Carly Phillips | I'm A Romantic Are You?

I’m so happy to be back at Fresh Fiction for what has become my annual Valentine’s Day blog. This year, after listening to some comments on my Plotmonkeys Blog I realized more people than I would have thought were "done" with Valentine’s Day. From the comments, I gathered much of this "Ugh it’s just another day" theme comes from the commercialization of the holiday. And of the notion that if you’re really in love, you shouldn’t have to make a big show of that love on one stated day a year. To that I say, WHY NOT?

Sure, my husband and I say "I love you" many many times during the year, but I confess to being a romantic at heart. Hey, I write Romance. What can I say? I LOVE the idea of being showered by hearts and flowers and cards (even if said cards have become WAY to expensive, but so has everything else in the world!) I like to know I matter!

Now that said, I have a hubby who is not Mr. Romantic and as a result I’ve learned to work around this problem. And it’s a problem for all holidays, not just Valentine’s Day. He’ll remember the card and thanks to good training, he’ll often remember to send flowers. But I celebrate by buying gifts for my girls, and often something small for my husband AND FOR MYSELF FROM my husband, and let him know he’s gotten me a present. I make myself feel special with his gracious okay. I can do this because I KNOW he loves me - because I know him.

Which leads me to an important conclusion for all of you on this very commercialized, meant to make you feel special but can also make you feel bad and lonely - holiday. If you’re in a relationship and you don’t have a significant other who thinks to buy gifts or flowers, I suggest you think about all the other things that person does for you, ways they make you feel special (and this can even be as simple as their tone of voice when they’re telling you something important) - and know that the display itself doesn’t matter. It’s what’s in your partner’s heart that matters most.

And then - if you need a little pick me up - explain to them you GET their limitations, but you have needs too - and you’re going to buy yourself a little something from them (even if it’s an inexpensive chocolate bar!) - and celebrate knowing you’re loved.

And if you’re not in a relationship? Valentine’s Day is about LOVE - and you love yourself, don’t you? So do something nice for yourself too. (No, not a bag of chocolate to make yourself feel better in the short term - and full and fat in the long run) but a special treat to celebrate LOVE.

And possibilities for the future.

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!

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Carly Phillips | LUCKY BREAK, It's Not Just Paranormal...

I love to read and write contemporaries. I love to talk to others who read contemporaries and gauge what they have to say about current books and authors. Recently I got to thinking about the books I’ve written.

The Hot Zone - Sports Heroes
The Chandler Brothers- Brothers and their mother who wants grandchildren
The Costas Sisters- polar opposite twin sisters with an Atlantic City con family
Ty and Hunter- 3 best friends, separated by a deep dark secret
The many Temptations I’ve written over the years
THE LUCKY SERIES - 3 sexy male cousin plagued by a family curse.

I don’t want anyone to think the word "curse" means the LUCKY series is a twist on what I write. Let me be clear. The LUCKY Series is NOT a paranormal series. It doesn’t pretend to be. What the Lucky series does, finishing up with LUCKY BREAK in stores tomorrow, is to touch on the notion that a curse can actually be many things from a streak of bad luck to a self fulfilling prophecy-and how an affected family and those who love them suffer in the process. The newest generation of Corwin men want to find love and break the curse&mdash:but they don’t know how. Derek in LUCKY CHARM reunited with the love he let go in order to protect her from the curse and is now praying that she is his lucky charm. Mike in LUCKY STREAK found a woman adept at gambling and one willing to take risks, their love being the biggest risk of all. And up now in LUCKY BREAK is the last Corwin cousin, Jason.

To read more from Carly Phillips and for a link to enter her Lucky Break contest please click here.

Carly Phillips | Feeling Lucky?

Everybody fantasizes about going to Las Vegas and winning big. And certainly, we’ve all seen the "Whatever Happens …" TV commercials and secretly wished we were experiencing the spontaneity and frenzy of Sin City shown in these ads. Excitement and luck run rampant there. Everywhere you turn, someone or something is beckoning to you to try your LUCK!

Mike Corwin, the second Corwin cousin heads to the gambling capital for just such an experience, but will the infamous Corwin Curse that has plagued the males in his family for generations follow him? Or will he end up on a lucky streak that lasts a lifetime? This is the premise of my newest novel and the second book in my “Lucky” series, LUCKY STREAK.

And sometimes, thankfully, luck pays off for me! I definitely don’t like to presume good things will happen, I like to hope. I’m afraid of jinxing something. Can you really do that? I rarely tempt fate. But it’s an interesting concept, isn’t it? Luck?

LUCK is fickle. And yet many of us believe. When I ask myself why, I realize it’s because of HOPE. It’s the possibility that Lady Luck will step in and pick us up that provides a ray of hope. LUCK causes us to play the lottery, pick up a heads up penny, read fortune cookies, and many more crazy, superstitious things. It was the concept of LUCK that drove the idea for my new LUCKY series and book two is in stores now!

Click here to read the rest of Carly's blog and to leave a comment.

Carly Phillips | Romance

Today is my favorite day of the year. Forget the hype. Forget the sensationalism. Forget the commercialism and the chocolate, the roses and gifts. Valentine’s Day is special to me because it symbolizes what I write about all year. LOVE.

Do you want to know the best thing about LOVE? It’s given freely. It doesn’t cost a penny.


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Carly Phillips | Luck

I don’t have my own good luck charm, per se, but I do operate on the presumption of superstition in some ways. And sometimes, thankfully, luck pays off for me! I definitely don’t like to presume good things will happen, I like to hope. I’m afraid of jinxing something. Can you really do that? I rarely tempt fate. But it’s an interesting concept, isn’t it? Luck?

LUCK is fickle. And yet many of us believe. When I ask myself why, I realize it’s because of HOPE. It’s the possibility that Lady Luck will step in and pick us up that provides a ray of hope. LUCK causes us to play the lottery, pick up a heads up penny, read fortune cookies, and many more crazy, superstitious things. It was the concept of LUCK that drove the idea for my new LUCKY series, starting with LUCKY CHARM.

Fortune hasn’t been so kind, however, to the men in the Corwin family. And Derek Corwin is the latest to cross her path. Long ago, as revenge on a Corwin who stole her son’s fiancée, a witch proclaimed an eternal curse that every Corwin male who married for love would be destined to lose his woman and his fortune. Derek thought he could outsmart the long-standing Corwin curse by breaking up with Gabrielle, his first love – and marrying someone else. Now, divorced and broke, all he has left is his teenage daughter and a healthy respect for ancient sorcery. But then Gabrielle returns, determined to defeat the curse and rekindle their passion. But will her stubborn streak and her unwavering love be the lucky charm Derek so desperately needs?

After Derek comes Mike Corwin in LUCKY STREAK, June 2009 and Jason Corwin in LUCKY BREAK, October 2009.

I wanted to extend LUCK to my readers so I’ve created an on-going contest which encompasses all three books in this series for those who read them. I call it the “Lucky You” Contest. Put your own lucky charm to work for you! In 1 page or less, tell me about the one special item that brings you luck and why it holds that “lucky” place in your heart! Six lucky winners will receive a special gift! For more information on how to enter, visit www.carlyphillips.com/.

So, what do you all think of LUCK? Does it exist? Are you at all superstitious? Or do you meticulously plan?


Carly Phillips

Carly Phillips | What is Romance?

It’s Valentine’s Day so of course the subject of the day is Romance. What is romance? Is it the perfect gift? The bouquet of flowers? The huge heart shaped box of candy? Or is it the little blue velvet (or whatever) color jewelry box from your favorite store? Seriously sappy cards? Or humorous fun ones?

Before I answer or at least give my opinion, I admit to loving all of these things. I’ve been married almost 19 years and my heart still does a little leap when the florist comes. Honestly, my husband isn’t a “true romantic” and that’s okay. As long as there’s a way he remembers important dates, I’m happy.

I think too much emphasis is placed on Valentine’s Day and even birthdays etc. A lot of men just aren’t wired to be romantic. Even if you’ve tried to retrain them, they just don’t think that way. Although how they can miss the T.V. commercials and radio ads is beyond me. Still, if they value you and have their own way of showing it, that should be enough.

For me, I don’t need the big fancy gift or the flowers (although it’s nice when I get them.) We’re usually leaving for a family vacation right after Valentine’s Day which makes flowers that will die while I’m gone a waste of money. But it’s enough for him to say “I would have gotten you flowers but we’re leaving the next day.” That tells me he remembered.

That said, I have also learned to tell him what I want for Valentine’s Day, birthdays and the like, and then to go out and buy it. He does the same. That way we each get what we like, no one is disappointed or upset with the other for forgetting. And we do get each other cards …

To answer my original question, what is romance? It’s the little things all year round that mean the most. But I wouldn’t return anything inside a little velvet box, ::hint:: ::hint::

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY! Carly Phillips

Visit me at: www.carlyphillips.com/ and www.plotmonkeys.com/ (blog)

Back to My Roots - Carly Phillips

I started writing family stories. Seriously. I thought I would sell to Silhouette Special Edition and I tried. Boy did I try … but it wasn’t meant to be. Seven years, ten manuscripts, I caught on. Shorter contemporary seemed to be my style. In 1998 I sold to Harlequin Temptation/Heat and in 1999 BRAZEN was published. I wrote category for two years before segueing into single title contemporary with THE BACHELOR, THE PLAYBOY and THE HEARTBREAKER. Since then, all my trilogy or linked books have been light and fun – until CROSS MY HEART and SEALED WITH A KISS. In those books, I took a turn back to family mixed with drama and less lightness … it’s been a good break. A fun break. It seemed right when CROSS MY HEART was in hardcover to try something different. But I listen to my readers and I know they want more of my lighter books, more often.

SO A NEW YEAR IS COMING – and in 2008, I’ve decided to return to the light books that my readers love, all in PAPERBACK. I know that for everyone’s wallet, this is a good thing. I know that as a reader, as much as I enjoy the variety of books on the shelves, I love fun contemporary which is why writing it again is bringing me a lot of pleasure and enjoyment. I’ve just finished HOT PROPERTY which is the last in The Hot Zone series which will be out in July 2008 and an as of now unnamed new book and the beginning of a three book series in September 2008 – hero based. Light. Fun.

How about you? What do you enjoy reading? Paranormal? Light contemporary? Dark romantic suspense? What floats your boat and what can’t you get enough of for your reading pleasure?


NY Times Bestseller, CARLY PHILLIPS

www.carlyphillips.com (see the video!)

www.plotmonkeys.com (blog)