Jade C. Jamison's Blog, page 20

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about My Success (but were afraid to ask)…OR My Life as an Author

A few months ago, I received an email from The Fussy Librarian, inviting me and other authors to submit our personal stories about how becoming an author changed our lives.  The problem is–if I’m not mistaken–they wanted inspirational stories.  The first half of my story would qualify; the second half most certainly would not…unless you like rooting for an underdog, one who might be an underdog for the rest of her life.

But enough feeling sorry for myself.  It inspired me to write a special newsletter to my subscribers.  Recently, I asked them what they wanted to see in my newsletters and one of the options was “secrets” about me.  I decided to let them all know the good, the bad, and the ugly…except for what I wrote became way too big to share in a newsletter.  I’m going to pare it down so it fits better in a newsletter (think abridged), but I decided to share the original here.  I don’t know if this is inspiring or depressing…but it’s real, and it’s a story I haven’t told everyone–until now.  And that’s all I’ve got for you today. So, without further ado, here’s the newsletter message I originally wrote:

Some of you have been following me a long time while a few of you have just joined me recently. I only mention this because some of you are fairly familiar with my history…so I apologize if some of this feels like a repeat.

When I first started indie publishing in 2011, the field was still fairly new. The best part of being an indie back then was I learned something new every day and applied it. I didn’t sell many books at first, but every month I did a little better, and—of course—the more books I wrote, the more readers came along for the ride. After publishing for about a year, I described to my husband what I began calling “peaks and valleys”—the peaks were when my new releases were “noticed” and purchased, and the valleys were the lulls in between. If you’ve ever seen a screen capture of the KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) dashboard, you’ll know what I mean. I didn’t sell a lot back then but I was content, because I was in the game for the long term. I was quite happy with readers hating my work and never

Example of a typical KDP dashboard (red represents sales, while green represents free books)

coming back while others loved it and kept looking for the next book, because I knew I was finding my audience.

I call those days the “Nicki Era,” because I was focused mostly on writing books in that series. From April 2011 through May 2012, I wrote the first seven Nicki books, along with several others, and during that time I learned my rock star romance—the first book I published, Tangled Web—outsold anything else I’d put out there. I love(d) writing Nicki, but I also knew I was a good writer, and my goal was and still is to write full time. So, even though I planned (and still do) to finish the Nicki series, I knew that I had to write other books as well if I were to gain any traction or audience. During this time period, I met a few readers who reached out to me (mostly through email and Facebook), and I garnered my first reviews. I also discovered the dark side of Goodreads. Some of the few readers I chatted with asked when I was going to write another Tangled Web book. Welllll…I hadn’t been planning on it, but now that you mention it, what a great idea!

June 2012 signified a bit of a shift in my writing career. I call this the “Traction Era,” because I started gaining some momentum and seeing my efforts pay off. My second rock star book, MADversary, began getting some notice and I met some author friends through the BuNoWriMo group (whom I’d met through my long-time friend, romance author Stacy Gail). I participated in their June writing month, penning the follow-up to Tangled Web. I finished writing Everything But in late July and posted three teaser chapters on my website, but I was still toying at the time with the idea of traditional publishing (I no longer have that aspiration) and planned on “shopping it out” to romance publishers…because I felt at the time that it was one of the best books I’d ever written. So I sat on it for a while but realized I hadn’t published anything since May (Innocent Bystander, the longest and hottest Nicki book in the series up to that point), and my readers were chomping at the bit…so I pulled out what Stephen King calls a “trunk novel.” I had boxes of old manuscripts sitting in storage and there was one book I’d picked at off and on for years, and I knew the story needed a lot of work but it had potential. That book was rocker novel Then Kiss Me. I published it at the end of August, followed quickly by Everything But (because I wanted to stay indie), and I had my best sales to date. How exciting that was for me. I can’t even tell you how thrilling that was, watching what was going on at Amazon at the time. I was actually a “top 100” author during that phase—September and October 2012—but I couldn’t tell you why. All I knew was I was gaining traction.

I also started making friends with some of the indie bands I followed. Facebook was easier back then, and a hell of a lot more open, and I found people that way and they found me. That fall, readers were begging me for more Nicki, so I wrote Blind (incorporating a “guest appearance” from one of those indie bands), followed by a horror novel that had been tugging at me for quite some time (Old House). But during that time, I was thinking about another “trunk novel” (a manuscript I’d literally stored in a trunk!) I’d been thinking about while rewriting Then Kiss Me…the book that became Bullet. I’ll never forget when things clicked into place. That story had been in my heart forever (you know that if you’ve read the Foreword to the book) but I figured it would stay there and in the trunk. It was too silly, too farfetched, too juvenile. There was no way I could rewrite it to make it work.

But my subconscious works in weird ways, and that book continued to pick at the back of my brain. One night, I was driving home from one of the classes I taught at the local community college, and I was about a mile from home when it hit me. Holy shit, I thought, THAT’S how I could make it work. I knew then and there what book was coming after Old House. Around that time, I had sixty or seventy likes on my Facebook page (one of my first was a guy thinking I was the porn star of the same name but without the middle initial), but most of them were readers who wanted to connect with me. Facebook’s algorithms at the time were such that you could see everything on your timeline unless you chose to block it, and it wasn’t dependent upon post “popularity,” so it had a very “real time” feel to it. I shared the blurb for Bullet, followed by the cover—and I knew immediately that something magical was happening.

Yes, this was a new era. This was the “Bullet Era” (also known as “Holy Crap! Maybe I really CAN make a living doing this!!!”). Every night (or day on the weekend), I’d share a little of what I wrote, and I could tell by the interaction and all the new likes I was gaining that something was happening. There was a buzz about my book, a lot of excitement, but we were having fun! So much fun! I started writing Bullet around December 15, 2012, and I published it on February 19, 2013—and I have never sold that many books in such a short time. “This is it,” I thought, “I’ve finally made it!”

I was too naïve to have a long-term game plan in place. I just figured that as readers found and loved my work, they’d be with me forever. I didn’t think about Facebook no longer working the same or Amazon getting flooded with millions of books. Part of my errant thinking was that I’d always had this philosophy: “If I write it, they’ll find it and read it.” I knew it wouldn’t happen overnight, but I knew it would happen. And that entire year was amazing. My first book signing. I quit teaching, only keeping my day job. I had the ability for the first time in my life to buy a new washing machine when my old one died (yes, that was the first new appliance I’d ever purchased). I was able to pay to have my daughter’s wisdom teeth extracted. I paid off one of four student loans.

That April, thanks to the modest success of Everything But, I knew my taxes were now something I should hand over to an expert, and I found someone. By the time I met with her (mid-March), I knew hiring an accountant was one of the best decisions I’d ever made, because—even though I hadn’t received a penny for Bullet yet—I knew the paycheck was going to be big. And I told her this. In spite of what I was telling her, I had to practically beg her to set me up with quarterly payments to the IRS and the Colorado Department of Revenue, because I knew I’d have to pay lots more taxes than in the past. She almost laughed at me (because she was computing taxes for 2012) and told me to drop my deductions at both my teaching job and my day job and, she assured me, I’d be fine. Something told me I needed to do quarterly taxes, though, and I was able to finally convince her of that. So I had some big payments to make as well, but I thought all was good.

I took my family of six on our first ever vacation…and by that summer, I was down to one job. Some of you don’t know this, but I am the sole earner in my family, so I have often had to work two or three jobs at a time. To be down to one job and (I hoped and foresaw!) then none so I could focus on my writing career was a dream that was in my reach! I didn’t feel the pressure to hurry up and write the next book (although I picked at three anyway that spring), but I actually spent tons of time on my Facebook page interacting and having fun with new readers and I also had my first blog tour—and I spent an entire month getting ready for it, writing alternate POV scenes, answering interview questions, and more. My Street Team emerged from both new and old readers—many were old Nicki fans and some were new Bullet fans. I learned a lot that spring, but I was riding high. Rock Bottom (Bullet #2), released August 31, 2013, also did really well—not as well as Bullet, but it peaked at #287 in Kindle store (and #32 in Contemporary Women). I naively wondered why it didn’t do as well as Bullet but I forged ahead, writing Feverish (Bullet #3) in record time and then working on Fully Automatic (Bullet #4)…but even while I gained new readers, I sensed the numbers dwindling.

February of 2014 signified the “Downhill Era” where I felt and saw my numbers dropping but couldn’t figure out how to “fix” it. My writing mojo was back on track and I was focusing on that, but I had lots going on “behind the scenes.” Specifically…taxes. Yeah. Unfortunately, it turned out I was right. I took all my stuff to my accountant, the person I’d hired to do the number stuff I wasn’t any good at, and discovered, much to my horror, that after all the taxes I’d paid quarterly and after all my deductions (for giveaways, book signing expenses, etc.), I still owed the IRS five figures. My friends, that was scary. I no longer had the income (yes, it was short lived) to pay the IRS out of any earnings. Panicking, I asked my accountant what to do, and she told me I didn’t have to pay the IRS on April 15. She would file an extension and I could deal with it later.

Ummm…let’s just say she gave me shitty advice. The IRS didn’t quite see it that way, and they wanted their money. Now. I had no idea what to do. I’d been pimping the hell out of my newest upcoming book Finger Bang (and I won’t even begin to tell you the let downs I had from “friends” who were going to “help” with that and the book before it), but I also knew that even working my ass off to get it noticed wasn’t going to earn me the money I needed to pay that debt. I finally wound up taking a huge loan out of the retirement at my day job (which I had to pay back from my regular earnings in five years or less), and I got the IRS off my back. Whew.

My next problem? My paycheck was now decreased by over $500 a month. Remember, I still had (okay, have!) three student loans, a kid in college and three kids at home, medical bills, and then all the regular stuff going on. I had to back out of book signings (ones I’d already paid for as far as flight expenses, table and registration fees, etc.) and I had to cut back to bare bones at home. That fall, I had to get a second job to pay the bills…and I watched as my book sales went down, down, down. I’d never been much of a marketer, but now nothing I’d ever done before worked. I couldn’t connect with readers on Facebook like I had before, and it just got worse and worse. Fortunately, earlier that year (May 2014), I set up my newsletter at the urging of one of my former Street Team members, but I thought of it at the time as just another thing to do…but I planned to make it fun. I didn’t realize back then that it would become one of the only ways I’d be able to communicate unfettered with readers.

Anyway, 2015 to the present I consider to be “The New Early Days.” It’s much like starting over. My sales numbers look once more like they did back when I first started. I’ve spent the past year and a half trying to learn new marketing techniques and discovering that I’m a sucker for a good sales pitch (part of why I don’t ever want to be a salesperson in terms of my books—I don’t want to bilk you out of your money in a sleazy way). I realize I could do a lot of smarmy things that I see other authors do, but I’m not comfortable doing that. I don’t want to post my new book (or sales) in thousands of Facebook groups (and only get seen by a couple of people anyway), and I don’t want to make up ridiculous keyword-stuffed titles for Amazon. I don’t want to beg bloggers to share my stuff all the time. I don’t want to have a newsletter that I send out three or four times demanding that you buy my new release, then saying nothing until the next book comes out. I’m in this for the long term—for life—and I want readers who are friends. I don’t want “customers” that I advertise to. I’m not that kind of person and I never will be. Doing those things makes me feel yucky.

I just want to write stories that you fall in love with, that make you feel something.

So I look back over the pages I just wrote and wonder why I poured all that out for you. Well…I guess it’s because I want you to know I’m human. I want you to know I’m not just some sleazy salesperson wanting to rip you off. Yes, I hope you’ll read my books. Yes, I hope that one day I see my books sell like they used to. I would love to write full-time, my old dream. I’d like to take care of my family without working outside the home seventy hours a week. Those are dreams…and sometimes dreams come true. But I wanted you to know my story. Whether you’ve been with me from the beginning of the Nicki Era or you found me during the Bullet Era or even if you came along for the ride during the Downhill Era…thank you. Thank you for taking this journey with me. Thank you for reading this, for reading my books…for all you’ve done for me. In my survey, a few of you told me the one thing you never wanted to read in my newsletter was that I was retiring or done writing. That will never happen. I’ve come this far; I’m not about to go back. But I do want to thank you for coming along for the ride.

The good news? I might be dumb, but I do learn from my mistakes. If I ever do make that climb up again, I’ll be better informed about a lot of things!  I hope I just know how to hang on to my spot at the top!

Four Potential Problems with May-December Relationships

Photo via VisualHunt

If you would have asked me five years ago if I would consider writing a book that revolved around a May-December romance, I probably would have laughed. At the time, my main characters were in their twenties and thirties and the couples were close in age.

There’s nothing new under the sun, and that includes May-December romances. They don’t happen very often, and I think that’s why some of us find them strange. But something I discovered a long time ago is that, once we become adults, age doesn’t matter as much, does it?

And yet it seems to. No one comments about the ages of famous couples who have a slight age gap, but I’ll bet you did know that there was a huge age difference between former couples Ashton and Demi, Johnny and Amber, and Angelina and Billy Bob. There are some of those types of couples whose relationships have lasted—Harrison Ford and Calista Flockhart, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas, and the aforementioned Angelina Jolie and current partner Brad Pitt. And, of all these couples and more, I’d guess that you have an opinion. Why do you think the terms cougar and dirty old man exist? But, in terms of couples, the feeling is mutual. These two people have fallen in love, and age hasn’t mattered, so it’s doubtful that a younger woman considers her love interest to be said dirty old man.

Now that I’ve been inspired to actually write about a May-December romance, I’ve given much thought to the problems these couples might encounter. No offense to Hollywood, but I’m sure the couples I mentioned above fared just fine. It’s the rest of the world (“normal” folk) that I’m more concerned about.

The May-December Couples’ Old Friendships Might Feel Awkward

Think about it. Usually (though not always), our friends are close in age to us, although that’s not always the case. It’s oftentimes easier to “relate” to people in the same generation because we have similar life experiences and similar shared histories.

So, even though each other’s friends might seem to be quite different, I think that might not be entirely true. After all, what attracted the couple to each other in the first place? Perhaps the older person always felt more youthful and, therefore, more comfortable around younger people…so his soulmate’s friends might simply feel like an extension of her. Or, in another example, maybe the younger person in the relationship has always felt like an old soul and has never been able to relate to people his own age.

All couples experience a transition phase with their friends, and a May-December romance would be no different.

Their Bodies are in Different Phases of Sexuality

No, I’m not talking about the difference between sexes, but about sexual development. While all people are different, there are certain age ranges where things happen. Our bodies gear up to be able to procreate while in our teens and we go through puberty. Then, of course, are our childbearing years, followed by menopause, and men go through phases similar to those of women. The bottom line is we change over time. Not only do we wrinkle and sag and feel differently in different parts of our bodies, the insides themselves go through many changes. There comes a time when a woman can no longer have children. I can name all kinds of things that change with a woman’s body over time, simply because I have lived it. I had my first child at 27 and my last child at 35 and the way my body felt during those pregnancies—a mere eight years apart—changed. So an obvious problem this couple might experience would be, perhaps, that one needs to worry about birth control while the other hasn’t had to for a while…or, if one of them wants children and the other doesn’t, they’ll need to find a way to work through it.

Which brings me to the next problem…

Family Issues with Age-gap Couples

Imagine how the young wife, age 25, who married a man thirty years old than she, feels when she meets his son—the same age as she—for the first time? My current work in progress, December Lust, deals with a similar issue. Kimberly’s love interest is only two years older than her oldest son would have been…which means that if their relationship progresses, there are some strange family “issues.” Imagine how a 27-year-old man would feel playing stepfather to a 23-year-old girl. Or how a 45-year-old woman would feel when meeting her mother-in-law…who happens to be one year younger than herself?

Awkward.

These are most certainly the types of uncomfortable situations a May-December couple would have to work through.

Goals and Wants Might be Miles Apart with May-December Romances

Think about it. What were your goals at 18? 25? 35? 42? What were your goals before you had children and how did they change afterward? Did your wants evolve as you grew into adulthood? I think about young, idealistic me. I know I’d still like her, but I’d want to make her try different things. I’d try to change her mind about a lot of other pursuits. But, bottom line, I know how I was, and I would have told myself nicely to go away. I wanted to live my own life, make my own mistakes, and do what I was compelled to. Fortunately, my partner and I (approximately the same age) saw eye to eye. Sure, we had disagreements like all couples do, but our view of life was similar, so we understood where the other was coming from. We have grown and changed together. People twenty years younger or twenty years older than I am? Yes, I can still love them, be friends with them, want to spend time with them, but our goals are different. My friends fifteen to twenty years older than I am are getting ready to retire and looking forward to drawing Social Security in the very near future, whereas friends my age are instead planning their kids’ high school and college graduations, marriages, or expecting their first grandchild. On the other end of the spectrum, friends who are fifteen to twenty years younger than I are pondering if they want to further their education or just work and party for a while; they’re trying to decide if they want to move in with their bestie or their boyfriend. They’re just starting out on their journey.

So, while I love all my friends, the ones I can most closely relate to are the ones my age. They’re the ones who understand where I am in life and what I’m having to deal with. That doesn’t mean I love them more but very often it means we understand each other better. I think of that in the context of a romantic relationship…and it can be exhausting just considering it!

The couple in my book, older woman Kimberly Cooper and younger man Brandon Abbott, have lots bigger mountains to climb than what most May-December couples have to go through to achieve balance and happiness—first, he was her dead son’s best friend and, if that wasn’t hard enough, Brandon’s dealing with PTSD and a questionable past. But that’s the beauty of fiction—all that beloved conflict! Maybe once they make it through all the danger, intrigue, and heart wrenching emotions, they’ll be able to deal with these other couple problems. I can’t wait to write my way to that point!

Have you ever personally known a couple who has a big age gap? Are you in a May-December relationship? Are there any other difficulties I haven’t considered? I’d love to hear from you in the comments!

TEASERS!!! Sneak Peeks at DEAD BODIES EVERYWHERE, FOOL ME ONCE, and DECEMBER LUST

A lot has been going on in my personal life lately, so my humble apologies for not posting regularly.  Never fear, though…I’m still working steadily on multiple projects.  I’m going to share a bit of what I’ve been doing (from three of my projects that are making steady progress) and wish you all a happy weekend!

Probably the most anticipated book readers are waiting for is Dead Bodies Everywhere (Nicki Sosebee #11).  If you’ve been reading Nicki, then you likely sensed that the end is nigh…and the stakes are even higher.  I’ve been struggling with writing this one, but I’m plugging away.  THE BLURB: 

Nicki Sosebee is getting closer to something. She just doesn’t know what.

Nicki’s sleepy hometown of Winchester, Colorado, usually has to deal with two or three deaths a year, not two or three a month. With the help of her friend, investigative blogger Janice Breaker, Nicki feels like they’re close to solving the mystery—and she thinks she’s right about her number one suspect.

Meanwhile, her love life might be looking up.

But as she gets closer to discovering the answer to all the dead bodies in her beloved town, she has to decide if she needs to stick to her guns or if it’s better to walk away…

TEASER from Dead Bodies Everywhere:

“You know Jesse needs a new roommate, right?”

Nicki struggled answering his question. Did Sean feel safe having her there, even though she and Jesse had a bit of a torrid history? Was he no longer interested in trying to woo Nicki back? Or did he just feel like he couldn’t get his drinking under control?

Or…were Jesse and his girlfriend so damned serious that Sean felt like he had nothing to worry about?

“Yeah. You asked him if he still had an empty room yesterday, remember?”

“Well, I mentioned to him about Brandy and Kevin expecting and you needing some space to call your own. He offered.”

“I’m sure he did.”

“He did, Nicki. They need another roommate to keep their costs down. He knows you’re not a party animal and you’re responsible. He even offered to help you move. Both of us could help.”

“So why didn’t he call me?”

Sean was quiet for a few seconds. “He said something about you not talking to him.”

“Not talking to him? What?”

“You weren’t texting him back or something. I don’t know. I don’t wanna know. I just know he thought you were only talking to him when you had to.”

Nicki was tired of being a bug under the microscope. “I thought you and Jesse weren’t talking, either.”

He was quiet for the longest time, making Nicki think maybe her phone had dropped the connection. Just when she was getting ready to ask if he was still there, he asked, “Do you want the room or not?”

Next is a teaser from a book I’m affectionately calling my “Nicki replacement” series.  Those of you who follow my blog are already a little familiar with it.  The series is Codie Snow and the story is called Fool Me Once.  I’m currently publishing it on Wattpad but I will be saving the juicy stuff for the final published version.  THE BLURB:

Something’s gotta give…but Codie Snow doesn’t know if it needs to be her non-committal workaholic ex-boyfriend attorney Slade Sheppard or her unsatisfying job as a nursing assistant. Because even though the chemistry with Slade is off-the-charts hot and the job is a necessary evil, she doesn’t know that she wants either.

Enter Pete Olsen, bad ass cop in charge of serving and protecting the town of Dalton, Colorado. Codie goes on a ride-along with Pete and sees the seedy underbelly of her town, witnessing the gamut–from an amusing domestic dispute to a frightening meth lab explosion–and she decides that law enforcement is not for her.

But Pete just might be.

When Codie learns that a supposed suicide Pete investigated on the ride-along is actually a murder, she poses as a religious fanatic in order to gain access to the controlling cult where the dead woman was discovered, hoping to find the truth. But has she instead set herself up to be murdered–and will she uncover the killer before she becomes the next victim?

TEASER from Fool Me Once (Codie Snow #1):

Codie allowed herself to enjoy the kiss with everything in her. She hadn’t realized till just that moment that she’d been tense. Maybe the evening’s events had stressed her out more than she realized.

Maybe she should give up the fool notion of being in law enforcement.

For now, though, that thought floated away as Pete’s tongue lightly brushed her bottom lip, teasing her senses. Part of her thought she should pull away, because this was blurring the professional barrier, but the selfish part of her—the part of her that had been increasingly turned on by this old flame throughout the night—wanted to instead hold him close.

It was then that she noticed the fingers of her left hand had wrapped around his shirt—the uniform he wore for work, a starchy-feeling, thick cotton thing that she desperately wanted to yank off him.

But she didn’t know his intentions. It was then that she loosened the grip of both hands but she still allowed herself to relish the taste of his lips and tongue on hers. And there was no way in hell she could control the pounding of her heart in her chest, any more than she could control the way her blood pressure was spiking in response to this guy.

She drew his tongue in her mouth for a deeper kiss, all while realizing she needed to call a halt to this action right now. She knew she would now have a hell of a time riding in his cruiser, thinking about him in not-so-nice-girl ways.

Yeah. Really naughty thoughts.

Oh, hell. They had to stop. Right. This. Second.

When the kiss ended, she slid her right hand from his neck to his chest and gently pushed against him. Their lips broke off from each other and she said, “Pete, maybe this isn’t such a good idea.”

There was that all-American grin, reminding her just how much she’d adored him as a young man. “You seemed to like kissing me just now.”

She let out a small breath, unable to stifle her own smile. “I liked it too much.”

“There’s no such thing. Come here.” His hands that had been around her waist pulled her close once more and he laid his lips on hers again. This time, though, he allowed his fingers to drift down as his hands slowly cupped her ass and pushed her more into him. Her eyes closed and she let herself enjoy the kiss again. When he stopped, he let her go slowly, teasing her once more, and he took a small step back.

It was weird. Even though there was now a gap between their bodies, she could still feel his warmth.

And those stupid sweatpants. She could feel them trying to fall off her slender hips again. She grabbed them with one hand and caught her breath, trying to solidify her thoughts. Before she could speak, though, Pete said, “Okay. Lunch, I guess, and then back to work.”

Codie blinked. “So that’s it?”

Another captivating grin. “What do you mean?”

She could feel her eyes grow wide. “You get me all hot and bothered and then that’s it. Back to work?”

It was almost imperceptible, but she could see how he cocked his head slightly. Hmm. She knew he was confident to the point of being cocky, but was he signaling that he couldn’t read her? How was that possible? This guy—a cop, trained to read people—was having a hard time sensing her emotions?

If she’d been wearing panties, they’d have been soaked, for heaven’s sake. How could he not know?

“That’s what you’re here for, right? And you said it wasn’t a good idea.”

She pursed her lips to stifle a smile and then said, “Jesus, Pete. It doesn’t matter what I said.” She swallowed. “It might not be a good idea, but…yeah. I want you.”

Immediately, Codie wondered if she’d stepped out of bounds. Pete might not have been able to read her, and it went both ways. She’d thought maybe he was feeling the same way she’d been—that they were old lovers and the embers still glowed down deep, and now that they were older and maybe wiser, why not see if the chemistry was still there? Aside from the awkwardness they’d experienced early on as kids—when she gave him her virginity and then as they began exploring their budding sexuality—their bodies had been compatible, even when their minds hadn’t.

Now, though, she wasn’t so sure. She could see in Pete’s eyes some kind of struggle. Yeah, she’d definitely misread the situation. Shit. Talk about awkward. And there was no graceful way to correct any of that. All she could do would be to apologize and then ask him to take her home.

While she was trying to formulate just how to say all that, Pete pulled her close again. Okay, so she hadn’t misread him. Not by a long shot…

Last is a book that kind of came out of the blue.  I’d had an inkling of this story for a long time but it suddenly overtook a huge chunk of my writing brain.  Up until a few weeks ago, I was calling it my May-December romance.  I haven’t written a story by hand in a long time, but I’ve been carrying a journal around with me and writing when I have a few free moments.  In no time, I all of a sudden had several thousand words and a story that’s developing nicely.  Here’s your first peek at December Lust.  THE BLURB:

Brandon Abbott, a young soldier who served with her deceased son, shows up at Kimberly Runyon’s door one afternoon. His intent had been to meet the mother of his best friend but also to try to bring comfort to the family before rebuilding his own life. Over the course of an evening, they discover that Brandon is without home, job, family, or friends, so the Runyons invite him to stay with them until he gets on his feet.

Kimberly stopped believing in love when her ex-husband left her for a younger woman, and she certainly never believed in May-December romances…yet she finds herself falling first in love and then lust for the man who is young enough to be her son. While she fights to keep her emotions at bay, she also discovers that Brandon is struggling with some seemingly severe PTSD-related demons, possibly due to his time in the military. Can she keep her feelings to herself while helping Brandon through his darkness?

But can Brandon be trusted? Is Kimberly too blinded by her December Lust to see what’s right under her nose?

TEASER from December Lust:

There was a sadness about Brandon that touched my heart. I could sense that he had so much more to say, but the words couldn’t find a way out. Maybe he needed time, but there was also a chance that those words would be forever buried inside him.

“Brandon, I haven’t been a Christian woman since the day I learned of my son’s death, but it wouldn’t be very Christian or civil of me to turn you away after dark.” I took a deep breath and saw him mustering up an argument, but I began speaking again before he could protest. “Ordinarily, I’d have a guest stay in the extra bedroom, but—if you’d be okay with it—I’d imagine Gabriel would like to have you stay in his room. It’s…been unoccupied for a very long time.”

There was a long pause until JR clamored, “Please?”

Brandon’s struggle was evident in his eyes but he said, “That’s very kind of you. I’d…appreciate it more than you know.”

His soul had spoken to me that night. It was the night I fell in love with Brandon Abbott.

If you want to add these books to your Goodreads TBR lists, here are the short links:

Dead Bodies Everywhere (Nicki Sosebee #11): http://bit.ly/1UkJbvk

Fool Me Once (Codie Snow #1): http://bit.ly/1sic5D6

December Lust (standalone contemporary standalone romance): http://bit.ly/1P6WMrf

Author Interview: Stella Price

Stella Price is an author, graphic artist, Slytherin Head Girl, and a Jaeger pilot in training, as well as a member in good standing of the Guild of Calamitous Intent. She and I have been in the same Facebook group for a while and I predict we will become great friends! Grab a glass of wine and read her interview below.

  Stella, thank you for answering questions for me today. I believe you are also an indie author like myself, but please correct me if I’m wrong. Please tell us how long you’ve been publishing.

I am! Well, I started out ten years ago and have over thirty titles under my belt. I started back in the Day (ten years in this industry, if you’re not King or Koontz or Roberts, is Ancient!) and was small press published but have since pulled out of that mess and went indie… because it’s better. LOL!

You and I both write rock star romance. Can you tell me how many rock star books you’ve written? What has inspired you to write in this particular romance subgenre?

Right now there are nine books out in the rock series, and the second rock series, another band on the record company I write, the first will be out by August. As to what inspired me, I spent five years on the road as a tour manager in my early 20’s for a ton of punk rock, Metal and emo/ scream bands. It’s in my blood. And seeing so many other “rock” books written that didn’t portray the industry right, I wanted to have something out there that wasn’t a straight up fantasy.

There are actually further niches in rock star romance. I haven’t yet had a chance to read yours. Do you write sweet rock star romance? Gritty? Realistic? Tell me what makes yours stand out from the crowd.

I don’t write rock per se. I write Metalcore Romance. My band’s more based on bands like From Autumn to Ashes, Ice Nine Kills and The Word Alive. It’s also paranormal (because everything I write is) though it’s more realistic than most others. All key scenes (tour scenes and most of the relationship and sex scenes) happened to someone I know on tour. Conversations happened; situations happened. I just fictionalized them *wink* to protect the innocent.

Do you have a bestselling or “breakout” book you’d like to tell me about?

There are two actually. Book 2, This Is Forever, and Book 3, Make Damn Sure, were our biggest. They are the ones the readers love and the two guys the readers fight over the most. Why? I don’t know, but I like to think that the guys and their actions are the reason wholeheartedly. I don’t write Alphas, and I don’t write assholes. My guys aren’t chock fulla Peter Pan syndrome (the whole I never wanna grow up shit). They are both overly devoted to the women they end up with. Winter goes so far as to make a deal with a devil, and Rust endures ten years of celibacy… it’s all very romantic.

Have you written in other genres or do you plan to? Please tell me about them.

I write paranormal as a whole, but we have several other subgenres in it. Dragons, djinn (genies) dark gods, weresnakes, satyrs, unicorns…and then as my own name (writing as Anastasia Virgas), I write Octopus Shifters in a post-apocalyptic earth…

Crazy, I know. I like to push boundaries.

It seems that lots of authors struggle with finding time to write. How do you cope with that particular problem?

I am a full-time writer, and I work from home, so I don’t really have the problem. Though stress does rob me of the drive to write, but that’s something completely different.

Any rituals you perform before, during, or after you write? Anything you do to get “in the zone”?

Play lists! Each character has their own, each has a specific kinda feel to it. Depending on what character is the focus, depends on what I’m doing.

Any of your characters you love more than any others? Hate? Any of them “speak” to you more loudly?

Depends on what’s up on deck really. I personally adore a character my sister (the A in SA Price) writes, and he’s one of the demons in our Eververse series. But there’s one character that is a pain in the ass, and that would be Marsh, our djinn.

How much of you can we find in your characters? Can you give us an example?

There’s a little of me in every character I write. From the movies they like and talk about (Winter and Lola talk about Mirror Mask), to their fears (Saffron in Giving Up the Ghost has issues with the ocean and carousels—both issues I have), to things I have said and done… It makes it more fun for me.

If we had to read one book of yours, which one would you recommend and why?

See, that’s hard for me to answer. The rock series, along with the Djinn series, Dragons, Weresnakes, Satyrs, Unicorns… they are all in the same universe as our demon series, and a lot of the characters show up in different series… So really I can’t pick ANY, you know?

We only have ONE series right now that is NOT part of our main universe, and that’s about dark gods living in NYC keeping the world safe from a pantheon of evil gods bent on killing humanity… so it’s a bit heavy. LOL.

Tell me about something exciting or weird that’s happened to you since becoming an author.

OOH! I have had several readers get tattoos for my books and individual characters. In our rock series, the main band has a crow as their logo, so there are at least four people that have the specific crow, and then Rust, one of the characters, has a Japanese maple tattooed on him, and I have two readers who have that too. It’s REALLY insane to see that stuff. To know readers love the work as much as you do, that they feel it, you know?

 

Stella Price is the author of over thirty paranormal novels and novellas and you can find her and her work at her Amazon page: http://www.amazon.com/Stella-Price/e/...

And join her newsletter here: http://eepurl.com/KSPIX

Author Interview: Nicky Wells

Nicky Wells and I met a couple of years ago through Facebook. We both had rock star books coming out the same week, and she suggested we party like rock stars together to celebrate and announce the event…so we did! I discovered then that Nicky is a delightful breath of fresh air, and we’ve been friends ever since. Recently, Nicky took a few moments to be interviewed, and this is what she had to say!

Nicky, thank you for answering questions for me today. Let’s get right to it! Please tell us how long you’ve been publishing.

Hey, Jade, thank you for inviting me. It’s a pleasure to visit you! I’ve been publishing since July 2011, so that would make it just under five years. I started out self-publishing and then was fortunate to sign with Sapphire Star Publishing, who took on my first three rock star books. After that, I self-published three more, and my seventh book, also self-published initially, has just been picked up by Choc Lit, who will republish it sometime this summer.

You and I both write rock star romance. Can you tell me how many rock star books you’ve written? What has inspired you to write in this particular romance subgenre?

All my books to date are rock star books. The Sophie trilogy is the story of “girl next door somehow after half a lifetime makes good with famous rock star” and it is my personal favourite Cinderella story of all time. Make no mistakes–there’s plenty of drama and many a twist and turn along the way, though… Fallen for Rock is a bit more on the spicy side and features a heroine who actually hates rock and “falls” for it in a strange and roundabout way. My two Christmas novellas feature rock star in-the-making Jude and his girlfriend Carrie. And 7 Years Bad Sex charts the romantic misadventures of rock star couple Casey and Alex.

What inspired me, you ask? Okay, I have a confession to make. I have a deep and lasting love for a variety of rock stars. Some might say it’s a hangover from my teenage years, but it goes deeper than that. There’s just something about a man with a powerful voice and a strong guitar (or should that be the other way round? Or both?) that “does it” for me. Even today. Apparently I’m a menace and a liability at a rock concert because I’ll still work my way backstage somehow given half a chance. Just for a chat, you understand. I am happily married with two kids!!

There are actually further niches in rock star romance. I haven’t yet had a chance to read yours, but I have read a lot of snippets and teasers. It seems that you write rock star romance with a heavy dash of humor. Is that correct? What else do we need to know about your rock star romances? Tell us what makes yours stand out from the crowd.

I’d like to think they’re humorous; but then I’m German, so what do I know about humour? #JustKidding! Although I do find people don’t expect me to have a sense of humour and certainly not in my second language. Ha! Anyway, I digress. Sophie can be a little bit ditzy (in manner reminiscent of, perhaps, Bridget Jones), and she has quite a few comedy moments foisted upon her, some of her own making, some arising by pure misfortune. 7 Years Bad Sex, my latest book, definitely is full of comedy moments. Humour is the way forward when your relationship doesn’t perform as expected.

I think on the whole, and with the exception of Fallen for Rock, my rock star books are probably slightly different from the vast variety in the genre in that they are fairly innocent. Innocent, you say? I know: “How does that work with a rock star? Isn’t that against the very cliché of the rock and roll scene?”

You might say so. And I am certainly aware of what has been known to occur when rock stars, girls, and too much booze get into one room. But the bands I’ve met–they’re different. They’re normal people (who occasionally drink too much, I’ll grant you that) who are slave to their music in the same way that I am slave to my writing. Music is their life and their job, but they also have families, relationships, houses, mortgages, and normal lives. So I guess I wanted to portray the more “normal” side of rock, the less outrageous side. Oh, the glamour, the extravagance, the heady “what goes on tour” are all present and correct… but in my own unique way. My books aren’t Fifty Shades; they’re romance set in a rock environment.

Do you have a bestselling or “breakout” book you’d like to tell me about?

Can I plug two? Yes? Cool. The first book I’d like to mention is Sophie’s Turn. This is the book that really got me writing. It emerged from the depths of my soul, having germinated for a good many years, when I was pregnant with my first child. I had quit my job (long story) and I promised myself that I’d Write That Book before the arrival of Wells Baby Number 1. So in fact, this is my first Book Baby, and it holds a special place on my shelf. It’s my debut, my breakout, and (quite possibly) one of my proudest moments. I actually cried when it turned up on Amazon and my, when I held the first hard copy in my hands, I cried some more.

The other book I’d like to tell you about is the previously mentioned 7 Years Bad Sex. This is possibly my most daring book yet. The premise is intriguing: what happens to a young married couple who can’t have sex? What happens to their relationship? How do they cope? It’s humorous and lighthearted, but it’s not all about the sex. It’s asking, somewhere deep down, some hard questions. How important is the physical side of a romance? How strong is the bond of love when you and your partner are really struggling? How far can you stretch it before it breaks? I hasten to add that this is pure fiction, although some people really believe in the curse. But it’s certainly not based on real experiences! 7 Years Bad Sex has been doing really well for me so far. It spent three months in the top 20 of Amazon Kindle UK’s “Love, Sex and Marriage” charts, where it sunned itself in some really astounding company. I’m ever so proud of this achievement. I’ve also signed it with UK publisher Choc Lit, and it’s due for re-release later this year. Watch this space!

Awesome! Have you written in other genres or do you plan to? Please tell me about them.

I have, and I am! I have just written a crime thriller. With a nod to my niche, it features the daughter of a rock star couple who ends up investigating the circumstances of the tragic death of her parents. There is a romance subplot, but the crime element takes the front seat. It was an exhilarating experience to cut my teeth in a completely different genre, and I hope to bring you this book by the end of the year.

My next book is also a thriller, this one more of a cyberspace nature. I’m not sure whether there’ll be any rock star acknowledgement in this one; maybe I’ll build in a cameo, or maybe I’ll go cold turkey on something completely different. I think I’ll decide based on the response to my first thriller. And after that, I may possibly write the sequel to 7 Years Bad Sex.

It seems a good many authors struggle with writer’s block. How do you cope with that particular problem?

I don’t. I don’t want to annoy anyone here or show off, but I simply don’t get writer’s block. If anything, I have too much, too fast, in my head. I was a professional writer in a business environment for some six years, and it was a case of learning to produce on demand. So I did, and I have never been blocked since. I just … write. I am also an obsessive compulsive planner, so that probably helps. I know exactly where I’m going before I even write the opening paragraph.

Any rituals you perform before, during, or after you write? Anything you do to get “in the zone”?

I tidy my desk. It has to be just so. Seriously! I’m totally OCD on that front, but if my writing space isn’t clear or the house is untidy, I can’t write. I discovered this also in my previous professional life, and a manager once told me that tidying seems to be my “peak performance ritual,” a sequence of steps I go through to get “in the zone.” So be it! At least my house is always tidy, LOL.

Nice! Any of your characters you love more than any others? Hate? Any of them “speak” to you more loudly?

Dan. Man, if I could make Dan of the Sophie trilogy a real person, the world would be a better place. I’m not sure my hubs would be overly impressed, though!

How much of you can we find in your characters? Can you give us an example?

Too much! My characters are frightfully me, although they all show slightly different sides. Of all the characters, Sophie is probably the closest to me because we share the same blue eyes, literally and metaphorically.

If we had to read one book of yours, which one would you recommend and why?

If you wanted a taster to get you in the mood for more, you mean? I’d have to say Fairy Tale in New York. It’s got everything: rock, romance, Christmas, snow, disaster, friendship, small miracles, a wedding… It’s a great book, and it’s a novella, so it’s a quick (but intensely satisfying) read.

What is a weird or exciting thing that’s happened to you since you became an author?

Good question. In many a small way, my life is littered with weird and wonderful occurrences, but they’re probably weird and wonderful to me. However, I’d have to say that interviewing UK rock band The Darkness for Siren FM was certainly an event I’m not forgetting in a hurry. You can listen to it here, if you want: http://www.sirenonline.co.uk/archives/4910

Nicky Wells is a true-blue rock chick, author, mother, wife and occasional domestic goddess. Visit Nicky at nickywells.com or follow Nicky on Facebook or Twitter . All of Nicky’s books are available on Amazon .   

Ruminating on the A to Z Challenge

So the folks running the show for the April 2016 Blogging from A to Z Challenge asked us to write one final post reflecting on our experiences. I’d written a little bit in two previous posts but decided to gather my thoughts here, even if just for myself—because I will probably do it again next year.

Overall, the challenge was a good thing. Yes, I write every day already, but the challenge forced me to push myself. WriMos always do that (writing months, a la NaNoWriMo), because I set goals for myself and I’m accountable. Usually, I have goals but I’m not public about them and there’s no one to answer to. Even had no one actually read my posts, they’re out there forever, so anyone can see if I 1) continually met my goals and 2) met them in a timely fashion. I’m happy to say I did both.

If you can’t remember what my goals were, you can check out the original post (A is for ACCEPTING the Challenge), but I can sum them up nicely right now. The first goal was simply to write Monday through Saturday and I had to write around a letter of the alphabet (day one was A; day two was B; etc.). Those were the official challenge goals. Beyond that, I had free reign to do what I wanted…so my goals were that I was going to write the beginning of a story and I was going to try to write 1000 words a day, and I was going to make the story as coherent as possible. I and other participants were also asked kindly to visit five other blogs participating in the challenge for various noble reasons.

So…the good part was that I met my basic goals. I did write at least 1000 words a day, but sometimes some of those words were discussing my writing process, because I realized early on that if I was going to post a rough draft, I should also use this as a learning/teaching opportunity (because once a teacher, always a teacher!), explaining my writing process and the things I would focus on in revision. I also wound up with over 20,000 words to the story when the month was over—nothing to sneeze at (the rough draft is done and in revision now).

The hard parts of the challenge: first, if I’d been writing like I normally do, I would have gone back and done some of my revisions before moving on. Big revisions I like to do when they occur to me; little ones aren’t so pressing. For example, I knew after writing the first 2000 words that I did something I often do, which is dumping lots of backstory at the beginning when I should instead be reeling readers in, so I knew I’d have to do some chopping and changing of that first scene (or two)…but I couldn’t go back. I had to spend my writing time working on new words, because that was the challenge! I kept notes, of course, and I’m revising now, but it was a very different way for me to write. It’s not a bad thing—just different and, therefore, hard to adjust to. That actually happened at several places and what was really funny was that readers got to see just how discombobulated my writing is pre-revision. Maybe my posts will be a lesson to all, that revision is more important than we sometimes think! Other things I will be changing during revision is making Slade a bit more approachable and less slick (more lovable!); correcting my mess ups with the crime that guides the story (was it a murder or suicide, for the love of all that’s holy?!?); and I hope to add more humor and tension in the mix. (Chapter One is almost done and the book itself is now a Wattpad project that I will begin publishing tomorrow—you can check it out here: https://www.wattpad.com/myworks/69997478-fool-me-once).

The Challenge was a great way to stretch myself and I know it was awesome for other bloggers, because I’m sure they got a lot more attention during that month. I know I got some eyes on my work who hadn’t seen it before, and I “met” a lot of cool writers. That was fun. But I’ll admit that some days it was pretty darned difficult to visit five and comment on their blogs—I’d set such a lofty goal for myself (and the fact that I work over thirteen hours a day away from home on Monday through Friday didn’t help) that it was tough. Add to it that others visited and commented on my blog too, and I’m sure you can see how that could become unwieldy, particularly when one of us struck up a conversation on a blog and it continued for a few days. But, I suppose, that comes with the territory.

Would I do it again? A resounding HELL, YEAH. Any opportunity I have to push myself is welcome. I’m like most others—if I write the goal down and talk about it (becoming accountable), I have a better chance of following it all the way through. WriMos do the same thing for me and that’s why I try not to turn them down. I used to avoid them, thinking they were silly because I already write approximately the amount of words generated for a WriMo, but then I realized the point it to ensure I do—and in a very public, accountable way. I’ve done NaNoWriMo for four years now, and I can tell you that, for me at least, it works. So now I have another month of the year to add to my writing calendar.

What I should change if I do it for next year (but I also know myself and there’s no guarantee I’ll actually follow through):

Do a little rudimentary plotting (although I had a plot in my head that I followed, a bit of an outline might not hurt for this particular challenge)
Figure out what the letters A through Z represent before writing the day’s work
Try to work ahead on the weekends and get some of the writing done beforehand

I’d say, “Wish me luck!” but we have eleven-ish months before the next A-to-Z Challenge, and I have two WriMos before that so, instead, stay tuned! I will do this challenge again!

Once Upon a Time… (or Lies, the Internet, and Rabid Fans)

I suppose it was bound to happen eventually. I heard two of this particular band’s songs this morning on the same radio station, less than two hours apart, and that happened after talking to two different friends about this same band yesterday. I told both friends at different times that this band will never get another dime from me, so I think these are signs that it’s time for me to spill my guts in writing.

I ranted about this particular band on Facebook a little less than a year ago when a rather nasty situation went down, and part of me wondered if the whole story “breaking” wasn’t just a publicity stunt. You know the old saying, “no publicity is bad publicity”? I’m not going to mention the actual band name—one, because I don’t want to be accused of slander and two, because I don’t want to give them any more publicity than they deserve. Instead, I want to talk about what pissed me off so badly, what happened that made me choose to not support them anymore from that point forward. And, just so it’s clear before anyone gets emotional and fired up (it’s happened in the past over this stupid damn topic!), let me emphasize now that I am choosing to not support them because of a lie, not because of any misdeed—because I realize that mistakes happen, and I’m willing to forgive them. Hell, I’d even forgive them now if the lying band member simply fessed up. But I don’t see that happening any time soon.

Anyway, enough rambling. On with today’s post.

I follow rock and metal news fairly closely, but it’s merely coincidence, because I love my bands and follow them on social media and the like. When something’s trending about a band I follow, I usually can’t avoid it. It just so happened that on a particular day last year, there was a trending story about the lead singer of a popular hard rock band having been arrested a few months earlier for a domestic violence incident. I thought it odd at the time that something that had supposedly happened months earlier was just then leaking to the press, but I didn’t worry about it and went on with what I was doing online. However, later on, one of the bands’ guitarists posted a tweet that caught my attention. It said something similar to this (again, names have changed to protect the guilty and this is not an actual quote):

I don’t know what’s more ridiculous, that John’s a karate expert or that he’s married! The shit the media makes up…

For some reason, that got my attention, especially because all kinds of fans rallied behind the guitarist blindly without ever researching the facts. That and I hate hearing about domestic violence. The tweet got me curious and so I decided to dig. It turned out that several media outlets had reported, without Mr. Guitarist’s theatrics, that something had happened, but it wasn’t long before I found the original article in question. It was based on court papers filed in the lead singer’s city of residence. The article itself was highly questionable but I am nothing if not a researcher (I debunk a lot of bullshit, because the internet’s full of it and people blindly believe what they read), and I researched the shit out of it. Why it fascinated me so, I couldn’t tell you, but a couple of hours later, I was armed with the facts:

John, the singer, was not married but had been living with a woman for close to two decades. They had a daughter together. And, although they had never actually married, the woman was filing for legal divorce (done in cases of common law marriage) because of an incident… You see where this is going, don’t you?
Said incident occurred in their city of residence but in a hotel room rather than their home. Apparently, they’d been arguing and fighting (not unheard of with couples), and he’d grown tired of hearing her yelling and had forcibly tried to quiet her. The police arrived at the scene and escorted him away in handcuffs.

What I found most interesting about the aftermath was that “John” (yes, that’s not his real name) never uttered one word about the incident. Now, you know what? I can respect that. What happened is his own personal business. It’s none of mine—and what occurred between him and his common-law wife is between them.

But “Dan” the guitarist (also not a real name) had taken to the streets, so to speak, drumming up support for his friend by lying.

What? Did I say he was lying?

Why, yes. Yes, I did. And I tweeted him back that day, telling him I didn’t appreciate his sleight of hand. I then had to block at least one of his rabid fans (an ignorant ass, mind you). But let’s break it down, lest you think I’m taking it too far by telling you I will never give them a dime again. Let’s look at the tweet once more:

I don’t know what’s more ridiculous, that John’s a karate expert or that he’s married! The shit the media makes up…

Hmm. Okay. So the article didn’t say John was a karate expert and, in fact, never said he’d used karate on the woman. Dan was embellishing. The article had said that he’d been beating on the woman when, in fact, the police records merely said he was trying to make her shut up. Yes, he was trying to shut her up physically, but he wasn’t using fists to do it. The article got it wrong technically but correctly in spirit. So shame on Dan for trying to make it seem like John was an innocent little lamb. He’d never hurt a fly (but watch out, spider!).

Married. Okay, Dan, so they never walked down an aisle in wedding dress and tux, uttering vows and donning rings, but they had been living together for years and years and years, had a daughter together, and she had to divorce him. DIVORCE him. Because they were considered legally married by the courts. That’s how it works. You set up house together and eventually you’re hitched!

The bottom line? Dan was lying to his fans by playing cutesy with the facts. Rather than say, “Yeah, my man crossed a line and is sorry for it,” he instead tried to wreck John’s “old lady’s” reputation by making it all look fabricated (maybe Dan prefers that moniker better than “wife”?). It’s bad enough that John lost control and got violent with a woman, nearly killing the mother of his child, but for another person to play loose and sketchy with the facts angered me more than you know.

Guess what? If Dan had grown a pair and admitted to me on Twitter that he was full of horseshit, I’d rethink my stance, but I don’t think that’ll ever happen. Those guys feel untouchable now—lots of money and fame and so they can skirt the law. That’s fine, and I know they won’t feel the pinch of a lack of my twenty bucks every time a CD comes around (not to mention merch and concerts). But I don’t care. It’s the principle…and if we all put our money where our mouth is, imagine the impact that we’d make. At least I can sleep with a clear conscience.

Just to reiterate: Domestic violence is NOT okay. And lying about what did or didn’t happen, skirting the facts so you’re technically telling the truth? That only makes it worse. Shame on you, “Dan.” Shame on you. I wonder what your mother thinks.

Well, sure, you can live without this stuff, but…

I hope I got your attention.  I have some news for you and some of it is time sensitive.  If you don’t follow me on social media or get my newsletter, you might not know!

Sometime this month, I will be releasing the entire Bullet series in a box set. Present-day Val will be narrating before and after each book, a la diary entries, giving readers her thoughts and observations. Writing the new material has been fun for me, and I think it just adds to the whole experience. That said, I do NOT want my regular readers buying the box set just for the extra materials. If you’ve been buying each Bullet book, you’ve already spent a lot of money, and I don’t want you dropping another $9.99 for a collection of what you mostly already have. That feels like robbery to me, and I myself wouldn’t appreciate it as a reader.  I’m treating you the way I want to be treated.

So, if you’ve read all the books and just want the extras, all you need to do is fill out a Google form–only two questions (three if you feel like it)–and I’ll send you a link to pick up your copy of the extras the day the box set releases. SIGN UP HERE TO GET YOUR FREE COPY –> http://goo.gl/forms/pgxmPRKvGK.  No strings attached!  If you have friends who don’t visit my website often but who you know have read the Bullet series, please feel free to share this link!

And, last but not least, in spite of what I’d planned before, I can tell you now that the Bullet universe still has more life left in it. You’ll see at the end of Val’s observations that she has one more story to tell.  And I have no idea when she’ll tell it!  This last story will be more like a companion novel, because it will not be rock star romance.  But it will be Val a few years later.
I’m doing an Amazon giveaway that ends tomorrow!  Don’t miss it.  You could win a Kindle copy of On the Run (Vagabonds #1).  Enter here:  https://giveaway.amazon.com/p/671aaa9eb832fd6c NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Ends the earlier of May 6, 2016 11:59 PM PDT or when all prizes are claimed. See Official Rules http://amzn.to/GArules
The Codie Snow story I wrote as a rough draft publicly last month?  If you were following, then you also know I plan to finish writing it, polish it, and then publish it on Wattpad (where you can still read it for nothing).  I’m not sure when that’ll happen but I hope it’s soon.  You can follow me here:  https://www.wattpad.com/user/JadeCJamison.  And I might do a more official “reveal” later, but here’s the cover in case you haven’t seen it!

Thank you as always for your support!

Anatomy of a Blurb

I’m writing this as a follow up to last month’s A-to-Z Blog Challenge.  About a week ago (on Sunday!), I knew I needed to knock out the blurb for the Codie Snow story (Once Around the Block) that I’ll be writing.  I know a lot of people were reading it because I was writing it, but let’s be honest–you get most new readers from the blurb!  Because I intend to take this to Wattpad next, I needed a blurb (and I’ll need a cover at some point too).  Since I made the A-to-Z Challenge all about “here’s my process,” I thought I’d share the blurb-writing process with you as well.

I tried something a little different this time.  I involved my Facebook group in it as well.  I wasn’t sure where I wanted to take the blurb or what would resonate with readers, so I asked if anyone would be interested in offering feedback.  I got some but I want to caution writers out there.  I now know that it’s just as dangerous to ask for feedback before you’re done with the first draft of a blurb as it is to ask for feedback on a book you’re not done writing.  Scary!  And if you ask for feedback, readers want to help, but they can’t see inside your head!  My biggest issue was that there are two big conflicts–one is an outer conflict (the main character has put herself in a situation that is dangerous and could cost her her life) and the other is more an internal conflict (she loves two men, both completely different, and she doesn’t know which one she wants to end up with).  I was grappling with which one I wanted to emphasize, because both stem from Codie’s general unhappiness with her life.  I’m going to show you the blurb I wound up with (and I think I’m happy with it now) and then–for those of you who are interested–I’m going to show you the earlier drafts and explain why I changed them.  I’m not going to show you every little change but rather the bigger changes–because it went through a lot of iterations to get it right!

(PS  As an aside, because I know people will ask:  Dalton, Colorado, is a fictional place!)

Final blurb for Once Around the Block:

Something’s gotta give…but Codie Snow doesn’t know if it needs to be her non-committal workaholic ex-boyfriend attorney Slade Sheppard or her unsatisfying job as a nursing assistant. Because even though the chemistry with Slade is off-the-charts hot and the job is a necessary evil, she doesn’t know that she wants either.

Enter Pete Olsen, bad ass cop in charge of serving and protecting the town of Dalton, Colorado. Codie goes on a ride-along with Pete and sees the seedy underbelly of her town, witnessing the gamut—from an amusing domestic dispute to a frightening meth lab explosion—and she decides that law enforcement is not for her.

But Pete just might be.

When Codie learns that a supposed suicide Pete investigated on the ride-along is actually a murder, she poses as a religious fanatic in order to gain access to the controlling cult where the dead woman was discovered, hoping to find the truth. But has she instead set herself up to be murdered—and will she uncover the killer before she becomes the next victim?

After many hours and lots of tweaking, I think I’m happy with it.  But let’s start with the place where most writers begin:  the idea.  I already knew where the story was (mostly) going and had already written 18,000-ish words by the time I got to this point.  Sometimes, I’ll write the blurb long before I write the story, but other times the blurb comes later (as in this case).  I knew the time was ripe to get it done and so I started here.  I felt like the place to start was with her feeling torn between the two men and her general dissatisfaction with life, and that’s probably thanks to my need to focus on relationships first, other stuff second (if you’ve read my Nicki Sosebee series, then you know what I mean).  I asked my group if they preferred long or short blurbs and most said short.  I think short is good, but sometimes you don’t give all the info if you cut it too short.  In this case, I knew it would need to be bigger–but how big?  That was the question.  So this was the first draft for the blurb:

Codie Snow needs something in her life to change, but she doesn’t know what exactly. It could be her crappy job as a nursing assistant which sometimes feels rewarding but more often leaves her feeling abused and underpaid. It might be her love life—her frustrating on-again, off-again relationship with hotshot lawyer Slade Sheppard is currently off. When they’re together, it’s hot, but his obsession with his work too often leaves her cold.

Needing to switch things up, Codie decides to go on a ride-along with old flame Pete Olsen—former high school quarterback turned cop, and while he’s taking down bad guys, he’s arresting her heart, and the two end up reigniting the spark.

When Codie returns to her day-to-day life, she realizes that things aren’t over with Slade yet—and she’s pretty sure she doesn’t want to be a cop. The only thing she knows for sure is that she needs her best friend in her life—Matthew, the life of the party. Without him, she feels rudderless. She’s no longer sure about Pete, Slade, nursing…or law enforcement.

But when she discovers that the suicide she investigated with Pete on the ride-along was actually a murder, her curiosity is piqued…and she knows she needs to follow the story to the end, no matter the cost to her life or her relationships.

Yep, it’s a first draft–most definitely rough–and I wasn’t sure where I wanted to go with it.  The first thing I had to chop was the reference to Matthew.  As much as I’d wanted to emphasize their friendship and the fact that he’ll be a bit of comic relief, I couldn’t fit him in the blurb without making it clunky.  I revised the first part first, because I wanted it to grab the reader harder and this is what I came up with:

Something’s gotta give…but Codie Snow doesn’t know if it needs to be her non-committal workaholic ex-boyfriend attorney Slade Sheppard or her unsatisfying job as a nursing assistant. Because even though the chemistry with Slade is off the charts hot and the job is a necessary evil, she doesn’t know that she’s the girl for either.

Enter Pete Olsen, stage left, hot ex-boyfriend, current cop watching over the town of Dalton, Colorado, a guy who just might be the change Codie needs.

Readers in my group liked it better, and a couple of readers said they liked it short like this one.  But the problem I saw was that it wasn’t complete.  While it might be short and intriguing, it would be selling readers a bill of goods.  It’s only half the story, and I didn’t want future readers disappointed when the book didn’t just focus on the love triangle.  I finished writing that one but then also decided to write a blurb focusing only on the other part of the story to see what I could come up with.  Here’s that attempt:

HOW the HELL did this HAPPEN?

Codie Snow, in pursuit of something meaningful, discovers too late that she’s put herself in a pickle by posing as a religious fanatic. Sure, she’s gained access into the cult where a woman’s murder was staged to look like a suicide, but she finds all too late that she’s put herself in harm’s way—and she doesn’t know if she’ll find out the truth before she winds up another victim…

Readers liked that one too.  Oy!  So now I was really struggling.  I knew I’d have to find a way to combine all the important parts while trying to be as concise as possible.  Here was the merge:

HOW the HELL did this HAPPEN?

Something’s gotta give…but Codie Snow doesn’t know if it needs to be her non-committal workaholic ex-boyfriend attorney Slade Sheppard or her unsatisfying job as a nursing assistant. Because even though the chemistry with Slade is off the charts hot and the job is a necessary evil, she doesn’t know that she’s the girl for either.

Enter Pete Olsen stage left: bad ass cop watching over the town of Dalton, Colorado, a guy who just might be the change Codie needs. Codie goes on a ride-along with Pete, sees the seedy underbelly of her town, witnessing the gamut, from an amusing domestic dispute to a frightening meth lab explosion, and she decides that law enforcement is not for her.

But Pete just might be.

And, when she learns that a supposed suicide she’d seen while shadowing Pete is actually a murder, she asks herself again what she wants out of life—because she just can’t leave the case alone. Against the advice of both Slade and Pete, Codie puts herself in harm’s way to find out the truth, going undercover as a religious fanatic to gain access to a controlling and dangerous cult and discovers that, for the first time in ages, she feels alive.

She’d better enjoy it, because she might not feel alive for much longer if she becomes another victim before finding out who’s behind the murder…

So…getting close but there were still a few problems.  The first was that, as clever as it might be, the opening line (first paragraph) had to go.  Too vague and not grabby enough.  I had to rely on the rest of the blurb to do the work of compelling the reader.  The very end was also a problem, because I was afraid there wasn’t nearly enough there to make the reader think, “Holy crap!  I have to buy this!!!”  I ultimately decided to end with a question, and I ran it past several people before deciding I was okay with it.  But don’t be surprised.  I still keep picking at it and the final version you see at the top might wind up once more being discarded for something else.  Guess we’ll have to wait and see–but the one at the very top is the one I posted on Wattpad.    Let’s see how it goes!

Author Interview: J.S. Snow

J.S. Snow and I have been Facebook friends for a couple of years now. When you’re an indie romance author, you tend to make a lot of friends! Turns out J.S. and I have a lot in common. Grab a cup of coffee and read what she had to say!

J.S. Snow began her literary obsession at the tender age of eleven with the first voluntarily read book Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume. Only a few years later her fascination with fictional offerings really took root as she stepped into the mind of one of her heroes Stephen King through his work Christine.

Now seriously considering a twelve-step program for her e-Reader addiction, she feeds her fascination for make believe with new literary offerings via said e-Reader, has a passion for dark chocolate, sweet tea and heavy metal music. She is the proud mother of a downright spectacular daughter (who was head banging in the belly) and lives with the belief that the mind where the imagination lives is a far more entertaining place than TV or movies ever will be.

J.S. Snow currently resides in Central Florida and has been in the administrative office field for thirty years.

JS, thank you for answering questions for me today. You and I are in the same Facebook circles, and that’s how we met. Please tell us how long you’ve been publishing.

I published my first work Redemption in December 2013 and at this time I am currently indie; however, there is a publisher who is showing interest in the series.

You and I both write rock star romance. Can you tell me how many rock star books you’ve written? What has inspired you to write in this particular romance subgenre?

Redemption is part of a series called The Metal Prodigy Series and as of today, there are three full-length novels and two novellas published. I am currently working on the fourth full-length novel in the series and sixth book overall – Temptation. As far as what inspired me to write in this subgenre, there really wasn’t a particular reason other than Alex’s story has been in my head for over twenty years. My love of music is what fuels my creativity. I wasn’t even aware at the time I was writing Redemption that there actually was this subgenre. It wasn’t until I was posting Redemption for sale on Amazon that I saw we rockers have a category all our own.

There are actually further niches in rock star romance. I haven’t yet had a chance to read yours. Do you write sweet rock star romance? Gritty? Realistic? Tell me what makes yours stand out from the crowd.

I would have to answer realistic but with a suspenseful twist. Alex’s story isn’t your typical girl meets a guy kind of romance. All of the characters in play throughout this series are living in a “six degrees of separation” world and they somehow relate back to the beginning of Alex’s life. The band – Hells Redemption – is the catalyst for how she is living her life now and the choices she faced to make. I think what sets my stories apart from the others I’ve read in our genre is my writing style. While I’m not the only narrative writer out there, I keep in mind that I want to bring the reader in as if they are really watching this story unfold before them and involve them in these characters’ lives.

Do you have a bestselling or “breakout” book you’d like to tell me about?

I think that would have to be this series flagship novel, the first one, Redemption. I’ve truly been blessed by the feedback I’ve gotten from it. It’s not easy for a debut author to garner such high star ratings, despite the fact it’s a hot editorial mess. Readers have been willing to overlook what I didn’t know as far as “writing rules” are concerned and gave the story a chance. This leads them to the others where my writing definitely improved. They’ve all said that these characters are what brings them back. I’ve also been honored to learn many of them are binge reading the entire series in a span of days and suffering from “book hangovers.” It’s been the highest compliment of my career thus far.

Have you written in other genres or do you plan to? Please tell me about them.

It’s appearing to me as though I have given birth to an entire world in which I can span out into an entirely new universe. Offshoots of this core series have been outlined. As far as veering away from this genre, I have in the back of my head a few erotica series and one paranormal vampire series I’d like to write.

It seems a good many authors struggle with writer’s block. How do you cope with that particular problem?

I’m meticulous about outlining. When writing a series where you have several characters you are writing about, it’s essential. I never really hit a wall because I have too much story to cover. If one character isn’t cooperating, then I move onto the next. My books are rather long due to this fact, but it all weaves together and works.

Any rituals you perform before, during, or after you write? Anything you do to get “in the zone”?

The only thing I require is peace and quiet. I can’t have background noise or even music going to focus. I work full time and that’s easier said than done at times. I write at lunchtime in my car in an empty parking lot, when I come home along with another writer who requires the same and very early in the morning when I wake and the world is still asleep.

Any of your characters, you love more than any others? Hate? Any of them “speak” to you more loudly?

I have six incredibly boisterous musicians who work as a team running around my head causing trouble all the time. They love screwing with me. When one particular character enters my head and wishes to talk with me, it’s generally because I’m chewing on a path in the story that I’m unsure will work or not. Next thing I know, I enter the world of crazy, have a full on conversation with them as if they really exist and then the reader sees it in the book. You’ll forgive me as I pause to look over my shoulder to see if the folks from the funny farm have shown up with a straitjacket with my name on it.

How much of you can we find in your characters? Can you give us an example?

Wow, talk about your segues. Thank you for this opportunity. In the back of my novella Trepidation is an interview where my fictional band Hells Redemption interviews me, their creator. [What a cool idea!] I wrote it at the time to work out a few things in my own noggin and to maybe give my readers a bit more insight into how I tick. My conversation with the rhythm guitarist of the group sums it up nicely I think:

“Fuck you, no you weren’t. Of all my characters, you have the heaviest and most difficult of burdens to bear. Not even Alex. What she went through… she has no memory of what she went through as a small child. If and when it comes out, it’s still in the past, you have to deal with the effects and consequences of my burden I deal with every day, and it will never be in the past. I chose you because of all these characters; you are the one who can deal with it head on.

“Seth represents my leadership, and my peacemaker instincts I’ve possessed since I was born. I’m the oldest of eight children for crying out loud; it comes naturally to me. I’d rather see people be real with each other, and settle things in a civilized manner, just like him. However, Seth and I share the same guilt over a past decision, and we live daily with the shame. There wouldn’t be any way he could shoulder this shit too.

“Hiatt represents my insecurity. I figure if I can at least make people laugh; they won’t forget about me. I won’t disappear in the crowd like I always do. Hiatt and I also share the need to do our own thing and be left the hell alone, which comes across to many as selfish. Therefore, he can’t absorb this burden.

“John represents the persona I let everyone see, but it’s not who I really am. I fear if people truly know who I am, they won’t like me. So like John, I tend to be quiet and reserved when everyone else is enjoying the party. Someone who doesn’t speak and doesn’t have the courage to be who they really are can’t handle this burden.

“Cole represents my inability to focus at times. Can you imagine what a powerhouse his character would be in the music industry if he simply put forth the effort and focused? I haven’t seen the majority of my goals I have set in my life to one hundred percent because I give up too easily. No way can Cole handle this burden. You can’t leave something like this unfinished.

“Believe me Drake, after reading this story, you’ll totally understand my reasons for not telling you why Alex can’t handle this shit, she’s got enough fucking problems. So that leaves you.”

If we had to read one book of yours, which one would you recommend and why?

While I am mortified at the thought, considering I am such a huge fan of yours and also for the fact I haven’t finished cleaning up Redemption yet for re-release to clean up the grammatical and formatting mess that it is, it would be that one. If you’ll excuse me now, I’m going to go and throw up.

Oh, now you have me blushing. Thank you so much! I hope I can read it soon. Let me know when you’re ready! Now…please tell me about something exciting or weird that’s happened to you since becoming an author.

I’m a reader and a fan just like anyone else. So when one of the authors I read actually follows me back on Facebook or Twitter, it’s pretty epic in my universe. When one comments back on a post, I turn into a gushing fan girl. It’s embarrassing really.

What else do we need to know about you and/or your books?

I’m in this for life. I’m blessed to be at a point where I can do this and churn out books frequently. I’m not going anywhere.

J.S. Snow is working hard on finishing her fourth full-length novel in the acclaimed five-star Metal Prodigy Series, Temptation, due out May 31, 2016. In the meantime, if you haven’t already checked her out, she invites you to hop on board her own crazy train at her Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/jbstspbooks.