UPDATE: The winner is…Dana Zamora!
*~*~*

Hello Delilah!  Thank you for inviting me here today to discuss my newest release, Flying Hearts.  The short story was initially part of the Well Played sports anthology that came out last year. When I first signed up, I planned to write about gay archers. An enemies-to-lovers story.  Only, as I plotted the tale in my mind, I had lots of questions. I discovered a close friend did archery for fun and we had a video call (she’s in Argentina). Turned out my plot was a dud.  She gave me something possible to work with, but it was completely implausible.

So I quietly backed out of the anthology and focused on the twelve other projects I had going.

I needed a cover for another story I was going to write and an artist I knew posted a premade cover that I had to grab.  Plot Whisperer helped me with that one and I was thrilled.

I realized, though, that I had bought another cover from this artist several years ago and hadn’t gotten it changed (piece of advice for writers buying premade covers – always get your name on it and a working title right away – unfortunately, things can happen to cover designers, and you might get stuck with a pretty cover you can’t get fixed. This sucks. Trust me, it happened to me, and I have 13 unusable covers…).

Knowing I needed to act, I asked Plot Whisperer to help me come up with a title. Just so I’d be protected.  She asked me why the woman had wet hair. She wanted to know about the guy’s tattoo. And on it went.

Eventually, she plotted the whole damn story for me.  And we added a BDSM twist so I could write the story under Gabbi Black (my BDSM penname).  Next thing I knew, I had my acrobat MMF BDSM sports romance.

Who knew?!?!?!?

So that’s the story of how Flying Hearts came to be. Initially, we thought gymnasts and Tumbling Hearts, but having a ropes guy and BDSM? Perfect fit.  So I have Nick the rigger as well as Kaden and Yasmine, the acrobatic team.

Throw in some super steamy sex scenes and I had my erotic sports story to go with the hockey, baseball, and football romances. I submitted it only a couple of days late to the anthology people (I warned them it was coming).  I didn’t let people down after all.

Wait ‘til you see what I’m doing later this year in the sports arena!  Ah, for another day.

Thanks, Delilah, for hosting me!  I would love to give away a copy of Flying Hearts. Just comment and let me know – what’s your favorite sports to watch?  Are you an Olympics every four years or is there something you never miss? For me, that was figure skating.  Not so much these days, though.  Anyway, random will choose a winner. Good luck!

Flying Hearts

Yasmine

I’ve trusted Kaden with my life on the trapeze since we were fourteen, and with my heart since we became lovers at eighteen. People give us odd looks when we say we’re in an open relationship, but I’ve never been concerned about Kaden’s other partners. But then Nick lands in my life, and suddenly Kaden’s not the only man I can see.

Kaden

I’ve had a super partner in Yasmine—both on and off the trap. I assumed she was happy with our open relationship. She’s got her studies, and I have my…temporary bed partners. All is going well until a domineering rigger arrives. Suddenly, everything changes.

Nick

As a professional rigger, I know rope. I’ve worked in the entertainment industry for almost fifteen years, keeping people safe in front of audiences and in private. Rope is not just my profession, it’s my pleasure. Yasmine intrigues me, and when Kaden tries to interfere between her and me, it’s going to be a competition to see who comes out on top.

Note: Flying Hearts is a 15k steamy BDSM short story about a couple who didn’t know they needed more, and the man who’s tying them in knots. The story previously appeared in the anthology Well Played.

Links:
Universal Link: https://books2read.com/FlyingHearts
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Flying-Hearts-Erotic-Short-Story-ebook/dp/B0DXW14RNL
Add it to Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/228204301-flying-hearts

About Gabbi Black

Even though Gabbi Black is a firm believer in happy endings, she makes her characters work for it in every romance she writes, no matter what the genre. From contemporary to BDSM, they are penned early in the morning in her home in beautiful British Columbia while her trusty ChinPoo dog keeps her company. She also writes gay romances as Gabbi Grey and small-town romances as Gabbi Powell.

Joyeux Mardi Gras! This year, Fat Tuesday is being celebrated on March 4. Many people think of Mardi Gras as a celebration in New Orleans, specifically on Bourbon Street. While that is perhaps the most famous location, it is by far not the only location, nor is it the first.

A few weeks ago, I was chatting with a committee about having a Mardi Gras celebration in an area that doesn’t typically go all out for the holiday. There were many concerns that people wouldn’t attend, and many committee members mentioned that the holiday has a lot of negative associations and is only thought of as being a drunken cesspool of debauchery. Now, I won’t deny that the alcohol doesn’t flow freely or that acts of depravity and decadence do not take place. As with anything, there will always be a few outliers. Okay, when it comes to Mardi Gras celebrating, there are probably a lot of… let’s say… not demur activities that occur. However, Mardi Gras is about so much more than what many people see on the surface. It actually a pre-celebration to Easter. So, when these concerns were mentioned, many heads were turned in my direction.

Anyone who follows my blog, Creole Bayou, knows it is about anything and everything Creole and Cajun related. Mardi Gras is a topic that has cropped up on my blog more than a few times. While I am, by far, not an expert, I have acquired a lot of knowledge on the subject from having grown up in the traditions and also studying/researching it. For that reason, I feel comfortable sharing my knowledge to increase others’ awareness about what Mardi Gras is and what it isn’t. There are a lot of misconceptions and wrong uses of terms. So, let’s get into it, shall we?

Why is Mardi Gras celebrated on different dates?

The date of Mardi Gras is set according to when Easter Sunday is celebrated by the Orthodox Christian churches. Easter is celebrated on the first Sunday after the first full moon occurring on or after the March Equinox. There are two equinoxes every year. One is in March and one in September. The Equinox is when the length of the day and night are nearly equal due to the sun shining directly on the equator. This is not a fixed date.

What is the difference between Mardi Gras and Fat Tuesday?

The French word for Tuesday is Mardi, and the French word for fat is Gras. In the French language, adjectives come after the noun. Hence, translated Mardi Gras means Fat Tuesday. The term Mardi Gras is often used to refer to the entire Carnival season, but specifically, it is the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. Fat Tuesday is the last day of Carnival. Lent begins on Ash Wednesday.

What is Mardi Gras’ relationship to Ash Wednesday and Lent?

Mardi Gras occurs the day before Ash Wednesday, which is the beginning of Lent. Ash Wednesday occurs forty days (not including Sundays) before Easter.

What is Shrove Tuesday?

It is another term for Fat Tuesday. The word “shrove” derives from the word “shrive,” which means to absolve. The easiest way to explain this is to take a historical look at Ash Wednesday, which is the first day of Lent, the time in which Christians reflect and penance. Being the day before Lent—a period of abstinence, almsgiving, prayer, reflection, and fasting—Christians would remove from their household any items they would be abstaining from during the 40 days of Lent. Often, this included food, many of which were fatty or caused one to become fat (e.g., meats, sweets, and alcohol). What better way to remove these items than to have one big ol’ party and pig out? Because of this, it gained the nickname of Fat Tuesday.

Side note: Some historians will argue that Mardi Gras originated from a pagan tradition. During this pagan tradition, a fat ox was paraded while onlookers indulged in binge drinking and eating. Other historians argue that Shrove Tuesday originated from the pagan celebrations of Lupercalia and Saturnalia, which celebrated fertility and spring.

What is Carnival?

Carnival is the season of festivities that stem from the Roman Catholic tradition and celebration of Lent. Carnival begins on January 6, which is the Feast of Epiphany. The Feast of Epiphany is also called the Twelfth Night, Three Kings Day, or the Twelfth Day of Christmas. Carnival lasts from January 6 until midnight of Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday). It is a time of celebration, feasting, fun, and parties before the beginning of Lent when the abstaining begins.

What are Carnival balls?

Carnival balls are fancy parties and/or grand events (many are masquerade or un bal masqué) that begin on January 6 with the Twelfth Night Ball hosted by the Twelfth Night Revelers and continue throughout the season. More than one hundred Carnival balls occur in New Orleans and have been occurring since the beginning of the celebration of Carnival. The first Krewe ball was held in 1857 by the Mistick Krewe of Comus. Today, most of these balls are by invitation only, and the general public is not privy to the full grandness of Carnival. During the ball, there is a king cake-cutting ceremony. According to tradition, the person who found the bean (the feve) hidden in the cake would host the next ball.

What is a Mardi Gras court?

The Mardi Gras court consists of the king (Rex), queen, dukes, duchesses, princes, princesses, captains, and maids. They are selected by the Krewes from Krewe members. This is one of the highest honors of Mardi Gras. Court members usually can easily be identified by their crown (une couronne), royal mantle, and scepter (or royal insignia).

What is king cake?

King cake is a Mardi Gras staple. Actually, it is more of a bread than what most people consider cake. It is a dessert made with brioche dough, cinnamon, and glazed with purple, gold, and green sugar icing. The name stems from the Biblical story of the three kings who brought gifts to Baby Jesus. Inside the cake is a plastic baby (i.e., be careful when eating as this can be a choking hazard). Whoever is served the baby in his/her slice of cake is blessed with good fortune but also must purchase the next king cake for everyone to share. It is said that it is not truly Mardi Gras without king cake.

What are the colors of Mardi Gras?

The colors associated with Mardi Gras are purple, green, and gold.

Do the colors of Mardi Gras have any symbolic meaning? Yes. Purple is a symbol of justice and royalty. Green is a symbol of faith. Gold is a symbol of prestige and power.

What are flambeaux?

Flambeaux are the torches that carried in the parages. The first Mardi Gras parade (un défilé) was in 1857, twenty-two years before the invention of electricity. To have night parades, the street parade route needed to be lit. In comes the flambeaux. Flambeaux is the French word that means torchlight. Flambeaux carriers were originally slaves and free men of color who carried torches along the parade route. However, they didn’t just carry the torches. They twirled, danced, and performed tricks with the flambeaux to the delight of spectators. To this day, flambeaux carriers are an integral part of Carnival.

Why do people wear masks during Mardi Gras?

There are several theories to this. However, the most popular and most agreed upon one is the following. Masks were first worn during Mardi Gras by the krewes, which were (and still mostly are) secret and elite societies. (Being a member of a krewe is generally by invitation only and generational. It is a very prestigious honor to have and extremely difficult to obtain.) The masks were used to conceal the identity of krewe members, many of whom engaged in outlandish and outrageous behaviors. It grew in popularity because it allowed all celebrants to be equal. Slaves and people of lower social economic status could blend amongst the wealthy and affluent. Without the mask, slaves and persons with lower social economic status would have been viewed as not equal and would not have been allowed to participate in the festivities.

What is thrown from the parade floats?

A common phrase associated with Mardi Gras is, “Throw me something, Mister.” This is a request parade goers show to the people on the floats to be tossed goodies (known as throws). Throws consist of beads, cups (also known as dinnerware), doubloons (coins stamped with the krewe’s logo, parade theme, and the year), toys (frisbees, figurines, plush animals, etc.), and other trinkets (also called des babioles). Note: Due to the concern for potential injury or damage, coconuts are no longer thrown from floats. However, if lucky and close enough, parade goers may be handed one by a Krewe member. Coconuts aren’t banned. They just can’t be thrown.

And that’s all I got for today. Now, it’s your turn to sound off. Let me know your thoughts below in the comment section. Your feedback allows me to know the content that you want to read. And if you like this post, consider clicking the like button and sharing.

Demon Rodeo

If Brokeback Mountain, 8 Seconds, Poltergeist, and Supernatural had an orgy, Demon Rodeo would be the lovechild.

Demon Rodeo is available now on Amazon. For video book trailers, visit my TikTok page. The full blurb is on my Instagram and Amazon.

Demon Rodeo is the first book in the Chasing the Buckle series but can be read as a standalone. It’s a friends-to-lovers romance set in the rodeo world. These are not your typical cowboys. It’s a widely diverse cast of characters and a mashup of genres that aren’t always seen together. If you’re looking for a palate cleanser, this may be a book for you.

Order
⇨ Amazon: https://readerlinks.com/l/4174852
⇨ All Stores: https://books2read.com/u/bP8RG7
*Note: All of my books can be purchased from brick-and-mortar bookstores (e.g., Barnes & Noble, Book-A-Million, etc.) as well if requested at the checkout counter.)

Until next time, happy reading and much romance. Laissez le bon temps rouler.

If you’re not following my blog, Creole Bayou, what are you waiting for? There’s always room at the bayou.

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Locker Room Love

 Locker Room Love Series

Are you searching for a sexy book boyfriend? You’ve come to the right place.

• Out of the Penalty Box (book #1) One minute in the box or a lifetime out.
• Defending the Net (book #2) Crossing the line could cost the game.
• Ice Gladiators (book #3) When the gloves come off, the games begin.
• Penalty Kill (book #4) Let the pucker begin.
• Future Goals (book #5) The future lies between a puck and a net.

About the Author

Hi, I’m Genevive, and I am a contemporary sports romance author. My home is in South Louisiana. If you like snark and giggles with a touch of steamy Cajun and Creole on the side, I may have your poison in my stash of books. Drop by the bayou and have a look around. The pirogues are always waiting for new visitors.

Yes, I’ve changed the color of my cancer awareness ribbon. The pretty teal one was only for ovarian—my cancer is more generalized: endometrial/mullerian. Besides, I was bored with the blue.

Anyways, I’ve had an interesting day. My daughter and I traveled this morning to Little Rock to the Cancer Institute there to find out whether they would perform surgery to remove all my affected organs, which might give me a better chance of beating this cancer.

Before we even got there, we had an adventure. We had just taken the three-lane offramp and were stopped in a line of vehicles at the traffic lights when a firetruck and another emergency vehicle arrived with sirens and horns blowing. The cars in the center lane tried to move into our lane to give the big honking trucks room on the far left to get by. The vehicle in the center lane, to our left, began to back up, and my daughter laid on her horn to alert the driver that we were there—which the driver did not hear—and yeah, she hit our SUV. So, with only 45 minutes before my appointment with the surgeon, we had to contact 911 to get a trooper to come take our information before we could drive away.

We could not have been hit by a nicer lady. She took full responsibility, then saw my chemo hat and lack of eyebrows and told me she was a 15-year breast cancer survivor and asked about mine. She’s a nurse, teaching other nurses. The trooper was a very serious looking individual but very efficient. We made it to my appointment on time.

So, now for the news. Yes, I am scheduled for surgery at the beginning of April! They are going to take everything they find that’s affected by cancer—ovaries, uterus, cervix, fallopian tubes, omentum, and lymph nodes—plus anything else they discover once they’re in. It’s going to be a huge incision down the middle of my abdomen. Before I was scheduled, I told him the only thing I was concerned about was recovering in time for pool season. During the examination, he told me he was surprised that my uterus was a normal size now and that my cervix looked perfect. Well, of course, I wanted to tell him. I’m the perfect patient. Lots of fight and positivity left in me! My daughter is more worried about how all of this is going to go down. She has to have everything planned. Who’s going to stay with me in the hospital? Do we need another lift-recliner chair for me to sleep in because she’s sure getting in and out of bed will be too hard for me. She has to shop for dresses for me because she says I won’t want to wear anything that’s binding around my waist. And on, and on…

The nurse I saw at the beginning of all my appointments today (surgeon, bloodwork, EKG, X-ray) took my blood pressure after we rushed in fresh from the accident, and she told me she was very surprised my blood pressure was so normal after all the excitement. I told her I don’t worry about things until I know I have a problem. Why flap my wings like an excitable chicken and stress myself out? Right now, everything is wonderful. My latest bloodwork shows that everything’s trending perfectly. I’m in remission and heading into surgery to further attack this insidious disease. I’m here now. 

UPDATE: The winner is…Dana Zamora!
*~*~*

It’s not often one of my blog post subjects has an obituary published in the New York Times, but such is the case with Gertrude Bustill Mossell, journalist, author, poet, teacher, suffragist, and civil rights activist.

Born on July 3, 1855, Gertrude Bustill was born into a Black Quaker and Presbyterian family in Philadelphia, PA. Her family’s activism ranged from baking for the Continental Army at Valley Forge to creating the first mutual aid society with black activists Richard Allen and James Forten to engaging in the Underground Railroad. No wonder activism filled all aspects of Gertrude’s life. Her graduation speech, “Influence,” so impressed AME Bishop Henry McNeal, he published it in his newspaper, The Christian Recorder, and encouraged her to send him her poetry and essays for publication.

She taught in the public schools of three states for seven years. While teaching she also wrote and edited for seven magazines and newspapers. In 1883, she married Dr. Nathan Francis Mossell, ending her teaching career and taking a break from journalism to have two children.

She began writing again when editor T. Thomas Fortune hired her to write for his newspaper, The New York Age. From 1885 to1889, her column, “Our Women’s Department,” focused on issues from how to care for a household to civil rights and being politically active.

After that, she was the editor of the Indianapolis World from 1891 to 1892. Her byline was Mrs. N.F. Mossell. Gertrude wrote for both black and white publications, becoming the highest paid black newspaperwoman of the late 18th century, earning $500 a year.

She not only wrote articles but encouraged African American women to write and submit their work, making her an early advocate for women journalists. Gertrude wrote The Work of the Afro-American Woman in 1894, in which she wrote essays that highlighted the accomplishments of African American women in many walks of life, included a number of her poems, and challenged African American universities for not hiring enough of their own graduates and African American teachers in general. The book includes a photo of Gertrude and her two daughters, Mary Campbell and Florence Alma to whom her dedication prays “that they may grow into a pure and noble womanhood.” Her book reminded me of Hallie Q. Brown’s 1926 Homespun Heroines which I blogged about here back in February 2024. In 1902, Gertrude published a children’s book, Little Dansie’s One Day at Sabbath School.

In Philadelphia, Gertrude and her husband founded the Frederick Douglass Hospital for which she raised $30,000 ($1,000,000 in today’s dollars). The hospital included a training school for nurses. She also organized the Philadelphia branch of the national Afro-American Council, the first national civil rights organization in the US.

Gertrude died in 1948 in Philadelphia. An historic marker stands at 1432 Lombard Street in Philadelphia where she lived.

In the HBO series, the Gilded Age black journalist Peggy Scott is confronted by her father who tells her he doesn’t know any women who make a living writing. He obviously never heard of Gertrude. Unfortunately, there are movements in the US today hell bent on making sure the accomplishments of marginalized communities remain unheard of. I share these posts as my way of joining the fight with other groups to make sure those movements fail.

To win a $10 Amazon gift card, share your thoughts in the comments.

“The Patience of Unanswered Prayer” by Michal Scott inside Cowboys

Kidnapped and destined to be another victim of Reconstruction-era violence, a feisty shop owner is rescued by a trail boss whose dark secret might save them both.

Excerpt:

Franklin crawled hidden in the tall grass toward the voice. The smells of oil and sulfur assaulted his senses. Echoes of the two explosions that ripped the night apart still played in his ears. The first body thudded against the ground. The second splashed into the creek. Moonlight glinted off the shooter’s gun and chest. Franklin’s upper lip raised over his incisors as he recognized the metal of a sheriff’s badge.

The man stalked over to the body sprawled by the creek bank.

The woman.

A Black woman.

The cur gloated and pointed his gun barrel at her unmoving form.

Franklin snarled. He leapt and went straight for the sheriff’s throat. The man’s horrified cry yielded to stuttered curses as he choked and writhed in the grip of Franklin’s jaws. The copper tang of blood fueled his indignation. The crunch of cartilage sounded lovely in Franklin’s ears. Flesh and bone yielded to canines and incisors.

The man staggered under Franklin’s weight. Lithe and lean in his wolf form, he still carried the heft of his human two hundred and fifty pounds.

The man convulsed, slumped then stilled.

Life flowed in the villain’s veins yet, but wouldn’t for long. The merciful thing to do would be to finish him off before some other predators made a meal of him.

Franklin felt nothing akin to mercy.

Buylink: https://amzn.to/3zfDpo2

It’s no secret I’m a big Nancy Drew fan, but did you know that Nancy Drew can help you plan the perfect date night? I’ve read a lot of the newer books as my way to relax, watched the movies and shows (my favorite is the 90’s series), and I LOVE the Nancy Drew computer games. I started playing them when I spotted them at a Toys ‘R Us years ago. That store was a gift, right? Well, years later, I started dating the guy I would end up marrying and early on in our relationship, I shared that I liked playing the games. He told me he’d play one of the games with me the next time we had a date night. I picked Nancy Drew: Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon as I had gotten it as a Christmas present and it also featured the Hardy Boys.

So, we started the game and he was completely hooked. He was already a fan of video games and loved the fact you helped solve the mystery as it’s so interactive. We’d get snacks, a special notebook to record the clues, sodas, and settle in for some crime fighting/mystery solving time. In fact, playing these games became our thing and we went on to play—excuse me—solve several more mysteries. We’ve played nearly twenty and still haven more to go.

In fact, we have had so much fun playing these that I decided to put playing the games on a date night in my YA contemporary romance, When Stars Collide in the City, where Olivia Macomb mentions to indie pop star, Walker Vinton, how she and her friends used to play Nancy Drew computer games when they were growing up. She tells him how her friend had a sleepover with a Nancy Drew theme where they got special notebooks with, “Let’s Drew It,” on it for writing down clues. I always say that line, so I wanted to put it in the story. Anyway, Walker gets a game for the two of them to play for their next date night. How can you not love a guy like that?

Have you played Nancy Drew games before? Let me know if you have or decide to try it for a date night—or a night of fun with friends or by yourself!

Check out the blurb for When Stars Collide in the City…

From the outside, Olivia Macomb looks like she leads a charmed life. She’s an up-and-coming influencer who is an heir to the Macomb family fortune, and about to start a lifestyle brand with her childhood sweetheart, Jeff. Then her world gets blown apart by her longtime boyfriend leaving her the morning of their website launch. Not only has he left, but the business she created is all in his name and she’s been left with nothing to show for all her hard work. Now she has to pick up the pieces and find out who she is on her own.

Enter Walker Vinton, the indie pop star who used to date Olivia’s close friend, Paige. When their school throws a big event, Paige asks Walker to be Olivia’s date to give to the gossip bloggers something else to talk about other than Olivia’s broken dreams.

Walker ends up coming to Olivia’s rescue in more ways than one at the party, and a twist of events leads to the two embarking on a fake relationship. Walker and Olivia wind up becoming best friends and she realizes he’s the boyfriend of her dreams.

He helps her build both her brand and her self-esteem back up. Walker even helps her start a new business. However, the lines begin to blur as Olivia’s feelings for Walker are very real. The two share intimate conversations and dreams, but what’s real and what’s fake in this starry world?

Pick up the book here. It’s free in Kindle Unlimited:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/When-Stars-Collide-City-Book-ebook/dp/B0D8BR4H2L
Amazon CAN: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B0D8BR4H2L
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0D8BR4H2L
Amazon AUS: https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B0D8BR4H2L

About the Author

Krysten Lindsay Hager is a bestselling author of YA and contemporary romance. She writes romance because she loves bringing people swoony moments and hope-filled happily ever afters. She writes about falling in love, fame, fitting in, frenemies, first loves, and finding your way in the world. She loves reading, watching movies, and lipstick.

Website: https://www.krystenlindsay.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/krystenlindsay/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/krystenlindsay/

Thank you, Delilah, for giving me space today! It’s a pleasure to be here.

For over 27 years I worked for a lawyer who did estate and trust litigation. I consistently joked that if I ever wrote a book, I’d title it, “50 Ways to Screw Your Brother” because I saw at least that many ways to cheat someone out of an inheritance.

During my paralegal years I took a plotting bootcamp course with Delilah and her sister, Elle James, as my drill instructors. But life (and work) kept me from using the knowledge they drilled into me.

Until Covid hit.

Without a daily commute, a creative outlet, or social interaction I finally wrote that book that lives inside all of us. It was about a call girl and a cop, and I titled it Courting Risk. Go figure. (My kids talked me out of calling it The Call Girl and The Cop, but I still think that has a nice ring to it.)

Courting Risk wasn’t about screwing someone out of an inheritance, but there was certainly some steamy screwing included. I loved everything about the writing process. I relished learning about writing, publishing, not so much marketing. But researching the characters was heaven and so much fun.

By the time I finished researching and sat down to write, the book fell out of my head. It was such a relief to get those people on paper after all the running around they did in my imagination. And yes, all those plotting drills Delilah and Elle taught, I put them to good use.

And then I wrote another book, and another book. Until I’d written seven (yes, seven) books.  And didn’t publish a one of them. Elle graciously invited me out to her house last August and with her help she prodded me into hitting publish on that first book. Without her help or encouragement, I’d still be the author of eight (yes, now it’s eight) unpublished books. I’ve since tossed four of them out into the world for consumption and will publish book five in the series this March.

All of this has me wondering, am I alone? Do you have a book lurking inside you, scrambling to be free from your imagination to just fall out onto the page? What would you title it? Leave a comment below and let me know!

Courting Risk

What’s riskier than an ex-call girl working for a cop? Falling for the detective who hired her.

Eva Chastain’s greatest fear is being arrested. So she leaves her lucrative, illegal, profession to open an interpreting and translating business.

That fear turns into reality when her first big client is the Houston Police Department. But her fear becomes a nightmare when she’s targeted for abduction by human traffickers.

While Houston Detective, Jon Deluca, investigates the disappearance of area women, he stumbles upon a human trafficking ring. Forced to hire a civilian for translating crucial evidence, his focus turns from fighting crime to fighting his attraction for his translator and keeping her safe and unharmed.

Hounded by danger, Eva must hide her shadowy past while falling for the handsome detective.

When their past and present collide Jon is forced to weigh his need for justice, confronting her past, and his growing love for Eva.

A collision that places Eva’s life in the balance.

This book is part of a series, but stands alone with steam, strong-willed women, action, and a happily ever after. No cheating. No cliff hangers allowed.

Available on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DDV1YC2V or read free in Kindle Unlimited.

 About the Author

 Kate is an author of romantic suspense who loves books with engaging characters, steamy stories, and happy endings. Having been an avid reader since a child, her favorite day is a good book, hot tea, and endless music.

Growing up in central Arkansas, she went to college, served in the U.S. Army, married (and divorced), lived in Germany, and now spends her time slaving away at a day job, dog sitting a grandpup, and writing at night. She loves seeing her two grown children, their families, and their fur babies, all who live nearby.

She loves to hear from readers and fellow authors via email: kate@kathrynjwright.com

Follow her on social media or sign up for her newsletter to receive the latest news on her next release at http://subscribepage.io/0t6yiY.  Newsletter subscribers receive a free novella, Little Lies, the Prequel to the Deer Crossing Series.

Website: https://kathrynjwright.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Kathryn-J-Wright-Author/100076026593648/
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Happy Valentine’s Day! This post is a different take on the hearts holiday that people seem to either love or detest. There isn’t much gray area toward it. I’ll begin with a question. Who is your favorite romance author? Second question: why?

Of course, there’s no right or wrong answer to those questions. So, why would I pose the question? Oddly enough, a commercial and shopping for the Super Bowl. Let me set the scene.

It had been a while since I hosted a Super Bowl party, and this felt like the year to do it. After commandeering my best gal pals, we headed to a craft store for decorations. Now, we knew this particular store (which I won’t name because I don’t have much positive to say about it) would have slim pickings, and we had prepared to let our creative juices flow once we saw what we had to work with. The instant we stepped in front of the automatic doors we were overwhelmed with the commercialism of Valentine’s Day. It wasn’t a shock because this store had begun stocking its shelves with chocolate hearts and lovey-dovey knickknacks a week before Christmas when they felt people wouldn’t purchase any more ornaments or tinsel. So much for after-Christmas sales, and heaven bless anyone who buys Valentine’s chocolates that early.

As we made our way down the aisle, I asked a friend to visit Instagram or Pinterest for decorating ideas. When she opened one of the apps, an ad immediately opened. It was a Hallmark Channel commercial for a V-day rom-com based on a best-selling novel. It sparked my friend to ask if we could remember a time before Nora Roberts, Debbie Macomber, Sandra Brown, and Nicholas Sparks. These authors are heavy hitters who are staples in the romance genre. But at one point, they had been unknowns.

The writing world has changed substantially since those writers’ beginnings. Then, agents and traditional publishing dominated, and breaking onto the writing scene was practically impossible without going that route. However, most big publishing houses did not accept unsolicited manuscripts, and many agents didn’t take on new/unknown writers. Now, some may argue this wasn’t the case, but all that is needed to give credit is a scrutiny of the increased popularity of self-publishing.

Self-publishing has been around a lot longer than most people may think. In its infancy, however, it was mostly viewed as “second-rate” or an avenue for “unworthy” books to get published. At one point, the Romance Writers of America (RWA) would not consider indie books for many of their awards. The “system” at that time prevented many good writers and good books from being published. It is no industry secret that many manuscripts sat in what was termed “slush piles” for months without being read but the authors sent a formed rejection letter as if they had been. Authors grew weary of waiting and rejection and more and more began self-publishing (which is no easy feat.) But as eBooks grew in popularity, self-publishing methods became easier—still not easy but easier.

With it being easier to publish, one may assume it’s overall easier for new authors. Not really, unless that author has a massive social media presence or is a celebrity. The reason: there are more books out there than ever. This is wonderful for readers—choice, choice, choice. But it makes it more difficult for new authors to be noticed. Well-established authors still have big publishing houses to pour lots of effort, resources, and money into marketing. Many newer and lesser-established authors are not afforded that luxury.

But what about social media? Well, back in the day (yes, dating myself), there used to be social media groups that would push out (by posting) release announcements and advertisements for free. However, most of these groups were shut down for “spamming.” Most writers recognize that as a red herring dismissal so these social media sites could charge for ads. And let me just tell you about paid ads. It was my experience with one site (and no, I again won’t name names) that my ad was sent to bot accounts. Basically, wasted money. How do I know they were bot accounts? Well, I can’t be 100% certain, but when I went to the majority of these accounts, they had no profile picture, no personalized user name, no or few posts, and no followers. I did not see an increase in generated sales. All I could see was how many times the ad was allegedly viewed—again, bots.

The point is, even paid advertisements do not guarantee a growth in exposure. That is why authors are so very appreciative when readers who do run across their pages, posts, and/or ads share them. It is why leaving a review can be so helpful to authors. It’s not only the words left but the engagement that helps. So, on this Valentine’s Day, it’s a heartfelt please to open your heart and spread the love by leaving a like, comment, post, or review for those new and upcoming romance authors. Even if their books aren’t your personal cup of tea, maybe you know someone who it is. Besides, authors love hearing from readers. It’s a way for them to learn what readers want.

This isn’t a call to abandon mainstream authors. The writing space is infinite, and there is more than enough room for everyone. It’s just that lesser-established authors often need a little more help to get themselves out there.

And that’s all I got for today. Now, it’s your turn to sound off. Let me know your thoughts below in the comment section. Your feedback allows me to know the content that you want to read. And if you like this post, consider clicking the like button and sharing.

Demon Rodeo

If Brokeback Mountain, 8 Seconds, Poltergeist, and Supernatural had an orgy, Demon Rodeo would be the lovechild.

Demon Rodeo is available now on Amazon. For video book trailers, visit my TikTok page. The full blurb is on my Instagram and Amazon.

Demon Rodeo is the first book in the Chasing the Buckle series but can be read as a standalone. It’s a friends-to-lovers romance set in the rodeo world. These are not your typical cowboys. It’s a widely diverse cast of characters and a mashup of genres that aren’t always seen together. If you’re looking for a palate cleanser, this may be a book for you.

Order
⇨ Amazon: https://readerlinks.com/l/4174852
⇨ All Stores: https://books2read.com/u/bP8RG7

*Note: All of my books can be purchased from brick-and-mortar bookstores (e.g., Barnes & Noble, Book-A-Million, etc.) as well if requested at the checkout counter.)

Locker Room Love

 Locker Room Love Series

Are you searching for a sexy book boyfriend? You’ve come to the right place.

• Out of the Penalty Box (book #1) One minute in the box or a lifetime out.
• Defending the Net (book #2) Crossing the line could cost the game.
• Ice Gladiators (book #3) When the gloves come off, the games begin.
• Penalty Kill (book #4) Let the pucker begin.
• Future Goals (book #5) The future lies between a puck and a net.

About the Author

Hi, I’m Genevive, and I am a contemporary sports romance author. My home is in South Louisiana. If you like snark and giggles with a touch of steamy Cajun and Creole on the side, I may have your poison in my stash of books. Drop by the bayou and have a look around. The pirogues are always waiting for new visitors.

Until next time, happy reading and much romance. Laissez le bon temps rouler.

If you’re not following my blog, Creole Bayou, what are you waiting for? There’s always room at the bayou.

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