My husband teases me about going to writers’ conferences because I get so excited. I love the classes, the instructors, and the food is usually top-notch. What I’ve also noticed is that I always come away from a conference with new friends. Last summer’s conference was no exception. Over dinner, I sat between Rachelle Christensen and Connie Sokol. We got to discussing story ideas and thought that a Christmas romance anthology based around a department store could be a lot of fun to write. And let me tell you, it was!  Here’s a quick sneak peek at the stories. At the bottom of the page, you’ll find a rafflecopter giveaway. Each author has donated 1-2 books. Personally, I selected The Healthy Family Slow Cooker Cookbook (published under Christina Dymock) because, when you cook with a slow cooker, you have more time for reading.

Christmas Kisses is a collection from five bestselling and award-winning authors.

Set in the snowy town of Echo Ridge in upstate New York, these inspirational romances are sure to delight while you sip cocoa by the fire and listen to Christmas carols.

Amazon * Barnes and Noble * Kobo * iTunes * Smashwords

Add it to Goodreads

Win amazing books by each of the authors. Enter below to win – nine different books will be given to nine lucky winners.

Christmas Makeover by Cami Checketts Amazon bestselling author

Chelsea Jamison has been infatuated with Drew Stirling longer than she’s loved playing basketball, high-top sneakers, and the Knicks. Unfortunately, all Drew sees is the kid who kicked his trash in the high school free throw contest and not the girl whose heart breaks into a fast dribble when he’s near.

Drew makes an unexpected visit home to Echo Ridge and their friendship picks up where they left off as they scheme to make a teenaged boy’s Christmas dreams come true. When Chelsea realizes she’s fallen for her best friend, she wonders if there is any hope of a relationship with Drew or if she’s stuck in buddy-status for life.

http://www.camichecketts.com * https://www.facebook.com/CamiCheckettsAuthor

The Candy Counter Heiress by Lucy McConnell Amazon bestselling & award-winning author

Someday Reese Gates will own The Candy Counter at Kenworth’s; but someday can’t come fast enough when the manager threatens to bring in a national candy provider. Reese secretly takes matters into her own hands hoping to save her parents from additional worry and prove herself capable of running the company. Her deception deepens as she ropes computer guru Andy Edwards into helping her expand the business.  Reese wanted to shake things up, but she wasn’t planning on her heart getting caught in the mix by Andy’s stolen kisses. If she can hold it together until after Christmas, then she can reveal her successful online company and her feelings for Andy. Unfortunately for Reese, even the best laid plans can melt like chocolate.

https://lucymcconnell.wordpress.com/ * https://www.facebook.com/ChristinaDymock?fref=ts

Soda Fountain Christmas by Connie E. Sokol Amazon bestselling author

Keira Kenworth has one focus this holiday season: save her father’s old-time department store from bankruptcy. She is not focused on Tayton Wells, the tall, dark, and genius marketing guru from downtown New York, hired to make it happen. He is as doubtful that her nostalgic connect-the-town ideas will succeed as she is about his numbers-first plan. However, it’s not just their different approaches that cause sparks to fly. Working together on a fast deadline to save the store before Christmas, the unspoken connection between them grows. But will the tough decisions they face drive them back to their separate worlds, or will they lead to the beginning of love?

http://www.conniesokol.com * https://www.facebook.com/8basics?_rdr=p

Christmas Makeover by Heather Tullis Amazon bestselling author

Jonah Owens thought moving to Echo Ridge to open his art gallery would solve all of his problems. The need to sell his grandma’s house adds an unexpected complication. It would be easier if his neighbor didn’t have all those farm animals.

Kaya Feidler’s family has owned their land for nearly a hundred years–long before the neighbors were there. There’s no way she’s giving up the animal therapy business she’s been struggling to make profitable. She gets a temp job helping Jonah in the gallery. Spending time together is a recipe for romance, but can they overcome their own hangups to be more than friends?

http://heathertullis.com/ * https://www.facebook.com/HeatherTullisBooks

Hope for Christmas by Rachelle J. Christensen Amazon bestselling & award-winning author

Anika Fletcher hates Christmas–its promises of good tidings and hope for the future are as tinseled as the ornaments on Kenworth’s Hope Tree. Despite her feelings, Anika wants to maintain her daughter’s faith in the magic of the season and gladly accepts a second job working with the handsome Carlos Rodriguez to restore Kenworth’s old fashioned soda fountain. Carlos is no stranger to hard times and slowly shares his life of light and joy with Anika as they work together. Just as her fragile soul begins to feel hope again, an ill-timed act of charity changes everything. Anika isn’t sure who she can trust or if hope is worth nurturing–especially at Christmas when it’s easy to enjoy a kiss and believe love can last longer than the season.

http://www.facebook.com/rachellechristensenauthor * http://rachellechristensen.com/

Enter for the giveaway by clicking on the link below

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Hello Friends,

I’ve gotten quite a few emails asking about the next book in The Billionaire Marriage Brokers series, The Professional Bride, and when it will be made available so I wanted to update everyone on the status.

The book is almost ready. It’s so close! The cover is finished. The story is down. I just need to send it through one final editor and my amazing proofreader. However, The next two weeks are dedicated to the release of my new cookbook, The Healthy Family Slow Cooker Cookbook, published through Front Table Books under the name Christina Dymock. This is a follow up to the award-winning slow cooker book, The Hungry Family Slow Cooker Cookbook, and is now available through your local retailer as well as online through Amazon, iTunes, Barns and Noble, and etc.

I will also be releasing my book, Love in Light and Shadow, from the Summer in Snow Valley Anthology, individually on June 15th. I’ll be sure and let you know when it’s out. If you’d like to read it now, you can purchase the anthology by clocking here. I highly recommend the anthology. Not only s it a great summer read, but the authors are individually and collectively talented and the town of Snow Valley is a magical place. One of the comments we continually get in reviews is that readers wish Snow Valley were real and that they could visit the town.

What does all this mean for The Professional Bride? It means a release date in July. That’s not so far away. I’m so excited for this book. It’s based in Park City, Utah and it has all the wonderful elements of the first two books but with a twist. You see, this isn’t the bride’s first marriage. Nope. She’s done the BMB thing before — a couple times. This brings in some interesting dynamics with her ex-husbands and her new husband (who doesn’t want to be married in the first place but finds out having a wife can be a wonderful idea.)

I’ll post here when the book is released. If you’d like the information sent directly to your email, you can sign up for my newsletter by clicking here. Thanks for your interest in the Billionaire Marriage Brokers series!!

A Shot at the NYT Bestseller List

I need your help! And a Giveaway!

Hello Friends, We all have dreams and goals. If you’re like me, you keep the big ones close to your heart. Therefore, I haven’t told anyone this before, but one if my goals is to make the New York Times Best Seller’s List.
I know—it’s big.
The reason I’m telling you about this now, is that I just found out that Summer in Snow Valley has a shot at making the list. However, I can’t do this alone.
So I’m asking for your help.
This week, June 1-6, is when the sales count! I need to spread the word about the release week for this book! And I’m raffling off a $25 Amazon Gift Card as a thank you.
What you can do: Facebook shares, tweets, pins on pinterest, google shares, tumblr, and reviews, reviews, reviews—on amazon, Goodreads, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Apple—wherever you buy and read! The momentum has been amazing, but we need to keep it going!
Okay, here’s how it works: If you email me back at authorlucymcconnell@gmail.com and let me know what you did to get the word out—you will be entered into a drawing to win a $25.00 amazon gift card! You get one entry for each share, post, tweet, whatever.  Here’s and example of what you can share on Facebook: I’m so excited for this new release Summer in Snow Valley! Check it out HERE!
Here are the hashtags for Twitter: #newrelease #clean romance #$.99 Sweet and Sassy! Summer in Snow Valley Get it HERE!
And, of course, if you haven’t had a chance to get your copy—get it HERE. I hope your week is going amazing and, once again, if you have a chance—you can get your copy for just 99 cents by clicking here.

Thanks so much for your help!!

Thanks to all the bloggers, reviewers, and fans who have worked to make the release of Summer in Snow Valley a success. We truly could not have done it without you.

Have you ever wondered what goes in to making an anthology like this? I thought I’d share a bit of the behind the scenes today.

The Big Idea

Almost a year ago, I went to an Indie Authors’ writing conference. It was the first one of its kind that I’d attended and I learned so much about the world of publication. I hadn’t brought or bought a lunch and had to head off campus to get something to eat during the break. My friend and critique partner, Janet Halling, was in the same boat. We met up in the lobby and there was another friend of mine, Cami Checketts, with Cindy Roland Anderson and Taryn Taylor — whom I had yet to meet.  Since we were all hungry, and there was a cute sandwich place nearby, we ended up walking over together and sitting down to eat. We started talking and realized that we all wrote in the same genre. We joked about doing a box set together and then moved on. I remember having a moment, watching the ladies gab over brownie samples, when I thought, “This is something. These women, sitting here, it’s something.” I know, great words for an author — so descriptive, right? 🙂

Well about a week later, I couldn’t get the idea that there was something there. So I emailed Cami, Janet and Taryn and asked if they were really interested in doing a box set. They replied quickly that they were and I asked Cami to contact Cindy and see if she was interested. In the mean time, I had a good friend, Kimberley Little, whom I had met a few years before at another writing conference who kept coming to mind and I knew she needed to be a part of this. Within a week, the group had all committed to writing a new book for Christmas in Snow Valley.

I set up a conference call and we hashed out the basic framework for the town as well as assignments. Taryn was in charge of Snow Valley’s history. She did an excellent job laying the foundation for the place we’ve come to know and love. Cami and Janet were over marketing. I can’t believe their level of research they had to conduct to get Snow Valley off the ground on a budget. Kimberley and I worked on cover design. Kimberley searched through countless photos online to find the one that finally ended up on the cover. I also mapped out the week of Christmas events so all our stories would gel. Cindy was monumental in helping us set the book up with the right keywords, categories, and reading and critiquing stories.

For Summer in Snow Valley, assignments shifted around a little bit. Janet did the events calendar this time which freed me up to do the cover again. We divided up some of the marketing between all of us, though Cami did the lion’s share. Kimberley did the photo selection. She and Janet had to work especially close this time around because their characters interact closely. Writing stories from different perspectives that take place in the same house is a lot of work and they brought it together beautifully. Cindy did more critiquing, researched marketing sites, and has answered many of my questions about the genre, placement, and etc. She’s loaded with poise and purpose and helps keep me grounded.  And we all read and critiqued for one another. Each day there is something new that comes up and someone from the groups steps forward with their expertise, teaches the rest of us, and solves the problem.

If you have any questions about writing a box set, feel free to drop me an email at dymock.christina@gmail.com.

I must admit, I get a kick out of releasing a new book. There’s just something so magical about release day…I have a totally stupid grin all day and fall asleep with it still in place. That confessed, I’m positively thrilled to let you all know that the second book in the Billionaire Marriage Brokers’ series: The Organized Bride is now available in the Kindle Store.

If you read the first book, The Academic Bride, you met Pamela Jones, a modern fairy godmother if there ever was one. Pamela specializes in business marriage contracts, but she can spot a love match from a mile away. When Pamela has a good feeling about a bride and groom, sparks are sure to fly and she’s up to her old tricks once again.

In this book, we meet MaKayla…
MaKayla thought taking a job as an event planner for a high-end hotel would be a wonderful lead into opening her own events business. However, a one year no-contact clause leaves her clientless if she quits. With nowhere to go, she is intrigued with Pamela’s offer for a one-year contract running charities and overseeing contributions–until she finds out that to take her dream job, she also has to take Gabe…for better or worse.

You can pick up your copy by clicking here.

Read on for an excerpt!

Excerpt from The Organized Bride:

Gabe gestured toward the doors. MaKayla walked a couple feet and then stopped so fast that Gabe bumped into her, knocking her forward. He reached out and grabbed her shoulders, pulling her against his chest to keep her from falling.

For just a moment, they both froze, and Gabe could smell her deep scented perfume. A tremor went through her body—or both of theirs, he wasn’t sure—and he released her shoulders.

“Sorry.” She ducked her head as she tucked her hair behind her ear again, and Gabe had the insane desire to reach out and try that himself. “I was startled because that’s my name.” She pointed to the fresh paint on the concrete. “Well, it would be if I was changing my name.” Her cheeks colored slightly.

Gabe hurried to explain. “That’s your parking spot. I should have warned you about the name, but I thought it would be best if my colleagues knew you as MaKayla Russell.”

MaKayla smiled, but it looked more like a beauty-queen-on-a-parade-float smile than the one he’d seen in her photo. “You’re the boss.”

She started toward the doors again, and Gabe fell in step beside her, partially to present a united front when they walked through the door and partially so he wouldn’t run over her again if she stopped. It wasn’t the running over her that bothered him, so much as the holding her close. That had churned up feelings he hadn’t seen in a long time, feelings he needed to keep a lid on, because he was, as she so aptly pointed out, the boss, not someone who could pursue those feelings, even if he wanted to.

Last Christmas, I was blessed to be a part of the Christmas in Snow Valley Anthology. We’ve had such an amazing response from readers and reviewers! Some of the reviews even said, “I want to live in Snow Valley.” Well, Snow Valley has more than one season and I’m thrilled to announce the release of Summer in Snow Valley written by the same award-winning and Amazon top selling authors!! I’ll be hosting a blog tour June 1-6, 2015, and would love to have you be a part of it.

As a special promotion, the book will be available for just $.99 during the blog tour! A review or spotlight post would be wonderful. We will be sending out review copies and html for posts the beginning of May.

To thank you for being willing to spotlight or review the book, we are organizing a $50 giveaway. You can receive one entry for each review posted (Blog, Amazon, Goodreads, B&N, etc.) and for each social media share of the book (Facebook, Twitter, Blog, etc.) throughout the week of June 1-6.

If you’re interested in participating, please send me your name, a link to your blog, and the date you’d like to post. Thanks so much for your willingness to help spread the word.

Here’s a sneak peak at the book:

The #1 Bestselling Amazon Authors of Christmas in Snow Valley, have teamed up again with six wonderful summer romances that are sure to make your summer sweet and sassy!

Catching Caytie by Amazon Top Seller Cindy Roland Anderson

On the night Caytie Holbrook intends to break up with her cheating boyfriend, he blindsides her by announcing their engagement at a dinner party. When Caytie discovers her father is in on the scheme, she runs away from her home in Beverly Hills to hide out at her uncle’s ranch in Snow Valley, Montana. While Snow Valley is a beautiful place, Caytie only plans to stay until her twenty-fifth birthday when she’ll inherit a trust fund her grandmother left her, allowing her to pursue her dream to move to Italy. That is until she meets Jace McAllister, an incredibly sexy—although somewhat grumpy—cowboy who threatens to disrupt her plans.

Tin Foil Tiaras by Amazon Top Seller Jeanette Lewis

Cameron Elliott has come to Snow Valley to coach Annalisa Drake in the Miss Snow Valley pageant, and prove to her demanding boss that she deserves a place at the prestigious Westbrooke Agency. But Annalisa’s handsome and protective big brother, Kyle, is determined to keep his sister from becoming a reluctant beauty queen. As Cameron tries to win Kyle over, Kyle insists some things are more valuable than a title and as crazy as it sounds, Cameron might just believe him.

A Touch of Love by Amazon Top Seller Cami Checketts

Annie Stirland has endured a lifetime of teasing, embarrassment, and isolation due to her speech impediment. When irresistible cowboy, Luke Wilson, seems to be falling for her, she’s certain he’s too good to be true. A tragedy involving his ex-girlfriend proves she’s right. What man can resist sheltering someone they once loved? Annie knows she should walk away, but Luke isn’t ready to give her up.

First Love; Love First by Amazon Top Seller Taylor Hart 

Janet Snow doesn’t expect to get caught in a full-blown make out session at her brother’s wedding. Especially not with Michael Hamilton, the boy she’d written off ten years ago. Even though they both agree to no complications, Janet’s not sure they can stick to it given their past. After a trip to the hot springs, a helicopter ride, and a proposal, even the most cautious single mother would start to wonder if true love really is just about the timing. Now Janet has to make a choice—play it safe or trust that her first love could also be her last.

Romancing Rebecca by Amazon Top Seller and Award-winning Author, Kimberley Montpetit

Rebecca Dash loved spending her teen summers swooning over Jane Austin and helping her aunt at the Starry Skies Bed & Breakfast in Snow Valley. But as a recent college grad, she’d rather write sappy romance novels than go out with guys that make her a nervous wreck. When a team of fire-fighters set up camp on the lawns of the B&B and Captain Wade catches her eye, Becca soon learns that there’s more to a happily-ever-after than a flirty firemen with muscles the size of the Montana hills.

Love in Light and Shadow by Amazon Top Seller and Award-winning author Lucy McConnell

Mercedes O’Shay has sworn off gorgeous men because they have a tendency to break her heart. When she meets her new neighbor, Chet Bauer, she immediately puts him in the Do Not Date category based on his well-defined muscles and stunning blue eyes. But the more Mercedes learns about the cowboy who reads classics and forges iron, the more she realizes the heart doesn’t see in black and white; it sees light and shadows.

From the Amazon Top Selling Author, Lucy McConnell, comes a new bride series.

The first book in the series, The Academic Bride, is available by clicking here.

Early on, Pamela Jones realized she had an unusual talent for putting two people together. Over the years, she’s turned it into a successful matchmaking service for the ultra wealthy: Billionaire Marriage Brokers. While she specializes in “business” marriages — paring people off because of their skills, education, or training — she can spot a potential love match a mile away. When Pamela has a “good feeling” about a bride and groom – a business marriage can become so much more.

Janel Fendrick is a go-getter. Her dream of excavating a Mayan temple is within reach — until the funding is pulled and she’s left scrambling for an alternative. Pamela Jones comes along with a proposal…and a groom! Janel hesitates, until she realizes that one year of marriage is a small price to pay to have all her dreams come true. What she doesn’t realize, is that she’s about to get more than she ever dreamed of.

Hello All!

This has been such a busy year and it’s only mid-January. How are you coming on those New Year’s resolutions?

I wanted to take a moment and share a clean romance collection with you. Since working on Christmas in Snow Valley, I’ve fallen in love with coordinating with other authors to put together box sets. I think they are a fantastic bargain for a reader — indeed I purchase my fair share. Where else can you get several books by proven authors at $4.99? This new set, Of Love and Magic, is a wonderful collection of romances for Valentine’s Day. You can preorder now!

• Angel in a Black Fedora, by Sherry Gammon
  Ciel Björk died a tragic death…but she got over it. Now she works as an undercover angel, answering people’s prayers. She’s sent to the sleepy little town of Port Fare, New York to help turn Chloe’s dreams into a reality. As secrets are revealed, Ciel soon learns that things are not as simple as they seem.
• A Wish in Her Hand, by Amberlee Day
  Professor Miri Keeler’s life is perfect, and she knows just the sort of man she wants to share it with. When she meets a genie who’s willing to grant her a favor, she uses her wish to get the attention of her crush, poet Jamison Arbor. But has the genie’s magic missed its target? Miri suddenly has the attention of not only Jamison, but also of Alex, an attractive maintenance man. How will she know which is the right match for her, or what’s real and what’s magic?

• Reality Ever After, by Cami Checketts
  Pregnant at eighteen, Sydney Richland’s happily ever after is in serious peril. Her grandmother’s ghost can work miracles, but she also might ruin Sydney’s chances with the man of her dreams.

• Prom Diaries, by Taylor Hart
  Sixteen-year-old Lacy O’Donnell discovers her best friend has cast a spell, putting everyone in a time loop, forcing them to relive the same four days before prom over and over. The good thing—Lacy doesn’t remember the loop. The bad thing—Drake Davis, the guy she’s been stalking, does. Only true love’s kiss can break the spell, but true love’s kiss has to happen at a precise moment. It’s not exact science…it’s exact magic.

• What If Wish, by Lucy McConnell
  Morana is doomed to a life cataloging spells deep below the palace unless she can make her magic bloom. If her deepest wish comes true, it would open up all sorts of possibilities. The whispers that she was a fluke of nature would hush. The King would stop stalking her. Her parents would no longer live under a cloud of shame. And, Adam could look at her as more than a friend. Despite the promises magic holds, Morana will quickly learn that the thing she wishes for most, could be her undoing.