It’s about the character
My tendency to binge-watch television shows. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s the total immersion into another world. It’s nice to escape the real one sometimes. However, I don’t find all worlds engaging. Not even well-built ones. Sure, I like action as much as the next gal. I like urban fantasy worlds probably more. But for me, it’s all about the character.
Tonight (maybe all night), I’m watching Percy and the Olympians, the series. I know I’m not the target audience, but I’m captivated. The characters are so complex. They have backstories that clearly color their personalities, emotions, perceptions, thought processes, and consequently, their decisions.
Have you seen The Brothers Sun on Netflix? It’s another good example. It’s about two brothers who are charged with protecting their family from organized crime. One of the conflicts in the book is that one brother was raised in the family’s criminal enterprise, and the other was raised with NO IDEA about the family business. Although it’s a comedy, the main characters are well-rounded and nuanced in terms of how they see the world and the choices they make.
This is why I write character-driven fiction. Action? Yes. Romance? Yes. Supernatural elements? Yes. But the characters and their journeys of growth, success, and/or redemption are the heart and soul of every story I write.
What pulls you into a story?
If You Can’t Stand the Heat…
If you live in the wake of the current heat wave, there’s nothing you can do about it.
Except you literally should stay out of the kitchen. Today it was 109 with the heat index. My poor flowers are suffering. Some water today resuscitated them, and we moved all of them to shade in the middle of the yard. Wouldn’t it be nice if someone tended to us like that?
I’ve never been a fast writer, but it’s extremely challenging to write in weather like this. It’s physically uncomfortable, of course. But the scorching temperatures and the New England humidity make it nearly impossible to concentrate. But I’ve made commitments so I keep chugging along. I plan to have a new novella and the final installment in the Living After Midnight series before the summer is over.
Ever hear of the Little Train That Could? I think I can, I think I can, I know I can, I know I can…
Stay tuned.
It's Beginning to Look Alot Like...Fall?
It’s unseasonably warm here in Connecticut. The leaves are only now turning and falling to the ground. Yesterday and today it hit 80 degrees.
That’s crazy.
We took advantage of the warm weather to put away much of our outdoor furniture. It’s a majestic view, the red and orange, beige and brown leaves covering uncharacteristically green grass. We also put out halloween decorations and of course, dressed-up our babies.
In case you’re wondering, these are Lee MIddleton Dolls. Their faces were sculpted and their bodies signed by one and only Reba Schick, an artist who sculpted the most beautiful doll faces. These two are especially precious to me because my partner and I chose their hair and eyes and bodies. Aren’t they adorable?
Happy Halloween. Welcome to Fall.
A Sacrifice for Convenience
A plate of quesadillas.
I’m sure I’m not alone in occasionally eating take-out food. There are those days when I’m too tired to think about cooking. Or too busy to have time to make a meal. And I’ll admit it—sometimes, there just isn’t anything in the fridge that is even remotely appealing.
My partner and I are not very adventurous when it comes to food. Once in a blue, we’ll try a new restaurant after thoroughly vetting it through friends or reviews. When we find one, it goes on the list of options.
There was a time when we could count on these select places to give us delicious, beautifully present food in exchange for money. Since the pandemic, we tip for take-out because given the circumstances it felt like the right thing to do.
But our list today is short and growing shorter. Restaurants that we have had great food and experiences with are disappointing us in a myriad of ways.
An item (or two) missing from our order.
A presentation so poor as to be unappealing.
Badly cooked—burned beyond edibility or worse.
Just yesterday, we ordered from a place that we have gotten food from many, many times. It’s gotten progressively worse. For instance, at some point we ordered a bean burrito that had no beans in it. Seriously. But we decided to give it another chance. This time we ordered quesadillas. It was the trifecta of awful: Sloppily constructed and presented. Chicken so dried out it it was unrecognizable as chicken—or anything edible. And—you guessed it—burned tortillas.
At this point, the only three places that have not disappointed us—yet—are our local McDonald’s, a pizza parlor with amazing zucchini fries, and a little breakfast place. As a business person, I have an idea what is happening and it has to do with training, oversight, lack of pride in a job well done, etc. But a question remains: WHY is it happening? I have no idea but if you do, I’d like to hear it.
Take out no longer seems worth the convenience. I think we’ll stop eating out for a while, and instead plan simple meals that we can make even if we’re tired or have little time. To be sure, it’s healthier and less expensive this way. But it sure is disappointing.
After Midnight: The Beginning @MFRWhooks
Her taboo relationships give her new life. Now there's a secret worth dying for.
After Midnight: The Beginning
Genre: LGBTQ+ Urban Fantasy Romance
***
Jewell spent her college years avoiding two threats: sunlight and her sadistic stepfather.
Ria hails from a family of old-world vamps who want her to fall in line. Fat chance, especially since being in that line includes not being gay.
Being in love is easy for Ria and Jewell—they belong together like vodka and tomato juice. Adding a sexy incubus to their union is the hot sauce in their Bloody Mary. The only problem? Jewell's stepfather.
He demands Jewell return home. He's supported her for her entire life, and tuition isn't cheap. She belongs to him. Her debt has come due.
If she refuses, he'll kill her. If she agrees, it could expose a secret that will result in worldwide carnage.
Jewell and Ria have until dawn to decide…
...and it's already After Midnight.
Warning: This book features spicy supernatural creatures, an attempted assault that makes the perp wish he'd just stayed home, and a secret that changes everything.
After Midnight: The Beginning is the 2nd book in the LGBTQ urban fantasy series Living After Midnight. It can be read out of order and as a Happy for Now standalone.
Excerpt
“After a round of see you laters, Jewell followed Ria through a dozen mismatched and worn bistro tables to a group of yard sale loveseats tucked against the wall near the stage, and across the room from the entrance. Hand-sewn throws were strewn across the small sofas. It gave the space a shabby chic kind of look. Cute. Someone was trying to spruce the place up.
Jewell sat on the purple couch and patted the dusty cushion next to her to invite her girlfriend to sit. She liked this bar, despite the dirt and sticky floors. If the owner cleaned it up a bit, it might become one of those funky after-hours clubs that could put Unakite on the map.
"Could this be any lower to the ground?" Ria sat on the edge of the sofa and tugged at her red micro-mini-skirt. "I practically have to be a contortionist not to show my stuff to the creeps across the room." She flashed an insincere smile to the group of men leering at them, and whispered to Jewell through bared teeth, "Do you see that idiot coming over here? Start coughing like you have tuberculosis.“I don't have the patience for these pushy humans.”
“Pushy? The young man approaching them seemed more like a salmon in a den of grizzly bears, out of his element and nervous as hell. Jewell had to give him credit: he had the guts to head toward Ria.
Prey seldom made good decisions in the face of a predator.”
Buy Links
Of Love and Donuts
Do you ever have cravings? I do. I tend to try to ignore them. Sometimes, they go away. Sometimes…they linger.
My partner and I had planned a relaxing weekend retreat at our favorite spot in the state, Niantic. It would be the getaway before teaching starts—a moment to relax, a moment for fun, and of course, the ocean. Since the first time we discussed going away, we lamented that our location would be just minutes away from The Hive.
What is this Hive we speak of? The place where Krispy Kreme donuts are made. ARE MADE.
Since we’ve been working hard at eating better, donuts were not on the agenda. But, unbeknownst to each other, neither of us could stop thinking about the confectionary crack, Krispy Kreme. So freaking close and yet, so far from our beachside paradise!
As we drove closer to Niantic, my partner hesitantly said, “I know you want to keep on our eating plan, but, um, we are going to be just a few miles away from The Hive. Doesn’t a donut sound good?”
I replied, “OH MY GOD IT SURE DOES! Let’s go. But we’ll just buy a couple, right?” I had been holding steadfast to my commitment to avoid The Hive because I thought SHE wanted to, and she had been doing the same for me. What an awesome feeling.
(Don’t ask me how many we actually bought. Let’s just say it was a weekend of love and donuts.)
August Book Fairs! Check them out!
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Book Fair: All Flavors of MM Romance.
Book Fair: Family Don’t End With Blood.
Book Fair: Queer Books!
Your Next LGBT Beach Read!
Searching for your next gay beach read?
These bestselling authors have teamed up to offer a delightful selection of new and very queer books. Over 50 stories available! Click on the picture!
The Business of Writing
I’ve been a writer for a long time. It started with journaling, then publishing and writing for a free, underground fanfic newsletter called Hot Chocolate. For me, writing has always been a necessary joy. Stories roll around in my head all the time and sometimes, they consume me. The result? House of the Rising Son, After Midnight, and the soon to be released, Waiting for the Son, and every short story I’ve ever written.
In looking to have House published, I discovered an unfortunate truth: Writing is a business.
Of course, I knew selling was part of it. I didn’t know the first of that selling was selling the story to a publisher. Most people think that publishers do everything. They sure do a lot, but most publishers don’t help much with marketing. But for a writer, marketing is Job #: Planning, Promotion, Social Media, and more.1. I had a lot of learning to do. At this point, I spend 5-10 hours a week on one marketing activity or another. I’m getting pretty good at some of them. Still don’t like marketing much.
I’m currently planning the launch of my 3rd novel, Waiting for the Son. I’m also working on a new short story, plotting the next book in the Living After Midnight series, and plotting another series. It’s too early to say to much about it except that the working title is Six +1. Look for it in the next year!
Onward. I have a launch to organize.
A Nacho Conundrum. What to do?
I just found out that THIS SUNDAY is National Nachos Day. And I do not know how to process this information.
I’ve been craving Nachos for months now. I’ve resisted because I’ve been trying to eat cleaner, healthier and well, you can’t make good nachos healthy. You just can’t. It’s one of the laws of the universe, like gravity.
So I’m going to have them this weekend. The question on the table is, do I make or buy them? If I buy them, they’d have to make it from the restaurant to my house because I’m not yet eating in restaurants. They could get very soggy. I’m also not guaranteed to get exactly what I want in the ratio that I want. What if they add too much refried beans and not enough sour cream? I’d be devastated.
If I make them, it will cost me more to get all the ingredients than it would to buy them. It would also take a good amount of time from NaNoWriMo writing time. BUT-I would be assured to get what I’m craving and in the right proportions. Ground beef. Jalapenos. Sour cream. Cheese. Avocado. Salsa. Chopped onions. Chopped tomatoes.
What will I do? Damn. I have three days to decide.
It’s the Most Anxiety-producing Time of the Year
I’m When I was a kid, Fall was tough only because it was the start of school. After the first day, it got better. But now, it seems the entire season is a challenge. Is it for you, too?
To make things worse, I've decided to once again take on the masochistic journey called National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). This is a bad idea on so many levels!
First and foremost, I can't let it get in the way of the release of Waiting on the Son, my newest, completed novel. This is not as simple as it sounds. Worth it, of course, but by no means easy. I'm also working on a new holiday short-story for you.
November inches me closer to the end of the semester when I'm the most busy with grading and advising students.
NaNoWriMo is during November, which of course makes Thanksgiving prep and celebrations quite challenging. It's not easy to write 1667 words a day, every day, when I'm also trying to bake bread, decorate cakes, and roast a turkey.
And yet, I love NaNoWriMo. I can commune and commiserate with my colleagues who are doing the same thing while simultaneously giving myself over to my creative energies. In fact, it's required.
I'm going to take the plunge. I have an idea burning in my head and heart which will be the first book in a new series. Now that I say it aloud, I'm getting excited to start. Yay, Nano!
Catch ya later. I need to make a plan.
Titles I Wish I Could Use
I often come up with titles that, once I give some thought, I realize I should probably not use them.
The original titles for two books in my Living After Midnight series are great examples.
Slippery in the Middle
Fruit on the Bottom
Okay, I may still use Slippery. I love that title! But I’m well aware of the problems with Fruit on the bottom.
Here are some of my other ideas in the recycle pile:
Cheese Squirting Out
Chicken Noodle Loop
Desire, Deceit, and Destruction
What’s the worst title you ever thought of? Or have ever seen on a book?