TKA Serials: Maria Geraci's THE BOYFRIEND OF THE MONTH CLUB
Today our TKA serial post is hosted by romantic women’s fiction author, Maria Geraci. Her third novel, THE BOYFRIEND OF THE MONTH CLUB, comes out December 7, 2010. Enjoy her excerpt below. You can find out more about her books at http://www.mariageraci.com/.
CHAPTER ONE -- The Ghost of Boyfriends Past
Grace O’Bryan didn’t believe in ghosts. She also didn’t believe in witches, vampires, love at first sight, that there was anything real about reality TV, or the ridiculous claim that you could lose ten pounds on the three-day cabbage soup diet (she’d tried it twice). If you couldn’t see it, feel it, touch it, or taste it, then in all likelihood it didn’t exist. Which made for some very practical thinking on Grace’s part. Except for the one ripple in the otherwise smooth seas of her personal logic. Like her abuela Graciela—the Cuban grandmother Grace was named after—what she did believe in was curses.
How else could you explain tonight?
She had waited a whopping two months for Brandon Farrell to ask her out, only to wake up this morning on her period. Not that that in itself was a problem. She wasn’t a have-sex-on-the-first-date kind of girl. Nor did she suffer from bad cramps. But she’d also woken up five pounds heavier than she’d been last night (maybe she should have given the cabbage soup diet one more try). So instead of the outfit she’d planned on wearing, she’d ended up borrowing her best friend Sarah’s little black dress. Sarah had excellent taste in clothes—the dress was a winning combination of elegant yet discreetly sexy. Sarah was also a size larger than Grace, and the dress had fit perfectly. At least it had fit perfectly back at Grace’s town house. It wasn’t until Grace had folded herself into her tiny red VW Bug that she’d noticed the dress was a tad too short.
And now, thanks to some heavier than average Saturday evening Daytona Beach traffic, she was late for her date. She tugged on the hem of Sarah’s dress and opened the door to the city’s newest, most exclusive restaurant, Chez Louis, only to find herself nose to aquiline nose with Felix Barberi.
Grace sucked in a breath. It was a Dickensian nightmare. Too bad the man standing in front of her was one hundred percent real. Grace might not subscribe to love at first sight, but substitute lust for love, and in Felix’s case she’d been a firm believer.
At first, Felix had been incredibly charming, despite his annoying habit of wanting to make out to Celine Dion’s number one hit, “My Heart Will Go On.” But Felix worked in the restaurant business and the brutal hours had strained their relationship and tarnished his charm. The ultimate strain had come when Grace had returned early from a business trip to surprise Felix on Valentine’s Day. She’d gone to his apartment with a bottle of red wine and a pepperoni and anchovy pizza, only to catch Felix going at it with a dancer from the Topless-a-Go-Go.
Grace didn’t know which was worse: the fact that Felix had cheated, or that the someone he had cheated with had a rack that must have cost six months’ worth of lap dances. The incident had confirmed however that the St. Valentine’s Day Curse was alive and well. Read more »
Countdown to Turkey Day with The Knight Agency: Maria Geraci
UPDATE: The winner of THE BOYFRIEND OF THE MONTH CLUB by Maria Geraci is Sara! Congrats! Please send your physical addy to Contests(AT)KnightAgency.net.
Today Maria Geraci, author of the upcoming release THE BOYFRIEND OF THE MONTH CLUB, as well as THE BUNCO BABES TELL ALL and THE BUNCO BABES GONE WILD, helps us continue our countdown to Turkey Day with a fun Q&A post about Thanksgiving traditions at her house. She also graciously agreed to take a Thanksgiving quiz to see if she was smarter than a 5th grader. See her results below. :-)
To win a copy of THE BOYFRIEND OF THE MONTH CLUB, leave a comment. The winner will randomly drawn and announced tomorrow morning.
1. Who’s in charge of carving the turkey at your house?That would be my husband, Mike Geraci (I have a strange habit of using his full name when referring to him). I clean the turkey, stuff it, and cook it. He carves it and then takes all the credit!
2. Name one thing you usually only eat at Thanksgiving that you wish you could have every day. Oh my God. Years ago, I found this great vegetable medley recipe. You take a large bag of frozen vegetables (carrots, cauliflower, and broccoli). Dump it in a casserole dish. Add 1 can of Durkee’s fried onion rings (reserve a small amount of onion rings for topping), 1 small jar of chopped pimentos, 1 can of cream of mushroom soup, 4 ounces of sour cream, shredded Swiss cheese (about 6 ounces) and mix it all together. Add pepper to taste. Place in a 350 degree oven for about 30-40 minutes until bubbling hot. In the last 10-15 minutes of cooking, you can sprinkle the top with the rest of the fried onion rings and some more cheese if you want.
My kids absolutely love this stuff. I only make it on the holidays because I don’t want to know how many calories are in it!
3. What is your fondest or funniest Thanksgiving memory? Probably the Thanksgiving I was still in college and couldn’t go home because I was working a part time job and had to work the Friday morning after the holiday, so I was really bummed. My parents surprised me and drove up to school (a 5 hour trip) with a complete meal. We had Thanksgiving dinner, just the 3 of us, in my little apartment!
4. How would the main character in THE BOYFRIEND OF THE MONTH CLUB celebrate the holiday?Funny you should ask, because this scene actually happens in the book! Grace begins Thanksgiving day with her family by keeping their years long tradition of watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade on television. Her brother Charlie (who’s a main secondary character in the book) misses it because he’s working, which causes some tension between them. Then her mother and her abuela go out power shopping, while Grace decorates their artificial Christmas tree and Grace’s dad (Pop) and Charlie decorate the house Clark Griswald style (think National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation movie.)
5. Are you smarter than a 5th grader? The following quiz was created for elementary school kids. Take the test, and share your score – and elaborate on why you think you are a Thanksgiving whiz or maybe why social studies was never your strongest subject.
1. What year did the Pilgrim first celebrate Thanksgiving?
a) 1521
b) 1621 (correct answer)
c) 1721
d) 1821
Yay! I got this right. Maybe I am smarter than a 5th grader!
2. How long did the first Thanksgiving celebration last?
a) 1 day
b) 2 days
c) 3 days (correct answer)
d) 4 days
Oops! So the right answer is 3 days and not 4. But… If I was one of those pilgrims, we’d definitely be celebrating as long as we could. I mean, I’d take any chance to break away from milking cows and tending crops and cleaning and the other multitude of chores I’m sure women did back then. Wouldn’t you?
3. Which president established Thanksgiving as the last Thursday in November?
a) Abraham Lincoln (correct answer)
b) Andrew Johnson c) Franklin Roosevelt
d) George Washington
Abraham Lincoln? Are you sure? I’m pretty positive they didn’t teach this back in my 5th grade.
4. Where was the first Thanksgiving celebrated? a) Mayflower b) Plymouth (correct answer)
c) Springfield
d) Boston
Yay!
5. Wild turkeys can NOT fly.
a) True
b) False (correct answer)
This is a perfect example of a trick question. Of course, I got this right, but still…
What a fun quiz! I love Thanksgiving! There’s no pressure to buy or give presents. Just good food, surrounded by family and friends and the knowledge that I’ve made it one more year on this planet with the opportunity to give thanks for all the wonderful things I’ve been given. This past year, I’ve had several friends diagnosed with different medical problems. Thankfully, everyone is doing well and fighting their hardest to keep healthy. It makes me doubly thankful that my husband and kids are healthy and safe and that we have a roof over our heads and food on our table. You really can’t ask for more in life than that.
I’m also extremely grateful to have a new book coming out next month. It’s called THE BOYFRIEND OF THE MONTH CLUB and it’s a romantic comedy about a woman who turns her dysfunctional book club into a boyfriend club, where women come together to discuss the men they’ve dated, comparing them to classic literary heroes and villains.
It’s getting some great advance reviews. Publishers’s Weekly says, “Geraci (BUNCO BABES TELL ALL) fills the fluffy but enjoyable story with literary references, and her leading lady is endearingly flawed. Romance readers will revel in the Austen-perfect happy ending and the warm friendship among members of the club.”
I’d love to give away a copy of the book to one commenter (will be mailed out the first week of December- perfect for your holiday reading!)
Thanks TKA!
Maria Geraci writes fun, romantic women’s fiction. Her third novel, THE BOYFRIEND OF THE MONTH CLUB, comes out December 7, 2010, in trade paperback, from Berkley, Penguin, USA. Please visit her website at www.mariageraci.com for more information on her books.
Guest Blog: Maria Geraci Celebrates New Release with a $50 Borders Card Giveaway!
Are you a Kitty? A Shea? Or maybe even a Pilar? Find out which Bunco Babe you most resemble and enter to win a chance for an autographed copy of BUNCO BABES TELL ALL and a $50 gift certificate to Borders.
I’m excited to announce that my second Bunco Babes book, BUNCO BABES GONE WILD, is just a few weeks away from release!
Here's the cover blurb: Georgia Meyer needs some time to think-and what better place to get her head on straight than Whispering Bay, Florida, in the company of her sister Frida and her sister's Bunco-playing friends, aka the Bunco Babes? Georgia's boyfriend-and boss-Spencer Moody made a slight miscalculation in the romance department and gave her a calculator instead of an engagement ring. So she needs some sisterly advice, in between rolling dice and drinking frozen margaritas, as to her next move. While considering subtracting Spencer from her life, Georgia meets the very handsome Dave Hernandez. Unfortunately when a Bunco night gets a little out of hand, Georgia reveals more of herself to Dave than she intended. Now, as she helps the Babes prepare for a Bunco Black Tie fundraiser, she needs to search her heart-and keep her shirt on-long enough to decide if a love affair with Dave might be a dream come true.
“This light escapist fare continues the adventures that began with Bunco Babes Tell All. It's entertaining, amusing, and conveys the idea that whatever else is going on in a woman's life, good or bad, it's wonderful to have a group of friends to share it all with.” 4 stars, Romantic Times Book Club Reviews
“Geraci’s sexy, funny debut is an emotionally satisfying story of love, friendship, family and community.” The Chicago Tribune on BUNCO BABES TELL ALL
In order to celebrate my new release, I’m a running a contest on my website. All you have to do is take the quizthen follow the instructions at the bottom of the page. It’s simple. And fun! Plus, I know you’re dying to find out whether (as Steve, my hero from BUNCO BABES TELL ALL, says) you’re the nice one, the hot one or the sharp one!
Guestblogger Maria Geraci: How To Get Published - TKA Style
UPDATE: The winner of five signed books by TKA authors is Sherry Ficklin! Please email your physical address to contests @ knightagency.net (remove spaces). Congrats!!!
This past weekend 5 TKA authors, Jennifer St. Giles, Shannon K. Butcher, Debby Giutsi, Deidre Knightand myself, Maria Geraci, had the opportunity to go on a little road trip. We hit 4 different book stores in less than 3 days and met some of the nicest people in the Atlanta area! At three of the signings we did a Q & A session on how to get published.
Left to Right: Jennifer St. Giles, Deidre Knight, Debby Giusti, Shannon K. Butcher, Maria Geraci
Here’s a sample of our more frequently asked questions and how we answered them.
How did you get an agent? (this was asked a lot!) Of course, the answer to this question was different for everyone, but one common theme was that networking was very important. Organizations like Romance Writers of America and other writing organizations are good venues for meeting other writers and professionals in the business. Meeting agents at conferences and attending workshop panels featuring agents, is one way you can gauge if an agent might be the right one for you. Once you’ve established a list of agents that you’d like to work with, a killer query, and of course, a good book are essential elements. One point that Deidre made was that as a new writer, you should have a completed manuscript to query. As an agent, there’s nothing more frustrating than to get excited over a good query and a promising partial, only to request the full and find out that the book isn’t written yet. Also, be sure to check the submission guidelines for each agency and stick to the rules. For instance, if the guidelines for an agency say only email queries accepted, don’t send a copy of your manuscript via snail mail. A simple thing like following directions (or not following directions) can make a good (or not so good) first impression.
Where do you get your ideas from? Most everyone on the panel said that dreams, day dreams, and vivid imaginations all play major roles in formulating ideas. As writers, we tend to be big “what if?” people. We see a curious headline or hear about a new scientific discovery and immediately the “what if?” gene kicks in. People watching is a big idea stimulator too. Personally, I love to observe people when they think I’m not looking. So maybe a little voyeurism plays into it as well!
What’s your writing schedule like and how long does it take you write a book? Our answers to this varied from 6 weeks to almost a year (depending on the size of the book). Some of us (like Shannon ) can sit at the computer for hours ( 8-10 hours at a time!) and keep pounding at the keyboard, while Debby writes at intervals during the day, interspersing chores like cooking dinner, and promotion time with her writing. One thing we all agreed was that while writing a book, daily writing (if possible) is the key to to staying on schedule. The longer you’re away from a project, the longer it takes to catch up.
Is the current economic climate keeping publishers from buying? (this one was answered by Deidre, I’m paraphrasing here, but this is her basic response). A few months ago it seemed that Publishers Weekly was beginning each day with a similar headline, “Black Monday- Big layoff at xyz publishers!” For a while, publishing was in a tailspin and there’s no doubt that people were getting laid off and restructuring took place in a lot of publishing houses. However, as seen by recent news coverage, romance book sales are actually on the rise! In tough economic times, people are finding that escapism is a good way to deal with their stress, so right now, there’s a lot to be optimistic about and book deals are happening.
After all was said and done, a good time was had by all. Books were signed and sold, new friendships were made, and maybe we inspired a few writers out there!
I’m offering an autographed copy of each of our newest releases to one random lucky winner. Just leave a comment and you might find the following books in your beach bag this summer!
It’s a regular smorgasbord of reading! Leave a comment to enter Maria's AMAGING giveaway for ALL five of these signed books! The contest is open from Friday, June 12th to midnight Sunday, June 14th. The winner will be announced Monday morning. Good luck!
Atlanta Listen Up! The Knight Agency is on the road this weekend, and we're coming to a bookstore near you!!
If you are going to be in the Atlanta area THIS WEEKEND, you don't want to miss the fabulous signing events that we are planning beginning June 5th!! The tour line-up includes Deidre Knight, an award-winning paranormal romance author who is also president of The Knight Agency, along with USA Today bestselling author Jennifer St. Giles, Debby Giusti, Shannon K. Butcher and debut author Maria Geraci!
This is not your ordinary book signing. Three of the events will feature a "How To Get Published Q&A," followed by a one-on-one meet and greet with the authors during the signing portion. See details below!
1--Borders at Stonecrest Mall in Lithonia – June 5th, 5pm ET 8000 Mall Parkway, Lithonia, GA 30038
2--Books For Less in Buford – June 6th, 1pm ET* 2815 Buford Dr, Buford, GA 30519
3--Dog Ear Bookstore in Madison – June 6th, 5pm ET** 142 Academy Street; Madison, GA 30650
4--Borders in Athens – June 7th, 2pm ET 196 Alps Road, Athens, GA 30606
If you have any questions, please direct them to info @ knightagency.net (remove spaces).
*Debby Giusti will not appear at the Books For Less event. **The Madison signing will not include a Q&A session.
Knight Agency Book Signing Summer Tour Extravaganza!!
If you are going to be in the Atlanta area in early June, you don't want to miss the fabulous signing events that we are planning beginning June 5th!! The tour line-up includes Deidre Knight, an award-winning paranormal romance author who is also president of The Knight Agency, along with USA Today bestselling author Jennifer St. Giles, Debby Giusti, Shannon K. Butcher and debut author Maria Geraci!
This is not your ordinary book signing. Three of the events will feature a "How To Get Published Q&A," followed by a one-on-one meet and greet with the authors during the signing portion. See details below!
The Knight Agency Presents: How To Get Published Q&A and Book Signing Instead of lounging during the lazy days of summer, now is the time to reach for that dusty manuscript or half-written chapter and get to work!
The journey from manuscript to published novel can be difficult to navigate, and we know you must wonder what it's like when you finally land that elusive contract. Why don't you give yourself an edge? Ask national bestselling authors represented by one of the region's top literary agencies about their adventures in the publishing business. Our experienced panel has been there and can answer all your burning questions about making waves in the often times intimidating publishing pond. The panelists will include award-winning paranormal romance author, Deidre Knight, who has sold numerous titles to top-tier publishing houses as president of the agency, along with an all star line-up including USA Today bestselling author Jennifer St. Giles, Maria Geraci, Debby Giusti and Shannon K. Butcher. These authors have released titles through major houses such as Simon & Schuster, Penguin and Harlequin.
Meet the authors in person at the book signing following the Q&A portion.
1--Borders at Stonecrest Mall in Lithonia – June 5th, 5pm ET 8000 Mall Parkway, Lithonia, GA 30038
2--Books For Less in Buford – June 6th, 1pm ET* 2815 Buford Dr, Buford, GA 30519
3--Dog Ear Bookstore in Madison – June 6th, 5pm ET** 142 Academy Street; Madison, GA 30650
4--Borders in Athens – June 7th, 2pm ET 196 Alps Road, Athens, GA 30606
If you have any questions, please direct them to info @ knightagency.net (remove spaces). *Debby Giusti will not appear at the Books For Less event. *The Madison signing will not include a Q&A session.
UPDATE: This contest is now closed. Congrats to Estela!Please email your physical address to mariageraci1(at)gmail(dot)com.
Got Bunco?
When I first came up with my idea for a story involving a group of women who played Bunco, I really had no notion where I was going to take it. Romance? Women's fiction? (For those of you who might not know what Bunco is, let me quote one of the characters from my book. As Shea says, "It's a dice game. A REALLY fun dice game.") Writing about a group of women who meet regularly to roll the dice, drink frozen margaritas, and gossip, seemed like a natural recipe for women's fiction. But I knew I wanted a strong romance in the stories. The kind of romance that I enjoyed reading- fun and sexy with a mouth watering hero and a happily-ever-after ending. The kind that left you feeling upbeat and happy. Sort of like the feeling I get when I play Bunco.
Bunco has been a part of my life since I first began playing it back in 1992 when I lived in Austin, Texas. It was a way to socialize with other women, laugh, and let your hair down. And there were also prizes. Think of a guy's poker night, except with the occasional exchange of recipes.
Over the years, I've played in several Bunco groups. None more near and dear to me than my current group, The Bunco Broads of Tallahassee. We've been together now for 10 years. We meet on the first Wednesday of every month and most times there is a "theme." February's theme is usually Valentine's Day or Mardi Gras, depending on who hosts. In years past, February prizes have included "couples" gifts- like gift certificates to restaurants or movies or Victoria's Secret.Last Wednesday, my group met at Cheryl's house. Cheryl is from New Orleans, so whenever we do February Bunco at her house, there is no question of the theme. It's Mardi Gras all the way!
But I digress... Back to that romance. I'm a firm believer that women need other women in their lives. They need to laugh and engage in the kind of mindless socialization that takes them away from the pressures of everyday living- If only for a few hours every month. For me, playing Bunco is like reading a good romance novel. There's nothing like pure escapism to warm the soul. Or the love life.
Finding romance for Kitty Burke, the main character in my first Bunco book BUNCO BABES TELL ALL hasn't been easy. Kitty's convinced that all she needs is her friends to make her happy. It's going to take a little shaking up (and a hot new guy in town) for Kitty to realize that woman cannot live by Bunco alone. To celebrate my new web site I'm running a contest. Go to www.mariageraci.com and take a sneak peak at the excerpt to BUNCO BABES TELL ALL. Tell me who Kitty's idea of the perfect man is and you can win a $25 gift certificate to Victoria's Secret. Leave your answer in the comment section right here. I'll close it off on midnight, Friday and randomly select from the correct answers. Good Luck and Happy Bunco-ing!
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