My Books

The Veiled Seduction Series

Three unconventional heroines, three unfolding mysteries, three unforgettable love stories... (and a novella!)

THE BOTANIST

Loving Lady Dervish

Veiled Seduction Series - Prequel Novella 

After nearly five years of torment at the hands of society's worst gossips, Lady Phoebe Anson is finally making her escape, following her dream to author botany texts--even if she must pretend to be a man to do it. When her one-time friend, Lord Malcolm Gray, happens upon her at the Frost Fair and uncovers her plot, Phoebe refuses to let him ruin her life--again.

But Malcolm isn't the young fool he once was, though he knows he has much to atone for where Phoebe is concerned. And he has no intention of letting his "whirling dervish" get away this time...

Read First Chapter Here!

"Loving Lady Dervish is adorably charming!" ~ Under the Covers Book Blog

THE CHEMIST

Sweet Enemy

Veiled Seduction Series - Book One

Winner of the Golden Quill for Best Regency Romance

Beakers and ball gowns don’t mix. 

So when lady chemist and avowed spinster, Miss Liliana Claremont, receives a coveted invitation to the Earl of Stratford’s house party, no one expects her to accept.  After all, it’s well known that Lord Geoffrey Wentworth, a rising political star, is in need of a suitable bride, and it’s assumed he will choose one from the select group of attendees.

Yet Liliana has no desire to lure the rich and powerful earl into marriage.  She’s come to Somerton Park for one reason—to uncover what the Wentworths had to do with the murder of her father.  She intends to find justice, even if she has to ruin Stratford to do it.

To get the evidence she needs, Liliana intends to keep her enemy close, though romance is not part of her formula. But it only takes one kiss to start a reaction she can’t control… 

ReadPrologue & First Chapter Here!

“A wonderful, emotional, and intellectually satisfying read!”

~ All About Romance (A Desert Island Keeper Pick)

Buy the Book Now!

 THE CRIMINOLOGIST

Sweet Deception

Veiled Seduction Series - Book Two

Winner of the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence in published historical romance.

The spy she once loved…

After years as England’s most elusive double agent, Lord Derick Aveline has vowed to leave his days of espionage behind. Though he’d like nothing more than to make a fresh start in the Americas, he first must complete one last mission for the Crown—to unmask a deadly traitor. But to do that, he must return to the one place he’d vowed never to go again…home.

The girl who always saw through him…

Lady criminologist, Miss Emma Wallingford, can scarcely believe the dandy who waltzes back into Derbyshire is the same man who left without a word a decade ago, taking her heart with him. What’s worse, he is poking his nose where it no longer belongs, which threatens all she holds dear.  Still, it doesn’t take long to deduce the truth…that Derick is not who he is pretending to be. And, he’s hunting the same murder as she.

Though she suspects he’s only back in her life until the killer is found, Emma is determined to convince Derick to stay this time. Will their re-found love prove true? Or is it all just a Sweet Deception?

Read First Chapter Here!

"One of the things I love about Heather Snow is her ability to write beautiful, intelligent heroines that are an absolute delight to read...I just can't get enough of her writing!"

~ Night Owl Reviews, 5 stars, Rare Top Pick

THE PSYCHOLOGIST

Sweet Madness

Veiled Seduction Series - Book Three

Winner of the National Excellence in Romance Fiction Award, the Write Touch Readers Award and the Book Buyers Best TOP PICK 

The war hero who is barely holding on…

Gabriel Devereaux, Marquess of Bromwich, may have returned from the Napoleonic Wars sound of body, but his mind is plagued in ways he does not understand. After a particularly frightening episode, he commits himself to a private asylum of good repute. Gabriel is desperate to recover, and if he cannot, to protect the ones he loves—even from himself.

The woman who won’t let him go…

Lady Penelope Bridgeman has dedicated her life to treating traumatized soldiers, though nothing will ever make up for her inability to save her own husband. When Gabriel’s illness seems eerily similar to the madness that made her a widow, Penelope is terrified that she will fail again—and cost another man his life.

But her heart won’t let her refuse to help, even if it means facing both her past and her own demons. Gabriel pushes Penelope away to keep her safe, but a fragile trust slowly grows between them, forged by a deeper bond of loss. Though Penelope damns herself a fool for loving yet another broken man, she’ll do anything to save Gabriel—no matter the cost.

She never expects that he might be the one to save her, too…

ReadPrologue & First Chapter Here!

"In this emotional, compassionate romance...the powerful love story will sweep readers away."

~ RT Book Reviews, 4 1/2 Stars,

Nominated for Reviewer's Choice Award Best Innovative Historical

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Welcome to the Minerva Society

Welcome! My blog is being re-tooled in preparation for the release of my debut novel, Sweet Enemy -- A Veiled Seduction Novel, on February 7, 2012. Sweet Enemy features a Regency-era lady chemist, and the first member of my fictional Minerva Society.

As a reader, I love smart women. Strong, witty, confident, innovative and unconventional heroines who steal the hearts of their heroes just by virtue of their passionate minds and spirits. As a historical romance author, those women are the characters I do my best to create.

Since Minerva was the Roman goddess of wisdom and a symbol of strong, smart women throughout history, I thought it fitting she grace this new blog aimed at celebrating brilliant women, real and fictional. I hope you'll join me.

Look for posts monthly, beginning November 1, 2011.

New Blog : Get Lost in a Story

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Dear Friends,

Today marks the end of Heather's Historical Hodgepodge.  Well, maybe not the end, but a definite LOOONNNNGGGG hiatus, as I consider how best to spend my limited promotional time whilst being a mom of a young boy and meeting my new deadlines!  While the blog may come back at some point, restructured and geared towards readers, it won't be until closer to my release date in Spring of 2012.  I want to thank everyone who has followed along with me in my pre-published blogging experiment!  I very much value the friends I've made.

However, I won't be completely gone from the blogging world.  Today, a group of multi-genre authors is launching a blog geared toward readers, and it's going to be fantastic!  I am joining with fellow debut authors Donnell Ann Bell, Maureen McGowan, Angi Morgan, Cat Schield and Simone St. James at the Get Lost in a Story blog  where we blog about our love of storytelling and we interview new and favorite authors!  There will be great conversation and lots of giveaways!

Today, Harlequin Blaze author Tawny Weber is our guest.  Tomorrow, mystery author Joelle Charbonneau.  More authors coming soon: Lynda Simmons, Allison Chase, NYT Best Seller Rebecca York, Elizabeth Essex, Kathleen Eagle...and that's just next week!  In the weeks to come, tons of fabulous authors will be coming by.  We hope you will be, too!

So please, come over and follow me there and I will see you all somewhere in the blogosphere!

www.GetLostInAStory.blogspot.com

Promote Reading - Break the TV

I love TV. Okay, actually that’s not true. I don’t particularly care for TV. The last two network shows I actually watched with regularity were Moonlighting and Quantum Leap, so I guess you couldn’t really call me any network’s targeted ideal viewer.

But I do love the screen, big and small, and with the advent of VCR’s followed by DVD’s followed by DVR’s, for many a year I have loved my television set. I am a huge movie buff, old and new, and many hours have been spent sitting in front of my tube, being swept away by a great story.

But I love books more. Books allow me to use my creativity to fill in the spaces the author leaves me, to make the stories more personal to me, to let me imagine what a character looks like or feels based on my own personal biases, to get lost in a compelling plot or lyrical prose. Books are, I think, the most personal form of storytelling available.

In this world of 1400+ cable stations, not to mention internet TV viewing and myriad other choices, so many people today take the time to enjoy the simple pleasure of reading. The Washington Post says 1 in 4 American’s didn’t even pick up a book last year.

If you or your family falls into that category, what is one to do?

Break the TV.

Yes, that’s what I said. And it will work.

Don’t believe me?

A few weeks ago, I ran into a 30 year old man I hadn’t seen in quite some time, a good family friend. When he asked what I’d been up to, I told him I’d been writing. He became very animated, telling me how recently he’d began reading again (after more than 10 years of not even sniffing at a book) and then launched into praise for a particular Sci-Fi series he was halfway through. Meaty, 800+ page books for a man I know spends more time in the bar than in the library, and yet here he was (at a bar, yes. What? I can go out now and again, can’t I?) animatedly extolling the virtues of reading.

When I asked him what had started this journey back to books, do you know what he told me?

“Well, my girlfriend left me and she took the TV. I couldn’t afford a new one, so I had to find something else to do.”

So simple. But let’s see another case.

I recently learned that getting rid of the television works on 2 year old boys, too. In our house, I must admit that I’d fallen into the “but it’s educational!” trap, and my toddler was getting a little too much “pre-school on TV”. I really began to feel that if it went on, his imagination development and creativity would suffer. So I put the TV “night night”.

It was hard, at first (although it did produce one very cute moment when I came into the room to see The Boy standing in front of the closed TV cabinet, begging the television to “Get up, TV! Get up!”)

But yesterday, I walked into the bedroom, and there was The Boy, reading aloud (as much as a two year old can) one of his Dr. Seuss books on the floor, his little face alight as he turned the pages…a far cry from the Zombie stare that so accompanied the television watching.

So there you go…it may not be scientific evidence, but it’s true all the same. Break it, take it, or put it “night night”, the best way to promote reading, in my estimation, is to say bye-bye to the TV.

I’d love to hear your thoughts about TV time in your life and family…

Congratulations MARA Fiction From the Heartland Contest Finalists

This week, my local RWA chapter's contest announced its finalists.

The MARA Fiction From the Heartland contest recognizes the top Ten scores, regardless of category. This year, we had some incredible entries and it was tough, tough competition. It took more than 93% of total points to final in the top ten, so our agent/editor judges should look forward to some stellar submissions!

Six other entries, received at least 90% of total points possible and we thought that deserved some recognition, so we added Honorable Mention finalists as well.

Finalist' entries will go on to an agent and editor, while Honorable Mention Finalists' entries will go only to their respective category editor judge.


Finalists:

Erin Rieber
More Than a Stranger - Historical

Crista McHugh
Tangled Web - Paranormal

Isis Rushdan
Kindred of the Fallen - Paranormal

Diane Burton
The Pilot - Paranormal

Sarah Baker
Saving Captain Brookes - Inspirational

Deborah Gross
Stealing Justice - Romantic Suspense

Sharon Wray
Midnight Guardian - Romantic Suspense

Robin Weaver
Burned Illusions - Romantic Suspense

Rebecca Sampson
Alli’s Playground - Young Adult

Robin Weaver
Deep Speak - Young Adult

Honorable Mention:

Margaret Golla
The Demon Connection - Paranormal

Meredith Conner
Tall, Dark and Furry - Paranormal

Regina Tittel
Abandoned Hearts - Inspirational

Robin Weaver
The Bookstore Connection - Category Romance

Sarah Tormey
Rough Riding Ranger - Category Romance

Shoshana Brown
Squeaky Clean - Young Adult

WELL DONE!!!

But also, I want to offer a BIG Congratulations to all who entered. Having entered my share of contests before selling, I know what it's like to put my heart into an entry and wait. I know what it feels like to get dismal scores, to not final, to miss big or to miss finaling by 1 point. I know what it feels like to read judge's comments and wince, or to smack myself for missing this thing or that thing or to smile big because the judge "got me". It takes courage to write and submit something, be it to a contest or to an agent or editor, and each of you should be proud that you put yourselves out there.

Best of Luck to all of our Finalists and Honorable Mention finalists in the Final Round. May the requests abound!

I'd love to hear some of your contest experiences...

Sale Story and Superstitions…

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When a woman is nearing the end of her pregnancy, she is generally miserable, ungainly and desperate for her child to just hurry up and come out already! At this time, well-meaning friends and relatives shower her with advice on how to trigger labor. “Go to the mall and walk,” is common advice. Or, as my Aunt Cindy always says, “Go bowling. I went bowling when I was 9 months pregnant and ‘poof!’ Labor.” My cousin, on the other hand, would advise you to go to the 54th Street Grill and order a spicy Philly…threw her into labor 3 times.

Well, I don’t have any advice on how to help you if you’re impatiently waiting for Junior’s arrival, but if you’re out on submission and you are miserably waiting to hear news and your nerves are nearing their breaking point, I can tell you just what to do:

Get a Pedicure.

And while your feet are soaking, and you are pondering the book-deal just handed down to Snookie, your agent will call.

Oh yes, she will. With an offer for a 3-book deal. It will go something like this:

(Phone rings, causing instant guilt that you forgot to turn off your ringer and are now disturbing fellow customers who are just trying to relax while nail technicians are filing away their calluses. You glance around with an apologetic smile and reach to turn the phone off when you notice it’s your agent calling. You snatch the phone up, other pedicurees now forgotten.)

“Hello?”

“Hello! What are you doing?”

“Well, believe it or not, I’m having a pedicure,” you say, sheepishly.

“Isn’t that nice? Well, you might as well sit back and relax, sweetie, because today’s the day.”

(And much whooping and hollering ensues, drawing surprised stares from other customers, but that is another story.)

That’s pretty much how it went September 30th, at high noon (CST). Going to auction is a whole 'nother story indeed, but after the dust settled a week later, I am very proud to say that "Sweet Enemy" will be published by NAL Signet Eclipse in Spring 2012.

So, if you’re out on submission, and the least bit superstitious, hie yourself to the nearest nail salon and plop yourself down in the self-massaging chair. If you’re REALLY superstitious, here’s a picture of the actual pedicure, so you can have it replicated exactly…



Sadly, the little sticker on the OPI bottle that told me the color had been pulled off, so you’re on your own for that…

See you next week!

Blurb from Publisher’s Marketplace:
2010 Daphne Du Maurier Award Winner and Golden Heart nominee Heather Snow's SWEET ENEMY, where beakers and ball gowns don't mix, but chemical attraction is hard to ignore, to Laura Cifelli at NAL, at auction, in a three book deal, by Barbara Poelle of Irene Goodman Literary Agency. Foreign: Baror International

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A New Appreciation for Contest Coordinators

Just popping in this week to say "hi", as I'm trying hard to be a more dedicated blogger this year :) (We won't talk about the fact that being a better blogger has more to do with content than just showing up, though...this week, I'm just shooting for consistency!)

You see, I am coordinating the electronic entries for my chapter's writing contest this year and since I've just finished up sending a hundred contest entries to two different first round judges (and hence each entry had to be renamed and numbered and addressed twice), I am too exhausted to have anything of interest to say this week except:

Thanks, out there, to all you RWA Chapter contest coordinators. You rock!

And for that matter, thanks to all of the judges in our contest and any other. I love being part of an organization where writers volunteer their time to help each other make our writing better, and contests are one of the ways we do that.

Next week, I'll think of something really interesting to say...

Have a great one!

198 Years Ago Today...

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It’s been a while since I’ve lived up to the “Historical” part of “Heather’s Historical Hodgepodge”. September 14 is a very important day, not only in our history, but in the fictional history of the three heroes in my Regency series, who were all soldiers in the Napoleonic wars. You see, September 14th, 1812 marked the turning point in that war and therefore, is the perfect day to rectify my appalling lack of historical posts.

198 years ago today, a victorious Napoleon invaded Moscow expecting to be met at the gates by a delegation from the city. He’d been chasing and defeating the Russian army for months, and now, expected their capitulation and the surrender of Czar Alexander. It was customary for the leaders of a captured city to greet their victor with a key to the city (a traditional symbolic gesture that was meant as a negotiation to keep the population and the city’s property safe from the victorious invaders) and, as part of their surrender, make arrangements to feed and house the invading army.

Instead, Napoleon found the glorious city of Moscow deserted. The majority of the 275,000 citizens had evacuated completely, taking with them every bit of food and supplies they could, stripping the city of anything the French expected to revive themselves with, leaving them to break and scavenge.



Shortly after midnight, fires broke out all over the city—some say started by Russian patriots set on destroying or scorching anything that might help the French, some (like Tolstoy) say by the inept French soldiers carelessly setting fires to warm themselves without taking in account that most of the close buildings were made of wood. Either way, a firestorm erupted and in the end, Napoleon had to flee through burning streets to escape. When the fires went out days later, at least 2/3 of Moscow lay in ruins and Napoleon and his Grande Armée had been robbed of their traditional victory as well as whatever food and supplies the city might have offered.




Czar Alexander said that the burning of Moscow “illuminated his soul,” and the leader surprised Napoleon again by refusing to surrender. A month later, unable to replenish supplies and with his men starving, Napoleon gave up and led his army out of the ruined city.



Many factors contributed to what happened next, but more than 400,000 French soldiers never survived their disastrous journey home. The rest of Europe took advantage of this failure and banded together to turn the tide, ultimately defeating Napoleon once and for all.

Still, it’s very sad that so much history and human life had to be lost in order to bring about something that was ultimately for the good, and as such, I can't think of a cheerful question to end this blog post with, so feel free to just comment at will.

See you next week, and as always, thank you for stopping by Heather's Historical Hodgepodge.

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Do Contests Really Help Your Career?

Contests have been good to me in the 2009/2010 season, most certainly. All told, I’ve finaled in 7, including the RWA Golden Heart®, and won three (Chicago North’s Fire and Ice, Kiss of Death’s Daphne du Maurier and Heart’s Through History’s Romance Through the Ages) the last of which introduced my writing to my now agent, Barbara Poelle with the Irene Goodman Agency.

I’ve been getting a few e-mails here and there from people who have noticed my finals/wins asking me how valuable I thought contesting was to launching a career, and if I felt that doing so well in contests was instrumental to getting an agent.

I must say yes. And no.

You already know my agent read my first three chapters in a contest, and went on to request the full, so you may be saying “Duh, of course contest finals were instrumental in launching her career.” But it’s not that simple. I had several agent offers to choose from, only 2 of which found me through a contest. Two more came through referrals from existing clients, and the other 4 through the good old query process. Had I chosen one of those agents instead, the answer would be very different.

Here’s the thing: getting an agent or editor to buy into your story ALL COMES DOWN TO THE WRITING, and not just in the first 25-50 pages (the average length of a contest entry). I’ve heard more than one editor and agent say that while contest finals are nice, they don’t pay a ton of attention to them (yes, even the Golden Heart) because many times they’ve read a polished, perfect first three chapters, but then the story falls apart, or the voice/story/plot/characters don’t carry through to the end of the book.

The most instrumental thing for your career then, is to WRITE A DARNED GOOD BOOK, through and through. No matter how well I’d done in contests, I wouldn’t have gotten a single offer if the entire book hadn’t stood out in some way.

That being said, I would still answer YES, as to whether contests have been instrumental to my career, and that is because of the feedback I’ve received. You see, before Sweet Enemy started doing well in contests, I entered another 5 (4 previous to my actual first finalist entry) that I did not final in at all. But what I did get was valuable feedback. I learned something from each and every one of those entries, even from those judges who hated my story or wrote pretty harsh or nitpicky things (most judges were absolutely lovely, btw, even when giving criticism). I learned what was working (thus building my confidence), what people were tripping over, what words I over-used, what images weren’t coming through as I intended, and so on and so on and so on. Taking that feedback and unbiased criticism helped hone my story, showed me areas I needed to better educate myself in on the craft, and then I would try again and enter another contest to see if what I’d changed worked.

Just as important in my growth as a writer has been JUDGING contests. It’s amazing how much you learn about your own writing, or about mistakes writers make, when you are seeing them in someone else’s work. Conversely, you learn when you see something done just right!

And remember, contest finals are great, they let you bypass the slush-pile of whichever editor/agent is judging, and that’s nothing to sneeze at, but that’s all it does. In the end, it’s the writing that is going to win you that editor/agent’s heart, so above all else, educate yourself and hone your craft. That’s what will launch your career.

For those of you who have entered contests, how would you answer this question? For those thinking about contesting, what do you hope to get from the experience?

Now, a shameless plug for my chapter’s contest, deadline of September 10th. And yes, we’re known for great feedback.

Why YOU should enter MARA’s Fiction From the Heartland Contest

• FEEDBACK, FEEDBACK, FEEDBACK
o You get TWO full page critiques, one from a published author.
o Our contest provides detailed feedback on your entire entry, including big picture story feedback from your synopsis
o You will receive your comments back in time to prepare to enter the RWA Golden Heart®
• Manuscripts that final are read by BOTH an EDITOR and an AGENT

o Check out 2010’s Fabulous Line-Up!

Agents
• Helen Breitwieser, Cornerstone Literary Agency
• Sara Megibow, Nelson Literary Agency
• Laura Bradford, Bradford Literary Agency
• Karen Solem, Spencerhill Associates
• Claudia Cross, Sterling Lord Literistic

Editors
• Category Romance - Susan Litman, Harlequin/Silhouette
• Contemporary Single Title - Danielle Poiesz, Pocket Books
• Historical - Tessa Woodward, Avon Books
• Romantic Suspense - Lauren Plude, Grand Central Publishing
• Paranormal - Meredith Giordan, Berkley Publishing Group
• Erotic Romance – Meghan Conrad, Ellora's Cave
• Young Adult - Natashya Wilson, Harlequin Teen
• Inspirational - Melissa Endlich, Steeple Hill

• Trained judges, who judge in the genre they write. No MARA members are allowed to enter our own contest.

• Overall winner receive $50 and a commemorative plaque

• Did we say FEEDBACK?

Here’s what some past entrants have said about our contest:

"I attribute my first sale to this contest." - Laura Abbot

"I had no idea when I entered the MARA Contest how it would change my life. Not only did I win the contemporary catagory and the best overall, but the judging editor requested the entire manuscript and I went on to become a published author! I can't recommend this contest enough." -Donna Delaney

And 2000 RITA® winner for Best First Book (The Maiden and the Unicorn), Isolde Martyn thanked MARA and the Fiction From the Heartland Contest in her acceptance speech

So be sure to polish up your entry and get it in today! Deadline Sept 10th, 2010. www.mararwa.com

I've been Poelled...

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So, I haven’t posted in an age, but in my defense, life has been a whirlwind these past few weeks. So many things to share, but I’ll have to do it in spurts because I am very quickly making some tweaks to my manuscript so that my new, fantastic, lovely, hilariously funny and uber-enthusiastic super agent, Barbara Poelle, can get it out on submission.

Next on the—

What’s that, you say?

Oh, yes! I DID say agent. And I am thrilled, Thrilled, THRILLED about her. It’s a long and wonderful story, one of those, that looking back, seems like it was meant to be, but the very short version goes something like this:

Author (that’s me) has her eye on Super Agent (that’s Barbara) for a long time. Author sees that Super Agent is judging a historical romance contest (that’s the Hearts Through History’s Romance Through the Ages Contest) and decides to enter, in hopes of getting first three chapters of manuscript in front of her.

In the meantime, Super Agent and another Awesome Agent (that’s Holly Root) donate an afternoon tea with them to “Do the Write Thing for Nashville” to support flood relief for that area after the devastating May floods. Calculating Author thinks… “Hmm…I can support Nashville AND put myself in front of Super Agent, who will have read 3 chapters of my work if I final in that contest I entered, and at best, make an impression, and at worst, be able to at least ask her why she hated my writing.” Author bids, bids, bids and wins! Of course, she also queries both Super Agent AND Awesome Agent, because Author is no dummy and Awesome Agent is…well…awesome.

Author finals in the contest, and the manuscript is off to Super Agent. Author also finals in the Golden Heart and the Daphne, which doesn’t hurt, all of which are set to announce at the RWA Convention in Orlando, FL.

RWA arrives. Author WINS historical romance contest (Yay!), Super Agent comes to awards ceremony herself to announce the winners and then FLOORS Author by offering representation publicly in front of a room full of people, declaring her willingness to “get into a monkey knife fight” to represent Author. Author’s jaw drops, but she can’t stay to play, because she has to dash upstairs, where she also wins the historical category of the Daphne (at which point, she sees Super Agent standing in the back of the room, jumping up and down with applause. Author’s heart melts a little).

The next day, still stunned Author (and friend, Gretchen Jones) have lunch with Super Agent and Awesome Agent, who both deign to wear Fez’s blinged out with “I (heart) Nashville and Heather Snow” on them, and Author doesn’t have to ask Super Agent why she hated her writing, because Super Agent LOVES her writing. Yay!

(Gretchen proceeds to take picture evidence of this Fez wearing madness, which is exhibited below)




Author receives several more tempting (and wonderful) offers of representation over the next week, and is grateful and humbled by each and every one. Author runs off to New York to meet other Lovely Agents, to make certain she makes the right decision for her career. Author is torn, because she loves each agent and thinks they are all lovely. Then Author goes home and secludes herself for three days, clearing her head, listing her pros and cons, and checking her gut and her references and comes to a decision.

On Tuesday, Author calls Super Agent. Super Agent doesn’t answer. Author then decides, what the heck…Super Agent is young, hip and addicted to her iPhone (as is Author) and decides to officially accept offer of representation by text. She texts:

“Well, I’ve been Poelled. Here’s hoping you haven’t been Snowed into thinking I’m a better writer than I am, oh agent mine, because now you’re stuck with me. Call me when you can.”

And much celebration ensued.

All hilarity aside, I am very excited to be represented by the talented, tenacious and absolutely wonderful Barbara Poelle of the Irene Goodman Agency. Here’s hoping we have many happy, successful and lucrative years together…

"Sweet Enemy" is featured in the Chemical and Engineering News

I know I said I wouldn't update my blog while on vacation/conference, but I had to share that I and Sweet Enemy were featured yesterday in the Chemical and Engineering News!

For those who might not know, the heroine of my first novel Sweet Enemy is a Regency era lady chemist, a fact which was picked up by the American Chemical Society from the wire when a story was run in the Kansas City Star last month, and they thought it might be interesting to do a story on a chemist turned historical romance novelist.

You can find the article here.

Big thanks to Carmen Drahl, who wrote the story and was a delight to be interviewed by.

As for how things are going in Orlando, totally fabulous! I've found a shady spot under the waterfall and the grotto pool (but I'm still wearing 100 sunscreen on the face and 50 on the body!), and am relaxing while gearing up for the exciting conference ahead!

I’m going to DisneyWorld!!! (and I didn’t even have to win the Superbowl)

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Well, I’m off at the end of the week to the RWA ® National Conference in Orlando (which will be held next Thursday through Saturday to culminate in the Rita/Golden Heart awards on Saturday night). I’ll be traveling with my friend and fellow writer, Katy Madison, for a little pre-vacation, conference and then some Harry Potter world Sunday at Universal…woohoo!

My goals for the week:

1. DON’T get sunburned at the parks or at the pool. I’m a red-headed, pale skinned woman who is wearing a strapless dress to the Golden Heart Awards. I do NOT want freaky awful tan/burn lines on my shoulders!

2. Try to find time to relax. It’s not often I get away by myself. While I love the husband and the boy, it will be nice to have a little time for me. I’m going to do my best not to fill every moment and just have a breather or two along the way.

3. Catch up with some friends. That might be hard with 3,000 attendees and a schedule that is packed to the brim this year between the Golden Heart, Daphne, & Hearts through History contests, along with other events I’m committed to (and TOTALLY looking forward to). But I hope to get to spend time with some lovely people I don’t see that often (you know who you are, so find me if I can’t find you!)

4. Enjoy some time with my MARA and MRW friends who are also attending. It’s so lovely to have chapter-mates who will be in Orlando, too.

5. Be a good networker and make new friends. Not my strongest suit, but I will do better this year. I will! Hey, I still have at least one friend I met at my first RWA conference in 2007. (Michelle Marcos, I love you!) And I met some fabulous new friends at this year's Chicago North Spring Fling who are actually still talking to me, so there's hope for me yet :)

6. Enjoy the moment. I am thrilled and honored to be a first-time Golden Heart finalist this year, and I hope to soak in every bit that I can and bond in person with the other incredible finalists I’ve been getting to know on-line.

Heather’s Historical Hodgepodge won’t be updated for a couple of weeks. I’ll be gone next Tuesday, then I’ll be travelling to retrieve the boy from Nanny and Poppy’s house (who are so graciously spoiling…er, caring for their grandson while I am away).

See you on August 10th (unless, by some crazy fluke I actually win the Golden Heart…then I will have to post something!).

Either way, I promise pictures!
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The Dastardly Doings of Lord Derek Dammit…

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Lord Derek Dammit is a bad bad boy…but can you blame him? Despite his noble birth, from the time he was stitched and stuffed, people have been smacking him about, taking out their frustrations by grabbing poor Derek by the legs and whacking him against any hard surface they find, screaming “Dammit Dammit Dammit!”

It’s no wonder why, after a life-time of such abuse, Lord Derek was rotten to the core. He escaped his familial home and fled to London, taking out his own frustrations against anyone he came across. But one day, he went too far…



Charged with impersonating the Queen’s guard (not to mention improper pinching of the Queen’s guard’s arse), Lord Derek was exiled from the British Isles and decided to start anew in the Colonies. He made his way west, causing trouble everywhere he went until he landed on the beautiful island of Hawaii.

There, Lord Derek Dammit’s life changed forever, as life often does when one meets his true love.



Her name was Darla—the most refreshing, unconventional chit Lord Derek Dammit had ever encountered. Cupid’s arrow quite knocked Derek off of his feet. While he hid his noble birth from her, three blissful days were spent by Darla’s side strolling along the famed black sand beaches of the Big Island and making love at sunset at the southernmost point of the northern hemisphere.

But while his time with Darla was the closest thing to happiness he’d ever known, Lord Derek’s demons wouldn’t let him be. A life-time of anger and fear roiled within him, keeping him from being able to truly experience the peace and pleasure love offered. His growing closeness with Darla terrified the normally tough, cold Dammit Doll. So one night, after Darla had slipped off into oblivious and sated slumber, Lord Derek left her a brusque note:

Been fun, babe, but I’ve got to move on. There are more beaches and more cotton stuffing to explore…

And he left, like the bad boy that he was.

Moments after he’d walked away, Lord Derek knew he’d made a mistake. Yet he also knew that if he stayed, he would make Darla miserable. No Dammit Doll would be able put up with his mercurial moods and his bad boy ways for long…he would only ruin her life, turn her into a bitter, brittle shell of the Dammit Doll she was. So he stayed away.

But the days that followed were torture for Derek. He heard tales of Darla’s devastation, stood hidden at the airport window and watched as she flew away, back to the states. He couldn’t stand the pain, and turned to hard drink, going on a week-long destructive bender all over the island.

But one day, he went too far…



Charged with destruction of a sacred tombstone in the Hawaiian Catholic Cemetery, Lord Derek was transported from the Hawaiian Islands to Alcatraz Island.



During his time in the clink, Lord Derek realized he had much to lament in his life, but his biggest regret was letting Darla go. He had to win her back, tell her the truth about his identity and beg her forgiveness and her hand in marriage. It took much doing, but he learned that Darla would be at the Romance Writers of America national conference in Orlando, at the Moonlight Madness Bizarre.

He made plans to surprise her there and to do his best to convince her that what she’s read in all of those romance novels is true: that a reformed rake of a Dammit Doll makes the best kind of husband…

Come to the Mid-America Romance Author’s booth to see if Lord Derek Dammit was able to win back the love of his Darling Dammit Darla…

For the next installment of the Dammit Doll story, visit award-winning author Carla Cassidy’s blog at www.carlacassidy.wordpress.com this coming Friday, July 16.

Or to read Dammit Darla’s side of the story, visit author Jackie Bannon’s blog at http://jackiebannon.blogspot.com/2010/07/dammit-darla.html

(This post is a fun and farcical advertisement to entice you to visit the Moonlight Madness Bizarre at the Romance Writers of America conference in Orlando on Thursday, July 29 from 8 p.m. to Midnight where my chapter, Mid-America Romance Authors will be selling a delightful array of whackable Dammit Dolls for writers, complete with different verses aimed at expressing the unique frustrations of the publishing business—each ending with “Dammit Dammit Dammit”, of course. Please come by and see us if you will be in Orlando, or stop by the MARA site.) www.mararwa.com/authors/dammitdoll.htm

Double RITA nominee Elisabeth Naughton

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Romantic Suspense author, Elisabeth Naughton, whose book Stolen Fury is up for 2...count them, 2 Romance Writers of America's RITA ® awards this year in the Romantic Suspense category AND the Best First Book category, has graciously hosted Golden Heart finalists her blog for the past few weeks (and for the next few weeks to come).

And today is my day! Please stop by if you get the chance.

Elisabeth Naughton's Blog

After this hectic spate of lovely and much appreciated publicity, Heather's Historical Hodgepodge should be returning to Tuesday posts.

In other news, the American Chemical Society saw the Kansas City Star article last week, and called me. After a couple of lovely interviews about this chemist turned romance writer, they will be running an article in the Chemical and Engineering News towards the end of July. Interesting times :)

I won't be posting next week, as I will be out of internet range until after the 4th of July. See you on the 6th!

Have a great holiday.

A Case of the Mondays...

A Case of the Mondays…

I’m writing my blog post on Monday this week because I was featured in my local newspaper, the Kansas City Star, in their FYI section in a little piece they call “A Case of the Mondays.”

Each week, they choose a local person to showcase. They do a short interview, then create random questions, which you answer in a one-liner sort of format, with the final question relating to Mondays.

I am very honored to have been chosen as June 7th’s case. (I tried to tell them I wasn’t that cool, but they decided to run it anyway).

So, if you live in the KC area, it’s on the cover of today’s FYI section. If you don’t, I’m posting a link to the online version which has the text and a picture, but is missing the cute pink fluffy mule slippers and Hydrogen clip-art.

I thought it would be fun to also give you my unofficial answers to be compared to what actually made it into the story, so those are below the link.
Have a great week!

A Case of the Mondays - Heather Snow (this link will take you to the actual article. My unvarnished answers are below)

Last movie I wanted to bail on but didn’t: “The Cell”. If I hadn’t been trapped in the middle of the very top row, I’d have been out of there.

My favorite element from the periodic table:
I’m going to have to go with hydrogen. It’s the most abundant and simplest of elements, it has the potential to power the world cleanly and most importantly—when it oxidizes, it becomes water. I am a total waterbaby!

My biggest fear if I win a 2010 Romance Writers of America Golden Heart Award: My right brain says it fears that everyone will expect me to wear those fluffy pink mules with the kitten heels when I write. I’ve got a two-year-old to chase. This mama has got to wear sensible shoes!
My left brain says it fears I would win the Golden Heart but never get published.


When my right brain and left brain do battle, which one wins?
Left, every time. Which can be creatively challenging, but I love a challenge.

Latte or coffee, black?
I’m a tea with milk and sugar (and scones with clotted cream) kind of girl.

Best name ever for a historical romance character:
Geoffrey Alisdair Wentworth, Earl of Stratford, of course, the hero from my novel “Sweet Enemy”. But if I can’t choose one of my own characters, people seem to love dark names like “Devlin” or “Lucien” or “Deverill”. I prefer Ambrose, but really, anything sounds good with a title attached to it.

“Gone with the Wind” or “The Notebook”? Will I lose my romance writer tiara if I say neither? Give me Cary Grant and Irene Dunne in “The Awful Truth” any day, even if it wasn’t adapted from a book.

I knew I was officially a mom when… I started to really view other humans as the precious gifts that we are. My son taught me that.

Plot device I pledge never to employ:
Heroine wakes up only to realize that it was all just a dream while declaring the butler did it which, of course, he did.

Mondays don’t scare me because…
I’ve got one of the toughest critique groups in town and they meet on Tuesdays. Tuesdays are terrifying!

It's not a holiday weekend unless...

…someone ends up in the emergency room. In 1987, my fourth of July holiday weekend was spent in the hospital recovering from a snake bite. No kidding. A young copperhead got my foot as I walked up the path from the lake, which proceeded to spread venom quickly through my body and necessitated a three day hospital stay. Yay!

Flash forward to Memorial Day 2010. Another holiday spent at the very same lake with family and good friends. It was a nice weekend—incredible weather, dinner from the grill, a little guitar on the patio after the kids went to bed and yes, a few hours in the good old emergency room with my dear husband.

And how, do you ask, did this holiday weekend injury occur? Surely something more cool than a snake bite. Water skiing? Wake boarding? Extreme golfing? Nope. Freak mower accident. The funny part of this story is that my husband claims he brought it on himself because as he was mowing along in his shorts, he was thinking how silly his parents were for riding him as a kid to always wear jeans while mowing. He even arrogantly thought to himself “I’ve been mowing for 25 years and nothing’s ever happened” when a rock kicked up and put a deep puncture wound in his leg.

So listen up, kids…your parents harp at you to wear protective clothing for a reason. Mock them at your peril! A rock may not jump up to bite you for 25 years, but when it does…irrigation and stitches for you, my friend. Not to mention hours sitting next to a guy in a camo-hat with a bloody knee bandage regaling you with his story of how he took on a gang of “punk kids on them souped-up golf carts”. But that’s another story…

I still think I beat my hubby in the cool lake holiday weekend injury department. Do you have any vacation injury stories to share?

So Far, So Good

Well, week one of querying has met with success. No rejections so far (yes, I know it’s early…many of these agents won’t even get to my query/proposal packets for several weeks yet and then I fully expect the big R’s to come rolling in), a few requests for partials and one for a full. Exciting times.

Writing time this week has been shared between playing with the boy, doctor’s visits, family photos and bidding out the exterior paint of our house (plus the requisite driving around until hubby and I found paint colors we both approve of. Bye-bye suburban beige, hello awesome darkness!).

And a new milestone has been reached in the raising of the boy. Yesterday at the gym’s childcare center, he turned around to me and instead of the crying, screaming melodrama that usually accompanies Mommy dropping him off, he simply waved “bye-bye” and ran off to play. I stood there dumbfounded, not sure what to do since I didn’t have to slink out of the door when he wasn’t looking like a thief with the crown jewels. Then, the little stinker wouldn’t sleep in his crib last night. Had to be in the big boy bed, all night long. Welcome, my little two year old man.

Oh, and beginning today at Elisabeth Naughton’s blog, a former Golden Heart ® finalist and current double RITA ® finalist for her book Stolen Fury, she will be spotlighting current Golden Heart Finalists every Tuesday and Thursday. I’m scheduled to guest blog there on June 24th, but you should definitely check out the other GH Finalists. They are a talented group of writers from whom I’ll bet you’ll be hearing a lot in the years to come.

Have a lovely week!

Querying like a Madwoman!

Not a lot of time to blog today…I’m finally kicking my story out of the door, turning it loose into the big bad world of publishing. Today, I started querying my “A” list, those agents that I might seriously consider selling the boy to if they would agree rep me. Okay, not really. I love the boy. (I might sell the husband, though…Just kidding honey!)

This is quite the interesting process. I, being the left brain thinker, have my spread sheet of course, in which I’ve broken up agents into A,B and C lists, dutifully copied all of my research into, and made columns for query dates and responses. I’ve listed beside each one why I think they would be an incredible agent for me, as well as clients of theirs whose careers I would like to emulate.

But how time consuming this process is, as well! Personally individualizing each query letter, checking and double checking submission guidelines and adjusting the length of story, synopsis, query, etc., to fit each person. Some want 10 pages, some want 5, some want 50, some want three chapters. Some want a 1 page synopsis,a 2 page synopsis, a 10 page synopsis. Yikes! I’ve told and retold this story at least a dozen times just today.

I even had to run out to the store to purchase self-seal #10 envelopes for SASE’s because an agent preferred not to have to lick them (which I totally get. They taste awful).

So my big plan is to send off the snail-mail queries/packets this week, e-mails next week. Then I’ll tackle the B list.

Boy, I hope I find an agent soon, so I can get back to writing!

How do you approach your agent/editor query process?

When It Rains, It Pours

The blog has sort of a double meaning today. My heart goes out to all of those in the mid-east states who are suffering with torrential rains and unprecedented flooding, and I pray for all those who are displaced and grieving the loss of homes, jobs or loved ones. I sincerely hope recovery is swift.

Many of us in the romance writing world have been particularly glued to the news because our annual national convention was slated to be held at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel in Nashville at the end of July. I am very saddened that this no longer seems possible for many reasons, not the least of which because of the financial resources that will now be leaving the Nashville area when they need it most. I know we were all hoping that the Gaylord would be able to assess the damage and say, “Hey, we’ll be ready for you in July!” Sadly, that is not the case.

Regardless of where the RWA® board ultimately finds for us to move to, I know many of our hearts will be in Nashville this year.

As to the double meaning of this blog, I am experiencing a pouring down of wonderful news. I learned today that Sweet Enemy is a finalist in the Kiss of Death Chapter’s Daphne contest in the historical category. I am astounded and gratified (and a little bit embarrassed) at this recent rash of contest success and am very excited about the final judge, who is an agent I would be thrilled to work with. I hope she loves Sweet Enemy as much as I do.

Wishing you all a wonderful week...