The Marriage Bargian by Jennifer Probst: Guest Post & Giveaway {Sizzling PR}

A big thanks to I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read for hosting me today to talk about my upcoming release, The Marriage Bargain. It’s the first in series of Marriage to a Billionaire through Entangled Publishing’s new line, Indulgence. It’s also been my favorite book to write so far, though all my characters hold a special place in my heart.

I’d like to talk a little about rejection and how it can challenge a writer.

It was a long journey of re-writes and finding the perfect editor to finally bring The Marriage Bargain to my readers. As a writer, I’ve learned sometimes a hard journey makes the payoff even sweeter.

WHY REJECTION WAS THE BEST THING TO HAPPEN IN MY WRITING CAREER

When I wrote my first romance novel and submitted it to the editor I chose, I never expected a rejection. I was young. I expected the call. Imagine my surprise when I received my first official rejection letter, two pages long. I had just joined an RWA writer’s group, and when I glumly showed them, everyone got so excited. It wasn’t the normal form rejection letter. No, mine stated though the editor would prefer not to see the story revised, she was intrigued by my writing style and encouraged me to try again.

I realized I had made a break through. The second time, I got a request for the full manuscript. The editor had it a year before the final rejection came through. Encouraged, I kept writing and submitted more.

And got rejected over. And over. And over.

I sunk to new lows. How did I start off so close, then end up so far away? I’d take mini breaks from my writing and concentrate on my day job, but I always snuck back to the computer and kept hacking away. I had to. If I didn’t believe in myself, who would?

It took me a few years to finally get my book accepted. Even after that, there were no steady sales, but more of a slow climb up a rocky mountain to finally get a steady editor and sell my stories on a regular basis.

When I look back, I realize the rejections were key to my success.

How?

1. They made me strong. I love strong heroines who believe in themselves no matter what the odds. So why just read about them? Why couldn’t I be one of them? My skin thickened. I did the hard work and learned what I could, and never gave up. I’m a Rocky admirer and believe the world is going to slam you down – you need to have the strength to keep rising and taking the punch.

2. They seasoned me for publication. Rejection is everywhere – for the published and unpublished. If it’s not your manuscript getting denied, you end up reading a horrible review and considering never writing again. It only takes one harsh reader to unleash the monsters in the closets. Those initial rejections helped toughen me up to take the occasional bad review, or the bleeding red pen marks of my editors, who count on me to keep my sensitive feelings to myself and make my story the strongest it can be. Not easy either seeing all those lovely words that took hours to create lying under the harsh red line of delete. But now, it’s much easier to think of it as a business, because that is what I want my writing to be. A job. My business.

3. They helped me believe in myself. I learned a valuable lesson. Not every editor is going to like my stuff. Many of them said they just couldn’t connect to the characters, even when I knew deep in my gut my story was good. I believed in myself enough to keep rewriting to make it stronger, and sent it out until I found the editor who loved my voice and believed in my story.

And that is who I want my baby with. Not an editor who had an extra slot to fill. No, I wanted someone to enjoy my book because she’ll work to make it the best book I ever wrote.

I always gave myself 24 hours to mope, eat chocolate, and quit writing. Then I got back to work the next day, because that’s my job, and no one is going to tell me otherwise.

Dig deep and make it happen.

I did.

I’m very excited to give away a copy of my new book, The Marriage Bargain, to one lucky reader.

I hope you enjoy reading Alexandria and Nick’s story as much as I did writing it. Here’s an excerpt to give you a taste!

This scene takes place after announcing their plans to get married to Alexandria’s parents. Their ruse was met with suspicion, so Alexa drags Nick away from her family to speak with him.

She dragged him down the hallway and pushed him into the bedroom. The door swung partially closed. “You’ve ruined everything,” she whispered furiously. “I told you to pretend but you suck at it and now my parents know we’re not in love!”

“I suck at it? You’re acting like this is some stupid play you’ve put together for the neighbors. This is real life, and I’m doing the best I can.”

“My plays were not stupid. We made a lot of money in admission tickets. I thought Annie was excellent.”

He snorted. “You can’t even sing and you cast yourself as Annie.”

“You’re still pissed because I wouldn’t let you play Daddy Warbucks.”

He plowed ten fingers through his hair and made a noise deep in his throat. “How the hell do you get me on these ridiculous subjects?”

“You better come up with something quick. God, don’t you know how to treat a girlfriend? You acted like I was some polite stranger. No wonder my father suspects!”

“You’re a grown up now, Alexa, and he’s still interrogating your boyfriends. We don’t need their permission. We get married on Saturday and if your parents don’t like it, too bad.”

“I want my father to walk me down the aisle!”

“It’s not even a real wedding!”

“It’s the best I’m going to get!” The grief leaked out for one moment as the truth of her predicament hit full force. This would never be a real marriage, and something would be forever ruined once Nick’s ring slipped onto her finger. She’d always dreamed of love everlasting, white picket fences, and tons of children. Instead, she got cold hard cash and a husband who politely tolerated her. She’d be damned if her sacrifice failed because of his inability to fake enough emotion for her parents.

She stood on tiptoe and grabbed the upper arms of his T-shirt. Her nails dug into the fabric and cut flesh. “You better fix this right now,” she hissed.

“What do you want me to do?”

She blinked. Her lip trembled as she bit out the words. “Do something, damn it! Prove to my father this will be a real marriage or—”

“Alexa?” The echo of her name drifted into the open door from the hallway, her mother’s gentle, concerned voice checking if they were okay.

“Your mother’s coming,” he said.

“I know—she probably heard us arguing. Do something!”

“What?”

“Anything!”

“Fine!” He grabbed her around the waist, dragged her body flush against his, and ducked his head. His lips crushed hers as his hands wrapped around her tightly so they were plastered against each other, hip to hip, thigh to thigh, breasts to chest.

****

Publisher: Entangled Publishing (March 1, 2012)

Alexandria Maria McKenzie casts a love spell for a man to help save her childhood home, but she never planned on her best friend’s older brother. He offers her a bargain: marry him for one year and he will meet her price. A marriage in name only with certain rules: no emotion, no attachments, no sex. The terms should be easy to follow since he is the man who broke her heart years ago. Or are they?

Nicholas Ryan doesn’t believe in marriage or family, but he needs a wife in order to inherit DreamScape Enterprises. He looks for a suitable candidate, but never planned on his sister’s childhood friend. She is everything he usually avoids in a woman: too impulsive, too emotional, too demanding. Of course, he intends to avoid any real entanglements and stick strictly to business. Or can he?

The stakes are high, but neither bargained for love…

Jennifer Probst wrote her first book at twelve years old. She bound it in a folder, read it to her classmates, and hasn’t stopped writing since. She took a short hiatus to get married, get pregnant, buy a house, get pregnant again, pursue a master’s in English Literature, and rescue two shelter dogs. Now she is writing again.

She makes her home in Upstate New York with the whole crew. Her sons, one 4 and one 6, keep her active, stressed, joyous, and sad her house will never be truly clean.

Her first contemporary romance, Heart of Steel, was re-launched in e-book form. Her publications with Red Sage include “Masquerade” Secrets Volume 11, The Tantric Principle, and her February 1st release, Sex, Lies and Contracts. She has also written a children's book, Buffy and the Carrot, co-written with her twelve year old niece, along with a short story, "A Life Worth Living." Her newest series include Catch Me, the first in The Steele Brothers series with Decadent, and The Marriage Bargain, her new Marriage to a Billionaire series with Entangled. All of her books are available at her website or Amazon. Website / Facebook

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