For Love the Bell Tolls
FOR LOVE THE BELL TOLLS
A Gothic Romance Short Story Anthology
from Stars and Stone Books
Featuring: Cara McKinnon, Sheri Queen, Read Gallo, Serena Jayne, Kylie Weisenborn, and Heather Sheldon.
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Cara McKinnon – “The Doors Between”
Can love overcome an otherworldly evil?
Sheri Queen – “The Circus Train”
Finding love isn’t easy, especially when someone wants your blood.
Read Gallo – “Blood and Petals”
How much would you change to get what you want?
Serena Jayne – “Kiss Me Dead”
With only the light of their love, Simon and Lila attempt to conquer darkness and death.
Kylie Weisenborn – “Undead Men”
When the dead become unburied, so does the truth.
Heather Sheldon – “Lost Love Found”
A haunted gift flips Mandy’s world on end, and her handsome new neighbor might be her only salvation.
CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT OUR AUTHORS
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What Is Gothic Romance?
This anthology’s genre is gothic romance, but the authors were allowed to pick their own interpretation of “gothic.” We asked the authors how they decided to interpret gothic, and why they went that route.
Read Gallo – “Blood and Petals”
Initially, I got hung up on the image of a woman in white fading in a dark Victorian garden, so I was very literally gothic at first. But a book I was reading about teen pregnancy in the 50s, where young mothers were encouraged to “surrender and forget” their children struck a chord with me and I transitioned the time period from England in the 1900s to America 1950s. It was surprisingly easy to transfer the way the girls were treated. I think I could have made it more modern and not have lost much of that bite.
Serena Jayne – “Kiss Me Dead”
For me, gothic is all about horror. The horror of living. The horror of death. The horror of tragic love. The Grimm Reaper, such a dark character, made for the perfect gothic hero. Lila’s desperate situation is also dark.
Cara McKinnon – “The Doors Between”
I went for a variation on a traditional 19th century gothic romance. I say variation, because those usually feature swooning virginal heroines and Fiona is the exact opposite of that. But it does have ghosts, possession, a curse, a brooding old house in an isolated location, and family secrets.
Sheri Queen – “The Circus Train”
I set my story in the late 1800s with a focus on the evils that stalk a circus performer and her elephant companion. I liked the history of that era and the voodoo legends that prevailed in NOLA.
Heather Sheldon – “Lost Love Found”
I choose an antique journal because I enjoyed the idea of part of the story taking place in the past. I’m a big historical romance reader.
Kylie Weisenborn – “Undead Men”
I had a hard time with this prompt at first. I immediately thought of dark, creepy Poe-era details, but I had to do some research to make sure I was portraying that time in history accurately. Embalming first began in the mid-1800s, so I had to take a little bit of creative liberties with the exact year the story would have taken place, but it worked out!
The anthology authors will be answering more questions on this blog tour! To check out all of the stops, visit: https://www.starsandstonebooks.com/blog-tour.
What’s Next for the Born to Love Wild Authors?
Take a walk on the wild side of love with this paranormal romance anthology featuring USA Today Bestselling author Traci Douglass and many more.
BORN TO LOVE WILD
A Paranormal Romance Short Story Anthology
Stars and Stone Books
Featuring: USA Today Bestselling Author Traci Douglass, Cara McKinnon, Sheri Queen, Pepper McGraw, M.T. DeSantis, Read Gallo, J. Bigelow, and Andie Biagini.
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The Born to Love Wild authors all came together to answer some questions about their stories for the anthology. Here, they talk about what they’re working on now and what’s coming out for them next.
Andie Biagini – “Water Temperature”
An engineering student and a cryptozoologist. One of them can talk to sea monsters, but it’s not who you think.
Right now I’m in different parts of the revision process for two different paranormal novels, one about Victorian-era ghosts causing trouble in the 21st century, and another about a college campus that sits on top of a portal to Faerie. I’m starting to dip my toe into a contemporary romance, which is genre I’ve never written before—less magic and more kissing than I’m used to, for sure. You can follow me on Twitter @andieinitaly to see what I’m up to.
Sometimes a wizard from Sweden needs help from a medium from Michigan.
I’m currently working on a dark fantasy as well as other short stories.
M.T. DeSantis – “Forever Love”
To find a chance… A chance to find…
For the first time in a while, I have a novel-length project that I’m burning rubber on. It’s currently a little secret, but the writing style is similar to Forever Love. I’d go so far as to say Forever Love gave me the confidence to try something longer with lyrical prose. I have a flash piece in an anthology with Transmundane Press releasing later this year, and I’m writing a smattering of short stories, some for Stars and Stone anthologies.
Traci Douglass – “Blood Strong: A Blood Ravagers Novella”
One guardian demon in love. One witch with a secret crush. One evil threatening their newfound connection.
This summer is busy, busy for me. I’ve got this short story coming out on July 24th. Then I’ve got book four of my Seven Seals Series, Scion’s Redemption, releasing on July 30th. Then, on August 1st, my first contemporary romance release with Harlequin/Mills & Boon Medical Romance comes out, One Night With The Army Doc. After that, I hope to have the last three of my Seven Seal Series books out before the end of 2018, plus I’ll be working on revisions for book two for Harlequin Medicals, getting proposals together for more Medicals books in the future, and working on edits for two new books for Entangled Bliss set to release in early 2019. Whew. I’m tired just typing all that! LOL.
Read Gallo – “The Flying Saltines”
When a river falls in love with an ordinary person will New York City survive?
Honestly, the October story for Stars and Stones… I’m also trying to sell a fantasy trilogy called Witch, Ghost, Dog, Clone.
Pepper McGraw – “Full Moon Shenanigans”
The full moon’s coming and it’s time to embrace the wildness within.
I’m working on several upcoming projects. I have three more stories in the Shenanigans series and am also working on the next book in the Murrysville Coalition series. I also have a completely new series on the horizon that I’m not ready to announce yet, but am super excited about.
Cara McKinnon – “A Change of Heart”
She’s a hybrid shifter who’s not supposed to exist. He’s a wolf who was born to protect her. But her secrets force him to choose: his mate, or his pack loyalty?
I am finishing up a short story for the next anthology from Stars and Stone Books (coming out just in time for Halloween!) called For Love the Bell Tolls. The genre for the anthology is Gothic Romance (with a theme of Hauntings) but all of the authors were given free rein to decide what “gothic” meant to them. I’m going with traditional Victorian gothic—a haunted/possessed house story, complete with brooding male main character and plucky, no-nonsense heroine. I couldn’t quite bring myself to write about a swoony, insipid virginal type, so she’s a world-traveler who comes back home as an adult to discover that the boy she was in love with as a girl has inherited his family’s possessed estate, his wife has died under mysterious circumstances, and his young child would rather talk to ghosts than living people. But the truth about what’s happening in the house is darker than any of them could imagine.
After that, I really need to finish book four in my Fay of Skye series, Secret Magic.
Sheri Queen – “The Robinson Agency”
Some are born with the gift to see into the future. Others create their own destiny.
I have another short story in the works, the third book in my Sleepy Hollow Hunter series that I expect to release this fall, and tons of re-writes on a new series in which I have the first book written.
CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT OUR AUTHORS
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New Release: Born to Love Wild
BORN TO LOVE WILD
A Paranormal Romance Short Story Anthology
from Stars and Stone Books
Featuring: USA Today Bestselling Author Traci Douglass, Cara McKinnon, Sheri Queen, Pepper McGraw, M.T. DeSantis, Read Gallo, J. Bigelow, and Andie Biagini.
Buy Now!
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These eight paranormal romance stories will take you for a walk on the wild side of love.
From baby sea monsters bringing couples together, to river spirits falling in love with mortals, to demons and witches fighting evil together, to mismatched shifters struggling to figure out how to love each other, Born to Love Wild dishes up sweet and heat in equal measures. Come for the magic—stay for the happily-ever-after.
Traci Douglass – “Blood Strong: A Blood Ravagers Novella”
One guardian demon in love. One witch with a secret crush. One evil threatening their newfound connection.
Cara McKinnon – “A Change of Heart”
She’s a hybrid shifter who’s not supposed to exist. He’s a wolf who was born to protect her. But her secrets force him to choose: his mate, or his pack loyalty?
Sheri Queen – “The Robinson Agency”
Some are born with the gift to see into the future. Others create their own destiny.
Pepper McGraw – “Full Moon Shenanigans”
The full moon’s coming and it’s time to embrace the wildness within.
M.T. DeSantis – “Forever Love”
To find a chance… A chance to find…
Read Gallo – “The Flying Saltines”
When a river falls in love with an ordinary person will New York City survive?
J. Bigelow – “Focal Point”
Sometimes a wizard from Sweden needs help from a medium from Michigan.
Andie Biagini – “Water Temperature”
An engineering student and a cryptozoologist. One of them can talk to sea monsters, but it’s not who you think.
CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT OUR AUTHORS
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An Event and a New Book
I haven’t been blogging much this year. The truth is, I have been in a very deep depression and my anxiety is out of control. I finally went to see my doctor about a month ago and we’re trying a mix of meds and therapy. So far, it is helping a little bit, but not a lot. I need to completely unlearn almost forty years of unhealthy coping mechanisms and replace them with healthy ones. But what I haven’t been doing much of is writing.
Secret Magic is still coming, but right now it’s on an indefinite hold while I work through the worst of my issues. I did manage to write a few short stories during my black times, though, and those will be coming out later this year. The first one is called “A Change of Heart” and it will be out in July in the anthology Born to Love Wild. More on that in a few weeks, but for now, check out the cover to the left and click this link to reserve your copy on Kindle!
In the meantime, I am still making my annual trek back to my favorite place on earth, Seton Hill University, aka Hogwarts for Writers. I graduated with my MFA in Writing Popular Fiction in 2012, but I miss it so much I go back every year for the alumni workshop, In Your Write Mind. If you’re looking for a small but very craft- and business-focused event where you can make connections with other authors as well as industry professionals like agents and editors, check out In Your Write Mind.
And if you’re going to be in the Pittsburgh area this Saturday night (June 23rd) from 5:30-9:30, you can come see me! I will be at the Seton Hill Performing Arts Center in downtown Greensburg, PA at the mass booksigning. I’ll be signing from 5:30-7 and 8-9:30. That hour break isn’t for dinner, either—it’s to hear amazing historical romance author Beverly Jenkins speak!
I will have copies of all my books, including Kindle download codes for cheaper than what you’d pay online! So come see me, pick up a book, and then stay to visit with all of the other awesome authors who will be there. I hope to see you!
What’s Next for The Love at the Edge of Seventeen Authors?
LOVE AT THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN
A YA Romance Anthology
From Stars and Stone Books
It’s never easy to go through the fraught transition into adulthood, but the teens in this anthology have more to deal with than most: super powers, magic, illness, prejudice against sexual orientation and gender identity, and even death. Fortunately, they all find love at the edge of seventeen.
Featuring: M.T. DeSantis, A.E. Hayes, Serena Jayne, Cara McKinnon, Mary Rogers, and Kylie Weisenborn.
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We asked our authors to tell us what’s coming next for them. And as a bonus question, we also asked them to tell us three things on their desk right now.
M.T. DeSantis, “Be Null, My Heart”
What’s next? I’ll have a story in Stars and Stone’s summer adult paranormal romance anthology. That one involves a fae dance under a violet sky. Otherwise, revising novels and pitching agents.
Three things:
- Easy Button “That was easy” – This very button sat on the desk of my high school astronomy teacher. I didn’t particularly like him, but I loved smacking the easy button as I walked by. So, at the end of the year, he gave it to me. (Yes, I just hit it now.)
- My shiny new desktop computer – This may not seem like a big thing, but it’s the very first refurbished machine I’ve ever bought. Also, through a clever combination of gift cards and price drops, I got it for $40. I can hear your jealousy from here.
- My “Fucitol” stress “ball – Pronounce the “c” with a “k” sound. Got it? Good. A friend in college gave me this for my birthday. It’s shaped like a giant Tylenol, and it remains my favorite stress “ball” ever.
A.E. Hayes, “Her First Fever”
Oh, wow. Well, my second nonfiction work, which is a collection of essays, will be released May 15. The book is called Villain, and while it tells some very personal stories, it also explores the nature of good and evil, right and wrong, and other preconceived notions. It looks at why we, as humans, are quick to jump to conclusions in many situations when it comes to mental illness, tragedy, and the ever-changing world around us. I’ll also be finishing the final draft of a short paranormal horror story for an upcoming anthology titled The Eynes Anthology. If you’re a fan of graphic novels and the supernatural, this one will be for you! On top of those projects, I’ll be attending a writing/book signing in late June, selling my house, preparing to renew my vows with my husband of ten years, raising my amazing six-year-old son, and finishing my legal studies. Fingers crossed for a quieter year in 2019!
Three things:
Since I’m packing up my house to get ready to sell it, my desk is a wasteland of law books, contracts for my upcoming vow renewal, and other documents I don’t want to accidentally store somewhere! So, my desk is my living room couch with my laptop on my lap, at least for now. But I’m a fan of keeping things that have significance to me. Near me, I have a family photo from Christmas 2017, a law book from the end of World War I (an original first edition with lovely, thin, old paper), and the new invitations for my very geeky vow renewal. All of these items mean something and are true to the person I am, so when I look over to my end table and see them, I can’t help but smile
Serena Jayne, “Dead Man’s Party”
I’m working on a paranormal romance for an upcoming Stars and Stone anthology as well as a contemporary romance novel.
Three things:
Twisted Mango Diet Coke, star stickers, and my day planner. I’ve been giving myself a star in my day planner for every day I write as a motivation tool. The Twisted Mango Diet Coke is pretty darned good, but Margie Lawson hooked me on Diet Coke mixed with pineapple juice, which is my new favorite beverage.
Cara McKinnon, “Three Jagged Pieces”
I am currently finishing the fourth novel in my Fay of Skye series, Secret Magic. After that, I’m putting together a series proposal for a romance publisher (*fingers crossed*). And of course I have stories in the two upcoming Stars and Stone Books anthologies, Born to Love Wild (coming July 2018) and For Love the Bell Tolls (coming October 2018).
Three things:
- I have a fidget cube that I play with when I’m trying to work out plot snarls. I originally ordered one for my son, but I like having one, too.
- Under my monitor are a bunch of pins from various places (Seton Hill, where I got my MFA; Shepherd U, where I taught English; NaNoWriMo, which I do every November, etc.).
- On my credenza is a Pop! figure of General Organa from The Last Jedi. Carrie Fisher is one of my heroes, and I love that she lived to become a general and not just a princess in need of rescue.
Mary Rogers, “The Crayon Thief”
I’m writing my second book, the first book in the Balsam Island trilogy, Finding Home. I can’t wait to tell the story of Rita Sanders, a city girl who only wants the pace and the peace of life on Balsam Island, and Declan Pierce, an Islander who can’t wait to get off to the city. It’s set in the Pacific Northwest, between Vancouver, B.C. and Seattle. There’s the local Native American culture, which has been so rewarding to research, and the island culture, with Canadian and American characters, but the one character is a – shall we say – citizen of the world, Mrs. Clausse. (It’s Clow-say, but you know how people like to pronounce that!). I have other anthologies I’d like to be in, time will tell.
Three things:
Right now I’m on the front porch. I have my ever-present cup of tea (on the tea warmer!), a vase of the roses I grow in my front yard, and chapstick. I have had an addiction to chap stick since I was a kid, but the flavours are so much better now (I’m lookin’ at you, mango!). I’m not sure Tessa is a tea gal, but Susan is. Randy, well, whatever he is, I’m all for it! Cindy is a coffee gal. I’m pretty sure Susan loves the best lipsticks, but Cindy, Tessa, and Randy will be chapstick-friendly. As for roses, I assume Randy would buy them, Tessa would be shocked to get them, Cindy would probably buy her own, and Susan would be showered with them!
Kylie Weisenborn, “Now I Am”
I am finishing my debut YA fantasy and romance novel, Just Breathe, in the next few months, and will hopefully start querying agents early next year. I also hope to submit another short story or two in the next few months.
Three things:
I don’t really have anything interesting on my desk since I rarely use it for writing. It’s more of a clutter collector.
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Representation Matters
LOVE AT THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN
A YA Romance Anthology
From Stars and Stone Books
It’s never easy to go through the fraught transition into adulthood, but the teens in this anthology have more to deal with than most: super powers, magic, illness, prejudice against sexual orientation and gender identity, and even death. Fortunately, they all find love at the edge of seventeen.
Featuring: M.T. DeSantis, A.E. Hayes, Serena Jayne, Cara McKinnon, Mary Rogers, and Kylie Weisenborn.
BUY NOW
Kindle | iBooks | Nook | Kobo | Google Play
This blog post is basically just a repost of my Author’s Note from “Three Jagged Pieces,” available today in this lovely YA romance anthology. I edited out one tiny spoiler, and otherwise the only spoiler is that everyone gets together in the end (duh, it’s a romance).
I think it’s important to talk about what kinds of characters we’re writing about in fiction, particularly romance. But another part of this discussion is how we should also be carving out space for #ownvoices authors. I absolutely am an advocate for authors who share their authentic voices and their own experiences. To that end, I will direct readers to one of my favorite romance authors, Anna Zabo, who is nonbinary. They have written some amazing books, but my favorite is Just Business. Eli and Justin stole my heart and never gave it back.
OK, on to the Author’s Note!
Most of the people I know who are trans or non-binary took a long time on their own personal journeys to get to where Noah is in this story. I deliberately gave Noah a supportive—and more importantly, observant—family who asked the right questions at an early age, never forced him to be anything other than what he is, and gave him access to the tools and information he needed to make informed choices as a young man. I did this for a few reasons. The first is because I wish that everyone, no matter their gender, sexual orientation, size, shape, or life choices, could be surrounded by acceptance and love—and accessible medical treatment if needed. The second reason is because I didn’t want this to be a story that’s only about Noah being trans. There is more to transgender people than their gender! So, while that’s an important part of him, and though he’s only eighteen, an age at which many of my transgender friends were—for many valid and tangible reasons—unable to come out, I wanted Noah to be out and feel pretty confident about himself as, well, himself. At the same time, though, I don’t want anyone to think that I’m making any sort of statement about when—or even if—someone should transition, or that someone needs to know they’re trans as a child. That’s a deeply personal process, and there are no right or wrong answers, choices, or timings.
On the other hand, there does need to be some conflict in a story, so I gave Sam some truly terrible parents. A year ago, I wouldn’t have written his parents the way I did. They feel over-the-top and cartoonish to me, even now—even knowing that many, many of these people exist, and are out in the open thanks to the changes in the US since 2016. I grew up in the evangelical Christian faith. I was baptized Southern Baptist and after that my parents went around to a number of different independent (non-denominational) churches. The one thing the churches all had in common was fundamentalism: The Bible is the sacrosanct word of God, and Jesus is the only way for salvation. There was a lot of “family values” nonsense and purity culture in there, too, although my parents are definitely on the liberal end of that particular religious cesspool. I got away from it in high school and never looked back. But Sam’s parents could be people I knew from church—maybe even the parents of kids in my youth group. And that’s scary and tragic. I wanted to give Sam a way to escape that many teens don’t have in reality. [Edited to add: As of 5/16/18, my state just enacted legislation to ban conversion therapy.]
Finally, we come to Ava. Ava is the girl I could have been. Some of her story mirrors mine: short, chubby girl who gained a lot of weight because of birth control pills to control PCOS symptoms. We both suffer from body-image issues, although I’m twenty years older than her now and I’ve come a long way toward loving myself no matter my size. But unlike Ava, I didn’t let any of that hold me back when I was in school. I loved to perform, and I was very confident in my voice. I didn’t get the cutest guy in school in high school, but I did get the cutest guy in college (who also happens to be a former wrestler), and we’re married with two kids. Ava gets to have two hot guys. Isn’t she lucky?
Go get your copy of Love at the Edge of Seventeen to find out how Noah, Sam, and Ava overcome prejudice, bigotry, and hate to find a deep and abiding love. #lovewins
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Cover Reveal: Love at the Edge of Seventeen
Long time no post! I had a very rough winter this year. I won’t go into too much detail, except to say that times have been difficult. They aren’t perfect now, but I am trying to get back up to my previous level of productivity. And that includes this announcement!
Back in the fall, I mentioned a young adult romance anthology that I am editing. It turned out that several of our authors could not contribute stories by the deadline, so I also ended up writing for it! My story is called “Three Jagged Pieces” and tells the story of three high school seniors who overcome prejudice, homophobia, and transphobia to find love.
My initial idea when I started to write the story was to focus on an overweight heroine who gets the cute, popular guy. But as I sat down and started working on that, my own high school experiences started to overlay the story. I have a good friend who I have known since the age of eleven who struggled in high school and has now come out as nonbinary, generally presenting male. I also know several other transgender, nonbinary, and genderfluid people. One of my writer-mantras is “representation matters,” so in addition to the traditional boy-meets-girl story, I added another layer: a transgender boy who loves them both.
I hope you enjoy the story. The book will be here in early May.
LOVE AT THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN
A YA ROMANCE ANTHOLOGY
Coming Soon from Stars and Stone Books
Featuring: M.T. DeSantis, A.E. Hayes, Serena Jayne, Cara McKinnon, Mary Rogers, and Kylie Weisenborn.
It’s never easy to go through the fraught transition into adulthood, but the teens in this anthology have more to deal with than most: super powers, magic, illness, and prejudice against sexual orientation and gender identity. Fortunately, they all find love at the edge of seventeen.
M.T. DeSantis – “Be Null, My Heart”
Teen love…with superpowers.
A.E. Hayes – “Her First Fever”
Can a smart, stubborn girl look past the things she desires the most in life to help out her annoying, enigmatic biology partner – even if helping him comes with an emotional price?
Serena Jayne – “Dead Man’s Party”
Despite formidable evidence to the contrary, Xander was magic.
Cara McKinnon – “Three Jagged Pieces”
Boy meets girl meets boy.
Mary Rogers – “The Crayon Thief”
The last time they talked, he stole her crayon. Now he wants to take her on a date. But why?
Kylie Weisenborn – “Now I Am”
Annalyn is dead…so what is she waiting for?
CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT OUR AUTHORS
STARS AND STONE BOOKS: http://starsandstonebooks.com/
GOODREADS: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38901569-love-at-the-edge-of-seventeen
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TWITTER: https://twitter.com/starsstonebooks
ANTHOLOGY WEBSITE: https://www.starsandstonebooks.com/love-at-the-edge-of-seventeen
Delays, Depression, and Medical Issues
The title of this blog post pretty much says it all. I had a medical procedure done a few weeks ago and have a few more scheduled over the next month or so, and the side effects are not making it easy for me to focus on my work. I have not finished Secret Magic yet, and there is no way that I’ll be able to finish and revise in time for even a late-December release.
I would like to be optimistic and say that I can be ready by mid-January, but with the holidays coming up, it’s more realistic to say that the book will be out in late January or early February.
I am so sorry for this delay. This year has been very difficult for me as a writer for lots of reasons, but my health–and my mental health–are playing a big role in keeping me away from the keyboard. I’m working on getting the physical side of things under control, but unfortunately the “cure” has managed to push me into one of the deepest depressions I have experienced in years.
I am getting help, and I will keep writing. But it’s slow going, and until things even out with my brain chemistry, I don’t want to make promises or commitments about release dates.
Thank you so much for supporting my work, and I appreciate every one of you who follows my blog and reads my books. All of the Stars and Stone Books catalog is on sale from now until the end of the year, so it’s a great time to get started if you haven’t read my work yet. Here’s a link to my author page on Amazon.
If you’ve already read the books, the best gift you can give me as an author is to leave a review, especially on Amazon. They make a difference not only in how Amazon promotes my books, but in helping future readers decide if they want to take a chance on a new-to-them indie author.
Thank you again, and if I can finish revising it, I have a short story that I’ve been working on off-and-on this year that I will try to post around Yule as my holiday gift to you.
I am also going to put out one more episode of the Feminist Romantic this month–about holiday romances. It’s already recorded and ready to go, so that will be out next week. But other than that, I’ll be going away from the internet and social media for the rest of the year. I need some time to be unplugged, with my family, and remembering why I do all of this. So happy holidays to you, no matter what you celebrate in this time of darkness. All of the holidays around the winter solstice celebrate the return of the light, and I’ll be spending the next few weeks trying to do the same.
My love to all of you, and I’ll see you again after the new year.
NaNoWriMo 2017
I haven’t blogged in a while, because I have been trying to finish Secret Magic and the combination of actually finding my groove with the story and NaNoWriMo in November meant that I didn’t want to spend any of my free time on blogging when I could be writing the book.
But it has been a while, and I figured I’d better check in, especially since I won NaNo (yay!) and am nearly finished the book.
I’m still pushing hard to get the book out by the end of this month, but you’ll notice that I haven’t put up a pre-order link yet. I’m not going to set an official date until the draft is done. Once it’s finished, I can plan for how long it will take to do revisions, copyedits, and proofreading/formatting.
I will announce the pre-order as soon as I can, and thank you for your patience! This book is going to be good, I promise. My editor has already read the first half and in addition to all of the things I need to tweak in revisions, she had some great things to say about the story and characters. I hope you love it as much as she and I do.
I will have two episodes of the Feminist Romantic going up this month. The first one, on December 6, will be about revision–not that I’m quite there yet with Secret Magic! The second, on December 20th, will be about holiday-themed romances. In addition to the usual Christmas romances, I’ve found a number of Chanukah romances and one Yule/Solstice romance, but I’m still looking for other holidays around this time of year (Diwali, Kwanzaa, etc.). If you know of any titles, send me an email (cara@caramckinnon.com) or leave a comment and let me know!
When the Words Aren’t Coming
This year has been a terrible year for me as a writer, and I know I’m not alone. It’s so hard to concentrate on a fictional world when the real world feels like it’s spinning out of control.
I deliberately scheduled my year to shift most of the writing into the spring and summer this year, leaving editorial and research for the rest of the year because I’ve learned that I have trouble writing in the fall and winter due to seasonal depression. Unfortunately, real life and my other jobs got in the way of writing in the spring and summer this year. Now that I have time to write, it’s like something has atrophied inside of me. My depression and anxiety is worse than it has been in years. I am writing, but very slowly. What used to be 2000-3000 word days are now 200-300 words. A thousand word day feels like a victory.
This year has taught me much about myself as a writer and as a business person. I tried to balance the business of my publishing company with the creative act of being a writer, and I’m failing at doing both. I have a different plan for next year and how it will go, but I know that I need to back away a bit from publishing, promotion, and advertising if I’m ever going to finish another book. And that’s what really brings readers back–more good books.
I’m still trying to finish Secret Magic by mid-December, but the going is tough. Sometimes I want to throw my computer across the room, like in the picture above. But I don’t, and I won’t.
I won’t give up.
I promise.
Cara McKinnon 