So I was on my way home from Iraq and I figured I’d go ahead and throw the manuscript into a contest. I mean, the book had gotten me an agent and it was in waaay worse shape then than it is now. What the hell, it couldn’t hurt, right?

Wrong.

Well, I just got those contest entries back today and, well, I got hammered. Badly. Like beaten soundly around the head neck and shoulders with a blunt object beaten. Which, of course, has me wondering what the hell is going on.

So, between the contest comments and the agent comments, I’ve got a problem, right?

You betcha.

Now what?

Well, I could sit in a corner and lick my wounds, whining about how everyone is being mean to me and it’s really a gem if only the right person would pick it up but I won’t. I’m also not inclined to dig into this manuscript right now, either. But I’m going to. I’m letting all these comments swirl around my brain and fester. I’ve got ideas of things I can change. Plot points, characters.

Basically, I’ve got my work cut out for me if I ever want to see this book in print.

I’ll be honest. I’m tired of the damn thing. I’ve been working on it for two years and I can’t tell you how many times I rewrote the thing in Iraq. So, the fatigue is an issue for me. I’m letting it sit for a while so that when I do finally dig back into it, I’ll be able to do so with a fresh perspective.

How do you take comments from contests? Do you send in to contests at all? Why or why not?

Anna!

Please email me at jessica AT jessicascott DOT net and send me your snail mail address. I’ll get Stephanie’s Hard to Hold Trilogy in the mail to you, STAT!

Thanks to everyone who stopped by and passed the word about Steph and Romance Roll Call!

Contest: Win Stephanie Tyler’s Hard to Hold Trilogy

Stephanie Tyler is one of the founding members of Romance Roll Call. I emailed her out of the blue in Iraq and said hey, I’ve got this idea and she jumped on board. Look for her to start blogging with us later this month and regularly after that.

So it’s with great pleasure that I’m announcing Romance Roll Call’s first giveaway. We’re spotlighting Stephanie’s new back to back Hard to Hold Trilogy, featuring her sexy Navy SEALS Jake, Nick and Chris.

Lt. Jake Hansen has survived some of the riskiest missions known to man. But now the wounded Navy SEAL faces his toughest job yet: Smuggling Dr. Isabelle Markham out of Africa without triggering an international incident. Not easy to do when the gorgeous hostage happens to be a senator’s daughter —and about as easy to resist as an oasis in the desert…
If it weren’t for Jake, Isabelle would still be halfway across the world, where rebel forces left her for dead. The Special Ops warrior may have saved her life, but she doesn’t need him to protect her now. Tell that to the ruggedly handsome hunk in full battle fatigues who’s just been assigned Isabelle’s personal bodyguard. Close quarters aside, Isabelle won’t let Jake anywhere near her heart — until danger throws them together again…and nothing in the jungles of wildest Africa could prepare them for a passion this wild. This crazy. This hot….

He’s an elite Navy SEAL living a risky double life. She’s the gorgeous reporter hot on his trail.

Nick Devane’s life is one big, classified secret. Until Kaylee Smith busts his covert world wide open, threatening to blow his cover. Digging around where she doesn’t belong could get them both killed…especially when the beautiful journalist uncovers top-secret information that could set off a global disaster if it falls into the wrong hands. Nick can’t let that happen, even if he has to battle deadly mercenaries and an irresistible attraction that is all consuming…
Kaylee didn’t expect her search for her missing ex-husband to lead to this sexy and dangerous SEAL. Now she’s teamed up with Nick on a mission that takes them into deepest Africa–and into the middle of a massive government cover-up. With rogue agents hot on their trail, Kaylee’s going to unearth all Nick’s secrets. Before they both vanish without a trace. Before the passion burning between them sets off an explosion no one may survive…

Chris Waldron, an elite U.S. Navy SEAL, is used to getting out of tight spots. But all his years of training can’t prepare him for the crisis he now faces. When a mission to rescue a kidnapped ambassador and his wife goes tragically awry, an FBI hostage negotiator is killed and Chris finds himself at the center of the ensuing investigation. Leading the charge is the blistering hot special agent and onetime lover who has re-ignited their mutual attraction.
Jamie Michaels is determined to keep things professional with Chris Waldron this time. But seeing him bruised and battered in that hospital bed has rekindled all those feelings she thought she’d left behind during their brief, passionate encounter in Africa. Now Jamie must keep her craving for danger at bay as she spearheads a search for the truth that just may blow Chris’s career to bits—and put them both in the crosshairs of an unseen enemy.

So stop by RRC all this week and tell us what your favorite thing about Navy SEAL books is. Tell us why you want to read Ms Tyler’s series, what you love about them if you’ve read them and why you can’t wait to get your hands on Hold on Tight BEFORE IT’S RELEASED.

Winner to be announced Monday, January 25th!

Non Fiction Spotlight: Martha Raddatz The Long Road Home

One of the reasons I started Romance Roll Call was to also provide a place for writers and readers to find resources. I’ve been asked multiple times where are good places to start and I’ve got my own backlist of great books out there. But for authors who have no personal military experience but who want to write about soldiers, research is required and the sheer amount of books out there in your local book store can be daunting, to say the least.

So today marks the first Non Fiction Spotlight. It will run every third Monday and will feature non fiction books, either on the military itself or on writing. The spotlight will tell a little about the book and let you decide where to start.

One of the most powerful books I’ve read about the Iraq War to date is Martha Raddatz’s The Long Road Home. Not simply because it’s about 1st Cavalry Division troopers and the 1st Cav is where I earned my combat spurs, but because I’m friends with some of the men in that story. My brigade commander was the battalion commander there and I had no idea what he’d gone through when I was tasked to be his aide one week in 2008. But after a bad training run in a MOUT (military operations in urban terrain) site, he asked me if I knew what happened in Sadr City. He told me I needed to talk to CPT Aguero and listen to him.

I found this book within a day of coming back from the field and read it. I didn’t know any of the men at the time of reading it. Aguero is somewhat of a legend but when you get to know him, at the heart of him is a warrior. A man who simply wants to be at war, doing what the army trained him to do.

See CPT Aguero was the platoon leader who was pinned down inside an alley with his platoon in Sadr City. They’d been out on a mission when the Mahdi Militia decided they were ready to fight. They picked the fight on the day of TOA (transfer of authority) before the battalion commander officially owned the battlespace.

There is some focus in this book about Casey Sheehan and his mother, anti war activist Cindy Sheehan’s reaction to his death but this book is not completely about her or her son. Ms Raddatz takes you onto the FOB. You can feel the devastation of the men as they fight to bring their trapped platoon home. And you can feel the horror of the soldiers who have to make some of the hardest decisions in war in order to survive.

If you want to feel the urgency of needing to get into the fight to save your men, if you want to feel the pain of the wives back home, waiting for notification, read this book. Ms Raddatz’s storytelling is profound and this book marks a significant contribution to our war’s history.

You can order The Long Road Home through AMAZON, BARNES & NOBLE, BORDERS or wherever you find books.

I’m a soldier but I’m also an army wife. Granted, I have a little bit different take on the army than army wives who have never been on active duty but so many of our army wives do have military service in their background. Regardless of our background, we all share a commonality: we love a soldier.

The thing I love about army wives is the way they stick together. During the last decade, army wives have had to find ways to support each other and their soldiers all the while being mommy, daddy and everything in between. There are so many challenges in being Household 6 and one of the toughest parts of that job is loving a soldier who isn’t going always be there. There will be missed birthdays and anniversaries. Sometimes the best gift is a phone call or an email from a far off combat zone, just letting us know our soldier is safe.

So it’s quite an honor for me to be invited over to the Army Wife Network to talk about Romance Roll Call. I’ll be there on January 25 at 2100-2130 streamed live over the internet. I hope you’ll stop by and listen to what should be a great interview. I’m putting out a call for guest bloggers to join us here on Romance Roll Call as well as looking to fill a few regular spots.

So mark your calendars, pass the word and show your support for the hardest job in the army: the army wife!

Monica Schroeder guest blogs today and calls for books for a friend of hers in Iraq:

Dear Readers,

I have served our country in the United States Army for 5 years, I have not yet, had the pleasure of serving in the Middle East. My friends and family have served many times over, and over. My best friend, whom I have been friends with since Basic, is currently serving her country in Iraq. She doesn’t write to me about the RPGs or how dang cold it gets at night…she writes to me about how she misses our book discussions and how she has NOTHING to read over there besides mystery thriller stuff, and there is only some much of that a girl can take.

Ladies and Gentlemen, this is where I have been helping and applying my time. I have been raising a collection of signed awesomeness for my BFF as a surprise when she comes home, AND, I have been collecting books that more befit her reading taste to send over to her and some of her female colleagues who are in the same reading predicament. They enjoy romance, paranormal, urban fantasy, young adult fiction, and anything really that lets them escape being stuck in the sand box for 5 whole minutes. That gift alone is priceless.

So, if you, as a fellow romance reader, would like to help you can email me at: mojo09226(AT)yahoo.com and we can discuss a means of getting books from you, donations for me to purchase books for them, or even if you just want to write them a note about you favorite romance book, I am sure they would love that. Its all about doing what you are able.

Thank you so much for your time! Also in honor of my work with deployed soldiers I was given some cash to giveaway an ereader or GC on my blog, check in out and enter to win if you would like, people who have helped with my collection get 20 additional entries.

Monica S.
Help Me Treat a Soldier to the Moment of her Life!!!

A SOLDIER’S CHRISTMAS

‘Twas the night before Christmas, he lived all alone,
in a one bedroom house made of plaster and stone.

I had come down the chimney with presents to give,
and to see just who in this little house lived.

As I looked all about, a strange sight I did see,
No tinsel, no presents, not even a tree.

No Stockings by mantle, just boots filled with sand,
On the wall hung pictures of far distant lands.

With medals and badges, awards of all kinds,
A sobering thought came through my mind.

For this house was different, it was dark and dreary,
The home of a soldier, I could now see clearly.

The soldier lay sleeping, silent, alone,
Curled up on the floor in this one bedroom home.

The face was so gentle, the room in such disorder,
Not how I picture a United States Soldier.

Was this the hero of whom I’d just read?
Curled up on a poncho, the floor for a bed?

I realized the families that I saw this night,
owed their lives to these soldiers who were willing to fight.

Soon round the world, the children would play,
and grownups would celebrate a bright Christmas day.

They all enjoyed freedom each month of the year,
because of the soldiers, like the one lying here.

I couldn’t help wondering how many lay alone,
on a cold Christmas Eve in a land far from home.

The very thought brought a tear to my eye,
I dropped to one knee and started to cry.

The soldier awakened and I heard a rough voice,
“Santa don’t cry, for this life is my choice”.

I fight for freedom, I don’t ask for more,
My life is my God, my country, my corps.”

The soldier rolled over and drifted to sleep,
I couldn’t control it, I continued to weep.

I kept watch for hours, so silent and still,
as we both shivered from the cold night’s chill.

I didn’t want to leave, on that cold, dark night,
this guardian of honor, so willing to fight.

Then the soldier rolled over, with a voice soft and pure,
whispered, “Carry on Santa…., It’s Christmas Day…., All is secure.

One look at my watch, and I knew he was right,
Merry Christmas my friend…. and to all a Good Night.

~ Author Unknown *~

Ask any military family, and they’ll tell you about missed holidays. The first time I decided not to travel home for Christmas after joining the army, my family didn’t know what to do. I’d opted to stay in Germany that year and travel around Europe with my then boyfriend (now my husband) and my future sister in law.

Since that first Christmas, there have been others where I stayed in Texas or Korea or went skiing, but since I’ve had kids, the last five Christmas Days have been memorable, either because of being with the kids or being without them. In 2004, I was a new mom, alone with a colicy baby and a husband who’d gone back to Iraq a few short weeks prior. At 4 am, the baby was awake, so I fed her, then opened presents for her with the dogs to keep us both company.
2005, mommy and daddy were both home and we stayed in Texas, hanging around the house and relaxing.

2006, I was alone again, this time, with a 2 month old and my then 2 year old. Daddy was back in Iraq, so what did Mommy do? We traveled to Maine to spend Christmas with my family. That was the first time my daughter was old enough to remember playing with my neice and they were only 3 days apart in age. They’ve been close since, especially this year, when they went to kindergarten together.

In 2007, we were all back together in Texas once more, but I had to head back to officer training in Georgia shortly after wards.

2008 was probably my worst Christmas. I’ve always been there. Me and the kiddos. Last year, though, was my first one away from my kids and it hit me, hard. There was a sad little tree outside our CHU (containerized housing unit) and someone had hung a few sad little decorations on it. It was as though in the middle of that crappy base, someone was determined to remember what day it was and why it was important.

But to me, diving into work and forgetting about everything at home was the way I coped. I misted up every time someone said Merry Christmas. I didn’t want to see the decorations. I didn’t want to pretend like the holiday mattered to me because without my kids, it didn’t. I know that’s not what Christmas truly is about, but for me, the real pain of missing my children was nothing compared to any notions of the reason for the season.

It hurt. A lot.

So this year, as my husband and I sneak out after the kids go to bed in order to play Santa and Mrs. Claus, I remember what last year was like and what this year is like for hundreds of thousands of families who’s loved ones are deployed during Christmas. And when I find myself getting frustrated with the crowds and the traffic, I remember what last year was like, when there were no crowds and there was no Christmas shopping.

And this year, when I’m hugging my kids and seeing their faces light up and get to hear my daughter singing in the Christmas Eve Mass, I’m going to take a deep breath and remember how lucky and how blessed I truly am. Because this year, more than most, means a lot to me.

I am home and I am grateful.

I’ve deliberately stepped into the public light by blogging from Iraq this year. I’ve been cautioned by well meaning friends to watch what I say in a public forum, because, well, it’s a public forum. And before I’ve hit send/publish, I’ve always tried to sit back and think, what would my brigade commander think if he read this about one of his officers.

That, in and of itself, has been enough to keep me relatively sane, I think. I’ve made some mistakes this year and I’m sure that no author can go through their publishing career in these days and not make a mistake online that will haunt them forever. When it becomes standard practice for commanders to ‘interview’ prospective officers by Googling them to see if there are any keg stand photos out there, you’ll understand my caution is not just for writers alone.

However, over on Amazon this week has been an object lesson in authors truly behaving badly. I don’t know this author, but I did see a couple of authors who’d public posts, on Twitter and on their own blogs, have been professional, insightful and full of great information. Two of these authors stopped by said train wreck and offered the advice to the self destructing writer that she might want to stay away from the keyboard for a while.

An energetic debate is always an enjoyment for me, but watching this thread develop over the course of the day, I couldn’t help but wonder if the author was drunk. Even if she was, the damage has been done. She did not offer much to the conversation about bad reviews and she blatantly attacked anyone who did not agree with her. She’s entitled to her opinion and at least she has the courage to jump into the fray rather than retreat, but I’m inclined to agree with the authors who recommended stepping away from the keyboard. She’s not gaining anything here except notoriety and I’m enough of a novice in the writing world to wonder just how much value there is in notoriety. I’m watching the thread for the learning experience of what it looks like when a public person goes on a rant and trying to take away some very important lessons.

I’m sure this debate is going down in the urban legends of popular literature.

I’m taking away one very important lesson: what you put online, stays online.

Send with caution.

Please Welcome Shelley Munro, author of the book Soldier of Fortune. You can learn more about Shelley’s books at http://www.shelleymunro.com.

Shelley, thanks for being here today. Let’s start off with a little about you. On your website, you mention that you traveled the globe for about six years? What influences can we see in your work from your travels?

Thanks, Jessica. Many young New Zealanders go on an OE or overseas experience once they leave university. After reading books set in foreign countries for years, I suffered from a bad case of wanderlust. My husband and I married fairly young, and it took me a while to talk him around to the idea of overseas travel, but I did it. Initially, we decided to go to England for a year long working holiday. The one year stretched into six. We had a wonderful time exploring Britain, Africa, Europe and Asia and, although we’re now settled back in New Zealand, we still travel as much as we can. My husband is as bad as me!
It’s probably a bit of a cliché about travel broadening horizons, but it really does. I think I look at the world differently than people who haven’t traveled. I know I’ll never take hot and cold running water for granted again. Every time I have a shower, I’m thankful! A lot of my experiences find their way into my writing.
I’ve also used countries such as Britain, India, Australia and Egypt as settings for stories.

What drives you to create your stories?

Ever since I was old enough to read, I’ve thought about writing as well. I just love the process of creating characters and world building, be it a paranormal or contemporary world. Each day is different, and I can work at my own pace. It’s fun, and there’s a real satisfaction in seeing the final product and hearing readers’ reactions. I also love being my own boss!

Tell us about Soldier of Fortune. Your book features a military contractor and from the excerpt, it appears she’s former military. What made you want to write a book set in Iraq? What made you want to write a military themed novel?

One of the first books I sold to Ellora’s Cave was called Summer in the City of Sails. This book has a military hero who is part of the NZSAS (New Zealand Special Air Services) although the story takes place in New Zealand. Nikolai, the hero, has two friends and Summer, the heroine, has two brothers. All four men are part of the NZ military. Readers loved the story and wanted to know about stories for the secondary characters. To be honest, I couldn’t decide on a plot that would work until I watched a documentary about New Zealanders who take up private security contracts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Suddenly, I had my story.

Here’s the blurb:

Joanna “Mac” McGregor loves her father, and she’ll do anything to keep him safe after Alzheimer’s starts to steal his mind. That takes money, and Mac uses her only skills—those of soldiering—when she takes up a security contract in Iraq. She doesn’t have time for men, her last vacation fling in Fiji relegated as one perfect moment to hold close during the grim reality of war.
Soldier Louie Lithgow is tired of fighting, the constant danger, and has decided this is his last contract. He wants to retire, sink his savings into a place on the beach, and find the sexy Joanna, his holiday lover.
Mac’s arrival in Iraq causes consternation. They’ve both been economical with the truth, but the attraction sizzling between them flares hot and bright. They embark on a clandestine affair—professional and confident during their high-danger day, passionate with the release of emotional stress during their torrid nights. One thing is clear—they have different goals and the future is both murky and dangerous. If they survive their contracts.

Note: Readers first met Louie in Summer in the City of Sails.
I enjoy reading romances with military heroes and this led me to want to write my own. I have a great admiration for those men and women who serve their country in this way, often sacrificing a lot to keep those at home safe. The NZSAS works under a veil of secrecy—most New Zealanders aren’t aware of the dangerous work they do in different parts of the world. Of course, this secrecy pricks at my curiosity so I read any books I can get my hands on and watch documentaries. A member of the NZSAS recently won a Victoria Cross [highest military award for valor in the British Commonwealth], the first since WWII, which fired my imagination.
I also have a fascination for the World War II era, and have written one book set in this time period. The world would be a very different place if we didn’t have men and women willing to put their lives on the line to protect us. I, for one, am very grateful for the sacrifices they make.
http://www.shelleymunro.com/books/unforgettable/

Where can we find Soldier of Fortune?

Soldier of Fortune is available as an e-book from Ellora’s Cave and should also be available from Amazon in Kindle format in the next few months.
http://www.jasminejade.com/pm-7810-127-soldier-of-fortune.aspx

Finally, what’s next for Shelley Munro?

Readers have already asked me when I’m writing Jake’s story and they’re still asking about Summer’s brothers so I hope to write those soon. I have an ongoing paranormal series called Middlemarch Mates. I’m working on book nine at present. I’m also currently doing edits for The Bottom Line, a contemporary story that’s coming out with Samhain Publishing in April 2010.

Thanks so much for being here today on Romance Roll Call. We hope you’ll stop by again with updates on your next book!

Thanks for having me here today!