Saturday, May 4, 2024
How My Reading Habits Have Changed
Friday, May 3, 2024
Why I wrote City of Lies by January Bain
Happy May to you!
Good morning from the backwoods of Canada. My husband Don and I LOVE where we live. On a comfortable acreage where deer come by most days and even bring their little ones come June to show them off. Such proud mamas!
Just recently I was asked why I wrote the book, City of Lies, and thought I'd share this snippet with all of you.
"I
confess I love stories, blessed to have a mom who took the time to read to her
children. One chapter a night, adventures that fueled my dreams and imagination
until I just had to try crafting one of my own. And I got hooked, hard, discovering
how amazing the experience is living it as it happens in real time for the
characters that populated my stories. Didn’t matter what kind of story, if the
people inside my head wanted out and were headed on an exciting journey, I was
all in!
Over
the past decade I’ve been writing full time, and I’ve ventured into many
different genres, but admit that mysteries, thrillers and crime novels send me
an adrenaline rush unlike any other. It embraces universal truths—morality,
justice, freedom—and ultimately brings satisfaction in the form of taking
responsibility for them when the story draws to its inevitable conclusion. Which
brings me to the book that Rough Edges Press is releasing today, City of Lies.
City
of Lies tells the story of a young woman looking to connect with her heritage,
to discover where she came from. Unfortunately, for Claire Preston, the search
for the truth leads her down dark alleyways that no one could have foreseen
coming. But what surprised me most about Claire, was how tough she was. How
willing, and though I’m not fond of cliches, to go the distance searching not
only for what happened in the past, but freely stepping up to do something most
of us couldn’t imagine having to do in this lifetime. I cried for Claire, and
laughed with her at times, applauding her sheer grit and determination.
I
can only hope that you find reading her story as riveting as I did the writing of
it. Please, feel free to share any thoughts you have about City of Lies. It is
very rewarding to connect with fellow readers and I always respond promptly,
thanks to my grandma. She taught me many things, sharing her values and wise
advice, from never be late or keep others waiting to always be kind and helpful.
I like to think I walk a little in her giant footsteps."
Buy Now! A Gripping Tale of Identity, Crime, and Survival…
I have a new release this month as well!
Coming May 14th:
Katie Kelly finally has the career and house of her dreams, but it’s a life built on a shaky foundation. Everything she holds dear could be stripped away in a split-second if the truth were to become known and her secrets exposed. Her best friend, Sadie, is also involved in hiding the past. The pair have managed to move on since that day of reckoning that occurred when they were just teenagers, by helping others to escape bad situations.
When a young woman runs to Katie and begs for her help, Katie is compelled to come to her aid and hides her in a safe room, locked away from her abusive boyfriend.
But then the past rises up and threatens to derail her best efforts to help the young girl, exposing her and her best friend to the vulgarities of fate as the girl is discovered to have an unexpected agenda, harboring secrets of her own. Katie is left with few choices. With her entire life crashing down around her ears, she must act to save not only herself, but her dear friend as well. Can Katie stop the past from destroying all hopes for a future?
Discover the chilling consequences of one woman's altruism in the face of hidden crimes. Join Katie Kelly as she navigates the shadows of her past, compelled to make a choice that could change lives forever. Grab your copy now!
And this photo is for Tina! Our sweet furry baby Ling Ling:
Until next month I bid you adieu!
Hugs, January Bain/storyteller
Thursday, May 2, 2024
What is dark romance? #darkromance #mm #michaelmandrake #paranormal
Dark
– A place or time with little to no light.
Romance
– A feeling of excitement and mystery associated with love.
Greetings readers!
Today, we’re discussing a hot subgenre called dark
romance.
Before I talk about my own works, let’s define dark
romance? With help of the definitions above, we gather a feeling of love with
very little light involved. Not actual light, but in a figurative sense.
Perhaps you have a morally gray hero or heroine. Think vampire or even a demon.
If paranormal isn’t your thing, perhaps a mobster, a murderer, or a bad cop who
wears the badge as a cover for his true evil self.
Hmm... *Jots
notes*
In truth there’s no right or wrong answer for this.
Dark romance can be as twisted as you want or slightly wrong. Some go to
extremes, while others take the easier way out.
Now that we have an idea, this leads to the question;
how can romance be dark?
Isn’t romance supposed to bring happiness? See the
above definition about feeling excited.
So you get excited or there’s a euphoria associated
with falling in love. It doesn’t give a description of the person or what made
you have that feeling so, despite it being something wrong or immoral, the
protagonists still push for it to work.
Perhaps the characters enjoy killing, and although it’s
wrong they find a person who enjoys the same thing or at least understands why
they love murdering people. Maybe one of the characters is aroused by what the
hero or heroine does to them, etc.
There’s plenty of scenarios to explore, it just depends
on how far you and your characters want to go.
If you’d like more information on the term, check out this
article. Dark
Romance.
As for my writing, my Immortals series is based around
paranormal beings who enjoy being beaten within an inch of their immortal lives. The
more tests they endured, the stronger they became. Their dark desires didn’t
prohibit them from falling in love since each character found his Mr. Right or
Wrong. Maybe wrong for anyone else, but perfect for the lead characters.
The story that holds true to this is Calisto’s Quest where
my main character was an angel who took pleasure in fighting and or getting
roughed up. Without spoiling the plot, he questioned his true calling because
he loved someone who was the exact opposite of who he was. And although this
being could lead him down a rough path, he still had feelings for him.
During my writing journey, I’ve discovered my love for
writing polar opposites with questionable morals. Although the element of the
forbidden or taboo might turn off some readers, I write what’s in my heart
first. And since a majority of my books follow the opposites attract formula,
dark romance is up my alley.
Knowing how much I love the opposites trope, I’m
looking forward to getting back into writing dark romances. Despite being stagnant
for about three years, I plan to finish my Love Kills series and hopefully
re-release my Nola Series books before the end of the year.
Wish me luck.
If you like dark romances, please chime in. What is your
definition of dark romance? Also, recommend some books you’ve enjoyed. They don’t
have to be MM.
Thanks so much for listening!
If you're interested in the Immortal's Series, they are best read in order. All books are on Kindle Unlimited!
This is the blurb for Calisto's Quest
Calisto hungers for Valios, but will their families determine whether or not they’ll have an unholy happy ever after?Calisto is bored with heaven. Despite his dad’s unconditional love, he isn’t satisfied being High’s favorite winged boy. In the back of his mind, Calisto desires a being from his past to be part of his future. But acting on those emotions risks enraging his family and bringing punishment upon himself.
Valios’ black heart is broken. He’s ruined one chance at true love by being an ass. As he moves on, he meets his arch enemy who he’s fancied for centuries. Though Valios cares for the angel, nothing can happen between them or his father will kill him.
Will Calisto and Valios take a chance or ignore their desires to stay in favorable in the eyes of their masters? Although they realize their feelings for each other, rekindling those could widen the divide between the sides, destroy the peace, and place the entire universe in danger.
Love should be blind, but at what cost?
Calisto’s Quest features an angel with a bad temper and the devil’s son that tries to ignore him. If you enjoy demon angel romances where love means high stakes, pick up a copy of Calisto’s Quest today.
All books must be read in order for full enjoyment of the series.
WARNING: This is a dark romance! Rough sex, violence, torture, and MPreg. Relationships that others might find objectionable.
Wednesday, May 1, 2024
Discovery Plot - Writing Tips #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor #Discovery #Plot #Writing #children #adults
More on the discovery plot #BWLAuthor #MFRWAuthor #writing #plot #discovery
I'm a plot driven author and I really enjoy exploring plots and how to make them worm. The Discovery Plot intrigued me. Discovery is part of the learning process. So I set out to look at what that meant
Discovery is part of the learning process. There are reasons to read. One is escape from the way the world turns at the moment. Another it to keep from thinking and planning ways to change, The Discovery Plot does both of these thing but it also aides in learning. Maybe not overtly but with subtle imput about what the writer is thinking. One thing as a writer you should do is to make your characters so real, the reader believes in the character and what they're saying about life.
When writing for children, what the writer wants discovered is done in subtle terms, Think of the fairy tales or even the Dick and Jane books. They're making discovery fun.
Now for adults. Don't go on a crusade and push, push what you want to let them discover. Learn to write with a light hand rather than with a shovel to upend the story and the message.
My Places
https://www.facebook.com/janet.l.walters.3?v=wall&story_f
http://wwweclecticwriter.blogspot.com
https://www.pinterest.com/shadyl717/
Buy Mark My Places
Monday, April 29, 2024
UNCOVERING THE LORD by Lexi Post - preorder for only 99¢!
(Courting a Curious Lady: Book 1)
is available for preorder at only 99¢!
Amazon | Amazon UK | Amazon AU | Amazon CA | Amazon DE
She turned him down once. Will he risk his heart again?
On the eve of her trip to the Dragon Caves in Mallorca, Spain, Lady Elsbeth
Rawley of Astor discovers that her classmates at The Belinda School for Curious
Ladies will be pulled from school unless one of them marries by the end of the
season. Heartsick this could happen, she promises she will marry for their
benefit. Unfortunately, she has no prospects which means she will have to cut
her trip short and return to England quickly to find a suitor. So while digging
among the stalagmites, the last thing she expects to find is Lord Theodore
Mabry, the heir to the Earl of Lansdowne, and the
man whose proposal she rejected last season.
For the last year and a half, Teddy has buried his heartbreak over Lady
Elsbeth in willing women on the Continent. But his happy-go-lucky ways were
halted when one of those women gave him a baby girl before dying of illness
just weeks later. Now, ready to go home with his daughter, he needs a “dragon
tooth” for the wet nurse who refuses to travel aboard a ship unless she has one
to wish upon for safe passage. Coming face to face with Lady Elsbeth is not in
his plan, and while at first, it appears it will be a fortunate event, he soon
discovers she is not who he thought she was as he is forced to take the same
ship headed for England.
Now in each other’s daily company, Teddy finds he did not bury his love for
Elsbeth deep enough. But he can’t ask for her hand in marriage. He has no wish
to be rejected again. So he enjoys their time together as temporary, until hope
rears its ugly head. Unfortunately, not all is as it seems and despite his
defenses, he must decide if loving Lady Elsbeth is worth the destruction of his
heart.
Buy links:
Amazon | Amazon UK | Amazon AU | Amazon CA | Amazon DE
About Lexi:
Lexi Post is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author of romance
inspired by the classics. She spent years in higher education taking and
teaching courses about the classical literature she loved. From Edgar Allan
Poe's short story “The Masque of the Red Death” to Tolstoy’s War and Peace, she's read, studied, and
taught wonderful classics.
But Lexi's first love is romance novels so she married her two first loves, romance
and the classics. Whether it’s sizzling cowboys, dashing dukes, hot immortals,
or hunks from out of this world, Lexi provides a sensuous experience with a
“whole lotta story.”
Lexi is living her own happily ever after with her husband and her two cats
in Florida. She makes her own ice cream every weekend, loves bright colors, and
you’ll never see her without a hat.
Sunday, April 28, 2024
Read The Sand Prince by Kim Alexander #Fantasy #Adventure #SwordandSorcery
Two worlds.
Bound by magic.
Divided by a Door.
On the barren, war-ravaged demon world of Eriis, the fierce queen Hellne fights to keep her people alive and her son Rhuun's heritage a secret. On the green and gentle human world of Mistra, demons have faded into myth. Only a handful of old men and fanatical children still guard The Door between the worlds.
Different and shunned by his demon kin, Rhuun finds refuge in a book that tells of a human world of water and wonder. Forced by his mother's enemies to flee Eriis, he finds himself trapped on the other side of The Door in the very place he has read and dreamed about—Mistra.
Chained to the deadly whims of a child who guards The Door, Rhuun must balance serving and surviving, even at the risk of exposing his true identity. Riskiest of all is his task of kidnapping an infuriating young woman who is about to find out that the demons of Eriis are much, much more than just an old bedtime story.
The Demon Door can be opened...but the price is deadly.
Prince Rhuun has found acceptance among the humans on Mistra, something he could never have in the demon realm of Eriis, not even as heir to its throne. What's more, he has even found love with the prickly, passionate heiress, Lelet va'Everly.
The idyll can't last. The prince has enemies who are after more than his throne. They are out for his blood…which holds the key to unsealing The Door between the two worlds, and the demons want in. When Rhuun is lured into a trap on Eriis, Lelet has no choice but to turn to a motley group of exiles, children, and madmen to help save him.
Lelet soon discovers that, like all things, rescuing the prince comes with a price. The secrets in Rhuun's blood may be worth killing for, but are they worth dying for?
Love opens all doors…but betrayal locks them forever.
Newly blessed (or cursed) with wings and fire, Prince Rhuun of the demon realm of Eriis sees hope for his life in the human world of Mistra with his fierce human lover, Lelet va'Everley. She literally went to hell and back to save him, and she's not about to let anything—or anyone—ruin their perfect future.
All too soon, the claims of family, duty, and justice force Rhuun and Lelet to confront new griefs and old mistakes as they attempt to restore balance to the throne of Eriis. But, with every jealous rumor and each vengeful whisper, friends turn, family schemes, and forgotten enemies creep from the shadows.
Treachery in Eriis and betrayal in Mistra jeopardize what Rhuun and Lelet have fought so hard to build, threatening to tear apart the two lovers, their families, and even their worlds.
SOMETIMES LOVE DOESN’T CHANGE THE WORLD. SOMETIMES IT CHANGES ALL OF THEM.
Rhuun, the half-human and wholly reluctant prince of the demons has finally reunited with his fiery Lelet. It’s too bad they must hide behind a facade of icy indifference to fool those who are determined to keep demons and humans apart...by any means necessary.
There is more at stake than bringing the miracle of rain back to Eriis. It's not just sand and lost royals poised to come through the newly-opened Door. Something ancient is hungry, and fat, complacent Mistra won't stand a chance. Even worse, whispers and shadows speak of blood magic that could destroy not just The Door, but all Doors—forever—barring the way home for lovers and enemies alike.
Will the love Rhuun and Lelet have moved worlds to share be the very thing they must sacrifice to save their worlds?
Saturday, April 27, 2024
The Power of the HEA
Every now and again, a new round of shots is fired over social media, or in the genre press, around whether or not romance novels need happy endings - and whether bestsellers like Nicholas Sparks’ The Horse Whisperer is - or isn’t - a romance.
I’ve even read long, detailed posts arguing similarly in favour of Romeo & Juliet, and Titanic (spoiler: these aren't romances either). What about Me Before You, The Notebook, and One Day? I’ll settle this for anyone who wants to know right now: None of these are romances. They’re all beautifully written stories with romantic elements, but they’re not romances.
Why Not?
They can’t be romances, because there’s no happy ending for the main protagonists - and this is the defining feature of our genre.
Why are stories where one or both lead romantic characters don’t make it not actually romances?
Well, partly because death isn’t particularly romantic – and dying for love isn’t either, despite what the poets claim.
I do think it’s more than that though. Romances are character journeys of the heart. The connection between the central lovers is a kind of third character in and of itself. Each protagonist grows towards this connected future and their relationship – that is to say, the love they share with each other – evolves accordingly.
This can’t happen if one of them dies, or doesn’t stay, or goes back to an old flame in the end – that is to say, the romance can’t succeed without the happily ever after. If a story ends without a successful romance, it’s not a romance, in romance genre terms.
But does romance fiction have to conform with ‘a’ generic convention?
Generic fiction conventions represent the unspoken contracts between the genre author and our readers.
If you pick out a science fiction novel, you can expect a story set off-world, and/or around advanced technology (like time travel) or alien species not found in your day-to-day reality. Fantasy novels create an expectation for weird, wild and wonderful creatures, incredible powers and potions and spells. Perhaps a little darkness, and epic battles between the powers of light and dark.
These tales have been popular since ancient worlds - and people – first existed. In fact, they’re so pervasive and so popular that many historical cultures live on in the fictional worlds created by more modern writers decades later. These are the expectations of readers who enjoy those genres - and so it is with romance novels.
Readers open their romance novels ready to meet and greet at least a couple of soon-to-be lovers. They read towards their happy ending with open hearts and (hopefully) enjoyable page turning. They trust their favourite authors to lead them to a happily ever after or happily-for-now conclusion, and as a romance author I take my commitment to my readers seriously.
I write historical romance novels, so I tend to leave my couple together for as long as they last. I know, as an avid historical researcher, that people rarely lived past 50 years in the 1800s, but that’s no reason to break my readers’ hearts over it! If you read historical romances too, you likely already know this was the reality - but it’s not likely to be the reason you reached for The King’s Mistress, or my latest for 2024, Stand & Deliver.
Romance readers want the journey I promise from my cover; to be swept away to a place where love wins out, where heroes and heroines conquer their baser selves - rise above their petty, their egos, and their fears - to embrace a stronger version of who they are. My readers want the best version of my best characters to deserve the love they’re longing for – and they want them to reach it. They don’t just want my protagonists to succeed. They want their love to succeed too.
Love Wins
That’s what’s inspiring about reading romance novels – the successful pursuit and attainment of a love that lasts. I personally do believe love can empower anyone to anything - and I won’t let my reader’s heart end up on the floor. I promise a real romance.