Lola Taylor's Blog

Little over 2 years ago, I said I was done writing romance, period. Funny thing is, that’s all I read. And, as it turned out, all I continued to write. I started and stopped an epic fantasy I’d been wanting to write, but I couldn’t seem to get past the first act. My mind kept circling back to romance stories, tales of suspense, passion, danger and, yes, werewolves. And vampires and witches and faeries.

I have so many more paranormal romance stories to tell, and I want to share them with you all. They won’t be quite as spicy as what I wrote as Lola Taylor. You can read more about that here. But the tone will be the same, a mixture of humor, suspense, and PNR.

The Blackbriar Creek Wolves series I was going to write as Lola will actually be my first series under my new pen name. Some of you got to see a few chapters from my initial draft of that story. That draft never sat well with me, and now I know why. I wasn’t writing the story the way I wanted to write it. And that drained the joy out of my writing.

I hope you’ll join me on this new journey. My new pen name has a separate website. Learn more about Kaedee Jones here.

Thanks for reading, and Happy Holidays.

Lola

I’ve been thinking about how to word this for a while now, even before I knew I wanted to quit writing romance.

That’s right–after a lot of soul searching and brutal honesty, I have decided to quit writing romance altogether and return to my roots, what got me into writing in the first place… epic fantasy and science fiction.

So I’m not quitting writing, you see. I just won’t be publishing any further books under the pen name Lola Taylor… or anymore romance in the foreseeable future. Yes, this also means Mercenary Moon will never be published. I’m sorry for getting your hopes up about it. If I’m honest, it became harder and harder to sit down and write that book because my heart was no longer in it.

For a long time now, cranking out a romance novel has been about as enjoyable as a trip to the dentist’s office. Writing romance was fun at first. Then it became more about just making money. My writing suffered, and I didn’t want to charge readers for subpar work. I want my words to shine, to mean something. I want to be proud of what I write. Creative efforts should recharge your soul, not suck the life from you.

So I’m returning to the genre that got me writing in the first place. My first love has always been retold fairy tales… stories about knights and princesses and castles and magic. About faraway lands and happily ever afters. It may not be the “hottest selling” genre, but that doesn’t matter to me anymore. I’m getting older, with less and less time available to me. And the market’s gotten a lot tougher over the years as more and more authors choose indie. If I’m going to keep writing and publishing, I might as well do it with something that makes me 100% happy. Otherwise, what’s the point? Might as well go do something else, or, if I’m just in it for the money, sign up for more overtime at work or get another job.

Thank you to everyone who has supported this pen name over the past three years. You’re some of the sweetest readers I’ve had, and your support has meant the world to me.

I’ll be leaving this site up, but I will no longer be updating it (except to post links to the rest of my books in paperback). No more blog posts, no more social media. No more newsletters.

And if you’re wondering, I do already have an epic fantasy pen name, from long ago when I first started. And I’m choosing to keep it a secret, because I want to keep the two genres (romance and fantasy) as separated as possible because they are VASTLY different. Please don’t needle me about it.

A word of closing… if you’re a writer, the last bit of advice I could give you is write what you love. It’s the only path to true creative happiness.

With love,

Lola

Read Part I. 

Attribution: Featured image from Shutterstock. Fonts from Canva. Created in Canva.

In the last post, I covered the bulk of what’s most important for hobbyists or people on the fence. If you’re serious about making money from this writing gig, then read on.

Thinking of writing as a business

Businesses make money. If you want to make money at writing, you have to treat it as a business. That means investing time in learning the craft and money in professional covers, editing, formatting, editing, marketing, and, oh yeah, editing. (Editing is often the most expensive part, and thus, the most skipped over. Don’t skimp on editing. At the very least hire a copy editor to clean your manuscript up. I don’t care how good of an editor you think you are. There are special rules for editing fiction, and you’re better served having a professional evaluate your work. For my list of recommended editors, click here.)

Check out Shannon Mayer’s post on treating writing like a business.
Dean Wesley Smith also has a business workshop (I’ve taken it, and it’s great.)

DBA or not DBA?

DBA = Doing Business As. In other words, you can setup your own publishing company, like I did with Indigo Dreamer Press, and publish all your books under that one company. Some states require you to register a DBA, if I’m correct. (Still learning in this area. Ask local authors to see what they do.) For me, I wanted to setup a DBA/publishing imprint so I would look more legitimate. Looking more legitimate leads to bookstores and libraries being more comfortable with ordering your books. More distribution = more eyeballs on your books = more money.

If you setup a DBA, you need to consider a separate website for your DBA/imprint. (I still need to set mine up. Bad Lola. *slaps hand*) You’ll also need to consider getting a logo designed, like I did below. I went through 99Designs. It was a good experience overall. Just be sure to make it a “closed/blind” contest. Otherwise, the designers will all start copying each other.

99Designs – let designers compete to present you with an eye-catching design

The Elephant in the Room – Marketing

Publishing houses expect authors to do most, if not all, of their marketing. (Unless you are offered a substantial advance, substantial meaning seven figures.) Indie authors also do most of their own marketing. So either way, it pays to be informed on this subject.

Many writers loathe marketing. It doesn’t have to be this huge pain in the ass that sucks away your writing time. In fact, it shouldn’t. Longterm writers preach that your best form of marketing is releasing your next book. After all, backlist is king. The more often you release, the more often you’ll appear on new release lists.

Rather than get into exhaustive detail on an already massive subject, I will instead list a few things to consider when putting together your marketing plan. Remember, you cannot control how many books you will sell, but you can control how much marketing you will do.

Joanna Penn just re-released her marketing book and it’s fabulous.
The Creative Penn Podcast is Joanna’s weekly show about marketing and the publishing industry
Even if you don’t write sci-fi/fantasy, The Science Fiction and Fantasy Marketing Podcast is a great marketing resource
I list additional marketing resources on my For Writers page

Marketing ideas (You don’t have to do all. The key is to experiment. Stick with what gives you good results. Throw out what doesn’t. It’s really that simple.)

Blog tours
Cover reveals
Facebook advertising
Google AdSense
Merchandising on Kobo, B&N, and other third party distributors that aren’t Amazon
Amazon ads
KU
Guest posts (on your site and on others’)
Interviews
Character interviews
Deleted scenes
Extra scenes
Social media posts
Goodreads ads
Giveaways
Freebies
Sales
Perma-frees
Boxed sets
Anthologies
Collections
Blogging a book
Serials
Newsletters

Different types of marketing

Content marketing
Cause marketing
Push/pull marketing
Social Media marketing
Paid advertising
Giveaways

The whole goal of marketing is exposure. You want to put your books in front of the right readers. Also, after you’ve written your book and decide you want to make money with it, consider who your target audience is. If you have no clue, do some Google searches about “defining my target audience” and do your research. It’s what I did.

I have had no business or marketing classes (other than Dean’s business for writers workshop, which I suggest you take). I’ve learned everything by experimentation, researching things on my own, and devouring every article, podcast, and book I can about these subjects. I still have a lot to learn. The learning will never stop.

Enjoy the journey, and good luck.

 

 

Attribution: Featured image from Shutterstock. Fonts from Canva. Created in Canva.

Over the years, people will privately message or email me this question. Now that I have eight years’ worth of experience under my belt, I thought I might be able to give some good advice on the topic.

How does one become a fiction writer?

The short answer–there is no right or wrong answer to this. It all depends on what your goals are and how far down the rabbit hole you want to go (insert Laurence Fishburne and his cool glasses).

First of all, you need to decide why you want to write.

As solely a creative outlet? As a source of income?

As your only source of income?

Each one of these statements brings a different set of challenges and possible rewards. Some people write and publish their work online for the sole reward of sharing it with others. The act of writing and “gifting” it to others freely is gratification enough for them.

Places to freely publish your work for exposure and networking. (A word of caution–be sure to read through every platform’s Terms of Service before posting anything.)

Blogging platforms, like WordPress or Blogger. You can even learn how to blog a book. Andy Weir, the author of The Martian (yes, the book the movie by the same title starring Matt Damon is based off of) found great success blogging his book. The free exposure helped him accumulate a massive audience, which attracted a publisher… then Ridley Freakin’ Scott.
Wattpad (geared more toward teens)
Fictionpress (Fantasy author Sarah J. Maas built a platform and snagged updwards of 10k reviews before landing a publishing deal for her work, Throne of Glass.)

For others, they are content with self-publishing just to see their work in print. They don’t much care if they sell anything or become famous. They’re hobbyists, not career writers, and that’s okay.

Some places you can publish your work via Print-On-Demand:

Createspace
Lightning Source
Ingram Spark
Lulu

Then there are writers who write for money and creative satisfaction. Some are all right with earning supplementary income to their day jobs, and others want to pursue writing as their sole vocation. Both are worthy pursuits, because every person has different ideas of what success and happiness look like.

To learn more of what it’s like pursuing writing as a career, I highly recommend the following websites/blogs:

The Creative Penn
Dean Wesley Smith’s blog
Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s blog, The Business Rusch

Before you start learning how to write (and I can guarantee you already have an idea of how story works… more on that later), first sit down and ask yourself, “Why am I doing this?” You don’t have to mull and fuss over this question all day, but when you have clearly defined goals, it offers you the straightest path to true happiness.

So Step 1) Figure out why you want to be a writer, and be brutally honest with yourself. Whatever your answer is, it’s all right. You can always change your mind later if you want to back off your goals or add more fuel to the fire.

…. Got your answer? Good. Now that you know why you want to write, the next most important question is–

What the heck are you gonna write?

You might already know this answer. But if you don’t, allow me to ask you another question–what do you most enjoy reading? Sexy contemporary romances? Books about fantasy worlds and magical powers? Gripping mysteries and thrillers?

If you’re in this for the money, you might be thinking, “Well, I’ll write romance, because I wanna make mega-bucks!”

Sorry, but I’m gonna have to burst your bubble. While it’s true that romance is the best-selling genre, it’s damn hard to make a career, let alone big money, at writing any genre. Period. You need tremendous talent, even greater discipline, and iron-clad determination and persistence. Not many people get rich and famous off of writing, and those that do are outliers. They got lucky. Or worked their asses off until they got lucky (or learned the ropes of business, writing craft, and marketing… no small feat).

Either way, if you’re hoping writing is your key to quick riches, please let go of that delusion right now.

Step 2) Figure out what genre you want to write. My suggestion is to look at your Read Shelf on Goodreads (if you use that platform) or make a list of your favorite books. Notice any patterns? Perhaps you notice you like a blend of mysteries and romance. You could combine the two and write romantic suspense. Or you could focus on a subgenre of mysteries (serial-killer-thrillers) or romance (motorcycle club, often dubbed “MC,” contemporary romances). Again, there is no right or wrong answer.

Write what you love, and you can’t go wrong. Because at the end of the day, there’s no guarantee your book will sell (if selling is your goal). So write first to please yourself, then put it out for the rest of the world to read, if you so desire.

Along that note, don’t be disappointed if your first book doesn’t sell many copies. Thanks to the ease of self-publishing, there are a ton of new books published every day. And competition is fierce. At this stage, you shouldn’t worry so much about selling XYZ copies. Focus on figuring out what will make you happiest to write, and then go learn story.

Step 3) Learn the art of story.

If you want to be a writer, chances are you love to read. Readers pick up on how story works by reading a lot. So my first suggestion is to pick out at least 5 books (10 is better) in the genre you want to write in and study them. What worked? What didn’t? What do they have in common? This will give you a good ear for what works and what doesn’t in your genre.

In addition to reading often and writing daily, I strongly suggest you study the craft of writing. It’s true that the pros break the rules every day, but they also had to learn the rules before they could break them.

To learn the basics of writing craft, I suggest the following books:

Plot and Structure by James Scott Bell *I’d start here if you’re brand new to the craft of storytelling.
The Plot Whisperer by Martha Alderson
The Story Template by Amy Deardon

These three books will give you a solid foundation in story structure, one of the building blocks of story. Other areas to consider are dialogue, character building, scene depth/interactive scenes, pacing, voice, and grammar. Each genre comes with specific reader expectations, sometimes called “tropes,” that you will need to be aware of. For example, romance readers expect a HEA (happily ever after) or HFN (happily for now). If you kill the couple at the end of the story, you have a tragedy, not a romance. And you will have some very unhappy romance readers.

You can check out my Writer’s Resources page for a full list of resource materials covering the other areas of writing craft.

If you’re hoping to make a career out of writing, or want to get more serious about this vocation as a possible source of revenue, then I also encourage you to study business, entrepreneurship, marketing, and the publishing industry. Every “top” writer–Nora Roberts, Stephen King, Danielle Steel, Nicholas Sparks–didn’t attain their level of success without learning the ropes of business. So don’t skimp on that. Especially nowadays, with so many writers choosing to self-publish some, if not all, their work, it’s important to become business savvy.

The rabbit hole goes so much deeper, for those interested in pursuing this as a career, or at least, as a source of supplementary income. I will cover this in more depth in my next blog post in July’s newsletter.

In the meantime, don’t hesitate to write to me if you have any questions. Good luck if you’re starting your writing adventure!

Blurb:

Calliope Hart is a siren; yet there’s more to her than just her magickal blood. Calliope has a tragic past— a curse courtesy of her father. Any man she loves will die.



Godric Deveraux is a heart-stopping-wipe-the-drool-from-your-mouth sexy vampire-djinn hybrid who’s on a mission to rejoin his family. After being disowned, he plans to save his niece to prove he isn’t the monster everyone thinks he is. Only Calliope can see through the bad-boy persona and into the heart of the dark creature who only wants to belong… and claim Calliope as his own.



War will come. Friends will die, sacrifices will be made, and loyalty will be tested in a battle of trust and betrayal. Can true love break the spell? Or will the curse keep them apart, forever?

Exclusive Excerpt:

    Every touch from Godric was genuine. Every glance. Every assurance that even though I pushed him away over and over, he wasn’t going to leave me. He called me his. And I knew he wanted me sexually; every man on the planet wanted a Siren. It was built into our genome to be lusted after, but with Godric, it went further than physical attraction. It delved into the realm of magick and souls and promises that I could never fulfill. It broke my heart to look at him and know I would never be able to have him…not completely. But I certainly didn’t have to stand by and watch his self-righteous, hateful sister beat him into the dirt for a choice he’d made thousands of years ago.

USA TODAY BESTSELLING Author Krystal Shannan leads readers on a breathtaking journey through the heart stopping last book of her bestselling Sanctuary, Texas series. Fans of paranormal authors such as Patricia Briggs will love this urban fantasy adventure packed with shifters, magic, and spell-binding romance.

 

Buy Links:

 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Vampire-Knight-Sanctuary-Texas-Book-ebook/dp/B071P7Y2QL

 

Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35263375-my-vampire-knight

 

Kobo:

https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/my-vampire-knight

 

iBooks:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/my-vampire-knight/id1162488380?mt=11

 

Nook:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/my-vampire-knight-krystal-shannan/1126461736

 

GooglePlay:

https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Krystal_Shannan_My_Vampire_Knight?id=daUkDwAAQBAJ

 

~About the Author~

 

Krystal Shannan, also known as Emma Roman, lives in a sprawling ranch style home with her husband, daughter, and a pack of rescue Basset Hounds. She is an advocate for Autism Awareness and shares the experiences and adventures she’s been through with her daughter whenever she can.

 

Needless to say, life is never boring when you have an elementary-aged special needs child you are homeschooling and half a dozen 4-legged friends roaming the house. They keep her and her husband busy, smiling, and laughing.

 

Krystal writes magick and Emma doesn’t. If you are looking for leisurely-paced sweet romance, her books are probably not for you. However, for those looking for a story filled with adventure, passion, and just enough humor to make you laugh out loud. Welcome home!

 

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/MeantToBeRomance/

Newsletter: http://www.krystalshannan.com/newsletter/

Website: http://www.krystalshannan.com/

Coming Soon

It’s time to fall in love with a new family of sexy werewolves, starting with Mercenary Moon (Blackbriar Creek Wolves Book 1).

***NOTE: This hasn’t been professionally copyedited yet. Grammar, spelling, and typos will be fixed before final publication. =) Enjoy! Don’t forget–newsletter subscribers get free chapters I don’t share with the public. Sign up here to get in on the action.***

MERCENARY MOON

Blackbriar Creek Wolves #1

By

Lola Taylor

He ’s bad to the bone… and so is she.

 

Werewolf Nyx Dawson has blood on his paws—a lot of it. But he’s done with the brutal life of a mercenary. Doesn’t mean he ever thought he’d end up in his small, Southern hometown of Blackbriar Creek, Tennessee. Back with his mother and baby sister, and the rowdy bunch of werewolves he’d sworn a pack oath to as a pup. For a while, life seems peaceful, and he thinks he can put his dark past behind him—until one of the most vicious, powerful alphas this side of the Smokies shows up and threatens to kill his family if he doesn’t comply with his demands…

Evangeline “Eva” Carlyle has spent her life wearing a mask. Being the perfect, obedient daughter. Being the stoic alpha-elect of her father’s pack. Being the face of her father’s paranormal pharmaceutical company, Carlyle Enterprises. Only, she doesn’t want her sizable inheritance or his paltry love—she wants his head. A life for a life, the collection of a blood debt that has been long overdue. The Golden Wolf is going to answer for his many covered up crimes against the paranormal world, and she’s determined to be the harbinger of justice.

But her father’s nobody’s fool. He knows someone is out to get him, and so blackmails one of the deadliest mercenaries into hunting down his would-be killer and taking them out first. Legend or not, Eva doesn’t think the arrogant and hotter-than-hell Nyx will be a problem. And Nyx certainly would never allow himself to fall for a werewolf aristocrat, no matter how much his inner wolf yearns to mate with her.

As the two of them tiptoe around each other, sparks begin to fly and passion mounts. Secrets—and blood—will be spilled. The closer Nyx grows to Eva, the more he’s convinced she’s his mate. And in the end, he’ll have to make the ultimate decision—kill the woman he loves to save his family, or defy his greatest enemy and risk losing everyone he holds dear.

 

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Chapter One

 

This is the last time, Nyx promised himself as he pulled open the heavy wooden door and stepped inside the shifter bar. He loved the smell of Pete’s Pub—aged wood, fresh beer, cigarette smoke, and greasy food. The sounds of card games, pool balls smacking around a beer-stained table, rock n’ roll blasting over the radio, and big talk and laughter met his ears. But what Nyx loved even better about this place was the way the air changed as he stepped into the room.

Heads swiveled.

Conversation dried up.

Nyx’s muddy shitkickers made heavy thuds across the wheezing wooden floor as he crossed the room and sat down at the bar beside a grizzly old man. The weight of at least twenty pairs of eyes settled comfortably around Nyx’s shoulders.

“Hey, man!” Pete, red-bronze hair shining like a flame atop his head, came around, threw a towel over his shoulder, and shook Nyx’s hand. “If it isn’t the infamous Nyx Dawson, come back from the big city to see us lowlife country folk.”

“I’ve seen worse.”

“I bet you have. Welcome back, you cranky son of a bitch. You still like Sam Adams?”

“Yep.”

“Here you go, nice and cold. So how have you been?”

“Same shit, different day.”

“Probably you starting the shit.”

“Finishing it is more like it.”

“You still raising hell?”

“With the best of ‘em. How’s Mary?”

“Eight months pregnant and ready to burst. She’s excited, though. We both are.”

“As well you should be. Congratulations, man. You’ve done well for yourself since high school. A mate, pups, your own business.”

“Yeah.” Pete’s eyes shone with pride as he gazed out over his patrons, his bar. Conversation had picked back up, though quieter than before. “I still can’t believe this reality is mine. I mean, my family and I aren’t living like royalty, by any means—”

“Yeah, you are.” Nyx smiled, feeling a twitch of envy in his chest. Sometimes, it surprised him he still had a heart. “What you have is gold. Never forget that.”

“Hey, Pete, get an old man a refill, would you?” said the gray-haired, bearded man beside Nyx.

“You got it, Mr. Snow.”

Mathias Snow sat atop the stool waiting, elbows on the bartop, calloused hands clasped tightly.

“Been a long time, Mathias.”

Mathias’ back stiffened, which he quickly tried to cover up by stretching his arms above his head and yawning. “Long time is an understatement, boy. What has it been, a decade since you skipped town? The last time I saw you was on Blackbriar High’s graduation day. I remember because I was so stunned to see you’d made it.”

“Prick. Damn near didn’t, thanks to your whacked out grading scale.”

“I can’t help it you suck at chemistry and didn’t want tutoring.”

Pete returned with the frothy mug of piss—excuse him, “light beer”—and scurried around the bar to break up a bar fight in the back of the room.

Nyx watched with amusement. “Wolves will be wolves,” he murmured.

“Neanderthals will be Neanderthals. Blackbriar’s finest,” muttered Mathias, taking a long swig of his beer. Nyx watched his Adam’s apple bob and his throat tighten. Mathias shifted in his seat, glanced at him, glanced away. Drummed his fingers against the mug. “You sticking around for a while?”

“Planning on it.” Nyx continued to stare at his former teacher, between casual sips of his Sam Adams.

Nyx’s ears pricked as Mathias’ heart rate kicked up a notch, exciting Nyx’s inner wolf. “How’s Christine?”

“Graduating from med school next week.” Mathias’ whole face lit up, his anxiety broken. For the moment. “She’s got her mamma’s work ethic and my smarts. She’s a good girl.”

“Yeah.” While Mathias had been talking, Nyx’s hand had slipped into his coat pocket and retrieved a picture. He dropped it on the counter in front of Mathias.

Mathias went still and pale. His eyes widened as he stared, stared, and stared, fingers frozen on the mug, eyes frozen on the picture. A pretty blonde, maybe sixteen, fifteen. Tanned skin, blue eyes, full of life. At least they had been. There hadn’t been much life left when Nyx had found her.

“Was Maria Eddington a good girl, Mathias?”

“I-I don’t”—hard swallow—“I d-don’t know what you’re talking about. I-I’ve never seen this girl.”

“Sure you have.” He produced another picture and dropped it atop the first. He leaned a bit closer. “Patrons of the Silver Owl saw you pick her up after you paid for her. You know sex with an under-aged girl is illegal whether you’re human or Other, right, Mathias?”

“I—”

“Sit down,” Nyx growled, placing a hand on Mathias’ shoulder as he tried to stand. He came around back of his old professor, kept both hands on his shoulders as he brought his mouth next to his ear. “Human trafficking, especially that of children, is an unforgivable crime. You’re a sick, sick fuck, Mr. Snow.”

“I didn’t know—”

“What, that she was kidnapped? Drugged, beaten, and God knows what else between her home in Santa Barbara and where you picked her up in Memphis? The Silver Owl’s gone, by the way.” He made a explosion sound as he puffed out his cheeks and spread his hands wide.

“The bomb… That was you?”

Nyx grinned.

“Perry will kill you for this.”

“Perry’s dead.” Mathias went from white to green as Nyx got in his face. “As you will be, if you don’t make the right choice.”

“Choice?”

“Turn yourself in, confess all your crimes, and request they lock you up and throw away the key.”

“I can’t do that! I have a lecture series in Washington soon. My career, my research, is finally taking off.”

“The dead don’t talk, Mr. Snow. You can either face God after you’ve lived out your life in prison—or you can face me, the closest thing to the Devil your kind can find on this earth. You can live or die, I don’t give a shit which, but it damn well will be on my terms.”

“My wife, Karen… Christine…”

“Will be better off without you. So which will it be, Mathias? Life or death? Because if you choose death, I can promise you you won’t leave this bar. Either way, you’re never going home, so get used to that fact.”

Mathias swallowed hard. Tears filled his eyes. “My work…”

“Yeah, I’m heartbroken. Maria won’t ever get a chance to complete her life’s work either, thanks to you. You had your way with her, then you murdered her to cover up the evidence.”

“I… I never meant for it to go that far.”

“Yeah, you did. You’re a murderer, plain and simple. And the Angel of Justice just came calling.” He grinned. “Angel sounds too good for what I am, deep down in my black soul. I would call myself the Grim Reaper, but my pack brother’s already claimed that title.”

Mathias shivered at the mention of Reaper and rubbed his arms, as if he’d gone cold all over. He stared long and hard at his hands. “I’ll never go home again.”

“Nope.”

“Hey, Nyx? Everything all right?”

“Yeah, Pete. It will be, soon. Do me a favor would you? Lieutenant Stone still working at the sheriff’s office?”

“Actually, it’s Chief Stone now.”

“Even better. Dial her up for me. Let her know she’s got a child killer coming her way, ready to pay for his sins.”

Pete’s eyes flashed in shock, darted to Mathias and back again. He didn’t question Nyx, just grabbed the phone off the wall and punched in the numbers.

“Oh, and Mathias?”

“Yeah?”

Bam!

The sharp crack of knuckles meeting skull lit up Nyx’s hand, and then Mathias was flying, eyes rolling back in his head. The stool clattered as he hit the floor, groaning.

The other patrons gave Nyx a wide berth as he strolled over, knelt down, and spit on Mathias’ face. Right on the bruise blossoming over his eye. “That’s for Maria, you son of a bitch.” Hoisting the lousy sack of shit over his shoulder, he stood and started toward the door.

The silence was back, tenser this time. As were the stares, but hell, he was used to those.

He tossed a wad of cash onto the counter. “Nice seeing you, Pete. Keep the change, and say hi to the misses for me.”

“Yeah…” was the last thing he heard before the door slammed shut behind him.

 




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April was an INSANELY busy month for me. Like, wow! I blinked and it was gone. I didn’t mean or plan for it to be that packed. It just kind of happened. Did some interesting things, though, so I thought I’d share. =)

Tennessee Trip

My side of the family lives in Tennessee (I currently live in Nebraska). While I do like NE, I miss the beauty of Tennessee’s forests and hills. There’s just so much green down there. And the landscape isn’t flat. *grins* Midwesterners will know what I’m talking about. It’s VERY flat here! Hello, cornfields!

Anyway, I stayed with my mom, and her place is kind of out in the country in a sort of woodsy area. I was sitting on the couch talking to her one morning, and I noticed this cute little wreath hanging on her back door. I said, “Hey, I like you wreath.”

She says, “Thanks… what’s that hanging off it?”

“Oh. I thought it was a bow.” I get up to go look. “Um, Mom… that’s a bigass snake.”

She. Flipped. Out.

So what do two brave, independent Southern women do? She calls up my stepdad to come kill it. While she screams, like, the entire time. Funny thing is, she had been opening that door up all morning to let the dog out. Probably with the snake just chilling there, hanging out. No pun intended. *grins*

Anyway, she promptly took down the wreath and the hanger after that, too freaked out to leave them up.

And I ended up with a cute little wreath on my front door here in Nebraska. =) Sans, snake.

Heavy Metal Concert

Okay, I’m not much of a metal fan. I like good music, and if it’s catchy, I’ll listen to anything. It’s been a long time since my hubby or I have been to a concert, and neither one of us had ever been to a heavy metal show.

There were four bands in town–Motionless in White, Gemini Syndrome, Avatar, and In This Moment, who was the headliner (and female-fronted! Girl power!). We were there to see In This Moment (you might have heard some of their songs… I’ll list them below), but we both really liked Gemini Syndrome. All the bands had killer stage presence and put on a great show, but Avatar and Motionless in White were a bit too heavy for our tastes. *smiles*

The place was packed. It was in an old auditorium downtown, where there’s standing room only. In This Moment is a pretty big name in the metal scene, so I was surprised they chose such a small venue (which sold out, no surprise). But I’ve also heard that a lot of musicians prefer those smaller venues because it feels more intimate. It brings them closer to the audience. The drummer for Gemini Syndrome even snapped a picture of the crowd and bowed in thanks before leaving the stage. Apparently, he’s been taking pictures of each crowd everywhere they’ve been and posting it to their Facebook page, which is sweet. =)

Here’s some songs we liked that I thought you might like too. (You might have even heard some of them.)

Gemini Syndrome

“Stardust”

“Remember We Die”

In This Moment

“Adrenalize”

“Whore”

“Scarlet”

Jury Duty

Soon as I got back from Tennessee, my group got summoned for jury duty. I’ve never been on a jury, and I’ve never been summoned, so this was a new experience for me.

They summoned a big crowd–120-something potential jurors for 3 trials. I guess the court system had been backed up due to the Easter holidays.

Anyway, we all got to the court house and went through orientation before being assigned to a courtroom. Turns out, the case I was there for was a first degree murder trial for a cold case from about seven or eight years ago. Turns out they’d already tried the defendant once, but the judge had to declare a mistrial when the defense found out a detective had been withholding evidence. When a mistrial is declared, the original jury is thrown out and a new one is summoned to take its place.

I’ve never gotten to see how this side of the law worked, and I only know one person who’s served on a jury. But that was in Texas, so maybe it’s a bit different there. Anyway, there were about sixty of us in that courtroom, all potential jurors. We became numbers, and they randomly selected forty to be questioned by the attorneys (both prosecution and defense). As they whittled down the main pool, they’d replace them with one of the alternates, who weren’t being questioned, until they finally picked 14 jurors to serve on the trial. I wasn’t one of the original forty who were grilled by the attorneys (seriously, you learn a LOT about these random strangers), and my number was never called as a replacement. But I still had to sit there in case they needed me. This went on for two straight days (remember, I work graveyard, so I got extra sleepy in the afternoon *smiles*) before they pulled together a jury (a good one, in my opinion) and dismissed the rest of us.

In a way, I’m saddened I didn’t get to see this through to the end. I’m a storyteller, and I’d like to know how the story ends by actually being there to hear it. Guess I’ll settle for reading it in the papers… if they publish anything else about it. It was an interesting, insightful experience, and one I’m glad I got to do, despite the inconvenience.

Those are the highlights from last month. Oh, and lots of rain. Good grief, lots and lots of rain. Now, hopefully, on to warmer, dryer weather this month. =)

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Anyone have any fun adventures to share? Anyone else ever been to a metal show or served on a jury? Is anyone terrified of snakes like my poor mom? lol

 

***RELEASE DATE: APRIL 1ST, 2017***

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A DARKNESS THAT HAS SOUGHT HER TOUCH FOR TEN YEARS…

Alpha werewolf Breanna Whiteclaw and her pack are finally safe—or are they?

When a handsome stranger shows up at her mating celebration, she thinks he’s simply another visiting alpha coming to pay his respects. However, no one seems able to see him except for her…

AN ALPHA WHO WILL DO ANYTHING TO PROTECT HIS MATE…

Ex-bounty hunter Marcus—formerly known as Shadow, scourge of the Underworld—is scared to death. Not only is he falling for Breanna fast, he’s suddenly terrified of losing her, having never been this close to anyone before.

Imagine his concern when she confesses a handsome stranger is stalking her—concern not just about the stalking part—though that’s pretty bad—but the handsome part as well.

AN OBSESSION THAT WON’T DIE…

Breanna begins to dream of the stranger. Or are they dreams at all? As surreal fantasy becomes terrifying reality, Breanna learns there’s more to her dark prince than appears. He’s hiding something—not only about his origins but also his motives.

He wants a lot more than Breanna’s love—he wants her soul. And he’s not afraid to kill to get it.

The final book in the Blood Moon Rising series.

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When I first set out to write this series three years ago, I never thought it would run eight books long. I never thought the main series would run six books, let alone that I would write two companion novellas. But once I got to know the characters and their stories developed, I found I had more story to tell and I wasn’t ready to let this world go just yet.

THE CREATION OF BREANNA AND SHADOW

I’ve always loved writing about kickass female characters. And it should be known by now that I like my heroes to be tough, alpha, but tender-hearted when it comes to their women. I’m a romantic through and through, and I like to keep the relationship between my fictional couples hot but sweet.

LOVE BORN FROM HATE

It’s such a fun trope. You see it all the time in fiction and movies, but it never gets old to me. There’s so much room for conflict, especially in romance because love is such a strong emotion to begin with. Pair it with hate, another strong emotion, and the inner and outer tension gets really intense.

COMING UP WITH THE PLOT OF FOREVER

When I write, I have a vague idea where the story is going. I used to meticulously plot everything out, down to the last detail, but I don’t anymore. Call it increased skill acquired over eight years of storytelling, or call it impatience. Call it whatever. I find I have way more fun if I can just dive into a story and figure it out.

CREATING THE VILLAIN

I had NO CLUE who the villain was going into this. All I knew was that I wanted some Phantom of the Opera type villain, the mysterious, menacing Prince Charming. Or Jareth from Labyrinth. Varen Darkfire, the antagonist of Forever, is probably a mix of the Phantom and the Goblin King. Sexy but dangerous. Took me forever (no pun intended) to figure out what type of creature he was and what his backstory was… and I had NO CLUE I was going to go in that direction. But it worked for this story, and I hope to explore more of that type of creature in the future.

SOWING THE SEEDS FOR CONFLICT

When we left off of Lust, Breanna and Shadow were in a pretty good place. Not perfect, but hardly any relationship ever is. I knew Breanna was going to question her choice to mate Shadow, and Shadow was going to question his choice to mate Breanna, mostly because it put him in the role of Alpha and he’s not comfortable with that at all. He doesn’t trust himself not to hurt the people around him, and Breanna struggles with feeling good enough for literally everything. There are, of course, other packs out to get them, in addition to Varen Darkfire’s everpresent evil. The whole theme of this story is centered around forgiveness, trust, and believing in yourself. And of course family. Family is a big theme in werewolf books, in my opinion, due to the whole pack element.

THE END OF A SAGA

I’m pretty much done with the world of Blood Moon Rising, and probably the Underworld, too, once I finish Soulful, the last book in my Her Dark Desires trilogy. I’m in the mood to explore something fresh, something new, which is why I’m moving to a brand new series, set in a totally different universe. That’s the fun part about being a writer–you get to make up new characters, explore new settings, and go on this amazing adventures you would never get to experience in real life. That’s what I hope to bring to my readers every time they read one of my stories. I want to transport them somewhere they’ve never been before or perhaps someplace they’ve only dreamed of. It’s fun to escape real life, and I think everybody needs that.

With one series wrapping up and another beginning, it’s time to introduce you all to the brand new paranormal world of the Blackbriar Creek Wolves. =)

What’s the series premise? It’s about a pack of six “brothers” (brothers by pack vow, none of these guys are actually blood relatives) and the crazy things they go through to find true love.
Where does it take place? Why did you choose this location? I like to make up cities because then I don’t have to spend time researching locations. That takes away from my writing time, and I have so little of that as is. I’d rather be writing. For this, I went Southern and made up the small town of Blackbriar Creek, Tennessee. There might be a town actually called Blackbriar, I have no idea. I haven’t Googled it yet because I’ve been too busy writing. =) But I chose Tennessee because it’s a beautiful state and that’s where I’m from. So I’m familiar with the landscape and small town culture, even though I now live in a city.
How does this series differ from the Blood Moon Rising series? Like BMR, there will be six books, but each one will be at least full novel length. Think 200+ pages, with the potential for spin-off/companion novellas and short stories. There are six alpha males and none of them are related. Each book focuses on a different couple, with no continuing storyline from book to book. So the books can be read out of order, which is neat. Plus, it takes place in a totally different universe from BMR, so that’ll be fun to explore. Different rules, different people.
Does it take place in the same universe as the Blood Moon Rising series and the Her Dark Desires series? Nope. Not even a little. This place will be brand new to me and the readers.
Why do you love werewolves so much? I love stories about groups of people. Nana, X-Men, rock star bands, motorcycle clubs, werewolf packs, witch or vampire covens. I love exploring the group dynamic as well as the love story between the primary couple. It’s interesting and fun to see how people relate and get into trouble when you throw them all together. =)
Will there be any other paranormal creatures in this series or just werewolves? Oh, there’ll be witches. I can’t seem to stay away from them. lol But I’ll also be introducing some vampires, as well as some different shape shifters (big cats, maybe a dragon, we’ll see when I get there). I like variety in my paranormal romances.
What are some of the themes in this series? Loyalty always plays a big role in my werewolf stories because the pack is family. Family and what that means is also a big theme. How some people who aren’t your flesh and blood can feel more like family than people you’re related to. Betrayal and not feeling good enough, or wanting to keep punishing yourself for past mistakes. My boys in this series are a pretty rough crowd with big, scarred hearts, so they tend to beat themselves up over their past sins. lol Always trying to do the right thing, even when it’s in your best interests not to. How true love can make you stronger and allow you to accomplish more than you ever would be able to alone. Also, how love can transform you into a better version of yourself.
Tell us about the main characters. Honestly, I don’t know much about anyone beyond book 1 because I don’t outline. Not really. My idea of a story outline now consists of nothing more than a couple of sentences, and I don’t sit down and plot out every chapter. I do it as I go and figure out the story, and I tend to jump around, too. I don’t start at scene 1 and plot consecutively until the end. My process is very fragmented, and the act of writing “sews” the story together. Far as main characters, I can tell you about Nyx Dawson, my alpha male in book 1, and Evangeline “Eva” Carlyle, the leading lady. Both are werewolves. Nyx is an ex-merc trying to put his violent ways behind him to live a more normal, peaceful life. He’s got so much blood on his hands, it’s really starting to wear on him. So he goes home to his hometown of Blackbriar Creek hoping to kind of start over in a way. But as we all know, your past can find you no matter where you are. I named Evangeline because I love the epic poem “Evangeline” by Henry Longfellow. I remember reading it in high school and really loving it. She belongs to a very powerful pack with a corrupt leader, who happens to be her father. Her moral roots run a lot deeper, plus she’s pissed as hell about this thing that her father did to her, so she’s out for revenge. She aims to kill him. But her dad, being nobody’s fool, hires Nyx to take care of whoever’s trying to kill him, so there’s this cat and mouse game going on between Eva and Nyx while they’re falling in love, which makes things really interesting and fun to write about. They’re both ruthless characters, with Nyx being more “in your face” and Eva being sneakier about it. She definitely has more subtlety to her approach. lol

Here’s the full synopsis of Mercenary Moon:

He ’s bad to the bone… but then again, so is she.

Werewolf Nyx Dawson has blood on his paws—a lot of it. But he’s done with the brutal life of a mercenary. Doesn’t mean he ever thought he’d end up in his small, Southern hometown of Blackbriar Creek, Tennessee. Back with his mother and baby sister, and the rowdy bunch of werewolves he’d sworn a pack oath to as a pup. For a while, life seems peaceful and he thinks he can put his dark past behind him—until one of the most vicious, powerful alphas this side of the Smokies shows up and threatens to kill his family if he doesn’t comply with his demands…

Evangeline “Eva” Carlyle has spent her life wearing a mask. Being the perfect, obedient daughter. Being the stoic alpha-elect of her father’s pack. Being the face of her father’s paranormal pharmaceutical company, Carlyle Enterprises. Only, she doesn’t want her sizable inheritance or his paltry love—she wants his head. A life for a life, the collection of a blood debt that has been long overdue. The Golden Wolf is going to answer for his many covered up crimes against the paranormal world, and she’s determined to be the harbinger of justice.

But her father’s nobody’s fool. He knows someone is out to get him, and so blackmails one of the deadliest mercenaries into hunting down his would-be killer and taking them out first. Legend or not, Eva doesn’t think the arrogant and hotter-than-hell Nyx will be a problem. And Nyx certainly would never allow himself to fall for a werewolf aristocrat, no matter how much his inner wolf yearns to mate with her.

As the two of them tiptoe around each other, sparks begin to fly and passion mounts. Secrets—and blood—will be spilled. The closer Nyx grows to Eva, the more he’s convinced she’s his mate. And in the end, he’ll have to make the ultimate decision—kill the woman he loves to save his family, or defy his greatest enemy and risk losing everyone he holds dear.

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Mercenary Moon is coming early Summer 2017. Sign up for my newsletter to receive a new release notification, as well as preview chapters.