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Welcome to the Spring Fling Blog Hop happening March 20-23. For a full list of participants, visit Romance Blog Hops. There are over 100 blogs, so that means lots of great prizes at each stop so be sure to check them out!
Today, I've been thinking a lot about how I ended up as a romance author, meaning the books that influenced and inspired me to write. But more than that, these books inspired me to become a READER first. So, I've dug through my boxes of books that contain all of my keepers. Oh, I wish I had a room filled with shelves to display all these wonderful gems! I love to pull these books out and reminisce. It's like visiting old friends.
The first romance novel I ever read was The Romance of the Rose by Claire Delacroix. I bought it at the Hills Department store that was about a ten minute walk from my house. I can't remember exactly how old I was, somewhere between 12-15. It was after my mom died, which is one of the reasons I picked up this book.
My mother was an avid romance reader and I missed her so much. The only think I could thing of to be closer to her was to read a romance novel. It was something I'd seen her do for as long as I could remember. I used to tease her about the covers of the half-naked men and women (this was the '80s). She never hid the covers nor did she make any excuses for reading them. They were enjoyable stories. So enjoyable, she had a whole room devoted to her books. Yes, my mother had a library in our small four bedroom house. My father built the bookshelves and she filled them completely!
So, I wanted to share something with her since I missed her so much, but I never expected to become like her with my reading! I became addicted! Every week I'd check the store's shelves for more. But, it wasn't fast enough for me, so I subscribed to Harlequin Historicals to have the books delivered directly to my house. What a joy that was to receive that box of books each month! And so began my life as a romance reader. I love romance novels so much that now I write them!
And now, I can share my books with readers! If you're interested, you can find out more about my books here.
PRIZE:
I'm offering a
$10.00 Amazon Gift Certificate.
Just comment on this blog post to be eligible.
The winner will be picked at random.
Answer this:
What was the first romance novel you ever read?
Enter the Rafflecopter
to participate for one of the
GRAND PRIZES:
1 Kindle Fire (Donated by Blushing Books)
1 $75 Amazon (or B&N) Gift Card
1 $25 Starbucks Gift Card (Donated by Sue)
1 $25 Blushing Books Gift Card (Donated by Patty)
