CONTEST! $500.00! THE SEEKER by Lindsay McKenna

Hi Everyone

We actually have TWO contests for you with a total of $500.00 in cash prizes!! And you can enter both!! The first contest is open to EVERYONE! The second contest is for those who have signed up for the TIME RAIDERS NEWSLETTER.

Of course, if you want to play in the second contest for newsletter subscribers, you can sign up for the newsletter, too! It's entirely up to you :-)




HERE'S THE CONTEST FOR EVERYONE

(For this contest you need NOT be a newsletter subscriber. However, if you are a newsletter subscriber, you can automatically play this contest too!! And if you want to subscribe, go here: http://timeraidersseries.com/newsletter.html) and then you can play in the second contest as well!! For those who have signed up for our newsletter, you will get a second chance at winning MORE money!! Two chances to win!



If you are unable to see this html coded e-mail click on http://timeraidersseries.com/newslettercontest1.html



The Contest for everyone: Here is your question: What horse clan did Torbar come from?

Simply put the ONE WORD ANSWER in the Subject/Content area line of your email and send it to docbones@gotsky.com

In order to find the answer your are going to have to buy and read THE SEEKER. It will be available in August 1, 2009. You can order it from eharlequin.com. That is the surest way to get the book. Or, you can order the ebook. Or, wait until it comes to your local bookstore. First prize will go to someone who has given the correct answer to my question.

First prize is: $150.00
Second prize is $75.00
Third prize is $25.00

A drawing will be held and winners chosen. I will be writing out a check to each of these winners (and their names will be announced on our TIME RAIDERS SERIES website.) I will be contacting each of you personally via email (so be watching!). The contest begins August 1, 2009 and ENDS on September 1, 2009 at midnight MST. You are allowed ONE entry per person. Winners will be contacted on September 2, 2009. Good luck!

Lindsay McKenna




SECOND CONTEST for NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

Here's the contest for our loyal NEWSLETTER readers:

If you are unable to see this html coded e-mail click

on http://www.timeraidersseries.com/newslettercontest2.html

For those who have signed up for our newsletter, you will get a second chance at winning MORE money!! And of course, if you want to sign up for our newsletter, you can play, too! And if you want to subscribe, go here: http://timeraidersseries.com/newsletter.html

And here is the NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIBER'S question: What is Torbar's last name?

Simply put the ONE WORD ANSWER in the Subject/Content area line of your email and send it to docbones@gotsky.com

In order to find the answer your are going to have to buy and read THE SEEKER. It will be available in August 1, 2009. You can order it from eharlequin.com. That is the surest way to get the book. Or, you can order the ebook. Or, wait until it comes to your local bookstore. First prize will go to someone who has given the correct answer to my question.

First prize is: $150.00
Second prize is $75.00
Third prize is $25.00

A drawing will be held and winners chosen. I will be writing out a check to each of these winners (and their names will be announced on our TIME RAIDERS SERIES website.) I will be contacting each of you personally via email (so be watching!). The contest begins August 1, 2009 and ENDS on September 1, 2009 at midnight MST. You are allowed ONE entry per person. Winners will be contacted on September 2, 2009. Good luck!


USA TODAY bestselling author Lindsay McKenna presents TIME RAIDERS, a thrilling new series of paranormal adventure, time-travel, and passion through the ages. Leap through time with The Seeker, a mesmerizing tale of danger and desire in Ancient Rome. . . .

Delia Sebastian is a trained historian and psychic. Former Army Captain Jake Tyler is her swaggering ex-lover, who can read her most intimate thoughts--and desires.

Together they will make the risky leap back to 44 B.C. to infiltrate the court of Julius Caesar by posing as Grecian mercenaries. But with assassins everywhere, will old passions reignite to undermine their cover...leaving them trapped in history forever?.


Lindsay McKenna

THE SEEKER by Lindsay McKenna is out!

Hi Eveyrone

At last! The TIME RAIDERS SERIES is launched with book one, THE SEEKER by Lindsay McKenna. Run, do not walk, to your local bookstore tomorrow to pick up a copy.




Or, if you go to eharlequin.com, you can purchase it with less money! A good deal

And, to make this sweet, $500.00 in CASH in our contest regarding THE SEEKER. For details and to enter, go to



You won't be sorry! We love to hear from our readers. Please give us feedback on this dynamic and innovative new series.

Warmly, Lindsay McKenna

TIME RAIDERS CONTEST $1,000 +!!! SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER AND GET THE DETAILS!

Hi Everyone!

The authors of the sizzling new Time Raiders series are offering $1,000+ in prizes! That's right. $1,000+!!!! Hustle on over to Time Raiders website at www.timeraidersseries.com to sign up NOW for the newsletter which will announce the contest details.




This is one contest you do NOT want to miss out on! Spread the word! The newsletter will give you all the details!


Warmly, Lindsay McKenna
THE SEEKER, Sil. Nocturne, TIME RAIDERS, Book 1, August, 2009

Time Travel, history, romance, adventure TIME RAIDERS HAS IT ALL!

Hi Everyone

Catch the FEVER! The TIME RAIDER fever! Be sure to watch one our TR authors, PC Cast, who will be on Good Morning America on 5.28! And, she'll be on NIGHTLINE the same evening. She wrote THE AVENGERS, book 3 of the TIME RAIDER series for Silhouette Nocturne. Don't miss her!

Along that line, I've had a lot of readers asking, "Where can I buy these four books?!"

Look no further--you can PRE ORDER them--be the first to get these dynamic, kick-butt, take name books that mix time travel, history, red hot romance, adventure and gutsy heroines all in one book. Phew! That's a lot, but we pulled it off! All for you :-)



Here's where you can get the books!

The Seeker
http://www.amazon.com/Time-Raiders-Seeker-Silhouette-Nocturne/dp/0373618166/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243205805&sr=1-1

The Slayer
http://www.amazon.com/Time-Raiders-Slayer-Silhouette-Nocturne/dp/0373618182/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243206264&sr=1-1

The Avenger
http://www.amazon.com/Time-Raiders-Avenger-Silhouette-Nocturne/dp/0373618204/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1243206312&sr=1-1

The Protector
http://www.amazon.com/Time-Raiders-Protector-Silhouette-Nocturne/dp/0373618220/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243206377&sr=1-2

My next blog will be about: The historical heroines we chose to write about. Me? I wrote about Servilia, mistress to Julius Caesar! Stay tuned for why!
Warmly, Lindsay McKenna

TIME RAIDERS SERIES IS COMING TO SILHOUETTE NOCTURNE!!

HI Everyone!

Been quiet because I'm working on five books this year! Phew!

I'm coming up for water because I'm thrilled to share with you a secret--a top secret! Here it is:

ROMVETS (a list comprised of women who either were or are in the military and are writers) back in 2005 at the Romantic Times convention, met in St. Louise. Merline Lovelace and I got together and decided to create TIME RAIDERS. This is an author created series. And 17 of our ROMVETS wanted to write on the 12-book series that we had envisioned. Of course, if the readers loved TIME RAIDERS, it could certainly be more than 12 books :-).



We worked with Tara Gavin, Senior Editor of Silhouette Nocturne. She got to choose the authors and she contracted Merline Lovelace, PC Cast, Cindy Dees and myself, to pen the first four books of this unique time travel series. The books are finally coming out! Starting in August, I'll kick it off with THE SEEKERS.


Then, September, THE SLAYER with Cindy Dees



, October, PC Cast with THE AVENGER and Merline Lovelace with THE PROTECTOR.



If you like these first four books of the series, please let Silhouette Nocturne and Tara know. If these books are successful, Tara will be asking for more books from the ROMVETS.



I've uploaded our website front page. TIME RAIDERS is unique in several ways. It is an author created and driven series. It is unique because we felt that many powerful and important women throughout history have been largely ignored by historians. We decided to change that! For example, I'm writing in THE SEEKERS about Servilia, who was the mistress to Julius Ceasar. Cindy's book will show Artemisia, ruler of Halicarnassus. PC's book will showcase the powerful and tragic Queen Boudicaa of the Iceni who fought against Rome. Lastly, in Merline's book, she shows us the power of Empress Wu Jao, the only female empress to rule China. We want our readers to be aware of kick butt, take name women who have made a difference in history because of who they were. We want to celebrate them with you!



And, add to this recipe that Merline and I created (we're co-authors of TIME RAIDERS), throw in aliens, bad guys on Earth, a medallion that if found, can change the world forever, time travel, a communications crown found in the 1947 Roswell UFO accident, and you have, we hope, a wild ride and thrill with hot romance for our readers!

More will be shared with you as we continue to open up TIME RAIDERS to all of you who are interested in time travel novels that marry history with contemporary military heroes and heroines. For more, check out our website, www.timeraidersseries.com.

And, one more thing! PC Cast is going to be on Good Morning America and Nightline (same day/night) on May 28th. She is going to try and mention TIME RAIDERS! Check her out if you get a chance. She's a wildly successful New York TImes best selling author and a ROMVET!

Let me know what you think of our concept. I, for one, can hardly WAIT for August to come when Silhouette Nocturne will release THE SEEKERS, book 1 of the TIME RAIDERS!

Warmly, Lindsay McKenna

www.lindsaymckenna.com

twitter me!

Facebook as Eileen Nauman

Lindsay is on Twitter!

Hi Everyone

I'm on Twitter.com

just look up Lindsay McKenna! Come on over and 'tweet' with me :-)

Warmly, Lindsay McKenna

Desert Fox Visit to Sedona Part 2

Hi Everyone

Here's the next set of amazing photos of our gray Desert Fox who came for a vist yesterday around 11:00 A.M. Enjoy!


Here our desert fox friend is going after a bug that it saw. The fox is incredibly fast; in a second he can turn, leap, twist and land on four feet in a blink of an eye!


The desert fox suddenly turned toward the sundeck on our guest mobile home. He heard something.....


The fox is all ears and goes straight to the sundeck without hesitation. What has he heard?


Moments later, the desert fox comes out with a mouse in his mouth!


After eating the mouse in one gulp, the desert fox returned to beneath the mobile home. There is an opening in the skirt around it and he's looking at it.


The desert fox sticks his nose in the opening. To my utter astonishment, he squeezes through it and is under the mobile home! The hole wasn't that big! Amazing!


Then, he came back out the hole, under the sundeck and out near the stairs and heading toward our house.


He goes past our Toyota Sienna van and you can see how small he is compared to the van.


The Desert Fox strolls right up our brick walk, up on the deck, goes around to the back, looks in our window (that photo is in Part 1 of the blog) and then curved around our rocking chair.


And he keeps on going on the sundeck, jumps off it and goes down to Oak Creek to spy on some mallard ducks in the middle of it.

Today, the Desert Fox didn't return. We were looking for him but he was nowhere to be found. We think that he's last year's litter from Desert Fox mama who has lived around here forever. And this is a young male. We know he's not full grown by his tail and size. The tail gets super bushy and thick--looks like a huge bottle brush and you can see on him that his isn't anywhere near that size. We think that his is a young male that's been chased off by Mama Desert Fox and he's looking for his OWN territory and a place to live. We just got lucky when he was looking around our place as his new 'home.'

Stay tuned...around here, you NEVER know what might happen next ;-)

Warmly, Lindsay McKenna

A Desert Fox visited us!

Hi Everyone

Well, when the Moon is in Pisces, crazy and unexplained things happen! Take a look. At eleven a.m., I'd just got done writing my chapter for my latest HQN, "The Angel's Song" (working title) and Cody, our Golden Retriever began barking. He was out in his cycloned fence area next to the house. I saw Dave coming quickly down from the green house area.

When Dave met me he told me there was a Gray Fox around and pointed at it. It was over by our two huge compost bins leaping into the air to catch a bird--and it did. Then, for the next thirty minutes, it proceeded to go under my hogan and then under our double-wide mobile home guest house. Then, watch what happened next:


Here's the desert fox strolls up our sidewalk right to Cody's pen! Good thing we had him inside at the time. She shows no fear at all!


She turns around and decides to get a drink of water out of our lily pad pond! That is right down in front of our window where I was taking these photos. She didn't care we were there!


And then, seeing us in the window, she decided to lay down next to our brick flower planter that is next to the house. Amazing.


Then, she got up and came around to the rear sun deck where our sliding glass door is located--and looked in our window--with us standing there with the dog! You notice she's standing on the "welcome" mat.

Our Desert Fox then went around the rear sun deck and went down it and down to Oak Creek. She then went out into the neighbor's field and disappeared. Dave and I debated as to what was going on. I thought she might have rabies because she was not gunshy of us at all. In the past, we would sometimes see her about twenty feet beyond our fence in the deep grass. And when she saw that we saw her--she'd run off.

I decided to call Fish and Game. They asked if she was foaming or drooling at the mouth and I said, "No." Then they asked if she was aggressive toward us. We were, at one point, fifty feet away from her. I said, "No, she just went on hunting for bugs and whatever she could find and completely ignored us." They didn't think she had rabies. They said that she could be "habituating" which means she might be claiming our place as her new 'home.'

That won't do because our cat, which probably outweighs her, would be a target. And, we thought that maybe she had kits under the hogan or under the mobile home. She went under each of them. So, who knows? It was a crazy day. We'll just keep alert the next several days. I hope this was a unique event. And I truly hope she doesn't have rabies. But, we'll have to be on guard. Still, these are wonderful photos of such a beautiful animal.

Working on "Angel's Song" for HQN

Hi Everyone!
Well, I'm in the "writing harness" now. I have just signed a three book contract with HQN (see me jumping up and down for joy) and I'm off!

The first book will be out in 2010, but the hard work in the trenches begins NOW.

When I'm in the 'writer's harness' (I liken this to a plow horse in a harness going out to plow the fields....) I write a chapter day unless this is an "act of God" that stops me from doing it.

As a 'young' and beginning writer, it took me DAYS to finish just one chapter (20 to 30 pages) of rough draft. Now, I can create the same thing in 2 to 3 hours. I'm glad of that!

The HQN is about 15 to 20 chapters, or 85,000 words. That means I'll be in the writing harness on this particular book for 15 to 20 days in a row.

I go to work at 9 a.m. every morning and finish around 11 to 11:30 am....sometimes noon, just depending.

Once the rough draft of the manuscript is created, I put it away for two months in a drawer. I want to get away from it enough to be able to see the mistakes and edits I need to make on it. When one is too close to their brain child, one is blind :-). Putting it away and working on other books in various stages (such as copy editing version or edited version or galley proof check) keeps me busy.

And so....off to write chapter 10 of "Angel's Song" (working title) this morning!

Warmly, Lindsay McKenna

Birch Aquarium, Scripps Institute, La Jolla, California

Hi Everyone
Just as I sat down to create this blog, at 8:55 pm pst, we just had an earthquake!! I was sitting here getting ready to type this and bring up the photos when the whole building wrenched and then everything 'shivered' for a few seconds. I was born here in San Diego, and grew up with the 3.0 to 3.5 quivers, as I called them. We got them at least once a week or biweekly. So, now I really feel at home now! It was probably around 3.0 magnitude from the feel of it. I was in one earthquake over in La Mesa back in 1966 and it was 6.2 on the Richter Scale and it was major. In fact, a quarter mile from my apartment, a huge gaping rip in the earth opened up. So, with this quiver, I watch. Since being in a major earthquake, I know there can be serveral 'swarm' quakes before the 'major' one hits. So, as I work on this blog, the seat of my pants in the chair will be my warning system :-)).



Yesterday (Wednesday) we went to one of my all time fav’s here in San Diego--the Birch Aquarium at the famous Scripps Institute; one of the great marine biology centers in the world.

I had a heck of a time photographing. I had 2” to 6” thick glass that my lens had to get through in order to photograph. Then, no matter what setting I put my camera on, nothing would give me enough life. I was forced into doing a flash which I truly disliked. I don’t like to use the flash for anything, much less on fish in an aquarium. I saw others using a flash on their cameras, so got over it and started to do some photographing.


Each exhibit at Birch is a work of art, moving art, quite literally. You'll see that in all the photos I took. This is a gorgeous anemone...such a pale pink and so fragile looking.


The amount of fish, their colors, are incredible. I felt like I was in a rainbow. The Aquarium has done a wonderful job on exhibiting the anemones, jellyfish, the sharks, the fish and “sea dragons”--I call them ‘leafy’ sea horses.


This is a huge blue eel. I had to shoo with a high ISO, so most of these photos are going to be 'grainy' looking. A high ISO was the only way to get some 'light' into the photos.


I love jellyfish! I'm enamoured with their slow motion ballet moves through the water. If I'm not mistaken (and could be), I believe this is the most poisonous jellyfish in the world--they are sooooo teeny, tiny...the size of a dime. And, I undersand that if you get stung, you can die in 3-5 minutes afterward. They're so small you'd never see them in the ocean....wow. And yet, they look so incredible fragile. Who would guess they were so deadly? Amazing.




I'm always in awe of Mother Nature and her coloring of her family.



Outside, they have a tidal pool exhibit that over looks the marine blue Pacific Ocean. And, the shark exhibit is nearby. It’s a wonderful way to spend a morning or afternoon. My only gripe is they didn’t have lattes....only coffee. Am I spoiled or what? haha.


Sorry, but I'm no expert on fish, so forgive me. I shot the fish that were colorful. And this little yellow fellow was fetching against a blue background.


What is an ocean without anemones, urchins and star fish?!




This fish isn't gorgeous, rather plain, really. But I got a good headshot of him!


I loved the diversity of color between these three fish.


I loved this orange jellyfish. It is about the size of your palm (the round head of it), with the tentacles flowing out like wisps of hair, whim to the ocean current.



These are called MOON jellyfish, and you can see why. I just loved watching them open and collapse their 'parachute' heads. And, if you got them in the right light, their round circles on top glowed a neon pink!




And here is a Moon jellyfish where the flash has hit it just so and you can see the neon pink circles on top of its head. Really rad!!



Jellyfish are like silent ghosts floating rhythmically through the sea like ballet dancers. I could spend a mesmerizing hour filming them--they put me into a deep, medatative state as I watch them with their 'bellows' like motions.


I couldn't get enough of the Moon jellyfish...they put me into a deep meditation!





In the next couple of days I’ll post more photos than those you will see below. Enjoy the color of Mother Nature!

Lindsay McKenna Swims With The Dolphins!

Hi Everyone

wow, what a day! If you ever wondered where writers got their ideas, this is one way of going about it. I almost always write from personal experience and/or a lot of research. For example, DANGEROUS PREY, HQN, December 2008, was two years of research into the world of raptors before it came to press. I'm sure, based upon my experience, you'll see a dolphin or two show up in one of my future books.


Here I am being introduced to SANDY, the Atlantic bottlenosed dolphin. The signal for her to come to you is to cup your hands together...and she gently comes forward to nestle her nose into your hands. What a thrill!


One of my fondest dreams has been to swim with dolphins. At Sea World in San Diego, California, they have a dolphin interaction program. I signed up for it on Tuesday, at 3:30 pm. I got to meet Sandy, a 40 year old Atlantic bottle nose dolphin at Sea World in San Diego. Sandy has been a "mom" six times. The trainer said that Sandy was so nurturing and maternal--and she certainly was. The people in my group were Europeans. There was Maria from Sweden and William and his wife (sorry forgot her name) were from Amsterdam, Netherlands!! My dharma with the Netherlands is alive and well!


Sandy comes up to Eileen and she holds the dolphin's flippers while she stays upright with strong swishes with her tail.


We did a whole lot of things with Sandy. We cupped our hands and she would nuzzle her nose right into our palms and then we could pet her. She loved being around us. As a matter of fact, she kept bobbing up and looking at me was I waited a half hour beforehand. It was a wonderful feeling to have a dolphin waiting for me. But I love dolphins and they know that.


This is one of my favorite photos....I had to get down on one knee and Sandy came gliding up. The dolphin's skin is soft, sleek and Sandy loves to be touched and patted. She was a mother six times and has been in Sea World for 40 years. Her trainer has been with her for thirty-five years. The trainer was saying that Sandy was one of most nurturing, mothering of all the dolphins and one of their star entertainers.




We spent a good 40 minutes in some pretty cold sea water. Even with a wet suit, it wasn't too bad. At 4:00 pm the sun was going down and the temperature was too...but still, when I was in the water with Sandy, time just stopped existing. I had such a wonderful time. Memories to keep. This is something I've wanted to do all my life. And it was something I wanted to do,sooner not later. I'm not sorry I did.


The Netherland's couple were on the left, Maria from Sweden in the middle and me at Sandy's tail end in a 'log roll.' I don't know who was having more fun--us of the dolphin. They are HEAVY!



Maria, the gal next to me in the photo, didn't have the money to buy anything so I had bought the CD of all our photos. It was her birthday. I told her "Happy Birthday" and her friend provided an email address. I'll make a copy of the photos and send them to her. She was a very sweet person.


At last, forty minutes later, our dolphin interaction was at an end. Sandy waved 'good-bye' to us by standing on her nose with her tail out of the water 'waving' at us. We waved good-bye too, sad that it was over, but exhilerated by simply being able to share time and space with her. Thank you, Sandy.


In fact, it was interesting to look at the feelings around the twelve people who came to swim with the dolphins....they all had a very quiet, gentle, androgynous energy...and a true connection to Mom Earth. It was a wonderful encounter shared with equally wonderful people. And I'm sure you'll see dolphins showing up sooner or later in one of my books!


Everyone wanted to kiss Sandy! So did I. I mentally thanked her for her service to us humans. The trainer was saying that once people meet, see or watch a dolphin interaction (there was a huge crowd of people above watching the whole thing) that they see how beautiful and loving these dolphins are--they go out and buy dolphin-safe tuna. And, they also start taking up an interest in the health of our oceans and going green to keep it free of pollutants so it won't kill sea life. The dolphins, while in captivity, render a silent service to help humans understand them and the ocean at large. I thanked Sandy for her sacrifice to all of us so that we 'get it.' She's truly and wonderful ambassador of her nation. The dolphin nation.




In Spirit, Eileen
www.lindsaymckenna.com

Lindsay McKenna gives Elena Amell THE QUEST galley proof

Hi Everyone!


Today, I met Elena Amell. She is one my readers on the Lindsay McKenna list. (If you want to join my list, just go to: http://www.lindsaymckenna.com. In the tool bar, click on CONTACT. On this page on the right hand side about half way down is where you can put your email address and sign up. I give away galley proofs and oher goodies throughout the year. In order to play in the contest you must be a member of my list). I held a Christmas Day contest on the list. The prize was THE QUEST (Silhouette Nocturne, February 2008) galley proof. When an author receives the galley proof, one must read it very carefully. Often, my galley proofs are gone over with a red pen. These final corrections by the author are then sent in to the editor. The editor then makes sure these are made just before the book goes to print.

A galley proof is the last chance for the author to find any mistakes of any kind. It has already been thoroughly checked by a copy editor. And of course, the editor. There is a 3-way team work that goes on between the author, editor and copy editor to bring a book to press and then to the reader. Consequently, Elena will find a number of red pen edits on my galley proof.



I met her today at Coco’s in El Cajon, California. She lives in this wonderful city just outside of San Diego. It was nice meeting her and spending a good hour of chatting. I also signed her copy of DANGEROUS PREY, HQN, December, 2008. So, she walked out of Coco’s with an autographed book AND a galley proof!


Elena (on the right) receives the galley proof THE QUEST, from Lindsay McKenna

I wanted to share a photo of us. I’m on the left and Elena is on the right. Between us is the signed galley proof, THE QUEST. She was thrilled to receive it. Someday, it might be worth some money! Who knows? Elena had read THE QUEST, and this galley proof will go with the book. She has lots of true stories to tell her family now!
Warmly, Lindsay McKenna
www.lindsaymckenna.com

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