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100 things #18, like the subject says, the night time brain muggings. Does this happen to any one else? You lie down to go to bed then suddenly out of nowhere here comes a brand new character with a brand new story idea and you are NOT going to sleep until they tell you everything.

It happens to me all the time. Sometimes I get back and write it down. Sometimes I just let my brain decide for itself if it wants to hang on to something. Sometimes it does, others well points to my icon.

Last night's mugging is still locked in there so maybe it'll be a go. Fantasy piece, I can see three characters clearly, the young mage: he's in charge of the princess's welfare (and trusted with her virtue more or less because he has no interest in women), the princess: outspoken, inquisitive, not about to sit around the throne room doing nothing and a young ex-slave from some forgotten war and country, homeless, selling himself.

All I know is he pitches in to help when he sees highwaymen trying to kill the mage and princess and they reward him with a place to sleep and food only to get him caught up in some kind of intrigue that involves going on the run.

Ah brain muggings.

A short pause to remember the fallen and all those who have served. Thank you very much. It means more than I can say.



And a longest excerpt from my Wounded Warrior story. Aaron is talking to his psychiatrist about why he hasn't gotten physical with his new boyfriend (i.e. his scars). It mentions two real organizations that could always use more recognition and donations, Operation Wolfhound and the Wounded Warrior Project.

"It’s not easy to be gay in the military. I’d rather not talk about it with them. I enjoy my time with them and if I say something and it isn’t taken well, I lose out on something that I know is helping me. I can talk to you and Corinne about my love life.”

“Fair enough. I’m glad you’re taking these steps. They’re very important ones for you.”

He bobbed his head. “I’m stressed but I’m happy. He’s really fun and cute.” Aaron grinned.

“That’s promising.” She took a smaller notepad off her desk and wrote on it. “I know you’re not ready for this organization yet but I thought you might like to look into them.”

He peered at the note. “Operation Wolfhound?”

“They provide borzois for veterans with PTSD. You’d have to be in a house with a yard though.”

“It’s a big dog like my mom’s Bruno. Mom would like for me to move back out there to the farm but I need to get more competent with driving since I’d be working in the city. Thanks though. I’m very interested in it. I love dogs.”

“You’ve mentioned that which is why I thought this would be a good fit for you. It seems like a small group at the moment but it wouldn’t hurt to keep an eye on it.”

Aaron bobbed his head. “I’ll bring it up in my Wounded Warriors meeting, too. Someone there might benefit as well. Thanks, Doc.”

100 things #17, the music moves you

I wanted to write something for today but I’ve been busy being depressed. I did put on some music to sit down and write and thought well, that makes a half way decent blog post. I’m not one who writes well in silence at all. And sometimes it’s downright helpful to have music that reflects my characters.

I’m sure others do this. I know people make soundtracks for their characters. I do as well. Right now I don’t have to. Anything by Beausoliel works for Luc, my Cajun vampire. Just putting it on now takes me back to when I started getting into Cajun music in the early 90’s. My medical career was just taking off and I was thirty with a bright future. In the silence lies the little voice that says so much for those dreams.

But that has nothing to do with writing. The music, it does put me in the right frame of mind for writing. Luc is young and beaten down. The times he comes alive before he falls into Arrigo’s care is at the Fais-do-do. In the original version of this story we see Luc at the dance but nearly two decades later and way way WAY too many vampires in New Orleans stories, I moved them to Vegas. So, no Fais-do-do’s other than in his own apartment. I can easily see him trying to teach Arrigo to dance to it. With Beausoliel blaring out of my speakers, I can see Luc brilliantly and I know what he needs to do.

I have a ton of modern swing and original 1930’s music queued up for writing my demon hunters. Temple, especially, likes to dance. It’s very helpful to me to let the sax and trumpets wave over me and carry me back to a time my grandparents were young. I can see what that foursome is up to as clear as if they were standing in the room with me.

Other characters are harder to find music for such as Hikaru and Liam. Hikaru hides out in the steampunk stylings of Abney Park but Liam is probably a ‘whatever’s on the radio’ kind of guy. He doesn’t form up in my head as well to music.

So what do you write to? Does it change with your characters? Is it pure still silence?

apropos of nothing does anyone know if you can edit a blurb on goodreads or add a note? It never occurred to me when I approved the blurb (and it SHOULD have) that you can't tell from the blurb to The Darkest Midnight in December that it's m/m erotica. I've had other publications like that and saw some low rating because people were upset that they didn't know what they were getting into.

These six sentences are from my wounded warrior story and keeping with the honoring our veterans theme for Memorial Day weekend. Aaron is talking to his psychiatrist in this scene.

How are you coping outside of school?”

A flush rose up Aaron’s face and he glanced away mumbling, “I’m seeing someone.”

“What was that?”

He could hear a subtle hint of glee in her tone. “I have a boyfriend.” Aaron bit his bottom lip.

Attended my first Dreamspinner night at Loves Romance cafe chat and it went very well I think. My novella (releases this wed!) got a few more to-be-reads and I added a few other books to my own pile.

And here is a little more from my wounded warrior story. This excerpt deals with PTSD and phantom pain.

Loud shrieks grated his throat raw. Only when he realized his flailing fist was hitting something meaty did Aaron’s fractured reality start fitting back together. Tears flooded down his face as he dragged in ragged gulps past his tortured throat. His whole body hurt, his arm especially.

“You’re all right, Aaron. You’re safe,” Sebastian said, holding Aaron fast. “It’s just a dream.”

Aaron blinked rapidly, realizing the bedside lamp had been turned on. A trickle of blood pooled in the corner of Sebastian’s mouth. “I…I hit you,” he stammered through his tears.

“It’s fine.” Sebastian let go with one arm so he could wipe at his split lip. “It was an accident.”

“God, oh god, my arm hurts.” Aaron tried to rub the most painful area, grabbing nothing but air. “Damn, hurts so much.” He squeezed his eyes shut against the waves of pain, as agonizing as the moment his arm had been torn from his body.

“Is there anything I can do?” Sebastian rubbed Aaron’s back.

He shook his head, settling back into Sebastian’s embrace. The pain and fear slowly ebbed.

{Take the 100 Things challenge!}

( 100 things #16, A rose by any other name )

Also since it IS Memorial Day weekend and the story mentioned under the cut is about a wounded soldier, I thought I'd share a few excerpt this weekend. Enjoy.

(Aaron has lost his arm and is a pilot study of for the DEKA arm).

“People are looking at you.” Sebastian jerked his head toward the pack of Cub Scouts. “That has to get old.”

“It does, but I understand it. I’m more bothered by the adults who sort of pull their kids close as if they need to shield them from me, like I’m a rogue cyborg out to shred children.” Aaron frowned. This was so not want he wanted to talk about on this date. “Sorry, that came out way more bitter than I wanted.”

{Take the 100 Things challenge!}

( 100 things #15, plot problems )10

publishing with Harlequin

Since I talked about Carina press last night, I thought I'd share this. It came across in one of the blog hops I've seen and it was a less than stellar report about publishing with Harlequin. Personally I've never done just pure romance stories. They're not my thing but at one point I considered it (this would be late 80's early 90s) and there was a list of must haves and must not haves that made me put it aside.

That's why I was happy to see Carina press has very little in the way of that kind of thing. I don't know if all the stuff in the above mentioned blog would apply to Carina but I guess a look at their contract would clue me in (or maybe they have an author's info packet. I didn't look that closely last night.

A sexier moment from my upcoming novella The Darkest Midnight in December

( Temple and Li )


And here's something I found interesting. Even though a friend had pointed out Carina press to me before, I hadn't realized it did both het and gay romance and the SF/UF/Fantasy subgenres with very little romance in them. It's something to look at.