So my baby started 4K today. My brave, outgoing, never scared baby…who cried when he had to walk into the school by himself. 

Yeah.

It was a rough morning. But I picked him up three hours later, and he was all smiles and hugs, and then we got a cookie. Because obviously.

After I drove my blubbering self home, I ran around the house, dancing and screaming, “I’M FREE! I’M FREE!”

Just kidding.

I did something much less exciting. I worked. Womp womp. But I got to do that work without a four-year-old poking me in the ribs every 32 seconds, so I’m calling it good.

Besides sending my baby off to school, this past week I got the final-but-not-yet-copy-edited back cover copy for Season of Second Chances. And you guys. I love it. It’s perfect, and does a wonderful job of capturing what this novella is all about. Want a peek?

When a storm strands Claire Hanlin in Chicago on Christmas Eve, the last person she expects to come to her rescue is Logan Dawes, the man she almost married two years ago. The chemistry between them is dangerously potent, but with nowhere else to go, Claire accepts Logan’s offer to stay with him for the night.

Back in the home they shared, surrounded by reminders of Logan and his young daughter, Claire begins to realize how much she misses the family she almost had. And after a few cups of Christmas cheer, she falls right back into her ex’s arms—even though she knows it means setting herself up for heartbreak all over again.

The magic of the season has thrown him together with the woman he’s never stopped loving, and Logan’s not about to pass up this gift. He’s not the workaholic he was two years ago—his family comes first. Now all he has to do is prove it to Claire, before the snow stops and she flies out of his life for good.

*jumpy claps* I can’t wait for you guys to read this one. In the meantime, if you wanna have a peek at the inspiration board I used while writing this, have at it. Blanket disclaimer: I’m not at all PG over there. I’m probably closer to NC-17. So you shouldn’t go over there at work. Or at your grandmother’s. 

How about we make this Monday suck less for one of you? Congrats to last week’s winner of Find Me, Misti! This week, I’m giving away an ARC of Teardrop by Lauren Kate.

Never, ever cry. . . . Eureka Boudreaux’s mother drilled that rule into her daughter years ago. But now her mother is gone, and everywhere Eureka goes he is there: Ander, the tall, pale blond boy who seems to know things he shouldn’t, who tells Eureka she is in grave danger, who comes closer to making her cry than anyone has before.

But Ander doesn’t know Eureka’s darkest secret: ever since her mother drowned in a freak accident, Eureka wishes she were dead, too. She has little left that she cares about, just her oldest friend, Brooks, and a strange inheritance—a locket, a letter, a mysterious stone, and an ancient book no one understands. The book contains a haunting tale about a girl who got her heart broken and cried an entire continent into the sea. Eureka is about to discover that the ancient tale is more than a story, that Ander might be telling the truth . . . and that her life has far darker undercurrents than she ever imagined. From Lauren Kate comes an epic saga of heart-stopping romance, devastating secrets, and dark magic . . . a world where everything you love can be washed away.

You should know that every time I say that ^ ^, I say it in my head just like Peach from Finding Nemo, so you should, too.

 

Seventeen months ago, I started this journey. Actually, if you want to get technical, it was earlier than that when I started writing PLUS ONE (and if you want to get really technical, you could say I started this journey the first time I wrote a complete story, but I digress). Seventeen months ago, I submitted my completed novella to three romance e-publishers I’d had my eye on for a while. And then I waited.

And waited.

And waited some more.

It seems like that’s what this has been–one big waiting game with a few pit-stops along the way. And maybe that’s why this–today–feels so surreal. I can’t believe that after nearly a year and a half, my book’s here.

IT’S HERE OMG.

Olivia hates the singles scene, so when her best guy friend, Ian, offers to be her plus one to a series of weddings she has to attend, she agrees. Although she doesn’t want to complicate their lifelong friendship, she can’t pass up the chance to have a steady date without the dating drama. What she doesn’t expect is to now find Ian so incredibly sexy.

When Ian sees his old friend Olivia dolled up for wedding #1, the boyhood crush he once nurtured transforms into smoldering attraction. It doesn’t take long for their no-strings arrangement to turn physical. But as Olivia’s desire to stay “just friends” becomes clear, Ian’s feelings are deepening. In the time they have together, how will Ian convince Olivia that one plus one can make for a lifelong pair?

You can find this baby on amazon | barnes & noble | carina | ibookstore | kobo 

And what’s that? You want another excerpt? Well, okay.

I know Mondays usually suck. But, hey, my book came out, so it sucks a little less because we’re celebrating! I got cupcakes this weekend and went out to lunch today, but since you all weren’t there, how about some giveaways? Enter one or two or all of them! Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I’ll be honest. From day one, this entire thing has felt surreal. Sometimes I think, did I really get that call that said I was going to be published or was it all just a dream?

In the long months since I decided to take the step and do this, I‘ve sort of stumbled my way through this process. The submitting and querying and editing and editing and more editing. It’s been scary, but amazing. I didn’t know what to expect and fell into that tiny spot between a rock and a hard place of not wanting to ask too many questions and not asking enough. Or worse, not knowing what questions to ask in the first place.

Fortunately, I’ve had Jeanette with me the whole way. She’s held my hand and answered my (admittedly over–dramatic, frantic) texts at midnight about one thing or another. Thank God for friends who have gone through this before me (and ones who don’t judge my freak-outs), that’s all I can say. 

Walking into this blindly, I never realized just how long of a process this is. I queried Plus One a year ago, got the call of acquisition nine months ago, and started edits six months ago. Yesterday, it was sent off to production. That is a lot of time. And a whole lot of hurry up and wait, like I was told would happen in the very beginning.

But. But. Did you see where I said it was off to production? MY BABY IS GETTING PRETTIFIED! *muppet flails*

It still doesn’t quite feel real yet, and I suppose it won’t until I can walk my fingers over to Amazon or B&N and buy that baby. Though, I’ll be honest, seeing the cover will probably help. 

It’s heeeeeeeeere! Earlier than expected, but the Corporate Affairs Anthology from Xcite Books is now available for purchase here!

 

And a short sampling, to give you a little taste…

Have I mentioned Gavin is a dirty talker? No? Huh.

The anthology is also available through Amazon, as well as on Xcite’s site.

This whole thing is so surreal, and, to be honest, I feel a little like I’m still floating on cloud nine. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go post to every possible media outlet that I have and then flail privately in my bedroom. 

You’re probably wondering what in the hell I’ve been doing that’s kept me from making even a peep on the blog for over a month, amirite? (Or, more probable, is that you didn’t even notice. Stick with me.)

To be honest, it’s been a frenzy of activity. Even if we were to exclude things like a family wedding where we drove a total of 26 hours in 5 days (did I mention that we did that with two kids in tow?), or the whole back to school extravaganza (and my baby starting pre-school…wah), there were half a dozen other events that have kept me busier than normal.

In August, I attended a three-week online editing workshop led by Angela James called Before You Hit Send. For any writers out there who are unsure about their editing skills, and even the ones that feel like they have a solid grasp on editing, I’d encourage you to take this course. While a lot of it was simply overview for me (punctuation, dialogue tags, etc), Angela touched on many things that I’d never even thought to work through when doing a final edit on my MS before submission (garbage words, overuse of adverbs, etc). For the low cost of the workshop, I definitely felt I got my money’s worth.

Now on to the exciting news. *rubs hands together* I signed my first contract in August with Xcite Books for a short piece I wrote for their Corporate Affairs anthology. Word on the street (aka: their website) says this will be out October 12th for purchase. Besides the fact that this will be my first published work (!!!), I’m also thrilled because I’m going to be book sisters with Jeanette Grey, one of my very closest friends, not to mention my very own personal cheerleader, who’s also got a piece in the CA anthology. I’ll post more details on that as soon as they become available!

Finally, the big news (insert flashing lights and obnoxious sound effects). The stuff I’ve been babbling on and on about (albeit vaguely) for months now. When they told me the publishing world was a whole lot of hurry up and wait, they weren’t kidding.

Months after receiving the call (which I’ve since found out is the little something extra only this publisher does), I finally signed and returned my contract. So, you know what that means? It means I can spill the beans! My first novella, Plus One, will be published Spring 2013 with Carina Press, Harlequin’s digital-first imprint. Forget being bowled over by the fact that a publisher actually wanted my writing, but when it’s also the publisher of authors that I read and love (Kaily Hart & Shannon Stacey to name a couple)? There might have been flailing.

And maybe a little screaming.

And also some tears.

As I mentioned before, Jeanette has been my personal cheerleader since I decided to dip my toe in the world of original fiction. Everything that has happened with Plus One is because she was friend enough to push me when I needed pushing. She was the sole reason I submitted to Carina in the first place. I wasn’t going to–hadn’t even fathomed submitting to them. I thought they were too big for my britches. To put it plainly: I thought I wasn’t good enough. And I told her that. And then she proceeded to tell me to get my head out of my ass* and submit my MS to them. So, I figured go big or go home. Balls to the wall, and all that. And, yay, it paid off!

This week, I also returned the art fact sheet where I tell them my ideas on how I’d like the cover to look (sexy, fun, flirty & lighthearted). I also got to go on a hunt for pictures that evoked the feel of the book. I cannot wait to see what they come up with. And, of course, I can’t wait until I can share it with all of you.

Oh. And I also finished a full length novel. (!!!) Which, as it turns out, will actually be part of a series. Companion novels, not continuation, so don’t worry–no major cliffies. My characters kind of threw me for a loop, and it turns out these three sisters each have a unique and interesting story to tell.

So, that’s it. I’m also working on a few shorts, and I will keep you updated on their statuses.

Thanks for coming on this journey with me, frands. Group hug? *gathers you all close*

*I’m paraphrasing ever so slightly, but I swear it was very near to that, only much nicer because she’s as sweet as pie