Cardeno C.'s Blog, page 41
June 18, 2017
Happy Father's Day by Christa Tomlinson
It's Father's Day! The day where all the fathers, stepdads, favorite uncles, awesome big brothers and found fathers are honored by the people who love them. For me, it's my dad, James. My childhood bestie and I affectionately nick named him Big James back in high school, because he was tall and had impressive Dad Guns from the hard work he did.
We had a few rough patches when I went through my obnoxious I know everything late-teens phase, but he's always been there for me. He supports me in my writing, whether it's financially, or listening to me drone on about the process of self-publishing. We're a lot alike in many ways. Introverted, short-tempered and stubborn. And we'll do anything we can to help the people we care about. But we're also really different. I love curling up on the couch with a good book for hours. He can't sit still long enough to make it past chapter one.
Whenever I'm home visiting and I whip out a notebook to jot some ideas down, he always shakes his head and says, "I just don't see how you come up with these stories." It cracks me up every time. Of course, once he blew my mind when he added, "I guess it's like a movie playing in your head." Yes! It's so like that!
My father, back in the early 80'sBig James is funny (especially when he's acting out something one of us kids did to get in trouble), can fix anything, can build most things and has far more patience than I could ever imagine myself having. He's a great dad and I'm super lucky to have him.
Happy Father's Day to my dad, and all the other people who have played an important fatherly role in someone's life!
Thanks for reading!
Love,
Christa
Visit my website: www.ChristaTomlinson.com
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June 17, 2017
Are you a summer person or a winter person? By S.C. Wynne
I hate summer. There I said it. Maybe if I had a pool it would be better. I'm too old to run through the sprinklers without getting funny looks from my neighbors.
But cold weather, I love! There is nothing better to me than a rainy day and a chill in the air. It might be because I grew up in Southern California and it is pretty much all sun all the time. We're lucky if we even get rain. I have sympathy for my friends in New York and the other side of the country where their winters are truly horrendous. I wouldn't want seven feet of snow dumped on me either. Just a little rain, please.
When I was younger I worked closing shifts for a fast food chain and one night I remember going out to my car and having to dig it out from all the snow that had fallen during my shift. It was terrifying driving on the icy roads too. So while I would like some cold weather, I don't want snow so much as some cooling rain.
Of course, maybe I'm jaded today because it's 95 degrees and I'm sweltering at my computer. :)
S.C.
www.sc-wynne.com
June 15, 2017
Kindle World Launch-Part Two by Felice Stevens
A Way with Words by Lane Hayes
Tony De Luca is a simple guy. He works for his uncle’s Brooklyn-based construction firm. And he knows from experience that keeping his head down and doing his job is the best way to deal with the meddlesome family members he sees daily. They think he’s quiet and maybe a little awkward but the truth is more complicated. Tony has a secret he isn’t ready or willing to share. He’s an expert at avoiding familial scrutiny. At least he was until the sexy guitar player showed up.
Remy Nelson is a small-town, free-spirited guy looking for a new life in the big city. He stays busy by playing his instrument on a busy Manhattan street corner during the day and bartending at night. Remy is more interested in finding steady employment than a mate, but he can’t deny his attraction to the dreamy construction worker with soulful eyes, a kind heart, and a unique way with words. Falling for Remy wasn’t what Tony expected, but he knows keeping him will require courage. And truth.
Remember Love by Silvia VioletThe last person Antonio expected to see sitting at the bar in Sparks was Scott, the only man he'd ever truly cared about, the only man who ever broke his heart. As memories of the painful end of their relationship come flooding back, all Antonio can do is run.Scott’s number-one regret is believing Antonio would hurt him. He’s never forgotten the look on Antonio’s face the night they broke up. If there’s any chance he can repair the damage he’d done, he’s going to take it. Though they care deeply for each other, Antonio and Scott will need to forgive and trust again if they're to find their way around the obstacles in their path.
Hot Date by Felice Stevens:Once again, Julian Cornell is at the zenith of his career; not only has his designs helped the young men and women in the burn unit, he’s about to ink an exclusive deal with the hottest model for his new high fashion menswear design. Only his husband doesn’t understand how important this is to him and the model might want more than just to walk the runway in Julian’s clothing.
Nick Fletcher has never been the jealous type; he’s always been confident his place is right by his husband’s side. But now that Julian is about to re-launch his fashion line, Nick fears he’ll be sucked back into a world of beautiful people and wonder what he’s missed by being married to a less-than perfect man like Nick.
Leave it up to two meddling friends who think they know best to arrange a hot date guaranteed to put the spice back in Julian and Nick’s marriage, enabling them to remember that what lies beyond the surface is a lifetime of love.
June 13, 2017
Flash fiction from BA, Sean, Julia and Kiernan
Sean Michael
Summer Storm
Drake loved summer evenings like this one. It had been a brutally hot day, the sun daring anyone to step foot outside without diving into a pool. Worse than that, though, had been the humidity, building higher every moment until it felt like he was swimming in thick soup just walking from the house to the park.
Now, though, he sat on a picnic table, watching the sky go dark as the clouds rushed in to hide the sun. The wind was blowing hard, bending the trees and blowing oven-hot air against him. It got darker and windier, and a tension built inside him – inside the world, he thought. It was going to break any moment now and, with any luck, there was going to be a magnificent thunderstorm. It was just too bad he didn’t have anyone to share it with.
The wind grew even stronger and a flash of lightning lit up the sudden darkness, followed by a boom after a count of five seconds. Five miles away, then. Drake bet the next lightning and thunder pairing were even closer together.
The skies opened up without warning, huge drops beating the ground. Laughing, Drake jumped up and ran out from under the trees, eager to be in the middle of it. He danced in the rain, his arms spread, his face turned to the sky.
Hearing a chuckle, he whipped around, finding Kevin there, grinning at him, and just as wet.
“You’re a little out of your neighborhood.” Drake wasn’t going to buy that the lovely, but definitely not out, Kevin ‘just happened’ to be driving along the road and noticed him.
Lightning lit up the sky above Kevin’s head and the answering thunder was almost immediate, which explained the way the wind was howling.
Kevin met his gaze, held it. “I had to come. The storm called me.”
“The storm?” Right.
“You called me,” Kevin amended.
Drake stared at Kevin for a moment longer, the thunder and lightning filling the air, the sky, wild and untamed, the wind whipping around him, slamming the rain into him.
They broke together, crashing into each other like the wind was responsible. Drake wrapped his arms around Kevin and they kissed. He swore he could feel the copper taste of blood as their lips mashed together, but it only spurred him on. As did the thunder, the sound encouraging him to rub against Kevin. He dropped his hands to Kevin’s ass, wanting Kevin to reciprocate.
Kevin did, the two of them moving with a desperation that matched the storm’s intensity. The weather got wilder and so did they until Drake was coming, the thunder echoing his cry. Kevin held on tighter, eyes rolling back in his head as his mouth dropped open. A shudder went through him and then they were clinging to each other in the rain.
“It’s about time,” Drake said.
He did love summer evenings like this.
BA Tortuga 0 Connor and Brock are from What the Cat Dragged in available from Dreamspinner Press.
Connor watched the puppies play in the pool, his tongue dragging over the popsicle.
He was too hot to move. Seriously. Too hot to think. Too hot to move. Too hot to live.
Oh, drippage. He sucked his fingers clean, then went back to his meditative slurping.
Up. Down. Up. Down.
A low growl split the air and he looked over to the kitchen where Brock was standing there, lupine eyes glowing. His own wolf crooked his finger, beckoning him inside.
Oh. Oh, right.
Yes.
Here Kitty. He got it.
He sucked his popsicle and stood, eyes on something else to put between his lips.
Julia Talbot-- Frost and Matt are from Riding the Circuit, available at Dreamspinner Press “Hey, Frost, you want a beer?”
Frost lifted his head to stare accusingly at Matt. “Aren’t you from up in in Chama where it’s cold all the time? How can you not be damn hot?”
Matt chuckled, tugging out two beers, then coming to rest one against Frost’s bare belly. “I have a theory. It’s all about ancestry. My people are brown. We come from where the sun beats down on you all day. You’re a redhead. Your people come from places that the sun doesn’t shine half the year.”
“Ha ha.” Frost pulled the beer up to press against his sweaty neck. “I need to go look at the swamp cooler, make sure the pads aren’t clogged.”
“Won’t matter in a week or so. Monsoon is coming.”
Frost groaned. “God, I need a cold shower.”
Matt’s dark eyes twinkled for him. “I could rub you down with an ice cube.”
All sorts of things perked up at those words. Frost nodded. “You sure could.”
Matt headed back to the fridge, and Frost grinned. Now the heat was all inside him instead of out.
He was a damn lucky cowboy.
Kiernan Kelly
Thunder exploded in an unexpected blast so loud it thrummed in my bones. I shivered and glanced up at the summer sky, shocked by the roiling greenish-purple clouds I saw. Needles hadn’t seen a storm coming. Usually his predictions were dead-on, but not this time.
“Looks like a metal storm coming in!” Carver yelled in my ear, competing with the thunder for my attention. She tugged on my arm. “We gotta to get to the shelter, now!”
I shook my head, and pointed toward the decaying pumps. Scouts discovered the location of the fuel station only a few days ago. It’d been buried under rubble, exposed by a recent, powerful windstorm. For all anyone knew, it might’ve been hidden away since the Big Blast. If we were lucky, those pumps might be untapped. If so, it was possible we could score enough gas and propane to last us the entire winter. “We need to check those for fuel, first.”
“There’s no time!”
I yanked my arm out of her hand. “You go on. I’ll be right behind you.”
“But Dragon, the storm--“
There wasn’t enough time to bother trying to rationalize my decision. The only thing left to do was pull rank. “You know how short summers are now. We need to gather all the fuel while we can before the temperature starts dropping. I said go on, and that’s an order.”
Carver’s expression left no doubt she was in complete disagreement with me, but she didn’t try to argue again. Instead, she stuck two fingers in her mouth and blew out a piercing whistle.
A dozen heads popped up from behind rusted out car carcasses and decaying Dumpsters, all looking in our direction. Of the dozen, I knew less than half by name. Along with Carver, Bouncer, Ferrari, Hazmat, and Legion had been part of my crew since I was appointed Cell Leader. The others were all new, replacements for members lost on previous raids. I hadn’t bothered learning their names. It took nerve, smarts, strength, and agility to survive outside Sanctuary, and too few had it. These newbies probably wouldn’t survive long enough to make memorizing their names worth the trouble. The ones that did, well, there'd be time later on to learn what they called themselves.
Carver led them single file toward the entrance leading down to the shelter. Sub Way, is what we called it. Pocket Frank says that's what the ancients called it too. He has a theory about why they called it that, but it seems too crazy to be true. Something about how the Sub Way had mechanical vehicles that used to run on a sort of invisible magic power. How they carried folks under the ground, slithering through tunnels like a metal snake. Crazy, right? Anyway, I give no shits about history. I couldn't care less about why the ancients did anything. I only care about the how -- as in how they found fuel, food, water, and most importantly, how they stayed alive. Those are the stories we need to hear. Still, on cold, dark nights when death is prowling the streets, any story is a good story, right?
I dashed to pumps, keeping one eye on the storm pushing in from the west. The way I saw it, I had only a few minutes to siphon out what fuel I could and get down to the Sub Way before it hit. Providing, of course, there was any fuel to suck up. Most of the time, the pumps were dry.
This one actually had a few gallons in her, and my mind wandered back to stories about the ancients who originally put the fuel in the tanks. I wondered what it must’ve been like to have so much fuel you had to build underground tanks to hold it all.
Three-Eyed Myrtle always tells the best stories, if you ask me. She closes two of her eyes, but the third one, the peculiar orangey-purple-colored one that always reminded me of the poisonous mud at the edge of the Zone, fixes on you. She pins you to your chair with that look, and she stares and stares without blinking as if she can see right through you, or at least into the deepest parts of you, to the place where all your secrets are spread out like a deck of cards.
She never speaks your secrets aloud, though. Whatever she sees in the deep, spider-webbed corners of your soul, she keeps to herself.
Her stories, though, I always like them best.
Other people, especially the old folk like Pocket Frank or Toothless Annie, can tell good stories, too. Pocket Frank has one he likes to tell about the Time Before, when growing stuff was green and fresh, and you could eat it without vomiting blood, and when the air didn’t leave an oily slick on your skin like it does now. Nobody believes the stories, of course. I don’t think even Pocket Frank really believes them. They’re just stories. They’re nice to hear, though.
Sometimes, though, when I’m alone and bored and start daydreaming, I think it would be nice if there was a place like the one in the stories. Somewhere you can go outside without your resusi-mask strapped to your face, and where you can hunt without worrying about what things might be hunting you.
Hunting wasn’t on the schedule for today, anyway, not for me, not for anybody. I screwed the lid onto the collecting jar and gathered up my hose. Taking off at a run, I ducked down the stairs into the Sub Way, barely making it before the storm hit.
We could hear the clanging and rat-a-tatting as the winds shot bits and pieces of metal into the building walls above our heads. I've seen metal storms slam a twelve-inch piece of metal a half-foot deep into a concrete wall. Nasty things, metal storms. We were safe enough down here in Sub Way, though.
Everyone with half a brain knows to come down into Sub Way when a storm blows up. Metal storms, venom storms, fire-and-ice storms...doesn’t matter. Any of them will kill you quick if you get caught outside in them. Hell, I figure if you’re stupid enough to be outside during a metal storm, you deserve to get sliced up into people confetti.
Me? Well, if there’s one thing I’m not, it’s stupid.
Usually.
http://www.seanmichaelwrites.com
Julia’s is http://www.juliatalbot.com
BA’s is http://www.batortuga.com
Kiernan's is www.KiernanKelly.com
Facebook:
Sean -- https://www.facebook.com/SeanMichaelW...
Julia -- https://www.facebook.com/juliatalbota...
BA -- https://www.facebook.com/batortuga
Kiernan -- https://www.facebook.com/kiernan.kelly
June 12, 2017
Smitty's Sheriff Teasers by Cardeno C.
Have a terrific week.
CC
www.cardenoc.com
June 10, 2017
Writing Long by S.C. Wynne
everyone is doing these days. I can't help but feel this has to affect the quality of our work. Maybe I'm just jaded or tired.When the focus is speed and cranking out book after book, how can that not eat into the careful consideration an author should give their work? Now I realize there are people who can naturally write very quickly and still maintain quality. But when I see how many books are being pumped into the stream, I have to question if ALL of these authors are capable of that.
I myself have felt the pressure to publish books way faster than I would like. When I feel anxious or stressed I don't do my best work. I don't think I'm alone in that.
But I guess the market is what it is and we can either keep up or not. I for one will always want to put quality first, even if it means I'll have to publish a little slower than some others.
S.C.
www.sc-wynne.com
June 8, 2017
Kindle World is coming! by Felice Stevens
Okay bear with me. You know how you love shipping your favorite characters from television or books you've read? Maybe you finished a book and you thought..."Hmm I bet I could write a story about those guys". Or..."I wish Felice had written a story about this guy."
Well, now you can write it yourself. I'm honored that Amazon has chosen two of my series, Memories of the Heart and The Breakfast Club to feature the first Gay Romance Kindle World. And I have amazing authors to help launch the world, which will be live June 22. It is only available on Amazon but is not part of the Kindle Unlimited program, and unfortunately is not available (yet) overseas.
This week and next, I will give you a taste of some of the covers and blurbs in preparation for the launch. I hope you read and enjoy them all.
Memories Follow by S.c. Wynne:Scottie Kinland works as the Kennel Manager for the Paws For Care veterinary clinic. Spending his days with animals is the only way he can feel safe. He has first-hand knowledge of how cold and calculating humans can be. How could he ever forget? He wears the scars on his face and his heart.Lance Franklin likes to play the field. Still reeling from a lying cheating fiancée, he’s plowing through men like aspirin; only the pain of betrayal still stings. When he takes his mom’s dog in to the Paws For Care clinic, he’s immediately drawn to the quiet loner Scottie. But Scottie wants nothing to do with Lance.Lance persists and he manages to forge a fragile relationship with Scottie. But just as both men begin to believe perhaps fate has something beautiful in store for them; the past collides with their future in a shocking way.
On and Off by Jenna Kendrick
On
For almost a year, Doc1984 and Wallflower have been battling it out online. There's no subject they can't disagree over, no end to their aggravation with each other.
Off
Mitchell Abend and Jackson Wallach are in perfect sync from the moment they're introduced. Mitchell's never quite gotten over being publicly humiliated by a former lover, but Jackson's quiet strength encourages him to trust once again. Jackson's isolated himself after a devastating accident, but Mitchell makes him want to live again.
On and Off
Wallflower and Doc's online battles take an unexpected turn from adversaries to friends. But when one of them discovers his online friend and offline lover are one and the same, revealing the dual connection may cost him both a friendship and a chance at love.
Uncommon Ground by Kelly JensenDillon Lee’s grandfather was a conspiracy theorist. Every summer he’d take Dillon on a tour of New York City while entertaining him with tales of aliens. Fifteen years later, after a phone call from a lawyer, Dillon is carrying his grandfather’s ashes from landmark to landmark, paying a sort of tribute, and trying to figure out what to do with his unexpected legacy. When someone tries to steal the ashes, a guy Dillon has barely met leaps to the rescue, saving the urn and the day.
Steilang Skovgaard is a reclusive billionaire—and not human. He’s been living in Manhattan for over twenty years, working on a long-term plan to establish a safe haven for his people. For seven years, his reports have gone unanswered, however, and he is the only surviving member of his interstellar team. The connection he forms with Dillon soon after meeting him is something he’s missed, something he craves.
But after someone keeps trying to steal the ashes, it looks as though Dillon’s grandfather was involved in more than theories—and might not have been exactly who everyone thought he was. Steilang doesn’t know how close he can get to the truth without revealing himself, and Dillon is running out of people to trust. Can these two work out what’s going on before the thieves set their sights higher?
Kindle World is coming!
Okay bear with me. You know how you love shipping your favorite characters from television or books you've read? Maybe you finished a book and you thought..."Hmm I bet I could write a story about those guys". Or..."I wish Felice had written a story about this guy."
Well, now you can write it yourself. I'm honored that Amazon has chosen two of my series, Memories of the Heart and The Breakfast Club to feature the first Gay Romance Kindle World. And I have amazing authors to help launch the world, which will be live June 22. It is only available on Amazon but is not part of the Kindle Unlimited program, and unfortunately is not available (yet) overseas.
This week and next, I will give you a taste of some of the covers and blurbs in preparation for the launch. I hope you read and enjoy them all.
Memories Follow by S.c. Wynne:Scottie Kinland works as the Kennel Manager for the Paws For Care veterinary clinic. Spending his days with animals is the only way he can feel safe. He has first-hand knowledge of how cold and calculating humans can be. How could he ever forget? He wears the scars on his face and his heart.Lance Franklin likes to play the field. Still reeling from a lying cheating fiancée, he’s plowing through men like aspirin; only the pain of betrayal still stings. When he takes his mom’s dog in to the Paws For Care clinic, he’s immediately drawn to the quiet loner Scottie. But Scottie wants nothing to do with Lance.Lance persists and he manages to forge a fragile relationship with Scottie. But just as both men begin to believe perhaps fate has something beautiful in store for them; the past collides with their future in a shocking way.
On and Off by Jenna Kendrick
On
For almost a year, Doc1984 and Wallflower have been battling it out online. There's no subject they can't disagree over, no end to their aggravation with each other.
Off
Mitchell Abend and Jackson Wallach are in perfect sync from the moment they're introduced. Mitchell's never quite gotten over being publicly humiliated by a former lover, but Jackson's quiet strength encourages him to trust once again. Jackson's isolated himself after a devastating accident, but Mitchell makes him want to live again.
On and Off
Wallflower and Doc's online battles take an unexpected turn from adversaries to friends. But when one of them discovers his online friend and offline lover are one and the same, revealing the dual connection may cost him both a friendship and a chance at love.
Uncommon Ground by Kelly JensenDillon Lee’s grandfather was a conspiracy theorist. Every summer he’d take Dillon on a tour of New York City while entertaining him with tales of aliens. Fifteen years later, after a phone call from a lawyer, Dillon is carrying his grandfather’s ashes from landmark to landmark, paying a sort of tribute, and trying to figure out what to do with his unexpected legacy. When someone tries to steal the ashes, a guy Dillon has barely met leaps to the rescue, saving the urn and the day.Steilang Skovgaard is a reclusive billionaire—and not human. He’s been living in Manhattan for twenty years, working on a long term plan to establish a safe haven for his people. For seven years, his reports have gone unanswered, however, and he is the only surviving member of his interstellar team. The connection he forms with Dillon soon after meeting him is something he’s missed, something he craves.But after someone keeps trying to steal the ashes, it looks as though Dillon’s grandfather was involved in more than theories—and might not have been exactly who everyone thought he was. Steilang doesn’t know how close he can get to the truth without revealing himself, and Dillon is running out of people to trust. Can these two work out what’s going on before the thieves set their sights higher?
June 7, 2017
My Publishing Journey by Riley Hart
I asked in my Facebook group if they'd be interested in my publishing journey, and they said they would so...here we go. This will be long folks. LOL.
I've always loved writing. I won my first writing contest in...I believe it was the third grade. The theme was, "Tomorrow's Leaders on the Move." I won second place out of my whole school. In the fourth grade, I won third place in a writing contest that included my entire school district.
Becoming an author felt like wanting to be a famous musician or a movie star—one of those things that would never happen. So, I was "responsible" and went other directions. I had bills to pay, ya'll :)
When our first daughter was eight months old, we made a move from Southern Oregon, where I knew everyone, to Southern California, where I knew no one. I was a stay at home mom for the first time, and my husband was working six days a week, 10-12 hours a day, just to make ends meet. To say I was lonely is an understatement.
That's when I picked up my first romance novel (I'd wanted to write kid’s books before). I immediately fell in love. It reignited that old dream I’d told myself would never be possible. I had this want and this fire inside me for something like I'd never felt before. The thing was, I had NO idea where to start. You have to remember, this was about eleven years ago. Self-publishing wasn't a real alternative then. I hadn't even heard of it when I first started.
So I sat at my computer and did some research. I looked up small press e-publishers. I wrote a short story that was crap...but I didn't know it was crap at the time. LOL. I managed to get a small press publisher to publish it. I made about fifty bucks (likely all from family), and the publisher closed.
This wasn't going as I'd planned.
I started to do more research, and I started writing again. I discovered RWA (Romance Writers of America). We were broke, but I saved the money to join. I found my local chapter. They were like, “You head-hop,” and I was like, “WTF is head-hopping?” LOL. So we critiqued each other, and I learned a lot.
I wrote another book. This time I queried agents. They were like, “Um...nope. You're not ready.” And they were right. I saved more money and took a romance writing class. It was once a week and taught by a multi-published author. I had a young baby and no one to babysit, so hubby had to work hard to get off early once a week so I could go. We made it work because it was important to me. I NEEDED it. I also researched writer’s groups, and I found an online message board where I met a writer, Kelley York (her books are awesome), who is one of my very best friends to this day.
I learned a ton from Kelley and the class. I tried my hand and writing erotic romance, and I sold one to a small press publisher. Then I sold another one. And another one. Now, I wasn't making much money. I brought home about 200 bucks every three months, and it went down from there, but that felt GOOD.
I had my second baby, and I had a few novellas published and then...then I found Twilight. I read it and fell in love. People can say what they want about the books, but they were a lot of things to a lot of people, myself included. I tried my hand at writing a YA and really loved it. I sent it to my beta reader friends. I submitted it to agents knowing THIS WAS THE ONE.
And it wasn't...they told me I needed more work, and they were right.
I wrote an adult romance. I submitted it to agents...and they all said no.
At that time HarperCollins started a site called Inkpop. People could upload their work, get it critiqued and revise it and earn votes. The three books that earned the most votes (I can't remember if it was monthly or what) were sent to editors at HarperCollins. I was in the top three one month along with another author, Wendy Higgins, who went on to sell to HarperCollins and is also one of my best friends to this day (Her books are awesome too).
I didn't sell. I was crushed. Broken hearted...but I was determined.
I sold a couple more books to small press publishers. I worked closely with Wendy and Kelley. I was writing adult romance for the small press, writing YA to try to get an agent...and exhausted. We were still broke, and I hardly saw my husband because he worked so much. There were times I thought it would never happen. That it was a dream. But I kept going. I started writing interracial romance for a small press African-American publishing house, but that fizzled out too. This whole time, this was years and I was never making more than a few hundred dollars here and there, but I still has PASSION and LOVE for what I was doing, on my side.
I wrote a YA that multiple agents told me they loved...but there was no market for it. Boy point of view in YA didn't sell in YA, and I was told my MC wasn’t likable. I wrote another YA that didn't get an agent either. Then finally...FINALLY, I got my first agent.
THIS WAS IT. I thought I had finally made it!!! She put a book on submission to NY (big five, was big six publishing houses at the time), and it didn't sell. Again, that pesky YA boy point of view thing.
Things didn't work out with her. She left agenting, and I got my second agent. He was a very big name agent in the romance publishing world. I wrote another book. He loved it. He put it on submission...it didn't sell. I wrote another book. I sent it to him...and he thought it was too much of an issues book.
I lost my second agent.
I can honestly say that is the moment I almost gave up. More than any other time in my journey, I thought it was worthless. It would never happen. It wasn't meant to be.
But god, I still loved it. The fire still consumed me.
It was 2012. I'd been at this for years. Self-publishing was starting to become more popular. I was scared to death to try it...but I did. I self-published my first book in like...March 2012, I believe. It was the YA that didn't sell to NY. And...it did pretty well. Not great, but I was bringing home a few hundred dollars a month at my writing for the first time! People loved my lead, which I have to admit, felt really good.
I self-published a few other YAs. I made a small name for myself in the genre. There is somethinge special about the age. I still love writing YA to this day. It will always be a part of my heart.
October 2012 is when everything changed. I self-published CHARADE (New Adult, when it had just really become a big thing). It went down to #28 on Amazon. Twenty. Eight. (this was pre-Kindle Unlimited days and at full price!) I almost died from shock. People loved it. They wanted more!! I got my third and current agent. People were asking about the second book. I was doing it! I'd made my dream come true!! Not that writing in general didn’t mean I’d already made my dream come true. What mattered to me was I was writing, but now I was writing AND making a living. I was helping my husband for the first time in years.
I finished the second book...and I got an offer from a big five New York publishing house for books two and three in the series. Yes, yes, yes!!! This was what I'd always wanted!!! We accepted the offer. Book two was slated for release in July 2013, which felt like an eternity (turns out it was). I also sold a three-book series to another publishing house to launch their sweet romance line. I sold a YA that I'd co-written with a friend to another publishing house. I sold another book to my big five publisher. It was a whirlwind of excitement and tears and happiness. All my work was paying off AND I was doing what I LOVED.
But it wouldn't last. LOL. Does it ever? You see, when a sub-genre is new or suddenly starts to sell well (as NA did at the time), a funny thing happens. Lots of people start writing in that genre. And I get it. I'm NOT talking bad about anyone who writes anything. We ALL have a right to write what we want, but it was a combination of a mass number of people going into a new sub-genre AND self-publishing getting its legs that made things begin to tumble (not just for me). In between the time Charade came out and before the next book was released, the market got saturated. To stand out, everyone began selling their books at 99 cents. You can't make a living off that, and it begins to make people expect books to be priced that low. It's a cycle. The market gets more and more saturated and prices go lower and there are other variables, of course but then…good things don’t typically happen from there. They sort of implode.
I had no other books I could release, so as months separated books one and two, I saw interested get less and less. By the time book two came out, things were on the downward slope. Let's just say it wasn't the same kind of release as book one.
I was...depressed. Heartbroken. I'd worked so hard, and I loved what I did so much. I’d tried for YEARS, and it felt like it was all slipping away just as I was finally getting somewhere.
Now, let me backtrack just a little. It was also in 2011/2012 that I started reading m/m and fell in love. I've always felt more comfortable writing from the male point of view. I've always been a passionate supporter of love and equality. It just felt right.
So before book two released in the series I’d sold, I'd started writing my first m/m, and the way it made me feel was everything. Every. Thing.
You all know how that all went down. Because I wrote YA and my other stuff wasn't explicit. I did the pen name thing. What you don't know is I felt at home writing m/m romance. I felt comfortable in my skin. I fell in love in new and exciting ways I’d never before experienced.
I wanted nothing more than to continue writing m/m romance. Things were going crazy under my other name. Things that I can't get into detail about. I sold one more YA to a publishing house, and while I LOVE, YA, I truly do, I found my heart and soul in m/m romance. If I could have it my way, I'd do both.
The industry and the market were changing, as they always does, but I managed to stay afloat. My soul was being fed by words and characters. Love and happily ever after.
You know most of it from there. I've mostly been self-publishing the past few years. I've sold two YA novels to another small press publisher. I'm settled in my skin. I'm doing what I want to love. What I HOPE with all my heart to be able to do for the rest of my life.
This industry is always changing. It keeps us on our toes.
There's more—of course there's more—but we can't get into all of that. It was a long, long, long, painful road for me, but I'm thankful for it. I learned a lot. My skin got thicker. I had to FIGHT for what I wanted which made it all the sweeter when something wonderful happened. If there was ever any doubt that I was following my heart, (there wasn’t) it was proven by the fact that I kept going. That I didn’t stop because it was hard. Because I failed (over and over and over). I was writing because it’s my heart. I truly believe there is something to be said for paying your dues. For failing and picking yourself up and dusting yourself off and continuing to fight and hope and dream.
And that's what I'm doing now. Loving and fighting and hoping and dreaming.
Writing…always writing.
I'd do it all over again.
PS…I just realized I forgot a few things. I wrote for two other small presses in there, which also both closed. One for adult romance and one for YA.
June 6, 2017
Character Interviews from BA, Julia, Kiernan and Sean
Neal from The Dom’s Way answers today’s questions.
1. Tell us about your first job.
I cleared snow for my neighbors from when I was twelve until I was eighteen. Before school, after school, on the weekends. I was a snow-clearing fool.
2. What is your favorite song?
Neal *winks* I Did It My Way.
3. What is your favorite thing about your lover?
Nobody loves me like he does. Way looks at me with his entire heart in his eyes. It makes me catch my breath sometimes.
4. Love at first sight or slow burn?
Yes. Love at first sight that burns forever.
5. Describe your dream date.
Me, my boy and ice cream. You do the math.
Neal and Way from The Closet Boy are back, only now they’re Dom and sub, and exploring their relationship through the lifestyle. Way is eager to learn everything, and more in love with his master every day. For his part, Neal can’t believe how lucky he is to have found such an innocent but sensual boy.
As they learn what works best for them both, Way has trouble obeying some of the rules Neal imposes. Like the no touching himself rule. Neal wants Way to learn control, but Way, after so long holding back, has trouble not indulging. The two men must work together to find the balance that brings them each the most satisfaction and happiness.
The Dom’s Way is available for pre-order at Dreamspinner Press. https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/boo...
Julia Talbot
This is from Frost, who stars in Riding the Circuit, out tomorrow from Dreamspinner Press! Frost is a rodeo bullrider who comes home to take over the family ranch when he dad dies.
1. Tell us about your first job.
I mucked stalls for a local horse sanctuary when I was twelve. My Pop took the manure home for momma’s flowers.
2. What is your favorite song?
I reckon something by Garth. Much Too Young, maybe.
3. What is your favorite thing about your lover?
Matt is really dear. I mean, really. Like give you the shirt off your back. He doesn’t judge and he doesn’t play games.
4. Love at first sight or slow burn?
Well, it was lust at first sight. Does that count?
5. Describe your dream date.
Had it. Me and Matt and a bag of Jack in the Box in front of a movie. I didn’t think I was ready to settle down. I was.
Riding the Circuit is available June 7 at Dreamspinner Press
https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/boo...
BA Tortuga
Tell us about your first job.
Rory: I filed paperwork at my daddy's office in Dallas the summer between my sophomore and junior year in high school. Everyone else had summer jobs and I wanted one, so badly, even though I was way too young. Sometimes being the child prodigy sucks.
Luke: I grew up on a ranch with three brothers. We worked from birth.
What is your favorite song?
Rory: Peaceful Easy Feeling by the Eagles.
Luke: *grins over and pats his lap* C'mere babe. We'll chair dance.
Rory *wanders and sits*
What's your favorite thing about your lover?
Luke: How fucking real he is. He never lies to you, he never pretends, he just is.
Rory: Luke's my hero. What's not to love?
Love at first sight or slow burn?
Luke: Slow burn.
Rory: Love at first sight.
Luke *blushes*
Describe your dream date.
Luke: Me, Rory, a pizza, and our big hot tub.
Rory: Works for me. I'll also take me, Luke, tequila shots and watching the stars from the backyard.
Luke: You, me, pizza, tequila, and watching the stars from the hot tub?
Rory: Perfect.
These boys are from the new book, The Wounded Warrior, now available at Pride Publishing and all major retailers.
https://www.pride-publishing.com/book...
http://www.seanmichaelwrites.com
Julia’s is http://www.juliatalbot.com
BA’s is http://www.batortuga.com
Kiernan's is www.KiernanKelly.com
Facebook:
Sean -- https://www.facebook.com/SeanMichaelW...
Julia -- https://www.facebook.com/juliatalbota...
BA -- https://www.facebook.com/batortuga
Kiernan -- https://www.facebook.com/kiernan.kelly
