Bree Bennett's Blog

Well, hello there. Remember me? I still exist. I think.

Life is crazy for a lot of us humans right now. Crazy can be substituted for so many things - busy, scary, sad, wild, happy, terrifying.

But crazy, nonetheless. And here's where I've been:

I took the past year off from writing to figure out what I wanted to do with it, or even if I wanted to get back into it. I've lost some traction, and I'm okay with that. And now, nearly one year after my last author action (removing Kelly James and Julian Gray from publication), I...guess I've made some decisions?

Two years ago last summer, I quit my full-time job to work on writing full-time. The plan was to ghostwrite for others to pay the bills while building up my catalog until I didn't have to ghostwrite anymore.

But you know what they say about plans. You end up with a pile of mice, men, and bad Steinbeck jokes.

Since the growth of self-publishing - and more accurately, Kindle Unlimited - the ghostwriting industry has become a cluster. I met multiple people in programs that were like pyramid schemes for publishers. "How to become a successful published author - and you don't even have to write!" type deals. They wouldn't have plot outlines or even ideas sometimes. I'd get a few tropes thrown at me and told to make it work for much less than any professional ghostwriter would touch. Oh, and "make it steamy, please."

Any romance author knows that "steamy" covers a LOT of ground. Broken Records has been called closed door, fade to gray, and open door. (I myself would call it fade to gray based on the current norm.)

I sometimes wrote 20,000+ words a day and fell asleep on my keyboard. Seriously. I would write a thousand words, fall asleep, wake up twenty minutes later, write another thousand words, and repeat. I was exhausted and miserable and writing stories that I absolutely hated.

And if I did have time to work on something of my own, I had no energy to write. And like my clients, I was starting to focus on tropes and market trends and not on my stories at all. The Unmasking of Kelly James was pushed back three times because I just couldn't write it. I was trying to fill it with those magic tropes and trends and completely lost myself in the process. But I did what I was "supposed to do," even if I wasn't happy with it.

I released The Unmasking of Kelly James when it felt half-finished to me. The Unraveling of Julian Gray was even worse, in my mind. Thank you to everyone who loved them just the same. That gives me hope to keep writing so I can give you a better story.

But after that, I stopped ghostwriting. And I stopped writing.

I took a year and a half off of writing. I got a new full-time job that I love. Oddly, at a time in our history when everything feels chaotic and scary, I now find myself wanting to write again. Correlation, not causation, or however the cliche goes.

As the "joy of writing" comes back to me - and yes, I cringed as I wrote that - I also find that I don't want to stay in one particular genre or pairing. I enjoy most subgenres of romance. I enjoy writing most subgenres of romance. I've got partial drafts of everything from paranormal to why choose/harem. So....I'm not gonna change my pen name. I spent a year writing as many other people -- I'm good with staying one person.

Does that mean that I will have readers who won't read all my books? Yes. I see it all the time. Readers that read Broken Records don't move on to Mother Road. Readers that were reading Kelly and Julian weren't reading Broken Records. I think you can see a little into that trend. As someone who will read any romance as long as the story is good, it's weird for me to compartmentalize them by pairing type.

I've unofficially stated before that all my characters are canonically pansexual unless otherwise indicated, and I think I read other people's books similarly.

(Because really, Cosette and Eponine would have been happier together. But I digress.)

But, I also understand that everyone reads differently, and just because my brain works like that, doesn't mean someone else does. We don't shame anything about the reading process unless it causes shame towards others in return.

What I'm basically saying is that I haven't disappeared. I plan on having books out again, and soon. I don't know if it will be Kelly James first, or something else, but it will be something, and it will be soon.

I will also be more active here on the blog and on my BlueSky account, where I've already been pretty active. @bellechapinbooks.bsky.social, if you're interested. I'll try and update Instagram more. I suck at Facebook. Always have, always will. I'm sorry in advance if that's your main way of getting info. I will try.

As always, a thank you to those who reach out about Lucy and Broken Records. I'm so happy to have created a character who helps readers feel seen.

These are scary times. Love one another. Help one another. And above all, do something that makes you happy so that you can experience the joy that still exists somewhere in the world.

I know I will.

Mother Road has a release date - May 31! You can preorder the ebook now and the paperback will be available on the day of release.

Just as a reminder, this book does deal with anxiety, grief over the death of a parent and limited mobility due to a car accident. I have worked hard to represent these issues as best I can, however, if you believe something is misrepresented, please reach out to me. This is another reason why I self-publish—I want to learn from my mistakes, but I also want to remedy them as quickly as possible.

Regarding both the anxiety and limited mobility (an injured leg)— there was an issue in Romancelandia a few months ago with an author writing a disabled character and using ableist language, and it really brought the importance of correct vocabulary to light. There is a difference between a character describing themselves with degrading language, if it is part of their character, and the narrative voice using degrading language. While Nico is frustrated with his physical injury, I made sure to use respectful language. Again, please let me know if I have said anything incorrectly, and I will fix it and learn from it.

As for Nico’s anxiety, he is ashamed of it. As we all know, anxiety is not a shameful thing. I have dealt with it for twenty years, and while it is frustrating and exhausting, and it makes me feel shameful, the condition in itself is not a shameful thing. Learning to both accept and cope with his anxiety is part of Nico’s journey, and I hope that those of you who have anxiety, or feel that you may but aren’t sure, come away with the sense that anxiety is part of who you are, and that’s okay.

To paraphrase Eli—”Realize you are a damn miracle that just needs some creative solutions.”

Love, Bree

Mother Road has a release date - May 31! You can preorder the ebook now and the paperback will be available on the day of release.

Just as a reminder, this book does deal with anxiety, grief over the death of a parent and limited mobility due to a car accident. I have worked hard to represent these issues as best I can, however, if you believe something is misrepresented, please reach out to me. This is another reason why I self-publish—I want to learn from my mistakes, but I also want to remedy them as quickly as possible.

Regarding both the anxiety and limited mobility (an injured leg)— there was an issue in Romancelandia a few months ago with an author writing a disabled character and using ableist language, and it really brought the importance of correct vocabulary to light. There is a difference between a character describing themselves with degrading language, if it is part of their character, and the narrative voice using degrading language. While Nico is frustrated with his physical injury, I made sure to use respectful language. Again, please let me know if I have said anything incorrectly, and I will fix it and learn from it.

As for Nico’s anxiety, he is ashamed of it. As we all know, anxiety is not a shameful thing. I have dealt with it for twenty years, and while it is frustrating and exhausting, and it makes me feel shameful, the condition in itself is not a shameful thing. Learning to both accept and cope with his anxiety is part of Nico’s journey, and I hope that those of you who have anxiety, or feel that you may but aren’t sure, come away with the sense that anxiety is part of who you are, and that’s okay.

To paraphrase Eli—”Realize you are a damn miracle that just needs some creative solutions.”Love, Bree

Bree Bennett

Hello everyone! A few updates.

1) I will know the official release date on Friday, May 20, but I am shooting for May 31 for Mother Road. I’ll update the blog among all the other social media at the same time when I know for sure. May 31 was my dad’s birthday. The pro of that, this date honors his encouragement for my writing. The con would be that he often got carsick, so maybe a road trip book isn’t the best choice. :D

2) I have a TikTok. OMG. I’m super shy about how I look and honestly, I wasn’t going to do the video/pic thing on social media. Alexis Hall doesn’t, and often, where Alexis Hall goes, so goes my nation. But I swallowed my pride and a few Tums and did it anyway. The username is @authorbreebennett like most things. So far it is me talking about writing, my neurodivergent ways, growing out my pixie cut, and videos of Harry Houdini, my kitten. All very important things. You can of course find me on Instagram (@authorbreebennett) and Twitter (@authorbbennett because I couldn’t get the long name), although Twitter can be a bit of a trash fire sometime and it’s usually just me requoting tweets with “THIS.”

3) The ebook cover of Broken Records was slightly retooled to match Mother Road’s cover, and the paperback was retooled to match completely.

That’s all for now. Some exciting things are in the hopper, but most importantly, Mother Road is coming soon!!

Hello everyone! A few updates.

1) I will know the official release date on Friday, May 20, but I am shooting for May 31 for Mother Road. I’ll update the blog among all the other social media at the same time when I know for sure. May 31 was my dad’s birthday. The pro of that, this date honors his encouragement for my writing. The con would be that he often got carsick, so maybe a road trip book isn’t the best choice. :D

2) I have a TikTok. OMG. I’m super shy about how I look and honestly, I wasn’t going to do the video/pic thing on social media. Alexis Hall doesn’t, and often, where Alexis Hall goes, so goes my nation. But I swallowed my pride and a few Tums and did it anyway. The username is @authorbreebennett like most things. So far it is me talking about writing, my neurodivergent ways, growing out my pixie cut, and videos of Harry Houdini, my kitten. All very important things. You can of course find me on Instagram (@authorbreebennett) and Twitter (@authorbbennett because I couldn’t get the long name), although Twitter can be a bit of a trash fire sometime and it’s usually just me requoting tweets with “THIS.”

3) The ebook cover of Broken Records was slightly retooled to match Mother Road’s cover, and the paperback was retooled to match completely.

That’s all for now. Some exciting things are in the hopper, but most importantly, Mother Road is coming soon!!

Bree Bennett

I’m doing my final edits on Mother Road, so I’m too tired to come up with a good blog title. To keep you posted, Mother Road goes to the final editor in two weeks, so I hope to have it out to you on May 31. I’ll post if that changes. For now, let’s have some fun…

Five Facts About Mother Road:

1) Almost all of the book's entirety takes place on Route 66, the historic road that runs from Chicago, IL, to Santa Monica, CA. I could have made this book 2,000 pages long with all the amazing things I read about the history of the road. Honestly, I think my kids could write a book about Route 66 now with as much as I’ve talked about it. Most of the scenes occur in real locations, but there are a few fictitious ones.

2) The leads, Nico Meyer and Eli Tenney, are two bisexual males. Queer representation is extremely important to me in the books that I read. Often, you see bisexuality treated as a plot point rather than an aspect of a character. While done well occasionally, it usually comes off as tiresome and even offensive. Mother Road is absolutely and foremost about two people falling in love, regardless of sexuality or gender. Their sexuality is not a plot point, and I hope that I have portrayed their identities in a thoughtful manner.

3) In addition, as seen in Broken Records with both Lucy and Jack, mental health awareness is also something that I like to see represented in books. I know this is something that can be triggering for some readers, so I wanted to warn you ahead of time. Nico suffers from anxiety and panic attacks, and has trouble eating because of this. Eli is dealing with the grief of losing a parent. However, I firmly believe that you cannot have sadness without humor, and vice versa, so I still promise that this book lands on both sides of that spectrum. There’s heartache, but there are also donkeys, and donkeys are adorable.

4) As I’ve stated before, a lot of this book was written from some demonic place inside my soul that needed to out-nerd myself. This time, it’s all about literature. Message me if you catch any of them. I can think of four in the first chapter off the top of my head, ranging from subtle to very unsubtle. I’m shaking my head at myself for some of these. English teachers of the world, I apologize now. I also apologize to anyone who doesn’t get the references and just thinks I’m writing while high. Finally, I apologize to anyone who has ever thought of Mr. Darcy as the epitome of all romantic leads. I apologize most ardently.

5) As always, there’s a little bit of each Meyer family member, but Matteo, Lucy, and Nonna have more page time in this book. (Yes, Jack is there too. He’s not in jail. Yet.)

Love you all, more info to come soon.

I’m doing my final edits on Mother Road, so I’m too tired to come up with a good blog title. To keep you posted, Mother Road goes to the final editor in two weeks, so I hope to have it out to you on May 31. I’ll post if that changes. For now, let’s have some fun…

Five Facts About Mother Road:

1) Almost all of the book's entirety takes place on Route 66, the historic road that runs from Chicago, IL, to Santa Monica, CA. I could have made this book 2,000 pages long with all the amazing things I read about the history of the road. Honestly, I think my kids could write a book about Route 66 now with as much as I’ve talked about it. Most of the scenes occur in real locations, but there are a few fictitious ones.

2) The leads, Nico Meyer and Eli Tenney, are two bisexual males. Queer representation is extremely important to me in the books that I read. Often, you see bisexuality treated as a plot point rather than an aspect of a character. While done well occasionally, it usually comes off as tiresome and even offensive. Mother Road is absolutely and foremost about two people falling in love, regardless of sexuality or gender. Their sexuality is not a plot point, and I hope that I have portrayed their identities in a thoughtful manner.

3) In addition, as seen in Broken Records with both Lucy and Jack, mental health awareness is also something that I like to see represented in books. I know this is something that can be triggering for some readers, so I wanted to warn you ahead of time. Nico suffers from anxiety and panic attacks, and has trouble eating because of this. Eli is dealing with the grief of losing a parent. However, I firmly believe that you cannot have sadness without humor, and vice versa, so I still promise that this book lands on both sides of that spectrum. There’s heartache, but there are also donkeys, and donkeys are adorable.

4) As I’ve stated before, a lot of this book was written from some demonic place inside my soul that needed to out-nerd myself. This time, it’s all about literature. Message me if you catch any of them. I can think of four in the first chapter off the top of my head, ranging from subtle to very unsubtle. I’m shaking my head at myself for some of these. English teachers of the world, I apologize now. I also apologize to anyone who doesn’t get the references and just thinks I’m writing while high. Finally, I apologize to anyone who has ever thought of Mr. Darcy as the epitome of all romantic leads. I apologize most ardently.

5) As always, there’s a little bit of each Meyer family member, but Matteo, Lucy, and Nonna have more page time in this book. (Yes, Jack is there too. He’s not in jail. Yet.)Love you all, more info to come soon.

Bree Bennett

And so is Mother Road, at last. I’ll update you when I’ve got the preorder page up. This book was significantly more difficult due to extenuating circumstances as well as the subject matter, but in the end, I’m excited to share it with you. Half the fun of it is me trying to out-nerd myself. There is are multiple lines/scenes that are so ridiculous and I don’t know if anyone will actually catch the meaning, but it makes me so ridiculously happy.

Last night, I put some of the text through a text-to-voice app just to hear someone that sounded like a British wizard say naughty words. So, you know, I’m adulting hard.

Here’s a bit of information in the meantime!

BLURB:

Seven months after the accident that changed his life, Nico Meyer just wants everything to settle back to the way it was. A solo trip across historical Route 66 seems to be the soul-searching journey he needs—until a snarky stowaway derails all of his plans.

On par with the rest of his life, Eli Tenney manages to lose everything in a single night. An honest mistake—and some fast talking—gives him the chance to postpone his return to the real world, as long as he doesn’t drive the grumpy literature professor at his side completely crazy.

Featuring a psychedelic van, lots of milkshakes, classic American tourist attractions, and plenty of Meyer family craziness, Mother Road is a road trip romance about two lost souls learning that on life’s highway, there’s no turning back.

TRIGGER WARNINGS: Car accident and recovery (including reduced mobility); cancer and caring for a cancer patient; grief and death of a parent; anxiety and depression, including panic attacks

And so is Mother Road, at last. I’ll update you when I’ve got the preorder page up. This book was significantly more difficult due to extenuating circumstances as well as the subject matter, but in the end, I’m excited to share it with you. Half the fun of it is me trying to out-nerd myself. There is are multiple lines/scenes that are so ridiculous and I don’t know if anyone will actually catch the meaning, but it makes me so ridiculously happy.

Last night, I put some of the text through a text-to-voice app just to hear someone that sounded like a British wizard say naughty words. So, you know, I’m adulting hard.Here’s a bit of information in the meantime!

BLURB:Seven months after the accident that changed his life, Nico Meyer just wants everything to settle back to the way it was. A solo trip across historical Route 66 seems to be the soul-searching journey he needs—until a snarky stowaway derails all of his plans.

On par with the rest of his life, Eli Tenney manages to lose everything in a single night. An honest mistake—and some fast talking—gives him the chance to postpone his return to the real world, as long as he doesn’t drive the grumpy literature professor at his side completely crazy.

Featuring a psychedelic van, lots of milkshakes, classic American tourist attractions, and plenty of Meyer family craziness, Mother Road is a road trip romance about two lost souls learning that on life’s highway, there’s no turning back.

TRIGGER WARNINGS: Car accident and recovery (including reduced mobility); cancer and caring for a cancer patient; grief and death of a parent; anxiety and depression, including panic attacks

Bree Bennett