Another Deal, Another Day: Juneteenth Sale

So, you guys showed up like crazycakes in March for the IR/MC March Madness sale. You, the reader, made it a great success. 

Guess what? (If the post's title wasn't a spoiler...) I'm having another group sale with IR/MC author. 

What is it? 

It's a celebration of Juneteenth.  

Why Juneteenth? 

The simple fact is there was a time in America's history where folks would get fined, punished or thrown in jail for teaching people of color to read. More specifically, teaching slaves to read. The general fear was if you taught slaves how to write they might, you know, think about their lot in life. They may not be happy about it. They just might educate themselves. And then the nightmare would begin: they might educate others.

What I do every day as a passion, for a living was illegal in the United States. Took some time for the word to get out that slavery had been abolished and that was just one step closer to where I'm sitting now. I don't know about you, but I think that's cause for a celebration. It's worthy of taking a moment.

Why a group sale?

Who doesn't love a sale? Me, along with other IR/MC fabulous authors (Bettye Griffin, LV Lewis, Holley Trent and Ambrielle Kirk...just to name a few) will discount some of our titles. Like, DISCOUNT. Tell your friends and have their friends tell their friends to get ready for this sale.

When?

June 13th-19th

June 5th I'll have the full list and details of where you can find these discounts and the authors participating. I'll post links and use excessive amounts of exclamation points. Stay tuned.

What's To Come

I'm sure you're all waiting for Double Trouble. It's Sasha's story. The final book in the Modern Fairy Tale series. Well...that's going to be a while. Not too long, but longer than y'all like. But I promise it's coming sometime this year. Until then I'll have two other releases. First up...

(Slated for a June 1st release date.)

After a lifetime of dating too many Mr. Nice Guys, Penelope Copeland is ready to shed her good girl persona. She's looking for a little adventure, with a sprinkle of fun and whole lot of naughty. Unfortunately, most bad boys won’t give her the time of day. They only see her as a sweet kindergarten teacher. Now, all she has to do is convince Ryan Pollard, her self-proclaimed bad-boy neighbor that she's not as sweet as she looks.

Ryan Pollard is not one to follow conventional rules. His job as a crime reporter doesn't leave him with much use for them. Yet, he's managed to keep his relationship with Penelope platonic with just a hint of flirtation—until tonight. She says she wants an adventure, a walk on the dark side, and he's more than eager to give her one.
When their adventure takes a turn from playful to serious, Ryan and Penelope must choose between pretending the night never happened or embarking on the greatest adventure of all—love.

Rough, rough blurb:

(Slated for a July release.)

Farrah Kane comes home to work for her best friend, Micah Stamps, as a favor. For the next three months she'll be his fund-raising coordinator and his roommate. It doesn't take long for the home sickness to wear off and for Farrah to realize she's made a mistake. The year away in New York has not cooled down the simmering attraction between them. Doesn't matter. She plans to ignore the undercurrents, because they're friends and nothing can change that. There's only one obstacle to her plan--Micah.There's no getting around the fact Micah Stamps' best friend makes his blood run hot. Maybe he missed Farrah a little too much while she was in New York, but that's a non-issue. They've changed and they'll roll with it just like always. If only she'd stop being so stubborn about keeping things platonic between them. There's one simple solution to her hesitance: he sets out to seduce her. He doesn't see any pitfalls in this plan. They'll spend their days working and their nights sweating. The best of both worlds.Work brings out all the differences in who they are and drags them to the forefront. Their hearts get in the way of their their well-laid plans. Now, they have to figure out if it's possible to be still friends now that they've become lovers.

Behind the Scenes: Twice Smitten and Mirror Sex

So, I knew going in I'd write Emma's, Abigail's and Sasha's stories. Now, I had no idea what they'd turn out to be, but I knew I wanted to see them all get their happily ever afters. I also knew I wanted to play with fairy tales. For Emma Cinderella was a no-brainer to choose. She was sweet and kind and she took care of others.

Abigail was harder to pin down. No fairy tale came to mind, but around the same time Adele's 21 had hit and I was listening to that sucker on repeat. In Double Dare there's a mention of an ex—the one that got away. And every time Someone Like You would play I just felt like that was the perfect song. Yet, every time I tried to imagine Abigail with Greg and how that romance would play out it just didn't feel right. Greg was a great guy. He was sweet, kind and all the things you'd want in a man. But...you gotta know Abigail to know that kind of man wouldn't make her fall and fall hard forever. She'd love him and he'd might be able to soften her sharp edges in time.

That's nice, but not the right amount of crunch. Abigail has a strong personality. She's a serial monogamist. She's a heartbreaker. She knows where she stands because she's standing their goddammit. Abigail needed a club to the head. She needed someone who would see behind her bluster and brave face. He needed to see the Abigail her friends knew and loved. She needed Drew Carter. Not the ex, but the ex's cousin. The guy who stood on the sidelines and watched everything that happened and knew exactly what Abigail needed. That alone couldn't be the reason why she'd keep him at arm's length. No. I made him a charmer, a man who loved women of all shapes and kinds. I made him someone on the surface you wouldn't trust to hold your pack of gum. And wouldn't it be interesting if the day she met Greg, she met Drew?

Come on, I was playing with the idea of fate and destiny. What would it mean to choose the guy who seemed perfect? Who, on paper, should be the guy you marry and ride off into the sunset with. What would it mean to choose the wrong One?

And that's when it all clicked. Abigail's story was Beauty and the Beast. The theme running up and down that story is about looking past the appearance and finding the person who accepts you just the way you are. Prickly attitude and all. (Abigail is so prickly.) (And Drew totally got his reputation in a hard-earned way.)

So...the book opens up at a wedding. (Thanks to Someone Like You influence.) The story is really questioning the whole idea of knowing, just knowing the One. There's also plenty of dirty jokes. Mirror sex. (This was based on Beauty and the Beast and I couldn't figure out how to put a mirror in...) Jargon about advertising. Emma, Sasha and Abigail chattering.

Of course, it's also a romance that ends happily ever after.

Ok. That's it for now. Maybe later I'll finally explain the trouble with Double Trouble.

I Used To Blog

Recently I was reminded how I used to blog. When I started writing I used to hate the blogs that were only about the latest releases or contests. (Looks around my own blog now. Yeah.) I didn't know then I was searching for a connection. I wanted to find those wonderful blogs that it seemed like folks peeled back their humanity. Now, I'm not talking soul-deep blog posts, but the kind where you walked away knowing a complete stranger a little better. The rants were the best because people really forget to keep all the filters in place when they're pissed. So, I used to blog like that all the time. One of my most popular blog posts was a tongue-in-cheek confession about my addiction to the Internet.

So, what happened?

I blogged for five years and felt like there was nothing for me to say anymore. Then I got really busy and didn't have the time for retrospective type post that could sort of inspire. Then Oprah went off the air and that screwed up my touchstone. Seriously, watching Oprah reminded me to stop for a moment and look within. I know, sounds so touchy-feely but that's who I am and that's how I refill my well. I take stock of myself to see where I stand. Usually when something huge hits me between the eyes and throws me off balance.

As fate would have it...lol So, I'm taking stock at the moment. I'm looking at the goals I made for this year and it's not that I can't reach them. I'm pretty ambitious when I want to be. It's that reaching them isn't going to put me in a space that I need to be at the moment. My goals are counter-productive to where I want to be in my writing career. Who would have thought that's even possible? Goals are bad. Lol

What am I doing instead of reaching my goals? I'm listening to music, writing emo blog posts and watching lots and lots of tv/movies. Believe it or not, this is work. Can't put my heart and soul into something if my heart and soul is on empty. Took me years to recognize and accept that. So, I'm off to do more navel gazing.

Will be back later in fine form and probably with something to sell. Oh, or I just might talk about how the wait will be long for Double Trouble.

Twice Smitten, A Modern Fairy Tale: Book 2

In case you didn't know, Double Dare is free for a limited time. In case you were wondering what's next? Well, there's Twice Smitten.

 Abigail Johnson would use three words to describe Drew Carter: lush, loafer and womanizer. When he struts into Adtivity, the advertisement company she works for, her world tilts on its head. He's been hired as a consultant to help her ad account team go to the next level. She’s suddenly faced with a man who is a consummate professional, considerate and kind. It’s must be a farce, because he’s there to decide the fate of her career. When things heat up between them, she refuses to let those brief glimpses convince her to entangle herself in a relationship with him. Her career and heart is on the line.

Drew Carter is fully aware of Abigail's trepidation. There's no denying he hasn’t always been the kind of man a woman should trust, but no one woman has ever made him want the way Abigail has. Her stubbornness, loyalty and honesty appeals to his secret wish—to be open, unguarded and challenged by a woman. Abigail fulfills this unspoken need and he refuses to let her walk out of his life without giving them a chance.

It doesn’t take long for Abigail to suspect Drew just might be the one—the one. But can she trust him with her heart? The more she lets doubt rule her it just might be Drew’s heart that ends up broken.

*Will post buy links as I get them. So excited about this release. Hopefully, you'll enjoy it.

Smashwords

ARe
Barnes and Noble
Amazon

I Did It On Purpose

Before I put a book out I am very aware of what will turn some folks off. Now, Double Dare...sigh. I was on Southern Fried Chicas and we were talking about the romances we weren't fans of and another commenter mentioned how she hated the girlfriend romances. You know, the ones where it seems like it's really a love story between the X amount of friends. I totally commiserated because I've read those books before.

Soon after, guess what plot bunny came hopping along in my mind? A series with three best friends. Mind you, at this point in time I didn't write connected books. Lynne was a fluke, but Lynne is the kind of character that doesn't sit around quietly. I didn't want to write these books, but then Emma, Abigail and Sasha got to chattering in my head. I'm not exaggerating the chatter part. I figured if I ignored them they'd eventually fade and I could write a book that didn't have trouble written all over it from the get-go.

Weeks later they were still talking and driving me half insane so I decided to go with Emma's story first. She seemed sweet, uncomplicated and wouldn't it be funny if she's doing a naked dare? Boom, right out of the gate I'd have her meet the hero. And I always wanted to write a pastry baker. Even had a story sitting around my harddrive, that never worked, that would be a perfect starting point.

And then I started to write it and ten pages later Emma, Sasha and Abigail were still talking. I kid you not. Even the folks who ended up with those first drafts had to suffer through six pages of chatter. Nothing broken up with narration, but six pages of dialogue.

So, needless to say Double Dare has the most chatter of the three friends. Yes, it's absolutely a romance between Tobias and Emma. I play on the fact that in any given scene with the three woman together Emma's the normal one who could easily be the wallflower. I made sure whenever the three woman are together and Tobias is there, all he can see is Emma. And in a much more profound way all she can see is him. Her friends fade to the background.

Yes, I did that on purpose. I made her friends a huge part of her world. Really, out of the three books this is the most stage time all three woman have on the page. Because the thing is Emma is all about family. Not by blood but the one she chose. She's the one they all turn to. She may not be the loudest, the most extravagant, the sexiest or the most obscene. She's the quiet one, that you should totally look out for by the way. And Tobias needed a family.

This may drive folks nuts. This may make them go, Emma who? when all three are together doing their usual shenanigans, but I promise you when it's just her and Tobias...well, you know it's them in their own world.

So if you hate this kind of romance steer clear. No, seriously, the chatter may drive you nuts. You may fall in love with Sasha or Abigail first and rather have their stories. They have that kind of flair. Their books will come out so you'll just have to wait. Just know Emma is the foundation of this world. That kind of person is quiet, unassuming, interesting once you really get to know them. And I totally did that on purpose.

New Release: Double Dare

First impressions are lasting impressions...

Pastry baker Emmaline Sharp is one business connection away from turning her bakery into something more than the dessert shop on the corner. She believes she’s found Mr. Right in café owner Tobias Merchant. His Caff-aholic brand of freshly brewed coffee makes him the perfect partner. When she accepts a dare that thrusts her naked self into Tobias’ waiting arms, she jeopardizes her entire future. Emma will have to convince him to give her another chance, and somehow she'll just have to ignore the unexpected passion he ignites within her.

Tobias needs the connection with Emma’s bakery, Sweet Tooth, in order to liberate himself from the financial and emotional obligations of his past. Unfortunately, Emma's reckless behavior leaves him doubting she can be level-headed and business savvy. Every one of his instincts tells him to walk away, but she’s a temptation he can't seem to deny. He's inexplicably drawn to the lightness in her, especially when he knows just how dark the world can be. Against his better judgment, Tobias ignores his instincts and proceeds to form a partnership with Emma.

When their relationship shifts from business to personal, will Emma and Tobias be able to conquer their demons and find their sweet reward before the deal turns sour?

Amazon
Smashwords
All Romance eBooks
Kobo

Barnes and Noble link to come.

Plus, behind the book kind of posts. I have tons for this story. Tons. You can start here at the Pinterest board.