News and stuff

Damn I'm good with blog post headlines...

A few things: First of all, I'm in the process of editing one freebie short story (will be out at some point through Dreamspinner Press, I'll keep you posted) and Finnshifters 2 that now has a brand new title!

Finnshifters 2 was supposed to be called, or rather its working title was, Moving On. Then another book named Moving On was released by DSP last month (I think) and I had to come up with a new name for FS2.

The new name is Tiglon by the Tail. I love the name and I wouldn't have come up with it without some help from the editorial department, so thanks! Also, the release date is in September, which day, I don't know yet.

Secondly, I'm going to start the process of having a new website done! It will be easier to update (thank you for everyone who hasn't emailed me about the lack of updates on my current site...) and it will look really good, I bet. Can't wait to see what AngstyG comes up with!

Thirdly, on August 4th, next Saturday, I'll be hosting a Facebook chat on Dreamspinner's Facebook page. Now, a bunch of stuff will be happening there, but there will be giveaways and even a paperback giveaway (signed and delivered to you wherever you live!) So keep an eye out!

Fourthly (this is getting silly...) in September, there will be an event in Brighton called UK GLBTQ Fiction Meet and I'll be attending with plenty of other authors. So in case you're in Brighton on September 15th, please do come meet us!

That's about it for now!

Countdown to Technically Dead, the last day!

Tomorrow, Technically Dead is out! FINALLY!

Trust me when I say I've been waiting to tell this story, write it and then see it published for a long time now. When I wrote the initial version last year, during NaNoWriMo, I was feeling relieved to get it out of my system.

My vampire lore might be different than what you're used to, but give it a chance. And please, let me know what you thought of the book. Email me or send me message on Facebook or Goodreads.

Here's your last treat before you get to read the book. This is part of Heath's ponderings about how he has changed as a vampire over his centuries.

His rental car was a practical something-or-other; he didn’t care much. He had lived for so long that it took more than a fancy machine to make him interested. Actually, he liked horses better than cars, always had.

It had been in England, some three centuries ago, when he’d last had a stable full of horses. Horses were good judges of character, Heath had always thought. One of his horses, an old mare, made him realize he had changed for the worse. The horse had been with him since she was born, almost twenty-five years. It was a long time for a horse, and she was a regal being, very much a lady.

In some ways it surprised Heath that the eventual changes happened so fast when they started for him. It was Lilac that made him see he had become an Elder in the most basic sense. Because the mare was like a mirror, growing from a sensible young horse into an adult horse who seemed to be able to read Heath’s mind, and then into an old mare who was always very correct, not cautious but certainly less keen to show emotion. All those changes happened to Heath, too, in the course of the mare’s twenty-five years.

Some said he got lucky. He knew there were vampires who got into their cold, less human state even before they hit three centuries. For Heath it took six. He lost interest in things like socializing or throwing parties for fun instead of for profit. He started to care less about the human lives he saw taken in wars or by vampires who weren’t that discreet when it came to showing their evil deeds to their own kind.

But the day Heath noticed Lilac giving the cold shoulder to everyone, he realized he was doing the same thing himself. It wasn’t long before the mare gave up and Heath found her dead in her favorite part of the pasture. He vowed he wouldn’t go like that, just because he lost the will to live.

It took three more decades for anything to change enough for him to actually believe in what he could do. Meeting Bran had made an impact. Losing Bran had made another. Now, after the years spent without the young human, he’d come to realize the changes again. He had been more “lively,” but he hadn’t been happy. It was time to change that, if he could.

And there we have it! The countdown is done, and all you have is to sleep one night and the book is out!

Hope you'll enjoy it. :)

Countdown to Technically Dead, Day 2

I promised you an excerpt and now that the second thunderstorm of the day is gone, I can finally post it!

There's a lot of story to Bran's ivy vine tattoo, and this is from a scene where he goes to get some more ink on it...

The bell jingled above the door when Bran stepped in. It was late, sure, but with vampires wanting tattoos too, the old business hours were history. In fact, Bran couldn’t remember a time when everything wasn’t open all night.

“Hello, Bran. Penny’ll be a minute.” The other regular artist, Penny’s daughter, Rachel, grinned from where she was inking a girl Bran had seen before.

“Sure, I’m in no rush.” He nodded, walking to the wall to look at some of the amazing jobs Penny had done over the years.

Absently, he hung his leather jacket on the coatrack nearby and began to unbutton his shirt; after all, he’d be shirtless in no time, anyway.

“That’s very nice work,” a middle-aged biker-looking guy said as he walked past Bran on his way out and got a peek at the vine crawling around his neck and shoulder.

“Thanks.” Bran nodded, used to getting reactions to it.

The guy seemed to realize Bran didn’t want to chat, or maybe he was just one of those sensible people who understood that sometimes ink was too personal to be discussed with strangers.

“Bran, come on in.” Penny, a robust woman with faded old tattoos all around her body, gestured from the back, where her workspace was set up.

He walked to sit in the chair and sighed contentedly.

“That time of the year again, eh?” Penny smiled as she placed her basket of ink bottles on his lap.

“Oh yes….” Bran began to look through the shades of green and picked a couple. “I trust you with this, just make it your style and…. The idea for this year is a silver lining.”

Penny nodded thoughtfully, then began to squeeze blobs of ink into the small cups that always reminded Bran of the thimble his grandma used to have when he was a little boy, only miniature versions.

“I think I can work with that idea…. Do want me to freehand it?” Penny asked, and Bran nodded. He’d seen her freehand work, and the leaf should form nicely like that and show Penny’s own style. “Where do you want it?”

“Well… since there’s space and I think the theme fits…,” Bran murmured and pointed at his left pec.

The silver lining should be on top of his heart, he reasoned.

“Works for me. Is there a reason for the silver lining, or are you still waiting?” she asked as she picked up a marker and began to sketch.

“Who knows? At least things look good, like about the same as last year this time. It’s a change, having a job and stuff….” Bran let himself sink into the seat.

He had known Penny for a decade, and she was one of the people who knew what the ivy vine was about, and one of those who never judged.

Tomorrow is the last day of our countdown and the day after the book is out! So what should I do for tomorrow? Well, I know what my suggestion is: a little bit from Heath's POV? Sounds good? ^^

Countdown to Technically Dead, Day 3

Only three more days! Or well, since it's evening here, I'm going to be an optimist for once and say two more days. Anyway, not long now!

So, secondary characters' faces? Yes. While this is a lot of fun, I'm apologizing to those who hate blog posts full of photos and those who want to make their own mind about how someone looks like. These aren't "exactly" faces. These are closest I've come across that fit my mental images of my beloved characters.

Let's get started then! First of all, there are quite a few secondary characters in the story. There are some that don't have faces, even one quite important secondary character only has a description. But here are the ones I've found.

 This is Tony, Bran's best friend. I found another smiley-photo of this model ages ago and when Tony appeared in my head, I knew that this guy was going to be his face. Luckily I found these photos of him later on, and you can see him serious as well. ^^

 This is pretty much how I imagine Kris. He's young and blond and fit and lovely.

 Here's Kris' boyfriend and Bran's ex, Ric. Although Ric doesn't have the tattoo, he's pretty much this type of hot, older man with some salt and pepper going on...

 This girl you might actually recognize. She's actress Eliza Dushku. She's my face for Lilith. Gorgeous, isn't she?

 If you know who this is, you like gay porn. *g* This is a gay porn star Paul Wagner. But he's also the all-American kind of guy that Adam is in Technically Dead.

I came across this guy randomly. I don't know who he is, but he's definitely my face for Tadashi.

How about the ones that don't have faces? Well, Franco, for example doesn't. If I come across someone who "looks like Franco" I'll let you know. :)

Oh and that excerpt? I need to run right now, so you'll get that tomorrow! ;)

Countdown to Technically Dead, Day 4

Alrighty then!

It's time for the next countdown post for Technically Dead.

I promised this would be about places and faces, so let's start with the less exciting, the places, eh?

While there are mentions of the characters' pasts in Chicago, the story itself takes place in Atlanta. Because Technically Dead is a "contemporary vampire fantasy," most of the places I describe in detail are actually real places. There are a few that I made up, like say Gianna's, or the club the boys frequent (but even the club is something I have looked up location-wise).

The combination of made up and real places makes very little sense, but I can tell you that if you go to Google Maps and zoom into downtown Atlanta, there are buildings there I've used. Yes, I was that anal about this story.... Bran and Tony's houses are from real estate sites, the Shelter is on Trinity Ave and you can probably find the building if you follow the description and are interested to find it.

Why Atlanta? Well... honestly I don't know. I went through a mental list of places I've thought of using in my stories, and figured why not! I was also seriously lucky to have help with Atlanta-knowledge. Shae Connor, a fellow Dreamspinner author, has all the knowledge. ;)

Now okay, let's go to the part that REALLY interests you, the faces.

I'm one of those writers who likes to find a face for a character. Either the faces find me or the other way around, but I really did know who Bran looked like quite early.

This, ladies and gentlemen, is Jon Kortajarena. He's a model and an actor, and you might have seen him in A Single Man. Now, this is what he looks like without his shirt on...

If you add the ink that's described in the book, you have yourself my dear boy Bran. :)

So what does Heath look like? This is actually a funny story... You might know this actor from Hawaii Five-0 or some of his movie roles, but he's also done a vampire show that lasted for one season, I think.

His name is Alex O'Loughlin, and he's an Aussie (yes, please do add the accent to your mental image for a moment. Now, take it off and replace it with a British accent. That's what Heath sounds like.)
 

To me, Alex is one of the most handsome men on TV at the moment. That said, when I realized Heath looked awfully lot like him, I honestly didn't remember that Alex had been on Moonlight, the vampire show. There are photos of him with fangs out there *points at the internet* but the hair is wrong... Yeah, Heath is a bit particular about the short hair.

Anyway, that's the main couple. I do have photos of guys (and girls) who make up the secondary characters. In case you want to see them and maybe get a little excerpt from the story, please do join me tomorrow for countdown day 3!

Countdown to Technically Dead, Day 5

Hello, everyone!

I thought, since Technically Dead is out soon (on the 20th), I'd do a little countdown for you all.

I might be mostly talking about the music of Technically Dead, but I will probably share a lot of other things too, like the faces I see when I think of the characters and things that influenced the story.

And on the day of the release, I'll also be giving away one eBook copy of the book, so you might want to keep an eye on this countdown to learn how you're eligible for the "contest", which won't really be contest at all. ^^

So let us begin.

As I said, music. Many of my stories have a song or a few I associate with them or the events, characters or places, even scenes. So far only my novels have playlists, though.

There's a post somewhere in this blog about the playlist of By Any Other Name, in case you're interested. Just follow the tags.

Technically Dead has even a longer soundtrack, an I keep adding to it occasionally. The latest two additions are Bring Me To Life by Evanescence and Shady by Adam Lambert. Here are the videos for you, I won't spoil who or what I associate the songs with, though. You can read the book and figure it out yourself! :)

I thought I'd share some of the other songs too, but these I can tell you more about... ;)
Just as By Any Other Name's "main theme" was Ghosts of Days Gone By by Alter Bridge, there's one "main them" for Technically Dead as well. This is it:

I love Three Days Grace in general, but when I had just started to write Technically Dead, it hit me that Lost in You was the perfect song for the novel.

Of course I may "see" these songs differently than most readers will, but they're still very strongly "Technically Dead's songs".

Hmm... what next? Well, the funniest thing that I can find from the "soundtrack" is this... :)

Trust me, even when I was writing the book and this song came up as an addition to the soundtrack, I aimed a "really?" at Bran. He insisted. So here it is, Teenage Dream by Katy Perry. I think, even though Bran has never said it, that it represents the naive teenager Bran was when he first met Heath.

As I was writing Bran doing everyday mundane things, like walking from one place to another or working in his office, he was whistling this song in my head a lot.

Moves Like Jagger has been my "earworm" for a long time and apparently I gave it to Bran at some point. However, it doesn't annoy him like it annoys me sometimes, go figure. Yes, writers are a bit odd like that... Nobody ever claimed we were sane... ^^

When I poked at Heath in my head and asked him if he liked contemporary music, he said that he didn't mind it, but that he rarely found any that he truly liked. When I pressed on, he managed to come up with one song that he absolutely loves, but the smile that he gave me was a bit sad, and if you listen to this, you'll know why.

That's about it for today! Because there are almost thirty songs in this list of mine, I'll share with you the Spotify-link to it. Click here to see more. If you don't have Spotify and there's interest, I'll write them all down and make a post or you can email me and ask about the songs if you want.

Tomorrow is all about places and faces, I believe... So see you!

Coming Soon: Technically Dead!

Technically Dead is now on Dreamspinner's Coming Soon-page. The release date is July 20th, and I couldn't be happier with the cover. I think it's stunning!

I hope you'll like the book as much as I do!

I'm a wordy bitch, release date, and editing

For a while now, I've tried to find a home for two short stories of mine. I submitted them both to a certain publisher, because my usual publisher, Dreamspinner Press, doesn't take short stories at the moment.

It turns out their house style clashes really badly with my writing style. While I know I'm wordy, oh so wordy, it's how I write. The people who like my stories know this and they accept it. The publisher would have wanted me to make significant changes, which--especially with the shorter story--would have even changed the tone of the story.

There is such thing as artist's integrity. I know that if I'd changed the stories and offered them to this publisher again, they would sell a lot better than if I'd self-publish them. But I just can't do it. I can't butcher the stories I love just to get the published. I have an active schedule, plenty of longer stories, novellas and novels, coming out this year. I don't necessarily need these short stories to be published.

So I decided to self-publish them instead. I'll let you know when I do. They won't cost much, three or four bucks total, so don't worry. ;)

Secondly, the first part of my shifter series, Finnshifters, will be released tomorrow! I'll do a proper post tomorrow, and at some point soon I'll tell more about the series at Sue Brown's blog. The next two parts should come out this year too, so there will be plenty of these "cats and dogs" for you to love soon!

Third thing I thought I'd mention, is my next novel, Technically Dead, I'm editing right now. It's set to be released in July-August, I don't know the date yet. As the name suggests, it's a vampire story. As I edit it, I keep getting to parts that make me remember why I loved to write this book last November.

There's a soundtrack for the book, I'll release it as a whole at some point when it's been published. But the general main theme of the book is Lost In You by Three Days Grace. I'll attach the video for an acoustic version of it below.

Until I ramble at you, in my usual wordy style, again, see ya!

My only comment about Fifty Shades (and it isn't even mine)

Today I'm reblogging a post. This is from a good friend of mine and she put my thoughts into words better than I ever could.

Fifty Shades & The “Philadelphia Incident” (as originally posted by hidingfromsome1)

I’m not really sure if this is the best place to voice these opinions and concerns. And I’m not really sure if it’s my place to be voicing them at all. This whole topic isn’t easy for me to discuss (it’s very personal) but I’ve never been very good at keeping my mouth shut when I think I have a point to make. 

So - I’ve found over recent weeks two different hot topics that I’ve been paying attention to have apparently dovetailed.

I’m talking about the Fifty Shades of Grey series, an adapted Twilight- fan fiction which has been published and hit the New York Times Bestsellers list, and what people in the BDSM community have been calling the “Philadelphia Incident”.

To briefly bring those not familiar with either topic up to date; Fifty Shades of Grey is a story that deals with a young, naive virgin who enters into a domination and submission relationship with an older, powerful, controlling man. Eventually she manages to bring out his softer side and the two fall in love.

The “Philadelphia Incident” concerns a younger, inexperienced female submissive who entered into a domination and submission relationship with an older dominant man. Her limits were violated and she was forced to enter into oral sex with the man against her will. Some people in the BDSM community are calling this rape. Some people have suggested that the submissive woman consented. Others have criticised the submissive woman for not fully understanding what she was getting herself into. The young woman has now been run out of her home due to the criticism, publicity and notoriety she has faced.

Hopefully my point is already becoming clear.

In her novels E L James romanticizes the BDSM community, takes elements of ‘play’ out of context and dramatises what many would consider to be extremely unsafe D/s practice. The female in the story enters into ‘scenes’ which she is unsure about, where limits have not been pre-discussed or agreed, and where she is abandoned post-scene on more than one occasion with no after care or conversation about what had happened during the session.

The novel completely ignores elements of safe play that those familiar with the BDSM community would immediately recognise. RACK stands for Risk Aware Consensual Kink. SSC stands for Safe, Sane and Consensual. (Note the repeated word in both anagrams). This topic is completely ignored or glossed over in James’ novels and, considering the reaction they have amassed, this is a concern.

Safe BDSM play can be amazing. I can say this as someone who has both dominated others and submitted to others in a range of situations. It is something that I rarely discuss other than with those in the community for fear of repercussions - BDSM is fairly misunderstood by the wider public. In the right circumstances, with the right forethought, planning, and discussion then there are still hundreds of ways a session can go wrong. I have been mid-session with someone who I love very much, in a safe place, when we were both fully aware of each other’s limits. And I panicked. And ended up vomiting into the toilet and crying into his chest. This was an isolated incident, and we weren’t doing anything particularly risky at the time. But I still panicked. Fortunately my partner was fantastic at releasing me quickly and soothing me afterwards. Even with the best of intentions things can still go very wrong.

Although I have not followed reaction to James’ novel closely, one article I recently read criticising the BDSM elements in the story was met with comments from a reader expressing that the story is fantasy, not unlike the Harry Potter stories or Twilight, and not as a how-to guide of BDSM.

Firstly, thank God this isn’t a how-to guide of BDSM because James clearly has little, if any experience of D/s relationships. Secondly, this point in particular scared me more than any other I read.

If one was to dress in a cloak and wand and pretend to be a wizard, short of poking an eye out there is a limited amount of danger that could occur.

If a young woman with no experience of BDSM was to make her way into the community and play with an older man when she herself was unaware of her own limits, very terrible things can happen, as demonstrated recently in Philadelphia. Comparing Fifty Shades to Harry Potter is simply ludicrous, on many levels. There are many different layers and elements to BDSM, starting at fluffy handcuffs and ending in blood, tears and rape. Someone pretending to be a wizard will not experience these things.

The second point made by the same commenter was that James never intended for the novel to be so popular, it was released for a very small audience only and she was surprised at the reaction it has received. I don’t think this argument holds much weight either. I’m writing this article for the consumption of a very small audience too. I do not expect many people to read or react to it. Does that excuse me from factual accuracy? Not at all. If my article goes viral and thousands of people read it then I am still responsible for the words that I have put out there.

Finally, I want to reiterate that a huge majority of people in the BDSM community recognise our vulnerability (BDSM is actually illegal in the United States - yes, illegal - I’m fortunate to live in the UK) and as such, instances such as the “Philadelphia Incident” are rare. Most people play by the rules of RACK. Most people are responsible for themselves, for their partners, and there is a strong sense of ‘mentoring’ to ensure that newbies to the community are watched and are able to learn from those with more experience. Despite all this, it’s too easy for things to be taken just that one step too far with disastrous results.

I feel like it is my responsibility as one of the people who bridges the gap between the BDSM community and the Fifty Shades readership to speak out against the practices shown in the series. Please, please - if you are a single woman who has read these stories and wants to explore the topics contained therein, do everything you can to not follow in the footsteps of both E L James’ characters and the young girl in Philadelphia. Take your time. Find someone you can trust. Be safe. 

(Please feel free to re-blog, re-post, re-tweet, link, copy, plagiarize, do whatever the hell you want with the above. It would be nice if you credited it back to me but in truth, if you want to stick this somewhere else where it might be seen by more people, please, do it. I’m not precious. Spread the word.)

Upcoming release and the rest of my schedule

Hello, everyone. It's now early March, and I'm looking at the release schedule I have and the personal deadlines that are looming and I thought I'd give you an update.

My next release will be out on March 28th. It's called Something New, and I really do love this story. I hope you'll like it too. In some ways, Something New manages to catch many things about my personal writing style and my "secret agenda" in my writing. That's why I'm so happy with it, really. Oh and the cover by Catt Ford is really lovely too.

After Something New, the next one in my preliminary list of things to come is a little story called Thank My Lucky Scars. It's also a novella and revolves around a London bike-messenger and an American porn star. It's a fun little story, so I'm looking forward to it as well. Tentative release is April-May.

Now, the book after the two aforementioned is called Chuffed. It's a shifter-book, the first book in a several books-series I've titled Finnshifters. The story arc revolves around a sort of "shifter sanctuary" in Eastern Finland near the Russian border, and the shifters who live on the little farm. There's always at least one main couple, and while the books are M/M romance, the stories are as much about the whole "farm family" as they are any given main couple.

Chuffed should be out in May-June, and I have a submission deadline in about a week for book 2 which doesn't have a title yet. While the book is already almost done, I'm still feeling slight pressure from the deadline I've set myself (so that you guys would have the next part to read in a few months time from the release of the first book, see, I'm thinking about you here!)

My next novel-length story is a vampire-story I've felt like writing for a long time. It's called Technically Dead and it's going to be released in July-August. I'll tell you more about it later.

Once I have Finnshifters 2 written and sent, I need to figure out what to write next. I feel like writing a few separate stories but I also know I need to concentrate on one. So I'll figure that out soon, since after all I should be done with the current story in a week. Ugh. Well, here's to making my deadline and for a nice springtime for everyone!

The Weirdly Miraculous 2011

Everyone is doing these end of the year-posts, so I decided to look back a little too. Yeah, I'm a regular sheep following the herd...

This time last year I was waiting anxiously to hear from Dreamspinner Press about my anthology submission. It was nervewrecking, mainly because I loved the story, Auld Lang Syne, and it was my first foray into what I knew I wanted to write: original M/M-fiction.

As some of you know by now, the story didn't make it into the anthology, instead Dreamspinner wanted it separately, and the novella is out there on it's own. I still remember the feeling of getting that email, by the way, early in 2011, saying they wanted it. It was all so worth it...

Incidentally my first published work was a M/M/F-short story for another publisher, Summerhouse Publishing. An online acquaintance had founded a publishing company and I had a story. It ended up published, and even though I've since fallen out with Summerhouse, I don't regret sending them The Double Ds.

At the end of the year 2011, I have met the goal I set myself way back in ancient history: I have had a novel published. By Any Other Name is a decent first try and I know many people have liked, even loved it. It's not my favorite thing of what I've written and I see faults in it, but it is a decent book with a LOT of things in it that I still managed to make mine. I wanted to write a different book about abuse and a menage-relationship, and I think those boys pulled it off just fine.

I'm also pretty happy with the other things I have out there by now, all of which you can see on my Goodreads page in case you're wondering. :)

All the while I've been writing, all through 2011, I've been also battling some personal issues, the main one has been depression, the "friend" that has been following me for most of my adult life.

During 2011 I've made a lot of new friends, resurrected some old friendships (to a point) and I've certainly erased some people from my life (some of them repeatedly, because I'm a sucker for punishment...). I've learned that your time is limited, you'll not life forever, and so you should try to surround yourself with people you actually like. If someone makes you feel bad or evokes negative feelings, they should go, no matter who they are. Nobody is worth making you feel bad.

All in all, 2011 has been a decent year. I feel like I can maybe learn from my mistakes and failures or things I perceive as either, like selling my beloved stallion who was stressing me out and going to waste being a yard ornament, or having a person I once considered a friend make me feel like crap all the time because of their social inaptitude and general obliviousness to other people's feelings. Oh and never mind the so called gay porn "star" and his antics, that was "fun" too.

Getting into those situations and letting them bother me as much as they did were failures and mistakes for sure. But I think I've learned from them. Now I'm tougher. Again.

The positive of 2011 is that I'm an author now. If I die tomorrow, the people left behind can call me an author. That's what matters to me. This is what I always wanted to be, This is what I didn't think would happen, or at least I needed a miracle. Well guess what. Miracles do happen. ;)

I think that my usual "I will not make New Year's resolutions!"-mantra will be effective this year too, but at least my first thought when the year is changing won't be "I will survive one more year." like it has been for so many years. I have some living to do, surviving won't cut it anymore.

Happy New Year and have a much better 2012, everyone!

(Oh and keep your eyes open, because there will be more stories out there from yours truly soon enough, starting from January 25th. I'm not going anywhere.)

NaNoWriMo!!

Finally done! The book is not written yet, and it's been a struggle to get it over 50k words, but it's almost there. Needs maybe 10k more words and revising some parts and a lot of beta-work and stuff, but it's ALMOST THERE!

I'm so happy about this... Seriously. It was such a struggle with everything that has been going on lately. From depression to horse that mangled his leg to a dog that got hit by a train and survived to tell the tale... Yeah, it's been difficult.

But I'm proud to be able to post this badge and tell you that eventually my vampire M/M-romance will be out there somewhere, because it's ALMOST DONE!! *does a happy dance*

By Any Other Name has its own playlist!

Did you know?

Well, it just came to me, that I haven't actually shared the playlist with my readers, so here it is.

There are spots for songs mentioned in the story, and some of these fit. Any guesses on what fits where? :)

Big News!!

So I got an email today from Dreamspinner Press. They're contracting my first novel, By Any Other Name!!

It will be out around August/September and I couldn't be happier! Also, since BAON was written during the 2010 NaNoWriMo, then I'm thinking maybe this year I'll write the sequel?

We shall see. :) Anyway, I'm going to go outside to the warm, light summer night and do another happy dance!

I forgot this one...

So, despite knowing that I'd given this flash fiction-story to Celia to post on the Piece of Tales-blog, I forgot it completely... Luckily I just remembered it, eh?

The story is thousand words, it's from the point of view of Quentin, an owner of a gay club, who spots a good looking young guy, Milo, in the security cameras... You read the rest.

Also, there's a Milo's point of view, from earlier that day, that will be one of the stories in Fandom Fights Tsunami, a tsunami relief story-compilation. You can find information here, in case you're interested. I gave Milo's story for the compilation of stories that you can receive by donating to the cause. There isn't much we can do when these things happen so far from us, but I still wanted to do something for Japan.

I'm also happy to report, that my first novel has been sent to the publisher and I'm hoping to get a contract soon... I'll have details for you later this well, I hope.

I have some promo-dates too, but I'll get to those closer to the actual dates.

It's springtime where I live, and I'm relieved to see the snow finally gone (except from the places where it was piled up...). That does mean a ton of yardwork though, getting the whole large yard to look good after the winter...not that easy of a task.

I'm also selling my horse, my beloved stallion who has been with me for practically since he was weaned from his mother when he was 7 months old. I first met him when he was a couple of weeks old. He's turning 5 years old in a few days. It hurts to even think about selling him, but I will if I can find a good home for him. He's of a rare breed, so I won't sell him to just anyone, not that I would if he was your average mutt of a horse either. :) Why am I selling him? Because he goes to waste with me. He deserves more of his life than being a yard ornament. I love him enough to let him go.

Anyway, random Tia is random... ;) More news as I get them!