Debbie McGowan's Blog, page 20

#WIPpet Wednesday - Reunions (Josh and Iris - On Its Own) #amwriting

WIPpet numbers for 15th February, 2017:
1+5 = 6 paragraphs from Reunions (Hiding Behind The Couch Season Seven)
The current word count is…225,922. Nearly there…

WIPpet Context:
It’s New Year's Eve. Josh has just dropped Libby (foster daughter) off at her friend’s place and is trying to figure out how to fill the time until George (husband) finishes work. Iris (in WIPpet) is George’s mum. Monty is Iris’s Westie.

* * * * *

As with all days where Josh was at a lonely loose end with a dozen or more thoughts vying for pole position, each driving decision came with the ‘or I could visit Iris’ option, which was not to say she was there only for when all else failed. One of their more salient points of commonality was valuing their solitude, and there was no guarantee she’d welcome the company just because he needed it. Nonetheless, at the next junction, he took his chances and turned right towards Campion House, rather than left towards home. She’d let him know if she didn’t want him there.

“I’m off to bingo in an hour,” she said the second he crossed the threshold.

“Oh.” He dithered to a halt in the middle of the sitting room and flumped like a rebuffed teenager.

She gathered together her smoking paraphernalia and slid open the balcony door. “Put kettle on if you’re stopping.” The balcony door slid shut with her on the outside.

Josh pondered: am I? He thought so, seeing as he was still there. Iris leaned closer to the window and scowled at him. He flashed her a smile; she pointed in the direction of the kitchen. He was stopping, therefore he’d ‘put kettle on’. He almost got away with it, too, until the dropped spoon clattered off the cupboard and onto the tiled floor, waking Monty with a start and alerting him to Josh’s presence.

There was a lot of noise, between the kettle coming to a boil, Monty’s grumbling growl and the murmur of the TV from the living room, and Josh wasn’t aware Iris was back inside until she shouted, “Pack it in, you.” He hoped she was talking to the dog.

* * * * *What is WIPpet Wednesday?

WIPpet Wednesday is a blog hop where authors share from their current works in progress - expertly organised/hosted by Emily Witt - and the excerpt has to relate to the date in some way. For links to other fabulous authors' WIPpets, visit: http://www.inlinkz.com/wpview.php?id=355404


Thanks for reading
Deb x

Be My Valentine: Josh turns 40, giveaway and more

IN THIS POST:

- Anniversaries and Birthdays
- When in Paris... from Josh's Journal
- Celebratory Freebie
- Love Unlocked Giveaway
- Coming Soon



ANNIVERSARIES AND BIRTHDAYS

I'm going to cut to the chase in this blog post, because there is SO MUCH to get through!


Ten Years of Hiding Behind The Couch
First up, this year is the tenth anniversary of Hiding Behind The Couch , which wasn't meant to be a series. I wrote the first book (from which the name of the series was derived) to prove I could write another novel. The following year, I was stuck for an idea for NaNoWriMo and wrote No Time Like The Present (Season Two). Long story short (hahaha), as I near the end of writing Reunions (Season Seven), the series consists of 11 novels, 7 novellas and 2 short stories - 1.7 million words!

That's a lot of words. :)

As existing readers will know, the series is about a group of nine (+/-) friends who met at school and university, and with the exception of Breakfast at Cordelia's Aquarium (which was just a bit of fun on my part), the entire series is narrated by one of the characters: Josh Sandison. He is a psychotherapist and confidante to his friends, so he knows pretty much everything that goes on and is (far more) empathetic (than he thinks). Even the stories that centre on other characters are narrated by Josh, who either provides his general observations (semi-omnisciently - like I say, he knows pretty much everything) or through recounting what his friends have told him.


Josh Turns Forty
It's a fairly big deal, therefore, to Josh and his friends (and their scribe, i.e. me) that Josh's fortieth birthday falls within the pages of Reunions (Season Seven). Of course, knowing Josh, the celebration will not be all plain sailing. Well, let's face it; nothing will go to plan. But still.

He's agreed to share a page from his journal to mark the occasion.
You can read it here: When In Paris... (Josh's Journal)

Did you know...Josh's birthday is the 14th of February?

Which also happens to be the book birthday of:

Ruminations - a new adult story of friendship (Josh and Sean) - February 14th 2015

Chain of Secrets - a story of friendship and romance (Josh and George) - February 14th 2016

Love Unlocked - an anthology of seven stories themed around Love Lock Bridge (includes Chain of Secrets ) - February 14th 2016


CELEBRATORY FREEBIE



To celebrate ALL of the above, I'm doing an epic freebie. Like, seriously HUGE freebie.
Hiding Behind The Couch Box Set One is available for free on Kindle on the 14th and 15th February (thereafter available on Kindle Unlimited).

Get Your Free Copy of Hiding Behind The Couch Box Set One
Amazon UK [Kindle edition]
Amazon.com [Kindle edition]


LOVE UNLOCKED GIVEAWAY

Also to celebrate the 'book birthday' of Love Unlocked , we (as in the authors of the anthology) are offering a few giveaways.

If you would like to be in with a chance of winning an ebook copy of Love Unlocked , leave a comment on this post.
I will randomly draw a winner on Friday 17th February and contact the winner via whichever profile is linked from the comment.




Love Unlocked is a collection of seven short stories and novellas - unique LGBTQ romances inspired by the Love Lock Bridge.


THE STORIES:

The Trap by Claire Davis and Al Stewart
Writer's Lock by Victoria Milne
Locked in the Moment by Dawn Sister
The Weekend by J P Walker
The Scarlet Lock by Caraway Carter
He Melted Us by Ofelia Gränd
Chain of Secrets by Debbie McGowan

Other birthday blog posts / giveaways from Love Unlocked Authors:
Al Stewart: https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/14693201-valentine-s-giveaway
Victoria Milne: https://victoriamilne.com/2017/02/09/valentines-day-ebook-giveaway/
Dawn Sister: https://dawnsister.wordpress.com/2017/02/12/rainbow-snippets-0212/
Ofelia Gränd: http://www.ofeliagrand.com/valentine-giveaway-melted-us/


COMING SOON

It's now almost two years since the release of Two By Two (Season Six), so, Reunions (Season Seven) has been a long time coming, and I'm genuinely contemplating including a 'Previously in Hiding Behind The Couch...' at the start. I'd be interested to hear what HBTC readers think. A good idea? Unnecessary?

Last year saw the release of four character specials: Chain of Secrets (Josh and George), Those Jeffries Boys (Mike, Andy and Dan), The WAG and The Scoundrel (Gray, Rob and Will) and Class-A (Simon, Jess and Taz).

I hope that's given you plenty of reading material to keep you going. ;)


Reunions will be released soon. I'm not tying myself down to a date, because Josh doesn't work that way... But it will be sometime in the spring/summer of 2017 (yes, Joshua, it will).

If you would like to keep up to date with my releases, you could, perhaps, sign up to my mailing list .

As always, thank you so much for reading. I appreciate it more than all those 1.7 million words could ever convey.
Deb x

Reunions - Josh and George: Deflated #RainbowSnippets #LGBTQ

Brief explanation:
This is another snippet from Reunions (Hiding Behind The Couch Season Seven), which is currently a little under 220k. I have no defence; I write long stories. I was only writing a novella. ;)

This snippet is another scene with George and Josh, or, at least, it should be. They are having lunch at a restaurant with Vincent, a local jeweller, and Josh is in the toilet/restroom. Thus, this conversation is between George and Vincent. This may give some insight into Josh’s odd behaviour in last week’s Rainbow Snippet. Or not.

Here’s the snippet:

George trained his eyes on the toilet door. “Why d’you think he helped you find your father?”

“Because we are friends. Why else?”

“That’s not how Josh sees it. Although he doesn’t see it for what it really is, either.”

“I am not sure I understand.”

“You have feelings for him.” George slowly turned back, once again fixing his gaze on Vincent, who looked like he’d been slapped in the face.

“My soufflé has collapsed.”

* * * * *
Rainbow Snippets is a group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week to share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation (no spoilers please!).

In this group you'll find anything from romance and historical fiction to mystery and YA. The common thread is that every story's main character identifies as LGBTQ+. The snippets could range from zero flames to full-on sexytimes, anything goes content-wise. The only rule is snippets will be 6 sentences long–one for each color in the Pride flag.

* * * * *
Thanks for reading,
Deb x

#WIPpet Wednesday - Reunions (Dan and Adele - The Moving Game Part 2) #amwriting

WIPpet numbers for 8th February, 2017:
2(month) 8(day) 8(1+7) = 288 words from Reunions (Hiding Behind The Couch Season Seven)
The current word count is…214,901. :|

WIPpet Context:
If last week’s was my first ever snippet featuring Dan and Adele, this is the second, and it follows directly from last Wednesday’s WIPpet . Dan and Adele are moving house.

* * * * *

“Fine. Whatever.” Dan took the razor and returned to the bedroom—“Oh, for f*ck’s sake”—where there was no longer a mirror, and stomped through to the bathroom. At least she couldn’t pack that room away, or not beyond the toiletries, which was why he was using his electric shaver.

Or not.

“Damn it.”

By some small wonder, he kept hold of it, returned to the living room and put it back in the box.

“That was quick,” Adele called through.

“Needs charging,” he said. He looked over the lines of boxes, shaking his head. “Where’s it all come from?”

Adele didn’t offer any reply, which meant most of it was hers.

“Right. I’ll pack up my ‘junk’, then.” He sidestepped between the boxes to reach the other end of the room and frowned. “You’ve done it.”

“I got sick of waiting.”

“But you said… Never mind. Where’s my laptop?”

“Do you need it today?” she asked.

Dan could think of a few reasons he might, any one of them enough to start a fight. “Right,” he said. “What do you want me to do?”

“Nothing.”

“Shall I put the kettle on?”

“Not at the moment.”

Dan rubbed his chin. The stubble was already itching enough to drive him crazy, if Adele didn’t get there first. “Is there anything left to do in the kitchen?”

“All in hand.”

“Shu’s room?”

“Done.”

“Great. Thanks for that.”

Adele bustled back to the kitchen. “Get your laptop out…if you must.”

The music in the kitchen suddenly got louder.

“Seeing as I’m surplus to requirements…” Dan eyed the boxes, on the lookout for one labelled ‘Dan’s junk’. His phone rang before he found it. “Aitch.”

“Alright, mate?”

“You ever played sokoban?”

* * * * *What is WIPpet Wednesday?

WIPpet Wednesday is a blog hop where authors share from their current works in progress - expertly organised/hosted by Emily Witt - and the excerpt has to relate to the date in some way. For links to other fabulous authors' WIPpets, visit: http://www.inlinkz.com/wpview.php?id=355404


Thanks for reading
Deb x

Reunions - Josh and George: Stating the Obvious #RainbowSnippets #LGBTQ

Brief explanation:
This is another snippet from Reunions (Hiding Behind The Couch Season Seven), which continues to grow. And grow. Current word count: 209,000.

I’m aiming to stay under the word count of Two by Two (Hiding Behind The Couch Season Seven)…now I’ve passed all the other limits I set at the start. ;)

Here’s a little more of Josh and George, this time together.

Here’s the snippet:

Josh looked him up and down as he got in the car. “Whose clothes are they?”

“Mine.” George was thrown by the question and forgot to deliver his customary kiss. He attempted to rectify that, but Josh dodged him. He was still eyeing George’s clothes.

“Are they?”

“Who else’s would they be?”

“Well, Jake’s, or…I don’t know. It just dawned on me you came to work in overalls.”

“Under which I wear clothes,” George said like he was stating the obvious, because he was, in fact, stating the obvious. Josh remained perplexed. “What’s up?”

* * * * *
Rainbow Snippets is a group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week to share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation (no spoilers please!).

In this group you'll find anything from romance and historical fiction to mystery and YA. The common thread is that every story's main character identifies as LGBTQ+. The snippets could range from zero flames to full-on sexytimes, anything goes content-wise. The only rule is snippets will be 6 sentences long–one for each color in the Pride flag.

* * * * *
Thanks for reading,
Deb x

#WIPpet Wednesday - Reunions (Dan and Adele - The Moving Game) #amwriting

WIPpet numbers for 1st February, 2017:
1+17=18 (short) paragraphs from Reunions
The current word count is…201,639. :o

WIPpet Context:
This is (I think) my first ever snippet featuring Dan and Adele. Dan is Andy’s younger brother (by one year), and Adele is Shaunna’s best friend. They are part of The Circle—the group of friends at the centre of the Hiding Behind The Couch books.
When I first started writing, I’d intended for Josh and Dan to be the two main characters, but they brought all their mates along, which is why the books are so long. That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.

Dan and Adele get a lot less page time than the others, which is, perhaps, because they’re a very private couple. They’ve also been together on and off since they were in primary school, and they bicker. A lot. As you’ll see. :)

* * * * *

“Adele?” Dan slammed the drawer shut and opened another, established that one was also empty and gave the dresser a kick.

“Yes, sweetie?” She appeared in the bedroom doorway. She was wrapping a glass bowl in packing paper.

“Where the hell’s my electric razor?”

Adele’s eyes rolled from side to side as she visualised the boxes lined up in the living room. “This end, under the window.”

Dan grunted and followed her through to the living room. She continued onwards to the kitchen, leaving him to find his razor for himself. But first, he had to find the right box. “Adele?”

“What?”

“There’re three boxes under the window. Which one?”

“You can read, can’t you?”

Dan bit back his retort and edged his way along the rows of heavily reinforced cardboard boxes, each one bearing a large white label designating the room in their new house for which it was destined. Given they were moving from a two-bedroom flat with a reception-living-dining room, bathroom and kitchen to a five-bedroom house with two en-suites, a separate bathroom, wetroom, living room, dining room, utility room, kitchen, conservatory and basement, the labels made about as much sense to him as knitting patterns.

Accordingly, the three boxes under the window were destined for three different locations: the master bedroom, the basement and…

“Grooming room? What the… Adele?”

“Agh!” The garbled shriek was followed by a loud bang, and then Adele forcefully zigzagged her way through the box maze to reach him. “This one.” She bent to untape the lid of the box marked ‘grooming room’. “Why are you shaving now anyway? The removal lorry will be here in half an hour, I still need to pack up the rest of the kitchen, and your junk is still all over the table. I mean, it’s not as if you’re going anywhere, is it?”

“Unfortunately,” Dan muttered under his breath.

“Hm?” Adele had heard him perfectly, but Dan would not be drawn today. The house purchase had finalised two weeks ago, which was when Adele had decided she wanted to move before Christmas. Dan had laughed and told her there was no way, and she’d taken it as a challenge. Three days ’til Christmas, and they were packing up the flat.

“We can always hire a van tomorrow,” Dan suggested.

“Why?”

“For anything that’s not ready when the remov—”

Adele stood to her full five foot two and said with slow, threatening deliberation, “Everything is going today.” She tilted her head to one side, smiled—“OK, sweetie?”—and thrust his razor at him.

* * * * *What is WIPpet Wednesday?

WIPpet Wednesday is a blog hop where authors share from their current works in progress - expertly organised/hosted by Emily Witt - and the excerpt has to relate to the date in some way. For links to other fabulous authors' WIPpets, visit: http://www.inlinkz.com/wpview.php?id=355404


Thanks for reading
Deb x

Reunions - Josh reflects #RainbowSnippets #LGBTQ

Reunions : I really am beginning to wonder if it will ever be finished. Current word count: 195,000.

Brief explanation:
My last couple of Rainbow Snippets have been George’s reflections on his and Josh’s relationship, so this time, I’ve gone with (one of) Josh’s (many) reflections. Note: if you’re reading the Hiding Behind The Couch series from the beginning, this contains a spoiler for anything before The Harder They Fall (Season Three) ( Reunions is Season Seven).

Here’s the snippet:

We’re together. Josh laughed a little and shivered. These days, it felt as if they’d never been apart, but then, this was the calm after the storm: a week of hypomania, dip into hell bypassed. He felt happy and at peace, and he had the house to himself, which meant he could finally get on with his research.

Josh had wanted to use his heightened cognitions to escalate his investigation, but George had made him promise not to. It wasn’t George being mean or bossy; for as much as Josh revelled in the way his mind worked when hypomanic, once it had passed, he understood the danger of embracing it.

* * * * *
Rainbow Snippets is a group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week to share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation (no spoilers please!).

In this group you'll find anything from romance and historical fiction to mystery and YA. The common thread is that every story's main character identifies as LGBTQ+. The snippets could range from zero flames to full-on sexytimes, anything goes content-wise. The only rule is snippets will be 6 sentences long–one for each color in the Pride flag.

* * * * *
Thanks for reading,
Deb x

#WIPpet Wednesday - Reunions (Shaunna and Andy - Pillow Talk continued) #amwriting

WIPpet numbers for 25th January, 2017:
((25*20)/17)-1=28 (short) paragraphs from Reunions
The current word count is 192,000! Forget what I said about being finished in 200k. Ain’t happenin’!

This scene follows on from last week’s WIPpet.

WIPpet Context:
Shaunna and Andy are an established couple with twin six-month-old daughters. It’s bedtime, and they’re talking to pass the time whilst Shaunna expresses breastmilk (she has something on her mind). Other characters mentioned in the snippet (Sean, Sophie, Josh and George) are some of their close friends; Josh is a psychotherapist. For readers of the series, this give a bit of a teaser of (some of) what’s in store in Season Seven. If you don’t want to know, look away now!

* * * * *

“Hmm.” There wasn’t a whole lot going on in their lives, but talking would stop her thinking and fretting. “Did I tell you about Sean and Sophie?”

Andy frowned. “Dunno.”

“Sophie’s going to London to do her PhD.”

“Ah. So that’s what’s up with him.”

“In what sense?” Shaunna asked.

“At footy. He’s a bit…”

“Moody?”

“Yeah. Short-tempered. It’s not like him.”

“He’ll be taking his frustrations out on the game.”

“They’ve not split up?”

“It’s…well, promise you won’t mock.”

“Me? That’s a bit uncalled for.”

“It’s not, Andy, because I know what you’re like about this kind of thing.”

“What kind of thing? He can’t get it up or something?”

“Exactly.”

“Poor bloke.”

“Yeah,” Shaunna agreed, surprised by Andy’s reaction. She’d expected him to go all out on the macho bragging. “It got me thinking about what I want to do with my psychology stuff.”

“Yeah?”

“I think I’d like to become a sex therapist.”

Andy nodded. When he said nothing further, Shaunna glanced down at him. His expression was a mix of bemusement and disbelief.

“Go on,” she said.

“I… What the hell is…” He cleared his throat. “Is it what it sounds like?”

“Well, Josh offers it, if that answers your question.”

“Not really.”

“Do you think George would be OK with Josh doing what you think a sex therapist does?”

“I dunno. He might be. If it’s for professional purposes.”

The picture formed in her head and Shaunna fell into a giggling fit that rendered her incapable of speech for long enough to finish expressing. She handed over the pump and the measly half-full bottle, which Andy took downstairs. When he returned, Shaunna had put her nightshirt on again but waited until he was back in bed before she lay down. Once she was comfortable, Andy switched off the light and cuddled up behind her.

“F-Y-I,” she said, “sex therapy is like marriage guidance and involves no sex—or not for the therapist, anyway. It’s talking through sex problems with the couple, or sometimes just one person on their own.”

“You’d be awesome,” Andy murmured.

* * * * *What is WIPpet Wednesday?

WIPpet Wednesday is a blog hop where authors share from their current works in progress - expertly organised/hosted by Emily Witt - and the excerpt has to relate to the date in some way. For links to other fabulous authors' WIPpets, visit: http://www.inlinkz.com/wpview.php?id=355404


Thanks for reading
Deb x

Review - Regeneration by Louise Lyons

Title: Regeneration
Author: Louise Lyons
Published: January 15, 2017
Genre: Gay fiction, science fiction, MM romance
Length: 75,000 words
Cover design: Simon Searle
 
Purchase Links:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01NAL4NJ8
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01NAL4NJ8
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view...

Blurb:
In the 23rd Century in the galaxy of Sigma Kappa, Kim Fortune was the first surviving experimental enhanced human—a regenerate. Aged fifteen, he escaped the lab and years later, his failings as a regenerate and the suspicion of regular humans, leave him lonely and lacking in self-worth. Stranded on an abandoned planet, the arrival of a stricken ship and its crew give him hope that he may finally find what he always longed for—love.

Christian Novak is a successful regenerate with all the intended attributes—including lack of human emotion. Despite their immediate attraction to each other, Kim's failing confidence, and Christian's inability to empathize are a recipe for disaster. But war, imprisonment, and danger throw them together, and after each saves the other's life, their feelings begin to change.

Can a seemingly unsuitable pair ever find love, or is a future together destined to fail? 


Review:
I'm going to lay it on the line here. I'm a Trekkie. I've seen (bar one or two) every episode of every Star Trek incarnation and every film at least once. I can greet you and swear at you in Klingon. I made Bajoran hasperat once, and for a year, I was a ship's counsellor in STRPG. I find Roddenberry's utopian vision uplifting (ignoring the Cardassian/Bajoran situation and Ferengi commerce culture for the time being) and I think it's awesome when Star Trek inventions become scientific reality.

I've also seen Star Wars 4, 5, 6, 1 and 2. I love Red Dwarf, and I've watched more episodes than I care to admit of Blake's 7, Battlestar Galactica and Andromeda.

That is pretty much the extent of my engagement with space-based sci-fi (which probably has an official name, but you know what I mean). I've never read Star Trek novels, and I've read next to no other space-based science fiction books, for one reason: the names are STUPIDLY unpronouncable to me. If I can't say a character's name (or the name of their home world) in my head, then I can't connect with the character.

I've mentioned it on my blog before, but it's a deficit of the way I learned to read (whole words rather than phonemes and syllables), and there are still a lot of words I get wrong when I say them aloud: bombardier, Arkansas, Yosemite, archipelago, to list but a few.

All of this is the context for my reading of Regeneration , the recent release from Louise Lyons, and let me say how DELIGHTED I was to find that the main characters are called...

Kim Fortune
Christian Novak

I can say BOTH of those. :)

I did have a bit of a problem with S.K.# for the planets, but I got the numbering straight fairly quickly. The name Immortasia is absolutely perfect for that nasty ole place, and Pardus is explained, so that made sense. I have no idea of the different planets' numbers now, but no matter. It's not necessary to understanding and enjoying the story. I got that Pardus is too hot, Immortasia is too cold and SK...the only one with three digits...is farther out and had lots of trees.

The world building is subtle and excellent. The caveat for that opinion is where I started. For anyone who has seen or read any popular space-based sci-fi, the principles of travel and the different kinds of habitable planet will be at once familiar, but there is enough explanation along the way for the complete sci-fi novice to pick it up, and the science fiction element isn't heavy-going. Regeneration is, for the most part, a character-driven story, where the two main characters happen to be enhanced humans in the Sigma Kappa galaxy (I'd expected a star system within the Milky Way galaxy, but I guess I was thinking too local).

The cast of characters is interesting, relatively diverse, and those of most significance are well developed. Kim Fortune starts off with an almost child-like innocence, and his biography before we pick up his story gives an insight into why this is. Christian Novak, on the other hand, has a very definite feel of the jaded rebel soldier. I'm particularly fond of Novak. He's a beefcake.

The writing is excellent, and the plot moves along at a good pace. I did experience a bit of a blip in this regard, which is related to my preferences as a reader. I found the shift in name use very off-putting. I understand why it happened, and it makes sense in context, but it did take me out of the story for a while. The other minor niggle I have - and I have absolutely no right to it, so I'm going to be honest, because it's a selling point for other readers - is that it's too 'MM Romance' for me, by which I mean the emphasis is on Kim and Novak's relationship and associated intimacy, which follows a fairly typical trajectory for the subgenre. There's nothing wrong with it - it's written very well - and the novel is clearly marked as Sci-fi/MM Romance, but I'd have been happy to see a few of the smaller 'mysteries' conclude and sacrifice some sexy time. Or both, maybe. Now I'm being greedy.

All in all, I really enjoyed this story. I read, write and edit mainly within contemporary subgenres, so it was a lovely and welcome change to read sci-fi, and well-written sci-fi at that, with characters whose names I could pronounce (++), natural world-building, strong female characters (for the most part) and a believable romance. I will most definitely be reading other stories by Louise Lyons. I'm still thinking now about Kim (trying to figure him out) and Novak (for far less innocent reasons - did I mention he's a beefcake?).

(Copy provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.)

Author Bio:
Louise Lyons comes from a family of writers. Her mother has a number of poems published in poetry anthologies, her aunt wrote poems for the church, and her grandmother sparked her inspiration with tales of fantasy.

Louise first ventured into writing short stories at the grand old age of eight, mostly about little girls and ponies. She branched into romance in her teens, and MM romance a few years later, but none of her work saw the light of day until she discovered FanFiction in her late twenties. Posting stories based on some of her favourite movies, provoked a surprisingly positive response from readers. This gave Louise the confidence to submit some of her work to publishers, and made her take her writing "hobby" more seriously.

Louise lives in the UK, about an hour north of London, with a mad dog called Casper, collection of tropical fish and tarantulas. She works in the insurance industry by day, and spends every spare minute writing. She is a keen horse-rider, and loves to run long-distance. Some of her best writing inspiration comes to her, when her feet are pounding the open road. She often races home afterward, and grabs pen and paper to make notes.

Louise has always been a bit of a tomboy, and one of her other great loves is cars and motorcycles. Her car and bike are her pride and job, and she loves to exhibit the car at shows, and take off for long days out on the bike, with no one for company but herself.

Social Media:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/louiselyonsauthor
Twitter: www.twitter.com/louiselyons013
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/louiselyons013
Instagram: www.instagram.com/louiselyons013
Blog: www.louiselyonsauthor.com
Email: louiselyons013@gmail.com

Thanks for reading!
Deb x 

Reunions - George reflects continued #RainbowSnippets #LGBTQ

Reunions: yep, I’m still writing that beast of a WIP. Today, the word count stands at 186,321, which means I’ve written 13,000 words in the past week and I’m still no closer to finishing it! That’s how it feels, at least, because I’ve been patching holes rather than moving towards the conclusion.

Brief explanation:
This snippet follows on from last week’s: George is thinking back to the verbal bullying he went through in high school, as well as his mum, who is much ‘lovelier’ than she comes across here. OK, she’s not that lovely, but she means well.

Here's the snippet:

Josh the boy genius, who remembered everything—every cruel and kind word spoken, every fight, argument, every mundane moment. All those times he’d recounted events of which George had no memory, yet when Josh had said those words, playing down the courage it had taken to stand up to Suzie Tyler, they had tattooed George’s brain.

You make me brave.

He wished he’d been braver. He wished he could have done as Kris had and come out at school, but his mum had a rough upbringing in a deprived inner-city housing estate, and she’d seen more than her fair share of violence—wife beaters, child abusers, gang wars, muggings, people attacked because of their skin colour or sexuality…the queens…

She’d actually said that to him once: ‘Don’t turn into one of them friggin’ queens!’

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Rainbow Snippets is a group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week to share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation (no spoilers please!).

In this group you'll find anything from romance and historical fiction to mystery and YA. The common thread is that every story's main character identifies as LGBTQ+. The snippets could range from zero flames to full-on sexytimes, anything goes content-wise. The only rule is snippets will be 6 sentences long–one for each color in the Pride flag.

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Thanks for reading,
Deb x