Susan Mac Nicol's Blog, page 17

Warning! Warning! – Gay Sex in this book!

I have to agree with this post from the lovely Alina Popescu. Thanks to her for starting this off. I’m probably going off on a bit of a tangent here, but bear with me. I think it will make sense in the end.

Alina Popescu article

In my opinion, this big, wide world of ours (not just Britain) is becoming a damn nanny state with its trying to protect us from ourselves. I may well become unpopular with this post, but you know what? I don’t really care.

Every day we hear and see things like this-

Don’t eat too much sugar, oh look, let’s tax it so people have to pay more for eating it.

Let’s hide cigarettes in plain brown wrapping and stow them away under the counter so people won’t be tempted to smoke.

And then there’s this – I can’t even…I mean WTF?? Really?

https://reason.com/blog/2015/11/04/two-kids-spotted-playing-on-a-beach-cops

http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/18-examples-of-the-nanny-state-gone-wild

By the same token- let’s leave alcohol on show everywhere, make some cheap stuff so people can rot their guts, offer free drinks at Happy Time and generally promote drinking as a social pastime. I speak from experience when I say alcohol has been a huge detrimental factor in my family life (not for me but family members). It doesn’t stop me going out and buying a good bottle of wine though.

Why? Because I make the decisions for myself on what I’m going to drink, and how much.

I decide whether as a mother I give my kid a good slap on the bum because he or she is being a brat. I decide whether or not my kids can knock themselves on the forehead swinging conkers, or get a nasty scrape because they’re playing hop scotch. I decide whether to give a homeless person a sandwich or buy them a cup of coffee without Health and Safety breathing down my neck. Gasp! I even make the decision to eat that lasagne that’s over its sell by date. Sacrilege indeed.

So…. going back to warnings and preserving people’s sensibilities, (I told you I’d get there in the end) there are those who believe we should put them ad nauseum on books in case it offends or distresses someone. Hmm, let’s use Love and Punishment as an example of this type of warning

This book is about two men in a relationship, features raunchy gay sex, bondage, kidnapping and assault, rolling pins being shoved up a man’s arse, various nasty scenes of aftermath killing spree gore, a psychopathic serial killer, a detective who believes the ends justifies the means, and a singular act of determined and gritty violence by one man protecting the man he loves that some people might not agree with. It defies social morals and norms and asks the question- how far would YOU go to keep the one you love safe?

Hell, you know what, maybe I should use that as the blurb. It sounds like an interesting book to me. This warning is so going on Facebook afterwards as a post of its own. So who’s scrambling to go buy it? I see you…you can run but you can’t hide.

Recently a fellow author and very well-known book reviewer trashed both me and Love and Punishment because she didn’t like the subject matter. I believe in retributivism and her crowd didn’t like that I’d expressed this personal fact about myself in my Author Notes; they also thought some of the scenes were gratuitous. Well, hell, I know it’s not everyone that likes having a scene where a rolling pin is used as a torture implement but it’s really not that bad. I mean, look at fisting. Are warnings given for that happening in a story? Worth Keeping dealt with sexual abuse and self- harm, Saving Alexander did the same, but I didn’t get flack for that.

Bad things in books can often be used for good. A young man I know got in touch and said it had helped him, as a self-harmer himself, reading about what Nick was going through. Saving Alexander was used as a therapy tool by someone as a book for patients to read about and overcome similar things that happened to Alex. So it can go both ways.

I don’t generally put warnings on my books. Read the blurb and you’ll get the idea as to what a book is about. It’s about two men falling in love, telling their story and yes, hopefully having great GAY sex. If you feel uncomfortable reading the book, or don’t want to read about GAY sex, put the book down. Don’t read any more. If something acts as a trigger for you, please –put the book down. Let me be clear. I’m not belittling anyone who has had bad experiences and may still be suffering from it. But to be honest, me writing about strawberry pancakes or twinkling fairy lights may be a trigger for some people. An author can’t cover all eventualities.

One of my next WIP books is about a sexual predator priest abusing a young boy and then slaughtering his family. It has self-harm and I’ll make sure that factors into the blurb somehow so people know what it’s about before they buy it. If anyone has a specific concern about the content, I’ll answer them willingly and then let them make their own decisions about whether they read it or not.

Books are fiction. They are stories of fictionary people in fictionary situations. (I think that’s a great word, fictionary – I like it, not sure if it actually exists in this context but hey. I’m a writer. I get to make stuff up.) The author sets out to shock, make the reader feel emotion, empathise, sympathise, hate, adore, feel sick- it’s called writing. And if we achieve this, we’ve done our jobs. This group loved Love and Punishment by the way -it came third in a reader poll against some tough competition, not even in the M/M genre, but in the Thriller/detective category.

Caveat Emptor – Buyer Beware. Arm yourself before you buy a book. I like to think my covers and my blurbs give a reader an idea of what’s in the book. Reading a review or two before you buy also helps. Downloading the sample before you buy will help. Ask a friend. Use one of the wonderful reading groups we have on Facebook to ask a question if you even think there might be something in there you don’t like. I think there’s also a fine line between telling a reader what to expect overall and putting specific warnings about content in the preface/blurb to the book. I’d like to know the book I’ve purchased is MM. I don’t like cliff-hangers, so I’ll check out the book forums first if I suspect there is one or have heard there is. I’m not all that fond of ménage, so again, I’ll do my homework. But if I see the blurb talks about Larry, Curly and Mo in a relationship, I kind of think I’d have my answer. I’m not fond of mixed M/F and M/M sex scenes in the same book. I read both but don’t like it together. I won’t read twincest or incest. I’m not keen on every BDSM book out there, there’s only a few authors I read who I think tackle the subject well and with variety. And sometimes I’ll slip up and buy a book that has this ALL in the same story and you know what?

I pull up my big girl pants, forget that book and find the next read.

 

Review: Cross to Bare by Susan Mac Nicol

susanmacnicol:

I am absolutely blown away by this review for Cross to Bare from Carrie at The Novel Approach. It’s such a warm fuzzy feeling to know someone enjoys my writing as much as she seems to. Thank you.

Originally posted on The Novel Approach :

Amazon

Title: Cross To Bare (Men of London: Book Five)

Author: Susan Mac Nicol

Publisher: Boroughs Publishing Group

Pages/Word Count: 197 Pages

At a Glance: OMG, she has done it again! Warning, I could get gushy…

Reviewed By: Carrie

Blurb: Tough in business but romantic at heart, fashion designer Lenny James isn’t hiding his masculinity behind his super successful female alter ego, but a vulnerability that only handsome financier Brook Hunter will be man enough to reveal…and worship.

TWO OF A KIND

It’s amazing what a little mascara and lipstick, a blonde wig, false boobs, and top-notch female fashion can hide. Not that Lenny James is hiding his masculinity. He uses his normal voice when he’s Laverne, and he’s not particularly camp as a man. His reasons for creating his alter ego are locked deep in his past. He is who he is:…

View original 785 more words

Rainbow Romance Writers and Genre Drama

Oh wow. We’ve had a bumper crop of crap these past few weeks/months? Anyway….what with Josh Lanyon ‘coming out’ and declaring he is actually a she called Diana Killian (something fairly well suspected within the genre itself I might say),  all the articles and blah-blah focusing on men versus women writing in the M/M genre, and whether someone with a vagina can write better than a man with a penis, and of course the latest scandal involving Laura Harner and her unbelievable plagiarism, we M/M writers and readers and bloggers must all be in need of a stiff one. A cup of tea or a whisky I mean.

I’m not going to re-hash any of these old cherries; suffice it to say it’s all been done to death and we’re moving on. However, I did want to publicise this recent article from the Rainbow Romance Writers Chapter of the Romance Writers of America, of which I am a member.

It’s a great post setting things out in perspective and apologising to the authors who were affected – Becky McGraw and Opal Carew. The genre has been dragged unwillingly into the spotlight, garnering negative criticism and assisting so called pundits from supposedly respected newspapers like The Washington Post to write one sided articles about the status of our genre.

Without further ado, here’s the post RWA made on their website yesterday. Below is also a short extract that I’m sure Chapter Secretary, Deanna Wadsworth, won’t mind me sharing.

‘The romance writing community cannot dismiss an admitted act of plagiarism as mere online mudslinging, something to be quickly forgotten until the next time our Twitter feeds blow up with the latest drama. But we will come out stronger and wiser in the wake of this incident. The reminder to educate ourselves about our rights as authors is already a positive outcome to take away.

Remember: one person’s actions cannot reflect who we are as writers, nor can it define our genre in any way shape or form. RRW is a strong community full of supportive and wonderful people. We are proud of our members and the original books they create every day. Romance writers of all genres stand together because we are a community of friends who support one another.

Stay positive, stay proud, and keep writing!’ end of quote

I think this is pretty well said.  The full article can be read here :

Rainbow Romance Writers Facebook Page

 

 

Review Hype and How To Get Over It

This might be a bit of a long post but it needs to be said. I see a lot of stuff going around about how readers distrust seeing a lot of five star reviews for a book. I get that. What I’m asking people to do is take a step back and think about things for a minute. Yes, there are frauds out there who buy reviews. Yes, there are authors out there who get everyone they know, regardless of whether they’ve read the book, to pop a five-star rating on Amazon. Yes, the are those unscrupulous wankers who create different personas and then go give themselves a great rating. Go you.

Here’s the simple truth. We are not all like that. Some of us earn our five star reviews. We don’t ask for them, we don’t solicit them, we don’t beg for them. Yup, we beg for reviews, but we don’t stipulate what rating they need to be. Reviews are unfortunately the lifeblood of an author’s business, enabling all sorts of things to go on in the back ground. Get a Bookbub deal; push our stories a little further in the ever changing and very confusing Amazon ranking system. We don’t like it any more than you do that we have to try push this aspect of our business. Because that’s what it is to us. A business.

We sell a brand- ourselves- in the hope someone likes it and buys it. The fact we enjoy what we do and would probably do it even if we didn’t get paid for it is beyond the point. We do it because we love to write our books and we love when people love to read them. Getting paid to do so is a great consequence and of course, we all love it when our royalty cheques drop through the virtual door, no matter how much. Anyone who says different is lying to themselves. It’s a validation that people like your work along with the things that DO probably mean more- messages you get from readers telling you this, the little comments you see about your work in groups and reading clubs, the postings on your Facebook wall when a reader wants to tell you how much they enjoyed your book. I love it when that happens. I do it myself too as an avid fan-girl of some authors. And Benedict Cumberbatch. And Adam Lambert.

 

 

 

 

 

But when it comes to reviews, 99% of us prefer honesty. We prefer someone to tell it like it is, as long as you’re not a troll just trying to destroy something, good or bad. Then you deserve to be covered in tar pitch and set alight. (Disclaimer- no trolls were harmed in the writing of this post and I am not advocating or promoting BRAT – Bloody Revenge Against Trolls).

The proof of this statement is in the pudding.  Everyone knows I’m friends with a man called Scott Burkett, a well-known book reviewer and blogger and true friend of the MM genre. He’s given me great 5 star reviews for most of my books. But he didn’t hold back on Stripped Bare, or Feat of Clay, both books he wasn’t 100% sold on. No 5 stars there. I’ll be interested to see what he makes of Cross to Bare. Author Diane Nelson is an avid reader of my books yet Cross to Bare? 3.5 stars. She didn’t like it as much as my others. My own PA, Kirsty Vizard- a 4-star review for Feat of Clay. My own beta reader Rita R gave me 4 stars for both Feat of Clay and Cross to Bare because they didn’t ‘speak to her’ like my other books. So I think it’s safe to say no one is being held to ransom to produce a spate of 5 star reviews ‘because we are friends’ or connected in some way. I prefer this honesty from my friends. I don’t want lip service or fawning absolution. I want people to tell me how much they enjoyed my books, so I can perhaps write a better one next time. Just keep it constructive. Flapping your lips and spewing vile diatribe (often totally ignorant) about a book or worse, the author themselves, is just asking for karma to come back and shove its fist up your arse without lube. (Those of you who’ve read Laverne’s story will recognise this action. And no, it isn’t a secret desire I have)

Of course, while I take into account what people are finding negative in my books, I might not always agree with it. It’s my book, my story, and I’ll determine its pace and content, and factor in what I think I need to take out of a negative review. If someone doesn’t like that – well, that’s their prerogative. Just like its mine to write my story the way I want to. So I’m not going to race out and change my next WIP unless I think the reviewer has made a valid point, in my opinion as the author and based on what my beta readers and knowledgeable editor suggest. Again, I’ve been known not to listen to them either, in everything.

So please don’t think that just because you see a bunch of five star reviews on an author’s book, it means they’ve bought them or solicited them. That not only offends me, it offends the individual person doing the honest review the best way they know how and the professional bloggers who have no axe to grind either way and who run their business being honest and saying it like it is.

There’s a sure fire way to see whether an author is deserving of their reviews – it’s called a sample. The one thing Amazon is good at doing is providing you, the potential buyer, with a fairly hefty sample of a book you intending purchasing. Read it. If it appeals to you, then buy it. Of course, if you’ve read an author’s books before and loved them, thinking them worthy of five stars yourself, the chances are their next ones have the same appeal. If it isn’t a five star book for you; okay then. Perfectly acceptable. I’ve read books from favourite authors and thought ‘Meh’. definitely not a five, maybe not even a four. Some books I’ve read from those at the top of the charts, I’ve wondered how the hell they got there in the first place. Not every book appeals to everyone.  Put a review up and tell people why. Tell them what you liked, didn’t like. Your opinion counts.

Read the blurb- make sure you want to read a book about men having sex with each other, ménage, BDSM, child abuse, and the like before you buy it. It’s all there for a reader to make an informed decision.

Then find a quiet place to read, make yourself a hot drink and get something to nibble (hot chocolate and crisps are my snacks of choice as I curl up in an armchair) and find out whether that five star review was truly justified.

 

 

Andrew Q Gordon – Purpose Blog Tour

 

My great friend Andrew Q Gordon has this book. It’s called Purpose and it’s a phenomenal story and one I really enjoyed. It’s been re – launched by DSP Publications, having been re-written, re-edited and now has an most amazing new cover which really appeals to the eye. In my opinion, it’s sexy and mysterious all at the same time.There’s something about black and white photos…

 

 

2nd Edition

Forty years ago the Spirit of Vengeance—a Purpose—took William Morgan as its host, demanding he avenge the innocent by killing the guilty. Since then Will has retreated behind Gar, a façade he uses to avoid dealing with what he’s become. Cold, impassive, and devoid of emotion, Gar goes about his life alone—until his tidy, orderly world is upended when he meets Ryan, a broken young man cast out by his family. Spurred to action for reasons he can’t understand, Gar saves Ryan from death and finds himself confronted by his humanity.

Spending time with Ryan helps Will claw out from under Gar’s shadow. He recognizes Ryan is the key to his reclaiming his humanity and facing his past. As Will struggles to control the Purpose, Ryan challenges him to rethink everything he knew about himself and the spirit that possesses him. In the process, he pushes Will to do something he hasn’t done in decades: care.

1st Edition published by Dreamspinner Press, June 2013.

 

When the train lurched forward, panic gripped him. He needed to get off the train. Now! Pressed against the window, he saw four thugs walking behind an oblivious Ryan.

What the hell was wrong with him? He was such an idiot! Ryan had let his guard down because Gar gave him that money.

The train started to pick up speed, forcing him to focus. By now, most everyone was ignoring him. Some watched, but he “suggested” they look away, and they did. Using the moment of pseudo-invisibility, Gar ran to the door between cars. Two from the end. Damn!

Forming a mental image of a Metro Transit cop, he touched the small box on his belt. When he emerged into the next car, he could tell from the reaction on people’s faces they saw an officer, not him.

Thankfully, this car was nearly empty, so no one stood in the aisles. Running as fast as he could, weaving around the poles, he quickly covered the seventy-five feet to the back door. Watching the platform disappear, he tried the door. Locked!

Of course it was locked. What had he expected? Too bad. His need was too great. Gar bunched his muscles, yanked with all his strength, and tore the door from its hinges.

Tossing the twisted metal aside, he ignored the screams of shock from those watching. The clarion ring of the alarm sounded throughout the car as the smell of brake pads filled the air. Not waiting for the train to stop, he leaped down, rolling once to break his momentum.

Behind him, he heard the car grind to a halt. Had he stuck around, he would have heard the angry shouts of people who realized their trip home had just gotten complicated. He didn’t care. Something bad was about to happen to an innocent kid. A little discomfort on their part was acceptable.

Sprinting, he covered the distance to the platform in less time than the train took to leave. Still too long. Ryan and the others were gone. He startled the few people milling about when he ran the length of the tracks, back to the escalator Ryan had used. The press of bodies was too thick. Too many would get hurt if he forced his way past them.

He leaped up from the tracks and ran faster toward the moving stairs. Bypassing the crowd, he used his momentum to jump toward the railing, fifteen feet above. Clutching the black metal tube, he swung himself over, nearly knocking over a half-dozen people.

“Police, move aside!” His shout took a moment to register, but people quickly moved from his path. After vaulting the fare gates, he made for the escalators leading out. Hopefully, he wouldn’t be too late. These were among the longest in the system, and if Ryan hadn’t walked up, he just might catch them.

Two escalators went up, one down. Both were packed.

“Fuck!” Moving toward the center stairs, he decided on his plan. “Police! Out of the way!”

As people answered his command, he spared a second to scan the two up escalators. If Ryan was on one of them, he couldn’t see him.

People quickly moved to the right. Most were already there, preferring not to make the overly long walk. Running up the stairs, Gar let the muted voices commenting on his burst of speed wash away against the only thought he gave attention to: find Ryan before they do.

Twice more, he shouted for people to move right before he made it to the top. Dozens, even hundreds of people milled about the entrance. He cursed himself for not trying to read Ryan’s thoughts. If he knew what Ryan’s mind felt like, he could have used it to locate the kid.

Drawing a deep breath to settle himself, he extended his senses. Maybe he could find his scent, hear his voice, something. Another new emotion struck him: fear. He found nothing. Not possible. How could he lose that ability now?

Nothing made sense. A night that had started out so simple was now turning his world inside out.

 

 

DSP Publications

Amazon

Omnilit

Barnes & Noble

Find Andrew on Goodreads 

 

 

Click on the Rafflecopter Link  for a chance to win one of the following.

First Prize: $25 Giftcard to Dreamspinner Press

Second Prize: Autographed Paperback copy of Purpose

The tour organizer will select a winner from entries received as of close of business 21 October.  Be sure to leave a thoughtful comment on each stop on the tour for additional chances to win.

 

 

6 Oct – Elin Gregory (https://elingregory.wordpress.com/)

6 Oct – Jessie G Books (http://jessiegbooks.com/)

7 Oct – Divine Magazine (http://divinemagazine.net/)

8 Oct – Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words (http://scatteredthoughtsandroguewords.com/)

9 Oct – Hearts on Fire Reviews (http://heartsonfirereviews.com/)

9 Oct – MM Good Book Reviews (https://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com/)

10 Oct – Author Susan Mac Nicol (http://www.susanmacnicol.com/blog/)

10 Oct – Wake Up Your Wild Side (http://galestanley.blogspot.com/)

11 Oct – The Purple Rose Tea House (http://purpleroseteahouse.charliecochet.com/)

12 Oct – Love Bytes Reviews (http://lovebytesreviews.com/)

12 Oct – Queer SciFi (https://queerscifi.com/)

13 Oct – World of Diversity Fiction (http://wodfreview.com/)

14 Oct – Prism Book Alliance (http://www.prismbookalliance.com)

15 Oct – Diverse Reader (http://diversereader.blogspot.com/)

16 Oct – Loving Without Limits (http://lexiander.blogspot.com/)

17 Oct – Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents (http://fangirlmomentsandmytwocents.blogspot.com/)

18 Oct – BFD Book Blog (http://bfdbookblog.net/)

18 Oct – Wicked Faeries Tales and Reviews (http://wickedfaeriesreviews.blogspot.com/)

19 Oct – Molly Lolly (https://mollylollyauthor.wordpress.com/)

20 Oct – Drops of Ink (https://annebarwell.wordpress.com/)

 

Andrew Q. Gordon wrote his first story back when yellow legal pads, ball point pens were common and a Smith Corona correctable typewriter was considered high tech. Adapting to the times, he now writes with a shiny new MacBook that he sets on the same desk as his manual typewriter and vintage adding machine.

Long a fan of super heroes, wizards and sports, Andrew’s works include high fantasy, paranormal spirits, magic as well as contemporary fiction. He is still trying to find the perfect story that will include all his favorites under one cover.

He currently lives in the Washington, D.C. area with his husband, their young daughter and dog.  In addition to dodging some very self-important D.C. ‘insiders’, Andrew uses his commute to catch up on his reading. When not working or writing, he enjoys soccer, high fantasy, baseball and occasionally sleeping.

THE LAND OF MAKE BELIEVE: http://andrewqgordon.com/

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/dominic.andrews.7568

Thanks so much for stopping by. I’d like to wish Andy all the very best with his newly launched book and may they fly off the virtual shelves with a purpose….

 

Blog Tour – The Homecoming – J Scott Coatsworth

Title: The Homecoming

Author: J. Scott Coatsworth

Publisher: Less Than Three Press

Cover Artist: London Burden

Length: 20,000 words

Release Date: July 29, 2015

Blurb: When his own world is destroyed, Aldiss and his crew barely manage to escape, leaving friends and lovers behind. What was meant to be an exploratory trip back to the home world turns into a mad dash for survival.

When they awaken from stasis on Earth, which was abandoned by humanity five centuries before, they must quickly learn about their new home. While exploring the region around the ship, Aldiss meets Hari, a shape-changer, whose people harbor secrets that might cost the crew their lives.

Hari reached the edge of the woods just in time to see Neru crouching to leap at the two-legs. Young fool.

He gathered himself and jumped after Neru, knocking him aside as his teeth reached for the two-legs’ throat.

Neru turned and snarled at him, backing away toward the woods.

Hari stood firm, ears back, hackles raised, and drew the corners of his mouth back to reveal his teeth. Back off, Neru.

The whelp shook his head and grinned with the brashness of youth, until Hari leaped at him and nipped his ear. With a surprised yelp, Neru turned his head, deferring to Hari’s strength. As you say, brother. There was a cockiness to Neru’s look that unsettled him.

The other wolf backed up slowly then turned to disappear into the woods.

Hari caught a glimpse of Mavi watching from the shadows. The old wolf snarled, and slunk off after her son.

What do you seek, old mother? Hari wondered, watching Mavi’s silver-tipped tail flicker into the darkness. It was clear where Neru’s courage and cunning had come from.

Hari turned back toward the two-legs. He was holding a strange stick, not unlike the one that Hari’s grandmother had shown him in the wolf dream.

But it was his face that caught Hari’s eye. He knew that face. The two-legs’ eyes were white-gray, and his jet-black hair was swept to the side.

Despite the danger, he shifted in the manner only a few of the clan are able to do in the cold. He grew quickly taller and less hairy but no less muscled, and stood naked before the two-legs.

They stared at each other for a long moment. Hari felt an immense attraction washing over him. He saw in his summer form that this two-legs was beautiful. His own body responded to this… man… in an unexpected way, seeing and feeling things his winter form could not. Hari leaned forward and sniffed the stranger, drinking in his musk. It smelled enticing. Strangely familiar.

He sensed the two-legs stiffen, and to reassure, him, Hari licked the man’s neck.

The two-legs was trembling now like a young whelp, so he tried something else. He took the stranger’s face in his hands and kissed him.

The shaking slowed, and then the man was kissing him back. Hari was hungry for him, like a starving wolf at the end of a long, hard winter.

It is not the time for this, the keh whispered in his ear.

He broke contact and turned away, ashamed that he was betraying his Clan, and for lust. An emotion of his summer form.

“I’m sorry,” he said to the two-legs, without looking back. “It won’t happen again.” Even he was not sure if he meant Neru’s attack, or the kiss.

He shifted back into his winter form and loped off into the woods after his pack mates.

Scott wrote a post for us about where the inspiration for this book came from…

My second stand-alone novella, “The Homecoming”, just came out in late July from Less Than Three Press. The story is a bit of a homecoming for me too.

I call it as my wolfman-spaceman story, but it’s really the story of one man’s return to the planet where his ancestors evolved, but that he no longer recognizes as his own.

It also represents a return to the first universe I wrote about when I tried to launch my writing career in my early teens and twenties. Back then, I created world maps, nations, timelines and histories, and even painted my own globe of this new world I called Antana, and I spent more time there some weekends than I did here on Earth.

The seed of “The Homecoming” was a short tale I’d planned about the end of a world, and the return to another one many had assumed had ended long before. I wrote it at a time that I planned to do a number of stories form that universe, but it never really got off the ground.

It’s something I put away for a long time, and only circled back to last year, in response to an anthology call from Less Than Three Press.

You know how sometimes stories aren’t ready to be told? Well, this one is finally ready, even if the finished piece bears little resemblance to where I started, so many years ago.

They say you can never go home again. Well, that’s almost right. You can go home again. It just may not be your home anymore.

 

Less Than Three Press

Amazon US

All Romance eBooks

Kobo

Scott has been writing since elementary school, when he and won a University of Arizona writing contest in 4th grade for his first sci-fi story (with illustrations!). He finished his first novel in his mid-twenties, but after seeing it rejected by ten publishers, he gave up on writing for a while.

Over the ensuing years, he came back to it periodically, but it never stuck. Then one day, he was complaining to Mark, his husband, early last year about how he had been derailed yet again by the death of a family member, and Mark said to him “the only one stopping you from writing is you.

Since then, Scott has gone back to writing in a big way, finishing more than a dozen short stories – some new, some that he had started years before – and seeing his first sale. He’s embarking on a new trilogy, and also runs the Queer Sci Fi (http://www.queerscifi.com) site, a support group for writers of gay sci fi, fantasy, and supernatural fiction.

|| Website || Facebook || Twitter ||

Winner’s Prize: E-copy of The Homecoming.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

August 10:

Susan Mac Nicol

August 11:

Wicked Faeries Tales And Reviews

Diverse Reader

August 12:

Love Bytes Reviews

August 13:

Prism Book Alliance

Amanda C. Stone

August 14:

The Land of Make Believe

August 15:

Nephy’s World

August 16:

Man2ManTastic

August 17:

Loving Without Limits

August 18:

Divine Magazine

World of Diversity Fiction

August 19:

Evelyn Shepherd

August 20:

Eyes on Books

August 21:

Molly Lolly: Reader, Reviewer, Lover of Words

Carly’s Book Reviews

Feat of Clay – Cover Reveal

My Men of London series is going great guns – pardon the pun. This particular book involves undercover cops getting tortured and shot, a private investigator who is tough and will do anything to help his lover through his ordeal, a car chase, graffiti, lots of hot steamy action, and of course, shots being fired. Of various kinds. Verbal, actual and of course….you get the drift.

 

Imprisoned and tortured, undercover cop Tate Williams will find redemption in the arms of his boyhood friend, now lover, former SAS soldier Clay Mortimer.

TWO MEN.

TORN. TORTURED. LOVED.

Though they went their separate ways, Tate Williams and Clay Mortimer have been crazy about each other since their school days. Clay went into the SAS. Tate became a cop. Neither mentioned their attraction to the other. Both sought out danger. Both found it.

Imprisoned and shot in an undercover assignment gone wrong, Tate somehow survived…and found his way back into Clay’s arms. His old friend is now the owner of an elite investigation agency and everything any man could want: patient, handsome, commanding. And Clay knows what it takes to survive. But Tate can’t bring himself to share all his secrets, nightmares that force him to rebel against everything. He finds solace from his past as a graffiti artist, a childhood passion, but his demons drive away all who might care for him. Only when he faces that past—and learns that everyone has tasted despair—can the two men truly be brothers-in-arms…and more.

Take a look at the book trailer, I thought it was pretty edgy myself.

Feat of Clay will be released on 25 August. It will be available on pre-order as soon as I get the links.

Hope you enjoy this one !!

 

Revised Pricing!

susanmacnicol:

Creativ Minds has a great new promotional schedule and price list, so if you’re looking for promotional opportunities, take a look at Sidney Lowell’s promo below.

Sid has always been a most willing and professional person to business with and I can highly recommend his services.

Originally posted on Creative Minds:

If you are an author – new or old – worried about doing a promo within your budget, your search ends here and now! Because effective 25th July, 2015, Creative Minds has revised its pricing chart to give promo opportunities to those authors who are worried about crossing their budget and yet want to get themselves and their work out there!

BLOG TOUR: 5 – 9 Blogs   – $25; 10 -14 Blogs – $45; 15 – 19 Blogs – $60; 20 – 24 Blogs – $70;

25 – 29 Blogs – $80; 30 – 34 Blogs – $90; 35 Blogs and above – $100

RELEASE DAY TOUR: $40 (10-12 blogs)

COVER REVEAL: $20 (5 Blogs); $30 (10 – 15 blogs); $35 (15 blogs or more)

AUTHOR ASSISTANT SERVICES: $10 per hour

FB GROUP PROMO SERVICES: $4.99 per 20 groups

If you are planning…

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Help us help Coz make a difference

I live in Braintree and this accident and the deaths of the two young men and another innocent victim was heart wrenching. Young drummer Coz Powell was killed in a tragic road acccident last year.

 

The story -click here to read the tragic news article

His mother, Gennie, is trying to fulfil Coz’ dream of helping disabled and mentally challenged kids by building an activity centre in his name. If you feel you want to donate or share Coz and Gennie’s story, please feel free. A number of Coz’ organs – his liver, kidneys and heart – were donated so others might live. It’s an amazing story in that Coz and his friend James Simmons, also killed in the accident, were huge fans of Bullet for My Valentine and the band actually has jewellery containing their young fans ashes to take on tour with them. What an amazing gesture.

If you want to donate towards buying the land to make Coz dream come true, this is the link.

Go Fund Me LandforCoz

 

Read here for the full story of a band doing their bit to help

Bullet for My Valentine story

 

Guest Post and Giveaway: The Stripped Bare Anniversary Celebration Tour with Susan Mac Nicol

susanmacnicol:

The Novel Approach featured me today as it’s the second birthday of my first M/M novel, Stripped Bare. They were kind enough to do a beautiful post for me, pop on an excerpt and share it around the place. I have to say a great big THANK YOU to them. Pop down and take a look.

Originally posted on The Novel Approach :

We are so pleased to welcome author Susan Mac Nicol today on her Two Year Anniversary Celebration Tour. It’s been two years since her first M/M novel, Stripped Bare, was published, and to commemorate it, Susan is offering a couple of ways for readers to win some great prizes. Click on the Rafflecopter widget below to enter for the chance to win THREE e-books from Susan’s published work OR the runner-up prize of a set of Men of London magnets.

Good luck!

And now, here’s Susan.

I have to say that although I published my first novel in 2012 – Cassandra by Starlight– an M/F romance that was well received but didn’t sell – I only really thought of myself as a proper writer when Stripped Bare was published in July 2013. It was the book that catapulted me into the genre through the support and generosity…

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