She Hates Me

Happy July 4th to my fellow Americans. I’m spending the holiday writing and making a huge batch of chicken casserole. Oh, and playing Call of Duty with the boys.

Since my last post, I published Right Amount of Wrong and finished up writing Rich S.O.B. for my Bijou pen name. The latter proved tricky because the hero was very different than my normal alpha guys. I took awhile to get his voice just right, but I’m hoping readers enjoy him. Even if they don’t connect with Asher, I had a blast writing him.

Now that Rich S.O.B. is in the feedback stage, I'm plotting new projects. During my author lunches with Shyla, we talk about how to keep from getting burned out on writing (which remains the best job ever!) and variety seems to be the key. 

So I'm working on four main projects, which makes me sound super productive. I’m not, though. I don’t know how many of the four will ever be published. One will for sure since it’s my next Bijou book.

The other three are for new pen names. I’m working on my first dark romance. I guess Gator could be considered dark, but Jake was an anti-hero. The “hero” of the new book is a villain and the story feels more like a thriller than a romance. I’m unsure if I’ll finish it since I can’t even read abduction romances without ending up depressed.

On the other hand, Miranda once suggested my writing felt emotionally muted because I’d gotten used to repressing my feelings during the tough times with Max. It makes sense that I’d lean toward happier, comedic romances for a while, but I think it’s time to safely unleash some of my darker feelings by writing ugly stories. I've even been listening to old rock songs to inspire my inner-bitch to come out in the book.

It’ll be interesting to see if I finish the book. Assuming I do, I have a pen name set up for the dark stuff since my Bijou readers would not appreciate one-clicking something so different than my usual books.

That’s why I redid Lost Highway under a new pen name I'm using for my paranormal books. Along with redoing my old Angela books (eventually), I’m plotting a paranormal romance series with aliens. I have the basic plot organized but paranormal books need a lot of world building especially if I’m setting up a series. It’s still very early in the process, so I’m unsure if I’ll publish the PNR this year.

Finally, I’m writing a few short clean romances since I sometimes don’t want to write sex scenes. They’re Bijou-esque without the sex and cussing. Since many Bijou readers expect boot-knocking in my books, I’ll likely publish under a pen name.

It seems like a lot of work to create new pen names (and it is) but I have a plan to hopefully cut down on the workload of managing so many. Besides, some could end up being like Jorja or Dakota where I rarely use them. So I don’t see a future where I’m rocking more than one pen name at a signing like a couple of chicks I know.

This year, I still have two events scheduled. I had to pull out of a third because it conflicted with RL. I might end up pulling out of the other two too (waiting to see what happens with family health issues), but fingers crossed that I can attend them.

I’ve wanted to attend the Rebels & Readers signing for a few years, but I never got the invite. Hangs head low for being unworthy. I got lucky this year and will head to W.V. in Nov if family issues allow. Next year, the organizers are planning for a smaller venue and fewer authors, meaning I likely won’t get the nod. I mean, I know I’m awesome (wink, wink), but organizers need to bring in the most popular authors to draw the most readers.

For the next month, I’ll stay close to home (and where it’s air conditioned). Then Luca will start school and I’ll plan for signings and finally the holidays will take up much of my time.

For July, though, I can chill and enjoy my many blessings. I hope everyone is able to do the same!