8th Anniversary Celebration!

It's the 8th birthday of Torquere Press!

In honor of this momentous occasion the fine folks at Torquere are holding a Lucky 8 Ball contest. By taking part in a scavenger hunt of authors' webpages and blogs (in which yours truly is participating ;)) you will have the chance to win fabulous prizes, including a Kindle! So, pop on over to the contest site and start scavenging!

Vacation, relocating, and anniversaries... oh my!

Holy, crazy, last few weeks.

Some really big things are coming up for me! First, it's finally time for my long-awaited summer vacation! I'm heading to Germany for two weeks to visit a friend. I'm so excited. I'm certain to come back with many plot bunnies wearing lederhosen. ;)

After I get back from my trip my life is in for a major overhaul. I've been offered an amazing new job that will be fantastic for my career (y'know, the career that pays the bills), but it requires me to relocate. So, in about a month I'll be boxing up my life, leaving Boston, and moving back down to Washington, DC. I lived there for about a year when I was in grad. school a while back, so it's a familiar place and I still have great friends in the area. It's still a huge change.... but a completely exciting one. It just means that for the next few months my life will be slightly crazed and stressful. It'll totally be worth it though. Let's just hope I can find some time for writing in there somewhere so my characters don't think I've completely abandoned them. ;)

Speaking of characters and writing, I have added a new works in progress page, so check it out to see what I have in the pipeline. Also, Torquere Press has an 8th anniversary celebration coming up! Starting in September Torquere will have some fun things going on including an author webpage scavenger hunt in which I'm taking part! So, keep your eyes peeled on the Torquere Press website come September for details.

Now, I have to get back to haphazardly throwing things in the direction of my suitcase. *grins*

My last post was when?!

*looks at last blog post date*

*looks at calendar*

*looks back at last blog post date*

Seriously?! Have I really not updated my blog since February?! 

Wow. I'm pretty sure I deserve a spanking. LOL

So, the job that actually pays my bills has been running me into the ground. And, I had some writer's block issues. And, I'm trying to find a new job (hopefully) that won't make me want to bang my head repeatedly against a wall. So, things have been busy... just not hugely productive on the writing front.

BUT.... that doesn't mean that things haven't been looking up of late. I'm currently working on three things. First, there's a novel (my first!!! *does a dance*), where I'm this close to typing 'The End.' Then of course there's the multitude of edits, revisions, re-writes.... but let's take things one step at a time, shall we? I'm also working on a novella (which if it goes the way I'm envisioning it will actually be a paranormal series of sorts... but perhaps it's too early to say much more). And, finally, there is a short story about a sandwich (okay, so it's about two men... but there is a sandwich, and it does play a crucial role in the plot). 

There are, of course, a few other things rolling around in my head like dust bunnies or that have very cursory outlines/beginnings, but the three things I mentioned above are getting first priority. (Unless a new plot bunny and new characters start screaming in my head to be written immediately, and NO, they will not wait! And yes, this has been known to happen... ;p) 

Maybe I'll make it a project this weekend to add a WIP page to my blog. That would be good. So, even if I don't have anything new coming out people can see what the hell I'm up to. ;)

More info on WIPs soon. (Really, I promise!!) 

Love,

Lily

Forces of Nature reviewed over at Brief Encounters

It's always so nice when an older story gets some review attention. 


Since Forces of Nature was my first published story it will always hold a special place in my heart and the characters, Drew and Evan, are quite precious to me. I love the idea that friends can become lovers and adore when opposites attract.

Jenre had some lovely things to say about it over at  Brief Encounters Reviews. 

In to the awkward phase...

So, my last release was in December. Now it's the middle of February. I don't have any manuscripts pending publication or even subbed. I sort of think of this as the awkward phase of writing. I'm currently writing two things, one novel and one novella, but neither one is anywhere near completion. I feel good that I'm finally tackling a novel length story. And, I'm encouraged that the muses are whispering so furiously in my ear that I couldn't bear to just work on one thing at a time. That has to be a good sign. But on the other hand, I just somehow want *poof* one of the stories I'm working on to magically appear fully formed onto the page so I can get on with it and hopefully get it published, so I can finally share it with you.

I'm like a five year old sitting in the back of my parents' car so excited to get to where we're going that I can't help but ask "Are we there yet?!" every two seconds. That's what it feels like when I'm writing. I think I need to remember that I'm an adult now, not five, and that I should take time to enjoy the scenery. Because that's why I started writing in the first place wasn't it? Not because I was desperate to finally see the finished product in print, but simply because I loved the process. I loved writing. I loved creating. It was never about 'getting published.' In fact, it's only been very recently that working with editors, and publishing, and marketing have become a part of my life. I guess I'm just so excited to show people what I've been working on. Patience has never been one of my virtues. hehe.

I'm probably getting close to half way done with the first draft of my novel. The main characters, Kyle and Emory, have become very near and dear to my heart already. Especially Emory. In the novella I'm working on I'm experimenting with flashbacks, so I'm having fun trying something new.

I wish I was a faster writer. I wish there were more hours in the day and that I didn't have to spend so many of the hours that I am afforded at the day job and taking care of other things. Seriously... does someone want to come and clean my apartment for me? But, c'est la vie. Time will march forward and I will complete my next story... when I complete it. That's the best I can do, and it'll have to be good enough.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll get back to awkwardly working away on my stories. ;)

Aftermath

Wow. It's 2011. Christmas came and went. And An Angel for Christmas was published three weeks ago. Absolute craziness.

2010 was an incredible year. It was the year I became a published author. I can only hope that 2011 turns out even better. I can't complain. Life is pretty good.

The feedback I've received regarding An Angel for Christmas has been amazing. There is always a moment of panic when a new release comes out. I grit my teeth, squeeze my eyes shut, and pray that people like it. The comments I've received from readers have meant so much to me and I'm just over the moon about how people are responding to the story. There have also been some wonderful reviews written up and I can't thank the reviewers enough for taking the time to so thoughtfully critique my novella. Kassa wrote a guest review over at Jessewave, Lisa wrote some lovely things over at Michele 'n Jeff reviews, and Tam, who was so kind in the past to review Just a Summer Fling, was fantastic enough to mention this release as well over at her blog.

Read what they had to say:

Jessewave Reviews

Michele 'n Jeff Reviews

Tam's Reads

I must now indulge in a brief moment of fangirling. Of course authors want review sites to write reviews of their book. And, of course they want those reviews to be good ones. It's one of the best ways to get the word out about a new release and to get people excited about it so they will hopefully buy it. There are a gazillion review sites out there and a lot of them are very good. But Jessewave Reviews is arguably the biggest (and in my opinion, the absolute best) M/M Romance review site. I always thought that if I got a book reviewed on that site I had 'officially made it.' Perhaps silly, but, there you go. So, I basically had a minor heart attack when I found that my very own Christmas novella was reviewed there by none other than Kassa. I have followed Kassa's reviews for a while-- on her livejournal, Goodreads, and on Jessewave. I have always loved Kassa's reviews. She isn't afraid to write a bad review and she always says exactly what she thinks. After reading one of her reviews I feel I can really decide if a book is for me or not. Sometimes I find that review sites almost loose their meaning because every book reviewed gets a 4 or 5 star rating. Kassa is tough, though... and I mean that as the highest compliment. I feel that getting a 4 star rating from her really means something and I feel so flattered that she reviewed my story. 

Now that release day has come and gone and the holidays are over I feel as though I can finally draw a breath. I've been so busy, but it's been a good busy. The only down side to all that busy is that writing has fallen by the way side. I can always tell when I've been neglecting my writing because the characters in my head start clamoring for attention and become very impatient with me. ;) A trip next week will find me soaking up rays on a tropical beach (yay!), but once I return to the wintry Northeast (hopefully with a tan!!) I simply can't wait to pull up my laptop and get back into my writing. 

My upmost gratitude goes to the lovely folk at Torquere Press who made my dreams of becoming a published author come true and my heartfelt thanks to my readers. Thank you for allowing me to share my stories with you.

I wish everyone a happy, prosperous, and fulfilling 2011!!

Love, 

Lily