Christin Lovell's Blog, page 9

Get Ready!

I have an exciting, but hectic, schedule this coming week. TONS to be excited about, including 3 NEW RELEASES!
My editor, Susie, should have her edits to me by tomorrow. That leaves me tonight and tomorrow to finish up the last of Curves & Courage before I start my editing spree.
Here are the titles and release dates:

Controlled Instincts , an Alpha Doms short, releases Monday, March 18th, 2013!

For seven long months, plus size Anna has suffered through hour-long treadmill sessions to watch one man: Jayce. There’s something about the sexy gym owner that calls to her.

Harboring a past full of pain, can Anna learn to let go of her inhibitions?

Jayce has been battling his instincts for seven months, fighting to keep his distance from his curvaceous mate. He has his own reasons and reservations.

But you can only evade fate for so long.

Similar desires, similar fears.

Will they decide the risk is worth the potential reward when they come together?

Curves & Courage, the second book in the Future Alphas series, releases Wednesday, March 20th, 2013!

Sophie’s father ripped her from the only family she’d known at the tender age of twelve. Nearly five years later, he’s a shell of a man and she’s a ghost of a werewolf, battered and broken.

Until she meets her mate.

Dominick is everything Sophie needs and wants. He awakens her spirit; he turns her world upside down with his charm.

Until he discovers her secret.

Dom is ready to fight for his curvy mate, but Sophie isn’t ready to let him.

Until her past and present collide in an unforgettable battle.

Two Times the Charm, the first full length novel in the Alpha Doms series, releases Friday, March 22nd, 2013!

Max is a broken woman with secrets drowned in a rough past. She’s looking to start over in a new town several states away. Never did she expect her past to follow her. Neither did she expect to find not one, but two men, anxious to love her.

But they have a secret of their own, and it follows them everywhere.

Ayden is the alpha of the local werewolf pack. Josh is the alpha of the neighboring town’s pack. They grew up together; best friends. There’s little rivalry between these two…until their voluptuous, plus size mate walks into their lives.

Will a shared mate bring these two best friends closer, or tear them apart?

The decision is made for them when their mate turns to them for help. They will stop at nothing to protect Max, but how far are they willing to go?

Learning of their beastly dark side, will Max be able to face them without fear? After all, it’s a past full of fear she’s trying so hard to escape…

Clear your calendars, find a quiet spot and get your e-readers ready!
I hope those who purchase the books (fingers crossed, many of you will) thoroughly enjoy them. My heart and soul is always in every word I write.
Have a great night!

~ Christin

New Website

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As you’ll notice when you pull up my website, it has had a complete overhaul! It is more clean-lined and… light, springy, airy? It took quite a bit of customizing, but I’m happy with the end result.

While re-doing the website, I overhauled the pages. Some had unnecessary links, others didn’t have links at all when they should. It’s much more organized.

I guess that’s my theme for today: organization. …if that can be a theme.

I started my day by re-arranging two rooms in my house. Then, I cleaned out and organized my office, which is far more functional and… homey now. Then, I decided to do the doozy, the mack-daddy: the garage. Does anyone else have a room, closet, drawer that everything just ends up in unintentionally? The garage was my dump… err… beast? I finally went through all of the boxes, all of the bins, organizing everything, down to the papers. I assembled shelves, re-packed items into new, unbroken bins. I finally put all the tools in one place… It’s done! It’s finally done! I can actually open my garage door without shame now… well, almost. The trash guys must have been cursing me for filth today. I had over twenty-five boxes filled with trash and… well, truthfully, crap… outside beside the overflowing trash can. And I still have more, but have to wait for the large trash day on Wednesday.

It’s crazy because I’m generally a neat person. I have to have a clean work space or I can’t concentrate. But, all too often I’m guilty of: as long as it looks clean, I can put it off. Today was the exhausting launch pad for more clean outs. Next? My closet. I still have my maternity clothes! (My youngest is almost 22 months…) So, sometime this week, I plan to go through the rest of my house and organize every cupboard and drawer and do a thorough spring cleaning, something that, before this year, I never did.

Don’t worry. Though I’m tired and sore, I’m still working… as you can see with the website. I’ll be getting dinner together shortly, and then I’ll be back at my computer writing into the night, sick kids and all. Thank God for make-up. I have an 8am meeting with my daughter’s teacher tomorrow. I know I’d be looking quite haggard without it…

Happy spring (cleaning)! …I know spring isn’t until the 20th, but I live in Florida. It already feels like spring, and we’re bordering on summer. (My least favorite season…)

Have a great day!

~ Christin

behind & beyond goal…

So, my goal word count for Curves & Courage was the same length as the first book in the Future Alpha’s series, Bold & Beautiful. However, as of right now, I’m past that word count and the end isn’t in sight. I hate when characters draw things out and send my goal up in flames. I simultaneously love it and squeal accordingly at the amazing number at the end. It does, however, wreak havoc on my schedule.

Just like with Two Times the Charm, I was not expecting Curves & Courage to take more words than pre-calculated. I was expecting to wrap it up with a pretty little red bow around that perfectly round number. I’ve always said characters write their own stories, I just type them up. Often, my initial story idea ends up a distant, faint memory by the end of a book. My intentions for and pre-conceived notions of how a story will and should flow are often demolished within the first few chapters. I don’t usually make a fuss about it. I’m accommodating; I’m willing to indulge my characters.

But when I’m indulging in gut-wrenching plot lines that destroy my emotional stability… I’m equally motivated to represent the characters well and depressed by the extension.

Writing is an emotional process. It’s a mental process. It plays with your heart and soul regularly. There isn’t a single character that I’ve written that I don’t love. By the end of their stories, they’re no longer fiction, but family. They are an extension of me, of my heart, of my soul.

Sometimes they open old wounds though. Writing their story is no longer a pleasurable journey at that point. It becomes a tough hike up a steep mountain. I’m determined to make it to the end, to the top, but every new step is harder than the last. It means that, while I know I will make it to the end, the last several yards will be a slow crawl. Not the word count input each day, but the progress of the characters will be drawn out and their challenges will be slower to resolution than I’d like.

With all that being said, Curves & Courage will take a bit longer before it’s finished. It will be a mad dash to the finish for Vigilante after that. I’m hoping I can still make my goal date for that one, but can’t promise anything. After all, characters write their own stories, and they don’t always write them at the pace I want. In the end, they write them the way they were meant to be read…hopefully.

I’ll keep you all posted on my progress

~ Christin

P.S. I apologize for the delay, but I am waiting for my editor on Two Times the Charm. Once I receive the edited copy back, I will work through the edits and do a final read through with last minute adjustments as quickly as I can. Thanks for your patience!

P.S.S. Don’t  forget about the Vamp Chronicles t-shirt campaigns. You can find the information and links HERE.

New Campaigns

Thanks everyone for your feedback and input on the t-shirt campaigns! I really appreciate it!

Taking what everyone said into account, two more campaigns have been launched using the most popular design: Team Kellan. Several messaged me indicating they preferred darker colors to light and others noted the shirt size restrictions, both of which, I’m happy to report, have been addressed.

Now, there are 4 campaigns running, but a larger total goal because of it… That goal number of 80 sales total has me quite nervous to say the least…

If you have anymore feedback, please do share! This is a learning process for all involved.

Thanks!

~ Christin

Here are the links for the “old” campaigns:

Team Kellan – white, slim fit

Team Kai – white, slim fit

Here are the new campaign links:

Team Kellan – reg tee, size S-3XL

Team Kai – reg tee, size S-3XL

Team Kai now?

With the cover of Reflections unveiling Kellan’s sexiness, and Vigilante and The Innocence of White revealing more characters, more of you than ever have asked about Kai.

With two t-shirt campaigns running for Lexi’s leading men, I felt now, more than ever, you deserve to know who your t-shirt supports.

I’ve scoured the web on multiple occasions, and despite finding a few who had one or two of Kai’s features, no one came closer to resembling and embodying what I imagine Kai to be than Jason Momoa.

Ladies and gents, feast your eyes upon my inspirational Kai.

He’s even more gorgeous when he smiles!

But NEVER made him angry. I’d hate to be on the other side of that snarl!

Of course, he could take me to Hawaii with him any day…

scowl or not.

Ah, yes, enjoy the pure sexiness that is Kai, although, in my version, he’s a tad more muscular. But dang, Jason comes pretty darn close

*Sigh* Please excuse me while I go drool a tad longer, and then get back to writing.

ENJOY! ~ Christin

 

Whose team are you on?!

Several of you have inquired in the past about Vamp Chronicles merchandise. Well, I have now partnered with Teespring and launched a test campaign to determine whether it would be worth investing in more VC products.

I have personally designed the two t-shirts available for order.

The way it works is there is a minimum sales goal that’s been set and a campaign timeframe. The minimum sales goal must be met prior to the end date of the campaign or else the tees will not be sent to press. (Don’t worry, you’re not charged unless we meet our goals and the shirts are made.) Should we meet the goal prior to the campaign end date, more of you will be able to purchase the tees still!

The official end date for each campaign is March 25th, 2013 (the goal date for Vigilante: Mel’s Story to be released).

Here are the campaign links:

TEAM KELLAN

TEAM KAI

I sincerely hope you all like the designs and that a few of you are brave enough to get them

~ Christin

 

Emerging Trends

While my son was in the hospital, I had the privilege (Yes, privilege. Lost in writing and kids and responsibilities etc., reading has become a treat, a rarely enjoyed dessert…) of reading a few books to pass the time. Now, don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the books. I enjoyed all of the books, minus one tiny little detail: cliffhangers!

If you notice with my books, I don’t leave you on a cliffhanger. I wrap up a book with a nice little bow so that, as a reader, you can feel satisfied, because I like to feel satisfied at the end of a book. And I’ve never felt completely satisfied with a cliffhanger! In fact, I’ve had the urge to do a few things I won’t mention in this blog when I read a cliffhanger at the end of three-hundred-some-odd-pages of laughter, seat clenching and tears.

Now, I understand the marketing angle on cliffhangers: reel them in to purchase the next book. But, as a reader, I despise them. It’s not to say that books with cliffhangers aren’t good; most of them are. But we all have our ticks, our OCD must-avoids or must-haves. Well, cliffhangers are on my must-avoids.

I typically will not purchase a book that I’m made aware of as having a cliffhanger ending until I know for certain the series is complete and the author can’t torture me. Also, it saves my wallet a bit of money because those authors who give you one short book at a time, almost like a mini-series but each book is less than a quarter of the length, typically bundle all of the books into one at the end giving you a fair price.

With all that being said, I do have a few authors who I will buy, regardless of the torture I know will be waiting at the end of the book. One such author… well, let’s just say I have never been left wanting more than after reading Christa Wick‘s His to Dominate. (18 & older ONLY!!!) I was definitely unaware of the cliffhanger, so when I read it, I wanted to do awful, horrible things to dear Christa. I have never been so enthralled, enraptured and equally furious at once. When I searched for a second book and realized there wasn’t one. Oh dear. It’s a good thing we’re not neighbors.

Oh yes, cliffhangers, being strung along, is my, well, my button. If you want to set me off, give me a great story that doesn’t have resolution in one book. I know how non-sensical this is. I understand there are some stories that will take longer than one book. But, I’m willing to admit my faults, my impatience, my irrational view of cliffhanger books and series.

More disturbing is my reaction to them hasn’t changed despite how popular they’ve become. In the adult BBW romance genre, I can’t tell you how many “mini-series” there are. Further popular are the Young Adult romance books that leave you wanting. Most readers still devour those titles, despite the “cruel” endings. I know that because many of them are in the top 100 paid books on Amazon right now.

If I’m honest, I’m aware of how well this strategy has worked for many authors. I’m not knocking them, dogging them or looking down on them. I understand; I respect their choices as a writer. I just know that I’ll never be able to follow in their footsteps, no matter how bad I want their sales position on Amazon. I just can’t put my readers through what I’ve gone through as a reader.

Speaking of readers… A few of you have kindly explained that my Vamp Chronicles books have done that to you… I apologize if they have. I do wrap up each individual book as well as possible. While I aim to give a good, solid ending, I also aim to leave it open-ended. It is a series after all. On the flip side though, I could be Cruella DeVille and cut off mid-opening of an action scene, as a few authors have done to me. Or, worse, I could cut off mid-sentence of a key moment, as another author, whom I will never name but also never forget, did to me. Because of my conscience though, I don’t.

But, I digress. I understand and respect authors’ choices to end their books how they desire. I love many of them equally as much as I hate them for this. It’s nothing personal. Rather, it’s a praise. That I would get to the end and have such strong emotions, such a powerful reaction to the lack of closure says that I care about their characters; it says I’m invested. (Poor Christa. I really was invested… I mean, she gave so much and so little simultaneously. I felt deprived and satisfied somehow. I wanted more, so much more, and I’m still dying for more. Never have I pondered the fate and happenings of two characters more, and it’s all because she found the perfect formula of give and take. I got the intimacy without intimacy; I got connection without connection. I got answers with more questions. I got smoke and curves with fog and ice. Jesus, she needs to write more!)

So, while emerging trends are in favor of cliffhangers, this writer will probably never participate… I don’t have the guts for it. I don’t have the heart for it. I savor HEA and HFN endings a little too much. I never realized my dependency on them until I happened upon a book without one. I’ve never been a fan of burning books, but I came close to converting… (Please don’t lecture me on how horribly irresponsible and historically disrespectful that thought was…)

Where do you stand? Do cliffhanger books pull you in deeper? Do they really have a better edge? Are you with this emerging trend in the literary world or against it? Don’t lecture me on my dramatics, please. Just tell me where you stand and why. I would LOVE to know if I’m with the majority or minority on this topic…

~ Christin

WARNING: Excerpts included!

So, these last few days I’ve been rampantly trying to catch up on a lot of administrative items while juggling bill paying (the funnest of all my chores) and writing. I’m slowly working through my e-mails, but am still stuck mid-way through last year. (YIKES!) I know that is SO awful, and I want to offer you my sincerest apologies! I swear I will reply to you all. I take the time to read everyone’s e-mails, comments and messages and personally reply to all of them. That takes time. It’s important to me that you all know just how much I value each of you though. You invest time into reading my books. It’s vital to me that I invest the time to read your thoughts and messages and reply to them all. So, please, please, please bear with me.

Being pulled in a million different directions does have its advantages. I’ve been randomly working on three different books right now: Curves & Courage, Vigilante: Mel’s Story, and The Break of Dawn. My primary focus is Curves & Courage, but I’ve always believed in following the inspiration. If I’m more inspired to write on another one day, I will. I think it helps me present the best story possible. We’re not meant to mechanically produce stories. We’re meant to be inspired and to inspire… at least I think so anyways.

And, I’m embracing all the inspiration I can. My goal is to finish Curves & Courage this weekend. If all goes according to plan, then Curves & Courage will have a release date of March 10th. Two Times the Charm has a release date of March 15th. And, barring I can get it done, book 6, Vigilante: Mel’s story, will have a release date of March 25th.

I’m trying to get these three titles published prior to the end of March. March 26th-April 7th, I will be having a series of vision tests that will impair my vision and extremely limit my computer time. I have astigmatism and myelination of my optic nerve in my left eye. They believe I may also have a tumor on my optic nerve contributing to my issues. These tests will be checking for that and more. I wanted to give you all a heads up in case I’m silent during that time. There will be further delay in replies if I can’t get through my backlog of correspondence prior as well. I will be desperately trying to avoid that though! I hate keeping you all waiting, and I do appreciate you all taking the time to write me

Well, now that the boring stuff is out of the way, let’s get to the meat and potatoes of this post: EXCERPTS! Being that I’m working on three books, and I haven’t released an excerpt in a while, I’ve decided to release an excerpt from all three titles

Enjoy!

~ Christin

WARNING: Certain excerpts include language that might be considered offensive or foul by some. Please proceed to reading them with caution, knowing you have been fully informed and forewarned.

 

*Unedited Excerpt*

Dominick

My wolf stood at attention; my heart skipped a beat as she tried to slip past me. She was beautiful. Her hair was knotted high on top of her head. Black leggings showed off her curves.

I inhaled her scent; a thrill rushing through me as her sweet essence settled in my chest. My gaze sought her. My body craved her. My heart longed to love her. My wolf yearned to claim her.

Damn. I sounded like a sappy Hallmark card, but I didn’t care. And that’s how I knew I was already falling beneath her spell. She refused to look my way. She refused to acknowledge my presence, but there was no way for me to deny her. I wanted her. I wanted to be in her life in any capacity, even as just the creepy stalker who quietly watched her from afar.

“You can stop drooling anytime,” Kris said. I didn’t have to look at him to know his lips were curled in disgust. He hadn’t found his mate yet. He didn’t know the power they would have over him. He wouldn’t know what this felt like, how quickly it took you and changed you until it happened to him.

“Shut up,” I growled, tossing a glance his way.

He smirked, humor lighting his eyes. “She’s already got you whipped, man.”

I quirked a brow in his direction; my lips pursed in amusement. “Says the beta who’s gonna be my bitch in ten years.”

~*~

*Please note, I am aware of the incorrect book number on the cover. This will be corrected prior to publication, thanks!*

*Unedited Excerpt*

Everyone is born with a purpose, and Fate just unveiled mine.

I jerked opened my closet and tore an outfit off the hangers. I would dress the way I felt. I felt dark. My soul was overflowing with rage. They could kill my body and I’d continue my mission. No one could stop the pure hatred pumping through me for those undeservingly spared. No one could halt the sinful plots I developed as I dressed. No one could end my new reign. I was embracing the job Fate delivered me to.

Vigilante.

I gazed at my reflection in the mirror. I didn’t recognize myself. It was a far cry from the happy, bubbly, bumbling girl I used to be. That girl died. She died with him. She was killed by Fate.

Black skinny jeans were tucked into knee-high flat black boots. A thin, black long-sleeve shirt covered more of the ivory innocence of my flesh. I nearly ripped out chunks of my hair as I fastened it into a painfully tight knot atop my head.

I stared into my blue eyes. They’d lost their luster. They were flat orbs that would spit fire if you looked into them too long, reflective of my soul burning in hell. That’s what this felt like: hell. When Fate took him, I was immediately thrust past the gates of hell for all my dark emotions to burn and blaze, to simmer and grow in power until they consumed me.

Vigilante. I can think of no greater position, Fate. Too bad you can’t be the recipient of my first judgment.

~*~

*Please note, I am aware of the incorrect book number on the cover. This will be corrected prior to publication, thanks!*

*Unedited Excerpt*

He met my gaze, his eyes flat, noncommittal. “I believe you know enough of your future. It is time you stopped living by a book and by those who know it. It is time you take control of your life, Lexi. It is time you step up and become the woman you are meant to be. Your destiny remains the same. Your purpose hasn’t changed.”

He stood watching me for a minute. He seemed so pale, so frail in comparison to me. He appeared so human-like, far from the vampeen he truly was. “We all are birthed the same. We all die as well. It is the story we write for ourselves in the middle that determines the importance of both of those days. Write well, my dear.”

In the blink of an eye he was gone, merely an open door and the ruffle of curtains assuring me he was there. He’d left me empty and aware though. I was aware of my mistakes. I was too aware of my heart’s state. For so long I’d known I wasn’t invincible, yet had embraced the bravery of an impenetrable immortal. Now, though, I stood bare, naked and vulnerable to the world at large. I didn’t understand the saying, “Ignorance is bliss,” until now. Worse. I was creating awareness, fighting for a cause that I wanted to bring attention to, all while ignoring my own personal issues; I was a hypocrite…

How can you be a humanitarian and a hypocrite? Easily I suppose.

Time passed, yet I remained in my chair, gazing at the security screen, feeling like a fool. How could I have been so clueless about myself? I’d judged Kellan. I’d said he needed to work on himself, find himself and embrace himself, and all the while it took a stranger to reveal the depths of my own soul. I’d never felt like more of a fraud, an utter failure in every sense of the word.

~*~

Live

Hey everyone,

Just wanted to drop by and let you all know that Speechless is now LIVE! As always, it’s live everywhere except for Apple…

Please keep in mind that this title is for readers 18 & older ONLY!

Here is the blurb:

Allie never expected to find love. Being a quiet, plus size woman with a kind heart and a passion for history never got her far in the big city… until she met Drak.

Drak is a vampire nearly a millennia old. In all his time on earth, he had never met another woman like Allie. He was enamored with the lush beauty from first glance.

With similar interests, and in spite of their remaining stark differences, their love has grown and deepened beyond what either thought they were capable of… until now.

Here are the purchase links:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Smashwords

All Romance eBooks

Also, an update from my editor has Two Times the Charm being completed by the end of this week. YAY!!! I’m so excited about this book!

And, on a final note, I’m happily chugging along with Curves & Courage and hope to finish it by Sunday to get over to my editor. Then, I will be off to work on the next Vamp Chronicles book

Speaking of work… I’m going back to writing C&C.

Have a great day everyone!

~ Christin

Speechless

I haven’t been able to get much done this week as my oldest son is in the hospital. Wednesday, after 3 clinics, 3 hospitals and 1 ambulance ride, my son was admitted for pneumonia to the pediatric ward in a local hospital. We have been here ever since. Most of the day, he is on my laptop watching netflix and entertaining himself on YouTube. I know he is bored and anxious to go home so I simply indulge him as much as possible.

We will find out from the doctor in the morning, after they complete a new x-ray and do a fresh set of blood tests, if he can go home tomorrow…err, I guess, technically, today since it’s after midnight.

I can’t tell you how eager I am to go home. I miss my office. I miss my chaotic routine. Heck, I even miss my kids terrorizing the house. You just don’t realize how much you take for granted until it’s jeopardized…

So, while he has spent his days on the computer, I have spent my days lost in my kindle. On the plus side, my TBR pile has gone down! On the down side, my writing schedule has been killed!

But…

In a stroke of luck…or brilliance…I wrote an entire book today. It is probably my most sensual erotic short to date and it is my first adult VAMPIRE book!

BUT…

It is only written on notebook paper at this point since he was using my comp…

My plans are:

When my son is released from the hospital, I will go home and focus on him for a day or two, at least, to ensure he is still on the track to recovery. Then, once things loosen up and we settled back into our old routine, I will take the time to type up the book. I’m planning to price it at the lowest possible price point, which is USD $0.99.

In the meantime, I just finished the cover for the book. I love the finished product! It took a lot of time, layering and manipulation of the elements, but I am very happy with the end result. It’s very fairytale like, which the book has a shimmer of at times. Hopefully you all (over the age of 18!) will like it.

Have a great night/day everyone! Please be patient with me these next couple weeks as I try to catch up on everything… Thanks!

~ Christin