Archive for writing
Wednesday Work in Progress…
Today is usually when I share a snippet of a story I’m working on, but the story I’m working on is Los Angeles, book 5 in the Fallen series. It’s not that I don’t want to share. I’m just not sure if it’s something you’d like to have a sneak peek at or not. 🙂
But I am running on a very tight deadline for LA, so I won’t be able to post the extra little scene for Finding Peace that I wanted to do for tomorrow. 🙁 If I get what I need to get finished tomorrow, I might be able to post it on Friday. If not, then it’ll just get added to the book when it’s published.
On Tuesday of next week, I’ll see what you all might want to read next as a blog story. 🙂 So get your thinking caps on.
I hope you all have a great Wednesday.
Snowy Monday….
So I’ll admit I posted this pic-not because of the guy-but because of the fact that there is a cow in the picture. lol What the heck is up with that? 🙂
Anyway, this weekend was great. I finished No Bravery and turned it in. It’s for the 2014 GRL anthology. So I won’t have to worry about that. We’re doing a slightly different thing for next year. So I hope you all will like it.
I’m back to working Canada (Book 5 of International Sports) and Los Angeles (Book 6 of Fallen), plus there will be other stories stuck in there as I go along. I have edits to do on Remove the Empty Spaces. Have to get them back to my editor by tomorrow. Yay!
Also, I think I’ll be wrapping Finding Peace up this week as well. Chad is back home at the diner and in Zane’s arms where he belongs. 🙂 So it’s time to let them go. Then next week we can decide what I should write next for the blog.
Well, I have to go run some errands, then I’ll be finishing up my edits. 🙂 Have a great Monday and stay safe.
Friday Q & A….
I was asked if it was easier to find publishers for LGBTQ stories than for het stories…..and I think the answer (for the moment) is yes. There are a lot more epublishers out there who have discovered the m/m phenomena and are accepting gay stories.
I think het stories now have to be very well-written because there is still a huge market out there, and publishers are becoming far more selective of which stories they chose to release to the public. I’m lucky that Totally Bound does both het and m/m. I can branch back out a little because as much as I love m/m stories and gay romances, I have to admit I get a little bored writing them all the time. Being able to write other types of stories helps keep me interested in all of the genres I write in. 🙂
But there are a lot of fly-by-night publishers out there, so when/if you ever chose to write, please do your research and make sure they’re a reputable company. Sure, there is going to be at least one person who is unhappy with a publisher. You’re not going to find one pub out there that someone hasn’t had a bad experience with. But there will be a history of bad stuff going on with disreputable publishers. You just have to do your due diligence and make sure you’re comfortable working with whichever pub you chose.
I hope that answered your question. 🙂 Also, if anyone has questions, please don’t hesitate to ask. I’ll do my best to answer them. 🙂
Have a great Friday and a wonderful weekend.
New Cover Art….
Just got this in my inbox. It’s so beautiful and exactly how I pictured Ion. 🙂 Remove the Empty Spaces is book 1 in my new series Rags to Riches that I’m writing for Totally Bound. 🙂 I don’t have an exact release date on it yet..though I’m thinking some time in February or March. As soon as I know, I’ll let you all know.
I finished up From Yesterday yesterday…lol. And submitted it to MLR Press. It’s the 3rd in the Rupert’s Legacy series, but features a different main couple this time. It turned out a little longer than I had originally planned, but that’s okay. I’ll post the release date on that as soon as I get it.
Devon and I are working hard on Canada (we really do need to pin down a title on this one…lol) I added some more to it yesterday and plan on working on it today, after I get my installment for Finding Peace done.
I also started my story for the 2014 Unconventional/GRL anthology. My story is titled No Bravery and when you read it, you’ll understand why. We’re doing something a little different for next year and I hope you like it. It’s going to be a fun antho to write.
Plus I’ll be starting my 6th Fallen book, Los Angeles, in the next couple of days as well. Hoping to get that one done by the end of the month.
Okay. I have to go out and run some errands, but when I get back, I’ll be writing the rest of the day. I hope you all have a great Monday.
Friday Q & A….
You’re probably saying quit promoing all those straight couples. We only want the two guys. 🙂 lol Which is fair. But I thought I’d let you know that Chicago, Book 4 in the Fallen series, is out now. That way if you want to tell any of your friends who read m/f stories, they could check it out. 🙂 Click here. If you’re not interested, then skip to the next paragraph…lol
Some of you might recognize this cover as the third book in the Preternatural series. This is Bandit’s story. I’ve been promising you all Rover’s story, and I really do mean to get it done soon. I haven’t forgotten this series. Heck, I can’t when both my dad and my brother ask me about it every time I see them (which in the case of my dad, is every week…lol) I do have some of it started and actually wrote a little more on it the other day. Now what I’ll tell you about Rover’s book is that I do plan on ending the overall story arc about the book and the bad guys. Then I’m thinking there will be three short stories featuring some of our favorite secondary characters. Just so we can wrap up a few loose ends.
So please don’t get too discouraged. I’m really hoping to get Rover’s story out at some point next year. Unfortunately, I can’t be any more specific than that. Oh, but it is on my board of stories to work on in the next month or so. 🙂
I did have another question to answer, but I think I’ll save that for next Friday. But if you have any other questions, don’t hesitate to ask. I’ll answer them when I can. Even if it’s about a book or a series you’re interested in finding more out about, I’m willing to try and answer those. 🙂
I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving or Chanukah. If you went out shopping last night or today, I hope you were safe and got awesome deals. 🙂
Wednesday’s Work in Progress…
First of all, I have a post up at Amber Kell’s for her birthday bash. It’s a little snippet of Ronnie and Lucius from Embrace My Reflection and Bring Him Gold. Check it out here.
And secondly, I thought I’d post a little glimpse at From Yesterday, which is the third book in the Rupert’s Legacy series I have at MLR Press. The first two books are Joy of the Season and Replacing Memories. I think I shared something from this story once before when I started working on it, but it kind of got pushed to the back burner for some other stories. I decided to see if I can get it finished by the end of the year. (Which really isn’t that far off any more…lol)
So here you go:
From Yesterday copyright c. 2013 T.A. Chase
Carlos tightened his grip as Miguel snuggled closer. He rested his cheek on the top of Miguel’s head. “I’m supposed to text him when I get done visiting you. He lives here on the grounds, so I’m having coffee at his place.”
“You’ll tell me everything, right?” Miguel’s low request touched Carlos’ heart.
“Within reason, hermanito. You know I don’t kiss and tell, plus I don’t think Phillip would like me spilling all his personal business to people he’ll see every day.” Carlos leaned back into the cushions, humming softly.
He understood why Miguel had asked him that. His brother was never going to get another chance at romance or a date. All the advances science had made in the medicines for HIV/AIDS didn’t matter if Miguel’s body rejected them. The doctors had told them it would only be a matter of time now. The only thing they could do was keep Miguel comfortable and as pain free as possible. He was happy that they hadn’t given them a timeline.
Putting a timeline to dying was a horrid practice in Carlos’ opinion. Too many people gave up hope when told they only had four months to live. Carlos saw it as a nurse as well. Yet there were people who, when told they were going to die soon, fought with every ounce of energy in them and they live longer than doctors thought.
He wished Miguel could do that, but his little brother had been fighting most of his life. He was getting tired and losing hope. Carlos wanted to beg Miguel to keep up the battle, yet he knew it was for selfish reasons. He didn’t want to lose his brother. Not this soon when they both had so much life to experience.
Closing his eyes, Carlos relaxed, enjoying being with Miguel, even if they weren’t talking. It was nice to spend time together without having to worry about their family causing problems.
“Carlos,” Miguel murmured, causing him to open his eyes.
“Yes?” He shifted a little, pins and needles racing along his arm like it had fallen asleep.
“How long were we asleep?” Miguel moved away from him.
Carlos rubbed his eyes before checking his watch. “About thirty minutes,” he relayed the information. “Not very long, but I feel better.”
Miguel laughed, then yawned. “So do I, though I think I’d like to go and try to take another one in my bed this time. Walk me to my room? Then you can go have coffee with Phillip.”
“I can do that.”
They walked to Miguel’s suite where Carlos made sure his brother had everything he might want near the bed. Before he left, he turned to say, “Don’t forget. I’m still here. If you need me for anything, just text and I’ll come back.”
“Get out of here. If it’s not too late when you leave, you can stop back by to say good-bye.” Miguel motioned him out of the room.
“All right.” He shut the door behind him before strolling back to the front desk. Sarah was still there. “Miguel’s lying down in his room. I’m still going to be on the grounds, so if something happens, you can text me.”
“No problem, Carlos. I’m sure everything will be fine tonight.” Sarah smiled. “Have fun and tell Phillip I said hi.”
“I will.” He rushed from the building, not wanting to have to deal with any more comments about Phillip, even the purely innocent ones, which he wasn’t entirely sure Sarah’s was by the way.
Leaning against his car, he pulled out his phone then sent Phillip a text. A minute later, a message appeared on the screen.
B there in 5.
K.
Carlos put his phone in his pocket, then let his head fall back as he soaked up the waning beams of fall sunlight. He’d been working a lot of hours lately, trying to store up time for when the inevitable happens.
“Are you okay?”
He jerked when a hand landed on his shoulder. Opening his eyes, he saw Phillip standing in front of him. Carlos held his breath as Phillip reached out to rub his thumb over Carlos’ cheek. It was wet when he showed it to Carlos.
“I’m fine,” Carlos reassured him, wiping his face with his sleeve. “Just a momentary lapse. I can’t show them to Miguel yet.”
Phillip’s expression said he understood. “At some point soon, it’ll be time for you to share tears with him. When it comes, don’t hide them from Miguel. He needs to know he’ll be missed after he’s gone.”
Carlos threw himself into Phillip’s embrace. Burrowing his face into the man’s shirt, he sighed when Phillip wrapped his arms around him. They didn’t talk, simply breathed together, and Carlos discovered his heart easing away from the depth of despair threatening to suck him under.
Finally, he took a deep breath of Phillip’s clean scent, then stepped back. “Thank you,” he whispered.
Chicago coming….
The fourth book in my Fallen series, Chicago, will be out on Friday, but it is available for early download still. You can check it out here.
Also New York is up on the coming soon page as well. Blindsided hasn’t made it up there yet, but it will be in the next week or so.
Devon and I will be finishing up FLEs on Blindsided today, then we’ll continue working on Canada. We still haven’t picked a title for it yet, but it’ll come while we write it. 🙂 I’m also finishing up Remove the Space, which is the first book in a new series for Totally Bound. I’m only about 2-3k away from getting it done. Then I can erase it off my board and add a new title.
Hmm…that’s all I have to tell you today. I do plan on posting the two installments for Finding Peace this week. Yes, even on Thanksgiving. It’ll give you all something to read while enjoying the holiday with family. 🙂
I hope you all have a great Monday. Try to stay safe and warm.
Friday Q & A…
This is the very hot cover for Blindsided, my Australian rugby/lifeguard story, written with the amazing Devon Rhodes. It’s be out in the next couple of months. 🙂
Yvonne asked how I decide which publishers to work with.
I guess when I started writing, I submitted to publishers whose books I read and liked. I’m still with one of the three that I started with. I got my rights back from the other two. Not because I didn’t like working with them or anything like that, but because it was time to move on and try something different.
I was invited to submit something to Amber Allure, and I’d read a few books published by them. Also, when they approached me, I had just happened to finish up a book and thought I’d give them a try. So Allergies got sent there.
I started working with Totally Bound because Carol Lynne asked me to co-author a story with her. And really? I wasn’t about to say no to Carol Lynne!!! lol So when we finished Dracul’s Blood, she said she’d like to send it to TB, and I said why not! And now they’re my major publisher. I love working with them and their covers are some of the best in the business, imo.
MLR Press became one of my publishers because I got to know Kris Jacen, the editor in chief there. She became a good friend, and they had some sub calls that caught my eye, so I sent a story in. The rest is history.
Now when I write a story, if it hasn’t already been promised to one of my publishers, I try to think about what kind of story it is, and which pub I think it would fit in better with. Also, I want to make sure that I don’t have too many of the same kind of story coming out at the same pub.
If I ever pick up a new publisher now, it’ll because I like their reputation and the authors they have chosen to publish. Also, that I think they’ll do their utmost to make my story the best it can be.
Does that answer your question, Yvonne? Does anyone else have a question for next week?
Have a great Friday and a marvelous weekend, everyone.
New Cover…
I know that usually I share a Work in Progress on Wednesday, but Devon and I just finished up Blindsided to submit, so I don’t really have anything to share today. At least not writing-wise.
I do want to share this very pretty cover Trace at Amber Allure did for me. Between Love and Hate will be out in January. It’s a short story, but I think there will be more to be discovered about Kip and Si. They were very interesting men.
I hope you like the cover and come back tomorrow for the next installment of the blog story. I think Zane is about to meet Quinn, and he’s not going to be impressed any more than the rest of us are with the kid. lol.
Have a great Wednesday.
Friday Q & A..and Chicago….
Oops…I’m using the old version of this cover. It doesn’t have the new Totally Bound logo. Oh well…I just thought I’d let you all know that Chicago is up for early download if you or any of your friends might be interested. Click here if you would like to check it out. 🙂
But on to the real feature of today: The Q & A.
Yvonne asked last Friday: “how did your family & friends respond to your new career as a M/M author when you first started, and when you were first published?”
Well, I was first published in 2004 and I wrote M/F books at the time. My parents and brother were very proud of me, though my mom skipped over the sex scenes in the books…lol. To be honest, even without the graphic sex, the books weren’t really what she liked to read anyway.
Then in 2006, when I started writing M/M stories, they were still as proud of me as they were before, though this time my dad and brother started reading more of them. (Both of them are gay…just so you know…lol) My mom has never read any of my M/M books…that I know of…and I’m fine with that. I know she’s thrilled that I’m published and get a chance to tell my stories to people who love my books.
To be honest, I never received a negative response to what I was writing, whether it was M/F or M/M. I think it was more the fact that they were ebooks that made many people think that I wasn’t necessarily ‘published’ in the traditional sense. But when I tell them that I have over 70 books out, (or did at one time…lol) and that I quit my day job to write full time, they’re impressed. Because I’m doing something that I love and getting paid for it.
My dad is very proud of me, though he tends to introduce me as ‘the queen of porn’…I’ve given up trying to explain the difference between my graphic erotic romances (and let’s face it, the sex in my books has toned down in the last couple of years) and porn. But I don’t feel like he’s putting me down or anything like that. It’s more just having fun. And hey, it’s great that he’s not embarrassed to tell people what I do for a living.
I hope that answers your question, Yvonne. Does anyone else have any questions they’d like me to answer? I’ll be more than happy to do so next Friday.
Have a great day and a marvelous weekend, everyone.
