CAN’T STOP LOVING YOU is a Woman’s World Book Club Pick!
Two happy bits of news this week. I was excited to learn that my book CAN’T STOP LOVING YOU was chosen as a book club selection for the January 23rd issue of Woman’s World Magazine. This was a thrill because for years I’ve read and enjoyed the weekly short romance stories in this periodical and it was a real honor to have my book picked as one of their small town romance reads!
Secondly, this upcoming week, the Heroes and Heartbreakers blog is doing a cover reveal for my March release, CAN’T FIGHT THIS FEELING. The cover is really pretty, stop by and have a first peek!
CAN’T FIGHT THIS FEELING is Book 2 in the Spikonos brothers series and features another hot, gorgeous, and wonderful brother of Greek heritage, Drew, who we first met when he was AWOL from his own celebrity wedding in Book 1, Can’t Stop Loving You. Stop by heroesandheartbreakers.com on Tuesday, January 31st or visit my Facebook Author page for more details!
Now’s a great time to sign up for my newsletter here if you haven’t already, for the latest news about what’s coming. I’m on some pretty tight deadlines now so it’s back to work for me! Happy week 🙂
xo
Miranda
Cuppa Inspiration
I’ve always been one to believe in the power of suggestion. And I’ve always loved motivational quotes, whether they’re sarcastic 
and snarky or very serious. That’s why, over the years, family and friends have made certain to supply me with slogan coffee cups to sit on my desk and motivate me while I write. Today, I’d like to share with you my favorites.
Last spring, my daughter and I went to an antique mall and I saw a smiley mug that reminded me very fondly of my youth. I didn’t buy it but I did take a photo of it and talked a lot about the smiley craze to her. Well, for Christmas she got me my own. I love this mug because there is a broad smile on one side, always inspiring. But it’s the other side I really like because it is subversive. The sly, secretive, winking side tells me in no uncertain terms, You’ve got this, you gorgeous, talented, amazing hunk of writer! Now get to it!” Hard to ignore that message for sure, right? 🙂
Best Day Ever! fills me with optimism as I sit down and write, even if the day
soon deteriorates into so much dog poo. Yes, yes I can! is the mantra it inspires. The Star Wars mug is a gift from my son–notice that the light sabers light up when filled with a hot beverage. Which is just very cool. 
Then, on the last day of edits, I pull out the cup that reminds me I’ve tried my hardest and now it’s time to let go, something I very much need because if it were possible, I’d still be clinging on to the manuscript with my very last breath. I love this mug because when the due date of a manuscript arrives, time’s up and you have to hit that send button.
Plus when you finish your coffee, you get a little surprise in the bottom. I think of this as my little heart attack in the bottom of the cup. It’s a simple exclamation point, which you can take in many ways. Usually, hurry up and get this done and turn it in! or You did it! You finished a book! or just maybe, I wish I could work on this another year. Or two!
Okay, so you may be thinking that maybe writers spend too much time alone. But writing a book is a marathon and as you sit or stand and pluck at the keyboard, you’ve gotta do everything possible to keep yourself going. Might as well get some use out of that container of all that coffee you’re consuming.
May your upcoming week be filled with great coffee (or tea)!
Back to the Routine
Are you recovered from the holidays? It is with bittersweetness that my youngest kid, 19, walks out the door today, back to college. His sisters, 22 and 24, have already left. The house is getting quieter…maybe I can hear myself think again, which might be a little helpful with the deadlines and all!
But while I long for my quiet routine, half of me wants to keep them all here forever.
…But the other half is completely fine with them going out into the world and doing their own things.
Anyway, each of them got me a Christmas gift that is reflective of their personalities. 
Daughter #1 knows that daily I dress in athletic pants and tops, so that when I have to dress up…well, it becomes a challenge! I’m always looking for a classy statement necklace that isn’t too overwhelming…and she found me the perfect one. It came in a special box from a boutique that she bought it from in in Philadelphia. Love it! Not too big, not too gaudy, matches with everything (but not the athletic tops, lol)…perfect!
Daughter #2 created this for me, using a photo of our omnipresent cat. The cat together with the typewriter…hilarious, to me anyway. Great gift. And the Hemingway quote…absolutely true!
Lastly, my son. Mr. Practical and Efficient. He did a craft, for the first time in ten years! He actually went to the craft store, bought stuff which he found of all places on PINTEREST, and created this mug for me. He made ones for his sisters too. I love it (but I’m a little afraid to drink from it, as he said something about “I put some chemical on it to seal it” which makes me a little nervous, lol…).
I will keep it in the kitchen next to the trivet he made me in grade school that has his grinning little toothy smile on it. (Precious.)
Hope you had lovely holidays. I’m happy to leave the Christmas cookies behind and detox! My wish for all of you is a happy and healthy New Year.
Feel free to share your favorite Christmas gifts here or on my author page…and you just might win a backlist book of your choice…
xo Miranda
‘Tis the Season for (Awkward) Holiday Dinners
How’s your holiday stress? Hope not too crazy. This week, I did a fun post over at The Romance Dish about the first time I had dinner with my husband’s family. It might make you laugh! You can view it here. 
Hope you have a wonderful holiday with your family. Back to my edits and holiday stress…I mean fun. Okay, a little bit of that too 🙂
xoxoxo
Miranda
Christmas Movies and Why We Watch Them
This post is part of a Christmas blog hop initiated by my friend, historical author Marin McGinnis! Read an excerpt of my brand new release CAN’T STOP LOVING YOU on her Dec. 8th blog and check it out every day this month to discover some great new authors! Thanks for including me, Marin!
* * *
The other night, I was watching the end of a Hallmark channel movie when my husband walked into the room.
“Don’t ruin it,” I said. (He can’t help himself. His urge to say something, usually sarcastic, is too great.)
“Are they about to live happily ever after?” he asked, sitting down beside me.
“Shh,” I said. “Don’t talk. Just watch.”
The heroine was climbing up a ladder, her job to place the star atop the community center Christmas tree. (The community center that was saved from the wrecking ball, of course.)
“She’s going to fall, and the hero is going to catch her,” he predicted. (That’s the other thing he does. Tries to guess everything that’s going to happen. Anyone need a spare husband?)
“The hero is across the room,” I said. “She’s not going to fall. Please go away.”
At the top of the ladder, the cute German Shepherd that was in the movie nudged the ladder, causing the heroine to wobble precariously. The hero bolted across the room and was there in a flash!
Sure enough, she fell right into his arms, creating a beautiful moment where they shared a Christmas kiss. (No tongue. Because it’s Hallmark!) The movie ended.
“I should’ve been a romance writer,” my husband said, complimenting himself on his ability to predict things.
Honestly, I did not see that coming. Know why? Because I was under the magic spell of Hallmark Christmas movies. Sometimes (okay, often) sappy, always emotional, they bring out everything we love and hate about Christmas. But in general, they are about love. About mending fences. Facing up to your past. Correcting past wrongs. Finding someone who loves you for who you are and brings out the best in you (never the rich guy with lots of money and terrible parents).
“Let’s watch another one,” my husband said, putting his arm around me and settling in. Because secretly, he can’t resist the pull either. Now if only I could get him to watch in silence!
About CAN’T STOP LOVING YOU:
Lovers of romance understand that these stories, both on the screen and between the pages, touch longings deep within us to reconcile our own pasts, forgive ourselves for mistakes, and experience our deepest hopes and dreams for a loving relationship and family. Things are often far from perfect in a lot of these story worlds. But we latch onto the hope of things getting better for the hard-working but flawed heroine and the sincere, heart-of-gold hero. We want them to find happiness just like we want ourselves and our loved ones to find peace and a good, loving life.
The couple in my new release, CAN’T STOP LOVING YOU, truly have a lot of fence mending to do. Separated by a tragedy in their teenage years, they haven’t really spoken in twelve years. The story is about love, loss, friendship, family, and the idea that you have to confront your past in order to move on to the future.
Arabella D’Angelo worked hard to escape her past and move on—not an easy feat in her small town—until one day it returns in the form of her 6’2” darkly handsome, enigmatic first love, Roman Spikonos, who is settling back into town to take over his grandfather’s orchards, right next to her traditional Italian family’s garden center.
Arabella fell in love hook line and sinker with Roman Spikonos in high school. Their love was explosive, wonderful, and all-consuming…until she found herself pregnant, causing her to leave her private high school and give up her scholarship to the out-of-state she’d dreamed of attending. Yes, she was that girl in high school. And just like that, all her dreams fell apart. The life she’d imagined was nothing near the life she was suddenly forced to live.
And because of the anger of her traditional Italian father, she had to make an awful, heartbreaking choice that cost her everything. And then she had to somehow find the strength to move forward with her life.
My heroine undergoes a tremendous amount of growth as she is forced to confront feelings she’s swept under the rug for years, not only with Roman but also with her very supportive friend Ethan, and last but not least, her own father. CAN’T STOP LOVING YOU is a romance, and is told from both the hero and heroine’s points of view, but I consider it first and foremost Bella’s story.
I hope the end result is an emotional but hopeful read and a beautiful love story that took a very bumpy path to come full circle.
Buy CAN’T STOP LOVING YOU at these retailers!
Bio:
Miranda Liasson loves to write stories about courageous but flawed characters who find love despite themselves, because there’s nothing like a great love story. And if there are a few laughs along the way, even better! She’s a former Golden Heart winner who writes contemporary romance for Montlake Romance, Entangled, and soon for Grand Central. She lives in the Midwest with her husband, three kids, and Posey, a rescue cat with attitude.
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Lastly, check out my release week tour with Rafflecopter giveaway here.