Please join me in welcoming Donna Alward to Quick Six!! Donna’s a fab Harlequin author who has some wonderful books coming out that you have to check out!!  She’s visiting today and offering a copy of her holiday story, Montana, Mistletoe, Marriage!!! You know you want to get your hands on this – its perfect Holiday reading!!!  To be eligible for the drawing, all you have to do is check out Donna’s fun answers to the Quick Six questions below, then in the comments section, answer her question to you.

1. Plotter or Pantzer?
In the spirit of eco-awareness, let’s call me a hybrid! I’m a bit of both. When I first started out, and even when I first sold, I was definitely a plotter. I had outlines and how things would develop and synopses and you name it. But I kind of got out of it as I sold more books and I gained confidence. That confidence isn’t that I am particularly smart or have a system that works every time etc. It’s more of a confidence in my ability to take something and fix it, or to let magic happen. I found the greatest magic happened when I didn’t plan it and so I moved away from plotting more and more and took a more organic approach to writing.

I couldn’t get rid of it all though, so before I start writing I have a definite hook and I do character profiles so I have a solid idea who my characters are, and what makes them tick. Character is key so as long as I have a good handle on them, the rest comes through in the end.

2. Historical or Contemporary?
This is going to be another one of those both answers! As a writer, I’m firmly in the contemporary camp. Not to say I wouldn’t ever write in another time period, but for now, contemporary is where I am and the water’s great. As a reader, though, there is NOTHING better than a fantastic historical. I love being swept away to the Scottish Highlands with a rebel Laird or to a crush at Almack’s in a rakish Regency. I adore Historicals during nearly any time period!

3. Home Made or Store Bought?
Homemade, especially if we’re talking FOOD. Which as writers I think we do a lot. I’ll take homemade over store bought any day. I think that comes from growing up on a farm and having everything from scratch. I mean what’s not to love about homemade ice cream? Chocolate cake? Chicken pot pie?

4. Alpha, beta or gamma?
You know, I truly think all Romance heroes are alphas. If not what we’d consider true alphas, they have alpha characteristics. This is such a cool topic and one I’m really interested in. I think it all stems from the saying that Heroes Lead. They are proactive and act rather than wait. If they wait it’s part of a plan which is really still action. A lot of my heroes display beta characteristics. They’re perhaps more easygoing than a “traditional” alpha. But they are leaders and protectors and aspirational, usually with a good sense of humour and compassion. To me, that’s super sexy no matter how you label it.

5. Card Games or Board Games?
Card games! I love playing cards. The usual game for us is Canasta, but we also play cribbage and 45’s and Hearts and with the kids there’s Skip Bo and Uno and Crazy Eights.
If we’re playing with parents or siblings it’s usually boys against the girls and we’ve been known to go most of the night.

6. Candles or Incense?
Candles! My husband loves candles too and I joke that soon you won’t be able to see my island in my kitchen for all the candles. We are particularly fond of warm, spicy scents. Anything that is butterscotch or caramel or vanilla are big favourites. We have an oatmeal raisin cookie one I love. Almost as much as I like the Pecan Pie scented one!

Now a question for your readers – do you read Christmas titles after Christmas is over? Or do they only have a holiday window of opportunity? I’ll pick from the comments to win a copy of Montana, Mistletoe, Marriage.

Donna Alward has the best job in the world: a combination of stay-at-home mom and romance novelist. In 2001 she penned her first novel, and found herself hooked on writing romance. In 2006 she sold her first manuscript, and now writes for Harlequin’s Romance line from her home in Nova Scotia, Canada. Donna loves to hear from readers; you can contact her through her website at www.donnaalward.com, visit her myspace page at www.myspace.com/dalward or through her publisher.

Her current release is A Bride For Rocking H Ranch in November’s Montana, Mistletoe, Marriage with Patricia Thayer. Next up is her Cowboys and Confetti duet in January and March – One Dance with the Cowboy and Her Lone Cowboy.