Samhain Publishing

The ideal romance features a sexy hero and an intrepid heroine. They meet. They fall in love, and they live happily ever after. But life is messy, and these days romance writers take a leaf from reality. They include some of the things we find in our own lives. There are divorces, remarriages, blended families. There are single parents with children, with pets.

Along with the man-woman thing, couples have to juggle children and pets and the courtship phase before they decide if they can take their romance further.

Some readers don’t like their romances polluted with children or pets. Some readers have enough children and pets at home. They don’t want to read about them too. For some people kids are the ultimate contraception!

Here are a few advantages and disadvantages of including children or pets in your romance:

1. Kids and pets need looking after all the time, which means romantic adventures require lots of planning in order to guarantee privacy.

2. Kids can’t be trusted not to blurt out things when they shouldn’t.

3. Kids and pets can make characters shine and show their softer emotional sides.

4. Kids and pets provide fodder for cute meets and sometimes matchmaking opportunities.

5. Kids are determined, and if they don’t like you, they’re sure to let you know. Their dislike gets in the way of romance.

6. Think of the worst time for a kid to interrupt, and they’ll probably time the interruption to the second.

7. Dogs have sharp teeth, and have no problem with using them.

8. Pets are easier to foist off on friends and neighbors.

9. Kids require babysitting if you’re going to move the romantic action somewhere other than home.

10. Romantic scenes usually have to take place in the bedroom. None of this trying out every room in the house, and forget the kinky stuff!

My personal thoughts on kids, pets and romance? For me, as a person without kids in real life, it depends on the author execution. Sometimes the stories work for me, and sometimes they don’t.

What do you think? Do you like romances featuring kids and pets? Dislike them?

 Shelley Munro is tall and curvaceous with blue eyes and a smile that turns masculine heads everywhere she goes. She’s a university tutor and an explorer/treasure hunter during her vacations. Skilled with weapons and combat, she is currently in talks with a producer about a television series based on her world adventures.

Shelley is also a writer blessed with a VERY vivid imagination and lives with her very own hero in New Zealand. She writes mainly erotic romance in the contemporary, paranormal and historical genres. You can learn more about Shelley and her books at http://www.shelleymunro.com.

One of my favorite TV programs is called Escape to the Country. Each week a couple who dream of relocating to the country are taken to visit three different properties. During today’s show, one of the properties had an amazing office. It was separate from the house and had incredible views out over the surrounding countryside.

I have office envy.

Just think – at the end of the day, all you’d need to do is turn off the lights and return to the house. Imagine the benefits. The next day you’d find your research books exactly where you left them. Children and puppies wouldn’t manage to create chaos with your nicely ordered piles of paper the minute you turned your back.

Ah, bliss.

I’m lucky enough to have an office, although a lot of the time I sit in my La-Z-boy and type away on my laptop. This isn’t always ideal because the puppy loves to sit on my La-Z-boy too. She thinks possession is nine-tenths of the law, and if I get up it’s almost a sure thing that there will be a defiant puppy sitting on it when I return.

Today I started to think about my ideal office. This is what I decided I'd like:

1. A view

2. A large desk

3. A comfortable chair

4. Walls lined with bookcases for my reference books

5. A handy restroom

6. A puppy-free zone (she keeps stealing paper from my trash bin)

7. No phone

8. A large white board so I can plot

9. A pleasing ambience with candles/music/pretty colors on the walls

10. A well-behaved computer/printer

11. Somewhere to make a cup of tea or coffee

12. A “Do Not Disturb” sign and perhaps a lock on the door

What would your ideal office look like?

Shelley Munro lives in New Zealand with her husband and a mischievous puppy. When she's not writing she  loves to travel, watch rugby (Yay, the All Blacks!), read books (romance, of course) and ride her bicycle. To learn more about Shelley and her books visit her website at www.shelleymunro.com. You will also find her on Facebook or Twitter

As I write this post, half my mind is on packing my bag to head off on holiday. The last couple of months have been full on for me. I’ve written, sold and gone through edits on three different projects and, during the last month, I’ve had my husband underfoot as he recovers from a severed tendon in one of the fingers on his right hand.

I’m tired. My brain is sluggish, and it’s definitely time for a break from writing.

These days we’re all busy. If we don’t multi-task people look at us as if we’re not normal. We focus on work and family activities and don’t take time out for ourselves. The result is stress, which isn’t good for anyone.

Hubby and I are heading off on a ten day Pacific cruise. Quite frankly I don’t care if it rains every day because it will be a real treat being able to read to my heart’s content and have someone make my bed for me every morning. I’ll be able to snooze when I want and won’t have to worry about food shopping or what to cook for dinner. The most difficult decision I’ll need to deal with is what sort of cocktail to choose at the bar. Ah, yes! I can feel the stress starting to melt right now.

Of course, a vacation isn’t the only way to take time out. All we need to do is step out of routine and do something a little different. Go for a leisurely walk in a park. Go to the movies with your sweetie. Take a class or start a new hobby. Play tourist in your own town or city. Have a massage or go on a picnic. The possibilities are endless and needn’t be expensive.

What are your favorite ways to recharge your batteries?

Shelley Munro lives in New Zealand and writes hot and spicy romance for Samhain Publishing. Her recent release, Seeking Kokopelli is available in both print and ebook formats. Her next release, Lone Wolf is due out on 23 Aug. You can visit Shelley and learn more about her books at www.shelleymunro.com

Remember the carefree days of childhood? The days when we didn’t have to do anything more than play and maybe tidy our bedrooms when our parents shouted at us? The days when we could pretend to do anything and be anyone?

My love affair with books started as a child. I always had my nose in a book, and they helped fuel my dreams. At first I decided I’d ride horses for a living and enter show jumping competitions. (My pony book phase)

Next, I thought I might be a vet. This came from reading James Herriot and Gerald Durrell books. My mother pointed out that a vet had to study even longer than a doctor. No, that didn’t bother me. Seven years? No problem! When that didn’t change my mind, my mother casually mentioned operations and blood. Eek! That changed my mind quick-smart. There’s a reason I’ve never tried writing a vampire book and resisted reading them for the longest time. I get a little squeamish when it comes to blood.

In my early teens, I started reading romances, and this started off my desire to travel. I wanted to see all these places I was reading about in person. Could I train as an air hostess? (Their official title at the time). My grandfather informed me they served a lot of coffee and had to put up with some very rude people. All true. I’ve witnessed the way some passengers carry on during a flight.

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- Marquise de Sevigne

"When friends stop being frank and useful to each other, the whole world loses some of its radiance."
- Anatole Broyard

"True friendship is a plant of slow growth, and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to the appellation."
- George Washington

"A true friend stabs you in the front."
- Oscar Wilde

Most of us have close friends and, if you’re like me, you probably know good friendships take time and effort. Occasionally circumstances bring change or dissension and disagreement. Most times we work through our difficulties and our friendships remain intact and become even stronger. We forgive or we make compromises because we understand the value our friends bring to our lives.

The Bottom Line, my recent print release, features five friends—four women and one man. Two of the friends enter a friends-with-benefits deal and this shifts the dynamics amongst the group. Secrets lead to lies, love and more…

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