HelenKay Dimon

I have some fun news to share. My short story, A PROPER SEDUCTION, is a finalist in the 2011 Epic Contest, in the contemporary erotic romance category. Wahoo!!! This is a huge thrill because this was my first e-short and it has one of those heroes I just plain love. He’s not perfect. Ho boy, no. But there’s something about him that makes this story really special to me.

Don’t get even. Get everything…

Even before her bad marriage ended, Lauren MacDonald lost everything—her job, her friends, her self-esteem, and her sexual appetite. Now that she’s finally free, she’s struggling to regain control of a life her ex did his best to destroy.

The plan: sex with Justin Scott, her ex’s business partner. The man her husband invited into their marital bed, forcing her to realize it was time to get out. Justin was the star of the fantasies that helped her endure her marriage, so she can’t deny she wanted him—but not like that. She wants him like this—alone. In her bed. For exactly three nights.

Justin screwed up with Lauren, and in the past she’s made no secret of the fact she loathes him. So when she walks into his office flashing miles of long, lean legs, his brain cells misfire. Three nights of meaningless sex? He’s all over it. Not only does he have the chance to unleash his desire for her, it’s the opening he’s been waiting for—to convince her to give him more.

Thank you to all who tried this book and to all who voted to make it a finalist!!

Yes, this is one of those blog posts. The type where I talk up my new release, IMPULSIVE. My apologies to people who hate that but, well, where else can I talk up my book?

Lori at I Just Finished Reading… and Wendy the Super Librarian posted lovely reviews of IMPULSIVE. Pearl’s World of Romance has a terrific review, the type that makes me weepy. Laurie Laudanum also posted a fabulous review and – here’s why you take the time to read these posts to find a gem like this – is holding a contest for a copy of the book.

I am a guest blogger at Novel Thoughts today and there’s another awesome giveaway there.

Kim at the SOS Aloha Blog is also giving away a copy of IMPULSIVE. I met Kim in Hawaii earlier this year. She, along with her local RWA Chapter and readers’ group, were so welcoming. Yet another reason to go to Hawaii.

I was a guest on Blog Talk Radio last night and you can read the transcript here.

Whew! I know I’m missing one, but this will give you some thoughts on the book. Read the reviews…then go buy the book.

[Note the author begging here]

IMPUSLIVE is officially out!!

You can buy it almost anywhere. But just in case you’re not sure, here’s some help:

Barnes and Noble
Books A Million
Amazon
Chapters (for my Canada friends)
Borders
Powell’s

Now run out and buy it…

Here is the official unveiling of VICTORIA’S GOT A SECRET, my March 2011 release:

The title, the cover – all perfect!!

By now you’ve heard that Brava (the imprint that publishes my contemporaries) has been running the Writing With The Stars contest. For the first part, people were invited to submit manuscripts. Kensington editors Megan Records and Alicia Condon picked their top ten favorites. That was a huge accomplishment on its own, but now those finalists have moved to the next part of the contest. Excerpts of their work are posted at Romantic Times and people get to vote on their favorites. Frankly, it’s really hard to put your work out there and then sit back and read what people say without being able to argue. Authors have to get used to the feeling, but it takes some time.

I was lucky enough to work with one of the contest finalists, Alannah Lynne, as her contest mentor. She’s terrific – very talented and professional and super nice. I wanted you to all meet her. Here she is!
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It’s not what’s taught, but what’s caught

On the Brava author blog last week, I talked about a few of the things I’d learned from the Writing With the Stars Competition. This past weekend, I realized I’m not the only one who learned a few valuable lessons.

For years, I was a Mary Kay lady. Not a very good one, sales really aren’t my thing. But I wouldn’t trade the years I spent toting my little pink bag around for anything. Not only did I learn how to match foundation and apply eye shadow (something I rarely do), I learned a lot about being a wife and mother. Mary Kay Ash was a brilliant woman, and if you’ve never read her books, I strongly suggest it.

One of the things Mary Kay often spoke about was the influence we have on our children, and the things they learn by watching us strive to reach our goals. She’d say, “It’s not what’s taught, it’s what’s caught.”

My oldest son is a musician, currently in school studying audio production and engineering and writing his own music. He has enough songs for a mini-album, and by the time he graduates in March, he hopes to have enough for a full-length.
This past weekend, he gave me the highest compliment I can imagine receiving. In talking about his career, and some of the doubts and fears he’s having about himself, he said, “Mom, you are my inspiration. Every time I’m at the house, you’re sitting at your desk, on the computer, working on your writing. You’re dedicated, and you work hard. And you keep me inspired to keep going, too.”

Wow!

Mary Kay Ash was right. I never could have taught that. But in watching me strive to reach my goals of being a published author, my son has “caught” what it takes to make his own goals a reality. Just for the record, that goes both ways. He keeps me inspired too.

What about you. Have your kids ever said something that let you know they were watching? And it doesn’t have to be as profound as what my son said. It could be along the lines of what my youngest said after missing a shot on the pool table. The word that came out of his little four-year-old mouth told me he’d definitely been paying attention when the big people were playing pool. LOL

P.S. from HelenKay… go read Alannah’s excerpts and vote here.

My November release,IMPULSIVE, is set in Hawaii. Have I mentioned that, like, 4,000 times? Yeah, sorry about that. But since I have so many Hawaii photos and have a book set in Hawaii (five of them, actually) and since I’m posting photos on Mondays, it seemed logical to blend all those things.

We normally stay with my in-laws when we visit Oahu, Hawaii. The last two times we’ve splurged and stayed at a hotel for part of the trip. Being at a hotel rather than a house was a different experience. My favorite part? The balcony…the ocean view…the walk to all the shops in Waikiki…the Starbucks in the lobby…it’s hard to decide.

Here’s the view to the right:

And to the left:

Pretty no matter where you look.

Today’s topic is in-between. Admittedly, I’m not 100% sure I know what that means. I’m thinking it’s about the love that comes after your first love but before your happily ever after. I have the perfect twosome for this – Eric Kimura and Deana Armstrong. Deana is the heroine in HOLDING OUT FOR A HERO and Eric is the hero in my upcoming release, IMPULSIVE. They don’t end up together and shouldn’t, but boy do they have a history.

“I do have to be careful in public.” Eric’s hands eased up until his fingers dipped under Katie’s hair to massage her neck.

“At places like your ex’s wedding.”

The gentle kneading slowed. “You do know everything, don’t you?”

“The entire island knows about that romance. You looked perfect together on the outside and then the unspeakable happened. Most people thought you got screwed in the process.”

Then his hands were gone. “Like you said, things happened.”

Katie wasn’t letting go that easily. Wrapping her hands around his neck, she leaned in close. “Can I ask you something?”

“The conversation can’t go worse, so shoot.”

“Sure it could.”

He rolled his eyes. “Now there’s some bad news.”

“Why did you go? Why put yourself through that?” She waited to feel his touch against her somewhere – anywhere – but it never came. “I mean, I’m assuming that’s why you ended up with me. You were upset at seeing Deana and then this woman you didn’t know crossed your path. You needed to feel something and there I was.”

“I’m not sure if that is less flattering to you or to me.”

“Probably me, but answer the question.”

He exhaled a long agonizing breath. “I needed to prove that I could.”

“Have sex?”

He didn’t even blink. “Stand there on that perfect day, in that incredible oceanfront spot, and watch Deana marry Josh.”

Since he gave an honest answer, Katie finally broke her hold on him and let her fingers slide down to his shoulders then to his waist. “That’s a tough test of personal courage. What if you couldn’t stand it?”

“I did.”

“Or was the real point to make your head and your heart face it?”

“Pretty much.” He grabbed her hands and pulled them away from his body. The only good thing was that he didn’t let go. His warm fingers entangled with hers even as their bodies broke apart. “I’m not stuck on Deana. I’m not using sex with you as some sort of antidote.”

“You sure?”

“Positive.” He brought their bound hands to his lips and kissed her palm.

The sweet gesture sent Katie’s hormones racing. “You really don’t have a condom on you anywhere?”

“No.”

“That’s a shame.”

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Don’t forget to check out the other Snippet blogs:

Lauren Dane
Mari Carr
McKenna Jeffries
Shelley Munro
Taige Crenshaw
Vivian Arend
Ashley Ladd
Lissa Matthews

About a billion years ago – okay, five – I was an unpublished writer who got a break. NYT bestselling author Lori Foster ran a contest on her website. You submitted three pages and she picked her 20 favorites and sent them to her editor, Kate Duffy. It was a tremendous opportunity and one for which I am eternally grateful. Thanks to the contest, I caught Kate’s attention and she eventually bought my books…and then she bought seven single titles and nine novellas. I miss her every day but will always appreciate having worked with her.

So when Brava announced that it was doing a Writing With The Stars Contest, I volunteered to help out and acted as a mentor to Alannah Lynne. Frankly, she didn’t need me. She’s very talented. She’s also very charming and hardworking. I was impressed with her throughout the entire process and am cheering her on to get a Brava publishing contract.

Alannah is blogging at the Brava Authors Blog today. Please go say hello. Also, go vote for her here.

My next book, IMPULSIVE, officially releases on October 26th. I just read a lovely review of it from Booklist. Check it out:

Katie has a history of making self-destructive mistakes. After her parents’ death, she ran away from her sister and lived on the beach with the wrong crowd until a drug charge sent her back to her sister and niece in Honolulu, where she works for her sister’s catering business. Katie’s latest bad decision is to accept money to spy on Eric Kamura, a prominent prosecutor running for district attorney, while she serves food at his ex-girlfriend’s wedding. Drawn to the handsome attorney, she ends up locked up with him in the bathroom for an intimate interlude. This does not go unnoticed by Eric’s campaign, but he cannot seem to give Katie up. Katie refuses to do any more spying, believing that there is more than sex involved in their relationship, but can’t prevent further revelations that damage Eric’s career. Dimon gives her readers a sizzling, sex-filled romp that reverses roles as the good guy reforms the “bad” girl to everyone’s delight. –Patty Engelmann

Thank you Patty Engelmann and Booklist!

While writing IMPULSIVE I spent some time looking through photos of our trips to Hawaii. This one brought back interesting memories. That’s Diamond Head, the dormant crater in Honolulu, and all the expensive real estate right around it. We are on a boat looking back at land.

Sounds like fun, doesn’t it? Yeah, it was until I started throwing up. It is now clear I have a sea sickness issue. Be happy you weren’t there to witness the fun. But let’s focus on the photo instead of that, shall we? I like this one because it’s cloudy and overcast. Gives the island a bit of a spooky feel.