Category Archives: VHP

12.07.16
by

VHP Author Neva Squires-Rodriguez ~ an update

I was very pleased to introduced VHP Author Neva Squires-Rodriguez in 2014 soon after she joined the Vanilla Heart Publishing team. You can read that first interview in the Potpourri Parlor right here 

NevaNeva’s been quite busy in the two-plus years that she’s been a VHP star. I asked her a few questions to update how she has been doing —

So please come on in to my Potpourri Parlor and meet Neva Squires-Rodriguez, AGAIN.

Q: What’s changed in the past 2 years – what else have you learned as a writer?  
A: Over the last two years I have really developed my social media skills.  With a ton of hard work, I was able to grow my following on Twitter and Goodreads, which is good because using these outlets helps to promote sales.

Q: What is the newest, biggest news in your professional writing life? 
A: The Anthology that I was a part of this past May, “Mother’s Day Magic” hit the best seller list.  This was extremely exciting and interesting, because I was able to learn so much from this group of authors.

Q: What are your other writing endeavors?
A: I currently write a weekly column for Reflejos Bilingual Newspaper, a newspaper that reflects the life of Latinos in the suburbs of Chicago.  I really enjoy writing for this newspaper because it helps to promote the positive in the Latino community.

Q: How has writing changed your personal life?
A: I am definitely the same person, I just would rather sit at a computer and type.  Often I become lost in conversations, planning out my next story as I stare off into space.   It’s hard because sometimes my imagination is a bit overwhelming!  How do your family members feel about your being a published author?  It’s always interesting to see copies of my books on my relatives’ coffee tables.  Sometimes I forget that I was the one who wrote it and the Liliana Series covers always get me with their beauty.

Q: How has your personal life (ie: work) affected your writing? 
A: Over the last year I have really taken a step back from my writing, due to various things going on in my life such as work and well stress.  My mother-in-law was diagnosed with Stage 4 Pulmonary Cancer this past year and this past November, her body succumbed to the disease.

Q: Anything else you’d like to add?.
A: Next year my New Year’s Resolution is going to get this amazing story I’ve been working on finished and published.  It’s really going to be mind-blowing because it’s going to be different than any place I’ve ever written about before. (That’s always fun, because I enjoy doing research, especially when I’m learning about different cultures.)

Find Neva’s books on

Smashwords
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
and other online retailers

’Tis the Season for Cocoa and Reading: Holiday Stories and More     …a collection of short stories by Vanilla Heart Publishing Authors Tamara Philip, Chelle Cordero, Malcolm R. Campbell, Gwendolyn Jensen-Woodard, Neva Squires-Rodriguez, Charmaine Gordon, and Lauren Shiro.

The Holiday Secret
Will Evaliz finally realize that the most important thing she could have wanted for Christmas was something she had the entire time?
This Season…
Two Holiday Short Stories in one volume, from Tamara Philip (The Cupid Series) and Neva Squires-Rodriguez (The Liliana Trilogy).
HeartWorks
Eight Great Stories of Love, Passion, and Romance from Vanilla Heart Publishing Authors Charmaine Gordon, Paul Zunckel, Chelle Cordero, Neva Squires-Rodriguez, Lauren Shiro, Tamara Philip, Gwendolyn Jensen-Woodard, and Angela Kay Austin.
No Turning Back part of the The Liliana Trilogy.
The devastating secret Liliana learns pushes her to search for answers from her father, El Jefe. But, nothing can prepare her for the tragedy that will come of her relationship with her father… or the priceless opportunity that will come from it.
In Too Deep part of the The Liliana Trilogy.
Just when Liliana is supposed to be experiencing the happy feelings of a new bride, she finds herself in a very difficult predicament. Her husband isn’t the perfect man that she thought he was and she finds herself alone as her life shatters around her. She becomes lost in a world of deceit and she struggles with the knowledge that her life with Antonio will never be the same.
Lilianapart of the The Liliana Trilogy. 
Boom! That deafening sound changed Liliana’s life forever. Her mother sits dead besides her, shot to death on the streets of Chicago. Within weeks, Liliana is sent to live with a father she doesn’t know in Colombia. While working to pay off her father’s debt, she meets the love of her life, who frees her from her father, only to bring her into a new world of twisted surprises.
mothers-loveMother’s Magic …with Love
Craving a poignant, nostalgic read? Or perhaps you desire a scintillating tale of romance and heartbreak? This top-ten bestselling anthology, by multi-awarding winning and #1 bestselling authors, celebrates the strength and determination of women who are mothers. You’ll enjoy 12 previously unpublished stories by Angela Ford, Tamara Ferguson, Daisy Banks, Mary Crawford, Allyson R. Abbott, Tamara Philip, Neva Squires-Rodriguez, Adrienne Ruvalcaba, Q.D. Purdu, Cary Allen Stone, Tyler Hosea, Anna Celeste Burke, and Cornelia Amiri.
Find Author Neva Squires-Rodriguez on
Facebook
Twitter
Website
04.06.11
by

Ego Trip

I was chatting with a friend yesterday when she related a story to me – She and another friend (not mutual) were engaged in a conversation about books. Her friend told her about finding a great unknown author who comes from the Hudson Valley (NY) but she couldn’t remember the author’s name. She did proceed to tell my friend a little about the story and then remembered the name of the book – Bartlett’s Rule !!! Well my friend laughed, told her the author’s name and bragged that she knew me.

Wow, my head sure swelled after hearing that.
4.33 of 5 stars4.33 of 5 stars4.33 of 5 stars4.33 of 5 stars4.33 of 5 stars 4.33 (from GoodReads)
Bartlett’s Rule shares the story of Lon and Paige’s love affair; a romance filled with hardship, emotion, danger and triumph. Falling in love was never the challenge; being there for each other, knowing just what to say and making it work is the real test. Paige and Lon are real ; they are human, they cry and they laugh. Paige has to learn to trust. Lon has to learn to be patient.
Fiction and Non-Fiction

All during the month of April, Vanilla Heart Publishing is donating our share of all proceeds for a select group of books – Bartlett’s Rule by Chelle Cordero (Fiction), Voices of Survivors (Anthology), To Dance Amongst the Stars and the companion healing workbook by Namid, Secondary Survivors by Namid, and The Strength of a Man and the companion healing workbook by Namid.

during the month of April 2011,
buy Bartlett’s Rule for ONLY 99-cents

12.17.10
by

Caitlyn cooks – part of the VHP Virtual Dine-a-Round

Chicken Pot Pie – Within the Law
Ingredients
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves – cubed
1 cup sliced carrots
1 cup frozen green peas
1/2 cup sliced celery
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 3/4 cups chicken broth
2/3 cup milk
2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts
Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C.)
In a saucepan, combine chicken, carrots, peas, and celery. Add water to cover and boil for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside.
In the saucepan over medium heat, cook onions in butter until soft and translucent. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and celery seed. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick. Remove from heat and set aside.
Place the chicken mixture in bottom pie crust. Pour hot liquid mixture over. Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Make several small slits in the top to allow steam to escape.
Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Blurb
Tom gave up on ever falling in love again the day that he buried his high school sweetheart and fiancé. He started a career in law enforcement just so that he could find her murderer and rapist. Just when he is about to see justice done, he meets Alli Davis-the defense attorney for the murdering rapist who took his love from him.
(excerpt)
“We think Bryan Colton stole money from the people he cooked those books for. He may have hidden the money away thinking he could get away with it.”
“And if they found out…”
“He’s desperate to get the money back or use it to get away.” Brandon finished the thought.
“This is good news because he’s going to keep Alli alive for her to hand him the painting. She is too valuable alive to do anything drastic.”
“But Alli doesn’t have it…” Tom frowned.
“Right. So she’s collateral.” Brandon seemed pleased. “Either way, it pays for him to keep Alli alive and unharmed. This gives us time.”
“But why haven’t we heard anything?” Even though Brandon’s theory made sense to him, Tom was concerned about the delay.
Brandon shrugged. “That I don’t know. Maybe he doesn’t believe she doesn’t have the painting. Or he’s trying to figure out how to use her to bargain with. She probably hasn’t let him know where the painting is.”
“Alli is stubborn as hell.” Tom thought aloud. “She is probably keeping her mouth shut.”
Brandon nodded. “So we have to let him know you have it.”
“Does that put you in danger?” Caitlyn sounded worried about her cousin.
Tom looked at his cousin and then at Brandon. If Bryan Colton decided to come after him, they could be in the way.
“You guys have to go home.” He didn’t want anyone else to get hurt.
Brandon shook his head. “I’m not leaving you alone. Caitlyn and Chloe can go home. I’m staying.”
“I am not leaving the two of you!” Caitlyn protested.
“Cat…” Tom wanted to reason with her. Brandon could handle himself. He was a terrific backup for him.
“Sweetheart, I’d feel better…” Brandon looked torn.
“Tough. If you’re worried, hire some thug to watch your daughter. I am staying.” She was adamant.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
We hope that you are enjoying our Virtual VHP Dine-a-Round.

To enjoy the full menu, stop and visit the following sites:

An Elegant Dinner Party

http://bit.ly/gklZbA A complete menu from To Be Continuedby Charmaine Gordon

Main Dish recipes

http://tiny.cc/6ocas Tranoc’s Lecho from Forest Song: Letting Goby Vila Spiderhawk

http://bit.ly/g2ZWY3 OR http://bit.ly/dXQoTn Crispy Cobb Salad from No Easy Way by SR Claridge

http://bit.ly/hy7s5E Chicken Pot Pie from Within the Law by Chelle Cordero

http://bit.ly/f6XQKH Pot Roast from Appalachian Justice by Melinda Clayton

http://bit.ly/dgk2mD Purple Platter Meatloaf from Jock Stewart and the Missing Sea of Fire by Malcolm Campbell

Dessert

http://bit.ly/glJHHT Pecan Pie from Sabbath’s House by Marilyn Celeste Morris

http://bit.ly/eoNgaF Poppy Seed Cake from Opal Fire Barbra Annino

http://bit.ly/dMNNTS Gingerbread from Frank, Incense And Murielby Anne K. Albert

http://bit.ly/i2bI0m Creme Brulee from Conquering Venus by Collin Kelley

Beverage

http://bit.ly/gBBw4K Russian Czar Drink from Bartlett’s Rule by Chelle Cordero

10.24.09
by

2009 VHP READ ‘EM AND LOVE ‘EM EBOOK PROMOTION!


All Vanilla Heart Publishing Fiction Titles in

ALL EBOOK FORMATS

$5.99!

Kindle – AllRomance – OmniLit – Smashwords
And coming soon, Fictionwise, Barnes & Noble Ebooks, and Sony eReader

How Cool Is That!

…and please remember

Honoring The National Domestic Violence Hotline

Vanilla Heart Publishing and Chelle Cordero will donate $1 per copy of Bartlett’s Rule (any format) sold through midnight October 31, 2009 to The National Domestic Violence Hotline, to further their amazing work.

Bartlett’s Rule ISBN 978-0-9796545-3-4
print from Amazon
print from Barnes & Noble
various eBook formats from Smashwords
Kindle from Amazon
* more sources are available

Wow, what a bargain!

I shared an audio update using #Cinch, check it out:

http://bit.ly/12kVmz

~~~~~~~

07.23.09
by

Contest from VHP – win up to 25 books

BUILD YOUR BOOKSHELF
SUMMER BLOWOUT CONTEST!

Easy Entries! Drawing Held Labor Day!

….

We’ve put together a humongous box full of our Author’s Fabulous Titles! Win a Bookshelf full of terrific reading, brought to you by the amazing authors of Vanilla Heart Publishing! Yep, 25 Fabulous Novels and a surprise for the winner! See Below for details on how to get entries into the drawing to be held on Labor Day!
Contest open to residents of the US and Canada and must be over 18 to enter
GRAND PRIZE: 25 print edition novels (shown above – randomly drawn)
SECOND PRIZE: 5 Ebook Downloads of winner’s choice
THIRD PRIZE: 3 Discount Coupons for 50% Ebook Downloads

….

  • Post about our Build Your Bookshelf Contest on your blog with a link back to this post, then email us the location ONE entry for each
  • Purchase and/or read one of our great fiction titles, and email VHP the seventh line on page 27, the title, and the author’s name. ONE entry for each…
  • To get THREE entries all in one fell swoop, post a review on either Amazon or Barnes and Noble and send in the title and location of the review
  • Choose one (or more) of your favorite VHP books and post the Amazon link for a minimum of one week. We’ll give you ONE entry for each book after you send us the link to the place you posted the link, and an extra entry if you posted something about the title or author. (If you have your own Amazon A-store, put the book in your store and get the commission from Amazon, too!)
  • Post three or more cover pictures of our terrific VHP titles with Amazon links or Barnes and Noble links and receive FIVE entries when you email us the location for verification.
  • Host one of our awesome VHP authors on your blog (they’ve all got great blog visitor tidbits) and receive SEVEN entries!

ENTRY EMAIL: BYB2009@VanillaHeartBooksAndAuthors.com

06.09.09
by

Really, really exciting news!

Thank you everyone who supported the Stony Point Ambulance Youth Squad by purchasing copies of Final Sin – final tallies are still coming in, but I understand the Youth Squad will be receiving a nice check (& you can bet I will cover that right here!)


Vanilla Heart Publishing has just made the magnanimous offer to continue to donate a percentage of profits to the Stony Point Ambulance Corps Youth Squad from sales of Final Sin through Labor Day!

Yes!

These young men and women represent the future of EMS.

And if helping our youth isn’t incentive enough –

Check out Vanilla Heart’s June Special

Buy your favorite VHP fiction titles in print version from Amazon, and for every copy purchased, select a FREE ebook (with full color covers, front and back) from our entire Ebook Catalog!

Simply send verification of print copy purchase (your Amazon order number – last three digits only, date of purchase, your name and email) to Sizzlers@vanillaheartbooksandauthors.com and include the name of the free ebook you have selected. Within just a few short hours, you can be reading your free ebook, while waiting for your print copy to arrive!

So you can really make this pay BIG time…

Purchase a print copy of Final Sin and then choose ANY VHP ebook for FREE!!!!!

Final Sin, featuring characters Paramedic Julie Jennings and Deputy Sheriff Commander Jake Carlson has received acclaim for a suspense filled murder- mystery and realistic depiction of both Emergency Medical Services and law enforcement.

Deputy Sherriff Commander Jake Carson has his hands full with the investigation of a brutal multiple homicide, a troubled son and a vindictive ex-wife when he meets young, free-spirited paramedic Julie Jennings. He is immediately drawn to her and finds himself unexpectedly falling in love. Julie finds herself just as drawn to him.

When Julie becomes the subject of an obsession, it puts both of their lives in extreme danger…