Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Guest: Katherine Garbera

Please welcome Katherine Garbera to the convertible today!  She's brought spring along with her!

The smell of orange blossoms has always signaled my birthday.  To you maybe they trigger another memory but to me growing up in Central Florida on an orange grove, they signaled my yearly celebration.
I love that scent. Whenever I am home and catch the smell of the orange blossoms in the air (and its harder now that it used to be thanks to development and citrus canker) I can't help but smile and relax. I have to be honest and say a nice warm spring breeze triggers the same feeling in me.
I love spring, who doesn't right?  It's the end of winter and the beginning of the time when you can get outside without layers of clothes and enjoy the feel of nature.  For me that's the warmth of the sun on my skin, the scent of orange blossom in my nose and the feel of the spring breezes in my hair.

What about you? Is spring one of your favorite seasons?  Is there a scent that always brings you back to a specific feeling or time?  Katherine will give away a copy of MASTER OF FORTUNE to one lucky commenter!



Katherine Garbera is the national best-selling author of more than 40 books. Writing is the chief focus of her time after her family and the only thing she likes more than working on her own books is reading other authors.  She is a frequent speaker at conferences and loves the opportunity to talk about writing with anyone who'll listen.  Her current release is Scandalizing the CEO from Silhouette Desire.



Scandalizing the CEO...

The minute she walked into his life, he knew he had to have her. Ainsley Patterson was exactly the type of woman CEO Steven Devonshire desired. Business had brought them together, and they both had the same need to succeed. Why not tempt her with an offer she couldn’t refuse?

But Ainsley wouldn’t be won so easily. Her buxom-bombshell exterior hid a major grudge—against the man who’d ignored the dowdy journalist she’d been. So if he wanted her, he’d have to give her the one thing he’d never given any woman— his heart.

43 comments:

Jane said...

Congrats on the new release, Katherine. I do look forward to Spring. I love the warm breezes and smell of fresh grass.

Laurie G said...

Happy Birthday Katherine!

I too live in Florida. Ah... Spring time!! I love the smell of orange blossoms closely followed by the vanilla like smell of gardenias.

I associate the smell of fires with fall... fireplaces and burning leaves.

I'd love to read Ainsley & Steven's story!

Unknown said...

Welcome Katherine! Smells are not my strong suit, but I feel the same way about colors and textures.

Right now our oak trees are leafing out here in Florida and the color "spring green" is everywhere. I LOVE that color! Betcha you non-Florida riders didn't know that even in Florida the oaks lose their leaves and come back in a whole new dress come April. Yep, only a month or so ahead of Minnesota's return to green!

Katherine Garbera said...

Thank you Jane! Oooo I love fresh cut grass too. When I was a little kid I used to love to roll in fresh cut grass but then I'd be very itchy!

Katherine Garbera said...

Laura--thanks for the birthday wishes! I had forgotten about fall and the scents that go with it. I think growing up in Florida we didn't have many fires so that might be why!

Katherine Garbera said...

Betrina; I love how overnight Florida can turn spring green. One day its brown and blah and the next beautiful with color!

Jo said...

Hi Katherine. I love the spring, all that green and flowers bursting out after snow or cold and grey depressing days always lift my spirits.

Yesterday I tried a new tea. It smelled like peaches and immediatly transported me back to my grandmothers kitchen were she would serve me a glass of lemonade and a few peach flavored candies. I can't remember what they were called and it's difficult to describe them. But they made me remember her smile and warm laughter at my chattering away about nothing at all. Best, Jo

Katherine Garbera said...

Jo--some of my happiest memories are from my grandmother's kitchen. She was Italian so the scents there were garlic and olive oil and of course her red wine!

Wynter said...

Scandalizing the CEO sounds great! I'm a scent person, too. Hyacinth brings me back to my childhood - and also to my spring birthday. But living in Florida now, I rarely get to smell it. Also, certain food smells remind me of times in my childhood. Powerful stuff.

Cait London said...

I love to burn lemon and orange for aromatherapy. Smells as if I've just cleaned :)

Katherine Garbera said...

Wynter--I love your name!Happy birthday to you as well. I am not familiar with the scent of hyacinth but love gardenias which my mother grows and when I was growing up she used to place a small bowl of water in our bedrooms and float the gardenia flowers in them.

Katherine Garbera said...

Cait--Hey there!!! I love that idea of fresh lemon for aromatherapy and making the place smell fresh and clean!

CrystalGB said...

Hi Katherine. Scandalizing the CEO sounds great. I like Spring. I love seeing the flowers bloom and the grass getting green.

Katherine Garbera said...

Crystal--thanks! I had so much fun writing Scandalizing the CEO! When I lived in Chicago I used to plant bulbs and wait for them to pop up in Spring!

Terry Odell said...

Hi, Katherine! Good to see you here. I'm no longer a Floridian - we just moved to Colorado, where Spring apparently is a hodgepodge of all 4 seasons alternating daily. But it's a welcome change.

Katherine Garbera said...

Terry--great to see you here!

Colorado is going to be very different from Florida especially come next winter!!!

Virginia C said...

Hi, Katherine! Congratulations on your latest release : ) Autumn is my favorite time of year, but I do love the scent of orange blossoms. I lived in Florida for a year when I was growing up. We had a mini-orchard in our backyard: seven orange trees and one tangerine tree!

I love the scent of lily of the valley. It was my grandmother's favorite. I also love the "Christmas" smell: greenery, peppermints, sugar and spice, and fresh, clean snow : )

One of my very favorite scents is the spicy, earthy smell of mums. Many people have told me they can't stand the smell, but I grow mums and can't wait for them to bloom so I can smell them. Even long after the blooms have died and dried, you can still smell that unique fragrance!

mimi said...

Betina is so right about the leaves--last week, blah; this week, everything's that lovely soft green. Azaleas are blooming everywhere in strokes of white and fuchsia, orange blossoms (not as many thanks to those dumbutt developers). The top on my convertiBeetle only comes up when it has to be parked...Florida in spring is a marvel. Too bad it only lasts about two weeks, right Kathy? :)

Katherine Garbera said...

Virginia;

I'd forgotten about the smells of Christmas! I do love that time of the year a lot too. I like the smell of stargazer lilies. Its almost pungent and not very sweet.

Katherine Garbera said...

Mimi;

It is so great to see you here!!! It is too bad that spring doesn't last longer. It seems like you get that refreshing warmer air one week and then its hot!

Helen Brenna said...

Hi Katherine! I love spring. The scent of lilies of the valley always brings me back to my childhood. They were the only flowers that grew in the sandy soil of the home where I grew up. On the north side of the house, right beneath the rain spout. Too bad they only last for about a week and then you have to wait an entire year!

40 books! Wow. Congrats on your latest!

Debra Dixon said...

Hey, Katherine! Long time no see. Congrats on the new release.

We were so happy to see spring over here that we planted 20 tomato plants! Can't wait for the crop to arrive.

As for scents of spring, I can't put my finger on just one, but there is a feeling when I walk out on my deck each year and the scent, the amount of greening, the feel of the air makes me smile and I say, "Hello, Spring."

Katherine Garbera said...

Helen; I bet it was special every time they blossomed since it was so rare.

Thanks for the congrats!

Katherine Garbera said...

Hey Debra! Great to see you here! I love the taste of sun-warmed tomatoes right off the vine. We have cherry tomatoes growing on our patio right now.

Katherine Garbera said...

Karyn aka Drew--hi! Thanks for your kind words about the book! I've never really lived anywhere that had significant leaves falling in autumn so I'm not familiar at all with the scent of burning leaves! Sounds interesting.

Danny said...

Hi Katherine,

spring isn't one of my favorite seasons, because it's the high season of my hayfever/ asthma

Katherine Garbera said...

Danny--hugs on the hay fever and asthma. My son has it so I know its not a fun thing.

runner10 said...

Congrats on the new release!!
I love Spring. I love the smell of grass the first time you mow--then it is not quiet as pleasurable after a few times.
I would love to read your book.

Katherine Garbera said...

Denise;I have to agree when you mow the lawn every week all summer long the scent does lose its appeal!

Cindy Gerard said...

Hey Kathy!! So glad to see you here! And big congrats on your new release.
See you in Nashville??

Katherine Garbera said...

Hey Cindy!!! Thanks for the congrats! I'm not sure on Nashville yet but if I do go I hope we can catch up!

Christie Ridgway said...

Hi, Kathy! Thanks for being with us here today. You're not sure if you're going to be in Nashville? Will miss you if you don't make it.

Special spring scent to me: freesias. Surfer Guy (my dh) stops by local farmer's market on Fridays and brings me home fresh flowers. In early spring, it's freesias for my office.

Katherine Garbera said...

Hey there Christie! I just love fresh flowers--how lucky that your DH brings you fresh flowers every week.

Mary Malcolm Duncanson said...

I am not a spring girl. Spring for me always brings alergies and sneezing and horrible itchy eyes, no fun.

But fall...I remember fall in Washington State as a little girl. The smell of pine mixed with damp air and falling leaves. That earthy, almost metallic damp smell that hangs heavy as the days get shorter. Things feel quieter. The birds fly south, the leaves are on the ground so even the wind feels quieter. I love fall.

Anonymous said...

spring is my most favourite season of the year :)

karenk
kmkuka at yahoo dot com

Katherine Garbera said...

Mary--I can hear ya on the allergies--not for me but my son. I like fall too!

Katherine Garbera said...

karenk;

Spring is really my favorite time of year as well. The weather just feels so nice!

KylieBrant said...

Welcome, Katherine! I always wonder if spring would be so universally welcomed if we didn't have to suffer through winter first, LOL. At least in Iowa, we suffer....

catslady said...

I've always loved spring - new beginnings and all that wonderful green after snow and ugly brown. I planned both my children to be born in the spring and it worked lol. April was born in May amd Alysa in April - hahaha - if I had known I would have saved the name.

Linda Henderson said...

I like spring, but fall is my favorite season. I love the fall colors and that first chill in the air and the smell of leaves burning and fireplaces being started up. It's just always been my favorite season.

Katherine Garbera said...

Kylie-thanks for the welcome! I think you are right about Winter making Spring that much sweeter.

Katherine Garbera said...

catslady--you are so funny! My daughter's b-day is four days before mine and I'd like to say I planned it that way but I think it was just luck!

Katherine Garbera said...

Linda; Fall is a great season too with the kids going back to school and the weather change you mentioned.