I've already finished The Flower Arrangement by Ella Griffin, but really enjoyed it so wanted to share with the rest of you. Here's the intro:

Dublin was deserted at 7 a.m. on Saturday except for a pair of die-hard Friday-night clubbers kissing in the doorway of the antique shop at the corner of Pleasant Street. Three purposeful seagulls flew along the curving line of Camden Street, then took a sharp right along Montague Lane. Gray clouds were banked above the rooftops but the heavy rain had thinned out to a fine drizzle, and a slant of weak sunshine cut through the gloom and lit a shining path along the drenched pavement ahead of Laura. She stepped into it, luxuriating in the faint prickle of heat on the back of her neck. 

 I'm also joining in with Teaser Tuesday which is a weekly bookish meme, hosted Ambrosia @The Purple Booker.
Here's my teaser from page 97:
Tall and slight and graceful, with a yoga body and black hair with glints of silver shot through it. She looks like a woman from a W. B. Yeats' poem, beautiful and sad.

This sweet novel set in Ireland focuses on Laura who turned to running a flower shop, Blossom & Grow, after her baby died.She throws herself into making people happy through flowers. She finally decides she is ready to try for a baby again, when she learns her husband is no longer committed to the relationship. Laura is supported by her brother and a cast of characters whose stories interweave with her own as they find love and disappointment. It reminds me a bit of Love Actually, except it isn't Christmas and it isn't London. The descriptions of the glorious flowers and the insight into the depth of each character really transported me. I liked it a lot. 4.5 stars.

Selected Feature Review -- Paris Runaway

Yesterday, Kirkus Reviews Magazine notified me that a review for Paris Runaway had been "selected as a feature review."

That  means that way back on page 132, they include their thoughts about Paris Runaway -- which were good overall.
But in addition to the entire review, they included a quote from the review at the top of the page.

I love that they experienced Paris with Sadie and that my use of concrete language stood out.

The placement of the review might be only for the dedicated who thumb through the pages to the end, but I'm grateful to be included.
Here's the link for anyone who wants to visit. It's at the bottom of page 132, but here's how the review looks.

 It starts at the bottom of the page then jumps to the top of the next column

Thanks to Kirkus Review and to everyone who supports my writing. I'm grateful and hope you'll visit the page, as well as consider reading Paris Runaway.
Here's the link on Amazon for paperback or Kindle version. And if you have Amazon Prime with the books, you can probably read it free.

FranceBookTours -- The Paris Effect

Today, I'm happy to share with you an action and emotion-filled book that's set in Paris. It's The Paris Effect by K.S.R. Burns.
Amy, the main character of The Paris Effect, has so much going on, it's no wonder that she dreams of escaping to Paris. Her best friend has just died; she has lost her job; she obsesses about losing weight; her marriage is mostly numb.
As her best friend went through rounds of chemotherapy, they came up with a plan, that they would take a trip to Paris. Over the years, they bought everything they needed, tucking them into specially purchased carry-on bags. When her friend died and her husband scheduled a 10-day business trip, Amy was suddenly presented with the possibility of that long-yearned-for trip. So she went.
I loved seeing Paris through Amy's eyes. Because she was sick with a bad cold, she slowly comes aware in Paris, discovering the joys and the difficulties too.

I come to a complete stop in front of the large display window, my jaw dropping.
Tarts. Ruby raspberry, golden lemon, amber apricot, emerald kiwi, garnet plum -- as tempting as unguarded platters of jewels.
And cakes. Tall triple-layered white vanilla cakes and brown chocolate cakes, showcased like favorite children on fluted white porcelain pedestals.
Also light-as-air cream puffs. Flakey layered napoleons. Perfectly piped meringues. Precisely molded madeleines. Plain puff pastries in the shapes of pinwheels and hearts, glistening with sugar. 

I think you get the idea. Lots of details about the scrumptiousness of Paris.
I guarantee that Amy had a trip to Paris like no one else's. As people offer to help her, from those she meets on the plane to those she connects with in cafes, everyone seems to have a slightly sinister agenda. The reader is never sure if Amy is too trusting.
The novel definitely had high-tension and kept me reading quickly through to the end in just a day or so. I couldn't wait to find out what happened next.
Make sure you scroll down to enter the giveaway for your copy of The Paris Effect.

France Book Tours features The Paris Effect

on Tour January 9-13 with

The Paris Effect

(women’s fiction) Release date: June 1st, 2016 at Velvet Morning Press ISBN: 978-0692710852 246 pages

Author’s website Goodreads

   

SYNOPSIS

Friendship, loss and a tantalizing trip to Paris in this highly praised #1 Amazon Best Seller! Amy and Kat had planned a secret trip to Paris. Even Amy’s husband wouldn’t know about it. But when Amy loses Kat to cancer, she knows the plan is gone forever. Or is it?

Guided by memories of her friend and dissatisfaction with her own calorie-counting life in Phoenix, Amy sneaks off to Paris while her husband is away on a business trip. Once there, she’s robbed, stalked, arrested and almost kidnapped. Worse, she finds that all her problems have come right along with her. Through her adventures, laced with luscious descriptions of food and Paris, Amy learns that often in life, love and friendship, nothing is exactly as it seems. Grab a croissant and settle in for a decidedly non-touristy trip to the City of Light.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Unlike her character Amy in THE PARIS EFFECT, K. S. R. Burns has never ventured down into the scary and forbidden catacombs. Nor has she run away from home, but she has lived and worked in 22 cities, one of them Paris (because she does definitely share Amy’s passion for Paris). Burns is also the author of THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF WORKING GIRL: REAL-LIFE CAREER ADVICE YOU CAN ACTUALLY USE (Running Press 2009), because while living in 22 cities she racked up a total of 59 jobs, thereby learning a lot about the world of work. She currently writes a weekly career advice column for The Seattle Times. No longer a wanderer, Burns currently resides in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and cat. Visit her website. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter Subscribe to her newsletter Buy the book: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

***

You can enter the global giveaway here or on any other book blogs participating in this tour. Be sure to follow each participant on Twitter/Facebook, they are listed in the entry form below.

Enter here

Visit each blogger on the tour: tweeting about the giveaway everyday of the Tour will give you 5 extra entries each time! [just follow the directions on the entry-form] Global giveaway open to all: 5 winners will receive a digital copy of the book

***

CLICK ON THE BANNER TO READ REVIEWS AND EXCERPTS

 

Giveaway -- Amazon Gift Card

I'm trying to take a deep breath on this, the last day of the month.
July has flown by, hasn't it?
I've had some spectacular days, walks with my husband, walks with my friend Sheila, hanging out with my children and talking about everything or nothing.
I'm already missing the early, early morning sunshine. I'm disappointed now that the sun isn't rising at 5:30. I think that if I had the money, I'd follow the summer, maybe spend my winters in New Zealand.
Well, on the last day of the month, I'm trying to sell a few extra copies of Paris Runaway, my latest novel. So, if you were considering a purchase of Paris Runaway, $5.99 for the Kindle edition, go ahead and buy it today and leave a comment here or on my Facebook page or send me an email or tweet, and I'll enter your name to win a $25 Amazon gift card.

The drawing will be Sunday evening, so your odds are very good.
Some readers have said this is their favorite of all my novels. It has a couple of steamy, romantic scenes, but mostly it's women's fiction with the main character dealing with the complications of life and raising teenagers as a single mother, while chasing after her daughter to France.
Don't take my word for it though, go to the link and read the reviews.
I love that different readers can have totally different experiences:

Here's a review from Goodreads: "An interesting, entertaining suspense novel, I loved it.
Could not put it down, I felt I was with her in Paris."

Here's another review from Goodreads: "The highlight of the book would be its narration. Looking at Paris through the writers eyes was sheer blissful. The narration is vivid and the writer has tastefully described Paris even when the story demanded that the setting be dimmed out. That blending and weaving of the setting even when the main character writhed in turmoil was done perfectly without compromising emotions."

And one of my favorite reviews: "This was a fabulous beach read! I picked it up this morning and never sat it down until I was done. The characters were relatable and their adventure was a joy to watch unfold. If only real life teenage drama ended in a trip to Paris and an adventure with a sexy French man then the teenage years would not seem so bad."

Thanks for your support, whether you buy my novel or not, reading my blog helps give me that feeling of community too. If you do buy it, I wish you a lovely, relaxing day or reading and a quick trip to Paris, even if it's only in the book.

Book Launch Reflections

I don't know how my book launch slipped past without a blog post, so I am revisiting the fun and frivolity we had there.
It was in early December when my friend and marketing manager Najah convinced me that I should have a book launch for Trail Mix. I'd never had a book launch for my other novels, so this was new to me.

Luckily, the owner of a local coffee shop, The Grandview Grind, offered her place free of charge and we set the night.
I brought in wine, cheese and crackers, chips and some local specialty pizzas to assuage the hungry crowd.
The whole time leading up to the book launch, I was verrry nervous. I hate for something to be all about me.
Most people, including my husband, would not guess that I would feel shy or embarrassed to be the center of attention, but I do. I didn't want to feel like I was extorting people to attend an event and buy a book. I only wanted it to be a celebration of the novels I've written.

At the prodding of both Najah and my friend Leah, I had a table with copies of Trail Mix, along with a few copies of my other novels, The Summer of France and I See London I See France.
When people began to arrive, both those I knew and those I didn't, I felt humbled and amazed.

And yes, people did buy my books and I spent the night signing copies. I should definitely have come up with some sort of catch phrase. My most common one was "Enjoy the adventure!" which is something that I mean about both life and my novel.

I did get to enjoy spending time with friends from so many different sections of my life, and my friends were delighted to meet the other friends they'd heard so much about. My homeschool friends met my running friends who met my coffee shop friends who met the local relatives too. And Grace had a whole other section of friends who came, mostly because she's so persuasive.

After a lovely introduction from Leah, I read from the Prologue of my novel. I'll have to work on that too. Maybe I should pause longer at places where people are supposed to laugh.

In the end, I got to drink a glass of wine and spend time with friends, and I had only one book to carry home with me.
Next time, I'll know better what to expect, and I plan to have a blow-out book launch.

Goodreads Giveaway

If you're on Goodreads, enter for a chance to win a paperback copy of my novel, I See London I See France. I'd love it if you'd friend me on Goodreads too.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

I See London, I See France

by Paulita Kincer

Giveaway ends May 26, 2014.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Book Trailer

I have a new book trailer for my novel I See London I See France.
I hope you'll watch it and maybe click on "like" too to help me promote my book.

$50 Amazon Giveaway -- One Day Only

Buy my novel I See London I See France on Amazon ($4.99) by noon on Saturday and share it on Facebook, tagging me, Paulita Kincer,(Writer) and you’ll be entered to win a $50 Amazon gift card. The contest runs from now until noon on Saturday, March 15 (Eastern Standard Time). Enter now!

Contest details: Buy my novel in Kindle or paperback form from Amazon (or Barnes & Noble). After you check out, Amazon offers the opportunity to share your purchase on Facebook or Twitter. Share, tagging my author page, Paulita Kincer(writer). 

If you don’t/can’t post on Facebook, take a screenshot of your receipt and send me an email at paulita at paulitakincer dot com. The odds of winning depend on how many people participate. If you’re the only one who plays, you’re the winner of the Amazon gift card. If two people play, your odds are 50/50. If 100 people play, your odds are 1/100.  I’ll enter all the names in a random name selector and select the winner at random on Saturday, March 15.

In a few weeks, I’ll do another giveaway for everyone who posts a 4- or 5-star review on my novel on Amazon or Barnes & Noble, so if you don’t win this time, you’ll have another chance. 

Dreaming of France -- I See London, I See France

Please join this weekly meme. Grab a copy of the photo above and link back to An Accidental Blog. Share with the rest of us your passion for France. Did you read a good book set in France? See a movie? Take a photo in France? Have an adventure? Eat a fabulous meal or even just a pastry? Or if you're in France now, go ahead and lord it over the rest of us. We can take it.
Although I'm not positive when the new book will be available for purchase, I'm hoping it's on the virtual shelves before Christmas. One thing that is ready -- the new cover.

After a dozen years of marriage and three kids, Caroline's husband walks out in a huff one afternoon. As the separation persists, she decides travel can help her find that joie de vivre she is missing. So she sells her minivan and takes the three kids to Europe. She visits London, Scotland and Paris before settling near friends in Aix en Provence. The color begins to seep back into her life but should she credit the handsome Jean-Marc, her crush from years before? And what will she do about that husband she left behind?
Thanks for playing along with me today.

NaNoWriMo Arrives in 2 Days

November is National Novel Writing Month.
Who's with me?
Crickets????
The point of National Novel Writing Month is for me to avoid finishing the edits on my other novels.
Oh, wait. That's not the point.
Hundreds of thousands of authors and would-be authors join Nanowrimo in an attempt to write 50,000 words of a novel. Fifty thousand words does  not quite equal a novel, but it's a good chunk of one.
My last novel was about 80,000. The one that will hopefully be published in November is over 100,000 words.
Since my first novel The Summer of France was set in France. And my soon-to-be-published novel, I See London, I See France, is also set partially in France, I decided to focus on a novel that is set right here in Columbus.
Here's the synopsis:
 When was the last time 34-year-old Maeve left her apartment? She can't really remember. Maybe six weeks earlier for a haircut. She works from home, has a treadmill in the corner of her Columbus apartment, and Amazon plus Green Bean delivery bring everything she needs to her door. 
But this wasn't how it was supposed to turn out. Maeve sets out to turn her life around with Feng Shui and a search for her childhood friends who knew the real her.

Nanowrimo has this weird thing where it asks the author to give a synopsis of the novel and an excerpt plus a book cover. How is all of this possible for people who haven't begun their novels yet? Luckily, I'm about 25,000 words into  my novel. If I write 50,000 words in November, I'll have 75,000 word and I'll be close to a finished novel. 

I wasted some more time not editing my novel and creating a mock book cover:

Don't worry. I'm not quitting my day job to do book covers.

And, here's an excerpt from my 25,000 already written words.

Pausing at the window, Maeve realized how glorious the leaves looked from her second story view and suddenly, she wanted to get out there to experience it. She hadn’t felt that way… well, she couldn’t remember when she’d felt that way. Before Joe had broken up with her? Before she’d met Joe? Enthusiasm seemed to have drained from her life sometime between childhood and this 34^th year she found herself in. “This must be the enthusiasm gap the politicians are always talking about,” Maeve thought to herself then smiled.
Had it been during her college years that she became blasé about everything? She had hung out with a lot of hipsters whose main goal had been to try new things only to dismiss them. Maybe she’d embraced that philosophy too much. She’d taken it to the point where she really did stop feeling joy at the taste of chocolate melting on her tongue or a fresh breeze blowing against her cheeks.
“Today is the first day… Wait. I’m not ready to go there,” Maeve said aloud to her bedroom.

NaNoWriMo asks authors to choose their genre. I definitely consider this novel Women's Fiction, but I don't have that choice on NaNoWriMo. I could choose Chick Lit, which of course is dismissed out of hand by many people, or I could choose Mainstream Fiction. I chose Mainstream Fiction.
So, starting Friday, I'm off to see how many words I can add to my novel.
I'll keep you updated on my journey.
I'd love it if any other authors would friend me on Nanowrimo so we can cheer each other on. You'll find me at Paulita Kincer.

Mocha Rewards

This morning, after a seven and a half mile run, I'm sitting on my front porch enjoying a final mocha. My running partner, Najah, and I decided that mochas will be my reward for finishing a certain number of words on my current writing project. 

I get no more mochas until I reach that 22,000 -word goal. Then 45,000 words, then 67,000 words, then finished.

It sounds like a lot, but I'm actually just deconstructing and reconstructing a book that I wrote before. I've decided to make some changes so a lot of the work will be cutting and pasting then writing other sections and editing everything together. I'm giving myself a time limit so I can try to solve that other problem I mentioned a few weeks ago -- cutbacks at my job. I've started applying for other, full-time jobs, but if I could bring in a little more income from my writing then I could continue to teach college as an adjunct and have time to write. If I get a full-time job, plus teach college, I'll never have time to write.

It seems silly that I need to motivate myself, but with free time and without set deadlines, I often just fritter it away. That's why Najah and I decided on the joint punishment/reward of mochas or no mochas. And she's going to be my motivator and task master. She'll text me encouragement, like a Nike app: "Way to go!" or "Keep it up!" But she's also willing to push me and scold me if I fall behind. 

So wish me luck that I move along quickly and get to my next mocha. 

The book I'm rewriting is I See London, I See France. Parts of the book are the same and some have changed: a mother of three young children has a fight with her husband and he walks out. She thinks about when she last felt vibrant and pins it down to a semester abroad in France. She wonders how life might have turned out differently if she'd married the Frenchman she had a crush on. She decides to sell the minivan and travel to Europe with the kids to see if she can rekindle that spark of life within herself, and maybe a romance too. 

Writing For Women or Men or Both

I've been pondering audience recently.
My first published book, The Summer of France, has both a male and female perspective. It has a mystery and some historical details from World War II. It has a motorcycle/car chase, for goodness sake. That makes it appropriate for a man or a woman to read.
My other books (as yet unpublished) are more aimed toward women readers. I See London, I See France is about a woman trying to decide what she is outside motherhood. She is so overwhelmed with her children, ages 9,7, and 5, that she doesn't recognize what makes her happy any more. So the conflict is internal.
When her husband walks out one afternoon, she sells her minivan and takes her children to Europe to try to find the passionate self she was in her 20s when she studied in Europe. Her husband, of course, is angry that she disappeared with the kids and threatens to have her arrested and take the kids back.
A couple of writer friends have read parts of it recently, and one suggestion was to add an outside conflict to make the novel more attractive to men.
Of course, that seems overwhelming. Is she chasing something around Europe? Is she searching for something? Why can't she simply search for her real self, while trying to be a good mother?
Now I'm torn. Do I revise this book and add an external conflict? Do I keep it in its same form and label it women's fiction? Do I move on to another one of my novels that already has the potential for "action"?
What do you think when you read novels? Do men only like external conflict?