I initially wrote the first chapter of Army Daddy for S.Y.T.Y.C.W 2012 and although it didn't place I knew it was a story I had to write till the very end. For some reason the whole story grabbed me and chatted happily away in my head until I had it all down.
It sat on my computer for a while and a friend of mine who writes pocket novels for My Weekly gave me the low down on them and said what great people they were to work with. So with this in mind I sent off a query and the first three chapters, to be honest with you I was being a chicken by not sending in the full. I have sent another query but again chickened out on sending the full manuscript.
I received a reply and was asked by the editor to make a few changes to my Army Daddy synopsis. The editor Maggie gave me invaluable feedback on the new synopsis and with this in mind I tore my manuscript to pieces, deleting 35k words out of it. I can hear you all gasping at the amount that went in the recycle bin, but in order to make the small changes it was the only way I could do it and then copied and pasted the rest back in. It took me two weeks to make the changes and put it all back together.
The waiting began again to see if the full was good enough to be chosen as a pocket novel another few changes were then asked of me. I can take criticism when it comes to my work because it only helps you to strengthen your story and make it ten times better than what it was.
I waited again and this time it was killing me, an overbearing sense of dread had taken over and I now thought it would be rejected on the spot. For days I waited for the rejection email to come and politely tell me that my story wasn't suitable for publication. But then an email came asking me where my manuscript was. I thought this was strange and so sent about four from different email address including my husband's. Finally after my blonde moment (yes i am actually a blonde :) ) passed I relaised that I had sent it in the wrong format, so my precious MS wouldn't have gone anywhere but the spam folder. oops not a great way to endear yourself to the editor.
Luckily Maggie was patient and send me an email saying she had now received it and all was ok, so I waited a bit longer, still unable to shake of the rejection feeling. I even told my friend who already has had several published that she hadn't taken it even though nothing had actually been said. I had just jumped to a conclusion without any reason.
Then as my husband and I were walking the dog through our local park, we decided to stop for a cup of tea. I checked my emails on my phone as I waited and there sat the dreaded email, OK so I had been waiting for it but I didn't want to know what it said. Closing my emails again I put the phone in my pocket, It didn't stay there long as I knew that at some point I would need to look at what it said.
The email said quite the opposite of what I had expected, it was an acceptance. I couldn't believe it when I tried to read the email to my husband a few minutes later, it was hard for me to get the words out to say anything. I sounded more like a mouse, he took the phone off me and read it for himself. He was just as excited as I was.
It will be out in the summer and I can't wait to see it in WHSMITH and the supermarkets.
I'm not sure my new query will be accepted because of the heroine's back story which I am unfortunately all too familiar with, but if it isn't I will keep on trying.
Sunday, 31 March 2013
Tuesday, 26 March 2013
TAKE A SNEAKY PEAK AT A ROSE BETWEEN THE THORNES BY RAVEN MCALLAN
Gah, I've had a nasty chest infection. This blogpost has been started and discarded a dozen times. My chest is full of, well we won't go there, and my brain is cotton wool. To say nothing of the fact I have a severe case of disembodied body parts with my fingers have a mind of their own when they hit the keys.
Rose is a bit like that. Now if you remember she lived in Regency times, where a lot of things might happen.. but were never talked about openly. So that made it doubly hard for an unmarried woman to do anything out of the ordinary. Unless you had help..
A Rose Between The Thornes is a sequel to Please A Lady. A nice little romance, about Rose Sophia and The Thorne twins.
Blurb...
Propriety is a lonely bedfellow, until twin delights show this lady her true desires. At three and forty Rose Sophia, Lady Symonds has resigned herself to life passing her by. Overhearing her protegee in the throes of passion with not one but two lovers, leaves her wanting and wishing. That is until she is accosted at a ball by Jasper and Nathaniel Thorne. Newly back in the county the eccentric and much younger twins, have their sights on Rose, and they are determined to have her, even if it means cheating at cards.
Will accepting their wager free Rose and lead her to the heights of passion she craves? Or will their desire drive her away?
And a wee tease…
It was hard not to feel envious when you knew your niece had not one, but two lusty lovers. Sometimes it seemed, together. Rose Sophia, Lady Symons, held back a sigh. She wasn't sure if she should be outraged or envious - she thought it should be the former but rather suspected it was the latter.
Her lips moved as she cursed under her breath. Blue, her miniature greyhound, had decided to get out of her bedchamber and scamper along the myriad of hallways in the town house Sophia shared with her neice. Blue knew who kept a supply of treats for her, and where.
She had nosed open Hermione's withdrawing room door before Sophia could stop her. About to follow and make her apologies, Sophia was halted in her tracks by a very recognizable drawling voice.
“As well ‘tis only the dog for what your aunt would say to see us both bollock naked and fucking to oblivion, I dare not think.”
There was a sigh, and a groan, and she could swear, the sound of balls on flesh.Sophia's juices gathered at the apex of her thighs and damped her quim, and her skin prickled. Voyeur she was not, but the pictures those words conjured up were climax-inducing.
“Perchance she would wish she was receiving the same attentions from others? Or is she, and we know not?” Another equally recognizable voice, followed by the lighter tones of her niece, somewhat breathless but nevertheless recognizable.
“That is not polite, gentlemen. Without Sophia to play chaperone, we would not be able to enjoy ourselves three deep, as we so often and freely do. I feel we are blessed, not only in each other, but also with Sophia. She is a darling.”
The sound of breathing seemed too loud. Sophia fancied her heart was beating noisily, and if those otherwise occupied had not been so engrossed it would be heard through the partially open door. In silence, she moved backward. Blue would have to find her own way back.
As she carefully walked away she heard her niece’s breathless whisper.
“Now, fuck me now! Spill in me both of you, come now as I am....”
Both? And her niece? All together? Sophia felt the heat of arousal pool between her legs once more and cursed. It had been too long since she had received any ministrations other than her own hands, and she felt somewhat deprived. Why, when one reached the age of three and forty was it supposed you no longer had needs? Is it generally supposed ladies of the ton have no needs at any age?
Sophia moved quietly away from the door. Her soft shoes made no noise on the parquet, and the gentle swish of her skirts were so slight as to go unnoticed. She sighed in frustration. It seemed her lucky neice not only had needs, but was able to admit to them, and have them ministered to. By the sounds of it most satisfactorily. Not for anything could she let it be known what she had hears. However, as she had an overactive imagination - which was now running riot- and she could hazard a guess what scenes would have met her eyes. Her body tingled and she did the only thing possible. She left the dog to make her own way through the house, and returned to her room. Once there she used her imagination to aid her hands.
You will find Rose here...
Saturday, 16 February 2013
DEADRA KRIEGER'S BIRTHDAY BASH PRIZE'S GALORE BLOG HOP
WELCOME ALL TO DEADRA'S BIRTHDAY BASH BLOG HOP
Want to win some great prizes? Answer my question below and then proceed onto all the other 9 blogs all the links can be found here :- http://dfkrieger.blogspot.co.uk/
Cover Reveal
What religion does Deadra Follow?
Leave your comment in the comment section of my blog. Have fun and good luck all :)
Want to win some great prizes? Answer my question below and then proceed onto all the other 9 blogs all the links can be found here :- http://dfkrieger.blogspot.co.uk/
Cover Reveal
What religion does Deadra Follow?
Leave your comment in the comment section of my blog. Have fun and good luck all :)
Friday, 28 December 2012
RAVEN MCALLAN'S HOT NEW RELEASE TEACHING TEACHER
Stuffed? No not like that. Some people have
dirty minds.
(Okay yes I'm one of them but hey, I'm
trying to be all nice and ladylike here. It probably won't last long so lets
make the most of it.)
I meant
after all the rich Christmas food you'll have eaten far too much. Yes? So I'm
giving you a chance to have hot and spicy instead. A love story between Seb and
Ruari set in Scotland. So you'll have guessed the hot isn't the weather!
Here's the blurb…
Finding love in a new town had not been in
Seb's plans. But life has a tendency to throw you curveballs – like Ruari.
When the new head teacher walks into his
bar, Ruari knows he has to have him, and damn the consequences. When lust turns
to love, nothing else matters. Together they will overcome, no matter what. Or
will circumstances drive them apart?
***
Why is love never straightforward? Well let's
face it, a little but of working to achieve your happiness makes it a lot more
satisfying, but I'm not sure Seb and Ruari thought they needed all the hassles
they got!
Here's an excerpt
Teaching Teacher…Excerpt
Any idea what
you want to eat? Freddie does a great mixed taster plate for two.”
“Sounds good. I
like the sound of sharing.”
Ruari nodded.
“Okay, so we’ll have that, shall we?” At Seb’s nod, he waved to Freddie, who
was waiting to take their food order.
“Although,” he
continued once Freddie was out of earshot, “in other ways, I do not share.
Ever.”
Seb looked him
straight in the eyes. “Neither do I. Ever.”
A rush of relief
flooded him. The intensity took him aback. “Yet again we’re on the same
wavelength. That’s a good start. So how about a little life history, eh? Sort
of twenty questions?” He leaned back as Freddie put a big plate onto the table
in between them. Steam rose from lots of little dishes. “Ah, Freddie, that
looks good. Thanks.” The smell of spices made his stomach rumble.
“No problem, and
there’s gluten-free naan for you, Red. Now then, just wave if you want seconds
and enjoy.” Freddie walked away.
Ruari turned back
to Seb and watched him inhale the aroma. Shit, even that look went straight to
his cock. Via his balls which were aching. His cock twitched. Fuck it, down
boy. Now. Think ice cubes; imagine, well, anything cold and nasty. This maybe
relationship is too good to ruin with a quick in and out, wham-bam fuck. He
winced; he didn’t even want to think that it could end before it began.
“What’s up?” Seb
asked obviously puzzled by his pained look.
“My cock. Oh
fu.... Er, hmm, bloody hell.” Ruari closed his eyes in embarrassment. Given the
choice, he could have put his head in his hands. Why won’t the ground open
up and swallow me? Seb roared with laughter.
Ruari, grinned,
and rolled his eyes. “My fucking mouth. Enter feet.”
“Oh jeez.” Seb
wiped his eyes. “Well, all I can say is back to you, and let’s eat this food.”
He paused dramatically. “First.”
It was Ruari’s turn to laugh. “Okay, first.” They began to sample
the incredible dishes, saying very little as they enjoyed the food. The
different tastes and textures exploded on his tongue. “At least we’ll both
taste of garlic,” Ruari said. “This lamb is so full of flavor.”
(I couldn't resist an er hot one…)
you can find all about me and my books here
and Teaching Teacher is available from
Happy reading
R x
Thursday, 13 December 2012
AURELIA CHRISTMAS IS CANCELLED!!!
I'D LIKE TO WELCOME AURELIA TO WORD ENLIGHTENMENT. A DIARY ON THE ROAD TO PUBLICATION AND A SNEAKY PEEK 'CHRISTMAS IS CANCELLED'
(HOPE NOT AURELIA, I WANT MY MINCE PIES LOL)WITHOUT FURTHER ADO I WILL HAND YOU OVER TO AURELIA.
Diary of a debut author
May 30
May 30
Whilst
browsing the internet one Wednesday evening, I come across Entangled
Publishing's submission call for Christmas stories up to 15K words for their
Flirts/Ever After imprint. Christmas is
Cancelled is born. (Deadline June 10)
June 2
I flew
off for a family holiday – complete with laptop – having not finished my short
story before we left.
June 10
Deadline
been and gone, but my story was going to be too long anyway.
June 16
Consider
modifying the story so that it could adapt to the New Year call-out from
Entangled, even rename it A Resolution
Too Far and add a prologue.
July 15
Not
being true to story so it’s time to abandon the Entangled submission call and
start looking for other publishers seeking Christmas/holiday stories.
July 16
Email
Breathless Press to see if they would accept a partial, or whether it had to be
a full manuscript; the answer was full. With the school summer holidays looming
though, writing was going to be difficult, so Christmas is Cancelled will have to be parked up until the schools
return in September.
August
28
My main
characters are harassing me...they won’t leave me alone, and insist I finish
their story. I log back onto Breathless Press submissions page. Their deadline
for Christmas stories is September 30, definitely do-able. Comment in Facebook
group that I am going to try and submit my holiday story, and hear from the
actual editor for the holiday stories, except the deadline is not end of
September…it’s the end of August. EEK! (Deadline extended to September 1)
September
1
Almost
to the minute, I hit ‘send’ and just scrape in for the deadline. Now the
anxious wait begins…
September
6
An email
is waiting for me on my phone when I wake up. I stare at the words, blink, and
read it a couple more times. It really does say what I think it does, so I leap
out of bed and race down the stairs to show my husband. “Congratulations!” he
says, a smile nowhere as big as mine. I text my best friends, the usual cryptic
nonsense I tend to go for, “Christmas is NOT Cancelled,” I type. Unable to
contain myself, I go onto my private critique group and quote: “This story was
a real emotional read and I loved how you used Christmas as the point to turn
everything around. It touched my heart deeply and if you consider this an
unedited mess...well let's just say I'm very glad you sent it regardless.” I
can’t stop smiling, thinking it’s a dream, but I haven’t gone ‘public’ yet as
I’d rather wait for the contract.
September
7
I can’t
help myself and make a blog announcement worthy of winning an Oscar.
September
8
Cover
art request form arrives – I need to summarise my story, share my inspiration
pictures, and also give my ideas for a front cover. I write: “I quite like the
idea of having the snow-capped hills and maybe the hikers lodge in the
background, with a picture of a couple in front of a large gaudily decorated
artificial Christmas tree super-imposed over the top – if that makes sense?”
September
9
Contract
is signed. I am a writer!!!
September
22
Pre-edits
– I need to look for typos as well as Americanize everything, complying
with the in-house style guide. Needed back within a week.
October
14
First
round edits – I see the title of the email and my heart plummets. Will my
‘baby’ be ripped to shreds? Will there be nothing but track changes
obliterating the page? Oh, maybe not… “Overall, you are a very clean writer. It
was a delight. The only issue was some run on sentences and a tendency for
repeating words. All in all, not that big of a deal.” Great! Or was the worst
yet to come? “Usually a manuscript goes up to four rounds with me, then a round
with the line editor. With how tight your writing is, I highly doubt we'll need
more than two with me before I can send it to the line editor.”
October
17
All done.
For now. The second round edits pretty much amounted to changing a word because
it wasn’t known in the US, and accepting a couple of punctuation changes.
October
26
Work
starts on my cover art, and by gosh it’s exciting watching it come together.
October
29
My cover
art is done, complete with banners to use as well. I love it. It’s like the
cover artist could see inside my head to come up with the perfect cover.
November
5
Release
date penciled in. Originally was going to be after Christmas, which was a
little confusing, but finally confirmed as December 21.
December
7
Line
edits finally arrive after being held-up for a while, but it could have been
worse. At least I have them, and aside from some commas and some ‘misplaced
modifiers’, I was good to go.
December
8
Juggle
first round edits of another story, with the line edits for Christmas is
Cancelled. I start thinking about the blurb and excerpt so I’m ready.
December
9
Pre-Order!
Time for another song and happy dance session. I even dragged my eldest in to
look at “Mummy’s book” on the internet for people to buy. The blog tour has
also kicked off, the start of a few weeks gallivanting from blog to blog across
the globe. Which is what brings me here today…
December
21
Release
day!
About Aurelia…
Short version
Aurelia B Rowl is a
contemporary romance author but you can also find her masquerading as Allie A
Burrow, her raunchier alter-ego.
She lives on the edge
of the Peak District in the UK with her very understanding husband and
their two fantastic children aged 5 and 3, along with their mad rescue mutt who
doesn’t mind being used as a sounding post and source of inspiration. They are
all used to her getting too caught up with her latest writing project...
or five!... and she is guiltily counting down the months until she has both
kids at school full-time.
To find out more about
Aurelia, or to check out what projects she's working on right now, you can
visit her website www.aureliabrowl.com
You can also find her
hanging out on:
Blog –
blogspot.aureliabrowl.com
Facebook –
www.facebook.com/aurelia.b.rowl
Twitter –
@AureliaBRowl
Google+ –
+AureliaBRowl
Pinterest –
www.pinterest.com/aureliabrowl
Goodreads –
www.goodreads.com/aureliabrowl
About Christmas is
Cancelled…
 |
Contemporary romance
Release date: 21 December 2012
Publisher: Breathless Press
ISBN: 978-1-77101-938-5
Heat level: 3
Word count: 40,000+
|
Short blurb
Could Tilly's day get
any worse? Even Christmas had been cancelled! Will Dean succumb to temptation as
he endeavors to make Christmas better for both of them?
Full blurb
Matilda 'Tilly' Carter didn't think her day
could get any worse, but even Christmas had just been cancelled.
The one girl Dean Watson has sworn never to have—never even expected to see again—just flared back into his life and into his home—his sanctuary—like she belonged there. Christmas would certainly be more bearable with Tilly around though…
As the chinks in Dean's armor appear, Tilly seizes the chance to win her knight once and for all. She's not about to take no for answer—not this time—but Dean must resist, even as his heart rebels and temptation threatens to undermine his resolve.
Win or lose? Love or honor? Which will Dean choose? Assuming he gets a choice…
The one girl Dean Watson has sworn never to have—never even expected to see again—just flared back into his life and into his home—his sanctuary—like she belonged there. Christmas would certainly be more bearable with Tilly around though…
As the chinks in Dean's armor appear, Tilly seizes the chance to win her knight once and for all. She's not about to take no for answer—not this time—but Dean must resist, even as his heart rebels and temptation threatens to undermine his resolve.
Win or lose? Love or honor? Which will Dean choose? Assuming he gets a choice…
Book trailer
Embed code (copy and paste in html):
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<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Y4zIhEoE5PM?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Excerpt
Tears welled
in her eyes, clouding her vision. She turned and wandered blindly toward the
exit as the first tear escaped, forging a track down her cheek for the rest to
follow. Tilly took in a lungful of air and then another. Having made a
spectacle of herself once already, she really didn't want to be the cause of
yet another scene.
The crowds
swarmed around her, with students and family members heading home for the
holidays only adding to the usual rush-hour melee of commuters. They jostled
past, threatening to swallow her whole, as they rushed en mass in the opposite
direction, using their briefcases and suitcases as a battering ram.
It was
suffocating. She had to get out of there. Breaking into a run, broken heel or
not, she raced through the doors and out into the biting December chill. Her
waterlogged eyes struggled to adjust to the dark, dreary sky after the bright
station lights, but she didn't dare slow down, desperate to escape the throng
of festivities and merriment.
Carol
singers assembled outside burst into a jovial rendition of "We Wish You a
Merry Christmas," full of joy and happiness. Didn't they know Christmas
had just been cancelled?
"Ooof!"
Tilly smacked her shin against the edge of a low bench, too dark to see as she
tried to dodge the growing audience. She ended up sprawled across the bench,
dropping the handle of her suitcase with a loud clatter.
At least the
pain shooting down her leg gave her an excuse to be crying. Unfortunately, it
meant she had to stop running too. Not good. Whenever things got too tough, too
intimate, or too confrontational, you could rely on her to make a run for it.
Running away was what she did best...
A tall
figure loomed in the edge of her vision, something vaguely familiar about the
man's loping gait. In an effort to see him more clearly, she wiped her eyes
with the back of her hands, then cringed inwardly at the black streaks now
etched all over them. Great. She could add impersonating a panda to her day
from hell as well then.
The mascara
stung her eyes, rendering her unable to focus properly. She blinked furiously
as the man strode past her, talking into a mobile phone in a deep voice that
resonated throughout her body and made the fine hairs on the back of her neck
stand on end. A surge of adrenaline rushed to her legs, numbing the pain as her
subconscious told her to run. Now!
The cloaked
figure stopped mid-stride as if he'd heard her gasp. "Mike, I've gotta
go," he barked into the phone, hanging up instantly. He backtracked until
he was standing right in front of her, his tone changing from a growl to one of
surprise. "Basmati?"
Great. She
hadn't heard the nickname for years—nine years, four months and...sixteen days,
to be exact—and even then, only one person had ever actually used it. She
screwed her eyes tightly shut, shaking her head from side to side. No. No way.
There was absolutely no way this could be happening to her. Not now. Not today
of all days... Talk about kicking a girl when she was down.
Links…
Buy links:
Breathless
Press (Pre-order now, download from 21 December 2012)
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