July Greetings

Hello!

I was just invited to join the Harlequin Heartwarming blog and I’m so pleased to be a part of this terrific group of writers.

To introduce myself, my name is Julianna Morris and I’ve had seventeen books published by Silhouette Romance, eight by Harlequin SuperRomance, and my first Harlequin Heartwarming is out this month--TWINS FOR THE RODEO STAR.  I blink when I count them up, not quite believing it.  There are many writers out there who haven’t found the right editor at the right time, so I feel really fortunate.



The California redwoods, a 
favorite vacation spot


A little about me…

I have a degree in environmental science and I’m interested in practically everything, so my shelves are filled with an eclectic collection of books. I enjoy most fiction genres as well as nonfiction, though for nonfiction I’m more heavily focused on nature, history, and biographies (generally ones about people born before 1900).  Gardening, baking, canning/preserving, watercolor painting, making patchwork quilts and other activities compete with my passion for hiking, travel, antiquing, etc., etc., etc… ðŸ˜Š

One member of the family




I’m also an animal lover, both wild and domestic (bears, wolves, cats of all sizes, to name a few).  


She doesn't look wild, does she? 
But you can't get near her. Otherwise,
 she'd be an indoor cat in my home.



 


In addition to caring for my furry pals at home, a fellow author and I daily feed and give water to a small feral cat colony.  While I totally support the current social distancing and mask requirements, I was prepared to get arrested if anyone tried to prevent me from taking care of them.  Fortunately that never became an issue. Outdoor exercise has been encouraged where I live, and there was a special stipulation about being allowed to feed animals in another location (though I doubt they meant feral felines).

Vehicle near where I feed my "outdoor"
cats. You can tell how long it's been since
 being driven. The resident is working
from home for the time being,
usually on his porch.


On my writing…

A little mask humor 
from my family


 Writing is a rather solitary activity and yet my imaginary world filled with characters who have very insistent things to say. For some reason I’m reminded of an account from a Star Trek television set, where the director wanted an actor to press a certain button because it would look better when filmed. As the story goes, the actor refused because pressing that button would destroy the Enterprise. I totally understand.  If this really happened, I wish I’d been there to see the expression on the director’s face.  Being invested in the story is important.

Each book I write is special to me in some way.  For example, I had extra fun writing DR. DAD and DADDY WOKE UP MARRIED.  MEETING MEGAN AGAIN was my mother’s favorite because the story takes place around a family reunion, so it has a particularly warm place in my heart (and my hero was given the Romantic Times magazine W.I.SH. Award!).  FAMILY OF THREE let me indulge a small amount of historical family mystery. 

From the Poppy Gold Stories
 series

My two SuperRomance series, Those Hollister Boys and Poppy Gold Stories are special because of the families and locations.  I suspect like most writers, I have more ideas than time to explore them, but perhaps one day I can revisit these series (I’m thinking about one I call Those Hollister Girls).  I also have more ideas for the O’Rourke family featured in several of my Silhouette romances. 

Now TWINS FOR THE RODEO STAR has been released with Harlequin Heartwarming and I can’t deny having a particular fondness for this story as well.  I never thought I’d write a book where rodeos play a part, then I moved to a small town with a popular annual rodeo.  It didn’t take long before I was hooked.  The entire community is energized during the rodeo and the skill of the contestants is amazing to watch.


Just a nice horse...

I soon found myself speculating about the possibilities of a novel with a rodeo element.  Suddenly my hero, rodeo star Josh McKeon, came alive, along with my heroine, rancher Kelly Beaumont.  I loved pairing these two strong-willed individuals together...along with introducing Josh to the twin sons he never knew about.  While I’ve written ranch stories before, the rodeo added a whole new element.  It was also fun inventing my town (Shelton, Montana) and the events that make up Shelton Rodeo Daze week.

TWINS FOR THE RODEO STAR is book one of a three book series called Hearts of Big Sky.  The second book is coming out in December 2020, titled CHRISTMAS ON THE RANCH.  I’m currently working on the third book for the series (with only a working title to date).  So back to the manuscript.

Have a wonderful July.  

Thanks to all for including me!

Looks a bit like an orchid, 
but is actually a geranium in my yard.
Gardening is one of my favorite
activities

Julianna

 

Julianna Morris Facebook


TWINS FOR THE RODEO STAR:

Goodreads reviews  (4.5 ★)

Comments

  1. Julianna, I loved reading all about you - and great pictures too. Inspiration can come from anywhere, but I love that you moved near a rodeo arena and fell in love with it. The cover of your new book is so beautiful! Congrats on the new release and welcome to Heartwarming!

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    1. Thanks! It's been a real experience being so close to a rodeo, though sadly, this year it has been cancelled. I'm in search of a better camera (my fingers are doing the walking through the internet), but I love taking pics regardless.

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  2. Julianna, I loved reading your story. I love animals, and I love reading books where animals are involved in the story. And I'm a mom of twins so I always love reading books that have twins in them. Congratulations on your new release!

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    1. I like twin stories, too. As an animal lover, have you seen the story about Bear 399 in the Tetons? She's a grizzly, twenty-four years old (which is fairly old for a grizzly), who showed up with three new babies this spring. My next book in the series takes place near Yellowstone, so grizzlies are a part of the story. Thanks!

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    2. Oops, I meant 399 has four cubs. Imagine that, four cubs when she's probably the equivalent of eighty years old for a grizzly. I would love to see her in person, but the manuscript has to come first.

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  3. So nice getting to know you, Juliana! Congratulations on your new release...love the cover...and welcome to a great group of Heartwarming authors!

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    1. I'm delighted to be part of this group. I feel really at home with Heartwarming. My editor was really pleased when she saw this cover and even sent me a copy before the automated file was generated.

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  4. I feel like a slacker - you have so many hobbies! I'm lucky if I even read about so many. Welcome!

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    1. Thanks for the welcome. I don't spend nearly as much time with my hobbies as I'd like--too busy writing, which is the priority. But I try to fit them in whenever possible. My canning/preserving/freezing efforts served us well this year, because we haven't needed to shop as much.

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  5. Hi, Julianna. So nice to get to know more about you this morning. I adore that cover and can't wait to read the story. And I'm so happy to hear you're caring for the cats.

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    1. Thanks! I was really lucky with such a nice cover.

      As soon as the stay-at-home order was announced I stuck out my chin and said they weren't stopping me from feeding my "outdoor" cats. It wasn't because I disagreed with being careful, but I couldn't let them go hungry. Right now I'm worried because I keep hearing a cat meowing from under the church. I've been reassured no animals have been closed in, they can come and go, but that doesn't keep me from being concerned.

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  6. Welcome to Heartwarming. Love the pictures. I've been working on a rodeo story as well. Your cats are terrific.

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    1. Thanks! I usually paint my watercolors from pictures. Good luck with your story, I had a lot of fun writing mine and will probably do more with a rodeo. I love cats and dogs and there's always an on-going debate about how many we can adopt.

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  7. So nice to see you here. I think those twins make your cover one of the cutest I've ever seen! And the Heartwarming covers are terrific. Thanks for telling us about your very full and wonderful life!

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    1. Thanks for the welcome. I agree, the Heartwarming covers are great. Right now I'm learning about meditation from a Great Courses DVD set. The instructor suggests people are able to get even more done once they are meditating and practicing "mindfulness". I hope that's true, because I don't have enough hours in the day. My parents encouraged their children to be interested in everything--they would even interrupt dinner so we could all read an encyclopedia article--and I think it's both a blessing and a curse to be so curious.

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  8. Welcome, Julianna. So happy to have you here! I loved reading your post and am excited to read your books.

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    1. Thanks, I'm so pleased to be part of this group! I've had trouble being able to post comments since I first started looking at the blog, but may (I hope) have sorted that out by now. I think it's partly because there's more than one gmail account in the household, which confuses the system.

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