By Margie Miller, Creative Director, Single Titles

Women fall in love with them. Men want to be them. Everybody loves a cowboy.

The ultimate strong silent type—fearless, honest and hard working. They’re never afraid to roll up their sleeves and jump in when a crisis hits. They’re tough to pin down, but once you do, you have a friend and partner for life. They are an American icon, the epitome of what it means to be an honorable man, and as Linda Lael Miller puts it. They are “the equivalent of the British Knight”.

Last June, on a ranch outside of Los Angeles, and together with a team that included a photographer and his assistants, a wardrobe stylist, an animal trainer, and other really helpful people from the ranch, we began the task of bringing Tate, Garret and Austin McKettrick to life for the covers of the new, upcoming Linda Lael Miller books. This year, we added film to the mix, in order to provide the readers with an added glimpse into these characters.  John Logsdon of Blind Vision Films came on board to join in a really long and exceptionally fun day of shooting.

I hope you enjoy watching and reading about these three cowboys as much as I did bringing them to life!

Visit Take A Cowboy Home for the full-length version of this documentary. For more info on the McKettricks of Texas and the Take A Cowboy Home website and sweepstakes follow the McKettricks blog tour to:

Beyond Her Book – Jan 18 (that’s today!)

Super Librarian – Jan 19

Petticoats and Pistols – Jan 21

Dear Author – Jan 21

And don’t miss the spotlight on Linda Lael Miller and the McKettricks men at Love Western Romances in March!

by Marianna Ricciuto, Assistant Product Manager, Retail Marketing Single Titles

Calling all cowboy enthusiasts everywhere!

Picture this: A lavish, all-expenses-paid trip to Texas complete with a spa, dude ranch and a five-star culinary experience.

If that doesn’t cut it, how does travelling across the country to watch your favorite rodeo stars in action sound?

Or, better still, how about a combination of both of these awe-inspiring getaways?

Intrigued yet? Now, what if I told you that rather than just picturing your dream getaway, you can actually be starring in it by winning a whopping $10,000 in a terrific new sweepstakes inspired by none other than the First Lady of the West herself, Linda Lael Miller, and her upcoming trilogy featuring the brooding McKettrick cowboys?

All you need to do is visit Linda’s fabulous new site, www.TakeACowboyHome.com, to enter the $10,000 draw, and if you happen to be the lucky winner, how you choose to spend the money is entirely up to you. I’m sure you can all guess what I would do with the loot: hightail it to a Western ranch in search of a cowboy or two. (What can I say, I’m a country girl at heart with an appreciation for the good old-fashioned American cowboy!) But luckily for you (and not so luckily for me) this sweepstakes isn’t about fulfilling my fantasies, it’s about living out yours, and with an extra $10,000 in your pocket, we are bringing you one step closer to doing that.

What makes this sweepstakes even more spectacular is that you can enter the draw every day until the sweepstakes closes on March 5, 2010. Plus, we’ll be giving away Linda swag, ranging from autographed copies of her titles to comfy sleep T-shirts, to daily winners during the run of the sweepstakes.

Oh, and I almost forgot one tiny detail…by entering the sweepstakes, you will also automatically be entered to win a 2-night stay at the dazzling Paris Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. What can I say, it’s the holidays and we’re in a giving mood!

And, if you can believe it…we’ll have more surprises in store for you as we gear up for the launch of Linda Lael Miller’s MCKETTRICKS OF TEXAS: TATE in February 2010. Be sure to check out www.TakeACowboyHome.com often, not only to enter the sweepstakes, but also to stay up to date on the latest in the McKettricks of Texas trilogy and on any other surprises that may creep up.

Good luck with the sweeps everyone!