Top Dealmaking Agents in Romance

Publishers Marketplace has put together a list of the top deal-making agents in the romance genre. This list draws on reports since the beginning of 2004. The agent names are organized according to the number of deals reported over the past 12 months.  

1.      Roberta Brown (Brown Literary Agency)

2.     Laura Bradford (Bradford Literary Agency)

3.     Kimberly Whalen (Trident Media Group)

4.     Natasha Kern (Natasha Kern Literary Agency)

5.     Kevan Lyon (Marsal Lyon Literary Agency)

6.     Sandra Bishop (MacGregor Literary)

7.     Chip MacGregor (MacGregor Literary)

8.     Jennifer Schober (Spencerhill Associates)

9.     Holly Root (Waxman Literary Agency)

10.   Melissa Jeglinski (The Knight Agency)

Down to the Wire...

Voting in Round Three of the Kensington Brava/RT Writing with the Stars contest is heating up. Voting ends this Sunday, Jan. 2. 

I am one of six remaining finalists in the national competition. The winner of the online voting contest will be published. But I can't get there without lots of support because I am up against some very talented writers.

If you enjoy this blog and would like to see it continue, please consider voting for my entry, Seducing Charlotte, a historical romance set against the backdrop of the dawning Industrial Revolution.  

For this challenge, I had to write a back-of-the-book blurb. Agent Kristin Nelson does an indepth critique of each entry that you might find interesting.

Click here to check out all of the entries. I promise voting is super quick and easy. You can click here, VOTE and be done in under a minute. No registration is required. Thank you!

Kindle is Bestselling Product in Amazon History

Amazon reports that the new model of the Kindle is the bestselling product in Amazon history - surpassing the seventh book in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was the most downloaded ebook on Christmas, and the most-gifted ebook.

Amazon does not release exact sales numbers but, according to Bloomberg,  unnamed insiders predict 8 million Kindles will be sold this year. That's at least 60 percent more than had been expected.

The newest Kindle launched earlier this year and is smaller, faster and cheaper - which could account for the brisk sales.

And Don't Forget...

Writing With the Stars Voting Continues!

Round Three of the Kensington Brava/RT Writing with the Stars contest is going on right now. Voting continues until January 2.

I am one of six remaining finalists in the national competition. The winner of the online voting contest will be published. But I can't get there without lots of support because I am up against some very talented writers.

For this challenge, I had to write a back-of-the-book blurb. Agent Kristin Nelson does an indepth critique of each entry that you might find interesting.

Click here to check out all of the entries. I hope you will consider voting for my manuscript, Seducing Charlotte, a historical romance set against the backdrop of the dawning Industrial Revolution.

I promise voting is super quick and easy. You can click in, vote and be done in under a minute. No registration is required. Thank you!

Top 10 Romance Books of 2010

Amazon has put out its Best 10 Romances for 2010. My personal favorite, Lisa Kleypas' Married by Morning made the list. Two of the selections, Married by Morning and Burning Lamp by Amanda Quick were also on Amazon's list of bestselling romance novels for 2010.

Here's the entire Top 10 as selected by the editors at Amazon:

Lady Isabella's Scandalous Marriage by Jennifer Ashely (tops the list) 

 A Hellion in Her Bed  by Sabrina Jeffries

Burning Up by Susan Anderson

Pleasure of a Dark Prince by Kresley Cole

Finding Perfect by Susan Mallery

Married by Morning by Lisa Kleypas 

Sin Undone by Larissa Ione

Burning Lamp by Amanda Quick

Ten Things I Love About You by Julia Quinn

The Summer Hideaway by Susan Wiggs

And Don't Forget...Writing With the Stars

Round Three of the Kensington Brava/RT Writing with the Stars contest is going on right now. Voting continues until January 2.

I am one of six remaining finalists in the national competition. The winner of the online voting contest will be published. But I can't get there without lots of support because I am up against some very talented writers.

For this challenge, I had to write a back-of-the-book blurb. Agent Kristin Nelson does an indepth critique of each entry that you might find interesting.

Click here to check out all of the entries. I hope you will consider voting for my manuscript, Seducing Charlotte, a historical romance set against the backdrop of the dawning Industrial Revolution.

I promise voting is super quick and easy. You can click in, vote and be done in under a minute. No registration is required. Thank you!

Brava Author's Blog

I am visiting over at the Brava Authors Blog today.

My mentor in the Writing with the Stars contest, Mary Wine, is kind enough to host me. Check it out by clicking here!

And remember, if you haven't voted in the Writing with the Stars contest, give it a look. Click here.

Look for my entry, Seducing Charlotte, a Regency set against the backdrop of the Industrial Revolution.  I hope you'll consider voting for me! 

Favorite Book of the Year

It's the end of the year - a time when everyone starts coming up with their "Best of" lists. I toyed with the idea of posting my very own "Best Romances of 2010" list but then decided I have not read widely enough to come up with a credible list.

However, there is one book I read this year that does stand out. It's Lisa Kleypas' Married by Morning. The New York Times Bestseller is Book Four in the Hathaway series. I've enjoyed the entire series but there is something extra special about this one.

Everyone loves governess Catherine Marks, who has become like one of the family.  Except Lord Leo Ramsey, who feels she is not the best influence on his sisters. But Leo's got bigger problems. He must marry and produce an heir or lose the family estate.

The verbal sparring between Leo and Catherine is clever, witty and humorous. It also highlights the sparks raging between these two characters, who have always shared an antagonistic relationship.

As a hero, Leo stands out for his obvious intelligence, devilish wit and devotion to his sisters. He came across as maudlin in some of the earlier Hathaway books but truly comes into his own in Married by Morning.  He's everything a romance hero should be: smart, sexy and charmingly self-deprecating.

Catherine is more than his match. Sharp tongued and quick minded, she is the rare romance heroine who truly cannot see without her glasses -  so much so that the spectacles are almost a minor character in the book. That vulnerability makes Catherine supremely human - and all the more likable because of it.

As with any Lisa Kleypas novel,  Married by Morning is beautiful written and absent of cliches. Kleypas has created memorable characters and a clever book that sparkles and will leave you smiling.    


Writing With the Stars

Round Three of the Kensington Brava/RT Writing with the Stars contest is going on right now.

I am one of six remaining finalists in the national competition. The winner of the online voting contest will be published. But I can't get there without lots of support because I am up against some very talented writers.

For this challenge, I had to write a back-of-the-book blurb. Agent Kristin Nelson does an indepth critique of each entry that you might find interesting.

Click here to check out all of the entries. I hope you will consider voting for my manuscript, Seducing Charlotte, a historical romance set against the backdrop of the dawning Industrial Revolution.

I promise voting is super quick and easy. You can click in, vote and be done in under a minute. No registration is required. Thank you!

Crazy for the Kindle - Amazon Sells Millions

Kindle sales are skyrocketing, according to the latest word from Amazon.

In a letter to Kindle customers posted on its discussion boards, Amazon reports it has sold more of the newest version of the e-reader in the last 73 days than in all of 2009.

While not releasing exact numbers, Amazon also reports that the Kindle is far and away its bestselling gift item.

I'm one of those people who purchased a Kindle in the last couple of months. (OK, technically my husband bought it - for my birthday last month.)

I am a fan although I don't think I will ever completely give up "real" books. Instead of replacing the paper books, I see the Kindle as a nice complement to them.

For one thing, I am a little put off by the price of ebooks. They cost about the same price as paper books. As I've noted before, it has got to be cheaper to produce ebooks, doesn' it? I can't bring myself to pay full price for an ebook. If I am going to pay $7 or $8 for a new release, I'll still buy the paper version - at least for now.

The Kindle store is great for buying older books - especially ones you can't find in the bookstores - which often cost about $4 or less. All of the classics are free, so that's nice.

There are sometimes excellent deals on ebooks from debut authors. I just purchased Grace Burrowes new release The Heir  for $2.39. For those of who follow RWA chapter contests, Burrowes finaled in a ton of contests under the name Patricia Patton. It's exciting to see that she is now being published. I look forward to reading her debut novel!

Writing With the Stars

Round Three of the Kensington Brava/RT Writing with the Stars contest is going on right now.

I am one of six remaining finalists in the national competition. The winner of the online voting contest will be published. But I can't get there without lots of support because I am up against some very talented writers.

For this challenge, I had to write a back-of-the-book blurb. Agent Kristin Nelson does an indepth critique of each entry that you might find interesting.

Click here to check out all of the entries. I hope you will consider voting for my manuscript, Seducing Charlotte, a historical romance set against the backdrop of the dawning Industrial Revolution.

I promise voting is super quick and easy. You can click in, vote and be done in under a minute. No registration is required. Thank you!

Round 3 - Writing With the Stars

Exciting news! RT Book Reviews magazine officially announced today that I am one of six remaining finalists in Kensington Brava/RT's Writing with the Stars contest.

That means I managed to garner enough online votes to make it through the first two rounds of competition. Thanks to all of you who voted. I could not have made it this far without your support.

Voting is now open for Round Three. For this challenge, I had to write a back-of-the-book blurb. Anyone who has tried it, knows blurbs can be a real challenge. Agent Kristen Nelson is the "celebrity" judge for this round. She gives a detailed, indepth critique of each entry that you might find interesting and instructive. Check it out!

I hope you will consider voting for me. It's super fast and easy. Just CLICK HERE, scroll down to the bottom and vote. It takes less than a minute. Let me know what you think. I'd love to hear from you.

Thanks for your support!  

Lusty Tales and Sizzling Sales - Romance Thrives in Ebook Form

The New York Times reports that romance is now the fastest-growing segment of the e-reading market, ahead of general fiction, mystery and science fiction. That's according to Bowker, a research organization for the publishing industry.
 

Cover too racy? Get the ebook!

The front-page article by Julie Bosman suggests romance readers are partly attracted to the fact that e-books provide an escape from embarrassing racy covers.

I must admit I'm kind of liking that aspect of e-books. I am one of those readers who gets a little red-faced when someone spots the cover of the latest romance I'm devouring on the train or bus.

The good news for readers is that publishing houses are rushing to respond to e-book demand by making backlists more available in electronic form. Since receiving my Kindle in November, I've purchased a number of older books by my favorite authors, titles that I have not seen in the stores. I've noticed the older titles also tend to be cheaper, which is another bonus.

Here's the complete NYT article: Lusty Tales and Hot Sales: Romance Novels Thrive as E-books

The Wild Marquis

I love discovering a new (to me) author. It happened last week when I had the pleasure of reading The Wild Marquis by Miranda Neville.

The book is far more nuanced and intelligent than its cover might suggest. The heroine is truly original, which is not always easy to find in historical romance. In this case, Juliana Merton is a seller of rare books and much of the secondary plot revolves around the buying and selling of the tomes.

The author, who is English, spent several years writing catalogues of rare books and manuscripts for Sotheby's auction house in London and New York. That real-life experience lends authenticity and depth to The Wild Marquis which is probably one of the reasons I enjoyed it so much.

The love story is mature and appealing - while a mystery is resolved in a satisfying way. If you are looking for something to read, you can't go wrong with The Wild Marquis.