Category Archives: #amwriting

#amwriting, #cover, #sweetromance, Canada, cover reveal, It Happened at Percé Rock, It Happened Series, novella, Novels, romance, sweet romance

Day 5 of the lead-up to cover reveal #sweetromance

May 14, 2021 Melanie 4 Comments

Today is Day 5 of the lead-up to the cover reveal of It Happened at Percé Rock, book 3 in my It Happened series of sweet romances.

As you can see from the countdown timer on the sidebar, time is ticking away until the launch of Book 3 in my It Happened series. Today on Day 5 of the lead-up, even more of the cover is peeking through.

Yes, I know. I’m a tease. Each day this week, a bit more of the It Happened at Percé Rock cover will be revealed until next Sunday when the cover reveal tour begins.

Day 5 of the lead-up

Each day, there will be a giveaway for either a .mobi (Kindle) or .epub (kobo or other ebooks) version of the book. Who doesn’t like free stuff?

Day 5 of the lead-up

Here’s what it’s about …

Beaches meets Born on the 4th of July

When Melissa Scott flees to the village of Percé, she’s determined to leave her painful memories behind her.

Gareth Young, a soldier with the Canadian Forces, never got over losing his friend in the war in Afghanistan. Nowadays, he’s happier in his own company than that of others, until she enters his life.

Despite her recent breakup and knowing rebound relationships don’t work, Melissa falls head over feet for the handsome military man, only to discover he comes with enough baggage to fill an army cargo plane.

Will the couple be able to work through their issues and achieve a happy ending together?

Early readers’ comments on It Happened at Percé Rock …

A book with so many twists and turns, with an ending that left me all warm inside.

After reading, I desperately wanted to visit Perce Rock in Canada!

The story is a powerful reminder that just as in real life, the characters reap what they sow.

Good things come to those who do good. Those who don’t are rewarded in kind.

You can preorder your copy of It Happened at Percé Rock here https://books2read.com/u/b6OJdp for the low price of 99c/99p.

#amwriting, #cover, #sweetromance, Canada, cover reveal, It Happened at Percé Rock, It Happened Series, novella, Novels, romance, sweet romance

Day 4 of the lead-up to cover reveal #sweetromance

May 13, 2021 Melanie 3 Comments

Today is Day 4 of the lead-up to the cover reveal of It Happened at Percé Rock, book 3 in my It Happened series of sweet romances.

As you can see from the countdown timer on the sidebar, time is ticking away until the launch of Book 3 in my It Happened series. Today on Day 4 of the lead-up, even more of the cover is peeking through.

Yes, I know. I’m a tease. Each day this week, a bit more of the It Happened at Percé Rock cover will be revealed until next Sunday when the cover reveal tour begins.

Day 4 of the lead-up

Each day, there will be a giveaway for either a .mobi (Kindle) or .epub (kobo or other ebooks) version of the book. Who doesn’t like free stuff?

Day 4 of the lead-up

Here’s what it’s about …

Beaches meets Born on the 4th of July

When Melissa Scott flees to the village of Percé, she’s determined to leave her painful memories behind her.

Will the couple be able to work through their issues and achieve a happy ending together?

Early readers’ comments on It Happened at Percé Rock …

A book with so many twists and turns, with an ending that left me all warm inside.

After reading, I desperately wanted to visit Perce Rock in Canada!

The story is a powerful reminder that just as in real life, the characters reap what they sow.

Good things come to those who do good. Those who don’t are rewarded in kind.

You can preorder your copy of It Happened at Percé Rock here https://books2read.com/u/b6OJdp for the low price of 99c/99p.

#amwriting, #cover, #sweetromance, Canada, cover reveal, It Happened at Percé Rock, It Happened Series, novella, Novels, romance, sweet romance

Day 3 of the lead-up to cover reveal #sweetromance

May 12, 2021 Melanie 1 Comment

Today is Day 3 of the lead-up to the cover reveal of It Happened at Percé Rock, book 3 in my It Happened series of sweet romances.

As you can see from the countdown timer on the sidebar, time is ticking away until the launch of Book 3 in my It Happened series. Today on Day 3 of the lead-up, I’m sharing a tiny bit more of the cover.

Yes, I know. I’m a tease. Each day this week, a bit more of the It Happened at Percé Rock cover will be revealed until next Sunday when the cover reveal tour begins.

Day 3 of the lead-up

Each day, there will be a giveaway for either a .mobi (Kindle) or .epub (kobo or other ebooks) version of the book. Who doesn’t like free stuff?

Day 2 of the lead-up

Here’s what it’s about …

Beaches meets Born on the 4th of July

When Melissa Scott flees to the village of Percé, she’s determined to leave her painful memories behind her.

Will the couple be able to work through their issues and achieve a happy ending together?

Early readers’ comments on It Happened at Percé Rock …

A book with so many twists and turns, with an ending that left me all warm inside.

After reading, I desperately wanted to visit Perce Rock in Canada!

The story is a powerful reminder that just as in real life, the characters reap what they sow.

Good things come to those who do good. Those who don’t are rewarded in kind.

You can preorder your copy of It Happened at Percé Rock here https://books2read.com/u/b6OJdp for the low price of 99c/99p.

#amwriting, #cover, #sweetromance, Canada Day, cover reveal, It Happened at Percé Rock, It Happened Series, novella, Novels, romance, sweet romance

Day 2 of the lead-up to cover reveal #sweetromance

May 11, 2021 Melanie 3 Comments

Today is Day 2 of the lead-up to the cover reveal of It Happened at Percé Rock, book 3 in my It Happened series of sweet romances.

As you can see from the countdown timer on the sidebar, time is ticking away until the launch of Book 3 in my It Happened series. Today on Day 2 of the lead-up, I’m sharing a tiny bit more of the cover.

Day 2 of the lead-up Yes, I know. I’m a tease. Each day this week, a bit more of the It Happened at Percé Rock cover will be revealed until next Sunday when the cover reveal tour begins.

Each day, there will be a giveaway for either a .mobi (Kindle) or .epub (kobo or other ebooks) version of the book. Who doesn’t like free stuff?

Day 2 of the lead-up

Here’s what it’s about …

Beaches meets Born on the 4th of July

When Melissa Scott flees to the village of Percé, she’s determined to leave her painful memories behind her.

Will the couple be able to work through their issues and achieve a happy ending together?

Early readers’ comments on It Happened at Percé Rock …

A book with so many twists and turns, with an ending that left me all warm inside.

After reading, I desperately wanted to visit Perce Rock in Canada!

The story is a powerful reminder that just as in real life, the characters reap what they sow.

Good things come to those who do good. Those who don’t are rewarded in kind.

You can preorder your copy of It Happened at Percé Rock here https://books2read.com/u/b6OJdp for the low price of 99c/99p.

#amwriting, #cover, #sweetromance, Canada, cover reveal, It Happened at Percé Rock, It Happened Series, novella, Novels, romance, sweet romance

Day 1 of the lead-up to cover reveal #sweetromance

May 10, 2021 Melanie 4 Comments

Today is Day 1 of the lead-up to the cover reveal of It Happened at Percé Rock, book 3 in my It Happened series of sweet romances.

As you can see from the countdown timer on the sidebar, the launch of Book 3 in my It Happened series is quickly approaching. Today on Day 1 of the lead-up, I’m sharing a teaser of the cover. A short time ago, I didn’t think this book would ever see the light of day.

My mojo left the building. Part of it was pandemic-related; the other my characters were miffed and not speaking to me because I shuffled this book to the third position in the series.

Well, I had to when I left the first book on a cliffhanger.

Day 1 of the lead-up

Yes, I know. I’m a tease. Each day this week, a bit more of the It Happened at Percé Rock cover will be revealed until next Sunday when the cover reveal tour begins.

Each day, there will be a giveaway for either a .mobi (Kindle) or .epub (kobo or other ebooks) version of the book. Who doesn’t like free stuff?

Day 1 of the lead-up

Here’s what it’s about …

Beaches meets Born on the 4th of July

When Melissa Scott flees to the village of Percé, she’s determined to leave her painful memories behind her.

Will the couple be able to work through their issues and achieve a happy ending together?

Early readers’ comments on It Happened at Percé Rock …

A book with so many twists and turns, with an ending that left me all warm inside.

After reading, I desperately wanted to visit Perce Rock in Canada!

The story is a powerful reminder that just as in real life, the characters reap what they sow.

Good things come to those who do good. Those who don’t are rewarded in kind.

You can preorder your copy of It Happened at Percé Rock here https://books2read.com/u/b6OJdp for the low price of 99c/99p.

#amwriting, #Canada, #sweetromance, It Happened at Percé Rock, It Happened Series, novella, PTSD

It Happened Series – Book 3 #sweetromance

April 21, 2021 Melanie Leave a comment

A year later than originally planned because the 2020 Covid-19 lockdown sent my writing mojo running for the hills until late in the year. Thankfully, it returned and Book 3 in the It Happened series (It Happened at Percé Rock) will be out this summer.

What’s it all about you ask? Here’s your answer.

When Melissa Scott flees to the village of Percé, she’s determined to leave her painful memories behind her.

Will the couple be able to work through their issues and achieve a happy ending together?

Between the Scott and Layne families, there are seven characters for six books with five coming from the Scott family – Christopher, Amy and Michael (twins), Roger, and Melissa.

Book 1 in the It Happened series starred one from each family – Serenity Layne and Roger Scott, hence the need for only six books in the series.

Book 2 featured Serenity’s brother Erik and Hilary Dunbar, a Vancouver Police Constable (a very unlikely pairing).

Roger’s youngest sibling, Melissa stars in Book 3 – It Happened at Percé Rock.

I’m trying to create movie tie-ins with this series and have managed with the first two books.

Book 1 – It Happened on Dufferin Terrace – Miracle on 34th Street meets Sleepless in Seattle.

Book 2 – It Happened in Gastown – Trainspotting meets Hot Pursuit.

This one is proving to be a bit of a conundrum. I have one movie, but the second is proving more difficult. I need a movie with the main character suffering from PTSD. Currently, I’m leaning towards Beaches meets Born on the 4th of July but there could be a better one. I’ve searched online without much success.

If anyone has any suggestions, please leave them in the comments.

Thanks so much.

Did I mention dogs have starring roles?

#amwriting, dog, emotional therapy dog, It Happened at Percé Rock, It Happened Series, novella, Novels, PTSD

It’s all in the name #servicedogs #therapydogs

October 5, 2020 Melanie 11 Comments

I need a name.

I can’t go through life as the dog with no name. Once upon a time, there was a horse with no name, but that was a song.

But first, let me tell you a bit about myself. I’m a male and about a year old. I’m about to become an Emotional Support Dog for Gareth Young, a former soldier who has PTSD, in Melanie’s current novel. It Happened at Percé Rock.

Here’s some of Gareth’s story and the root of his PTSD. He and his best friend since like forever, Normand Levesque, enlisted in the Canadian military and assigned to the Vandoos. They were deployed to Afghanistan, where Normand was killed when a roadside bomb exploded and destroyed their armoured vehicle. Gareth took quite a bit of shrapnel in his right arm from the shoulder to his hand, so he has the physical and the emotional scars. Normand didn’t have a mark on him.

Lately, things have been getting much worse for Gareth. Medication, counselling, cognitive behavioural therapy aren’t working. That’s when he psychiatrist suggested an Emotional Support Dog. It took some persuading on the doctor’s part, but eventually, Gareth went along with the idea, and I’m thrilled he chose me. I’ve been working with Gareth for a while now, getting to know him, his needs and his triggers.

So you see, I’ve got my work cut out for me.

Anyway, if you think you’ve got the perfect name for me, please leave it in the comments. I’d love to hear your suggestions. I can’t be forever known as Dog.

#amreading, #amwriting, Children's author, Children's Chapter Book, children's picture book, Chris Longmuir, contemporary romance, cosy mystery, cozy crime, crime writer, crime writing, Crime/Thriller, Novels, Read a Book Day, time-travel, Wendy H. Jones, YA fiction, Young Adult

Hooray for Read a Book Day! #amreading #amwriting

September 6, 2020 Melanie 7 Comments

Hooray for Read a Book Day!

Hooray for Read a Book day! Here in North America, it’s our Labour Day weekend, so we can extend our “bookish” holiday into another full day of reading enjoyment.

What’s your preferred medium for reading? Are you a fan of ebooks or do you prefer print, either paperback or hardcover?

And then there are genres? Which do you like to read? Crime? Thrillers? Horror? Romance? Historical? Or a blend of all of the above.

I’m lucky in that being an author, I’ve met authors from other countries around the world – England, Scotland, Australia, France, the US, and back here at home in Canada.

I write in a number of genres, but my favourite is romance. You can see my books here. To find out more about any particular title, click on the cover and you’ll be taken to the book’s page where you’ll be provided with the description and buy links should you be so inclined to purchase.

possibly a title or two you might be interested in?

My brand “where fact and fiction meet” stems from the fact I take real events and spin fictional stories around them, changing place and characters’ names to protect the ‘guilty.’ 😉

Now before you think this blog post is all about me, I’m going to introduce you to two authors you might not have heard of before.

I’ll start with Chris Longmuir. Chris and I first met virtually in early 2001 when she contacted me asking permission to use a photograph. We met in person later that same year and see each other as often as possible.

Another is Wendy H. Jones. I’ve not known Wendy as long, but she Chris and I make up the Princesses of Pandemonium. While their books are crime – gritty, humourous or historical – we have a great time when we get together.

Here we are outside the Old Town Jail in Stirling, Scotland.

And inside one of the cells.

I hope you enjoy Read a Book day, and maybe even discover some new-to-you authors.

National Book Lovers Day

Think this girl will get through that stack of books today?

#amwriting, #woof, celebration, dog, dog lover, dogs, holiday, National Dog Day

National Dog Day – a day for our canine companions

August 26, 2020 Melanie 4 Comments

National Dog Day

How will you and your canine companion celebrate National Dog Day? Did you even know there was such an occasion?

Over the years, we’ve had many dogs. And every single one who crossed over the rainbow bridge broke my heart more than the one before.

These are the last two dogs who shared their lives with us.

National Dog Day

This fine looking dog was Jingles. He was a cross between a Corgi and a German Shepherd. And like Tigger from Winnie the Pooh, he had bounce. He could jump straight up from all fours and still propel himself forward. And in the photo above, is the way he liked to sit in my lap.

And in the photo below, this handsome boy was Jake. Both dogs lived with us at the same time. Ear infections plagued this poor boy from the time he was a small puppy. He broke the blood vessels in the flap of his ears on more than one occasion, too—a costly trip to the vet.

National Dog Day

Jingles and Jake both loved lettuce. If I was preparing a salad, I had both dogs, one on either side of me waiting their turn. So it was a leaf for one, a leaf for the other and finally a leaf for the salad.

The year we planted lettuce, Jake stomped into the garden and ate it. A fence blocked off the entire garden, but he found a way through and munched more.

Jingles disappeared one night and never returned. To this day, we have no idea where he went. Off to die? Perhaps.

Jake, we ended up having to put him down. He was old and had difficulty walking. He fell frequently, and when he did, he lost control of his bowels. It was no life for him, so we made the decision.

Did you know that in each book in my It Happened series, a dog plays a role? A matchmaker, if you will.

Tori, the black lab pictured below stars in the first book of the series, It Happened on Dufferin Terrace.

Xena, the German Shepherd, didn’t have the right stuff to become a police dog with the Vancouver Police Department in It Happened in Gastown.

Frankfurt’s Champion Beauregard, aka Buddy, the Dachshund, stars in the third book, which I’m currently writing, It Happened at Percé Rock.

The plan is to have six books in the series, featuring the Scott and Layne families. For everyone to tell their how they met – how “It Happened”, I need that many books.

Wolfgang, the Great Dane, will star in It Happened at Lake Louise. I’m thinking of the Fort Mac wildfires as the backstory and how pets were rescued from people’s homes and taken out of the danger zone and reunited with their humans later.

I’m torn between having a Corgi or a Whippet in It Happened at Niagara Falls. Thankfully, this book is further down the pipeline, so I’ll have plenty of time to make my final decision.

A stuffed Scottie dog will star in the last book of the series, It Happened ?? I’ve not decided on a location for it yet.

This wee guy will be sitting on the empty seat beside Amy Scott either on the train or bus or some method of public transit. A young man will ask if he can sit there, and she agrees, not paying much attention to him. He picks up the stuffed toy and reads the tag and pronounces the name on it as Sea-u-mus. She looks at him and rolls her eyes and tells him it’s pronounced Shaymus.

I hope you’ll take a look at my books starring dogs. Roxanne St. Claire also has a couple of dog series in the works – The Dogfather series and The Dogmothers. Check them out, too.

#amwriting, #ebook, #SCOTLAND, A Shadow in the Past, Book Promo, Novels, Paranormal romance, Shadows from Her Past, sweet romance, sweet romance mystery, time-travel

Box Set Blurb – How do you write yours?

August 24, 2020 Melanie 3 Comments

Creating an enticing back cover blurb is difficult enough, but when you’re trying to come up with a box set blurb for the first time, it’s even harder.

With Amazon, you want to be able to pack as much of a punch in as possible before the reader has to click on the “read more” link.

box set blurbs

I’ve wanted to sell A Shadow in the Past and Shadows From Her Past together as a box set in ebook format for quite some time. Anyone who has seen me at various events knows I sell the paperbacks together at a reduced price. When you’re talking face to face with folks, it’s easier to convey the subject matter without going into a lot of detail and postcards and other promotional material on hand also helps.

But in the big, bad online world, you don’t have that personal touch. You’ve got to get your blurb, single title or box set right or people aren’t going to see your product … and then there are the dreaded keywords. That could be another post on its own.

This is what I’ve come up with so far for my box set blurb.

Past and present collide in the Sarah Shand time travel romance series – a dual-timeline romance set in contemporary and Victorian-era Scotland.

Book 1: When Sarah Shand plunges back in time to the Victorian era, she becomes A Shadow in the Past.

When she realizes she has fallen in love with the handsome Laird of Weetshill, she faces an agonizing decision. Does she try to find her way back to 2010 or remain in the past with the man she loves?

Book 2: When Sarah Shand finds herself back in the 21st century, the people and the life she knew in the Victorian era are Shadows From Her Past.

This year, the winter solstice and lunar eclipse occur on the same day. Will a trip to one of Aberdeenshire’s stone circles, located on the family farm, during this combination of events create the magic Sarah needs to return to 1886 and her family there? Or, will she remain in the present and make a life with David, himself a descendant of the man she fell in love with in the past?

A Shadow in the Past brought a unique new voice to time travel.

A charming time-slip love story with vivid description and authenticity throughout!

Shadows From Her Past is a wonderful story of love and life, both modern and in the past.

Melanie Robertson-King has a special touch when creating her characters. The author weaves a mystery, a romance, and a family that you hope will find happiness in their lives.

box set blurbs