When rights revert

What do you do when the rights to one of your stories revert back to you?

Of course, you could submit it to another publisher. I did this with When Love Flue In, sending it to Totally Bound and getting it released in time for the Christmas period. With that being a seasonal read, to all intents and purposes, readers would have barely noticed it had been unavailable for a period of six months or so. And having lost the whole of the second year’s sales due to unpaid royalties I was eager to get the story back out and selling copies as soon as possible.

So when the rights reversion email for Lovers Entwined landed in my inbox I had a decision to make. Under its previous publisher, who didn’t appear to know how to market it, this story died a death. I didn’t want that to happen again. If it dies on the quality of the story it tells so be it but to flounder because no one knows that it exists is another matter.

Did I want to self-publish?

I have to admit I was scared.

However, many of my author friends self-publish with excellent results. At first it seemed a daunting task, but thankfully the authors in this genre are some of the most generous people I have met (or not met at all in some cases). Most authors, if asked what super power they would want, would probably ask to be able to slow down time or have the ability to clone themselves. With time at a premium in this game, that people are willing to give some of those precious minutes to a virtual stranger (Jay and I could walk past each other in the street and not recognise each other) is the most generous gift of all.

So with Jay Northcote holding my hand, I took the bull by the horns and stepped into that den of confusion called self publishing. This book would not be here without her, it would be languishing in a slush pile somewhere, and for that, I dedicate this book to her.



Don't forget Lovers Entwined is still available at the special pre-order price. Pre-order links are below

Amazon US
Amazon UK
ARe 

The price should be $2.99 across the board until release (Amazon US seems to vary for some reason). On release it will go up to $3.99.

A dirty story of a dirty man

Bet that got your attention. Unfortunately, it's not that sort of story at all. But considering the message I've come here to tell today that particular phrase seemed appropriate for this title.

So, on to news...

Do you like the feel of paper beneath your fingertips?

Do you love seeing books lined up on your book shelf?

A beautiful cover all shiny and freshly printed.

Did you love Eric and his elephants? Feel for Tyaan? Yearn to hold Theory Unproven in your hands.

Well, now you can.

Theory Unproven is now available in a print edition from Amazon US and Amazon UK.




If you know why that particular title could be deemed appropriate let me know in comments (wherever you happen to be reading this).

I've been housekeeping

Look what I've done to my Cover Art page.

Looks pretty, yeah?

I couldn't have done this without R J Scott's handy guide.

Blogging away from home

For anyone that missed my tweets and messages on Facebook, yesterday I was guest blogger for Sunday Spotlight over at Prism Book Alliance.

If you want to see me chat on about Popular Culture and it's place in contemporary romance (or not, as the argument goes) then pop on over there and have a read.

If you want to join in the debate (about Pop culture, not whether they were on a break) leave me a comment there and I'll get back to you.

Giveaway

There is still time to enter the giveaway running with my cover reveal tour.

Here is a link to the cover reveal at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words, where you'll find the cover and an exclusive excerpt as well as the giveaway. It also includes a link to the other blogs on the tour, each with a different excerpt.

Pop along to one of the blogs to win a book from my backlist.

Christmas in July - Flash Sale

Pride Promotions are having a one day flash sale at All Romance ebooks. All books are 25% off.

Get yourself an early Christmas present with When Love Flue In.

"If you are looking for a short and sweet romance to get you in the Christmas spirit, When Love Flue In is a great choice!  There is a sweet and gentle buildup to Dominic and Reagan’s relationship and when they finally give in to temptation, the heat is phenomenal.  After years of longing glances and private fantasies, they finally get what they have wanted for so very long!" - Nautical Star Books (4 stars) 

Preorder Links Lovers Entwined

Preorder links for Lovers Entwined. 

Amazon US 
Amazon UK 
ARe 

The price should be $2.99 across the board until release (when it will go back up to $3.99).

Fiction Friday

Hell or High Water series by SE Jakes

As of today I have read and loved the first two books in this series, however I’m reluctant to go any further even though there is obviously more to Prophet and Tom’s story (and I have the books). There are several reasons for this.

The Hell or High Water series seems to be a part of a larger series called Extreme Escapes Ltd and they appear, to some degree, to be interconnected stories. There is some confusion (for me) as to the order these books need to be read in. As far as I can tell I should read Dirty Deeds (the first part of Mal and Cillian’s story) before I continue with HoHW book 3.

“Not a problem” you say, “I’ve looked at your Goodreads shelf and you own this book.”

True, but from the reviews I’ve seen it appears that DD is unresolved at the end and this brings me to the second problem I have with becoming more invested in the EE Ltd series as a whole. It’s incomplete.
Dirty Deeds is a three book series. There are titles and expected release dates for the next two books (which have come and gone).

Hell or High Water is a four (and a half) book series. Book four has yet to appear despite an expected 2015 release date. None of the books are showing on any coming soon pages at Riptide.

I believe that the author has had RL issues and I sympathise. I’m not here demanding that she write the rest of the books, shit happens and situations change, but I do feel that a word from the publishers about the delay would go a long way to easing the frustration of many readers.

I love Tom and Prophet but I can’t put my hand on my heart and encourage people to read this series as things stand. If the overall story arc isn’t overly important to you but you need a solid position on the romance, then the first two books, Catch a Ghost and Long Time Gone, are worth a read. However, if you aren’t happy unless every question has been answered then I’d (reluctantly) suggest that you give this series a miss for now.

Easy Listening

I'm relatively new to audio books as a way of reading but I've discovered they are the easiest way to revisit some of your favourite characters. It should be obvious from my previous posts where I've recced audios that in the majority of cases I only listen to an audio once I've read the ebook. I like to form my own opinion of the characters and their actions without being swayed by a narrator. While a good narrator can and should bring a book to life, a bad one can kill it stone dead, and I'd rather give a book a chance to became a favourite because I read it and loved it enough to buy it on audio.

The audio book I want rec this week is Scrap Metal by Harper Fox.

Narrated by Sean Gormley

Is there room for love in a heart full of secrets? One year ago, before Fate took a wrecking ball to his life, Nichol was happily working on his doctorate in linguistics. Now he's hip deep in sheep, mud, and collies. His late brother and mother had been well-suited to life on Seacliff Farm. Nichol? Not so much.
As lambing season progresses in the teeth of an icy north wind, the last straw is the intruder Nichol catches in the barn. He says his name is Cam, and he's on the run from a Glasgow gang. Something about the young man's tired resignation touches Nichol deeply, and instead of giving him the business end of a shotgun, he offers Cam a blanket and a place to stay. Somehow, Cam quickly charms his way through Nichol's defenses and into his heart. Even his grandfather takes to the cheeky city boy, whose hard work and good head for figures help set the farm back on its feet. As the cold Scottish springtime melts into summer, Nichol finds himself falling in love. When tragedy strikes, Cam's resolutely held secret is finally revealed and Nichol must face the truth. He's given his heart away, and it's time to pay the price.

Scrap Metal is one of my favourite Harper Fox novels and I had my concerns about listening to the audio book. The landscape is as much a character as Nic and Cam and I wondered if that sense of place would translate into the spoken word. It does and for that we have to thank Sean Gormley who brings the biting wind, the smell of the grass and heather, warm spring sunshine, the vast bleak beauty of the landscape into this story as much as he brings life to Nic's grief and Cam's guilt and the stubbornness of an old man.

At over 12 hours this is a long audiobook but it is worth every second.

Highly recommended.

Drum Roll Please

I’m thrilled to be able to confirm that I have signed a contract with Dreamspinner Press to publish my latest novel length manuscript New Lease of Life.

It’s a contemporary story set in London. 

I’ll keep you posted throughout the editing processes (probably through Twitter/FaceBook posts) but expected release date is the end of the year.

I'm not the only one who's excited, Colby and Pip are looking forward to sharing their story with you, too.

JMS Books is celebrating

JMS Books is 5 this month and to celebrate all e-books across the board are 30% off. There is much more going on so go and check out the website.

That means you can pick up Waiting for a Spark for $2.09.

Also check out the books by Clare London, Liam Livings, and J L Merrow.

Fiction Friday

Hurrah, another Fiction Friday post. That's three in a row.

I could well call this post Fiction Friday - The English Edition, because there is in influx of British authors here with a lone Australian thrown in.

Let's get the Aussie out of the way first.

Red Dirt Heart (Red Dirt #1) by N.R. Walker - Why, oh why did it take me so long to read this book? And even then it took the rest of the series being on sale to force my hand. I should have known from the blurb alone that I would love this book, and I did. What can I say, apparently I have a weakness for cowboys, even (especially) Australian ones. Five stars!

Now we've dealt with the Aussie (and I hope those words will come as easily when the The Ashes start next week) let's see what delights the Brits had to offer me. Full disclosure, these authors are some of my favourites, their inclusion here shouldn't surprise anybody.

Flashbulb (Flight HA1710 #3) by Clare London - Since a plane crash dominates the entire series this story is more angsty than anything else on the list. Clare throws two very different characters into a situation that drastically changes their lives, saddles them with survivors guilt and psychosomatic illness, and then provides them with an unexpected and surprising lifeline--the fifteen minute quickie that should have meant nothing. I honestly think this is the best thing of Clare London's that I have read. Five stars.

Nothing Special by Jay Northcote - One of those books that you know you are going to reach for when you need a pick me up. Sweet and sexy, with a gorgeous character in Sol.

The Summer House (English Hearts #1) by R.J. Scott - I nearly talked myself into not reading this one. I have other books of RJ's that I still need to read and I have my own village series all mapped out (okay, that's pushing it, vaguely sketched on paper, more solidly mapped in my head). Generally I don't like to read something that is similar to a manuscript that I'm even loosely working on. But the lure was too strong and I succumbed to the cover as much as anything. Connor really pissed me off early in the book but he has his reasons, and both the reader and Ash have to wait patiently for those reasons to be revealed. Ash was a delight and I hope we see more of both of them in the next book.

Nothing Ventured by Jay Northcote - So far this collection of books has been made up of cute, fluffy, low angst reads and I expected more of the same from this one. Was I wrong. This tale of training and no strings sex has more bite than the others. The guys are just having fun but the opportunity for disaster is there, a huge iceberg of emotions waiting to scupper everything, and when it hit there were tears. Mine, although some from the characters as well, I expect. I've really enjoyed this series, and in my opinion they just kept getting better. This one was my favourite. Five + stars.

So many good reads. Now I just need to read the remain Red Dirt books. Luckily, I have them all.