LauraKenyon.com

Much love and many thanks, National Indie Excellence Awards, for choosing Desperately Ever After as a 2014 chick-lit finalist!

Said President and CEO Ellen Reid in her congratulatory announcement: “Your book truly embodies the excellence that this award was created to celebrate, and we salute you and your fine work.”

Check out it and the other honorees here.

And in another wonderful surprise this week, the women of Marestam were saluted by two fabulous book bloggers — first as one of Tracie Banister’s 2014 Summer Reads and then as part of Jenny in Neverland’s “Books That Made Me … Laugh” series.

“It’s sarcastic, it’s flirty, it’s cheeky, it’s hilarious!” said guest blogger Mary from M’s Bookshelf. “Laura gave those girls and their stories such an interesting, contemporary spin with some magic and lots of humor. I couldn’t stop reading and my cheeks hurt from grinning.”

I can’t stop grinning either. It’s amazing welcoming readers into this world I’ve immersed myself in for years now. Been an amazing few days :)

Spoiler alert! The season finale of ABC’s Once Upon a Time aired on Sunday, and fans have been lighting up Twitter with excitement over a long-awaited romance (“Captain Swan”), a fallen hero honored (baby Prince Neal), and the promise of something super cool (Elsa from Frozen) next fall.

But I’d like to devote this post to my favorite part of that triad: the moment Hook finally got the girl he’s been chasing for two seasons, Emma Swan. (Thank you, OUAT writers!) Yes, after following Emma into a time portal (Quote: “One of these days I’m going to stop chasing this woman.”), Hook helps his unrequited love navigate the past without destroying the future. During this time, she realizes that she doesn’t want to run away to New York City after all, that home is right there with her family in Storybrooke, and that … yes … Hook sold his beloved ship, the Jolly Roger, in order to come back and find her during the lost year. That’s how true his love is.

And with that confession, we finally get this:

(thanks to @lillyrain77 for the photo)

It was the reprise of this:

I’ve been waiting for since last year!!

…

And for me, it was perfect. Unlike the old tales, this relationship took WORK. The guy didn’t rescue the girl like a prize; they rescued themselves and each other–physically and emotionally–many times over. And  that kiss was based on a heck of a lot more than her looks or his wealth.

My favorite kind of hearththrob has never been the white knight Prince Charming type, anyway. I’m a Han Solo kind of girl. Damon Salvatore. Sawyer over Jack. I’m far more interested in the flawed anti-hero with the dark past. The guy who’s constantly battling his inner demons, but who wants more than anything to be a better man … usually because he’s found that ONE person who makes him want to change. To him, while “charm” may come naturally (particularly the kind that digs deep beneath a girl’s skin until she just can’t resist it any longer), he must constantly work at all those other “heroic” qualities the storybooks celebrate. And in some ways, that makes them more meaningful.

In Once Upon a Time, Hook plays the role of this black leather knight perfectly. For me, his addition during season two revived what was becoming a somewhat repetitive storyline. Then, the Neverland love triangle between him, Emma, and Neal gave me hope that this was leading somewhere great. And during Sunday’s season finale, I wasn’t disappointed!!

Now, sadly, all of us Once Upon a Time fans have to wait FIVE MONTHS to find out what happens next :(

Lucky for me, I won’t be going a day without Belle, Snow, Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, Cinderella, or the Princess and the Pea. I’ll be pouring myself into the June blog tour of Desperately Ever After; the August release of its sequel, Damsels in Distress (it’s got one of those black leather knights); and the creation of both a novella (Want to find out more about Rapunzel’s captor?) and the third book in the series.

Chick Lit Central recently called Desperately Ever After the perfect solution to Once Upon a Time withdrawal: “If you are looking for a fun and gossipy story to satisfy the holes left when Sex and the City and Desperate Housewives had their series finales (or even if you’re going through Once Upon a Time withdrawal come season finale time) look no further than Desperately Ever After.” Continue reading →

Happy Mother’s Day to every mom, grandma, mother-to-be, special aunt, wife (because having a husband is often like having a kid), puppy mama, and honorary mother out there. I hope you have a beautiful day surrounded by the people you love.

In the words of some of history’s most prolific writers:

“Whatever else is unsure in this stinking dunghill of a world a mother’s love is not.” ~ James Joyce

“God could not be everywhere, and therefore he made mothers.” ~ Rudyard Kipling

“To describe my mother would be to write about a hurricane in all its perfect power.” ~ Maya Angelou

Continue reading →

If you love dogs but haven’t heard of Marshal Zeringue’s Coffee with a Canine blog, you’re missing out–big time!

I’ll admit, I didn’t know about it until a few months ago, but now that I do, I LOVE it. As I’ve said before, every writer should have a dog. Not only do they yank us away from our writing caves when we get obsessed, but we work hard enough to convince people we’re worth a chance: literary agents, editors, publishers, reviewers. I think we deserve a bit of easy, unconditional admiration in our lives … for doing something as simple as picking up a leash or throwing a ball.

Anyway, I’m thrilled to have my Shadow featured on Coffee with a Canine today. And just in time for Mother’s Day, too! Click here for the article and to view all the other fabulous writers with their cuddly companions. Continue reading →