• It’s Good Morning Monday time again!

    Another quick one from me today! I was out most of the weekend and have been either super busy, or feeling like that damn bus mowed me down again. I know, these two things are related LOL. I feel like crap because I’m busy. I know I should take it easy, and I have been, but I need to slow down a bit more. I will have this coming weekend at home, which is nice, but then I’m away for the next two. Which is not nice. Well, it’s nice, but it’s busy! I have busy kids – which means I’m a busy mum. Argh! Such a vicious circle. 😉

    I managed some writing last week, which is the best feeling ever. Yanni’s Story is now at 48K, and maybe it’s half done, I’m not sure. I’m estimating maybe an August/Sept release, but in all honesty, I have no clue. Oh, the joys of self-publishing! LOL

    Yanni and Peter still haven’t even kissed yet! Boy, do they still have a long way to go… 😉


    Cronin’s Key was released on Audio last week, and the reviews have been AWESOME! I listened to it and Joel did a FAB job! I especially love how he portrayed Eiji 🙂

    You can find it at the following outlets:

    Audible

    iTunes

    Tantor


    I will have news later this week on the paperback on Red Dirt Heart Imago and Red Dirt Christmas! Stay tuned!

    Until then… <3

  • Cronin’s Key is now on Audio!!

    For my audio listeners, Cronin’s Key is now available!  *twirls* Narrated by the uber talented Joel Leslie, the first reviews have been STELLAR!

    You can find it at the following outlets:

    Audible

    iTunes

    Tantor

    <3

  • Good Morning Monday! News and Whatnot!

    Another week, and yes, these Mondays just keep coming! This is going to be a super quick post – a flyby really.


    This week has been pretty good on the writing front. My WIP is now at 37K words, though I’m thinking it might end up over 80K long, so I have much to do still.

    Yanni is a young man that has been through a lot, and he needs to go through certain steps before he can get his HEA. Luckily for him, Peter is very patient 😉


    I will have a new paperback order form for anyone wanting signed books at GRL in Denver in October. I’m just waiting on a proof copy of a certain book from Createspace before I put it on any official list. I have put the Red Dirt Heart Imago crossover book into paperback, with the RDH Christmas book at the back as a bonus book (to beef it up a bit – the price is still the minimum Createspace will allow, but it just makes it more value for the reader) So I’ve done the reverse with a separate paperback – RDH Christmas story and cover, with the crossover at the back as a bonus story. That way, fans of the series who LOVE the covers will have a chance to get both. 🙂  I want to post pics and show people (for clarity) before I add them to my paperback list though. I was hoping to have the second proof book last week, but alas, it never arrived. I might have to contact Createspace if it doesn’t arrive soon!


    In some exciting news, I have an 8,000 word drabble story (a story written in 100 word chapters, kinda like haiku but not) and I’ll be adding it to my free-reads. First, it will upload on my blog daily, two chapters at a time, until it’s complete. Not sure when it will start, but soon! In the next few weeks…  There is also a sequel, approx 10,000 words, which will follow 🙂

    Also, the French translation of Cronin’s Key III should be out soon! And the French translation of Red Dirt Heart 3 should be out next month as well!

    Told you it was going to be a quick one!  Until next week!  <3

  • Good Morning Monday ~ Mother’s Day Edition and a Cover Reveal!

    Technically it’s Monday here in Australia, but for the majority of the world it’s still Sunday – so Happy Mother’s Day! To all those who are celebrating, I hope you have a fab day.

    So, how did I spend my Mother’s Day?  Well, I was up at 6am to get my son to a day-long tennis tournament. Yes, some idiot schedules tournaments on Mother’s Day. So, instead of getting a sleep-in, I was courtside, freezing to death, with a bunch of other parents (who are, let’s be honest here, mostly the mums). On the bright side, there was takeout for dinner, which is always a win! 🙂

    Last week I actually tried and did manage to get some writing done. YAY ME!!!  But I also had two friends tell me that I looked awful – which was good in a weird way because they were validating what is essentially an invisible illness. I mean, I feel like shit so I guess it’s only right that I look it. LOL  But no one really likes to hear that they look like crap – and these were days that I actually thought I was doing okay. *sigh*  Anyway, a quick update for those who may not know… I have recently been given a diagnosis of why I feel like I’ve been hit by a bus. It’s called Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Just in case you missed my last few posts.


    Anywhooooooo, enough of the misery-me and back to the writing part… Yes, I did the words last week. Not many, but words nonetheless!  Yanni’s Story is now at 27K words and is probably one third done. I know, right? It’s gonna be a long one! Part of me worries that the beginning is too drawn out, but Yanni has been through a lot and is dealing with the ramifications of having who he is, his innocence, and his self-worth, ripped away from him.

    So I can’t rush this. And if you’ve read The Spencer Cohen Series, you know Yanni was in an abusive relationship. Anyone who has dealt with domestic violence knows this is not something you can just ‘get over’ because someone wants to get to the fluffy part of the book. There’s a process of healing I need to respect here.

    I’ve said it many times, my characters talk to me, like they’re a real person. Just in my head. I need to respect my characters… So if that means it’s 50k words long before we even get a kiss between Yanni and Peter, then so be it. Though I’m sure most of my readers know me well enough by now to know that my books aren’t sex-focused anyway.

    I don’t know why I feel like I need to justify myself LOL. I’ll just keep writing (albeit slowly) and see how it pans out.

    I have the cover for Yanni’s Story, but I don’t want to reveal it just yet in case it jinxes my newly recovered word-flow.  Stay tuned though. It won’t be far away…


    In other cover news… I wanted to show off my new Turning Point Series covers. The rights are being returned to me in July (Point of No Return) and October (Breaking Point) You’ve all seen the new Starting Point, as I re-released it last year. But I wanted to show the other two!

    As I explained when I re-released Starting Point, now having creative control over the cover design, I wanted to get back to the very original designs done by Silver Publishing back in 2012/13. Luckily for me, the brilliant cover artist who worked on them was the lovely Reese Dante, who is still very active/prominent in the M/M community. Sooo, I asked, given the original designs were hers, if she’d like to redo them for me! And she said yes!!

    So, Point of No Return will be re-edited and re-released after July 5th, and Breaking Point will be after 25th October. There won’t be new content added. I figure after their fourth ‘re-release’ in five years, it’s time to just let them be.

    I can’t explain how happy I am to be getting Matt and Kira back. Like, so so so much!! And here are the GORGEOUS covers, by Reese Dante!

    Aren’t they just beautiful??  🙂

    Okay, so that’s enough blathering for one day. 😉 Until next week…

    <3

  • Good Morning Monday, and a Cronin’s Key Outtake!

    Something a bit special today instead of a normal weekly update. An outtake!

    Just how did Cronin know to leap into the police station the night he and Alec first met?

    I was talking on Facebook with some readers and was reminded that this was a scene I’d promised but never delivered. I had always intended to write it after Book 1 came out but forgot all about it. So I wrote it yesterday! It’s amazing how easy it is to write a quick outtake when it’s been in your head for three years. It hasn’t been edited, all mistakes are mine. And there will be some, so just nod and smile and ignore the eleventy billion commas, k? lol

    In Cronin’s Key, we see Alec and Cronin’s first meeting from Alec’s point of view. This is Cronin’s.

    CRONIN’S KEY OUTTTAKE

    FINDING HEART 

    How did Cronin know to leap into the police station the night he and Alec first met?

    Cronin stood at the huge glass wall overlooking New York City. He’d stood there for hours, not moving, barely breathing.

    Something was wrong.

    He’d leapt to London, Budapest, Amsterdam, Glasgow, all in the last few hours just to escape the unease he felt, but something kept drawing him back to New York.

    He couldn’t explain it. He felt wrong in his own skin. Nervous, anxious, excited, dread, longing. Like his soul ached for something he could not define.

    Through the protective glass of his penthouse apartment, he’d watched the sun draw a close to another lonely day as the insignificant humans scurried on the streets below like ants. His reflection stared back at him; wary, black eyes, his short ginger hair a perpetual mess, his dark coat with the collar upturned suited his mood.

    Tonight, when darkness shrouded his city, he didn’t feel the liberation like he normally did. Unlike most other vampires, Cronin could leap to anywhere in the world at any time he chose. He was rarely impeded by sunlight because he could simply chase night around the globe. Still, he lived by moonlight and normally he reveled in it.

    But not tonight.

    Something was wrong. There had been rumors of an unsettling of the Egyptian covens, and that was indeed cause for concern. But this was different. The agitation he felt in his bones was personal.

    He didn’t need to feed. He taken care of that in Budapest, and Amsterdam. Overfed, probably. But it didn’t quell the discomfort. It didn’t feel like anything would. In all his days, over a thousand years, he’d never felt like this before.

    Cronin took a deep breath through his nose and tried to center himself. Focus eluded him, the ability to find calm and patience was born from a long life, but tonight restlessness settled over him like a cold blanket.

    He stretched his neck to each side and let out a frustrated sigh. He thought of Eiji and Jodis, his two closest friends, and for a brief moment he considered leaping to where they were. Their presence alone was always a source of comfort. But what could he say? How could he explain how he felt when he himself did not know? He could roar and pull at his hair to relieve some of the pent up rage. Jodis would be concerned, and Eiji would probably laugh. But what would it accomplish?

    No, he would not concern them with this. He’d spent long enough alone to know that all things come to pass. Though something in the back of his mind told him this would not go away until he found the source.

    Annoyed with himself, he took out his phone and sent Eiji a quick text. Everything okay where you are?

    His reply was immediate. Yes of course, brother. Why do you ask?

    Cronin didn’t reply, and a minute later another text arrived with a more urgent tone. Cronin?

    He shook his head at himself and regretted texting at all. Letting out an angry snarl, he roared at the empty apartment. Then with no more than a thought, he was gone.

    * * *

    The nightclub Cronin found himself at was in the meatpacking district, owned and regularly frequented by vampires. The humans who stumbled in didn’t know that of course, and they never could. Vampires didn’t drink alcohol but the atmosphere and the music was a sense of normalcy to otherwise endless days. Mingling with an unsuspecting human menu didn’t hurt either.

    Cronin wasn’t in the mood. He leapt to the alley behind the building and stalked around to the front. It was after two in the morning and the place was thumping. The front doors were opened for him, both doormen bowed their heads. The other vampires in the nightclub all noticed him immediately and parted in an almost imperceptible path. The humans were blissfully ignorant to his presence, but with his vampire hearing Cronin heard his name in hushed whispers. He was, after all, a coven leader. He was their leader.

    Fury rolled off him in waves.

    Unexplainable, all-encompassing. This feeling was consuming him.

    The owner of the nightclub was quickly in front of him, head slightly bowed. Gregory was a century-old vampire from Belfast. “Cronin, may I be of assistance?”

    Cronin almost laughed. Instead, he shook his head. “Has there been any developments to the rumors with the Egyptians?”

    Gregory flinched and gave a small nod. “Just tonight, there were rumors of rogue seekers.”

    Cronin’s nostrils flared. “And no one thought to notify us?”

    Gregory looked apologetic, and for all intents and purposes, innocent. “They are but rumors, Cronin. If I thought for one moment―”

    “What was said?”

    Gregory looked around the crowd and nodded toward the end of the bar. Not that it mattered because all vampires in the room could hear their conversation, even over the music and noise of the crowd.

    “All I heard was someone thought they saw seekers. Not of this coven. Not American. That’s all I know.”

    “Don’t know what they’re after?”

    Gregory shook his head. “No.”

    The ache in Cronin’s chest squeezed tighter, the agitation made his hands shake.

    Gregory frowned but eyed Cronin warily. “It’s not the first time we’ve had foreign seekers in New York. What’s wrong, Cronin?”

    I don’t know. But something was very, very wrong. No, not wrong… misaligned.

    Before Cronin could question what warranted his word choice, two vampires walked into the bar unaware of Cronin’s presence. One was excitedly telling a story, “… no, it was a cop! Can you believe that? A cop chased down a fucking seeker!”

    Both Cronin and Gregory turned to face them and a hush fell over the vampires in the room. Something snapped in Cronin. Something else he couldn’t explain, but something in his blood was making him crazy. He was getting close to the source, he knew he was. He could feel it.

    He crossed the room in a flash and took the vampire by the throat and pinned him to the wall. The vampire tried to resist, until he saw who had hold of him.

    Cronin’s voice was fire and wrath. “What did you just say?”

    If it were possible for vampires to piss themselves, this one surely would have. He was young, experience curtailed by arrogance. His eyes were wide and everyone in the room was watching. “Word is a cop chased down a seeker.”

    “Where?”

    “Dunno. But the cop’s from the thirty-third. A detective. His name was Alec something. That’s all I know.”

    Alec something.

    Alec.

    And suddenly everything slotted into place. The pieces of the puzzle made sense.

    Cronin let the vampire slide down the wall. He scrambled to his feet and put some distance between himself and Cronin, but never turned his back on his leader. Out of fear or respect, Cronin didn’t care. He took out his phone and hit Eiji’s number.

    “Cronin?”

    “I need you.”

    “We’re already on our way. Your text concerned us, brother. Please, tell me what’s wrong.”

    “I’ll explain everything. Right now, I have to go.” Cronin ended the call and took a breath to calm his nerves. He had a name, and a location. And he knew, like he knew his own name, that he had to find this Alec.

    Like the earth orbited the sun. Like a river ran to the sea. It was unchangeable.

    Fate.

    Cronin put his hand to his chest. My heart. His heart ached with longing, and he knew. He just knew.

    Like he was carving the directions into stone, Cronin thought of the police department’s thirty-third precinct. With a sigh that sounded like coming home, he closed his eyes and leapt.

    * * *

    Apparently police didn’t like an uninvited man appearing in their offices. But the moment Cronin landed, he saw him and he did not care for anything else in that moment but Alec. He was making his way out of an office at the far end of the long room. A dozen men stood and yelled. Yet all Cronin could see was him.

    He’d waited a thousand years for this. His fated one. His mate, stood staring right back at him. Something clicked into place in his soul, something incomplete was now whole. An eternal flame sparked in his chest, setting his heart afire. My heart, he thought over and over. Cronin could not believe his eyes. This beautiful man, this very human man, was here at last. “It is you. Finally.”

    Oblivious to the policemen who aimed their guns at him – they were insignificant, soundless, and the world moved in slow motion – Cronin could only stare at Alec and smile as they moved toward each other. “Will you come with me?”

    Alec’s answer was immediate. Perfect. “Yes.”

    “Put your arms around me and hold on.”

    Alec did as he was told, and his touch almost brought Cronin to his knees. It was a quickening: a visceral connecting of two souls. He was forever changed from this moment forth. Against all odds, he had found the missing piece of himself.

    M’cridhe.

    <3

    You can find the Cronin’s Key Series on Kindle Unlimited at Amazon

    Normal posts/scheduling next week. Thank you everyone for the well-wishes and get well soon messages. Much, much love.  Until next week…

  • Good Morning Monday! Writing schedule and an apology

    Yes, it’s May already! Crazy, right? Last week saw the release of Red Dirt Heart Imago, a surprise short story, that everyone has just LOVED!  Thanks to everyone who has bought, read and reviewed!  I really do appreciate you all <3

    I’ve been away for the last three days – three days of early mornings, late nights, and every minute in between spent running around – and I’m exhausted. This is the very last thing the doctor told me to do, but when it’s for your kids, you just do it. So now I need some time to recover and recuperate.

    For those who don’t know, I was diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), and I can tell ya, it’s like being hit by a bus. It’s a weariness that I can feel in my bones, and it’s funny because I’ve written that line in stories many times and it’s only now that I can truly appreciate it. I know what tired is. I’ve worked 80 hour weeks, had two babies, worked 60 hour weeks with two babies, I’ve been so tired the patterns in carpets move. Believe me, I know what tired is.

    But this is different. There are some days, by mid-afternoon, I can’t lift my arms. I just want to fall in a heap and not move. And let me tell ya, adding insomnia to CFS and it really is double the fun. Being in an exhausted heap and still not being able to sleep is the very worst. *sigh* I’m trying new things with my diet and other stuff, so it’s not all doom and gloom. But enough of the whinging LOL

    Needless to say writing has been nil. I have the rights to some books coming back to me in July and September and to be honest, these will be the next things released by me. I’m really behind on my schedule and the book I was supposed to have finished by now isn’t even a quarter done.

    So a very sincere apology to my readers who are used to my regular release schedule. It’s just not going to happen for a while. 🙁  Yanni’s story is still coming – he’s still talking in my head (and being very patient lol) and I will release it asap, but it probably won’t be out until Sept/Oct. Fingers crossed, anyway. I’ve always tried to maintain a regular release schedule, but I need to be realistic. If I can get it written sooner, then it’ll be a bonus 😉

    In other news, I have booked my flights to the USA for GRL in October. Fingers crossed I’ll be feeling a bit better by then, because I’m really excited about going! My activities there might be reduced because I do expect the 15 hour flight and jet lag to take a toll on me, but I’m hoping I’ll have a better grasp of management on CFS by then.  I’m really looking forward to seeing everyone again, old friends, and making new ones!

    Okay, that’s it from me today.  Until next week…

    <3

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