Spring Break on Location, Vampires! and an Author Spotting

Shew, reader-friends! The first day back to work after vacation is always the hardest.

Last week, the fam and I drove due south and spent six days rambling around Baldwin County, Ala., also known as the setting of The Dragonfly Series.

Since we lived there almost ten years, we've got many friends and favorite locations.

Dragonfly was the very first book I ever wrote, and since I was learning, I thought it would be easier to have all the action occur in a very familiar location.

Basically that means all of the major scenes in The Dragonfly Series happen in "real" places. Like this one...

Jesse's Restaurant on the Magnolia River

Jack and Anna's dinner date at Jesse's was doomed from the start, but I still like that scene and how it came together.

Do you have a favorite part in the series? Let me know what it is~

In the meantime, I'm back, digging out, and looking forward to writing more Mosaic very soon! I can't wait to share this final installment with y'all!

NOTE: Be sure to sign up for my New Release Newsletter (link), so you don't miss any important announcements, sneak peeks, or giveaways~**

**Please add leightmoore@gmail.com to your email contacts so it doesn't bounce to spam!

* * *

Now, what's this about vampires?

It's coming. April 19th...

The first book in the second season of Blood and Snow is entitled VAMPIRE LIES.

My good friend RaShelle Workman is releasing her super-popular vampire series a little differently this time. Instead of 12 smaller volumes and a bunch of short stories, there will be at least three full length novels.

You can pre-order Book 1 by clicking HERE.

In Season 2 there will still be plenty of Snow White and her true love, but the story will be told from Jasmine's point of view.

Here's this summary: 

Vampire Lies

by RaShelle Workman

Blood and Snow Season 2, 
Book 1 ~ 



YA Fractured Fairytale

Eyes like violet sapphires. 

Wings of smoldering fire. 

Consume your true love's blood. 

Become the Eternal Vampire. 

Once upon a time there lived a vampire with wings and the genie who loved her...


Born of the seven magics, Jasmine is different in every way, including the obnoxious wings on her back courtesy of the original Vampires. She wants to be normal, to be a regular teenaged girl.



When a gorgeous dark-haired boy named Laeddin shows up and promises to sneak her away from all her problems and hide her in the human world, she agrees. 

But an evil lurks in her nightmares, a man with red eyes. 

It doesn’t take long for Jasmine to realize that no matter how far she tries to run from who she is, he’s only a dream away. He wants her. He needs her. He acts as though he loves her. 

It’s becoming harder and harder to tell the difference between the path that’ll lead to her happily ever after, and the path that’ll lead to her destruction as well as all magic.

Be sure to sign up for RaShelle's newsletter to be entered into her monthly drawing. Click HERE. 

Have you read the first season of Blood and Snow? If not, Amazon is running a special right now where you can get all 12 volumes for only $1.99.  Get it HERE. 

RaShelle's series is so super-popular! If you haven't started it yet, the time is now~

* * *

Author Spotting...

This coming Saturday! As in five days from today, you can meet me in Louisville! ...along with a bunch of other super-popular authors!

Get all the scoop here (link)!!!

Bring your books to have signed. We'll also have books on hand for purchase and signing. Come with questions, stop by and say hello... Take a picture! It's all free.

Hope to see you there! Until then, have a fantastic week, reader-friends~

Spring Break, Spring Books, and #WINNING!

It's Spring Break, reader-friends! whoop whoop!!!

I'm still in the Midwest at the moment, but my Southern home-fries are enjoying 70 degree sunshine (my dad told me he had to cut the grass yesterday--!), and we're looking forward to hitting the road, chasing the sun!

Incidentally, I'll be spending the week right smack in the setting of The Dragonfly Series! Yep, OBA FTW! Mosaic is cruising along nicely, and it's looking like a May/June release date...

I'll be posting Mosaic updates as they occur in April~

This week is a writing break for me, but that means it's a time to READ! And I've got TWO fantastic new books to share with you today... and Two ways to WIN!

First up is a New Adult contemporary romance by a great writer-friend of mine Elle/Lee Strauss!

I read Sun and Moon, the first book in this "series," and loved it! You can get it FREE on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc. (links below) But it's not a true series, as each book can be read in any order.

Check it out:

Introducing Flesh & Bone, a contemporary romance

(The Minstrel Series #2)

Coming April 3rd!

(Another amazing cover by the very talented Steven Novak of Steven Novak Designs!)

Here's the blurb:

She can’t remember. He can’t forget. Eva Baumann is invisible. Sebastian Weiss is famous. In a perfect world Eva would be fearless and Sebastian would be guiltless.

It’s not a perfect world.

The Minstrel Series is a collection of contemporary romance novels set in the singer/songwriter world. The books are companion novels, with shared settings and characters, but each is a complete stand-alone story with a HEA (happily ever after) and no cliffhangers! 

FLESH & BONE INCLUDES MORE GREAT ORGINAL MUSIC MP3s!

Haven't read #1 Sun & Moon? Get it FREE!!!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Kobo'

And now for your first chance to WIN!

Click Here! And enter to win a $20 Amazon Gift Card and three MP3s, including Flesh and Bone! (link)

* * *

The second New Release I have for you today is an *adult* romance by the leader of the Romance Writers of America group I'm in here. It's about a HOT Fireman, and it sounds yummy!

Check it out~

Love Over Troubled Waters

by Lanora Mangano

On Amazon

Here's the blurb:

It should have been a normal drive home from work for Maggie Connors.  However, a freak rain storm had other plans for her when the bridge she crossed, in her car, collapsed plunging her into the river below.

Para Rescue man, Jake Madison wasn't looking for a life changing event, but he got just that when he saved Maggie's life.  He couldn't get the red hair beauty out of his mind but was determined to give her back the courage she lost in the traumatic event.

For more information about LaNora's upcoming books, please visit:

www.findinglanora.weebly.com

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lanora-Mangano/527909407268248

Get your copy of Love Over Troubled Waters on Amazon Today!

* * *

Now for your second chance to #WIN! 

Hop over to my group blog YA Confidential EVERY MONDAY and enter to win a Free Book!

We post "From the Vault" questions and answers, and one lucky commenter wins the book of his or her choice every week!

Any book, every week! 

Check it out (link)~

* * *

Now I'm headed to pack. I hope you all have a fantastic week. Stay warm, read a book, and keep in touch! Love ya~

WATERCOLOR--Sales, Giveaways, Tours, oh my!

I'm still out of town, reader-friends, but the Watercolor tour continues!

I LOVE seeing all the five-star reviews rolling in, but I had a good feeling all my Julian-lovers would be happy with this installment. He is such a great character.

In other news, I'm on the "set" of the Dragonfly series, and Tuesday afternoon (Oct. 8), I'm doing a reading at the Daphne Public Library starting at 4 p.m.

If you're in the area, come on out to this free event!

On the Sale front, Today is the last day for the big "Catch-up Sale"--where you can get Dragonfly AND Undertow for 99 cents each!

If you're just joining us, one-click today--

Dragonfly AND Undertow - Today Only!!!

Dragonfly and Undertow are on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iTunes, and Kobo! See sidebar --> for all the links!

The Watercolor publicity tour is going strong, and at EVERY stop, you get a chance to WIN the signed, complete set, a $5 Amazon gift card, signed copies of Watercolor, ebooks, bookmarks...

Check it out, and have a super week, reader-friends!

October 7

Starbucks & Books Obsession Review Only

Into the Hall of Books Review Only

October 8

Rumpled Sheets Blog Excerpt

Kimberlyfaye reads Review Only

October 9

Live Read and Breathe Review Only

October 10

Tiffany Talks Books Excerpt

Lovin' Los Libros Character Interview

October 11

Rampant Readers Review Only

October 12

Please Another Book Interview

October 13

Books Unhinged Book Blog Excerpt

October 14

Dazzled by Books Review Only

October 15

Every Free Chance Book Reviews Review Only

Spring Breakin & a Hometown Signing!

Every time I read "signing," I read sighting... Like I'm a UFO.

So I'm with the family down South taking a little break, enjoying a little chilly sunshine, rejuvenating. I'm going to be offline for the most part this week, but I'm thinking of you guys! Hope you're all doing super~

Can't wait to get back in the writing saddle next week!

Many of you are on spring break this week, so have a lovely time!

And if you're in or around the Gulf Coast, stop by this special event at a little bookstore in Fairhope, Ala., a mere 10 miles from my old hometown...

I'll be joining superstars Abbi Glines and Steph Campbell for a meet and greet, Q&A, and book signing party.

I would love to see any of you who might be around!

So til next week, have a super week, reader- and writer-friends~ <3

Life and Luck

Steve Jobs died yesterday. So did civil rights leader Rev. Fred L. Shuttlesworth (link). I have to confess, I didn't know Steve Jobs was sick (again), and I'd never even heard of Rev. Shuttlesworth.

And I call myself a southern reporter.

Shuttlesworth

Yesterday morning I went for a walk with a new friend and neighbor who has a big dog. She needed to exercise him, and the weather's been gorgeous lately. So we headed to the nearby university to stroll around.

I told her about catching leaves.

Catching leaves is a game I discussed in this post (link). My old "boss" Susan, who was Jewish-Irish-British-living in south Louisiana, taught it to me.

Basically, if you catch a leaf as it's falling to the ground (from the tree), it's good luck. But don't throw your leaf away, or you lose your luck!

My friend asked me how long the luck lasted. I hadn't asked Susan that question, so my answer was I guessed as long as you kept your leaf.

Luck is delicious.

Flower likes to eat my leaves when I get home and leave them out on the counter.

I also interviewed and wrote a feature about Billy J. Brown II yesterday for the Baldwin Register. Yep, I'm still writing for those guys.

Brown was trapped in the backseat of a burning car when he was only two years old and suffered third-degree burns on 65 percent of his body.

His face was disfigured and he lost a hand. He went on to become a married, father of two, and as a businessman, he did one of those Tony Robbins motivational events where everybody walked on hot coals.

A burn victim walking on fire.

After meeting Robbins, he said he realized he could affect people for good with his story. So he wrote and self-published a book Rising from the Ashes (link), and his message is this: Your past doesn't equal your future. Find your ultimate goal, your vision, and pursue it because that's what'll get you through the hard times.

I'm thinking all of these things are related somehow. Here's what I got: First, it's fun to play games and to believe you're lucky if you catch a leaf. But the truth is, luck = preparedness + opportunity.

Steve Jobs was a brilliant creative thinker whose ultimate goal was changing the way we handle information.

Shuttlesworth had a vision of a Birmingham (Ala.) where little black girls didn't get bombed to death on their way to Sunday school.

Maybe we all don't get such world-changing goals as Jobs and Shuttlesworth, but maybe we do. Brown said he often wondered as a teenager why God even kept him alive.

His ultimate goal now is helping teenagers and college students see their worth and find their vision. He described parents who drop off their kids and never even get off their cell phones to tell them goodbye.

I bet Brown makes a difference.

I think that's how you make your life lucky. Or something. What do you think?

Either way, do try to catch a leaf--it's fun! Just make sure you're on a flat, open surface. Otherwise you'll be lucky not to get hurt running around while looking up in the sky.

Have a great weekend, reader- and writer-friends. Til Monday~ <3

Good Book Alert - Bastard Blue

Today's a quickie-post, but I'm poking my head out of the revising cave to tell  you about a really great book that's just become available for Kindle.

It's Bastard Blue by my friend and Mobile (Ala.) native, Murray Dunlap. Here's the link, it's $3.99, so seriously, you can't afford not to get it. Unless you don't have a Kindle. But then you can download it on Kindle for PC... (Okay, here's the link for the hardcover edition.)

Anyway, I've only read the introduction and the first few pages, but already I want to read the story this narrator is prepared to tell.

Murray's accomplished one of those tricks great writers in the South are known for. He's created a distinct voice that is so evocative of the region. Having grown up in so-La., and then lived in so-Ala. for seven  years, I can literally see this character.

I met Murray when I was assigned to write a feature story about him for the Baldwin Register last year. He's an accomplished writer who just happened to be almost killed a few years ago in a car crash.

He suffered a traumatic brain injury, lost the ability to walk for a while, had to relearn how to speak, the works. But he didn't lose his talent.

Here's the link to his website; you can read his inspiring survival story at your leisure. But get his book. It's amazing.

Now, I'm back in the cave. Til Thursday~ <3

Spring Break!

In the last week, I've gone from freezing rain and 40s in Indianapolis to almost 90 degrees, hot and humid back home. I'm not complaining--I love spring break at the beach!

The girls and I've made the drive from our house to Orange Beach or Gulf Shores or Pensacola more times than I can count in the last seven years. So for this vacation post, I'll share some of my favorite landmarks and send warm thoughts to you guys still dealing with winter.

Here's my two little ladies loving the Gulf.

It's all over the news that it's been a year since the oil spill. That made me realize it's been more than a year since I started blogging. One of my first conversations with Matt was about the oil spill.

This next shot is amazing.

An ancient shack on Alabama 181--on the road to the beach. The house appears a million years old and abandoned, but the roses are growing over the roof to this day.

That's the nice thing about this area. Everything grows forever here. Except tulips. My grandmother always wanted to grow tulips, but no dice.

I threw in one of the farmlands between my house and the beach next. Baldwin County used to be predominantly farms. I interview natives all the time who talk about working in the fields as teens, picking vegetables, working at the produce stands, etc., for summer jobs.

In the 1990s it became more profitable to sell the land to developers, and it looked like the farms were on the way out. Then in 2009, all the developers went belly-up, and now it's more profitable to farm.

I have to confess. I'm glad the farms are back.

These next two are waterways. Wolf Bay Watershed, Fish River, Weeks Bay Watershed, the Magnolia River, and more crisscross the drive to the beach.

First is the Magnolia River. There's this old pirate-type sailboat (right) always docked there. You have to look closely. Next is the overpass at Weeks Bay. It looks out to the Gulf.

But for me, it's all about the beach. So I'll leave you with two more beach shots.

One's a beautiful house right on the Gulf wedged between the high rises.

The other's just one of Orange Beach. One of my favorite places in the world.


Wish you were here!

Have a great spring break, reader-friends! Happy Easter! Til Monday~ <3