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Showing posts from February, 2012

Swim Recruit: YA Short Story

With the release of my YA swimming romance Streamline just around the corner (3-27-12), I'm happy to announce that Omnific Publishing has launched my YA swimming short story Swim Recruit . Swim Recruit will "wet" your whistle for Streamline ! Read both and you'll be wet behind the ears. What's even better news is that Swim Recruit is FREE at Omnific Publishing's site . Not long after Abby Donahue’s family falls apart, she escapes on an airplane to Chicago for a recruiting trip. A talented high-school swimmer, Abby hopes to score both a college scholarship and some distance from her parents' recent divorce. But is this university for her? Her first encounter with freshman swimmer Reese McGowan makes her nervous. He’s a tall backstroker with a mess of blond hair, glittering aquamarine eyes, and a suspension from the team for badmouthing the school to another recruit. As Abby unravels the mystery underlying Reese’s disdain, she begins to

Cover Reveal: STREAMLINE

Seems like Leo Scott has it all: looks, brains, and athletic talent. He’s captain of his high school swim team with a bright future in college and beyond. But Leo has secrets. His mother’s crippling car accident has devastated his family and left Leo to deal with his father’s abuse, battered and alone. Leo’s girlfriend Audrey Rose is poised for her own share of success. As one of Florida’s top high school swimmers, Audrey dreams of college swimming stardom. But there’s an obstacle to her glorious rise to the top. Her number-one supporter--her father--is in prison for murder. Part murder mystery, part tale of young love in a military family, this gripping story takes readers on a journey from Pensacola to Annapolis. Leo and Audrey must band together to rise above the adversity they encounter and find their true selves in the process. When everything’s on the line . . . streamline. Stay tuned for the release 3-27-12 ! Please contact me at jenniferlanebooks at gmail do

Oscars Party? Oui!

With the Academy Awards just around the corner, I'm gearing up for my annual Oscars party. I don't know about you, but I LOVE movies. Camped out in a dark theater as the opening credits roll, chewing on popcorn or Junior Mints, hearing the music swell . . . there's nothing like it. Movies inspire me to write, too. If I could ever craft a romance as soft and tragic and beautiful as the one between Rose and Jack in Titanic , I wouldn't stop smiling for days. And if one day one of my novels became a movie . . . THAT would be incredible! I try to see most of the best picture nominees before the show. What's been your favorite this year? I've seen these four and I vote for The Descendents . I loved the realism of the characters, especially the teenage daughter portrayed by Shailene Woodley. All were excellent, though. Because Midnight in Paris and Hugo took place in Paris, we decided to have a French theme for the party. I consulted with guest

Couples Counseling

When I first wrote Bad Behavior , I titled the novel Couples Counseling due to its focus on couples therapy sessions for Grant and Sophie. Dr. Hunter Hayes obviously has his hands full with these two. Before publication we changed the title so it sounded less self-help! As a romance author, I'm obviously fascinated by romantic relationships. What attracts one person to another? What makes romantic relationships succeed or fail? Why is communication so hard sometimes? How can a couple heal their fractured marriage? There are some helpful answers out there I want to share today. The guru of couples counseling is Dr. John Gottman, researcher and author. Here's one of his best books: John Gottman's research methods are intriguing: he has couples live in his lab for a few days while hooked up to heart rate monitors and other physical measurements. When couples argue, they become physically distressed, making it difficult for them to work together to resolve the confl

Tumble 4 Ya Blogfest

Nicki Elson is the coolest author! She wrote the fun & sexy 80's Romp Three Daves , and today is hosting the Tumble 4 Ya Blogfest . Who was my 80's crush? Here are some hints . . . "Your ego's writing checks your body can't cash!" "I feel the need . . . the need . . . for SPEED!" That's right, my crush is MAVERICK, otherwise known as Tom Cruise. I think I saw the movie Top Gun like 20 times in the theaters, and I was the first in line at the Blockbuster store to order my VHS tape of the beloved flick. Hot men in their dress whites? *thud* And then there's the volleyball scene (ah, Iceman, you freeze me with your charms): Even though little Tommy comes up to my collarbone, back then I thought he was a dreamboat. Then he got all Scientology on me and bashed psychiatric medication, and I became a bit disillusioned. But my teenage self really fell for that showty with the cocky bravado and charming smile. Can

Follower Love Giveaway Hop

Gracias to Kathy from I Am a Reader Not a Writer blog and Rachael Renee Anderson blog for hosting the Follower Love Giveaway Hop! I do love my followers. To show my love, I'm giving away a signed print copy of my Romantic Suspense novel With Good Behavior to a U.S. winner, and an ARC of my upcoming Young Adult novel Streamline to an international winner. Enter on the Rafflecopter form! Note: Please ignore the last entry (it's a repeat and an error). I don't want to change the form now because I'm afraid it will affect those who have already entered. a Rafflecopter giveaway You need javascript enabled to see this giveaway .

The Long Road of Publishing

Do you ever wonder why it takes so long for a novel to hit the market after the author finishes writing? One of my favorite authors, Diana Gabaldon, answers this question on her BLOG . She describes the lengthy editing and marketing process involved with her eighth novel in the Outlander series, Written in My Own Heart's Blood (I can't wait!) I just finished her novel The Scottish Prisoner and loved it (see my review HERE ). Omnific Publishing is much smaller than Random House but I've marveled at the lengthy process from the inside. I wrote Streamline in 2007 when it was over 200,000 words ( gulp ). I edited the story in 2010 to see if I could get it to a place where it might be publishable. In 2011 I edited it some more to get it down to 160,000 words. Then I sent a query letter to Emma Taylor, Acquisitions Editor for Omnific, and she gave Streamline the thumbs up for publication. That started the arduous work with my lovely developmental editor, Jessica Royer Oc

Why I Love Swimming

Anyone who really knows me is already aware of my love for competitive swimming. I truly am wet behind the ears. If they made a perfume that smelled like chlorine, I'd wear that scent everyday! (And I wonder why I'm still single.) I started swimming at age 8 on Coney Island's swim team in Cincinnati, Ohio. The team needed another girl for the 8 & Under relay and my older sisters dragged me to practice one morning. Diving into the crystal blue water, thrashing about with little technique, joking with teammates . . . it's where the love affair began. That autumn I joined a club team and swam year-round until I graduated from college, often practicing twice a day. Even my shoe size (12) indicates that swimming is the sport for me. God gave me flipper feet! (I'm on the left with my friend Katie. Look at the size of those toes!) Here's what swimming has given me: 1) Friends. I've met so many quality individuals in this sport. 2) A strong wo