Rollin' rollin' rollin'...

Things are rolling along with I Am The Alpha and I'm quite pleased with it. AJ held it for a week or so while she read through and made adjustments to the story. Filling in and fleshing out portions of it where it was needed. 

It's now in my hands and I am doing the same. And that's what I love about this collaboration. It isn't she wrote her parts and I wrote mine and we just slap them together. No. We've both tweaked and adjusted each others writing so the whole book should read as a seamless whole from beginning to end. 

I'm more than half way through with my revision and very excited for the May 12th cover reveal that we've got planned. I'll post links to where this will be as soon as I've got them. We'll be having author interviews and blog spots coming up between then and August as well. Maybe even a takeover event. 

Anyone interested should keep checking here or on my Facebook page for updates. 

https://www.facebook.com/authorryankells?__nodl

Back to the grindstone! Books don't write themselves. Yet. 

Omega's Run

Just a quick update today.

I Am The Alpha is in revision stage, AJ and I, going back and forth on that and it's been a fun process. But I can't sit still. So while she's got IATA, I have started work on the second book in the trilogy, 'Omega's Run'.

I'm quite looking forward to this second chapter in the world of the Wolf-kind and things are getting started with a bit of fun and some violence that should set the tone for the rest of the novel.

Because once you've become Omega, what do you have left to lose?

Back to work.

UPDATE!!!

Quick update for ya, gang.  Last night at about 11:30 pm I polished off the final chapter and the epilogue for the collaborative project I'm writing with AJ Downey. 19 days to write 80k in the total word count and it's a GOOD book. I'm all excited and not just because of the amazing sex scenes.

Now comes the hard part. Editing. *shudders*

Later peoples!

Fear of...

Hello, Ladies and Germs. 

A thought has been percolating through the twit recesses of my mind in recent weeks. In the last two and a half weeks I have been more productive in my writing than I have been in the past several months before that. I think November was the last time I was really productive on my writing. 

And I've been wondering why. I mean, I could blame family troubles, work troubles, financial troubles, and any number of other things for my lack of motivation or willingness to let days slide by me without doing any writing at all. And, truth be told there are times when these things happen. But that doesn't explain ALL the time that has been wasted that could have been spent writing. 

If I had been writing at the pace I've been working over the last 18 days I would probably have between three and five completed books in revision and editing stages. Instead,  I have one that I finished the first draft of just before starting this collaborative project with AJ Downey. 

But Why? Seriously. Why do we, and I include other writers in this, why do we tend to procrastinate? Not all of us of course because I know some individuals that write a ridiculous amount. Mind Boggling. Really.  So why?

I think I've hit on an answer. At least the answer for me. 

There are two reasons for me, personally, to find excuses to avoid writing and finishing the projects that I have begun. 

Number one. Fear of Failure. It should be the title of a medical condition. Fear of Failure. If I work on this and if I finish it, what if I fail? What if it doesn't do well or people don't like it? I'll have wasted all that time and effort I put into it. I don't want to do that, right? 

Forget it. Fear of Failure is a crock. Yeah. One might fail. Something might not be well received. Something might not be loved by the masses. Big deal. Was writing to be a smash success the only reason you were writing? If that's true then get out now. You're in the wrong business, Cupcake.

Reason number two for procrastinating in my writing. Fear of Success. 

Yes, Fear of Success, another medical term (or it should be). I wrote this book. I published this book. It's a HUGE smash. Everyone loves it. I've got fans sending me letters about how much they enjoyed my work. 

Well now what? Now I should write another book. But now the bar has been set higher. People are going to expect another book to be just as good as the first, if not better. If it's not as good will I lose the fans I gained? Will people send me hate mail instead of fan mail? Now, a failure won't affect just me, there are people with expectations that I just might disappoint and that's a difficult thing to face.

Well I have decided that this is a crock too. I have also decided that I have been terrified to be successful. Especially because I have seen and am still learning just how much work will be required to even start to make a living as a writer. To earn enough money to feed my kids and care for my family and if you don't try it's just easier, right?

Not any more. I would like to take this opportunity to thank AJ Downey for the swift kick in the ass that she delivered to my motivation. I've never felt more positive about myself and my future as a writer. I'm excited for this collaborative book and for the many other books that I have in the works. It's going to be a wild ride and I'm holding on for the whole thing. 

Opportunity

Alright, so you know that phrase when Opportunity knocks you should answer? Well, a little while ago I had exactly that situation happen to me. I mean, there I was, doing some laundry, chatting with my friend AJ Downey and more or less bemoaning the fact that I wasn't thrilled with how my first foray into the paranormal romance arena wasn't going as well as I would like it to. I was trying it in third person and it just wasn't flowing, there was no direction there was no- hello!

Next thing I know she's throwing question after question at me about the characters, the story, the overall plan etc and then she's suddenly emailing me my first chapter from the first person perspective of the heroine, Chloe.

What the hell? Did i just stumble ass over tea-kettle into a collaborative writing project the likes of which I have never attempted or even considered before?

Why yes, yes I have. And it has been glorious. This Thursday April 9th will be two weeks, fourteen days exactly since we started this project and we're more than fifty thousand words into the writing and the characters are becoming rich and vibrant. Some of them you love, some you love to hate, and others you just want to see die a horrible death for their crimes. I absolutely LOVE it.

And I was almost going to try to talk AJ down. I appreciated her wanting to help but for a half a moment I wanted to be stubborn, I like to do things myself even when I need help and so far that hasn't gotten me far. I've more troubles than I can handle because I didn't accept help, but who doesn't have trouble in their life, right? So for once, I decided to swallow my pride and accept a helping hand when it was offered and I have to say it is probably one of the smartest decisions I have made in my entire life.

'I Am The Alpha', is growing into a much better and much stronger story than I envisioned when I first got the idea some four years ago. And I sat on it. I left it, percolating in the back of my mind because I was afraid to start it.

And why?

Because there is a stigma, a toxic cloud that surrounds the very idea of a male writer in the romance and erotica genres. And there is the crux of our problem. My reproductive organs dangle, vulnerable to a swift kick in the pride. But what difference should a chromosome or reproductive organs really make in the long run?

I understand the concern. Men are, as a whole, a touch less mature and in touch with their emotional states than the average woman. Yeah, we're testosterone fueled and we'll typically choose smashing away a problem like the Hulk before we'd talk it out.

But does that mean that we shouldn't be given a chance? Female authors have struggled for decades to be taken seriously and are still frequently overlooked by publishers and by readers in other genres in favor of male writers. That is very much not fair to anyone and I am sure a great many wonderful stories are gathering dust somewhere because the woman that wrote it was told readers wouldn't like that it wasn't written by a man. So why should the reverse be any better?

I believe the writers gender should be second to the quality of the story itself. 'I Am The Alpha' really is shaping up into a fantastic story and I can't wait to give you guys a front row view into the world of the Pacific Northwest Pack.

Cover Reveal: Fractured & Formidable by A.J. Downey

Available for Pre-order, Live 7/1/15!

 

 





She’s Fractured…

Mandy Price is best friends with Everett, the Ol’ Lady to the Sacred Heart’s VP, and roommates with them both… No one would guess that the preacher’s daughter could have such a dark secret, but Mandy had a big one. The product of a broken childhood, Mandy lives a fractured existence. She maintains the outward appearance of normalcy, that everything is just fine, when nothing could be further from the truth. Ever the dutiful daughter, she returns to her father’s church and his table every Sunday. Trouble is, things are growing worse not better as Mandy grows into her own. It’s becoming harder and harder to maintain appearances on a daily basis and Mandy is definitely feeling the strain.

He’s Formidable…

Revelator has had his eye on the innocent redhead from the moment he first saw her. Too much has been getting in the way of him pursuing the angel, prospecting for the club taking up just too damned much of his time. He was fully patched now, still, just when he was getting ready to make a move, that’s when his shop came down around his ears. Faced with rebuilding from the ground up, he’s decided that if he has to start from the beginning, he might as well go all in. If starting over is what has to happen then the life he plans on building from here on out definitely has his Red by his side and no one else’s.

It doesn’t take Rev long to find out what his girl is hiding, and when he does, someone is going to find out just how formidable he can be, not just in body, but in mind and with his brother’s backing…

 

 

 

★•**•.★ Special Announcement Concerning the Release of Fractured & Formidable★•**•.★

 

Hi guys,

 

A.J. Downey here, with a very special announcement concerning Fractured & Formidable, the fifth installment of my Sacred Hearts MC series.

 

In my travels and research as an MC romance author I’ve come across some interesting stories and even more interesting groups and organizations. One such group, B.A.C.A or Bikers Against Child Abuse partially inspired the story for Fractured & Formidable with their good works. That being said, I will be donating half of all pre-order and first month’s sales of Fractured & Formidable to my local B.A.C.A. Lake Washington Chapter which serves the greater Seattle Area.

 

I am not raising the price of Fractured & Formidable in any way, if you are buying my series for the love of my series, all you have to do to support this wonderful cause is one click the title as soon as it goes on preorder or in the first month of its release. That’s it.

 

Thank each and every one of you for reading, and thank you even more for your support in this wonderful cause.

 

Much Love,

XOXO

- A.J.

 

Release Blitz THE SHIELD MAIDEN'S REVENGE by Bibi Rizer

I'm super excited to share the details of the new historical romance The Shield Maiden's Revenge. It's a sexy New Adult Viking revenge tale, with a kick-ass heroine and a brooding hero. What's not to love?

Blurb:

Katla Grímsdóttir has lived with her Viking father’s anger and abuse for all of her eighteen years. And she has watched him mistreat the two people she loves most in the world – her twin sister Gull and their slave “milk brother” Freyvior – until her heart is nothing but fire and steel. When Gull is sold in marriage to one of their father’s brutish warlords, Katla turns that fire and steel into the strength of fury.

She can no longer deny that her love for her beautiful slave Freyvior has changed, nor can she resist her desire to be owned by him, body and soul. But while together they awaken a fierce storm of passion between them, they must also face a violent destiny as they set out to rescue Gull. And first, those who have betrayed and abused them will be made to face the young shield maiden’s long repressed wrath.

 

Excerpt:

Without undressing, he slipped between them, lying on his back and crossing his hands over his chest like a corpse. Gull rolled onto her side, her back to him, and was soon breathing the heavy breaths of the exhausted sleeper.

“I’ll slip out the loose board if your father comes,” Frey said.

Katla rolled onto her side, facing him. She could only see his silhouette against the dying candle on the bench. “That would be advised.”

They both snuffled with laughter.

Frey turned and faced her, reaching up to finger one of her braids. “There’s a fortune in gold and saffron woven in here. Did you know that?”

“What is a fortune to you is pennies to my Father.”

Frey nodded.  “You could buy my freedom with three strands.” He gathered two more braids and twirled them around his fingers.

“I would with all my heart, dear Frey, if Father would permit it.”

Frey dropped her braids, laying his hand instead on her cool cheek. “You would? Then what would you have me do? Leave the village? Sail south and search for my gypsy father? Do you want me to be a free man? Free of you?”

Katla reached up and touched the thin iron collar that marked his enslavement. She might cling to it with all her strength to keep him from leaving her. Or perhaps she could let him go. Or perhaps not. Her mind bounced back and forth, unable to formulate a decision.

“A little slow to answer, mistress.” Frey said, with a sad smile.

Perhaps Katla was able to voice feelings with her eyes that her lips had never managed. Perhaps Frey could somehow hear the words her mind was screaming.

That she would be his slave, happily.

Something changed in Frey’s face as he looked at her. He inhaled sharply and sighed, his lips slightly parted. Without taking his eyes from hers he let his hand slide off her cheek, over her neck, her exposed collarbone. He kept going lower, unlacing her night gown as he did.

“Gull,” Katla whispered. “She’s right there.”

“Asleep.” Frey spoke in a deep authoritative voice. “And you are going to be very quiet.”

***

 

Where to Buy:

Amazon.com

Amazon.UK

Amazon.CA

Goodreads 

About the Author:

Bibi Rizer is a mom, blogger, teacher and writer living in the Pacific Northwest. While she's been writing professionally for many years, romance and erotica are relatively new pursuits.

Bibi likes writing about strong kinky women and brave willing men living in realistic and imperfect worlds. In her spare time Bibi sings Karaoke and hangs around on film sets with child actors. Having the the firm belief that no one can be too weird or too funny, she happily admits that most of her favorite people and characters are both.

Stalk her on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Goodreads or her blog at www.BibiRizer.com.

For sneak peeks, swag, freebies and other fun, consider joining Bibi's Street Team, The Early Rizers.