Tara S. Nichols's Blog, page 3

New ideas for the next Awakening the Blood book

Awakening the Blood is my first published paranormal story, but far from the first idea I ever had. Paranormal plots have always been intriguing to me, so I have a few rough draft ideas piling up in my W.I.P. file. (along with some Westerns, Suspense, and Light romances) I knew when I wrote Awakening the Blood that at least one more book would follow, and hopefully it would be more like two more. The only problem? I have never written a series. In fact, I rarely read series books. Often I wander into a book store, select a title off the shelf, bring it home to read, only to discover I have book seven of fifteen. Character development is rather stunted at that point.
Anyway, MY point is, that I have part two of What Ever I'm Going to Call the Next Awakening the Blood, (here on in temporarily called, "WEIGCNATB".) NO. I'll call it ATB2.
The next chunk is something I wrote ten or more years ago. It was originally intended for an urban teen fantasy, but as is the way with my stories, if the plot isn't hitting me over the head and demanding my attention, I drop it for the time being. Who knew it would be picked up again and fit perfectly inside of another plot?
I'm quite happy that this part will be used. There are some funny scenes and quirky characters that would have otherwise been hard to find a home for, such as the two old ladies which my sister and I conjured up to harass my mother. I'm looking forward to the day I can share this next story.

It has been a good week!

I know some weeks are long, fruitless, and feel like a lot of work, but then there are those weeks, such as the one I just had, that make up for the fears, the doubts, and the smashed keyboards (author subject to over-dramatization).

It started out with a contract offer from a new publisher, Breathless Press, who has accepted my short story titled Seamless. Next I learned from two author friends that Spank Me Twice was nominated and won an award for Best Erotic Book 209 through Love Romances Cafe.

Then today I woke to read an email from D. L. King that my story titled "Just Rewards" was accepted in the Spank! anthology through Logical Lust (yes, the same publisher who published my short story "Labeled" for the Cougar Book (now in print).

My husband is coming home with a bottle of wine and we are going to clink some glasses.

Happy dancing with ensue.

The Cougar Book is coming!

And so is the party, and the opportunity! The Cougar Book is now available for pre-order and Logical Lust is giving anyone who pre-orders The Cougar Book a copy of SWING! in ebook.

Interviews of the authors of The Cougar Book are going on now! My interview was February 2nd and you can catch them all at Logical Lust's Blog.

There will be a release party for THE COUGAR BOOK on the J&J Yahoo group SATURDAY 20TH FEB, FROM 12PM EST till the last person leaves!

Kristen Painter has a free read

Check it out! Valentine's Day theme from a great author, and FREE!




A Viking chieftain and his modern day bride get tested by the goddess of love on their first Valentine’s Day. (Featuring Alrik and Calleigh from All Fired Up.)


Find it at the Samhellion

You can find out more about Kristen here

I'm soooo excited

Some might remember my anguish, my deep blue funk, my irritation, and my rants about how my brand new computer went BLUE SCREEN OF DEATH on me THREE times, and on the last agonizing blip, it took my favorite story with it into the dark world of circuitry and code? Well, on a whim I hauled that computer down to a big box stationary, repair and supply store, and they said, "Why sure mamn, that sounds perfectly reasonable, and strange, and valid and we have faith we can fix or at least recover it for you."

I might have kissed a total stranger were I not such a pessimist, but let's just say I felt hopeful. The computer went back to the factory, was gutted, restuffed, and my data (the story included) gone somewhere into the land of bits and pieces.

When I returned to the store the clerk handed me my perfectly functional computer with a smile but I paled. I said, "Where is my data? Where is the information that I wanted? Oh Woe! Oh Panic! Please don't tell me you have forgotten the VERY thing I paid for, the thing that made me hope once more?" (over dramatic, eh ;)

It was their turn to pale.

There I was with a $600.00 computer and all I wanted was my story. That story was worth more to me.

The clerk stammered, fidgeted, paused, and then a light bulb came on. He begged me to wait, then raced into the back room. (unfortunately we were standing next to a display of Easter candy and my son and I entertained ourselves with too much sugar in the meantime) (yes, Easter candy is already out in the stores, GROAN)

When he reappeared, he handed me a disc saying they kept a copy on their hard drive. That made me pause. My dirty spanking story is burned into this store's computer and my old hard drive is somewhere in a dumpster with other reject hard drives, Breathing, breathing, I can live with that. I can.

So I get my disc home, moved the files into my current old computer and it up and tells me I just installed the same old virus that killed off my first old computer. SERIOUSLY!!


My husband was watching me from a few feet away and later he admitted it was quite a show, lol. Apparently I'm rather vocal when agitated.

Okay, so I had a virus to tangle with, and then the file I wanted was broken and couldn't be read, and then a virus that surly would eat the brain out of my working computer had just nested in its circuitry. Yes, that's right, broken. I paid $80.00 for the data, and $40 to repair the computer (cheap!!) and I had nothing, (but a virus).

Or so I thought.

I wailed, (not cried, just frickin wailed), then the computer said, "Oh what the heck, we decided we could fix the virus after all. False alarm."

Uh, okay.

But I still didn't have a story.

Then, after doing a wee bit more reading I saw this little thing that said "You can still fix this, if you just remember to breathe (you idiot)" Okay, It didn't call me an idiot. "All you have to do is click on the icon thingy at the top left, click open, then select the file you want and then at the bottom, where it says open again there is a little arrow that drops down and list and where it says open and REPAIR! click on that!!"



I have my story. I have my story. I have my story! I have my story!

and I dance off into the sunrise! I have my story! I have my story!.....

Away for a bit

We have a guest staying at our house (in the room with the computer and all my writing capabilities) so I will be pretty much absent for the next few days.

Three days without a computer is like three days without clean underwear. I think I'll survive but I'm going to be be fidgety.

Coming up

No, No, No.... not my father-in-law's impending visit... oh. No one else is nervous about that? Just me? Okay then...

We've been madly renovating a house that we'd left half built for the past ten years and suddenly we have doors, floors, and even walls where there weren't walls before. Let's just say my face is sore from bumping into new obstacles.

I'm excited because the release date for the Cougar Book anthology is coming closer. February 14th, 2010 the book comes out through Logical Lust. There are a few websites I should list here.

Cougar Book Blog
Cougar Book Home
Logical Lust

Other than that I'm busy trying to get back to work. I'd like to submit my menage story titled Island of Three at least by next month, or sooner, and I'm working on a paranormal with Keta Diablo.

The last two month were quite productive. I sent off five submissions. Most of those will take sometime before I hear back.

New Cover Art

My erotic vampire short story, A Pleasurable Cure For Death, has a cover. Croco Designs has worked their magic!

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New contracted story

My erotic paranormal short story, A Pleasurable Cure For Death, has been contracted through Cobblestone-press, the publisher who accepted my very first contract! I'm excited to have something coming with them again.

My other books listed with them can be found here:

http://www.cobblestone-press.com/cata...

Break Through

I love that feeling when I'm writing on a story and something goes click, an idea pops into my head that ties everything together or makes sense of a section that previously seemed dull or confusing. Well, I had that break through the other day with a story that had seemed dull. I'm not saying which one, lol, but I think it was just salvaged from the dust bin.

I like the plot over all but there wasn't any excitement. Maybe I expect too much action or suspense from my stories but this little tidbit left me smiling.