Donna Alward with a GIVEAWAY!

I invited Donna Alward, who writes sweet romance. A busy wife and mother of three (two daughters and the family dog), Donna Alward believes hers is the best job in the world: a combination of stay-at-home mom and romance novelist. 

Donna loves to hear from readers; you can contact her through her website at www.donnaalward.com, visit her facebook page, or on Twitter: @DonnaAlward

Workshops offered by Donna

The Business of Writing - an in depth workshop that can be tailored to your particular needs. Addresses both the writing and promotion aspects of career.

Breaking Through Blah - How to bust through flat writing. Includes exercises using your works in progress.

To Agent or Not to Agent - Should you or shouldn't you? The pros and cons of going it alone or with representation.

Piece of Cake: The Recipe for a Satisfying Ending - the crucial ingredients to writing a sigh-worthy, satisfying ending to your romance novel that's as delicious as chocolate cake.

Put it on High Crank: Productivity Tips and Tricks to up your Word Count - tips and tricks to make the most of your writing time, resulting in faster - and better - output.

If any of you is interested in these workshops please ask about them in comments. Now over to Donna.....

One of the challenges of writing what I’d consider “Traditional” stories is making sure they are modern and relevant. Especially with writing westerns, I don’t have a lot of options when it comes to professions. So what I end up doing is looking at ways to make them just a little different. For example, in ONE DANCE WITH THE COWBOY, the hero is running a rescue ranch for horses destined for slaughter.

With growing concerns about the environment and sustainable resources, I looked at new ranching practices for the very prosperous Diamondback Ranch, run by the heroes of my Cadence Creek Cowboys duet (out this month and next). In the first book, THE LAST REAL COWBOY, Sam Diamond has locked horns with his dad over setting up a Biogas facility on the ranch, which would allow Diamondback to produce all its own electricity and thus not rely on the power grid at all. Cool right?

And not far-fetched. I did a little research and found just what I was looking for at Spring Creek Ranch in Alberta! Their commitment to producing a quality, hormone-free product and to stewardship of the land is amazing. Just check it out at http://springcreek.ca/welcome/our-stewardship/

Sometimes we’re all resistant to change – it’s hard to take risks and leave what’s comfortable. Sam’s dad, Virgil, isn’t sure it’s the right thing to spend all the money to set up such a venture on the ranch he spent years building.

More than that, though, he’s worried about becoming obsolete. That he won’t be needed and valued anymore.

I had a great time exploring Sam and Virgil’s relationship in this book, not to mention how Sam feels about Angela Beck, a real thorn in his side. Diamondback Ranch has been his whole life, so he can’t imagine anything or anyone coming along who could possibly be more important than his legacy….

THE LAST REAL COWBOY is out now in North America and in the UK, and the follow up, THE REBEL RANCHER, is out in North America in June and in August in the UK. Please, stop by my website and see what else is coming up- www.donnaalward.com

As a prize today, I’m giving away a kindle version of another very special release I have out this month: THE GREATEST GIFT: A MOTHER’S DAY COLLECTION. It features stories by four Harlequin authors and mine is set in the same setting as the duet – in Cadence Creek!