Tag Archives: Harlequin

November Salon Recap by Guest Author, Allie Boniface

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Read what November guest author, Allie Boniface, has to say about her Lady Jane’s debut and then mark your calendars to join us on Monday, December 6th, 7-9 PM at Madame X. Salon Co-Founder, Hope Tarr will read from her Dickens’ inspired Victorian Christmas novella, “Tomorrow’s Destiny” in A HARLEQUIN CHRISTMAS CAROL, joined by fellow anthology contributor, Jacquie D’ Alessandro, reading “Today’s Longing.” Returning guest, Lauren Willig will round out the night by reading from her latest, The Mischief of the Mistletoe. It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas…

Ah, Lady Jane’s Salon! What a wonderful night of reading and mingling in Greenwich Village! I had the good fortune to meet one of Lady Jane’s founders, Leanna Hieber, a few months ago at another book signing, so when she offered me a November spot to read, I was thrilled. I’ll admit, though, as the date grew closer I developed a terrible case of nerves (looking back, this seems silly – I mean, as a high school English teacher I talk in front of people all the time. Still, this felt different). However, I survived and even managed to enjoy myself, mostly about halfway through my reading when I realized I wasn’t going to pass out from nerves.

Madame X is a narrow little bar with a separate room upstairs decorated entirely in red, with cushy couches and ottomans everywhere. And yes, I decided to dress to match the décor J  About 10 of my own friends joined me, some who live in the city and some who came down from my hometown about 60 miles north. I’d say there were maybe 50 people attending in all. Four authors read, and the nice thing is that we all wrote in different genres of romance. I chose a passage from my latest sweet contemporary, One Night in Napa (though check out the cover for my very newest release, Summer’s Song - I love it!). Sarah MacLean followed with a hilarious scene between her Regency hero and heroine and had everyone laughing. After intermission (during which I enjoyed one of the bar’s signature cocktails – yum!), Terence Taylor read from his paranormal romance novel. It was wonderful to have a male romance author as part of our group, and the audience loved his New Orleans accent and literary nod to Zora Neale Hurston. Finally, the awesomely-garbed Stella Price read from one of the stories in her latest erotica collection.

Author Allie Boniface at the November '10 Lady Jane's.

All in all, it was a terrific night. We had a chance for mingling and picture-taking afterward, and, well, you can’t really go wrong spending an evening in NYC. If you arrive early (and you should!), take a walk around the neighborhood and have dinner or drinks in one of the many cozy restaurants in Greenwich Village.

So romance authors, if you have the chance to read at Lady Jane’s Salon, do so! It’s a wonderful experience. Hey, if you’re a romance fan at all and you find yourself in NYC on the first Monday of any month, I highly recommend stopping by Madame X at 94 West Houston Street between 7 and 9 pm. At the very least, you can’t beat the $5 cocktails!

July Salon Recap and August at Lady Jane’s

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The July 6th Lady Jane’s Salon saw a fabulous turn out despite the steamy temperatures and holiday weekend. In addition to co-hosting two great guest authors, Dianna Love and Colby Hodge, and our very special guest, PW book blogger Barbara Vey, I got to be a guest myself! Please check out my videotaped reading from The Tutor.

The August Salon welcomes three great guest authors: Anna DePalo, Erica Ridley, and Alaya Dawn Johnson.

Guest authors books will be available for purchase on site.

Lady Jane’s meets at Madame X (94 West Houston) on the first Monday of every month, 7-9 PM. Cash bar. Admission is $5 or one gently-used paperback romance novel with net proceeds supporting local women’s charities.

Salon reader Stacey Agdern reports

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I’ve been attending Lady Jane’s Salon pretty regularly since it’s inception, and so when it became my turn to read, I was both excited and nervous. Excited because I’d come to enjoy both the spirit of camaraderie that the salon offers to the people who come, and the wonderful variety of readers that contribute to the salon’s atmosphere. Nervous, because I wanted to let neither the attendees, nor the other readers nor the founders down.  If I was going to fall, I was going to fall big.

So on December 6th, it was my turn. Regulars, friends and even my parents were in attendance. After Ron Hogan’s fabulous introduction, it was my turn to climb the famous stairs to the platform at Madame X’s. I made it up without falling, and managed to both sit on the stool and adjust the microphone without causing damage. Then it was time for me to speak.

I happen to be a Jekyll and Hyde for public speaking; I’m not quite sure why that is.  I’m either ‘on’ or …not. I either nail it, or stutter through, and I can never tell which one is going to happen before I open my mouth for the first time. That night, I was on. The audience laughed at the right points, the words came flowing out of my mouth, all contributing to a general feeling of perfect synergy. I even sang the passages I’d chosen to sing well enough that the song was recognizable. It was a victory in the truest sense of the term.

Once I’d finished, it felt almost like any other Lady Jane’s night; there were two other readers to go. Brenda Chin spoke next, and gave us all a summary of Harlequin’s 60th anniversary year and the amazing changes that Harlequin was instituting starting in January. I also got to hear Hope Tarr, a friend and one of the founders, read from her brand new Scottish Historical, Twelve Nights.

But it also seemed slightly miraculous. That night we also heard about Harlequin’s amazing contribution to ‘Share the Love,’ and I was able to share it all with my friends and family. Thank you all so much for allowing me to be a part of this wonderful community, and I will definitely be attending on January 4th.