Hi, My Name Is...

By: Samantha Anne

Congratulations to "Leslie", the winner of Samantha's giveaway. Thank you to all who participated!

There’s nothing in the world quite like the anxiety of introducing yourself for the first time. Anytime I show my face or work in an unknown forum, it’s always with a bit of trepidation. Will they like me? Will they like what I do? The truth is, I never know; the only constant on which I can always count is that I will always be true to myself, regardless of the outcome. It is with this confidence that I say hello to the JCR blog readers for the first time.

I’m Samantha Anne, a writer/musician/baker hailing from the Bronx, NY. I play bass in a female-fronted punk band named Running Thoughts, and I write not only romance, but science fiction and screenplays as well. You can find me at www.samanthaannebooks.com, for starters: feel free to leave me a quick hello, joke (perhaps a naughty limerick?), or story! You can also find me on Facebook; after all, what are we nowadays without an online presence (smile)? It’s a funny (and maybe a little sad) sign of times, but also a fabulous way to meet people that you might have never encountered otherwise!

On that note, I’d like to now introduce you to KIRBY. Released in March 2013, courtesy of Crimson Romance, it’s the story of a NYC girl and her struggle to find her place in this world – and it just so happens that she finds love at the same time! The story started out as a screenplay, only to end up spending the better part of a decade at the bottom of my big blue bin of ideas. I found So You Think You Can Write last year, and I knew I needed a fun and sassy read to be able to compete with the other amazing writers in the Harlequin writing contest. So I pulled out my notes and got to work; twelve days after I clicked the ‘submit’ button, KIRBY was finished. I didn’t make it to SYTYCW’s second round, but I didn’t give up either. Crimson Romance liked what they saw and the rest, as they say, is history. Here’s a brief summary:

Rachel Sirianni is a twenty-seven year old native New Yorker with dreams of becoming an editor for Equinox Publishing, one of the top imprints in the city. And it seems she’s finally gotten her foot in the door, until one wild morning turns her fast track into an uphill climb.

Unable to pay her bills, she takes an unlikely second job to make ends meet and finds herself struggling to maintain two lives – her own, and that of her alter ego. Kirby is a sassy, imaginative, and extroverted fireball whom Rachel had no idea was lying dormant inside of her.

Enter Joe, a larger-than-life, brutally hot writer with a heart of gold. Rachel can’t seem to control herself around him, despite the fact that she’s sworn off men until she can get her career back on track. Their backgrounds and interests very nearly run parallel, and the Universe seems to keep pulling the pair together – in every aspect of Rachel’s life. What happens when two worlds collide, particularly where it concerns Joe? The ride of her life may just lead to love – or it could lead back to the drawing board.

I’ll be giving away a digital copy of KIRBY to one reader for the e-reader of their choice; I hope the winner enjoys reading it just as much as I enjoyed writing it! Please leave your hellos in the comment section – I’d love to hear from you! If nothing else, you can always pick up your copy (on sale for Kindle Users this month only!) through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iTunes, Google Books and more. 

Happy Reading!

xo,

S.

Giveaway ends 11:59pm EST July 14th. Please supply your email in the post. You may use spaces or full text for security. (ex. jsmith at gmail dot com) If you do not wish to supply your email, or have trouble posting, please email maureen@JustContemporaryRomance.com with a subject title of JCR GIVEAWAY to be entered in the current giveaway.