Cheyenne Blue's Blog, page 2

Remember When – guest post by KD Williamson

KD Williamson writes in this captivating guest blog post about her own experiences during her twenties and how it relates to her novel Big Pill GIrl

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The Year That Was and the Year That Is

It’s time for me to do the annual post. 2019 the year that was, and my writing goals for 2020.

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The Year That Was and the Year That Is

I’m sitting here in a holiday unit by the beach in Queensland. The sun is a scorching 36 degrees centigrade, the sea is an impossibly clear blue, and I’m sitting inside at my laptop, peering through the window at the wide world outside.

Yeah, I’m a writer. How did you guess?

It’s time for me to do the annual post. 2019 the year that was, and my writing goals for 2020.

[image error]2019  saw the release of my seventh novel, A Heart This Big. It’s also, I think, my most successful novel to date, which to a struggling writer is a wonderful thing. Nina the farmer, Leigh the lawyer, and the kids, animals, and volunteers that make up the ramshackle community of Banksia Farm were also some of my favourite characters to write.

2019 also saw my first two audiobooks released: Code of Conduct and A Heart This Big. I admit that until I listened to my own two, I’d never listened to an audiobook in my life! But Claire Alain’s wonderful narration in her creamy Aussie accent has made me a convert. I’m particularly in awe of how well she did the multiple foreign accents in Code of Conduct plus the kids in A Heart This Big. I had a few editing projects as well this year. While editing is not my major thrust, I always enjoy the projects that come my way. This year, as well as multiple projects for Harper Bliss and Clare Lydon, I edited a new-to-me author, Becky Bohan, and I’m very excited to see her novel released, hopefully soon.

2020 is already shaping up to be big and busy. My next novel, All at Sea, will be out in April from Ylva Publishing. It’s with the proofreader at the moment, and I’ll be able to share the cover with you soon. In the meantime, I’ll tell you it’s the story of Stevie who escapes her parents’ terrible party and falls asleep on a stranger’s yacht. She wakes to find herself far out to sea with only the yacht’s skipper, Kaz, and the ship’s cat, Sinbad, for company.  I’m very excited for this book and can’t wait for you to meet Stevie, Kaz, and of course Sinbad. My editor said that Sinbad was her favourite character. I’m still not quite sure what to make of that comment!

And yes, All at Sea will be out as an audiobook as well. As a little aside, my first “sailing consultant” for the story was my long-time mate, Bazza. Bazza is a 74-year-old straight man. He taught me about sailing, and when I sent him the first draft to check, I taught him about… well, you can guess.

Charity Sunday – Riding for the Disabled

A year or so ago, the bloody amazing Lisabet Sarai came up with the idea of Charity Sunday. Writers nominate a charity and post an excerpt from one of their works. Then, for one day only, everytime someone comments on a participating post, the author will donate $1 to their chosen charity.

The post Charity Sunday – Riding for the Disabled appeared first on Cheyenne Blue.

Charity Sunday: Riding for the Disabled

[image error]It’s Charity Sunday again. What is Charity Sunday? Well, a year or so ago, the bloody amazing Lisabet Sarai came up with the idea. Writers nominate a charity and post an excerpt from one of their works. Then, for one day only, everytime someone comments on a participating post, the author will donate $1 to their chosen charity.

I think this is win-win. All you need to do is comment on this post. You can say hi. You can write me an essay.  You can tell me something random about yourself (I particularly love those comments), it really doesn’t matter. Then, for every comment made on Sunday, 25 August 2019, I’ll donate $1 to my local branch of Riding for the Disabled. You get to do good and feel good. I get to support a charity that means something to me. That’s it. Of course, I’d love it if you signed up for my newsletter while  you’re here (the link is at the bottom of the page), and I’d particularly love it if you read the excerpt below which is from my latest novel, A Heart This Big, simply because it is directly related to Riding for the Disabled. But you don’t have to do either of those things if you don’t want to.

As I’m in Australia, our Sunday is before most of the world’s, so I’ll leave it open until 11.59pm Pacific time in the US.  That’s all you have to do. You don’t have to donate; I’ll do that. Neither will I sign you up for anything, spam you or do anything except be very happy that your comment means $1 more to support Riding for the Disabled. I do have a cap on how much I can afford to give, but in the previous Charity Sunday’s I’ve participated in, I didn’t get near my limit. I’d love to reach it this time.

When you’re done reading and commenting here,  I’d love it if you checked out the other writers participating in this blog hop. Follow the link at the end of this post to find them.

Why have I chosen Riding for the Disabled?

Back when I was a horse-mad horse-mad kid, I’d spend every spare minute at my local riding stable. I’d work for free rides, and when I reached the grand old age of thirteen, I started teaching other kids to ride. There wasn’t a formal Riding for the Disabled program at those stables, not back then, but there was an informal one that ran along the lines we know today. Every week, I’d teach a kid called Claire. She was ten when we started, fourteen when the stables closed down. Claire had Down syndrome, and her mother would bring her for a thirty minute ride twice a week. The joy and happiness on Claire’s face when she arrived has never left me. She’d run up to her favourite pony, Flossie, and throw her arms around Flossie’s neck and you couldn’t start the lesson until she’d fed Flossie carrots and cuddled her for at least five minutes. Thirty minutes was never enough for Claire, but we all learnt the hard way that to go for longer was simply too much. Too much excitment, too hard to keep her balance.

It wasn’t all joyful. There were quite a few tantrums, quite a few sulks, and a hell of a lot of very inappropriate questions. But that was okay. It didn’t matter. What did matter was that Claire’s mum would say that it was the absolute best time of Claire’s week.

My latest novel, A Heart This Big, is about Australian country girl Nina Pellegrini, who runs a program for city kids to experience a taste of rural life at Banksia Farm. But when a child is hurt and a lawsuit threatens, Nina is determined to find the best legal assistance to help her save the farm. That lawyer is high-flyer Leigh Willoughby, whose city world is far from the farm’s chaotic mix of kids and animals. She certainly doesn’t have time for small cases that don’t pay or farm visits that wreck her cool—and her clothes.

Below is a scene where Leigh is volunteering for the first time with a group of kids all of whom have Down Syndrome and who are riding the farm’s ponies. I hope you enjoy it.

Please don’t forget to leave a comment, and please do visit the other posts in this Charity Sunday blog hop. The link is at the end.

Here’s the excerpt from A Heart This Big.

“Me now! Me now!” The voice boomed around the paddock. Its owner hopped from foot to foot, her round face alight with pleasure under the riding helmet.

“It’s your turn next, Edwina.” Ahmed brought Jellybean around to the excited child and smiled down at her. “But first, we have to make sure Darren gets down safely.”

As the pony halted, Leigh turned to face the pony’s side, the way Ahmed had shown her. She put a steadying hand on Darren’s calf, giving him the security of her presence.

“Can you remember the proper way to dismount, Darren?” Ahmed asked.

Darren nodded and steadily went through the motions until he slithered to the ground. “Thank you, Jelly.” He flung his arms as far as they could go around the pony’s chest and hugged tightly.

Jellybean stood stoically, seemingly unbothered by the small child underneath her neck or the excited girl, feet drumming a tattoo as she waited her turn.

Darren’s mother approached with some carrot sticks, which she gave to her son. Darren offered one to the pony.

“Just a moment, Darren.” Ahmed’s voice was calm as he took the child’s hand and drew it away from Jelly’s questing nose. “Remember what we said? Hold your hand flat with the carrot on top so that Jelly doesn’t accidentally bite your fingers.”

Darren nodded and did as he was told.

Leigh stood to one side and watched as Jelly lifted the treat gently. Nina had been right when she’d said both ponies were quiet and kind. Over the course of the afternoon, she’d seen them hugged in all sorts of ways and their manes pulled and twisted by nervous fingers, all without so much as a laid-back ear.

Leigh’s singlet clung damply to her skin, and she was sure her face was scarlet. Running around next to a trotting pony was surprisingly hard work, especially on uneven ground. She also had to keep a careful watch on the rider. So much for treadmill fitness. That was nothing on this. For a moment, she thought longingly of the air-conditioned gym that was her usual fitness venue and of her personal trainer and his regimented routine, which was designed to work all of her muscles in a controlled way.

There was nothing controlled about her work at the farm, and she was acutely aware that she must look a red, panting, and sweaty mess. Thank goodness, when this was over and she’d taken Phoebe’s statement, her next stop would be her own shower followed by a large gin and tonic. An extremely large gin and tonic.

Ahmed turned to Edwina. “Now it’s your turn.” To Leigh, he added in an undertone, “I hope you’re not easily shocked. Edwina’s thirteen, with all that brings.”

Leigh didn’t have a chance to reply, as Edwina threw her arms around Leigh’s waist. “I want her to help me on.”

Leigh’s gaze sought Ahmed. “I don’t know what to do.” Edwina’s arms around her waist were heavy. The child was solidly built and had to weigh seventy kilos. Leigh was sure she didn’t have the strength to give her a leg up as she’d seen Ahmed do with Darren.

He gave her a sympathetic grin. “Don’t worry. We use a mounting block.” To Edwina, he said, “You know the drill, Edwina. Let’s go over to the block, and you can show Leigh how you can get on all by yourself.”

Edwina clutched Leigh’s hand. “C’mon, let’s run so we get there quicker.”

Leigh obligingly broke into a jog, but Ahmed’s voice stopped her. “No, ’Dwina, you know you don’t run in the paddock. You’d run straight past Mr Petey, and that’s not safe.”

Leigh’s face burnt. The rebuke had been mild, but it felt aimed at her as much as Edwina. She bit her lip. She should have known that. It was common sense, something she’d always prided herself on having.

“She was going to let me.” Edwina’s lower lip stuck out like a dinner plate, and she tugged on Leigh’s hand.

“Her name is Leigh,” Ahmed said. “And she’s a very nice person who is helping you have your ride today. But you have to be extra nice, as this is her first time. We want her to come back, right?”

Edwina peeped up, her brown eyes sorrowful. “Sorry, Leigh. You will come back, won’t you?”

“I’ll try.” Leigh smiled at her.

The answering smile on Edwina’s face made Leigh’s sunburnt shoulders and aching calves worthwhile.

“If you come back, you can marry Ahmed. Then you can have sex, and you’ll have a baby.”

Did she really say that? Leigh’s jaw dropped, and she shot a glance at Ahmed to see his reaction.

“Remember what we said last time, ’Dwina?” His voice had a calmness Leigh would struggle to match.

“Yeah.” The dinner plate pout was back. “Sorry, Leigh. I’m not supposed to talk about sex because there are little kids here. Do you wear clothes in bed? My mummy doesn’t.”

Leigh started. Where was the instruction manual for things like this? She had no idea if all kids talked this way or just Edwina. “Help!” she mouthed to Ahmed.

His lips twitched in a brief smile. “Why don’t you lead Jelly over to the mounting block?” he said to Edwina. “Do you remember how to do that?”

Edwina nodded. Bristling with importance, she took Jelly’s lead rope and marched off, the pony walking by her side.

At a nod from Ahmed, Leigh moved next to her, and Ahmed fell in on the other side.

“Look at me!” Edwina screamed to the other kids. “I’m leading Jelly! And Ahmed and Leigh are gonna have a baby and call it Edwina!”

Leigh bit back a laugh. In her professional life, she was able to stare down obstreperous lawyers, diffuse difficult situations, and pacify angry clients, but now she was rendered speechless by a thirteen-year-old.

The afternoon was not what she’d expected. The noise and exuberance of the Dare to Be Different group was never-ending. Laughter and shrieks of joy seemed to be the norm, and there were more hugs than tantrums, although there had been a couple of those too. But Edwina’s hand in hers had a trusting simplicity about it. It was life distilled to the basics, although whether Nina would agree with that, she didn’t know. On the surface, there was nothing simple about the ordered chaos in the paddock.

But despite the outward spontaneity, the volunteers were alert and careful of their charges. Firm but kind. Leigh looked across at Ahmed. He was portly and appeared to be in his sixties, but he moved with a spryness that belied his age. The smile he’d given Edwina had been gentle and full of love. Love. There was no other word for it. Leigh would put money on the fact that Ahmed got as much pleasure from the afternoon as Edwina did.

Their path took them close to the other half of the group, waiting for their turn on Mr Petey. Leigh’s gaze was drawn to one figure. Nina wore what Leigh was coming to think as her farm clothes: a singlet, baggy shorts, and gumboots. Her dark hair hung loose underneath a wide-brimmed hat. She walked alongside Mr Petey, one hand on the leg of the small girl perched on top.

“You’re doing great, Halifa,” Nina said. “No one would think this was your first time.”

“Don’t let him go faster.” Halifa clutched the front of the saddle with both hands.

“I won’t.” Nina’s voice radiated reassurance. “Mr Petey will walk like this forever until you tell him to stop. Let’s stop now, shall we? Then you can give him a pat.”

Andi, the volunteer at Mr Petey’s head, brought him to a halt.

Nina encouraged Halifa to lift one hand from the saddle to pat the pony’s neck. The child’s shy smile as she touched Mr Petey brought an answering one from Nina.

Leigh had been staring. With a start, she forced her gaze away from Nina and her group and back to Edwina by her side.

The Dare to Be Different group left around four. Eventually. After some tears and a spectacular tantrum from Edwina, who didn’t want to leave, they were driven away in their minibus, faces pressed to the glass, hands waving wildly.

Leigh flopped heavily onto a chair in the corner of the barn. The other volunteers were still brushing down the ponies and mixing feeds. She should join them, learn another of the never-ending tasks around the farm, but her thighs refused to move, and her shoulders were stiff. She touched her nose. Hopefully, her sunblock had been enough. It would be unprofessional to have a sunburnt nose in the office tomorrow.

This excerpt was from A Heart This Big.

Please take a moment now to visit the other participating authors in this Charity Sunday and help them support their chosen charity.

A Heart This Big – gone wide

My latest novel A Heart This Big, the story of Nina a single mum who runs a special farm for kids on the outskirts of Sydney, and Leigh, a high-profile city lawyer, is now available everywhere.

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A Heart This Big – gone wide

[image error]My latest novel A Heart This Big, the story of Nina a single mum who runs a special farm for kids on the outskirts of Sydney, and Leigh, a high-profile city lawyer, is now available everywhere.

I’m really delighted by the reception the book is getting and was dead chuffed when it topped the Aussie Amazon listings the other day.

The way to any author’s heart is through a positive review, and A Heart This Big has got some ripper ones that made my day:

This book was just full of heart, it was just wonderful.- Goodreads Reviewer

It is a beautiful story and I really enjoyed the parts with the children on the farm.– Goodreads Reviewer

It really was the perfect slow-burn romance.– Lesbireviewed

(Want to support an author? Leave a review. Simples :))

I hope you’ll check out A Heart This Big available from the usual suspects below:

Ylva Publishing

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

Amazon.com.au

Amazon.ca

Amazon.de

Smashwords

Kobo

Barnes and Noble

Sacchi Green Blog Tour.Cheyenne Blue

[image error] Hello wonderful people.  I’m so very pleased to host a stop on my fellow author and good friend Sacchi Green’s blog tour for Wild Rides. I’ve known Sacchi since *counts on fingers* about 2002 when she included one of my earliest pieces of lesbian erotica in one of her anthologies. I’m not sure which story or what anthology, to be honest, as there’s been quite a few more since then.

Sacchi has always been one of my writing inspirations. Her short fiction is the sort that makes you stop, think, blink a few times, and sit back to appreciate the story you’ve just read. They’re as erotic as hell, but there’s a depth to them quite often missing from short erotica. Her characters are true-to-life women in real situations, and her stories are written with grit and finesse.

I hope you read on down through this post, check out the Q&A, listen to the audio clip, and of course enter the Rafflecopter giveaway where you can win all sorts of books. And, too, click on the links and check out Sacchi’s book, which is available now from Dirt Road Books.

Q&A with Sacchi

You are known primarily for your work as an editor of award-winning anthologies, with a focus on erotica. Did you choose the genre or did it choose you? Please explain.  

Both. When I was writing science fiction and fantasy short stories, they often had a lesbian undercurrent and subtle sensuality, but I didn’t know anything about erotica anthologies until one sf/f market listing zine included a call for submissions for Best Lesbian Erotica 1999. I thought, “Wow, I could do that!” and it turned out I could, partly because I had already learned about writing fully-formed stories. The editing part came later, when someone interested in editing wanted to team with someone with a good track record of writing, so I co-edited three anthologies, each for a short-lived publisher. It wasn’t my fault! Then when we tried to interest a couple of bigger publishers, we were ignored, until suddenly one day I got a phone call from Cleis Press. It turned out they were looking for an editor after one of theirs had screwed up badly, and I’d been recommended as someone who could handle the administrative details. So yes, I chose the genre, and eventually the genre chose me.

In addition to erotica, you’ve published in several other genres. Which is your favorite? Why?

[image error]Erotica, historicals, and fantasy are my favorites, and a combination of all three would be my very favorite. But I’m told that historical short stories don’t sell well, and erotica is in rather a decline in popularity these days, while fantasy is still doing pretty well. But most fantasy requires its own world-building, which is hard work. Hmm. I really don’t know which is my favorite.

Do you have plans for a longer work, meaning a novella or a novel, anytime in the future? 

I have one novel out, which has had a very mixed reception, so I don’t know whether I’ll try one again. The idea of a novella-length piece using some of my existing characters is seductive, though, so I may do that. And I have half a mind to expand my short story in DRB’s anthology Learning Curve to novella length. If it gets to three quarters of a mind I’ll give it a try.

I love the way you write, especially your use of language. What’s your favorite word? Why?

What? Tell you my favorite and make all the other words mad at me? And it depends so much on the context. My favorite word at any given moment is the one that’s just right for whatever I need it to say. As Mark Twain said, more or less, “The almost-right word is to the right word as the lightning bug is to the lightning.”

The early reviews for Wild Rides, especially the one from Publisher’s Weekly, have been full of praise. After publishing so many works and receiving so many rewards for your work, has the bloom faded a bit? Or do you still get that happy jolt when you get positive feedback like that? 

How could the bloom ever fade? In fact it doesn’t take much to make one addicted, although having had praise does cushion disappointment when one doesn’t have it, just as having published quite a bit makes the occasional rejection easier to take. At least I think so now, but going too long without…well, let’s not go there.

Which of your books, whether it’s an anthology that you edited or a novel you wrote or anywhere in between, is your favorite? Why? 

Some days I think my favorite is Witches, Princesses and Women at Arms, because I got to do both fantasy and erotica, and my writers were especially brilliant with a theme like that to work with. I could have one of my own stories in it, too. Still, Wild Rides may turn out to be my favorite, with my first collection, A Ride to Remember in 2011, a close second. That one was a Lambda Finalist, which was more of a thrill than having my anthologies get that far. Don’t all we writers have that old exhibitionist streak?

Audio clip

Listen to Sacchi read from Wild Rides. The story she’s reading is “Pulling”, which is one of my favorites of hers.

https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/anchor-audio-bank/production/2019-2-15/11397226-32000-2-73814f5aecb7a.mp4

 

Giveaway

And finally, there’s a giveaway. Go here to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway for some awesome prizes.  As well as a copy of Sacchi’s book and other great prizes, you can also win your choice of my single titles available from Ylva Publishing as well as titles from the other authors on Sacchi’s blog tour.

Wild Rides is available from Dirt Road Books

Sacchi Green is a Lambda Award-winning writer and editor of erotica and other stimulating genres. She lives in western Massachusetts, with an alternate retreat in the mountains of New Hampshire and occasional forays into such real world spots as NYC for readings. Her work has appeared in scores of publications, including multiple volumes of Best Lesbian Erotica, Best Women’s Erotica, Best Transgender Erotica, and Best Fantasy Erotica, and she’s also edited seventeen anthologies over the last fourteen years, most of them lesbian erotica. Nine have been finalists for Lambda Literary Awards, and two of those have been Lambda winners, while four have won Golden Crown Literary Society awards. All these awards, of course, are actually due to the fine writers who trust her with their work.

Sacchi has most recently edited Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year 20th Anniversary Edition, Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year Volume 2 and Volume 3, and, possibly the most fun of all, Witches, Princesses and Women at Arms: Erotic Lesbian Fairy Tales. Her very first novel is Shadow Hand, a superheroine book that puts a new twist on the genre, and her newest publication is a collection of her own short stories, Wild Rides and Other Lesbian Erotic Adventures, from Dirt Road Books. You can find her online at: https://www.facebook.com/sacchi.green and http://sacchi-green.blogspot.com, and contact her at sacchigreen@gmail.com.

Missed any of these posts?  The full blog tour schedule below:

19 March: Sacchi Green 

20 March: KD Williamson

21 March: Annette Mori

25 March: R.G. Emanuelle

26 March: Beth Burnett

27 March: Women and Words 

 

So Not the Perfect Wedding

Author Erica Lee interviews me, mainly about Almost-Married Moni on her blog.

The post So Not the Perfect Wedding appeared first on Cheyenne Blue.

Girl Meets Girl Collection

[image error]I’m so very excited about this!  On 20 March, Ylva Publishing are releasing my entire Girl Meets Girl series as a box set.

That’s right, the two novels and two novellas together in one package. 242,600 words. A whole lot of reading. If you haven’t dived into the stories about Nora and Geraldine, Sue and Moni, Felix and Josie, and finally Moni and Sue again, then on 20 March you can get them all for $13.99 which is 30% cheaper than buying them seperately. Or put it another way, you’re buying Felix and Nora and you get Sue and Moni for free.

Here’s the descriptions:

In Never-Tied Nora, a player, Nora, finally falls in love with the beautiful Geraldine. Only trouble is their Irish families have been feuding for generations.

In Not-So-Straight Sue, a lawyer returns to the Australian outback to face her past. Can she build a future with Texan doctor, Moni?

In Fenced-In Felix, a charismatic drifter and a racehorse spell trouble for Felix. How can they build a life together if Josie is going to move on?

In “Almost-Married Moni,” the friends reunite in the outback for a wedding. Laughter and mayhem ensues as the best-laid plans go awry.

You can get this on 20 March from Ylva Publishing (pre-order now!).