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Honorary Blogger Zoe Lee: Why Will You Fall In Love With Asher and Lucas? + Excerpt & Giveaway!

Posted on August 21, 2020 by thebloggergirls

Why Will You Fall In Love With Asher and Lucas?

by Zoe Lee

I’ve never fallen in love with my characters as hard and fast as I did writing Asher and Lucas! I usually have to write the first quarter of the book to figure out who my main characters really are, what makes them tick and what makes them hot. Once I know, I go back to the beginning to flesh them out and then continue writing, falling in love slowly as I go.

But not with these two. I loved how the fact that they belong together is so obvious for me and the audience, but they’re not so quick to see it, even if they’re both smart guys!

Asher seems like a no-brainer to love—he’s handsome and muscled, he’s smart and talented, he has great relationships with his parents, his sister, and his friends. But he’s also grumpy, which I have to admit is one of my favorite qualities in a character because I love to find out all the ways they’re gooey on the inside. For a lot of band practices, he cooks homemade meals for his bandmates. And of course, he doesn’t like things to change—and how on earth could he find his happily ever after if nothing changes? I had so much fun pushing him to grow and change.

Lucas starts out an awkward nerd with extraordinary musical abilities. He talks too much and is never really confident that he’s saying the right things. He’s also immature and his hangups about his talents and awkwardness make people impatient with him. It seems like that’s negative, but what I love about him is that he’s genuinely trying to figure things out and doesn’t have any ill intentions, he just needs to get his shit together.

So you’ll love how they clash, how they complement each other, and how they help each other become better men. You’ll love the songs they sing together, and I hope you love those songs too, because I had so much fun finding the perfect songs for their soundtrack. I also love how much fun I imagine the rest of their lives will be once they have their happily ever after—keep an eye out for cameos from their cute butts in the rest of this series!

Thank you to The Blogger Girls for having me today. I hope you enjoy the excerpt below.

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Categories: Book Promo, Excerpts, Giveaways, Honorary Blogger Post | Tags: Ex-Bandmates, Series - Local Beats, The Blogger Girls, Zoe Lee | Leave a comment

Author Q&A: Rebecca Raine + Excerpt & Giveaway!

Posted on August 20, 2020 by thebloggergirls

When did you first realize that you wanted to be a writer?

My journey into writing began with fan fiction. I had been reading fanfics for a while when an idea for a story came to me. I began writing it on the bus while commuting to and from work. It was so much fun! Those first stories were my training ground and I learned so much from them. It was when I finished a 30,000 word fanfic that I decided to try writing an original novel that was all my own.

How many books have you written?

The Experiment is my ninth book and I’m already hard at work on number ten. Reaching that double digit is going to be such a thrill. I remember when I used to dream about reaching this point.

How long does it usually take you to write a book?

My times are all over the place. It took me seven years (on and off) to write my first book. The second took only a few months because it was much shorter and came to me quite easily. Most of the time it takes about six months, but I’ve been working hard to train myself to write faster so I can publish more often.

How did you come up with the idea for your book?

The idea for The Experiment came to me one day in a flash of inspiration. I could see a straight man trying to psyche himself up to kiss a gay man, even though he really didn’t want to. I knew they were in a bar, and that he was doing it to satisfy a lost bet, but other than that I had no idea what was going on.

Then the man turned to his friend, who was sitting beside him, and said, “You know, mate, this would be a hell of a lot easier if you’d quit laughing.” In that instant, I knew the friend was the man he would end up kissing, and he would be anything but reluctant by the end of it.

I loved the idea so much I grabbed a notebook and pen and spent the next hour furiously scribbling down every detail I could remember. My flash of inspiration became the opening of The Experiment and that one line of dialogue is still there, exactly the way Patrick said it the first time.

Who are your favorite authors? Have they inspired your writing?

There are so many MM Romance authors I love and admire. Among them are Riley Hart, Roan Parrish, Leta Blake, Lucy Lennox, Eden Finley and Christina Lee. I credit Riley Hart’s Shifting Gears with introducing me to the genre. It was the first MM Romance I ever read, and it got me hooked.

Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?

Speed. I’m quite a slow writer. I stress about first drafts and have difficulty getting out of my own way when getting those initial words down. During re-writes I can easily spend a whole morning getting a few paragraphs just right.

Where is your favorite place to write?

I have a workspace in the corner of my lounge room with my computer and a white board and all that jazz. But I’ll often end up on the couch with my laptop, or just pen and paper. That is especially true at the moment because it’s winter here and I like to stay under a pile of blankets.

When you develop characters do you already know who they are before you begin writing or do you let them develop as you go?

Characters are interesting because they can come to me in all sorts of ways. Some walk into my brain fully formed and introduce themselves by name (Jeremy, All the Broken Pieces). Sometimes, I’ll know some major details about them and then learn more as I write about them (Patrick, The Experiment). Other times, I’ll take conflicting pieces of my own personality and find ways to pit them against each other (Amber and Lincoln, Lost in Amber). Hanging out with my characters, and listening to them talk to each other, is one of the great pleasures of being a writer.

Do you aim for a set number of words/pages per day?

I used to try to aim for a set number of words per day, but I gave up on that a while ago because I always ended up failing. When I’m writing first drafts of scenes I can pump out a lot of words in a day. But when I’m rewriting, I can work solidly for a whole day and only end up adding a few hundred words, because it’s the quality I’m improving, not the word count. These days, I focus more on how quickly I’m completing scenes to a certain standard (draft, rewrite, polish). I find this works better for me.

What is the hardest thing about writing?

Line edits. Looking at every instance of words like that, was and just in a book to see if they can be cut or reworded is the most boring task in existence.

What is the easiest thing about writing?

I love the part where I have a basic draft of a scene written and I get to rewrite it over and over until it shines. Playing with phrases, getting bits of dialogue just right, making myself laugh, cry or sigh with pleasure. They may take the most time but, for me, those are the magical moments of writing.

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Categories: Author Q&A, Book Promo, Excerpts, Giveaways, LGBT | Tags: Rebecca Raine, The Blogger Girls, The Experiment | Leave a comment

Author Q&A: Leigh Kenzie + Excerpt & Giveaway!

Posted on August 19, 2020 by thebloggergirls

The prized possession you value above all others…

My kindle! I actually have a backup kindle even. My spouse bought me my first one because we moved so often that carrying 10+ boxes of books was supposedly too much. The kindle was supposed to fix that and in some ways it did, except then I started collecting signed books. I wouldn’t know what to do without my kindle though. I’m an avid reader so it’s a must-have, especially as some books are ebook only. It opened me up to the indie author community.

The unqualified regret you wish you could amend…

The temptation you wish you could resist…

The book that holds everlasting resonance…

The priority activity if you were invisible for a day…

Definitely writing. I have two amazing alphas that help keep me on task and I’m positive they would have the same opinion. In fact, they’re usually the ones corralling me away from social media so I can focus. My job is heavy in that area and I’m a workaholic. I also have a tendency to fall down the rabbit hole with YouTube. Thank goodness for alphas that are terrifying! I wouldn’t know what to do without them.

The film you can watch time and time again…

Bad Company with Chris Rock and Anthony Hopkins. It’s my go-to for cheering up.

The person who influenced you the most…

My father. He was an amazing man. My love of reading comes from him. Not only that but so many of the lessons he taught our family resonate so deeply. Being active in our community, always doing the right thing no matter what, and never judging another person. Acceptance and love was key for him. I try to embrace his lessons as much as possible.

The unlikely interest that engages your curiosity…

Math. I’m a huge math geek and I still get out my old calculus and differential equations textbooks for fun. It’s relaxing to me.

The poem that touches your soul…

The event that altered the course of your life…

There have been several but I’ll go with the most recent (and applicable). I recently lost two people who had the largest impact on me growing up. It’s easy to push dreams aside. For me one reason is fear. It’s terrifying to put my heart and soul out there and that’s what writing is for me. It’s intensely personal so putting it out in the public is scary. At that point, it’s no longer my words. People will interpret it differently, feel differently about it, and that’s something I sometimes need prodding to remember. The other part is I’m the caretaker. It makes it easy to push aside my dreams and needs for others. Losing the two people in my life who pushed me, well, all I can say is I didn’t have an option at that point to ignore it anymore. If nothing else I hope that I do their memory proud.

The song that means the most to you…

There are two. Ashley Campbell’s Remembering is one. It was written about her father Glen Campbell who had Alzheimer’s. I lost my father to dementia and that song really gets to me each time I hear it. The second is Son of a Preacher Man by Tom Gross. The lyrics were reimagined and was done in partnership with The Trevor Project and PFLAG. If you have a chance, I highly suggest watching the video. I have the song on repeat.

The happiest moment you will cherish forever…

The unfulfilled ambition that continues to haunt you…

Music. I was a concert pianist and competed regularly. I also played several other instruments. However, a hand injury took that away. It’s something I miss dearly and would have loved to continue.

Your early recollections of writing fiction…

It makes me feel incredibly old but the first one I remember was in third grade. There was a young writers competition and as a school project we all had to enter. I remember being a finalist (I didn’t win). I was most excited that I had something interesting to write about when I sent my grandmother a letter that month.

The way you would spend your fantasy twenty-four hours, with no travel restrictions…

I’m an introvert and extremely shy. For me, I’d love to just read and write. Not have any other responsibilities. I’m a caretaker for an elderly family member and also in charge of my chaotic family, including two high-energy terrors of terriers. I also work a job that keeps me busy with jumping from project to project. I’d love to just have a day to myself. I’d get bored after that though.

The pet hate that makes your hackles rise…

The unqualified regret you wish you could amend…

The figure from history you would most like to buy a pie and a pint…

The piece of wisdom you would pass onto a child…

The treasured item you lost and wish you could have again…

The crime you would commit knowing you could get away with it…

The philosophy that underpins your life…

Do the right thing always. It’s not always easy but I try my hardest to do it, even when it can break my heart.

The character you enjoyed writing the most…

The character you found difficult to write…

The book you enjoyed planning/writing the most…

A little bit of promo…

Il Padrone is the beginning of the Vendetta Series. It does end on a cliffhanger. However, I should be releasing monthly until the series is completed. This is dark M/M mafia with plenty of kink and at times non-traditional.

I am a complete panster and survive on copious amounts of coffee. These characters and the naughty plot monkeys in my head drive the series. Book 1 is just the beginning of this twisted story of vengeance.

Allesandro and Emilio do not have an easy journey in this series. On the surface, you can’t get too much different, the hardened mob boss in his 40s and the sweet naïve 19-year-old kid. People are always changing though, and I hope that is reflected in my work.

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Categories: Author Q&A, Book Promo, Excerpts, Giveaways, LGBT | Tags: Il Padrone, Leigh Kenzie, Series - Vendetta, The Blogger Girls | 1 Comment

Release Blitz: Wild Warrior by Jocelynn Drake & Rinda Elliott + Excerpt & Giveaway!

Posted on August 7, 2020 by thebloggergirls

Wild Warrior by Jocelynn Drake & Rinda Elliott

Baer Manning

What happens when Baer spills his big secret about monsters and magic to a total stranger?

Chaos.

In Baer’s defense, he really thought Wiley was a lost brother.

This case of mistaken identity forces the cute artist to stay at the plantation house for his own protection while they search for a way to take down a witch.

Wiley Stuart

He never should have gotten in Baer’s Jeep.

But in Wiley’s defense, Baer is really sexy. And funny. And so sweet. And did he mention sexy?

All his life he’d dreamed of superheroes and a life of action. He just never expected to find himself swept up into a world filled with monsters and goddesses.

Wiley will do anything to stay with this magical band of brothers and help them with their fight. He just wished he could be Baer’s soul mate.

Wild Warrior is the second book in the Weavers Circle series. It includes fast-paced action, running through Savannah, secrets, swimming pool fun, shapeshifting, an elephant, sexy times, lots of snakes, insecurity, three crazy old ladies, and magic!

Available at: Amazon

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Categories: Book Promo, Excerpts, Giveaways, LGBT | Tags: NineStar Press, Rick R. Reed, Series - The Weavers Circle, The Blogger Girls, The Man from Milwaukee | Leave a comment

Honorary Blogger Lou Sylvre and Anne Barwell: Adventures in Co-writing

Posted on August 5, 2020 by thebloggergirls

Adventures in Co-writing

by Lou Sylvre and Anne Barwell

Thanks for hosting us today!

Although this is our second published co-written book, The Harp and the Sea was our first foray into co writing, and an interesting project to figure out how we’d make it work.

Lou is in the US and I’m in New Zealand, so the first thing we did was set up a regular chat schedule, so we could chat in real time to hash out character details and where we wanted to go with the plot. Between that we kept in touch with email.

Writing a story set in another time and place meant we not only had to juggle plot and character but also location, history, and language. We’d read enough of each other’s writing to know that our styles would mesh, and decided the easiest way to approach this project was to take a character each and write his POV. So I wrote Ian’s POV, and Lou wrote Robbie’s.

Mostly.

As we traded scenes back and forth, it was with the caveat that we could tweak our character’s dialogue and actions. As it turned out we didn’t need to do a lot of that as we got to know both men the more we wrote them. And, when as we wrote more and got into the fun geographical research and plotted routes and journey times, we ended up changing a few scenes, and re-writing them to mesh with our research so only writing from one character’s POV went out the window. As we got into publisher edits and proofs, I couldn’t remember what I’d written or hadn’t and couldn’t pick the difference between our two ‘voices.’ I’d got the same feedback from our beta readers.

As we got into this story we both got hit with a lot of real life and family issues, so had to put the project on the back burner for months at a time. Because of this, we decided early on that we needed to plot the story in much more detail than we’d normally do. We already had an overview, but we had several sessions on chat breaking it down to chapters and scenes, and working out which scene would work better from which character’s POV. For example, there’s several scenes where Robbie is unconscious so it definitely worked better to have Ian tell that part of the story.

Naturally our characters did what most characters do once you get into a story and they changed parts of the plot on us, so our well thought out chapter numbers disappeared into the sea along the way, but the final result is a better story. I wouldn’t go into a co-written story without a firm plot in mind, as it’s important to be heading for the same finish line, although I think leaving room for creativity and being open to change is essential.

I’d had a nasty experience with Google docs crashing and taking a lot of work with it, so I was wary of tempting fate with it again so we decided to go old fashioned and use word.

We ran into a bit of fun with that as we were using different versions of it and edits I’d made sometimes disappeared in Lou’s document when they were merged so it worked better to send the same document back and forth and write the story like a round robin. Lou would write Robbie’s POV up to the point where it was Ian’s turn to tell their story, then send it over, and vice versa. As we weren’t alternating chapters, sometimes I’d write several thousand words before returning it, and sometimes it would only be a short scene. There were also a few scenes that didn’t quite go the way I was expecting. But I figure that’s one of those signs that the characters and their story are taking on a life of their own, which is one of my favourite things about writing.

The big thing I’d stress with co-writing is that both authors need to have good compromising skills, and know when to push for something, and when to let it go. Egos need to be left at the door or the experience won’t be a pleasant one.

We’ve enjoyed sparking off each other, and building something new so much we’re planning more in The Magic in the Isles series, and also took some time in the middle of writing this to co-write a New Zealand Romance too.

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Categories: Book Promo, Excerpts, Giveaways, Honorary Blogger Post | Tags: Anne Barwell, Lou Sylvre, NineStar Press, The Blogger Girls, The Harp and the Sea | 2 Comments

Paid to be Shared by Romilly King: Exclusive Excerpt & Giveaway!

Posted on August 5, 2020 by thebloggergirls

Exclusive Excerpt from Paid to be Shared

by Romilly King

“Married couples don’t do absolutely everything together,” Griffin had rationalized to Ivo when they got further than just hinting around the edges of the issue, “Nobody needs to witness anything, it will keep the mystique intact,”

And that sort of made sense to Ivo, although somehow he didn’t think that fucking a submissive fell into the same category of married life as toenail clipping and nasal hair trimming. But he couldn’t deny either Griffin or himself, because he could feel himself and his marriage fading to shades of grey for lack of it.

He swallowed at the fear that suddenly knotted his stomach. He wasn’t used to fear, as a surgeon, he was never fearful, but the thought of losing Griffin for lack of this scared the hell out of him.

Only this morning he had laid in bed, listening to Grif in the bath- room, hearing the sound of the shower, the turn of the taps, the buzz of his toothbrush, and he had thought, yeah, it will be just like this, routine maintenance, I don’t need to see it. That had made sense in the sunny domestic glow of their bedroom with its rumpled sheets, the scent of Griff ’s body wash, and the detritus of their life lying around casually.

Griffin had come back into the bedroom, happily naked. His pale, freckled skin glowed in the morning light, and his face had been eager and excited, making him look years younger. He had slid up the bed, crawled up Ivo’s body, pressing kisses to his naked skin as he went. He had nuzzled into Ivo’s neck, lipping at the sensitive skin under his ear, and Ivo had tilted his head back, letting his handsome, funny, desperate husband have full access to his skin.

Yeah, Ivo had thought, we can have this, us together is the crucial thing, the thing I always need to see.

He had wrapped his arms around Griffin and rolled him. Griffin went easily, trusting and relaxed and had smiled up at Ivo, all soft because he knew Ivo would never ask anything of him that he didn’t want to give, not again. Ivo had looked down at his husband, “I love you,” he had said.

Griffin had reached up, tangled his hand in Ivo’s short dark hair, and pulled him down for a kiss, “I love you too.” Their foreheads had pressed together, their breaths had mingled, and Griffin’s had been all minty when he said, “We got this.”

“Yeah.”

Ivo sighed, too heavily, and Dr. Gregory and Griffin both turned and looked at him. “Sorry,” he apologized, “Uh, yes, as medical professionals testing is high on our lists of priorities. We can arrange it through the hospital.”

“You can certainly arrange your own testing through your facility,” Dr. Gregory said equably, “But all our Venditores are tested here in house, so you don’t need to worry about that,”

He took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes, and Ivo was struck by how young he was to be Head of Organizational Psychology at Delph- ic. His professional rank was the same as Ivo’s own, but he was a good ten years younger. The agencies did tend to headhunt the prodigies, so chances were they had groomed this young man through scholarships from a young age.

Ivo was glad he hadn’t been a prodigy. He had enjoyed his career trajectory, a steady climb through his surgical residency, his fellowship, and then latterly, with Griffin at his side, rising like a bubble through the ranks to Head of Thoracic Surgery. He didn’t want to go any fur- ther, he left policy wrangling to Griffin, he liked his hands inside bodies too much, that was where he belonged.

“It’s clear you have put a lot of thought into this,” Dr. Gregory looked up at them both, “and that is essential with a complex contract like this,”

He studied them both across the desk, “I think I can speak freely with you, we all share a similar background. This is going to be a diffi- cult contract for Delphic to fill – and please, make no mistake, we want to fill it – but it isn’t straightforward, and I am duty-bound to oversee

it personally, primarily for the sake of our Venditor, because we will be asking a lot of him.”

Ivo felt the fear return, this time, it was fear that they would not get to have this, that their fundamental incompatibility with each other would deny them once again.

“Is there any possibility that you would consider two submissives on a less intensive schedule?” Dr. Gregory asked reasonably, “There are a limited number of Venditores that even get close to matching your joint profile. We have manually cross-referenced for compatibility, and additional training would be required even then.

“Of course, that isn’t your concern, but if you were willing to con- sider two Venditores for fewer weekly …”

“Do you have a compatible Venditor?” Griffin interrupted him, and Ivo was surprised by his aggressive tone, “Because there are other agencies if you cannot fulfill this request.”

Dr. Gregory looked at them neutrally, “There is no other agency that can even get close to giving you what you need,” There was the slightest emphasis on the last word and Ivo, despite his tendency to miss social cues, heard it loud and clear.

Griffin did too, and he reached for Ivo’s hand. Ivo took it and squeezed.

Dr. Gregory sighed, and Ivo realized that those moss-green eyes weren’t just kind; they were full of empathy, and Ivo felt naked before them.

“As I said, I will oversee this contract personally, and I will be work- ing with the Venditor we think may be able to accommodate your needs,”

Ivo heard Griffin let out the breath he had been holding, and his hand relaxed in Ivo’s grip.

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Categories: Book Promo, Excerpts, Giveaways, LGBT, Published in 2020 | Tags: Paid to be Shared, Romilly King, Series - Delphic Agency, The Blogger Girls | Leave a comment

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Why Will You Fall In Love With Asher and Lucas?

A Brush of Blue by V.L. Locey

Red Heir by Lisa Henry & Sarah Honey

Off Balance by L.E. Royal

Wild Warrior by Jocelynn Drake & Rinda Elliott

Exclusive Excerpt from Blood Oath

Adventures in Co-writing

Exclusive Excerpt from Paid to be Shared

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