Reading Under the Summer Stars #SummerReading #KU #KindleUnlimited #BookFair

 

In the mood for the great outdoors this summer?

Check out these Kindle Unlimited books featured from July 15 thru Aug.14!

Fill your Kindle with books to read 

camping under the summer stars 

or relaxing at the beach!

Go to Book Fair

SFF Romance Spotlight #scifiromance #alienromance #fantasyromance

Check out this book fair filled 

with science fiction romance 

and 

fantasy romance priced at $2.99 or less!

Go to Book Fair

Summer Book Fair #scifi #fantasy #paranormalromance #pnr

 

Do you need books to read this summer?

Check out these sci-fi, fantasy and paranormal romances!

Go to Book Fair

Celebrate #ChristmasinJuly with Holiday-Themed Books and a #Giveaway! #Christmas #Reading

 

Calling all holiday-themed readers! It’s more than evergreens and twinkly lights at N. N. Light’s Book Heaven’s fifth annual Christmas in July Fête. 44 Christmas, Hanukkah and holiday-themed books featured plus a chance to win a $75 Amazon (US) gift card.

I’m thrilled to be a part of this event. My book, The Alien and the Elf, will be featured on July 13. Wait until you read what I love most about the holidays. You won’t want to miss it.

Find my book in the event here: https://www.nnlightsbookheaven.com/post/the-alien-and-the-elf-cijf

Bookmark this event and tell your friends:

https://www.nnlightsbookheaven.com/christmas-in-july-fete 

One lucky reader will win a $75 Amazon (US) gift card

Direct Link: https://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/92db7750119 

Open internationally. You must have a valid Amazon US account to win. 

Runs July 1 – 31 

Drawing will be held on August 2. 

The Alien and the Elf #NewRelease #Excerpt #scifiromance #ChristmasinJuly

 

My name is Noelle, and I'm an elf.

I was minding my own business, testing a newly installed engine on Santa's sleigh when it suffered a slight malfunction. I found myself spiraling out of control. Then a bright beam of light hit from above, and I'm taken on board a spaceship.

Jaxar is a sexy, to-die-for, green-skinned alien who thinks I'm stealing his salvage.

He's never met an elf.

Well, I've never met an alien.

With no way to get home, I need Jaxar's help. Can we work together to fix Santa's sleigh in time to save Christmas?

A short, steamy, happy-for-now romance between a quirky elf and a brooding alien.

*Originally published in A Very Alien Christmas Boxed Set

Amazon

Read an Excerpt

I stared out the window. Earth spun far, far below. The blues and whites swirling together in a mixture of ocean and atmosphere. I never dreamed I’d see my home from this distance. I glanced over my shoulder where the alien stood fiddling with a panel just outside the room. He’d locked me in here a few hours ago, then left. I presume he used the time to inspect my sleigh. “You better not have damaged it any more than you already have.” “What?” He didn’t pause whatever he was doing as his fingers flew over buttons. I could hear tiny beeps echoing from the panel. “My sleigh,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest. “You better not have damaged my sleigh.” “I did nothing to your vehicle.” “Like spicy gum drops, you didn’t.” I moved away from the small window where I’d been gazing at my planet to step closer to the door. There was an electrified, invisible barrier between us. I’d discovered it after he had shoved me into the room, then hit some buttons on the panel and left. I had tried to follow him but got zapped as soon as I touched the barrier. It hadn’t been a pleasant sensation. “I was taking the sleigh on a test flight,” I said, leaning against the wall to watch him as he concentrated on the panel. “It was going peachy until you and your bright as glistening snow light showed up. What did you do to it? How did you make it malfunction like that?” “I did nothing to your… sleigh.” His dark brows bunched together as he spoke the word like it was foreign to him. “I was salvaging when I caught sight of movement. I went to investigate. That’s when I found you.” He paused his business with the panel to tilt his gaze toward me. Heat flashed through me at the intensity of his gaze. “It appeared your vehicle was in distress. I believe I saved you.” A small, confident smile accompanied his words. While the zinging sensation stirred strangely in my nether regions, I tightened my fingers into fists beneath my crossed arms. “There was a slight malfunction,” I stated between clenched teeth. “If I’d had some time, I would have figured it out and fixed it.” “Uh-huh.” He nodded, the smile still in place as he went back to work on the panel. “Or you would have been squashed on the ground below. You and your sleigh.” I shook my head, refusing to believe it even as a tiny voice in my head admitted that he was probably right. I still don’t know what went wrong with the sleigh. The engines shouldn’t have stalled. While waiting in this room, I’d gone over in my mind everything I had done with the engines. Failing like that… It shouldn’t have happened. I hated to admit it, but I was going to have to take it apart, maybe even start from scratch. Rebuild from the ground up. It was the only way to be sure it didn’t happen again. What if it had been Santa in that sleigh on Christmas Eve? The thought sent chills through me. No, I had to be sure the engine was perfect before letting the big man take it for his annual journey. If something went wrong during flight, he wouldn’t know how to fix it. I sighed, saddened I let Santa down this year. Not only did the engine not work, but I went and got abducted by an alien, too. I had to get back to the North Pole. I had to tell Santa that he’d have to take the magic reindeer on the journey this year. Let him know the engine didn’t work. Or I had to fix it. “How long are you going to keep me here?” I leaned my shoulder against the wall, careful not to get too close to the invisible barrier between us. “I have things to do and you’re wasting my time.” The alien chuckled low. “I plan on keeping you until I know what planet you’re from, because you’re not from this one.” He raised one dark eyebrow as he glanced at me, his gaze taking me in from the red hat on my head to my little black boots. “I want to know what kind of competition I have.” “Competition?” I scowled, leaning closer. “What do you mean?” “You know exactly what I mean.” “No, I don’t. How many times do I have to tell you? I’m from Earth.” “Right. And what exactly were you doing flying over Seattle?”  “I told you. Testing the engines on the sleigh.” “Uh-huh.” He nodded. “And what are your intentions with that sleigh?” “We’re back to this again. I feel like we’re talking in circles.” I huffed my dismay, then shook my head. “Let’s start again, shall we? Hi! My name is Noelle and I’m an elf. What’s your name?” “An elf?” The alien’s brows lowered again as he looked at me. “I thought elves were extinct on this planet.” “Obviously not.” I waved one hand over my body indicating that I was very much not extinct. “Don’t elves live in trees? They’re little people. You’re too tall to be an elf.” “Elves come in all shapes and sizes just like humans. Just how do you know anything about elves anyway?” I scoffed, placing a hand on my hip. “You’re an alien.” “I’ve visited this planet a time or two. Or twenty. I’ve learned something about the culture.” “Well, you haven’t learned enough about elves because you’re looking at one.” With that, I lifted my white-trimmed red hat from my head, revealing my mess of blonde hair still tied in a wreck of a ponytail and the tips of my pointed ears for his view. Amazon

Brand New Alien Mates #scifirom #scifiromance #alienromance #bookfair

 

In love with aliens? Looking for brand new alien mates?

Check out these hot new sci-fi romance releases!

Go to Book Fair

Can I Quit Writing? #IWSG #writers #writinglife

The first Wednesday of every month is officially 

Insecure Writer's Support Group day.

The Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It's a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

IWSG Asks: What would make you quit writing?

I've tried quitting. It didn't stick.

There are several... several times in the last 20 years when I considered quitting. I work for hours and hours on my manuscripts. And then hours more on marketing, advertising, networking, social media, all the other things besides writing that go into a writing career. Add to that, I'm constantly learning, studying, discovering new tips and tricks to try with writing. Workshops, courses, lessons and how-to books. It is a continuous pursuit of knowledge and one I fear I will never master.

I remember buying groceries at the store when my sons were toddlers. I stood watching the sales clerk ring up my order and thought,  "She's a teenager and is making more money than me. In 1 hour, she makes more money than I do in a full 40 hours of writing."

It was a depressing thought. All the work, the hours of my life that I spend on words that possibly no one will ever read... I couldn't even afford to buy myself a cup of coffee.

On the way home, I told myself I was done.

I quit.

I needed to wake up. Grow up. Stop dreaming. I was a mom now. I needed to be more responsible. I had kids to provide for. I needed to get a real job.

Tomorrow, I was going to fill out an application at the grocery store. Get a job that paid money. I needed money. I had bills to pay, kids to feed, a mortgage.

Writing was clearly not the way to achieve any of that.

And then I thought of the many hours of my life that I spent on learning the craft of writing. The money I spent to go to workshops and conferences. How much knowledge I had gained from that moment when I was 18 and had decided that becoming an author was my choice of career to that moment when I was sitting in my car contemplating quitting.

I've come so far.

It would be a waste of my life if I gave up now. All those years I invested...

What if it took just one more book?

The next book could be my hit. It could be all that sits between me and financial freedom. The one that will help me succeed and accomplish my goals.

Could I take that chance? If I quit, I'd never know.

It took me about a week of not writing before another story idea presented itself, another opportunity to write a book that might touch some reader's heart. That urge to write brought me out of my early writing retirement.

What if Nora Roberts had given up? What about Stephen King? JK Rowling??

Many people know about their success stories. What if they decided writing was too hard and gave up 

We'd never have those beautiful stories to share.

I don't know if I'll ever attain the success of those mega-writing stars, but if there's one person who looks forward to reading my books, my biggest fan who automatically buys everything I publish, some stranger whom I may never meet, then I owe it to that person to keep writing. My writing might change someone's life someday. Touch someone is some life-altering way.

My writing might change my life, too! It might be my life that is changed in some life-altering way.

What would make me quit writing? Nothing. In fact, my thoughts move more along the lines of how can I keep writing when life becomes difficult?

I suffer from depression and anxiety. Writer's block hits. I do my best to prepare myself for those days to help me work through it.

What if I get carpal tunnel or arthritis in my fingers so bad I can't type? Well, then I'll buy dictating software and write while speaking aloud.

What if I go blind? Then I'll buy a brail keyboard.

What if the zombie apocalypse hits? I'll search through broken and abandoned houses until I find pen and paper.

What if aliens abduct me? I'll entertain them with the stories that pop into my brain while they probe me.

Okay, so clearly, I take the what if game too far. But, even if I won a million $$ lottery jackpot, I'd keep writing. Even if I never made another penny from my stories, I'll still continue to write them.

It's a part of me now. 

Writing is like breathing.

Even when I try to quit, that writing part of my brain nags at me until I get back to it.

So, I quit fighting it.

Happy writing!

~ Tricia 

Be sure to visit the other writers in the 

Insecure Writer's Support Group!

I write sensual paranormal and historical romances. Interested in learning more about my stories? Become a VIP Reader by signing-up for my newsletter where you'll learn about my new book releases, updates on my works-in-progress, writing tips, book reviews, contests, and other fun book-related info!

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