Sighs Matter by Lulu M. Sylvian ~ A Cursed All Hallows' Eve Author Spotlight Interview @LuluMSylvian #CursedHallowsEve #werewolvesandvampires

Blurb: 

It’s Halloween and my goals are to party, get a little buzzed, and possibly hook up with some hardbody. But my attention keeps being pulled back to a group of furries, and my friend has joined the harem around some guy dressed like an anime wet dream.

Things go from sexy hot to hot mess when I discover my friend is missing, and that furry cosplay, isn’t cosplay. Also, there’s a reason hottie anime guy is so hot, he’s an incubus.

I need to save my friend, not blow my fingers off in the process, and decide which one of these guys that keeps kissing me I want to end up with. But they do work well together. It’s going to be a tough choice.

Excerpt: 

“This demon isn’t Christian, and that cross isn’t blessed. But it is silver, and supernaturals don’t like silver,” Vlad said.

I toyed with the cross. “Is that why you don’t like it?” I asked Vlad.

He gave me a sharp nod.

“What about you?” I asked just as I placed the cool metal against the exposed skin on Biker’s forearm.

The car swerved and he clamped his other hand over the spot I touched. “What the fuck did you do that for?”

“Oh, like that hurt you,” I snarked in reply.

Biker lifted his hand, and underneath I could see the angry red skin, and blisters forming.

“No,” I started. “No, no, no, no. This isn’t happening.” This wasn’t real. The silver on that cross did not just burn the man driving my car like a bat out of hell across town to who knows where and I was willingly going along for the ride.

“Stop the car. I need to get out.”

He glared at me and kept driving.

“Stop the car,” I screamed and began beating my feet and hands against the car. Thrashing as if I could make him stop.

The tires squealed and I could smell the burn of rubber as he stopped in the middle of the street. I scrambled to undo my belt and open the door. I fell out of the car and was on my feet and running. I knew enough back in the club to not take a drink I hadn’t seen prepared myself, but… Oh God, there were two of them, what if they had distracted me? The demons were just a hallucination. I had gone with them to one location, and I was willingly going to a second. How stupid was I? Never let them get you to a second location. Oh crap, I was gonna die. One of their friends had Vin. I would never see her again. She would never meet some nice man her parents approved of. I didn’t want to be killed on Halloween. What a stupid cliché mistake that would be.

Where can readers find Sighs Matter?

Available exclusively in A Cursed All Hallows' Eve: Limited Edition Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy, and Reverse Harem Halloween Themed Collection

Grab Your Copy Today!

Available to read FREE in Kindle Unlimited!

books2read.com/cursedallhallowseve

The veil is thin. Darkness calls. Will you answer?

Halloween curses plague the daring heroes and spunky heroines in this spirited collection of tales. A Cursed All Hallows' Eve brings you 20+ stories stuffed with everything from dark gods to brooding shifters, delivering hours of decadent, pleasure-filled reading from bestselling and award winning urban fantasy and paranormal romance authors.

If you can't get enough of those supernatural creatures—vampires, ghosts, witches, demons, and fae—this limited edition collection will alternately thrill you with the spicy and tempt you with the sweet. Delve into these worlds where the living haunt the dead and the undead tempt the breathing.

Answer the call, because this Halloween, not all the costumes are disguises.

AUTHOR INTERVIEW

Hello and welcome, readers! We have Lulu M Sylvian here with us today. Lulu, thanks for visiting us.

How long have you been a writer and how did you come to writing?

I’ve been published for 3 years now. I grew up drawing and creating characters. Maybe for a comic, maybe for future stores? I’m not sure. But I wasn’t that kid that wrote stories. I didn’t start writing down my characters until I was older. And not until those characters became much more noisy and demanding that I document their stories.

Tell us about your title featured in: A Cursed All Hallows’ Eve

Sighs Matters is about a girl who falls in with the wrong crowd on Halloween night, only to discover, they really are the right crowd for her. At first she’s drawn to a group of hotties who are showing off their exceptional furry suits. She can’t help but flirt with them as her friend takes off to join the harem forming around a super hottie dressed like an anime character.

It turns out they aren’t furries, and her friend has attached her self to an incubus.

Other characters that get involved are a not-quite-billionaire vampire, a Bollywood wanna-be, and a swarm of mummy-like demons. Things get explosive when incendiaries are brought into fight off the bad guy. 

It is a reverse harem romance, so she ends up with her happy for now, and a bevy of new boyfriends.

How did you come up with the storyline?

The tagline “A vampire, a werewolf, and a demon walk into a bar,” came to me first. I spent a few weeks trying to figure out what it meant. The wolves are the ones who let me know about their costumes first. Then I knew about the beautiful demon. To be honest I didn’t expect him to end up doing what he does. He surprised me. 

This was very much a “ride along and document,” type of story told by the characters.

What inspires you to write?

My characters. Somehow they show up and have these situations and they want their stories told. The process really does feel like I cast out the need for X-type of story and the characters respond. That’s how Sighs Matters happened.

I also have characters who are hanging about but they haven’t attached themselves to a story yet. And then suddenly I’ll have a story that has to happen (like part of a series) and that character will step up and claim the spot. They can really change the direction of what I may have thought was going to happen. 

The idea can come from anywhere— a call for submissions, a dream, a plot bunny meme on Facebook— but until a character shows up and takes that idea, nothing really happens.

Tell us about your other books:

I mostly write paranormal. I love shifters, but I also have a thing for male strippers. I do write contemporary, that’s been limited to the strippers until recently when I started with some rock star romances.

Holiday Strippers are short rom-com stories that started off with The Twelve Stripper of Christmas. I try to make sure I have a new stripper short every Christmas season.

Legatum is a family saga series that revolves around wolfshifters and the impact genetic science, and long dead enimies, have on theirsurvival and finding romance.

Second Endings is a paranormal series with ghosts, psychics, and love that spans the veil between life and death. A definite spin on the idea of second chance romance.

Wolves of Wet Waterfalls is the first mini-series that takes place in the miniscule magical municipality of Wet Waterfalls, Wyoming. Werewolves, demons, and withces populate the world of this reverse harem series.

Ballad Ares is my first rock star romance. I have three planned, no series name yet, but these contemporary romance stories do revolve around issues dealing with recovery and substance abuse.

Where can readers find you? 

Website: www.lulumsylvian.com

Newsletter: www.lulumsylvian.com/newsletter

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/lmsylvian

Come play with my Facebook group: Lululandia https://www.facebook.com/groups/519202371904484/

Instagram: www.instagram.com/lmsylvian

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Lulu-M-Sylvian

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/lulu-m-sylvian

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/LuluMSylvian

Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/lmsylvian

Twitter: www.twitter.com/lulumsylvian

About the Author:

Bio-engineered to be the only redhead in a generation of blonds, Lulu feels that “aliens” may actually be the best answer for a lifetime of being asked, “Where did you get that red hair from?”

She did not come into writing from years of scribbling words on paper. Her background is rooted in visual arts and making pictures. Encouraged to make those pictures out of words Lulu began writing just to see what would happen. What happened was two full-length manuscripts in three months.

Lulu cannot ride a horse, a motorcycle, spin a hula hoop, or play roller derby. Yes, she has attempted all of those, even if it has been decades since she’s been on a horse or a motorcycle. She embraces the crazy that comes with the one little genetic mutation and attempts to live up to the reputation that proceeds her as a redhead. Lulu would like to apologize for her contribution to the hole in the ozone layer from her use of hairspray in the 1980’s.

Get more Halloween themed stories like this in 

A Cursed All Hallows' Eve Read for FREE in Kindle Unlimited

books2read.com/cursedallhallowseve

 

To Re-Read or Not To Re-Read #LongandShortReviews #BlogChallenge

 

Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews.

This week's topic: Re-reading books: why or why not?

I don't re-read books as often as I would like. I mean, really, there are thousands of books to-be-read on my bookshelves that I still want to get to before I'm no longer on this Earth (I sincerely hope there is a vast library waiting for me in Heaven!). But, I do have some special favorites that I will go back and read from time to time. 

I'm currently re-reading all of the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I had started reading this series years and years ago before I had children. I found myself addicted to the stories. I read about half of them before I set them down, worried that I would finish them all too quickly. Then I moved into a new house and the book got shuffled around. I finally pulled it back out and started it over again. I really love these stories and exploring the mysteries of Victorian London with Sherlock and Watson as my guides.

Another book I've re-read was This Is All I Ask by Lynn Kurland. She's another of my favorite authors. Her books are truly amazing! The first time I read This Is All I Ask, I was sitting in a doctor's office waiting for my boyfriend. He was getting an MRI and I was content to read while I waited for him. This book is brimming with emotion. I couldn't help but cry while I read it. I remember the other patients in the waiting room casting surreptitious glances my way. It didn't occur to me until later that they must have thought I was upset because of my boyfriend's condition. Which turned out to be nothing. But I had been so consumed with the book, that I didn't think about my tears drawing anyone's attention. 

Years later, I still remembered the emotional impact of this book. I wanted to read it again, this time as a writer, to see how the author pulled those emotional responses from me with her well-crafted words. Yes, even the second time reading and already knowing what was going to happen, I cried. Again. This time, in the privacy of my own home. This book really touched my heart and placed Lynn Kurland on my auto-buy list.

There are also some books that I re-read just because the first time I read them so quickly, so eagerly that I really wanted to go through them again at a slower pace, to really absorb the writer's words and to pick apart how the author was able to grab my imagination and attention so completely. Basically, I read these books for enjoyment the first time, and the second time I read them as a writer, analyzing all the elements it took to make that book enjoyable. Dialogue, plot, pacing, etc.

These are a few books I've picked apart:

I have plans to re-read whole series someday. Among those I'd like to re-read are The Bridgertons by Julia Quinn; The Women of the Otherworld by Kelley Armstrong; The Demon Whisperer by Ash Krafton; and The Chronicles of the Warlands by Elizabeth Vaughan.

I've re-read the first three Harry Potter books. The first go-around was for me. The second time, I read aloud to my children at bedtime. It took us a year to get through the entire series. After we finished each book, we'd watch the movie again.

I did this with The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings, too. I read these books years before I became a mother, but after Harry Potter, my children were eager for more. I pulled this series out and read to them each night. It didn't take a year to get through them, but after finishing each one, we watched the movie again.

And I might as well add that I re-read children's stories, too. With four kids, I've re-read countless Dr. Seuss and Berenstein Bears books over and over. And Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown. I read this book every night for a year to my youngest son. It was the only way I could get him settled in bed. It's memorized now. I can recite it like people recite Shakespeare!

I guess I re-read books more often than I realized! :) 

Be sure to check out the other blogger's suggestions at ...

I write sensual paranormal and historical romances. Interested in learning more about my stories? Sign-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!

You can Follow me on ...

BookBub | Amazon | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest | Instagram

Happy Reading!

~Tricia

AMAZON

Hers to Bear by C.D. Gorri ~ A Cursed All Hallows' Eve: Halloween Themed Collection Author Spotlight Interview #CursedHallowsEve #ShifterFatedMates

Blurb:

Barvale might be home to one of the biggest Bear Shifter Clans in the entire continent of North America, but shhhh…it’s a secret!

“Crazy” Maisy Daniels couldn’t leave Barvale fast enough after high school. She’d earned that hated nickname after telling her classmates she’d seen a boy change into a Bear just behind the football field! A social pariah and the butt of every joke in her grade, it was no wonder she’d promised herself to never step foot in that godforsaken town again.

But when her dad has emergency surgery, who else can help? Maisy returns home to find things are a mess. The tractor is broken and there are only a few hours until the Daniels Farm Annual Haunted Halloween Hay Ride & Spooky Soiree begins. Unfortunately, the only repair shop open belongs to the bane of her high school days, Arthur Lance himself. It’s time for Maisy to just grin and bear it!

Arthur Lance just opened his third full service garage and automotive repair shop in his hometown of Barvale, New Jersey. Business was going great, but his Bear wasn’t satisfied with a job well done. The silly animal was still pining for the one who got away back in high school. Burying himself in work was the only thing he could do to keep his beast placated and his human side sane.

Maybe his fate is to be alone as punishment for hurting the only female he’d ever wanted? His Bear can’t stand the thought. He’s stuck at work on Mischief Night, when to his surprise he gets a frantic call from Maisy Daniels herself. Finally, Arthur has another chance.

Will Maisy accept him as her fated mate when he finally reveals the truth?

Excerpt: 

Her eyes widened when she saw what Arthur was about to do, but wild horses couldn’t make Maisy look away as he pulled his sweatshirt over his head to reveal smooth, bronzed skin. He seemed to be sweating, and he grunted like he was in pain, grimacing and gritting his teeth hard before pushing down his pants. She covered her mouth with her hands.

It wasn’t that she was seeing a naked boy for the first time that had her so freaked out. Or the fact that said naked boy was one she’d often daydreamed about. Nope. None of that was as frightening as what had happened right before her eyes.

Arthur Lance, high school royalty, had crouched down on all fours, panting and groaning, wait, was he growling? Holy smokes! Yes, he was growling. He was like some kind of wild animal. Maisy gasped as she realized he was getting bigger, and bigger, and, oh goodness, furrier. She bit back a scream when he stopped writhing and grunting. The enormous, dark creature that was Arthur Lance turned his glittering black eyes on her and chuffed out a cloud of warm breath in the cool night air.

Holy crap! The boy she’d been crushin’ on had just turned into a Bear!

Where can readers find Hers to Bear?

Available exclusively in A Cursed All Hallows' Eve: Limited Edition Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy, and Reverse Harem Halloween Themed Collection

Grab Your Copy Today!

Available to read FREE in Kindle Unlimited!

books2read.com/cursedallhallowseve

The veil is thin. Darkness calls. Will you answer?

Halloween curses plague the daring heroes and spunky heroines in this spirited collection of tales. A Cursed All Hallows' Eve brings you 20+ stories stuffed with everything from dark gods to brooding shifters, delivering hours of decadent, pleasure-filled reading from bestselling and award winning urban fantasy and paranormal romance authors.

If you can't get enough of those supernatural creatures—vampires, ghosts, witches, demons, and fae—this limited edition collection will alternately thrill you with the spicy and tempt you with the sweet. Delve into these worlds where the living haunt the dead and the undead tempt the breathing.

Answer the call, because this Halloween, not all the costumes are disguises.

AUTHOR INTERVIEW

Hello and welcome, readers! We have C.D. Gorri here with us today. C.D. Gorri, thanks for visiting us.

How long have you been a writer and how did you come to writing?

Thank you so much for having me! I began publishing in 2014, but I have always wanted to be a writer. I went to school for English Lit and Creative Writing, but I have been a doodler and dabbler for years. Raising my children was very important to me so I waited until the youngest was school aged before setting about to get published. This is basically my dream come true. 

Tell us about your title featured in: A Cursed All Hallows’ Eve

Hers to Bear is the second in my Barvale Holiday Tales. The Barvale Clan is made up mainly of Black Bear Shifters in the fictional South Jersey town of Barvale, which literally means Bear Valley. Maisy left her hometown after being bullied in high school for claiming to see a boy turn into a bear, only to return years later to help her dad with their farm and wouldn’t you know it, that same boy still lives there! Halloween is a time for all sorts of magic, wouldn’t you say? Maybe even the kind that brings fated mates together.

How did you come up with the storyline?

This is a spinoff series of my Bear Claw Tales and Barvale Clan Tales which feature the Bear Shifters of Barvale and their mates. I wrote a Christmas short over the summer and knew immediately when I saw this anthology that I would write another one of these holiday shorts for this set. My story is lighthearted, romantic, and most of all, fun.

What inspires you to write?

Inspiration comes from so many sources for me. I find it in my husband, my children, a song, the tiny little day to day nothings that a million people go through but for some reason get stuck in my head. Hopefully I don’t foul it up too much when I put ink to my ideas.  

Tell us about your other books:

I started out writing Young Adult Urban Fantasy which then developed into Paranormal Romance. Now with over fifty titles published, I have to say I can’t even imagine a time when I won’t be writing. Most of my books are set in the same paranormal world and mainly take place in my home state of New Jersey. I call it the Grazi Kelly Universe in honor of my first heroine, Maria Graziana Kelly aka Grazi (grah-tzee). Characters and creatures overlap, but each series can be read alone.

Sometimes, I get to play in other authors' worlds and each experience has been unique and has enabled me to write a broader cast of characters and scenarios. My thanks to those wonderful authors who opened the doors and let me in! You can find me in MT Worlds and Evel Worlds.

I like to write sizzling Shifter romance books that are sexy and fast-paced with epic heroes, sassy heroines, and guaranteed happy endings for all!

Where can readers find you? (links to your social media, website, etc.):

You can find me just about everywhere online! Here are some links for you:

http://www.cdgorri.com

https://www.facebook.com/Cdgorribooks

https://www.bookbub.com/authors/c-d-gorri

https://twitter.com/cgor22

http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00IS7820W

http://www.amazon.com/cdgorri/

Newsletter Sign-up here:

https://view.flodesk.com/pages/5e80cd3dee06f00026d579f3

About the Author: 

Hello!

I'm C.D. Gorri, Bestselling Steamy Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy YA Author, and Creator of the Grazi Kelly Universe.

I've always been an avid reader, and I have a profound love for books and literature. When I'm not writing or taking care of my family I can usually be found with a book or tablet in my hand. I live in my home state of New Jersey with my husband, our children, and our dogs, Dash and Chewie.

I'm a busy mom of three and finding time for leisurely reading is never easy, so I write stories that are fast-paced, yet detailed with satisfying conclusions. If I thought making time to read was difficult, I was in for a huge surprise when I started writing! But now that I started, I can't picture myself doing anything else!

I love writing powerful women and strong heroes who face relatable problems in supernatural settings! Read my books and watch my sassy, curvy heroines and sexy heroes find true love in one another.

Discover Werewolves, Bears, Dragons, Tigers, Jersey Devils, Lions, Witches, Romani, Lynxes, Foxes and even more Shifters and supernaturals in my PNR! Fated mates who find each other and always get their happily-ever-afters.

Want to know how it all began? Enter the Grazi Kelly Universe with Wolf Moon: A Grazi Kelly Novel #1, my very first YA/Urban Fantasy book that sets the stage for the universe I write in. You can also start my PNR with the Macconwood Pack. Pick up Charley's Christmas Wolf today!

Thank you and happy reading!

del mare alla stella,

C.D. Gorri

Get more Halloween themed stories like this in 

A Cursed All Hallows' Eve Read for FREE in Kindle Unlimited

books2read.com/cursedallhallowseve

In the Cards by Ariel Dawn ~ A Cursed All Hallows' Eve Author Spotlight Interview #Halloween #PNR

 

Blurb:

A family curse, a powerful warlock bound by love, and a woman bewitched. Psychic Ember Stone has been dreaming of a blue-eyed, dark-haired man for as long as she can remember. When a man named Derek shows up as her next client, she’s shocked to see he resembles the man in her dreams. Who is Derek, and why does she feel drawn to him? As secrets emerge and answers come to light, Ember’s feelings for Derek intensify. But on Halloween, a centuries-old curse will change everything, requiring a sacrifice neither of them can bear. Follow Ember, Derek, and their strange connection through the ages as they navigate the haunting secrets that will either bring them together or tear them apart.

Excerpt:

“Do you always dress like you’re going to a funeral?” She took a sip of the warm apple wine and gestured to his black slacks.

“Only when I’m trying to be brooding and mysterious.” 

Perhaps the brooding part was missing, but Ember couldn’t deny he had the mysterious part down pretty well. He smiled, a perfect white-toothed smile and Ember could feel her insides flush with warmth. She wasn’t sure if it was the wine, his presence, or a combination of the two.

Where can readers find In the Cards?

Available exclusively in A Cursed All Hallows' Eve: Limited Edition Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy, and Reverse Harem Halloween Themed Collection

Grab Your Copy Today!

Available to read FREE in Kindle Unlimited!

books2read.com/cursedallhallowseve

The veil is thin. Darkness calls. Will you answer?

Halloween curses plague the daring heroes and spunky heroines in this spirited collection of tales. A Cursed All Hallows' Eve brings you 20+ stories stuffed with everything from dark gods to brooding shifters, delivering hours of decadent, pleasure-filled reading from bestselling and award winning urban fantasy and paranormal romance authors.

If you can't get enough of those supernatural creatures—vampires, ghosts, witches, demons, and fae—this limited edition collection will alternately thrill you with the spicy and tempt you with the sweet. Delve into these worlds where the living haunt the dead and the undead tempt the breathing.

Answer the call, because this Halloween, not all the costumes are disguises.

AUTHOR INTERVIEW

Hello and welcome, readers! We have Ariel Dawn here with us today. Ariel Dawn, thanks for visiting us.

How long have you been a writer and how did you come to writing?

I have been writing stories all my life honestly, but this year I started sharing them with the world. I became a published author officially in April, with my short story Faded, which was part of a charity anthology to help fund research for breast cancer. Fated Souls, by The New Romance Café.

Tell us about your title featured in: A Cursed All Hallows’ Eve

I wrote In The Cards during the first 8 weeks of quarantine. I read tarot, and have an interest in the paranormal and magic, or manifestation.  As someone who reads cards, I thought it would be fun to play into the idea of that kind of “real magic”.  The idea that some people are linked, through destiny or fate or even reincarnation was something that has always appealed to me, and that’s what In The Cards is about—connection. The magic of love, of soulmates. 

How did you come up with the storyline?

I answered a call to participation for A Cursed Halloween because the theme just was perfect for me—curses, and Halloween.  Halloween IS my Christmas.  I knew I wanted the tarot cards to play a factor, and I knew I wanted there to be an air of mystery and spookiness surrounding the cards, and the connection felt between the psychic, and the man she reads for.  I’d often seen writing prompts that list a few things, that are so vastly different and the prompt is to make all of the things that don’t belong, belong.  That’s essentially how I came up with the rest of the story—I thought about all the things I wanted to convey, no matter how “out of place” it might be. Psychics, warlocks, curses, wine, the 1920s, magic, and love. All of it is the fabric that makes up In The Cards.

What inspires you to write?

I love romance, especially paranormal romance. I’m a daydreamer and an incurable hopeless romantic. Honestly, I find inspiration everywhere—photographs, songs, the couple in the coffee shop. I’m always writing a story, even if it does not make it to paper. 

Tell us about your other books:

I started with In The Cards, but there will be more stories from that universe. When I was writing In The Cards, there seemed to be one character, Ava Crowley who would not relent in my mind, and so I wrote her story. I’m hoping to release it soon, hopefully before the New Year. I have plans for several books, that take place in the spooky town of Chester.

I’ve also got several projects lined up for the next 2 years, and I intend on spreading my wings and writing fantasy, contemporary and YA as well as paranormal romance. In The Cards is only the beginning!

Where can readers find you? 

http://www.facebook.com/authorarieldawn

http://www.amazon.com/author/arieldawn

http://www.goodreads.com/authorarieldawn

http://www.bookbub.com/author/ariel-dawn 

About the Author: 

I grew up an avid reader and daydreamer. As a creative soul, I enjoy many forms of expression aside from writing. I am a photographer, an artist, a cosplayer, a gamer, a foodie and a self-professed geek. When I'm not at a convention in cosplay, writing love stories, or editing photos; I can often be found reading with a cup of tea, running my Instagram Wrong Turn Romance, entertaining friends and family with great food, and playing video games or board games with my retro gamer husband.

Get more Halloween themed stories like this in 

A Cursed All Hallows' Eve Read for FREE in Kindle Unlimited

books2read.com/cursedallhallowseve

Working, Aspiring, or Hobbyist? #IWSG #writing

 

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 have for insecure writers of all kinds!

IWSG Asks: When you think of the term working writer, what does that look like to you? What do you think it is supposed to look like? Do you see yourself as a working writer or aspiring or hobbyist, and if the latter two, what does that look like?

 

This only my opinion as I'm sure others see these terms differently. And that's okay. We're all allowed to have our own views! :)

I suppose I see the term working writer as just that. A writer that's working. Someone who is getting paid for their writing. A writer who's working every day or maybe several days a week. One who has a publishing schedule and is actively working to move his/her writing career forward.

An aspiring writer is someone who is actively striving to be a working writer. An aspiring writer isn't published. Not yet. He/she is on their way. They're still writing every day or as much as possible, but they're not getting paid for their writing.

A hobbyist is someone who is only writing for fun. A writer who writes because its part of their soul, or something to do to pass the time. Hobby = Just for Fun. A hobbyist could be getting paid or not. To me, a hobbyist isn't publishing for the money, if they're publishing, they're doing it for the beauty of sharing their creativity.

These are all different terms and I'm sure people have different opinions in interpreting them. To me, it doesn't really matter. A writer is a writer. Published, unpublished, making money or not making money. It doesn't matter. The reason we're each writing is up to the individual.

For myself, I can see I started my career as a hobbyist. Writing was fun and a way to play when I was a kid and teenager. Publishing wasn't even on my radar at that time. When I grew older and began to become more interested in writing, I switched from hobbyist to an aspiring writer. I realized then that I did want to become published and earn money for my words.

And now... years and years and years later... I am a working writer.

The next level I believe is the retired writer. The writer who has written for long years and has now decided to retire from writing. They're done making their money or playing as a hobby. It's time for them to put their pen down.

"I'm done," they say. "I'm retired."

You know, like Stephen King!

And then a week or two, maybe even a month goes by, and they pick up their pen again.

"Just kidding!"

Yeah, I don't believe writers ever retire! It's in our hearts and soul to keep writing. I don't think we can ever give that up! Nor would we really want to. :)

Be safe! Stay healthy! And keep 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!

You can Follow me on ...

BookBub | Amazon | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest | Instagram

Need a little escape? Check out these books!

   

PREORDER!                            PREORDER!

Frozen Crimes by @ChrysFey Book Blitz #Giveaway #Romance #Suspense

 

Frozen Crimes
Chrys Fey
(Disaster Crimes, #5)
Published by: The Wild Rose Press
Publication date: September 30th 2020
Genres: Adult, Romance, Suspense

Beth and Donovan are expecting their first child. Life couldn’t get any better…until a stalker makes his presence known. This person sends disturbing messages and unsettling items, but it isn’t long before his menacing goes too far.

Hoping for a peaceful Christmas, Donovan takes Beth to Michigan. Days into their trip, a winter storm named Nemesis moves in with the goal of burying the state. Snowdrifts surround their house, and the temperature drops below freezing.

Except, the storm isn’t the only nemesis they must face. Everyone’s lives are at stake—especially that of their unborn child. Will they survive, or will they become a frozen crime?

 

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks

—

EXCERPT:

The crunch of the shovel pounding into the snow and ice filled his ears. It was all he could hear. The rest of the street was silent beneath its wintry blanket. Breathing was difficult with the icy air clogging his lungs. His nose burned. His throat was dry and on fire. But he ignored it, focusing on his task.

Crack, crack, crack.

He jabbed the shovel into a hunk of snow. On the third hit, it shattered into several pieces. He scooped them up and flung them to the side. He surveyed what remained. There was one big ball in the middle of the path that needed to be dealt with next. He moved over to it and struck it. That one impact had it severing in two. He was about to hit it again when something crashed into the back of his head.

Explosions of white light danced over his vision. Pain enveloped his skull. The shovel slipped from his fingers. Blackness cloaked his mind, coaxing him into its depths.

Beth. Her name was a whisper in his head, as if his thoughts were being sucked into a wormhole.

His legs collapsed under his weight.

Cold. It seeped into him, consuming him. And then his consciousness fled down that same void that ate his thoughts.

Author Bio:

Chrys Fey is author of the Disaster Crimes Series, a unique concept that blends disasters, crimes, and romance. She runs the Insecure Writer’s Support Group Book Club on Goodreads and edits for Dancing Lemur Press. https://www.chrysfey.com

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Newsletter

GIVEAWAY!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hosted by:

The Witch and the Vampire #Excerpt #PNR #vampireromance #witchromance

 

Melora Merriweather is searching for a fellow witch to protect her from a scheming uncle with plans of marriage. When her carriage overturns on her journey, she is rescued by a mysterious man whom she learns is the very person she seeks. But, he’s not the witch she thought he was…

Sebastian Collins should have left for London days ago. Now a snowstorm has trapped him with a woman who has come seeking protection, a woman who intrigues him like no other. And with each passing hour, his hunger for her grows…hunger for her kiss, her caress, and her blood.

Excerpt

"You are Sebastian Collins? Of Caldwell House?” she asked. Had she made some horrible mistake? Who knew how old this letter might be? There had been no date written on any of them. Could this have come from a previous owner of the single address she had managed to discover leading her here? But, no, it could not be possible. Her dreams never misled her.

“Indeed, I am,” he answered, relieving her fears. He paused briefly, and then continued, “But there is no Mrs. Collins.” 

Comprehension dawned. The blush of embarrassment and dread crept up her neck. To her surprise, Mr. Collins stiffened in agitation.

“I-I am truly sorry,” she stated, suddenly understanding his reaction. At least, now it made sense why Mrs. Collins never entered her dreams. “I had not realized she had passed. I apologize for the grief I have surely inflicted on you.”

“No, no,” he said, with a shake of his head. He appeared to have difficulty speaking for a moment until at last, with a deep breath, he reclaimed his composure. Still, he kept his eyes cast down, toward the fire. “You fail to understand. I have never married.”

Melora stared at him. Confused, she looked again at the letter in her hand. “But the letters…?”

This time, his head snapped up, and he looked in her direction. She inhaled sharply at the sight of his light blue eyes staring at her. Into her. Through her. Sharp. Piercing. As if he searched her soul for the answers to his questions.

AMAZON | NOOK | KOBO

Pre-Holiday #Giveaway! Win E-Books & $462 in #GiftCards

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Fall New Book Releases All Genres

Check out the new book releases from 

September, October, and November!

Go to Book Fair!

Night of the Full Moon #Supernatural #Romance #Excerpt #FREE

Lucky us, we get two full moons for the month of October 2020! Tonight is the first full moon this month called the Harvest Moon. What a perfect time to read an excerpt from one of my paranormal romance novellas, Night of the Full Moon!

This one is FREE for my newsletter subscribers! Here's the link if you're interested. I send monthly (sometimes bi-monthly depending on book releases) newsletters filled with updates on my writing, as well as free books and contests. 

FREE for Subscribers!

Night of the Full Moon

Clara Boyer’s strict no-dating-policemen policy gets tested one full moon night when a dog darts across the road and she crashes her car. As she’s counting her lucky stars she’s not injured, a menacing growl echoes from the dark forest. Stuck on a lonely road, she needs help and there’s only one man she can call.

Officer Ethan Rakowski races to her rescue, but Clara discovers Ethan has been keeping dark, supernatural secrets. The animal she nearly hit isn’t a stray dog, but something more sinister. If it’s not destroyed, Clara may be its next victim.

How can a typical night after work go so wrong… or so right with the sexy cop who promises to keep her safe?

Excerpt:

Crunching metal and splintering wood sent her body surging forward, but her seatbelt held her firmly in place.

It all happened in an instant and then everything was still.

The car’s engine shut off. There was the tiny crackling of cooling metal, but all else was silent.

Clara gasped and remained in her seat, trying to mentally take in what just happened. She glanced at the road, searching for some sign of the animal but found none.

She hadn’t hit it. She’d swerved in time.

But at the cost of her car.

“Damn,” she muttered. Her shoulder was sore from where the seatbelt locked to keep her in place, but besides that, she had no other injuries. The airbag had failed, but thankfully she hadn’t needed it.

Hoping for good luck, Clara turned the key in the ignition to start the engine, but nothing happened. She unbuckled her belt and got out of the car to assess the damage. The front of the Hyundai was crumpled against a cracked tree trunk.

“Damn.”

Of all the luck. Guess she would be missing that TV show.

Clara shook her head, desperately trying to think of the positives in the situation. She was alive. She wasn’t hurt. That was the important stuff. She could count her lucky stars that she hadn’t needed that airbag.

She could replace the car. Eventually. Her DVR would record her show. Everything was okay. It could have been much, much worse.

A growl echoed from the dark forest.

Clara froze.

She couldn’t tell which direction the sound originated. It bounced eerily in the depths of the surrounding woods.

A dog.

Clara recalled the flash of fur and teeth she’d seen dart across the road. It must have been a dog that darted in front of her.

Had she clipped it with the car? She hadn’t felt an impact, but everything happened so fast. Was it injured?

Clara searched the moonlit road, but with trees on either side of her, she couldn’t see much.

“Dog?” Clara called out, her voice falling flat in the night’s stillness. Even the crickets and other night noises had died away. She whistled. “Here, puppy! You okay?”

Another low threatening growl made her take a step back.

She gasped.

It must be injured. And an injured animal was dangerous, even if all she wanted to do was help. It had been a shepherd-sized dog, if not bigger. If it was hurt, it might attack her out of pain and fear.

Another growl, closer this time, sent her heart hammering.

She would need help with the animal. There was no way she could deal with this on her own.

She got back into her car and found her purse with its contents strewn across the floor of the passenger’s seat. She rummaged through the items, searching blindly in the dark for her cellphone. When she found it, she let out a relieved sigh.

She went to press 911 but hesitated. How long would it take to have them send someone? It was 911. Of course, they’d send someone fast.

But Ethan was at the diner. He was only a minute or two away.

She found his number in her contacts list and dialed. She didn’t need to wait for him to answer.

“Changed your mind, Clara?” His deep voice rumbled through the silence of the car’s interior.

“I need help, Ethan. A dog ran in front of my car, and I swerved to miss it. I hit a tree on the side of the road.”

“A dog?” The amusement in his voice died away. “Are you hurt?”

“No, I’m okay. But my car is damaged, and I hear the dog growling in the woods. I think it’s injured.”

“Stay inside the car, Clara. Where are you?” A chill swept through her at the abrupt change in his tone. She’d never heard him sound so serious.

“I’m on Stoyer Street. About a quarter of a mile to my house. I almost made it home—"

“Stay in the car, do you hear me? Lock the doors. I’ll be right there.”

He disconnected. Clara stared at the screen on her phone for a moment. Why would she need to lock herself in the car? It was a dog. It’s not as if the animal could open the car door, locked or unlocked.

After several seconds of sitting inside the vehicle staring at the moonlit road and darkened forest, she hit the button on her door to lock it. The dog was out there, sure, probably lying out of sight alongside the road. But that didn’t account for the sensation of eyes peering at her. Intelligent, malicious eyes. The hair on the back of her arms rose.

Clara took a deep breath and shook her head to dismiss her thoughts. She was not one to spook easily. She lived in a small house in the middle of the woods. She’d been living alone there for three years.

It must be the full moon. People got a little wacky during a full moon. That might account for her sudden paranoia.

And she’d just gotten into an accident. Her adrenaline was pumping. Her mind was racing. That might explain the sudden bout of nerves she experienced.

She counted the minutes until Ethan’s arrival. While she waited, she busied herself with returning the contents to her fallen purse, then holding it tight in her lap. When she saw the flashing lights of his police cruiser, Clara let out a trembling laugh of relief.

He parked directly behind her and in an instant was out of the cruiser. She slung her purse over her shoulder and opened her car door to meet him.

Her eyes widened when she saw his gun drawn.

“Where is it?” He demanded in the same no-nonsense voice he used on the phone.

“You’re not going to shoot it, are you?” Clara tilted her head.

“Where is it?” He repeated harshly, his brows creased over narrowed blue eyes.

“I-I don’t know. Maybe over the side?” She waved her hand in the direction she’d last seen it dart across the road. “I may have clipped it. Everything happened so fast.”

“Stay here.” Ethan pulled a flashlight from his pocket and strode to the opposite side of the road. He shone the flashlight deep into the woods. For several minutes, he searched up and down the road. After he finished one side, he searched the other.

Finding nothing, he holstered his weapon and returned to where she stood by her car.

“What was that about?” Clara folded her arms over her chest.

“Don’t you read the paper?” Ethan shone the flashlight over her, checking for any signs of injury from head to foot. “There’s a rabid dog in the area. It took down two cows on the Tanner farm last week.”

“Oh,” Clara said. “I didn’t know.”

Ethan reached for Clara’s chin, gently pushing her head side to side as he shone the flashlight over her skull.

“You sure you’re not hurt?”

“Yes, I’m sure.” But suddenly Clara found it difficult to breathe as he leaned over her, his hand grazing her cheek to move to her temple where his fingers slid into her hair. Finding no signs of injury, he heaved a sigh of relief, his breath fogging the air in front of the flashlight. The tension around his eyes eased.

“You’re okay.”

“Yeah, I’m okay.” Clara stared into his face. The stark relief she saw there touched her heart. He’d been worried. He had raced his police cruiser, lights flashing to reach her.

He’d do that for anyone, she reminded herself. He was a cop. It was his job.

That didn’t seem to explain the way he stared into her eyes. Surely, he didn’t look at everyone with the same heat, the same flash of desire that she saw flickering in those ocean blue depths.

Clara couldn’t concentrate on anything other than losing herself in his gaze. Her heart thumped wildly, and her breath quickened. She could easily imagine herself standing on the tips of her toes to place her lips on his.

What would it feel like to kiss Ethan? To spend a night in his arms.

She was acutely aware of his hand in her hair, sliding to cup her cheek. His thumb caressed her skin, sending a tumult of sparks zinging through her belly.

Her lips parted. To say something? Or to kiss him? She couldn’t decide.

The decision was taken from her when a vicious growl echoed across the road.

READ MORE!