1) Bound and Determined, the third Stormy book comes out today, August 29th from Cobblestone Press. I’m so excited to see what everyone thinks about this tormented hero and kick butt heroine. The two have a long history and many obstacles to overcome. You can read the blurb, excerpt and see the awesome cover at my website: site.selena-blake.com/bookshelf/series/stormy-weather-1/bound-and-determined/

2) Bitten in the Bayou (book two) was July’s #1 Bestseller at Cobblestone Press. Yes, I fell out of my chair when I read the news. There’s nothing like waking up, coming in to the computer and seeing Instant Messages from several friends congratulating you for making the list. Thanks Dee, Leila, Lissa, Dena, Layla…

3) Okay, so maybe there is something better than waking up to see your name and title in the number one slot on the bestseller list and all your friends have congratulated you. It’s when you’re new book is #1 and your last book is still on the list at #6!

That’s right. The Cajun’s Captive was July’s #6 Bestseller. Woot!

4) The Cajun’s Captive was also June’s #1 Bestseller. Not bad. Not bad at all.

5) I got my very first review last week! The Cajun’s Captive received 4 Stars from Amelia over at Sensual.Ecataromance.com. I’m so excited to have a review. It makes this whole author business feel a little more real. She said: “This story is a wonderful start to a most promising series, and I look forward to reading more about these sexy wolf shifters. STORMY WEATHER 1: THE CAJUN’S is a romance filled with warmth and fiery passions.”

6) Amelia tells me she’s submitted the review for Bitten In The Bayou and it should be available soon. I can’t wait! It’s like Christmas & a Birthday all rolled into one! Thanks Amelia!

7) I enjoy attending the Friday Night Chats at Cobblestone Press. It’s a chance to let my hair down and talk books. It’s even better when you win prizes! I won Entranced by Madison Layle a few weeks ago and have to say, I really enjoyed it. Highly recommended. Next on my list of books to read… well, visit me at Shelfari and find out!

I’m on Shelfari now. Seems like the place to be since I enjoy blabbing about books. www.shelfari.com/selenablake

9) Be sure to stop by CoffeeTimeRomance in September. I’ll be posting a free read, a new chapter every other week! www.coffeetimeromance.com/board/forumdisplay.php?f=695

10) Join me and five of my fellow Cobblestone Authors September 2nd for a Cocktail Party chat in the Cobblestone Chatroom. We’ll be talking books, hunks, and anything else that comes to mind. Bring a cocktail recipe to be eligible to win prizes! www.cobblestone-press.com/chat.htm

11) Sign up for my newsletter to gain access to my Free Reads! Instructing Adam, available now. And Cindy’s friend, JJ will have her own story very soon. site.selena-blake.com/newsletter/

As a romance author, I say, yes, communication is key. Communication with your significant other is the basis for a good relationship…otherwise you might as well marry a wall. And I’m not getting into humping a wall…

Good communication is also key with your publisher. It’s important to talk to them and for them to talk to you. (Email makes it difficult to read other people so I’m a fan of IM. )  To be available to each other. It’s important to talk to your fellow authors as well.

But how important is it to talk to your readers? And how important is it for readers to talk to authors? Some days it feels like I’m sitting in a jail cell churning out the pages. The next I have fifteen comments waiting on my blog… all spam. Spam sucks.

Has apathy taken over consumer communication? Do we not feel the need to praise products we enjoy or complain about products we hate? Is it not PC to do so? At what point did it become acceptable for an author to say “I’m too busy to reply personally, but I read all my email?” Perhaps when I’m not the little fish in the big pond, I’ll feel different.

But today, I feel microscopic.

That’s right. I’m doing a free read for CoffeeTimeRomance. It starts in September. So be at this link, ready for a good time: http://www.coffeetimeromance.com/board/forumdisplay.php?f=695

When you sign up, be sure to use my name in the referral box: SelenaBlake

http://www.plurk.com/user/SelenaBlake It's like Twitter.... I'm there, in case you are.

I have an interview up at the E-rotic Romance group at LiveJournal. Come by and ask a question this weekend and you're eligible to win a book from my backlist... small as it is. Thanks to Moira Rogers for all her hard work and for making the interview process painless and fun! http://community.livejournal.com/e_roticromance/5252.html

For sale: Bridal gown, never worn. ;)

If you love meeting authors and winning prizes, stop by the Friday Night Chats at Cobblestone Press. Last week I won Entranced by Madison Layle. What a fabulous story. In the wrong hands this plotline had the potential to be creepy, but you know Madison Layle would make it an awesome read. Definitely on my recommended reading list.

My dear friend Lissa has a new book coming out this week! Yeah, I can't believe it either because she doesn't babble on about it as most authors do. Me included. While I'm waiting for her to gimme the blurb, I'll tell you to mark your calendar. Go friend Lissa on myspace: http://www.myspace.com/lissamatthews And make sure you've friended me too: http://www.myspace.com/selenablakeauthor

Don’t you just love it when the store brand is a) cheaper (by half!) b) tastes just as good and c) is just as good for you as the smancier product? Yeah, random thought of the day. But hey, I enjoyed finding out that my cheaper by half cereal had all the same vitamins and minerals as the more expensive and highly advertised version did.

I was over on the Erotic Romance blog this morning and decided to check out the Friends Page there. Scroll through, reading some posts and then I come to my latest. No post, just a warning that you're about to read something of an adult nature. I just have to ask... why is it that you can kill people in movies, show blood, guts, and pretty much everything else - including messages of hate - but if you show a single breast your rating goes up? Why is it that we can watch a riot on TV, see a guy getting beat to death yet Janet Jackson's boob peaks out in the SuperBowl and the powers that be go ape sh!t? Anyone else noticed that we're all born NAKED? So nudity really shouldn't be a problem for anyone! That said, what's so scary about sexuality? Is it because you can't control it? Your desire is so overwhelming that you're scared of it? Why is it that sex between two people, two consenting adults, is frowned up and hidden behind little "adult content" messages? If you're adult enough to read my messages and understand them you're old enough to understand sex, that that's how you were created. That sex is nothing to be scared of, ashamed of or hidden. It's not dirty. It's not wrong. Enough said.