Flight of the Dragon Queen - Coming Soon!

I love writing for the 1Night Stand series, as there's an infinite number of stories to be told, all while following the stated guidelines. They're addictive! So I'm thrilled to announce I signed a contract for my next contribution, Flight of the Dragon Queen (unofficial subtitle: Thea Plays Too Many Video Games). Here, have a blurb:

For his entire life, Caleb has always been more comfortable surrounded by books and games than other people. He contacts Madame Eve when 1Night Stand is recommended to him, but is too shy to actually meet any of the women she finds for him. Together, they reach a workable solution: a simulated dating experience in a setting reminiscent of his favorite stories.

After following Madame Eve’s instructions, Caleb finds himself in a vivid fantasy world, complete with a damsel in distress who needs rescuing. His objective is clear, but he must find a way around the many obstacles standing between him and Alizeira, the mysterious woman imprisoned in an underground cell. Familiar tropes and a colorful cast of characters enhance—or impede—his journey, from a short-tempered guard captain (and his equally temperamental horse) to a one-eyed “herbalist” who expresses annoyance whenever anyone calls her a witch.

While working on his plans to save her, Caleb spends time getting to know Alizeira beyond her role as prisoner, and a mutual attraction develops between them. He is unsure whether she’s a real person playing a part like him, or if she’s simply one piece of the elaborate simulation that’s been programmed for his date. Setting her free is the first step to discovering the truth, but how many secrets is Alizeira hiding?

And the Mother of the Year Award Goes To....

Massive understatement time: Things change when you have babies. I'm very lucky in that I have two pretty easygoing ones, but obviously we're still working out our routines. There are some days when bedtime (for the adults) rolls around and I think "What did I even DO all day?"

But! It's not all baby, all the time around here. We've been doing a decent job of keeping up with the DVR, and as I mentioned in a recent post, we managed to knock out the third season of Orange is the New Black in a timely fashion. I've been knitting here and there, and the heat is a contributing factor of why I haven't been doing that as much lately. AND! I've even been writing a bit. Not as much as I did pre-babies (or, let's be real here, pre-pregnancy), and there are definitely days where I don't write a single word, but still! There has been some writing!

One baby has a tendency to be a little fussier than her sister and sometimes demands to be held, as babies have been known to do. Sometimes that happens just as I'm getting on a good writing roll, but hey, three-month-olds aren't known for their timing. The other night, I had just gotten into the swing of things when Miss Fussypants started squawking, and it was my turn to pick her up. I'm getting pretty damn awesome at doing things while holding babies at the same time...but I was up to a sex scene. Awkward.

I think I've mentioned before on here that I'm the type of writer who needs to write in order. I thought about jumping to another scene while the baby wiggled around and fell asleep on me, but it didn't happen. Oh well, I thought. I'll continue it/finish up tomorrow.

Then, naturally, the same exact thing happened at the same time. The words had just started flowing when one of the little people needed my attention. (The same one, if you're interested.) So I picked her up, got her snuggled on me, looked at my computer screen with the cursor blinking expectantly....

And I did it. I wrote a sex scene while holding my infant daughter.

Okay, okay, plenty of parents have done worse. (The two of us have probably already done worse in the past three months.) I'm not ashamed of what I write, and it's not like she's going to remember it anyway. And it was a very "healthy" sex scene - filled with enthusiastic consent and contraception and all those good things I hope to teach my daughters about. (When they're 40. Just kidding.) 

As I said, things change. We'll find our new normal eventually. And I probably still have a couple years before I have to start being really careful about what words of mine they can see on the computer screen.

Promo - An Alien to Love, by Jessica E. Subject

Fellow sci-fi romance author Jessica E. Subject has a new collection out, and this time there's an awesome giveaway to help celebrate! I read Another Night, Another Planet a ways back, and it was super adorable and romantic, so I'm more than happy to help spread the word about this great compilation. Check out the teasers and don't forget to enter the giveaway!

Buy Links:

Amazon US | UK | Canada | Australia | Germany

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About the Author:

Jessica E. Subject is the author of contemporary and science fiction romance, ranging from sweet to erotic. In her stories, you could meet clones, or a sexy alien or two. You may even be transported to another planet for a romantic rendezvous. 

When Jessica isn't reading, writing, or doing dreaded housework, she likes to get out and walk with her giant, hairy dog her family adopted from the local animal shelter.

Jessica lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband and two energetic children. And she loves to hear from her readers. You can find her at jessicasubject.com and on twitter @jsubject.

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To celebrate the release of AN ALIEN TO LOVE, and four years published, Jessica E. Subject is hosting a contest for a $25 e-gift certificate from Amazon.com or All Romance eBooks. Enter using the Rafflecopter widget placed below, or follow the link.

Please Note: Contest is international. No substitutions can be made. Must be 18 or over to enter. Void where prohibited by law. Good luck!

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Jumping on a Bandwagon

Heyo! I'm alive, the babies are wonderful, but blogging and writing has taken a bit of a backseat, as I expected. Also, I am apparently a masochist, since I let myself be talked into doing some work from home earlier than I expected. Meh, I might have gone back for a few days this summer anyway. I'm hoping to finish up this big assignment tomorrow, and then I might actually get a chance to write! I've been poking around at some fanfic here and there, but my fingers are getting itchy and knowing myself, I'll probably jump right into a new original project and pretend that I'll get it done in a timely fashion.

Although I don't have much to report on the writing front, I didn't want to completely abandon my site, and I did come across something fun and relevant to blog about. A popular topic/question in author interviews is "dream casting" our books and stories - like if all our dreams came true and our work inspired a huge Hollywood blockbuster, who would play the starring roles? It's a fun game to play, and sometimes the answers come more easily than others.

Throughout the years, I've never been able to find a suitable actress that matched my vision of my beloved Ro, from Disintegration and the upcoming The Fall of the Midnight Scorpions. I've tossed around some ideas with friends, but no one ever felt quite right. Until....

Like many other people, I spent last week watching the new season of Orange is the New Black. Anyone who's spent any time on the internet since then has likely noticed all the attention actress Ruby Rose has gotten due to her role on the show. I wouldn't say I completely loved her storyline, but I can definitely appreciate her charisma and appeal. And while I watched, I found myself thinking that I might have finally found my Ro. Sure, she might have a few too many tattoos to be 100% accurate, but the rest all fits. So who cares about hype and popularity? I'm fine with jumping on the Ruby Rose bandwagon!

My Mother's Day Excuse

It's been about a month since my last post, but this time there's an excellent reason - four weeks ago, the twins decided to make an early appearance! In the middle of the night, of course, because that's when all the chaos and drama always happens, right? Despite being two months early, they are doing extremely well, and should be coming home this week or next. (Cue the "oh god, what have I done" panic now.)

For privacy reasons, I'm not going to share too many details, but I will say that both girls share a name with strong female fictional characters I admire and appreciate. (I don't want to say "named after", as that's a little intense, and Mr. Landen probably doesn't have the same connection to those characters as I do...instead, I say their names are "inspired by". ;) ) And when I say "strong", I don't necessarily mean physically, though both can hold their own in a fight - they're also confident, passionate, determined women who stand up for what's right. I don't think me finding those traits admirable means I'm setting the bar too high or putting too much pressure on my new daughters. At least I hope not....

Anyway, I obviously haven't written anything in a while. I'm filled with IDEAS! and I swear I will put them down on paper (or type them in a document, rather) eventually. For now, though, I'll be letting something else prevent me from falling asleep at night.

Happy Mother's Day!