Whatnots & Doodads by Stacey Kennedy

Stacey Kennedy’s novels are lighthearted fantasy with heart squeezing, thigh-clenching romance, and even give a good chuckle every now and again. But within the stories you’ll find fast paced action, life threatening moments and a big bad villain that needs to be destroyed. Her urban fantasy/paranormal and erotic romance series have hit Amazon Kindle and All Romance Ebooks Bestseller lists. If she isn’t plugging away at her next novel, tending to her two little ones, she’s got her nose deep in a good book. She lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband. Be sure to drop her a line at www.staceykennedy.com, she loves to hear from her readers.

1.  What inspires you as a writer?

Anything and everything. Usually I get my inspiration from the current story I’m working on. A scene will pop into my head, or a new character will develop, or even I’ll see a side character that needs to have their story told. I always go with what my muse wants. I gave up fighting against her a long time ago.

2.  When did you have that ah ha moment when you knew you were a writer?

Easy answer. After I wrote my first book and realized I could do it.

3.  What is your writing process?

I’m a panster trying hard to be a plotter. I do a rough outline of the story, then I fly by the seat of my pants and write the story. Once I’m done, I do a chart that shows the story as a whole so I can get a good look at it. Usually then is when I move chapters around, have to add more, and make sure I’m hitting all the important conflicts, plot and other goodies.

4.  Tell us about your favorite character and why you chose to write about them?

My favorite character is usually the one I’m working on. I love all my characters for all different reasons. I really can’t pick a favorite. That might not make them very happy.

5.  What are you currently working on?

Right now, I’m writing Bite Me, I’m Yours. I’ll be self-publishing this paranormal romance in a month or two. It’s turning out to be quite an action packed, humorous, steamy read!

6.  Any upcoming events?

I love to party so I always have lots of events on the go. You can come see were I’ll be here - http://www.staceykennedy.com/fun/

7.  If you could be anyone you like, who would you be?

Katie MacAlister, because she’s my favorite author and I’d love to get into her creative mind for a little while.

8.  Do you have any advice for new writers and something that a seasoned vet can learn?

Just write and keep writing! The more you do, the better you get at it! And jump on any opportunity you can. One opportunity can lead into another and you don’t want to let them pass you by.

9.   Where can your followers find you?

Website – http://www.staceykennedy.com

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000956942180

Twitter – http://twitter.com/#!/Stacey_Kennedy

Goodreads - http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3473046.Stacey_Kennedy

10.              Any last words?

Happy Reading! Come find me at the places above, I love making new friends!

A witch with unruly magic, a demon gone good, lava-hot passion and a tornado of emotions–just another night in Strange Hollow.

For Bryanna, a witch from the Asheville Coven, magic is on the fritz. Shunned by her coven and her boyfriend Layton for her unruly magic, she seeks a new life for herself. It just so happens, fate steps in and brings her to Strange Hollow–a place where being different is not only acceptable, but encouraged.

When Bryanna arrives in Strange Hollow, Zeke, a demon gone good, is burning with Hell’s fire over her. Not only has she set his world ablaze, but he’s found one soul he can save. He’s determined to free her from the insecurities that have damaged her soul.

Together they experience lava-hot passion as they weave their way through a tornado of emotions. But when Layton returns for her, will Zeke’s attempts to break the unworthy cage woven around her be enough to keep her in Strange Hollow forever?

Thank you for stopping by Stacey! For more information please visit her on her website.

The Golden Pen

Review: A Cold Dark Place by HD Hatcher

 

Meet Author HD Hatcher

A Cold Dark Place

Unloved

One Too Many

On a chance meeting, (at a mutual friend’s house) Luke finds the love of his life. Andy is what Luke has been longing for all of his adult years: the perfect man. But, this perfect man is not only straight—he is married to a woman who is more devilish than Satan himself.

In a bittersweet journey that will change his life forever, Luke must reach deep inside and find the strength he never knew existed. A Cold Dark Place is the story of a man who must pick up the pieces of his broken heart after a lifetime of heartbreak and betrayal.


The Review

After reading this novel I completely understand the cover. Poor Luke is a wreck from start to finish. Luke spends his time lusting after a seemingly straight man who is married to one of the rudest, non-caring, and self-absorbed women I have ever come across. Andy is merely her footstool and she only wants him to keep him miserable.

HD does such a great job telling his story through the eyes of Luke that you forget this is about a gay man wanting what is deemed taboo. You see him as you would any other male seeking love going through the motions of love found, love lost, and looking. 

This story broaches on some thought provoking topics all the while with a humorous undertone. I laughed out loud at the internet dating. If you have ever tried it yourself you will completely understand.

A Cold Dark Place has an excellent storyline and great characters which had me glued from start to finish. I would highly recommend this book along with his short, One Too Many.

4.5 Gold Stars

The Golden Pen

Romancing Your Dark Side Tour-Amber Scott

What inspires you as a writer?

Music. Rock. Pop. Angsty indie. Any song that pulls me into an emotional or physical reaction. For every novel I write, I create a soundtrack. Each character gets a theme song and I love to pick songs for the hot scenes. “Electric Feel” by MGMT, “Cosmic Love” by Florence and the Machine, and “Come Undone” by My Darkest Days are a few of my current faves.

When did you have that ah ha moment when you knew you were a writer?

I was about four years old. I couldn’t even read yet and I didn’t have a firm grasp of what writing entailed but I vividly recall answering my mom’s what are you going to be when you grow up question with that answer. A writer. It wasn’t until I became a stay home mom that I decided to actually try it. I had that moment Stephen King talks about where I finished a book and thought, hey, I can do that!

What is your writing process?

I get a little whisper of an idea from my muse, Milla. I let myself daydream about it. A lot. I think of the characters, try to listen to them, then I look for music. I decide on a length and commit to a daily word count and a goal finish date, then I plot using Blake Snyder’s Beat Sheet and 3x5 cards. I make lots of lists and sometimes journal in the character’s point of view. Little by little, day by day, I get to the end. Then I share, edit, set aside, edit, and publish it, hopefully without putting so much pressure on myself that I shut down.

Tell us about your favorite character and why you chose to write about them?

Ooooh. Just one favorite? My favorite tends to be one that I’m in deep writing. So right now, it’s Lyric. He’s a secondary character in Fierce Dawn and is fighting his vampirism, trying to recover from blood addiction. But he’s a bit dark and reckless and he tends to follow his good intentions through the wrong path. I adore him. He often gets his shirt torn off.

What are you currently working on?

Stealing Dusk, the second book in the ParaRealm series where we see human changelings starting to really start to populate the human realm. More and more realm lines are becoming less stable. In his search for Crusoe, leader of the Illeautians, Lyric has stumbled upon an underground ring exploiting immortals and changelings alike. He gets a nice shock to the system when his best friend’s ex-flame shows up on the wrong side of fighting lines and the entanglement that lust always creates ensues.

Any upcoming events?

In addition to this amazing tour, I’ll join eleven other indie authors for Masquerade this October, the next Blog Tour de Force. I’m really looking forward to masquerading as another author and seeing how many readers guess who is who correctly.

If you could be anyone you like, who would you be?

Joan Jett. She comes accross as so deliciously cocky. Thankfully, a part of me is like Joan. Milla, my muse, might kick Joan’s ass. Or make out with her. Who knows?

Do you have any advice for new writers and something that a seasoned vet can learn?

Grow a pair. No, really. It’s the best accidental advice my bff and career coach ever gave me. Your doubts will never go away. You just get better at ignoring them. So don’t ever let that niggling fear that you aren’t good enough, or that you will never ‘make it’, get in the way. When it comes down to it, if it’s fun for you to write, it will always be worth writing it.

Where can your followers find you?

I’m online everywhere. Twitter, Facebook, chatting with my secret Facebook reader group, the HOT Club where all are welcome. I just joined The Next Best Book Club on Goodreads and am getting to know everyone there, too. I love going to conferences, too, and now that the kidlets are getting a bit older, I can attend more. I update my weblog with dates and events every month.

Any last words?

Thank you for reading. An author once told me I’m not supposed to do that, but it just goes against who I am. So, I do it anyways. Without readers, I’m just a chick and her laptop. That is why my motto is “Spoil the HOT” in the HOT Club. Readers deserve it. Don’t you think?

Thank you for stopping by Amber and I could not have said it better, grow a pair! Love it. To learn more about this best selling author and her muse, Milla, stop by her website to find out just who the eff she is (okay I stole that from her muse).

http://amberscottbooks.com/

Be sure to leave a comment for a chance to win your ebook copy!

The Golden Pen

Author Spotlight with G.A. Hauser

 About the Author

Award-winning author G.A. Hauser was born in Fair Lawn, New Jersey, USA and attended university in New York City. She moved to Seattle, Washington where she worked as a patrol officer with the Seattle Police Department. In early 2000 G.A. moved to Hertfordshire, England where she began her writing in earnest and published her first book, In the Shadow of Alexander. Now a full-time writer, G.A. has written over sixty novels, including several best-sellers of gay fiction and is an Honorary Board Member of Gay American Heroes for her support of the foundation. For more information on other books by G.A., visit the author at her official website. www.authorgahauser.com.

G.A. has won awards from All Romance eBooks for Best Author 2009, Best Novel 2008, Mile High, and Best Author 2008, Best Novel 2007, Secrets and Misdemeanors, Best Author 2007.

The G.A. Hauser Collection

Single Titles

Unnecessary Roughness

Hot Rod

Of Wolves and Men

The Order of Wolves

My Best Friend’s Boyfriend

Mr. Right

The Diamond Stud

The Hard Way

Games Men Play

Born to Please

Got Men?

Heart of Steele

All Man

Julian

Black Leather Phoenix

London, Bloody, London

In The Dark and What Should Never Be, Erotic Short

Stories

Mark and Sharon (formally titled A Question of Sex)

A Man’s Best Friend

It Takes a Man

The Physician and the Actor   

For Love and Money

The Kiss

Naked Dragon

Secrets and Misdemeanors

Capital Games

Giving Up the Ghost

To Have and To Hostage

Love you, Loveday

The Boy Next Door

When Adam Met Jack

Exposure

The Vampire and the Man-eater

Murphy's Hero

Mark Antonious deMontford

Prince of Servitude

Calling Dr Love

The Rape of St. Peter

The Wedding Planner

Going Deep

Double Trouble

Pirates

Miller's Tale

Vampire Nights

Teacher's Pet

In the Shadow of Alexander  

The Rise and Fall of the Sacred Band of Thebes   

The Action Series

Acting Naughty

Playing Dirty

Getting it in the End

Behaving Badly

Dripping Hot

Packing Heat

Being Screwed

Something Sexy

Going Wild

Men in Motion Series

Mile High

Cruising

Driving Hard

Leather Boys

Heroes Series

Man to Man

Two In Two Out

Top Men

G.A. Hauser

Writing as Amanda Winters

Sister Moonshine

Nothing Like Romance

Silent Reign

 Butterfly Suicide

Mutley’s Crew

Blurb for Of Wolves and Men

‘Cowboy’ Charlie Mosby worked on a horse ranch in Heber, Utah. He loved his work, the owners of the ranch, and his co-workers; wranglers who helped tourists with guided horse tours and trail riding all year round.

But after a chance meeting with a handsome gay man who had helped Charlie change a flat tire on Interstate 80 a month ago, Charlie was beginning to wonder about his sexuality. And if that wasn’t confusing enough, strange things were happening on the ranch. 

Satanic worship? A strange cult ritual? Whatever it was, it wasn’t good for the owners or the horses on it.

One night Charlie stumbles upon Roman Burk in the woods, naked, bleeding and shivering in the cold. What Charlie never imagined was who -or what- Roman was. Even though the handsome stranger seemed to vanish at times and reappear as if by magic, Charlie was infatuated by this man.

Roman was fearful of revealing his secret. Most of all to a cowboy who was spending more time hunting him, than loving him. 

In this shape-shifting story of sexual bonding and discovery, can both Charlie and Roman find what they’re looking for? It’s a question of honor; one that has been up for debate since the first time man set his eyes on this formidable predator. It’s about the mutual respect of Wolves and Men.

Up Close With G.A.

1.          What inspires you as a writer?

Everything and everyone. I get inspiration from situations regarding meeting Mr. Right, or individuals whose character is outstanding or quirky. I also hope to change the prevailing attitude in the world right now that gay marriage is wrong and same sex couples shouldn’t fall in love or be partners.

2.  When did you have that ah ha moment when you knew you were a writer?

I have always written stories for as long as I can recall. But I pursued art instead; painting , sculpting, and drawing to fulfill the creative side of me. Unfortunately fate didn’t have art in mind for me, she decided to give me writing to express myself instead. My Aha! moment came when I actually fell in with a decent publisher. 

3.  What is your writing process?

My novels are character driven. I allow my men to decide where and what to do. They already have their story in their minds, I just tell it.

4.  Tell us about your favorite character and why you chose to write about them?

Mark Antonious Richfield. Mark is a fabulously handsome model who is terribly flawed. I suppose Mark is always struggling to come to terms with his life, his past, his aging process. Perhaps there is a little bit of Mark in everyone, and certainly in me. But somehow Mark always manages to survive. He has become a fan favorite, and is in nearly a dozen of my novels, including the Action! Series.

5.  What are you currently working on?

I publish one book a month, so right now I am working on Happy Endings, but that is now a complete rough draft, so I am editing Down and Dirty which will be released in September.

6.  Any upcoming events?

Yes, I have a book signing at Book Soup in LA on August 13^th, and I am going to be at the West Hollywood Bookfair on October 1^st.

7.  If you could be anyone you like, who would you be?

My fictional character, Steve Miller. After all he gets to be with Mark Richfield.

8.  Do you have any advice for new writers and something that a seasoned vet can learn?

Never give up! Never give up! Never give up! (You get the idea)

9.   Where can your followers find you?

www.authorgahauser.com 
 http://gahausersblog.blogspot.com/

www.facebook.com/people/Ga-Hauser/1486624188

10.              Any last words?

I hope those of you who have never considered reading manlove romance will give one of my novels a try. They range from comedy to drama, and everything in between. I think many people would be surprised that women make up a large part of my readers. Nearly 70%.

Thank you for having me.

GA

Thank you so much for stopping by G.A.! Great insight from a seasoned vet. Be sure to leave a comment.

Chicago's Printers Row Bookfest, June 4-5

 As a member of Sigma Gamma Rho I am proud to repost this from the Golden Literary Circle. Please stop by and visit these wonderful authors in Chicago. Good luck my sorors!

During the Printers Row Bookfest, we plan to promote the following authors:
Beverly Jenkins, Historial Romance & YA Author
         
Ms Jenkins’ historical romance novels highlight African/American life in the 19th century. She has 22 published novels to date.

She has received numerous awards for her works, including: six Waldenbooks/Borders Group Best Sellers Awards; two Career Achievement Awards from Romantic Times Magazine; a Golden Pen Award from the Black Writer’s Guild, and in 1999 was named one of the Top Fifty Favorite African-American writers of the 20th Century by AABLC, the nation’s largest on-line African-American book club.
She has also been featured in many national publications, including the Wall Street Journal, People Magazine, Dallas Morning News and Vibe Magazine. She has lectured at such prestigious universities as Oberlin University, the University of Illinois, and the University of Michigan. She speaks widely on both romance and 19th century African-American history.

In 2004 Ms. Jenkins branched out into romantic suspense with the publication of Edge of Midnight. Her first, faith based, women’s fiction, Bring on the Blessings will be published in Jan 09. Her two teen historicals: Belle and Josephine have been reissued and are on sale now. You can find out more about her work by logging on to http://www.beverlyjenkins.net/.
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Omegia Keeys, YA & Erotic Romance Fiction Author
           
Omegia Keeys debuted as an Erotic Author in 2007 with Passionate Playmates (republished in 2010) whose follow ups are Seduction.com in 2009, and Can You Keep a Secret 2010. She has been featured on Allure Radio, Street Vibes Mix Radio, and in Indy Blackout Magazine. Keeys was recently nominated for the Scribe Award at the National Black Book Fest and her title Can You Keep a Secret was selected as one of Conversations Magazine’s top 100 books of 2010. Omegia’s short story, C.K., was recently chosen to appear in the anthology, Unloved, a novel dedicated to bringing awareness to bullying and suicide. Omegia also writes Young Adult fiction under the pen name of Key Rollins. The Baby Girl was release in March of 2011.

Currently Omegia is working on her next titles, the Fantasy Girls Collection, an erotic mystery initialed, Shattered: Secrets between Sister’s, and a non fiction memoir. To learn more about Omegia please visit her at http://www.omegiakeeys.com/. You can also purchase copies of her releases by logging on to www.passionatewriterpublishing.com as well as all book retailers.
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Karla Brady, YA & Women’s Fiction
   
K. L. Brady is a D.C. native but spent a number of her formative years in the Ohio Valley. She’s an alumnus of the University of the District of Columbia and University of Maryland University College, earning a B.A. in Economics and M.B.A., respectively. She works as an analyst for a major government contracting firm and is an active real estate agent with Exit Realty by day—and writes by night (often into the wee hours of the morning). She lives just outside of D.C. in Cheltenham, Maryland, with her son and lives to eat chocolate, shop, read, and write.

Her upcoming adult novel, THE BUM MAGNET, will be published by Simon & Schuster’s Pocket Books in March 2011. THE BUM MAGNET was the winner of the 2010 Next Generation Indie Book Awards for Multicultural Fiction, as well as the Third Place Grand Prize Winner for Best Fiction of 2010. You can find out more about her work by logging on to http://www.authorklbrady.com/.