So, a few weeks ago, the uber-talented Marissa from Grand Central Publishing (they publish the Sin Brothers), dropped me a line and asked if I’d want to be part of a Round Robin story with four other authors with a Halloween theme.  I said I’d love to (I love that kind of thing), and she asked me to write the ending. 

There are five parts to the story, and they’re posted at different blogs–it begins at Dear Author. There’s a Rafflecopter at the end of each entry, and you can enter to win a frightfully big box of books (it appears that a Blind Faith ARC is included).

The story is a quick one and is a lot of fun, I think.  Here are the authors, blogs, and the links:

• Dear Author feat. Kristen Callihan: http://bit.ly/1pbejlq
• Under The Covers Book Blog feat. Karina Halle: http://bit.ly/1yM9Up0
• Paranormal Cravings feat. Angie Sandro: http://bit.ly/1G2jskx
• Paranormal Book Club feat. Kate Brady: http://bit.ly/1G2jw3U
• Shh! Mom’s Reading feat. Rebecca Zanetti: http://bit.ly/1pbaQTV

Enjoy the story, and good luck with the contest!  AND… HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

First, take a good look at the website, because it’s about to be updated and upgraded within the next couple of weeks. YAY!

Second, I feel like I should blog more, but I’m a writer usually caught in imaginary worlds that I’m not ready to share. Plus, the kids are incredibly busy with sports, Big Tone is busy, my extended family is busy…and I’ve got friends.  And I’m not one of those authors/bloggers who shares everything on the internet.  Especially stuff about real people.  I know many authors share a lot (all about people they know, people who aren’t nice to them, the slights they’ve received), but I kind of think those people are buttheads.  Yeah, I said it.  Talking about somebody else (in real life) just because one has a blog and avenue to reach people seems dickish to me.

By the way, nobody has talked badly about me on the net lately, and this isn’t personal. Just a general observation.  I read a blog lately from an author dissing on people she met in a new social group.  I mean, knock that off.  Those people are real, probably don’t have blogs to counter, and should be left alone.

(NOTE HERE that I’m fine talking about Big Tone, my sisters, and some close friends. They know the risk of me.  Plus, I’d never say anything bad about them publicly.  Not even Debbie, my youngest sister, who used to have garage sales every once in a while to sell the stuff she’d borrowed from us.  I wouldn’t say this publicly.  Plus, it was a long time ago.  LOL!)

I also do talk in generalizations once in a while. My kid’s football team plays another team every year where a couple of the moms ring cowbells through the whole damn game.  It takes a special woman to ring a cowbell, and I’ve been known to talk about it generally. 

But you know who I do like? Chuck Wendig.  That guy is freakin hilarious and I wish I could live in his brain for a little while.  Not a long while.  But maybe for an afternoon.  He also gives great advice to other writers.  I also like Jennie Crusie, who shares her interesting life and her writing style with us.  Although, as a fan, I wish she’d release another new book soon.

Anyway, the thing on my mind right now is odd. We’ve moved to the top of a mountain (it’s not a big mountain or anything), and I’ve been taking a walk every day trying to get back into shape.  On a mountain, if you walk down, you have to walk up…so it’s been pretty handy.  We have a lot of wildlife up here, and there have been a bunch of wild turkeys that are now huge.  I mean, really big.

The other day as I walked, I heard a strange noise from them. There were about thirty of them, and they were trilling and encircling this cat.  I mean, they had this cat totally surrounded.  Are turkeys aggressive?  Do they eat cats?  I’m not sure, but they were definitely messing with this cat, and it was incredibly odd.

Yes, I was going to rescue the cat. But a biker sped by at about a 100 miles an hour, going downhill, and the turkeys scattered.  The cat escaped.  So all you cat lovers, no worries here!  The cat was fine.  (I have a cat named Buddy, so I, too, like cats).

But I’ve been pondering the situation since. What the heck is up with the turkeys?

How is everybody doing?  I feel like I’ve been buried under deadlines for the last couple of months and can now finally breathe a little.  It’s fall where I live, the leaves are turning, and it’s not unusual to have rain, sun, and hail in the same day.  I’m hoping for an early snow, but I don’t think it’s going to happen this year.  I need to organize my thoughts, so I thought I’d do a quick update here to figure out where I am and what I should do now.  🙂

MARKED, Janie’s story, is in the pipeline and is ready to go.  (Release date: 12-22-14). I’ve finished page proofs, which means I won’t see the book again until it releases.  As you might know, Marked is the tenth and final book in the main Dark Protector series.  It was both the most difficult and the easiest book to write so far.  It was the most difficult because so many questions had to be answered and so many threads completed.  It was the easiest for the same reason–I had tons to write and didn’t stop for a second to wonder what to add.  I have to admit, I’m very happy with how Janie’s story turned out, and I hope you like it, too.  I was also really nervous to write it initially because readers have known Janie since she was a child, and now she’s all grown up, so it was a little like watching your niece fall in love with a badass Alpha male.  But I think it worked out nicely.  🙂

I hit send on TOTAL SURRENDER edits this morning, and it’s the longest book I’ve written at 102,000 words (approx. 400 pages).  (Releases 3/14).  This is Jory Dean’s story, and he was so much fun to write about.  My editor says it’s the best book yet, and of course, this makes me both nervous as hell and happy.  I hope you all like it.  This one choked me up a couple of times because those lost, dangerous, wounded soldiers can do that to you.

I’m finishing up Hawk and Dawn’s story (Maverick MT book 4) now, and I’m hoping it has a release date of early next year – but I probably won’t know the date until early next year.  The first scene is really fun with Dawn teaching Hawk a little lesson.  I hope you like it.  The last Maverick MT book hit the NY Times, so of course, I have high hopes for this one, too.

Did you know we contracted for a spin-off series for the Dark Protectors?  We did, and it’s called the Realm Enforcers.  The first book, WICKED RIDE, is already turned in and should have a release date soon.  I’m thinking it’ll be June of next year.  Wicked Ride is about Kellach Dunne (cousin to Moira and Brenna), badass witch enforcer and motorcycle club member.  The book takes place in Seattle, and a few of the Dark Protectors show up, including Dage and Garrett.

Also, I have a brand new series coming out.  We don’t have a name for the series yet, but it’s going to be something different for me.  Yes, it’s still a romance with some pretty hot Alpha males, and I’d tell you more, but I don’t really know more.  A novella will kick off the series, and it’ll be in an anthology with Alexandra Ivy to be released around next September.  Then the three books will be released January, February, and March of 2016.  These will be in mass market print and available at bookstores, online, etc.

Finally, if any of frequent BAM stores, keep an eye out for CONSUMED and SHADOWED from the Dark Protectors, would you?  (They should be available for preorder end of October).  Those books are part of a brand new program between Lyrical Press and Books-A-Million to be in print, with gifts for people who buy them.  I’d love to see those do well so the other DP books could be in bookstores. 

Also, there’s going to be a big party for the program in York, PA at the BAM store on November 8th starting at 2:00pm.  If you are anywhere near York on that day, I will be there, and I’d love to see you! 

Other than that, there’s a boxed set of the first four stories (Fated, Claimed, Tempted, Hunted) in the Dark Protector series releasing on October 13th, Blind Faith (Sin Bros 3) releases in print in January, and then Total Surrender releases in print and digital in March.

Whew.  Okay.  Now I feel organized. 

If you subscribe to my newsletter, you received a new contest to caption a funny picture for the chance to win $50 at Amazon.  If you don’t subscribe, the button is over to the right.  🙂

I have fun and exciting news, and I’ll be in York, PA in November for a book launching!  I’ve never been to York, and I’m so excited to go!  Here’s the press release sent out yesterday:

KENSINGTON PUBLISHING PARTNERS WITH BOOKS-A-MILLION FOR LYRICAL HIGH NOTES, A NEW LINE OF EXCLUSIVE DIGITAL-TO-PRINT TRADE PAPERBACKS

August 19, 2014: Kensington Publishing Corp. has announced an exclusive partnership with retailer Books-A-Million to launch Lyrical High Notes, a new program through which select titles from the publisher’s digital imprint will be brought to print for the first time. These special editions will be made available for a limited period exclusively at Books-A-Million as trade paperbacks.

Steven Zacharius, President and CEO of Kensington Publishing Corp, said, “We’re thrilled to be partnering with Books-A-Million to extend the readership of these fresh and edgy books. Each of the titles chosen for the Lyrical High Notes program was highly successful in its e-only format, and these special printed editions will give our digital-first authors the retail presence that they deserve.”

The program will launch in November 2014 with the release of three USA Today bestselling romances previously available only as eBooks: Consumed by Rebecca Zanetti, Shadowed by Rebecca Zanetti and Playing the Game by M. Q. Barber. Following the release of two more trade paperbacks in January 2015, Crossing the Line by M.Q. Barber and Better than Perfect by Kristina Mathews, the program will continue with one new release per month for the remainder of the year. Books-A-Million will be the exclusive retailer for the Lyrical High Notes trade paperback editions for each title’s initial three months in print.

Margaret Terwey, Senior Buyer, Books-A-Million, commented, “I’m so excited to partner with Kensington for the opportunity to offer bestselling eBooks in print format exclusively for Books-A-Million customers.”

Kensington and Books-A-Million also have teamed up on a multi-channel campaign to promote the launch of the new program through online, social media, event and print marketing. In addition, a “Lyrical High Notes Welcome Committee” of bloggers will be tapped to support the arrival of the new books in print with online giveaways and virtual events.

These online initiatives will be coupled with an equally robust offline push that includes prominent in-store placement and a launch party on November 8, 2014 with Rebecca Zanetti and M.Q. Barber at the Books-A-Million store in York, PA. In advance of the release, each of the 260 Books-a-Million stores in the US will also receive a “Lyrical Launch Pack” containing promo items including branded notepads that will be given as free gifts to the first customers who purchase one of the line’s debut releases in November, personal thank you notes from the debut authors, and special gifts for the store employees.

Alexandra Nicolajsen, Associate Director of Social Media & Digital Sales at Kensington Publishing, said, “Kensington is a house where we pride ourselves on getting behind authors to help grow their careers—from their debuts to becoming bestsellers. This new Lyrical/Books-A-Million partnership will continue to build on that idea. Creating an in-store presence for Lyrical books along with additional marketing and promotion across all channels—in-person, in print, social media—will bring even more exposure to these successful titles.”

Rebecca Zanetti, Kensington’s New York Times and USA Today bestselling Lyrical Press author, commented on her upcoming print release saying, “As a reader, I love wandering the aisles in a traditional book store, and thus I’m thrilled that Books-A-Million will be featuring Consumed and Shadowed on their shelves!”

I know a lot of authors, and like most writers, I study people.  At conferences, at book signings, at the grocery store…you name it.  And I’ve found a few similarities in behavior in authors that most of us agree are making it.

1. They work their asses off. Yeah, there might be some major talent there to start with…but every author I know who’s doing well is working hard. Really, really hard. No, they’re not digging ditches. But they’re upping the word count, they’re in the chair, they’re traveling to conferences, and they’re meeting deadlines. Self-imposed or contractual, they’re meeting those deadlines.

2.  They’re accepting fear and shoving past it. I think everybody in the creative field battles fear. Fear of rejection, fear of appearing foolish, maybe even fear of success. Fear can paralyze you, or you can use it. Take it, mold it, and put it in the current book. You know what’s worse than fear? REGRET. Don’t have that.

3. They use the NOW. There’s no waiting until Monday, or next week, or when the kids are back in school. They write now. While the kids are napping, in the line at school, in the doctor’s waiting room, during lunch break at work…they’re writing now.

4.  They’re kind and give back. I know I write romances and see the world as a happy place, but look around. The authors doing well are helping other authors with judging contests, giving workshops, even just giving encouraging words. There’s no competition here. If a reader likes a book, they’ll like another book, and the more readers, the better for all of us. Karma is out there, if you ask me.

5.  They never quit. I recently read a blog by a writer that said a couple of her critique partners didn’t understand her book a few years ago, so she stopped writing in disappointment for a while. How is that even possible? The only person who can make an author stop writing is…that author. Period. If somebody isn’t following their dreams…it’s on their shoulders, and their shoulders only. Either quitting is an option, or it isn’t.

IT Isn’t.

To quote Mary Janice Davidson, ““Never, EVER give up. Not ever. Not EVER. Ever EVER!”

And here’s the biggest thing I think successful authors do: They Write. The focus is on the next book, and everything else slides away for a while. If you’re an author, and you’re struggling, go back to the book. It’s all there.

You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream. – C. S. Lewis