I found out yesterday that I am a double finalist for the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence. I finaled with HOTTER AFTER MIDNIGHT (paranormal category) and “Spellbound” (novella category).  Thank you so much to all of the judges–and to the wonderful coordinators of this contest!

Last night, Nick and I were talking about the fact that, particularly in movies, we see the same southern stereotypes. (Big note–I’m southern. 🙂 )

With men, there are two main southern versions in the movies:  The hunk and the hick.

The hunk, well, he’s like the estranged husband from SWEET HOME ALABAMA.  Drawling voice, smooth-talking, sexy.  Maybe he comes off as a bit lazy, but hey, that’s okay.  He’s generally amazingly good-looking (think Matthew McConaughey) and can charm just about anyone with his drawl and tanned flesh.

The other guy, um, he’s not so charming. The hick usually has a drawl that is much,much harder, not full of sexy rolls. He likes to dip. He carries his shotgun just about everywhere. He has way outdated views on the world. And he often has a rebel flag, somewhere (on his car, at his house…).

For the women, there are also two main stereotypes:  The vamp and the tramp.

The vamp–well, she’s sexy (the equivalent of the hunk). Her voice and drawl are soft, husky.  She doesn’t usually wear a lot of clothes, because you know, it’s hot down here.  She’ll steal her best-friend’s lover. She’ll scheme, she’ll plot, but she’ll rarely do actual work.  (Again, I’m guessing cause it’s so hot and she doesn’t want to tire herself.) Sometimes, the vamp does slide into tramp land a bit.

But the tramp–well, she’s usually shown in movies wearing clothes that don’t fit. She has very bad hair. A voice that is close to a screech.  She smokes like a chimney. She drinks–oh, the woman can drink. And she has an assortment of children, often all with different fathers.

I promise–for those of you not in the south–we are not like this!!

And one more stereotype about the south that has been driving me crazy lately…there are so many movies (and television shows) that feature southern people, indoors, sweating.  Sweating inside. Whether it’s inside a courtroom or an office building.  I promise–we do have air conditioners down here.  Unless the air conditioner is broken, we have no need to walk around the house, icing ourselves down with um, ice (vamp style).

Sorry. Stereotype rant over.

And if you’ve got a stereotype that is driving you crazy, feel free to share it with me!

These coupon offers were in my In-Box this morning, and I thought I’d share the love. After all, don’t we all want to save on our books?

First up, save 25% off  one item at Borders (in store-only).

Next–two good deals from Books-A-Million:  Save $5 off your next purchase of $40 or more and take $15 off your next purchase of $100 (these coupons are good online).

Now, you may be wondering…what should I buy with these coupons? Well, you could use that Books-A-Million coupon to snag a copy of IMMORTAL DANGER.  Just a suggestion.  🙂

Today kicks off Barbara Vey’s week-long anniversary celebration over at the Beyond Her Book Blog.  Go over, help celebrate, leave a comment–and you could win an awesome prize. There are tons of books up for grabs (including an autographed copy of IMMORTAL DANGER),and on Saturday, one commenter will win an Amazon.com gift certificate for $150!   So, go, party and win!

I have recently had the cyber-pleasure of meeting author Michelle Pillow, and wow, I’m really glad I did!  Because Michelle has got some books out that sound like they’d be perfect for me.  Paranormals, dark and sexy…

First up, Michelle’s KING OF THE UNBLESSED:

The choice is simple: go with him or die.

Realm Immortal, Book One

Merrick, dark elfin King of Valdis, had once been heir to all that was good—happiness and pleasure his domain. Now, trapped as the ruler of mischief, king of necessary evil, he stands on a precipice of choice. On one side, his estranged brother, now ruler of what should have been Merrick’s and, on the other, King Lucien of the Damned. Both would sway him. Damnation is winning.

Lady Juliana of Bellemare is from a human family, protected by the Blessed, coveted by the Damned. Betrothed to an old friend of her father’s, Juliana is resigned to living out her days close to her childhood home, longing for an adventure, never dreaming she’d get what she wished for. When her fiancé is murdered and the children of Bellemare are stolen, Juliana is sent on a quest in a strange realm where appearances are deceiving.

Merrick brings more adventure and passion than any woman could want. Can she withstand the temptations of the Unblessed king? The spell she weaves over him is more than he can resist and, desperate to be the one to rule her, Merrick offers her a choice; either come with him until he tires of her…or die.

***

But, wait, because Michelle has two more books available in her Realm Immortal series:

and

I love those covers! Love them!

Here’s the tagline from FAERY QUEEN:  “It is ill-advised to incur the wrath of a faery, but it is most foolish to do so of a faery queen…”

🙂

You can read an excerpt from FAERY QUEEN here.

And let’s not forget the 3rd book! STONE QUEEN continues the story from KING OF THE UNBLESSED.  Here’s the helpful product warning on this one, posted by Samhain:  “This book contains hot sex, violence, an evil witch, a blundering wizard, meddling sprights, a new queen and the lustful king who plans on showing her just how fun it is to be in charge.”  Come on, they had me at evil witch.

I was looking through my April 09 issue of the Romantic Times and I realized that one of my favorite authors, Amanda Quick, has a release coming up.  THE PERFECT POISON hits store shelves on April 21st. Why does that seem so far away?  But I sure do love her stories!

And what’s on your reading list this week?

I am so into escapism. (Yeah, that would be one of the reasons why I am such an avid reader.) I love getting into a story and being able to escape the pressures of reality, if only for a little while.

This weekend, the big movie that opens is the Watchmen.  I think seeing it is on my agenda.  🙂

But then, next weekend, there’s another flick I really want to see:  The Last House on the Left.  Now, I know The Last House won’t be for everyone, but there is something about that movie that is sucking me in–I’ve got to see it!!!  Maybe the draw for me lies in this one great line from the trailer:  “If bad people hurt someone you love, how far would you go to hurt them back?”

I’m always curious about what people would do in different situations, and, maybe I’m wrong, but this movie seems like it will be one in which the polite veneer people wear is ripped away, and you’re left with the darkness inside. Or, um, maybe I’m just into my RS story so far right now that deep and disturbed movies really appeal to me.

What about you?  Any movie plans on your agenda?

UPDATE: Totally, unrelated to movies, but I just read on Edie’ Ramer’s blog that voting for the CHASE THE DREAM contest has started. Edie made the finals–congrats, Edie! And I wanted to be sure and put up a voting link. Good luck, Edie!