One of the questions I’m often asked by readers is “What’s your favorite of all your books?” Which 
is a bit like asking a mother to name her favorite child and impossible to answer.

That said, I’ll admit that The Homecoming, the first in my Shelter Bay series, is very personal to me. Partly because it’s set on the magnificent Oregon coast, where my husband once bought me a bag of salt-water taffy, then proposed. Decades later, not only is the candy store still there, I’m so glad I said yes! Combining my hobbies of photography and scrapbooking, I created a video virtual tour of Shelter Bay on my website at http://joannross.com. If that red-roofed house on the tour looks familiar, it’s because Signet’s art department used it on The Homecoming’s cover.

Another question I get a lot is why I chose to write about military heroes. That’s a complex question, but one reason is that I’ve always been a sucker for a guy in uniform. When I was growing up, nearly every male I knew got drafted into the military. Even Elvis didn’t get a pass. After going through Army boot camp, he was sent to Germany, where he met a teenage Priscilla, and well, we all know how that turned out.

Along with several military men and women we’ve “adopted” through Soldiers Angels over the years, we also have two nephews in the Army — Patrick, who completed two Iraq tours and Kyle, who’s already “done” Iraq and is currently serving as a medevac in Afghanistan. Needless to say, having them in harm’s way these past years has made my High Risk books, and now my Shelter Bay stories, extremely personal.

Ongoing concern for them is also partly why I’ve returned to my more emotional family-centric romance roots after the murder and mayhem of romantic suspense. Since writing about serial killers eventually gets depressing, I’m so happy to be back telling feel-good stories about good things happening to nice, but flawed people.

Another reason I like to write about military heroes (along with a military heroine in Shattered) is because they possess something that seems to be in short supply these days – honor.

I firmly believe that a man capable of committing to something outside himself can also commit to a mate and, as a woman, I find that really appealing
The hero I like to write about doesn’t have any personal desire to create conflict or aggression, but he does possess an unwavering code that has him not hesitating to put himself in harm’s way and risk being wounded — physically, emotionally, or both — to protect, defend, and fight for what’s right. He’s self-disciplined, decisive (though he often has to battle his own internal demons, as The Homecoming’s Sex Douchett does) and along with an integrity as tough as his body, he’s unwaveringly loyal and self-confident enough to appreciate and support the equally strong woman who manages to win his guarded heart.

Many readers might be surprised to learn that I’ve been writing military heroes since I wrote a male point-of-view romance about a former Vietnam POW in the mid ‘80s, which was a groundbreaking subject for the genre and still remains on many must-read lists. Since then, though I don’t always mention the fact, most of the heroes in my books have been veterans.

One of the things I’m enjoying exploring in my Shelter Bay books is life after war. As hopefully more and more of our troops begin returning home, there are some wonderful stories waiting to be told, and I can’t wait to write some of them.

In The Homecoming, both Sax Douchett and Kara Conway have returned to their small coastal hometown seeking healing and closure. The ocean has always provided a shelter from emotional storms for me. It’s where I go to unwind and put my life in perspective, which is why I named my fictional coastal town Shelter Bay. Do you have some special place where you feel at peace? A place that, at least in your heart, feels like home?

To celebrate the book’s release day, three people who respond (chosen at random), will receive an autographed copy of The Homecoming.

Thank-you to Jess for inviting me and to the rest of the RollCall-ers for having me by the blog today!

I have been writing, and thinking, about alpha males a lot, and what makes for a ‘warrior.’ My current release, THE IRISH WARRIOR, has obvious ties to the topic. And my husband works for the MFLC program—Military and Family Life Consultant Program—which provides free, anonymous, completely confidential short-term counseling by Masters-level licensed therapists to Military Personnel and their Spouses and Families on all CONUS and OCONUS instillations.

Wow. That was a mouthful of information and syllables and acronyms. Still with me?

The heroes in the romance genre—and fiction–are often the warrior archetype. I think many people often equate ‘the warrior’ with ‘the fighter,’ and while that is often true, it misses the mark if its aimed too closely. It dilutes the totality of what makes for a warrior, in fiction and in life.

The warrior is active, not cringing at what is to come or may come, but moving forward into it. This doesn’t mean there’s no fear. It means the fear is integrated into the rest of the ‘knowing.’

The warrior is self-directed. Not that s/he does not take orders, but that she has an inner compass for what needs to be done, and takes care of that without needing someone to tell her to. This requires a focused mind and determination, and the exercise of both restraint and power, following along the trajectory of will.

The warrior has the capacity to be a master. And there is only one route to attain such a height: devotion, dedication, hard work and utter focus.

The warrior has a variety of intelligences. She can absorb information, accurately determine what’s relevant to the goal, distill that knowledge into something meaningful, and adapt in response. The true warrior is flexible—the essence of intelligence.

The warrior values life, sometimes as a direct result of having taken it, but certainly as a result of knowing he can take it. He has that power. And therefore, exercises that restraint.

Many of you are warriors. Many of you love warriors, as husband, wife, son, daughter, cousin, friend.

I call it the ‘good alpha.’ Adrenal junkies, sure. There are worse things to be. Alphas in charge, often. Real men and women with families and feelings. Above all.

Even in our books, there’s that inner world, the one that fuels the hero’s fire, for better or worse, usually a little of both. In our books, the love of the heroine is at minimum the motivation for growth. That’s true in real life too. In real life, though, there’s more than 400 pages, and sometimes the love of a good person (and insight) is not going to be enough.

Warriors use all the tools available to let them become a master.

Like the MFLC program.

It’s possible this program may be just the thing our real-life warriors needs once in a while. Again, it’s free. It’s confidential—no one ever knows you even went. It’s on US military installations in the US, Europe and Asia. It’s for military personnel and their spouses and families.

And best of all, it’s completely anonymous. You don’t even have to say your name.

You can contact the Family Support program on your base/post to find out more. The MFLC consultants also often give program brief at various meeting. And they just walk around the installation, hoping to get the word out, so keep your ears open.

They’re there for one reason: to help. They serve the warriors and their families.

Because the strongest among us cannot stay strong for the rest of us if they don’t stay strong. And it is a tripartite: mind, body, heart/spirit. So here’s to keeping our warriors true to the spirit of a warrior in our fiction, and here’s to keeping them healthy and strong in this real world.

Thank-you to all the warriors who serve our country.

Kris Kennedy writes sexy, adventure-filled medieval romances for Kensington and Pocket Books. At her website (http://kriskennedy.net) , you can sign-up for the newsletter and drop Kris a line saying Hi! THE IRISH WARRIOR, winner of the 2008 Golden Heart® Award for Best Historical Romance, released June 1. Read an excerpt here!

Like many romance readers, I love my alpha heroes. So when British editor Trisha Telep asked me to contribute a story to her anthology, The Mammoth Book of Special Ops Romance, my first reaction was yes!
My second reaction was SEAL. After having just returned from a visit to Coronado, California, where U.S. Navy SEALs undergo their basic training, I was brimming with admiration for these amazing special ops warriors.
The next question–where to set my tale–was almost as easy. The story called for romance, action, and adventure, and so I decided it should take place on one of the world’s most beautiful beaches. Ever heard of Phi Phi Don? You might remember the exotic Thai island from the Leonardo DiCaprio movie The Beach. I had the privilege of visiting this spectacular place as a backpacker long before it (and Leo) achieved super-stardom, and it truly is one of the most romantic spots you can imagine–white beaches, turquoise waters, emerald-green islands jutting straight out of the sea. What better place to set a love story? (Or in this case, a romantic thriller in which an American woman searching for her missing brother enlists a former SEAL’s help to snatch him out of the clutches of an international terrorist ring).
If you like romance, action, or simply reading about those adrenaline-seeking warriors who populate special ops teams, I hope you’ll check out SURRENDER AT DAWN, one of the many military romances in the mammoth-size Mammoth Book of Special Ops Romance that hits bookstores today. The collection contains twenty short stories from an array of romance authors, including Marliss Melton, Debra Webb, Shannon K. Butcher, and more.
To celebrate today, I’m giving away two prizes: a signed copy of the anthology, as well as my latest romantic suspense novel, Untraceable. For a chance to win, just drop me an email at laura@lauragriffin.com and put Mammoth Book in the subject line. Good luck and happy reading!

LAURA GRIFFIN is the RITA-nominated author of seven romantic suspense novels. Her titles include Whisper of Warning, Untraceable, and Unspeakable, which comes out June 29 from Pocket Books. Visit her Web site at www.lauragriffin.com.

When I first started writing, my fabulous mentor Candace Irvin said go to the bookstore and figure out what you’re like. You need to know the market before you can start to see where you fit.

So I went. I read Joann Ross, Cindy Gerard, Suzanne Brockmann, Marliss Melton and others. I read Robyn Carr after Roxanne St Claire said maybe you’re more like her. After all, I’ve got military heroes, I’ve got to be like one of these great ladies, right?

Oh how wrong I was. Here’s the problem and its not one I’m sure I can overcome. I’m not romantic suspense. So my War’s Darkest Series is not like Suzanne Brockmann’s Seal Team series where there’s a cast of eight or so strapping men to pick a story from. None of my characters are Special Operations Forces.

My characters are also not prior military like Robyn Carr’s heros, who have all gotten out and headed up country to Virgin River, hoping to find a new life away from their military experiences. My guys are the Everyman, my women spouses, nurses and warriors themselves. No Special Forces, Navy Seals or Black Ops. Just regular soldiers, fighting the good fight.

So my books don’t fit. They aren’t small town based like Robyn’s and they’re not suspense like Joann, Cindy or Suzanne. In short, there’s nothing out there that I can compare to because everyone has either written prior military characters or Navy Seals.

When I wrote military romance in a query letter, little did I know I was speaking in code for romantic suspense. When agents are reading it, they’re looking for suspense. Fast pacing, action, action, romance, action. And that’s not what I wrote. I wrote a character based, contemporary romance with men and women who are all still in the military. I wrote books that were not suspense except that by putting military in the query, I was telling agents that’s what they were.

I screwed myself, apparently. I feel like when I sent out this last round of queries, I should have put in big bold letters, THIS IS NOT ROMANTIC SUSPENSE. I don’t know that it would have helped. I’m reasonably certain there are other issues in my current WIP but I’m also reasonably certain that the main problem agents are seeing is that they’re reading for romantic suspense and putting the book down when it doesn’t live up their expectations, wrong or not.

So, bluntly, I think I’m screwed. How do you pitch a book that doesn’t fit into a nice neat genre? Especially in this market? You can pitch to your hearts content but if you can’t get past the gatekeepers, you can’t get sold. I’m not complaining about agents, mind you. I’m simply stating that I think I pitched my books wrong to the fabulous agents who asked for the full manuscript and ultimately passed with great comments.

So that’s the end of this, for now. I’m revising once more because I’ve got a song in my head that is making me work on this book, even though I’m pretty sure it’s a dead end. I’ve learned a lot, but the one thing I don’t know how to fix is how to query the next project correctly. Maybe I’ll put in the query: this is not suspense.

Maybe not.

Jessica Scott writes for PBS POV Regarding War and is hard at work on her next novel. She recently returned from Iraq with the First Cavalry Division. You can read about her adventures in publishing and the Army at her blog http://www.jessicascott.net/blog