We haven’t met yet so I need to ask you to read the following sentence and withhold judgement until the end of the post, okay? Ready? Here goes: My goal in life is to find my authentic self and live my truth. I know, I know, that’s about the most stereotypical LA thing that has ever been said. It could only be more clichéd if I’d mentioned traffic on the freeway making me late for my yoga class in the Whole Foods cleanse aisle. But it’s true. I want to live every day being honest with myself. This is exactly why I write young adult paranormal romance. The characters I create are strong, brave, sexy, and always have a witty retort ready to shoot back at anyone who gets in their way. Basically, THEY’RE ALL THE THINGS I’M NOT and that’s why I love writing them! YA paranormal romance allows me to live vicariously through confident, no nonsense girls who wouldn’t let a bully (human or otherwise) come between them and their goal. A horrifying creature chases you through the woods? No problem—find a clearing and stand your ground. Obnoxious demons trying to get the better of you? Don’t sweat…

No, that’s not a euphemism. It’s an actual job and my heroine, Clover Lee, in THE NEGOTIATOR has held the position along with a ton of other weird temp jobs. “She’d done time as a snake milker—don’t ask; smiled for pictures as a paid bridesmaid—bridezillas, she’d known a few; bellied up to the table as a dog food taster—think stale crackers with a funky aftertaste; learned the true benefit of good arch support as a professional line stander—always in the rain or the cold or the blazing heat; and distilled the mysteries of the universe as a fortune cookie writer. Clover had done it all to pay the bills, have some excellent adventures, and stay as far away from the small town of Sparksville as possible.” So, of course, when she sees this job ad, there’s no way she’s not answering it—out of pure curiosity if nothing else. I mean, come on. What in the world kind of job is persona buffer? WANTED: PERSONAL BUFFER Often snarly, workaholic, demanding executive seeks short-term “buffer” from annoying outside distractions AKA people. Free spirits with personal boundary issues, excessive quirks, or general squeamishness need not apply. Salary negotiable. Confidentiality required. The idea for…

In WOLF BITE, released in July 2014, Mason Clayborne heard the sound of a familiar woman being mugged—pursuing the sound he raced into an alleyway in Dallas, Texas, in time to see Alexis Huston breaking the nose of her would-be assailant. Coming face to face with his past dropped a pebble into the still waters, and those ripples would become a tidal wave. The wave would gather force as the ripples spread out to include wolves like A.J., abandoned by his previous alpha and left to stew in a prison, and Owen, the senior Hunter whose love for a journeyman healer drove him to follow her to another pack when Hudson River needed her help. Mason’s relationships with other alphas like Brett and Serafina opened the door to new challenges and changes for more than only Willow Bend. With each subsequent novel, we journeyed to the five different packs and even met an alpha from Italy. Each arc from Rise of the Alpha (books 1-3), Dawn of Three Rivers (book 4-6), Wolves of Change (Books 7-9) to Guardians of the Wolves (Books 10-12), has played a role in the evolution of a world which brings us to GHOST WOLF. I…

This might be a strange confession coming from a woman who just finished the third book in a series featuring emergency responders, but I am useless in an emergency, (unless you need someone to freak out, pass out, or possibly both—then I’m your girl). I’m even useless in fake emergencies. A while back some friends booked an escape room adventure called “Cold War Bunker” where we got locked in a room and had to solve a bunch of puzzles in order to stop the countdown clock on a nuclear bomb, and free ourselves. Oh, my God, you guys…I couldn’t even figure out how to turn on the stupid lights. Granted, I’d had four margaritas, but still. That countdown clock worked my nerves. By the halfway point, I was pounding on the door and begging to be sprung. (Fun fact that might have been good to know before I imbibed four margos—no potty in the Cold War Bunker). I think this personal failing on my part accounts for why I love a hero who can keep his head together under pressure. The kind of guy that hears, “Houston, we have a problem,” and calmly replies, “Let’s work the problem.” That’s Shane…

Pets have always been a popular feature in romance and women’s fiction—dogs in particular—but it’s much less common to have wild animals be a part of these books. In BAY SONG, my heroine, Holly, is a recluse who lives completely alone on the Chesapeake Bay on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. She has a big wooded property, and her only companions are the wild animals who live on her land, so the animals end up being a big part of the book. A couple of years ago, I moved to a small town in the country. It’s in the mountains, surrounded by woods, so wild animals are really part of this town. Deer come by at night and eat the apples that fall off my tree. Rabbits, birds, squirrels, and chipmunks hang out on my patio. And I go by the pond a few time a week to feed the ducks and geese that live there. There are mallards, Canadian geese, and the occasional wood duck—plus the domesticated geese and ducks who call the pond home, including one adorably ugly Muscovy duck who begs for food just like a dog. I wrote BAY SONG shortly after I moved to this…

When I told people I wanted to be an author, it wasn’t as though I had told them I wanted to be the next big movie star and they’d say, “Good luck with that.” No, they’d smile and say, “I want a copy of your first book,” even if they’d never read anything I’d written. That’s the thing about writing…people see it as an attainable goal, because you can do it anywhere. You don’t have to move to Hollywood or New York City, you can do it from the comfort of your own home no matter what city you live in. However, just like with any calling or dream, you have to work at it. When I got to the age where I could really dive into my writing, I didn’t know where to start. So the following are things to do if you’re just beginning your writing journey. Read I’ll admit that sometimes when I read books by my favorite authors, I feel pangs of jealousy because I think I’ll never be as good of a writer as they are. However, by reading their books, I get great ideas and it pushes me to become a better writer. Practice…

We are passing on this AutoCrit excellent blog, with permission from Jocelyn, for your perusal. Ever watched a movie that was so packed full of non-stop action it left you feeling breathless? Exhilarated, maybe… but disconnected from the characters – unable to learn much about them amidst the constant stream of explosions, car chases and death-defying peril? Or have you ever read a story where the author droned on for so long about their characters’ thoughts, feelings, family history, and childhood until you thought please… please just let something – anything – happen? If so, you’ve more than likely encountered a problem with pacing. Read the rest…

Sex! Now that I have your attention, I’d like to talk about my aspirations and inspirations in the world of romance. Please bear with me. I promise my lurid tactic isn’t entirely deceptive. In talking about my experience in the world of romantic lore, sexuality is a big part of it. With that in mind, I hope I still have your attention. My name is Jack Fisher. I’m an aspiring writer with a passion for intimate romance. I hope to turn that passion into a tangible product with my first book for Totally Bound, “Passion Relapse.” Before I go about celebrating those passions though, I’d like to provide some context. I’ve been an avid writer for over half my life now. I basically started writing as a hobby when I was 15-years-old and I’ve been writing every day, in some form or another. In fact, I often build my schedule around the times I work on my writing. Considering my early life, that’s actually a pretty dramatic shift. Growing up in the Washington DC area, I wasn’t initially fond of writing or reading, for that matter. In school, I dreaded any homework assignment that involved a lot of reading and…

My husband and I are currently planning the biggest trip of our lives – China! And I have to admit, I’m a basket case. What if I forget something vital? What if I get lost in the Hong Kong airport? What if I accidentally order fish-head soup and we run out of Immodium? The heroine of my latest book, THE CHOCOLATE COMEBACK, the spoiled fashion model DeeDee Cash, gets her comfort zone expanded dramatically when she takes a job caring for Mark, a young man with Down syndrome. DeeDee rises to the challenge famously – but not without butting heads with Mark’s handsome and overprotective brother, Isaac, of course. THE CHOCOLATE COMEBACK, released April 6, is part of the Love at the Chocolate Shop multi-author series by Tule Publishing and readers are eating it up! 😊 Here’s a teaser for you: DeeDee wasn’t what Isaac was looking for. Well, Isaac Litton wasn’t what she was looking for, either. She wanted something that would pay off her credit card bills and keep her occupied when she wasn’t working her other job. She did not want to deal with a sternly rumpled big brother in faded jeans that rode his hips like…

“Write what you know.” The sentiment is probably as old as writing itself. Yet how does it translate into a futuristic romance filled with aliens? Sometimes I find myself writing about things I know little about. Take the fifth book in my Clans of Kalquor series, ALIEN SLAVE. The initial inspiration for that book had absolutely nothing to do with any personal knowledge of mine. Alien sex slave auctions have no bearing whatsoever with my real life. No, really. Never been near one. At any rate, the auction scene did not make it into ALIEN SLAVE. But it did lead to the setting of a brothel, along with a sex worker named Dani Watson. Again, a situation I have no direct experience with. I promise. My closest encounter with a brothel was watching the old movie, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. Yet I always base a part of my heroines on some piece of myself. Sometimes it’s a not-so-good part of me, a little nugget o’ Tracy I’m not terribly proud of. Dani’s impulsiveness was based on my own, an impulsiveness that led her to the terrible decision to sign on as a brothel worker on an alien planet….