SALE! Covert Exposure, a Nick Spinelli Mystery is on sale for a limited time for just $.99!

Yes, you heard correctly, my publisher has reduced the price of Covert Exposure to just $.99 for a limited time so nab your copy now!

Blurb:

Detective Spinelli’s life is tossed sideways when he is reassigned from the Homicide division to assist in the Child Services division of the Social Services Department for the holiday season. From the beginning, Spinelli and Caseworker Shannon O’Hara generate their own kind of fireworks, causing more than the normal workplace stress. They both have their own philosophies for dealing with the clientele. However, the forces of nature have their own plan for Spinelli and Shannon.

Shannon moonlights as Santa Claus’ little helper at the mall, and when Santa and an elf turn up dead Shannon appears to be next on the killer’s list. Spinelli is placed back on homicide and goes undercover as Santa to help capture the killer. He catches a great deal of grief along the way but will he capture the heart of his little Santa’s helper as well?

Reviews:

Booklover – I adore the characters. Nick is a sweetheart, has a smile to die for, and a soft spot for Shannon. His sense of humor is off the charts, even when he’s in trouble with his boss. If he weren’t so good at his job, she’d probably fire him for insubordination. Shannon has a tough job and a soft heart. She knows there are children that absolutely need to be removed from their parents’ care for one reason or another, but it breaks her heart when she has to.

Bookmaven623 – I really enjoyed this book. Spinelli was a fantastically fun character. It wasn’t just Spinelli though. The story was a great story that unfortunately we could possibly find in the newspaper. That aspect alone gave this story a level of realism. With the realism, the fun characters and the spicy love story between Shannon and Spinelli join together for a great book. I am so glad this is only the first book in the series because I can’t wait to read the next book. I definitely enjoyed the book, the characters and the story. Valerie Clarizio did a phenomenal job and she has found a fan in me.

Buy Links:

Amazon / Barnes and Noble / Kobo

 

Pre-Order Blast & Giveaway – Plan Interrupted

Title: Plan Interrupted

Author: Valerie J. Clarizio

Release Date: November 3, 2015

Blurb:

Elizabeth Shaw’s professional life is going according to plan until she meets the handsome widower and his two young children next door. Having shelved her personal life to land her dream job, she disregards her romantic feelings for him. But the forces of nature have other ideas for her.

Joe Antonetti has made his children his main focus since the death of his wife. But his beautiful neighbor becomes an irresistible distraction and has him wondering if he can change her priorities.

Surrendering to their attraction for each other causes another player to step in with his own plan for Elizabeth. One that could not only end the budding romance but her life as well.

Tag Line: There’s more to some women than meets the eye….and it takes the right kind of man to unleash her secrets.

Pre-Order Links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Plan-Interrupted-Valerie-J-Clarizio-ebook/dp/B015WEN7L2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1444176158&sr=8-1&keywords=valerie+clarizio

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1044123608

Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-ca/ebook/plan-interrupted

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/plan-interrupted-valerie-j-clarizio/1122714090;jsessionid=3D6A876E55691250042DDE8D87865BE3.prodny_store01-2?ean=2940152759938

Excerpt

Elizabeth leaned back against her closed door for support. She recalled how perplexed Joe looked a moment ago, and she couldn’t help but wonder what was going through his mind. She thought maybe he wanted to kiss her, and on one hand she longed for him to do so, but on the other hand he wasn’t part of ‘The Plan,’ the very plan that didn’t allow for men right now.

She raised her fingers to her lips. They felt hot. What would it have been like to kiss his mouth rather than his cheek? No need to speculate; it would be heavenly. Her heartbeat went into overdrive, causing her limbs to go numb. What were supposed to be deep calming breaths were useless.

What in the world is happening to me? Pull yourself together Elizabeth. Stay the course!

But no matter how hard she tried to will Joe out of her mind, visions of him kept passing through. Thoughts of him warmed her heart, yet made her head ache.

Stick to the plan. Stay the course. Stick to the plan. Stay the course.

Thinking the words were of no use, and she knew saying them aloud wouldn’t help either. Her head couldn’t control her heart.

Giveaway: $10 and $5 Amazon Gift Card

Rafflecopter:  https://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/b6938c4247/

An Afternoon of Wine and Romance!

Do you like wine?  Do you like romance books?  If so, come join me and 5 other romance authors at the Lautenbach Country Orchard Winery in Door County on October 2nd from 4-6 for an afternoon of wine and romance.  Taste some of Lautenbach’s award winning wines while authors entertain you with excerpts from their books.  After the readings, there will be time for some one-on-one conversation with the authors, a book signing and door prize drawing.

Evanovich vs. Patterson

I found an article on the Forbes website naming the world’s richest wordsmiths and how much they earn per page. The article was written by Natalie Robehmed, a Forbes staff person who covers media and entertainment.

I was happy to see two of my favorite authors on the list. My favorite author is Janet Evanovich and she appeared as number six. The article reported her 2015 earnings at $21 million, or $33,000 per page. James Patterson’s past 12 month’s earnings are reported to be $89 million, or $13,000 per page. It was also reported that Patterson put out 18 books in that period with the help of 12-plus coauthors. How do I get on that list? Maybe I could get him up to 20 books in a 12 month period.

It’s funny, I’ve always thought that Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum books, and Patterson’s Women’s Murder Club books were similar, and I’ve always referred to Patterson as the male Evanovich when it came to writing. Now, that I’m looking at the income difference between the two, perhaps I should be giving Patterson more credit, and Evanovich should be referred to as the female Patterson. In any case, kudos to these two authors for their accomplishments.

Forbes article link: http://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/2015/07/29/the-worlds-top-earning-authors-what-they-earn-per-page/

Who’s your pick?

            VS. 

Author Event at the von Stiehl Winery

Here are some pictures of the author event we had at the von Stiehl Winery in Algoma, WI.  We had 9 participating Wisconsin Authors.  Each author paired their book with a wonderful von Stiehl wine and then read an excerpt from their book.  It was such a nice event.

I paired up with the White Stiletto wine (recently renamed: Symmetry). Description – The fresh, bountiful aroma of apricot and honey gets right to the point. This wine can be enjoyed with grilled foods, lighter fare, and delicate cheeses or perhaps one of my favorites grilled or broiled lobster tails with drawn butter.

If you are a wine lover you should check out von Stiehl’s wines: http://vonstiehl.com/

 

 

Spring Yard Work – NOT!

The hubby and I thought we’d go to the cabin this weekend and get a little yard work done.  We thought wrong.  The temperature right now is 22 degrees and there are a few snowflakes in the air.  Yesterday the temperature peaked in the mid-thirties.  Half the yard is still buried in snow.

Though we spent some time outside yesterday, I can assure you very little yard work got done, but we did build a nice fire in the fire pit and we hovered around that for a while.  It was a good thing I had on my faithful Carhartt.

New Release & Giveaway – Crazed Reckoning, a Nick Spinelli Mystery

Title: Crazed Reckoning, a Nick Spinelli Mystery (Novella #3 in the Nick Spinelli Romance Mystery Series – Saint Patrick’s Day setting)

Author:  Valerie J. Clarizio

Publisher: Melange Books, LLC

Release Date: March 12, 2015

Buylinks:

Amazon:  http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00UKJSAUS

Banes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1121413659?ean=2940046628708

Smashwords:  https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/526784

Teaser:  “Let me get this right. You’re telling me your dead father’s finger showed up in a cache box in Door County, over forty years after your father died.”

Giveaway: In celebration of the release of Crazed Reckoning, a Nick Spinelli Mystery I’m giving away copies of Covert Exposure, a Nick Spinelli Mystery!  You can nab your copy here at Smashwords for a limited time (MOBI, PDF, or EPUB):  http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/415230

Or you can nab your copy here at Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/covert-exposure-valerie-j-clarizio/1117031916?ean=2940045744263

Sale: To further celebrate, Craving Vengeance, a Nick Spinelli Mystery is on sale for a limited time at Amazon for only $.99:

Amazon:  http://www.amazon.com/Craving-Vengeance-Nick-Spinelli-Mystery-ebook/dp/B00HFNVXGK/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1426116994&sr=8-4&keywords=valerie+Clarizio

Giveaway #2: Visit the following blogs during the March 12th Release Day Blast and enter the Rafflecopter for a chance to win an Amazon gift card!

Read Our Thoughts Book Blog  Spotlight/Excerpt

Aubrey Wynne: Romantasy Through the Ages Guest Post

books are love Spotlight/ Excerpt

Those Crazy Book Chicks Spotlight/ Excerpt

mousey books Spotlight/ Excerpt

Kishan Paul Spotlight/ Excerpt

Author Sandra Love Spotlight/ Excerpt

Amanda’s Blog! Spotlight

Padme’s Library Interview

The Phantom Paragrapher Spotlight

Books N Pearls Interview 

Dahlia Donovan Spotlight

Thank you all for visiting and your continued support!

May the luck of the Irish be with you on Saint Patrick’s Day!  Cheers!

What comes first, plot or characters?

I’m often asked what comes first, plot or characters – My answer tends to vary. When it came to Nick Spinelli, Covert Exposure and Craving Vengeance, I had a very clear picture of Spinelli both physically and emotionally. He was too good looking and too together, so I felt the need to mess up his life a bit, only I hadn’t a clue as to how to make that happen until my fingers hit the keyboard.

When it came to Alex Polecheck and Peter DeBaker, Unforeseen Obsessions, their story was pretty much plotted all the way through.

As for Jack Ricco and Clare Ulster, Taken by Surprise, I knew where I wanted to start the story and finish it, but the middle was a mystery to me each and every day.

Now, for the new series I recently started, I dreamt up Dylan, seriously, I dreamt about him, and I’m not quite sure what I’m going to do with him yet, but I do know it will involve a lot of chaos for a while. He’s going to have to work for anything he wants.

There you have it!

 

Beach Reads Giveaway Hop!

 

Update:  The contest winners for my giveaway are:

Melody Gonser – Taken by Surprise

Hilda Oquendo – Covert Exposure, a Nick Spinelli Mystery

****************************************************************

YAY for July!  A great time of year to grab your beach blanket, your cooler of Margaritas and that book you’ve been dying to read, and hit the beach for a peaceful day in the sun!

As a grand prize for this hop, Roane Publishing is giving away a KINDLE PAPERWHITE as a grand prize!  Also, be sure to check out the other twenty or so places to visit on this hop and enter their contests for other great prizes including books, gift cards, and more.

Click this link to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway for an ebook of Covert Exposure, a Nick Spinelli Mystery or an ebook of Taken by Surprise:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Click this link to enter the Roane Publishing Rafflecopter giveaway for a Kindle Paperwhite.

Here are the links to the sites of the other participating authors, reviewers, and bloggers.

1. Scribbler’s Sojourn (INT)	2. London’s Scribbles
3. Reader Girls (Int)	4. Unfurled Imagination
5. The Cave Guest Blog	6. In The Pages of a Good Book
7. Dani-Lyn Alexander	8. Milly Taiden
9. Shaya Roy’s Blog	10. Julie Antonovich Reece
11. Michelle Ziegler Author	12. Laurie Treacy Author (US)
13. Harlie’s books	14. Rebecca Hart Writing
15. Shout with Emaginette	16. Vanna Smythe
17. Author S. M. Boyce	18. Suz deMello: A Beach Read from. . . Alaska???
19. Savings in Seconds (US)	20. Valerie J. Clarizio – Romance Author
21. Krista Ames – Author

 

Street Teams & Giveaway

Street Teams –

Last weekend I attended the Wisconsin Romance Writer Conference and one of the many topics discussed was author Street Teams. The presenter covered all components of street teams from setting them up to growing them throughout the author’s career. At first, the information seemed overwhelming; I’d have to find a forum for my team, I’d have to set guidelines, I’d have to provide incentives, and I’d have to keep things fresh and interesting – WOW – and I thought writing the books would be the hard part.

Over the past couple of days I’ve spent a considerable amount of time thinking about street teams in general, and came to realize that formally setting one up may not be as overwhelming as I thought once I realized I already have a simple form of one in place. I have some fans who already religiously tweet and/or post on Facebook the following type of information about me and my books:

•  Giveaways
• Blog hops
• Book signings
• What I’m working on
• New release information
• Reviews
• They help me spread the word

Now the question becomes – Where do I go from here? I will begin to work on formalizing my street team by creating a Facebook page for me and my team to use to interact more frequently and consistently. I’m hoping the environment will be such that my team will be themselves, support each other, and of course enjoy themselves. Who’s in?

Contest & Giveaway:

I’ve been straining my brain to come up with a cool name for my street team and am coming up empty with anything to go with Val, Valerie, or Clarizio. Any suggestions? 

In the event your suggestion gets picked to be the official street name, you will score an ebook copy of Covert Exposure, a Nick Spinelli Mystery, which is the first novella in the Nick Spinelli Mystery series.

Now it’s time to get this show on the road!