A.M. Leibowitz

queer slice-of-life stories

Blog

Rainbow Snippets: March 19, 2016

Writing

Open book with colorful pages. White background

Happy Saturday! Finally getting around to posting this. I spent all day catching up on reading and household chores. I was excited to see my new novella, What Once Was Lost, hit the bestseller list this week on All Romance. I’m particularly amused because I’m not actually a romance author—that was my first genuine attempt at one.

In case anyone has forgotten, I’ve been posting Nate’s “first time” story (using the term loosely here, as I’m inclusive on what qualifies as sex and don’t think Tab A—>Slot B is the only definition). Last week, nearly everyone wanted to know if Rocco’s idea to pretend they’re watching the Sox game worked. I’m stringing you along a bit more, but I promise you’ll find out whether Rocco’s mom catches on. As for how “true” this story is…well, think boys and their big mouths. (Notes for the nitpicky: Nate is now in his 20s; this is a high school story; yes, I know Ramirez doesn’t play for the Sox anymore.)

“Anyway, so he puts on the game, and we just kind of take our clothes off and start doing it. Then, while he’s pounding me and I’m just about to blow, his mom calls down, ‘You boys want something to eat?’ I was too close, Rocco kept moving, and I let go, groaning real loud. A second later, his mom says, ‘You all right?’ And Rocco, still without stopping, goes, ‘Yeah, Ramirez just struck out. Looks like they’re gonna lose.’”

Rainbow Snippets is a safe and welcoming space for LGBTQIA+ authors, readers, and bloggers to share 6 sentences each week from a work of fiction—published or in-progress—or a book recommendation. Feel free to join in!

Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail

WIPpet Wednesday: Pretending

Fiction, Other Relationships, Writing

Work in Progress - 3DWhat started as a relatively quiet week ended up with plenty of excitement. I just had a novella published through MLR Press, What Once Was Lost. About a year and a half ago, when my first novel came out, I wrote several short stories which I put up on my blog as part of launch week. WWOL is a stand-alone, but it’s actually a sequel to one of the shorts.

Meanwhile, my May release, An Act of Devotion, which you may remember from past WIPpets, is now available for pre-order.

On to this week’s WIPpet. As you might recall, last time we saw Cat, he was having a reaction of sorts to sex. This week, he’s dealing with it. (When Cat refers to school here, he means the community college where he and his boyfriend are taking classes. Cat’s father is a professor there.) For the very curious, Cat has hemophilia A (clotting factor VIII deficiency), severe form, which is the most common type. Sex is not a “dangerous” activity, but there are precautions people can take because breakage of small blood vessels is possible, as are other injuries. Most people nowadays use recombinant (basically genetically engineered) factor to infuse, but some, like Cat, have immune reactions to it and rely on donated plasma.

WIPmath: 3/16/16 = 16 – (1 + 6) = 9 paragraphs or 16 + (1 + 6) = 23 sentences.

Cat got up and began dragging his clothes back on.

“I gotta get home,” he said. “I need my meds.” He stumbled as he yanked up his jeans.

Bryce slid to the edge of the bed and swung his feet over. “Didn’t you bring them?”

“No,” Cat said quietly before pulling his shirt over his head. “We were at school. Dad has shit for me in his office.”

“But you brought your stuff to go to Zee’s.” Bryce’s expression reflected his bewilderment.

Cat turned around and stood by the door. He couldn’t explain to Bryce that it was just one night at Zee’s, and he’d wanted to pretend for a few hours he could leave the house and be normal for a change. It didn’t matter that his parents were a phone call away if anything happened or that he wasn’t likely to sustain life-threatening injuries from take-out Chinese food, birthday cake, and a few games of stripes and solids in Zee’s basement.

“I forgot,” he lied. “I have to go. My parents—”

“Are they home?” Bryce began putting himself back together.

“No, but they will be soon, and I don’t want them asking me why I need an infusion. Shit!”

Like what you read? Be sure to check out the other entries and add your own. Just post a bit of your WIP, connect it to the date, and link up with us. Many thanks to Emily Witt for giving us this space. Happy reading and writing!

Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail

Book Tour: Stuck on Rewind by Dianne Hartsock

Books

Author: Dianne Hartsock

Title: Stuck on Rewind

Release Date: March 15, 2016

Pages or Words: 10,308 words

Categories: Contemporary, Erotic, Gay Fiction, M/M Romance, Romance

Goodreads Link: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/4707011-dianne-hartsock

Publisher: Pride Publishing

Ashton has been in love with his best friend for years, watching him grow from a pretty high school boy to the gorgeous erotic dancer at the club where they both work. The problem is that Lance enjoys the attention of a variety of men while Ashton wants him for his very own.

After a day spent denying his attraction for Lance, standing by while their friend Trey openly flirts with him, Ashton decides it’s time to make his move or risk losing his man forever. Once Lance knows how he feels, he’ll realize they should be together. Or is it already too late?

https://www.pride-publishing.com/book/stuck-on-rewind

“Fuck!” Ashton shouted in a mixture of anger and ecstasy as Lance swallowed again, then let Ashton’s softening cock slip from between his perfect lips. Ashton leaned on his elbows, his chest heaving while he caught his breath. With a last kiss on his thigh, Lance climbed off the bed, sleek-limbed and graceful, and walked to the dresser with a sassy sway of his hips.

Ashton stared after him and groaned, not sure if he wanted to pull his friend’s ass back into his arms or punch him in the face. It would be incredible to wake up with Lance every morning and make love to him. But he sternly reminded himself that they were only friends and Lance needed to stop climbing into his bed at night uninvited.

“You do remember you have a bed of your own?” he asked, more sharply than he’d intended.

Lance gave him a smirk over his shoulder, making a show of licking the last of Ashton’s spunk off his swollen lips. “You told me to wake you at seven.”

“I didn’t mean… Oh hell.” Ashton fell back on the pillows and threw an arm over his eyes. He swore in exasperation when the mattress dipped and Lance’s familiar scent surrounded him. “Damn it—”

Soft fingers touched his mouth. “Don’t be mad, baby. I didn’t mean anything.”

Ashton peered at him through the dark curls that had flopped into his eyes. The guy looked positively forlorn, and Ashton sat up, giving him a one-armed hug. “I’m not mad. But you don’t need to keep doing that, either. You’re my friend!” He kissed Lance’s cheek, the velvet skin warm with a blush. “You make a terrific roommate, and I like the company.”

“And I like you.” Lance walked his fingers up Ashton’s leg.

Ashton laughed and shooed the hand away, but couldn’t help staring at the enticing evidence of his friend’s arousal between his legs.

“Can I take care of that for you?”

“Not at all.” Lance stood up, waving off Ashton’s offer. “I’ll deal with it in the shower. You have to save your attentions for Mister Man.”

“Who are you talking about…? Wait!” Ashton rolled off the bed and trotted after Lance as he crossed the apartment.

Lance giggled, slipping behind the bathroom door but holding it cracked open an inch. He smiled at Ashton with his pouty, kissable lips. “You know, the boss. Mister Kent.”

“I’m not saving myself for—”

Ashton blinked at the closed door. Why in the world would Lance think he was interested in his boss? Sure, the man was handsome as sin, but he was also an egomaniac and tyrant. Why only yesterday, he’d…

Hot blood scorched Ashton’s neck and face, his arm tingling where Morgan Kent had gripped it, towering over him. The man had bent to his ear, swamping Ashton’s senses with subtle cologne and a hint of sweat as he’d whispered, “If you can’t type a simple letter without mistakes, I’ll find a secretary who can.” He’d tightened his hand almost painfully on Ashton’s arm. “Or maybe I should just bend you over this desk and smack your ass for each mistake?”

Ashton’s dick jumped at the memory. He told it sternly to behave. “We’re not falling for that bastard. We’ll stick with the sweet boys at the club and call it good.”

Dianne grew up in one of the older homes in the middle of Los Angeles, a place of hardwood floors and secret closets and back staircases. A house where ghosts lurk in the basement and the faces in the paintings watch you walk up the front stairs. Rooms where you keep the closet doors closed tight at night. It’s where her love of the mysterious and wonderful came from.

Dianne now lives in the beautiful Willamette Valley of Oregon with her incredibly patient husband, who puts up with the endless hours she spends hunched over the keyboard letting her characters play. She says Oregon’s raindrops are the perfect setting in which to write. There’s something about being cooped up in the house with a fire crackling on the hearth and a cup of hot coffee warming her hands, which kindles her imagination.

Currently, Dianne works as a floral designer in a locally-owned gift shop. Which is the perfect job for her. When not writing, she can express herself through the rich colors and textures of flowers and foliage.

Blog: http://diannehartsock.wordpress.com/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/diannehartsock

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/diannehartsock

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/4707011-dianne-hartsock

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/Dianne-Hartsock-Author-107985445959828/

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/diannehartsock/

Today I’m welcoming Dianne Hartsock to chat about writing, life, and their current project. Welcome! Let’s talk a little about what inspired your book STUCK ON REWIND.

Thanks for having me over today! There is a club in town that has the hottest male dancers and most gorgeous transvestites! Singing, dancing, with skits to make you blush. So much talent in this group. The last time I was there, I met this amazing blond bombshell, willowy, graceful, who danced like a dream and had a voice that melted my heart. I was there with some girlfriends and we had a terrific time, and the men on the stage seemed to enjoy themselves just as much, bringing us to our feet more than once in applause and whistles. (And me trying not to drool too much).

No, STUCK ON REWIND doesn’t feature any transvestites, but my inspiration certainly came from this club. The dancers especially leave me in awe, strong and gifted and oh so sensual. Lance loves to dance, has since he was a child, taking ballet and modern dance in school, now giving lessons at the studio on his afternoons off work.

But more than dancing, Lance loves to perform. Like the men at the club here seem to do, he lives for the crowd, thrilling at the applause and gasps of wonder and the standing ovation he works so hard for. These dancers spend endless hours practicing their routines to bring us the flawless, beautiful performance we see.

With his dance partner, Trey, he performs at the club every night, trying new routines, adding just that bit of daring to make his audience come back time and again.

Ashton understands this. Though he would like nothing better than to keep Lance for himself, have him dance only for him, he realizes he could never truly keep the man from what he loves to do best. Lance would grow melancholy and resentful of his clipped wings, and Ashton would eventually lose him anyway.

In STUCK ON REWIND, Ashton knows he can never change Lance, but can Ashton be sure he’s enough to keep his talented, beautiful friend happy?

15-Mar: BFD Book Blog, Man2ManTastic, 3 Chicks After Dark, Full Moon Dreaming

16-Mar: A.M. Leibowitz, Velvet Panic, Louise Lyons, Mikky’s World of Books, Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews

17-Mar: Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Nephy Hart,

Oh My Shelves

18-Mar: Alpha Book Club, Havan Fellows, The Dark Arts, Making It Happen, Bayou Book Junkie

19-Mar: Outrageous Heroes, Inked Rainbow Reads, Love Bytes

21-Mar: Elin Gregory, MM Good Book Reviews, Happily Ever Chapter, MM Book Escape

Rafflecopter Prize: $10 ARe gift card

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail

Book Tour: Then Sawyer Happened by Hurri Cosmos

Books

Author: Hurri Cosmo

Title: Then Sawyer Happened

Release Date: March 8, 2016

Pages or Words: 60,000 words

Categories: Contemporary, Crime Fiction, Erotica, Fiction, Gay Fiction, Humor, M/M Romance, Mystery, Romance, Thriller, Western/Cowboy

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6466687.Hurri_Cosmo

Publisher: Dark Hollows Press

Cover Artist: Eden Connors

Trace is nursing a broken heart. He lost his job, his boyfriend of two years was cheating on him, and his apartment building burned right to the ground with all his worldly possessions.  It was time for Trace to get out of Minnesota.

So Trace heads for Texas and Riven Creek Ranch, the horse farm his aunt Lois owns. But hours before he arrives, Lois is in a terrible car accident that nearly takes her life, and Trace finds himself in charge of the ranch kitchen. Sounds simple enough and it’s the least he can do for his recuperating aunt.

Then Sawyer happens.

Sawyer is his aunt’s big, beautiful, muscle bound, incredibly sexy straight ranch manager. Someone who has no clue Trace is gay. And meeting the big man should have been okay, except it was in the middle of his aunt’s kitchen at five in the morning and Trace was nearly naked. Embarrassing? Yep. But the very next day Trace proceeded to ramp up his embarrassment by quantum leaps when he nearly sets his aunt’s house on fire and the brooding Sawyer has to come to the rescue.

Seems like Trace’s “luck” followed him.

Not to mention that Aunt Lois’s “accident” was actually attempted murder. And now, they just might want Trace dead, too.

Can Trace figure out who’s behind the attempts on his aunt’s life AND keep Sawyer from finding out he’s hot for the cowboy?

He probably can’t. But he’s going to try.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01CKN49S8

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/620302

“Sawyer! Damn. You scared me.” Trace fell back against the freezer suddenly feeling light headed. He took in the big body blocking any escape he had and his cock twitched as if it liked the idea there was no way out. “I didn’t hear you… behind me.”

“I saw your car in the driveway. How’s Lois?”

Trace shook his head in an attempt to clear it. “She’s awake and very alert… but…” But someone wants her dead. Who? Someone on this ranch? Could it be Sawyer? I trust him with my life… That’s what she said.

“But what?”

Trace looked up into hard cold eyes. The question was genuine. He cared about the condition of his aunt. But what condition did he care her to be in? “Nothing… just… well… I guess you’re going to have to know… I mean…” Damn, he had to stop acting like a horny teenager in front of this man. “Let me… I’m going to make coffee…”

“It’s made. The big insulated urn on the counter is full. Just made it about a half hour ago so it’s fine.”

“Oh. Good. Let’s sit down. I need to sit down.” Trace took a few steps forward which brought him right in front of the cowboy. He expected Sawyer to move, to back up, but he didn’t. Then Trace did the unthinkable. His body reacted on its own as he put his hand on the big man’s chest and pushed. There would have been no way on God’s green earth he would have been able to physically move the cowboy without his express permission, not to mention help. But Trace’s brain seemed to totally malfunction in this man’s presence.

And, as expected, being pushed in any direction was never going to work for Sawyer. Sawyer grabbed his wrist, twisted it tight behind Trace, which brought Trace up solid, against Sawyer’s hard body, chest to chest. Being several inches taller, Sawyer glared down into Trace’s shocked face, a smoldering look in his eyes. Trace could feel Sawyer’s hot breath on his face, sense the man’s tense muscles from his pecs down through his thighs…

Hurri Cosmo lives in Minnesota where she holds tight to the idea that there, where it’s cold a good part of the year, she won’t age as fast. Yep, she avoids the truth as much as she avoids mirrors. But one of the reasons she loves writing is reality doesn’t always offer up a “happily ever after” and being able to take control of that is a powerful lure. Being a happy ending junkie, writing just makes them easier to find. Oh, she doesn’t mind “real life” and she does try to at least keep it in mind when she writes her stories, but she truly loves creating a wonderful couple, knowing they will fall in love and have their HEA. Every – single – time. And, of course, that is exactly the reason she loves reading this genre, too. Give her a glass of red wine, some dark chocolate, and her computer, whether she is reading or writing, and she will entertain herself for hours. The fact she actually gets paid to do it is Snickers bars on the frosting on the cake.

What’s your favorite food? Spaghetti and meatballs

What’s your favorite of your published works? The Servant Prince and The Servant King (both in one book called Ice Dragon Tales)

What’s the best vacation spot? Disney World

What genre (other than your own) do you like to read? Mystery/suspense

What superpower do you wish you had? Teleportation

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hurri.cosmo

Twitter: https://twitter.com/HurriCosmo

Website: www.hurricosmo.com

Blog: http://hurricosmo.blogspot.com/

8-Mar Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Alpha Book Club

9-Mar Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents, Two Chicks Obsessed With Books and Eye Candy, Bonkers About Books, Book Lovers 4Ever

10-Mar Jessie G. Books, Love Bytes

11-Mar Happily Ever Chapter, Molly Lolly

14-Mar My Fiction Nook, Divine Magazine, Making It Happen

15-Mar A.M. Leibowitz, Havan Fellows, Rednecks and Romance, BFD Book Blog

16-Mar V’s Reads, Butterfly-O-Meter, Attention Is Arbitrary

17-Mar Bayou Book Junkie, Open Skye Book Reviews

18-Mar Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings, Sinfully Addicted to All Male Romance

21-Mar Full Moon Dreaming, MM Good Book Reviews, Inked Rainbow Reads, Outrageous Heroes

Rafflecopter Prize: Gift Card – 5 $10 AllRomance gift cards

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail

Book Tour & Review: Mending the Rift by Chris T. Kat

Books, Reviews

Author: Chris T. Kat

Title: Mending the Rift

Release Date: March 14, 2016

Pages or Words: 68,000 words

Categories: M/M Romance, Science Fiction, MPREG

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5767496.Chris_T_Kat

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

Cover Artist: AngstyG

In a future where man’s ability to reproduce is severely compromised, humanity has adapted to survive. Breeders—male and female—have become precious commodities, and they are strictly guarded and subject to limitations.

Luca Walker is a breeder. Though he knows what’s expected of him as the youngest son of the Northern Confederacy’s Vice President, he’s held out against the pressures of an arranged marriage because he longs to marry for love, not duty. But he’s been promised to Colonel Liam Smith and there’s little he can do about it, no matter that Luca is secretly in love with his bodyguard, Marcus Gray.

When Luca finds himself pregnant with Marcus’s baby, Smith is furious and vows to take what is his—by force, if necessary. Now Luca must fight for his life and the life of his unborn child… as well as the love of Marcus and the happily ever after he’s always dreamed of.

This is another book which left me with somewhat mixed feelings after reading it. I typically don’t choose books with cisgender (i.e., not transgender) male pregnancy*, but I like the author’s style and have enjoyed her previous work, so I thought I’d give it a shot. I’m glad I did.

I loved the world-building. Even though this is not a long story, I appreciated how well this dystopian future was woven into the plot rather than long, drawn-out explanations. I had a good feel for what was going on almost right away, and the complexities unfolded at a good pace throughout.

For me, the world they live in raised many more questions than answers, which I think is a good thing. For example, why bother genetically engineering cis men to become essentially intersex rather than working to resolve cis women’s infertility? What has happened to other intersex people and trans people? Are women able to have their reproductive cells extracted in order to impregnate men (or other women)? Do men impregnating other men create new combinations of chromosomes? I’m not sure this book was exactly equipped to answer all that, but it did get me thinking.

I found the treatment of breeders interesting because it played on the idea of reproductive freedom and what it means to have a body which can or cannot reproduce. That kind of control is rather horrifying to imagine, but it’s easy to see our current society already on the same path. That was really well done, in my opinion.

I did struggle a bit with a few things. It seemed like Luca was pretty quick to accept what had been done to him without his consent, and I find that troubling. I was also put off by the lack of women in a story about reproductive free will, given that it is women who are currently at the mercy of governmental control over female/female-assumed bodies. And the bits referring to pregnancy hormones as inducing “temporary insanity” really, really bothered me, both for the casual negative reference to mental illness and for supporting the idea that pregnant women are irrational and cannot make good choices. I think it’s probably not surprising given the other factors, but Luca (and Nicholas and Kyle) fell squarely in the category of “could have been replaced by women and had the exact same story,” including with the reproductive issues. And I also found it highly improbable that a society which could figure out how to genetically engineer men to have babies and clearly is fully accepting of same-sex relationships would still have some serious problems with social equality.

The other big issue for me was the various kidnappings. I think these might have been better combined into one event for a smoother plot and flow. Each one felt almost like a separate story, and I was confused on and off throughout about various players and their involvement. I did like the way the threads all came together at the end, though, and there were a few surprises along the way which I enjoyed.

Despite my hesitations with those few things, I really did find this to be an intriguing story. I was much more invested in the world than the characters, and with something as complicated as this book’s political climate, that’s a very good thing.

For a world which drew me in, a fascinating concept, and a lot to think about, 7/10 fountain pens.

*I specified cisgender here because I have no problem reading male pregnancy when it’s about a trans man.

Marcus rappelled off and stepped onto the ground with a crunch of his boots. Pointing at the opening with the askew ladder, he asked, “Don’t tell me you seriously considered climbing down this way.”

Luca shrugged. “I’d have preferred spontaneous levitation, but it didn’t happen.”

He yelped when Marcus put an arm around his torso and lifted him to his feet, as if he weighed nothing. “Hey!”

Marcus silenced him with a glare, and Luca gritted his teeth while Marcus thumped dust off his clothes. “Your father is livid.”

Luca swallowed. He’d expected worried, maybe a bit mad, but livid? His father never got furious at him. Not for long, anyway. Being the baby of the family had its perks. “Why?”

“Why? Seriously, Luca, you have to ask why?” Marcus patted Luca’s behind more firmly than was strictly necessary.

Luca shifted, trying to get away from Marcus’s arm. When that didn’t help, he slapped Marcus’s hands away and stepped aside. He couldn’t think when he was so close to Marcus—when the man touched him, he sent shivers up and down his spine. He ignored the glower Marcus directed at him. “Yes, seriously. He knows I don’t want to marry Smith. I don’t want anything to do with all that shit. I want to decide what I’m going to do with my life.”

Marcus shook his head. “Smith is a good man. My brother Kyle worked for him. He said he always treated his people well. If you want I could try to get Kyle on the phone so you can talk to him. That is, if I can get a hold on him. Trust me, you’ll be in good hands.”

“You don’t get it! I don’t want to be in good hands!”

“No?” Marcus raised an eyebrow.

Luca huffed, a small smile forming on his lips. “Well, yes, of course I want to be in good hands. But I want someone to love me, and not just for my ability to become pregnant. I want… you.”

Luca’s heart thundered in his rib cage. There, he’d said it. The ball was in Marcus’s court. Sure, it had only been one night, and Marcus’s reaction afterward hadn’t been promising, but maybe he’d just been scared? Maybe he feared to lose his job? Nonetheless, there was more going on between them, and they both knew it. That one night had just been the last logical step. Luca regretted nothing.

For a moment Marcus seemed startled, and there was a softness in his eyes that was solely reserved for Luca. The softness vanished too quickly for Luca’s liking.

Instead, Luca was greeted with Marcus’s usual, scrutinizing gaze. “You don’t want me, and you better never mention this again. It was a mistake. Now get it out of your head and be a good boy.”

Chris T. Kat lives in the middle of Europe, where she shares a house with her husband of many years and their two children. She stumbled upon the M/M genre by luck and was swiftly drawn into it. She divides her time between work, her family—which includes chasing after escaping horses and lugging around huge instruments such as a harp—and writing. She enjoys a variety of genres, such as mystery/suspense, paranormal, and romance. If there’s any spare time, she happily reads for hours, listens to audiobooks or does cross stitch.

Twitter: http://twitter.com/christi_kat

GoodReads: http://www.goodreads.com/ChrisTKat

Blog: http://christikat.blogspot.com

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Chris-T.-Kat/e/B008FQQH2Q

Today I’m welcoming Chris T. Kat to chat about writing, life, and their current project. Welcome! Let’s talk a little about Mending the Rift.

What inspired you to write this story?

When I started writing, I started as a fan fiction writer. One of my first stories, which turned out to become a whole alternate universe, was an m-preg story as well. I can’t explain why the idea of male pregnancies always appealed to me, it just did. After writing pretty much anything, I had the desire to go back to my roots, so to speak, and write another m-preg story. Thus Mending the Rift was born.

Is there a character you feel especially connected to? Why?

I like all the characters in Mending the Rift, but if I had to name a favorite it would probably be Nicholas, Luca’s dad. He’s a bit of a brat, but a handsome and intelligent one, who had the luck to find the perfect partner. I also felt connected to Luca, how he feels about arranged marriages, and having to do what’s expected of him.

What was the hardest part of writing this?

This might sound weird, but the hardest part was finding the right names for the main characters, Luca and Marcus. For a long time, they had different names. Even though I exchanged the names at one point, they still didn’t ring true and I was rather frustrated about that. Finally, I made a list of names, tried them out, and after that, writing the story was quick and easy.

Choose a favorite line or short passage. What do you like about it?

This is only a very short passage from the beginning of chapter two:

Marcus rappelled off and stepped onto the ground with a crunch of his boots. Pointing at the opening with the askew ladder, he asked, “Don’t tell me you seriously considered climbing down this way.”

Luca shrugged. “I’d have preferred spontaneous levitation, but it didn’t happen.”

Luca has run away and thought about the reasons for it when Marcus shows up. Even though he’s despairing about his situation, and the fact he can’t have the man he loves, he hasn’t lost his ability to joke. That’s what I like about that short part.

Tell us a little about any upcoming projects.

I’ve got a contemporary novella called Stained coming out in June or July this year. It’ll be my last published work, so no more upcoming projects.

Are there any types of scene you find hard to write (action, love, death, etc.)?

I really dislike writing death scenes, so I try to avoid them. However, that’s not always possible (for example in Secret Energy or Silver Lining) but I try to do it with respect, and keep the characters’ reactions realistic.

What do you do when you feel stuck (writer’s block)?

This might sound odd—after all I’ve written quite a lot over the years—but I’ve never had writer’s block. Sure, I had stories that veered off and left me scrambling to tie everything up in a satisfying manner but if that happened, I put the book aside for a while until I could see the story clearly again.

How do you handle a story that doesn’t go as you planned?

That depends on the story. Sometimes I follow the new curve and allow the characters to lead me. If the story runs into a dead end, or I can’t see how I can possibly tie everything together, I put it aside and do something else. After a few days, or sometimes weeks (sometimes even months—that happened when I wrote Bratty Angel) I’ll have an epiphany and know how to go on. After that, everything’s easy.

Word Sprints!

  1. Plotter or pantser? Both.
  1. Coffee or tea? Tea.
  1. What’s your favorite of your published works? The Alliances series: Breeding Stations and Battle Stations.
  1. What was the last thing you read? Mell Eight’s Dragon Consultant.
  1. What’s your favorite season? Spring and autumn.

14-Mar The Novel Approach, Alpha Book Club, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Book Lovers 4Ever, Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings, Caraway Carter, Gay Media Reviews

15-Mar Nephy Hart, Joyfully Jay, Carly’s Book Reviews, Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews, A.M. Leibowitz

16-Mar Love Bytes, TTC Books and More, Havan Fellows, Jessie G. Books, Unquietly Me, MM Good Book Reviews

17-Mar Prism Book Alliance, The Blogger Girls, V’s Reads, Divine Magazine

18-Mar Molly Lolly, KathyMac Reviews, Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents, Man2ManTastic, My Fiction Nook, 3 Chicks After Dark, Bayou Book Junkie, Hearts on Fire, Inked Rainbow Reads

Rafflecopter Prize: A book from Chris’s backlist or an audiobook copy of ‘Despite the Odds’

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail

Book Blast: Law by Jess Buffett

Books

Author: Jess Buffett

Title: Law

Release Date: February 29, 2016

Pages or Words: 63 pages

Categories: Bisexual, Contemporary, M/M Romance, New Adult, Romance

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29065537-law

Publisher: Evernight Publishing

Cover Artist: Jay Aheer – Simply Defined Art

Law

Being in the internationally successful boy-band Right Time had been everything I had ever wanted and more. Well, except for one thing, or should I say one person? But I had long ago acknowledged that I couldn’t have both the life and the person and I should be happy with what I had. That worked until he showed up in my life again. And then nothing made sense.

Byron

For years I had pretended I didn’t care. Ignoring my feelings had become second nature to me. That was until my niece begged me to take her to see her favorite boy-band, Right Time, for her birthday, and I came face to face with him. In all fairness, she had no idea the can of worms she’d be opening. And to tell the truth, neither did I.

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Law-Scandals-Book-Jess-Buffett-ebook/dp/B01C1SKZBC/

“OMG. He knows your name, Uncle Byron?”

Byron flushed, glancing down at his niece before he flicked his gaze back to mine. “Ah … yeah, Emma, I do.”

The girl began to ramble while her friends stared on in awe. “How? Why? When did you become so cool?”

“Hey, I’ve always been cool.” I chuckled at Byron’s offended expression, grateful that he was momentarily distracted. The man’s gaze had always left him feeling open and exposed.

“Well, I mean sure, you are the cool Uncle Byron who bought my friends and me these really awesome tickets, but this…”

“But this is like a whole new hemisphere of awesomeness,” another one of the young girls finished, almost breathless in her shock.

I had honestly never felt so self-conscious before that moment. Not because of the girls. As shallow as it sounded, I was used to the lust filled expressions on women’s faces of varying age groups. Byron was another story. I wondered what he must be thinking, of me, of the situation. Even after all these years the man still had it in him to make me second guess myself. A nervous tension I felt only in his presence. It was ridiculous. I was ridiculous.

Jess Buffett was born and raised in New South Wales, Australia. She is a mum of two, married to her high school sweetheart.

Jess is a hopeless romantic who is a huge fan of M/M and M/F romance with a happy ending—anything with hunky men in all their glory, whether they be Shifters, Vampires, Cowboys, or the boy next door.

A caffeine addict who shamefully can’t make a decent cup of coffee to save her life, Jess believes in soul mates, happily ever afters, and in love at first sight, but that sometimes people need a second or a third for the brain to catch up.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/jessbuffett05

Facebook Author Page: www.facebook.com/JessBuffettAuthor

Twitter: @JessBuffett

Parker Williams, Divine Magazine, A.M. Leibowitz, Bayou Book Junkie, Oh My Shelves, Open Skye Book Reviews, BFD Book Blog, Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews, Alpha Book Club, Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents, MM Good Book Reviews, Full Moon Dreaming, Unquietly Me, Gay Book Reviews, Happily Ever Chapter, Up All Night, Read All Day, Making It Happen, Nephy Hart, The Hat Party, Charley Descoteaux, Outrageous Heroes, MM Book Escape, Inked Rainbow Reads, Velvet Panic, Havan Fellows

Rafflecopter Prize: ecopy of Law + winners choice of ebook from backlist

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail

More Content

Let's Be Friends

Facebooktwitterpinterestrssinstagram

Sharing

Facebooktwitterpinteresttumblrmail

Tip Jar

Shopping Cart

Your Shopping Cart

Your cart is empty

Supposed Crimes Publishing

Beaten Track Publishing