shaeconnorwrites

Today’s guest post is from Tempeste O’Riley, here to talk about her inspiration for her latest release, Desires’ Guardian. Don’t miss the giveaway link below!

Inspiration and Insanity…

I’ve been asked many times what the inspiration is for a story or for a certain character, and Chase and Rhys are no exception. However, their journeys inspiration was a lot different than that of James and Seth, so I thought I’d talk about Desires’ Guardian and what led to certain parts of the story. In Desires’ Guardian you travel along with Chase Manning and Rhys Sayer as they work through past pains, current fears, and their wobbly attempt at a relationship.

Once I realized that Chase would have his own story—which was about three chapters into Designs of Desire by the way—I knew his partner would have to be just as strong and contrary to what people perceive him as to handle Chase. The whole time I worked on Designs of Desire I had that thought in the back of my mind, as well as Chase’s development as James’s story progressed.

And before you ask, yes, I knew the secret of Chase’s past long before I began Desires’ Guardian. When I created Rhys, the character screamed out that he was perfect for Chase, but only if he could learn to see past Chase’s façade. Chase was all for this, until Rhys opened his imaginary mouth the first time, lol. You see, the characters write their own stories, I’m merely the biographer of imaginary people. (See, like the title says, insanity.) I know that sounds nuts, but trust me, most authors will tell you their characters are real, at least to them. We live in their heads and hearts as we write their stories, after all. But, the point is, I knew what I was walking into when I agreed to write the story, though I didn’t expect it to be so hard in places to write or experience.

The inspiration for certain parts came from events in the news or in my life. Others came from close friends who’ve shared their pasts and pains with me over the years. None of what you read is “real” as in, happened just as I wrote, but it is real in that these things can and so happen. I take from my imagination and from reality to form the world, people, and happenings in the story. Not an easy thing some days.

In the end, Chase and Rhys did little I expected or planned them to do. I am a panster, but because the next book in the series (Temptations of Desire, set to come out in September) happens at the same time as Desires’ Guardian I had to plot some. That about drove me insane (and we already established authors are a bit bent to begin with, lol). In the end, though, inspiration, stubborn men that don’t really exist, and the insanity that’s me, all came together to form Desires’ Guardian, a story I hope you will take a chance on and love. I honestly put a little of me into everything I write, and hope the end result is something others will find the truth in and enjoy along the way.

Excerpt:

“James, it’s time.” Seth’s voice broke their moment, startling both men. “Gather up your Chase and hurry, please.”

Chase looked over to Seth, confused about what he was referring to. The show isn’t over, so where is he taking Jamie, and what does that have to do with me?

“Oh! Oh, good. Come on, dear.” James pushed him toward Seth and then maneuvered on his forearm crutches to follow behind. Chase followed obediently, confused but moving with the flow of bodies around him.

“What’s going on, guys?” he asked once they were at the front of the gallery. He looked around and noticed there was a large covered frame that hadn’t been there earlier.

Rhys’s brother, Dal, sidled up beside Chase, bending to whisper into his ear, “He’s got one last painting to reveal, but it’s a special one. I heard not even Britt”—the owner of the gallery—“has seen this one.”

“Really?” He peered up at Dal, again noticing how much he looked like Rhys, only a couple of inches shorter and a few pounds lighter.

“Shh… he’s getting ready to speak.”

Chase realized James now stood in front of the painting, smiling again.

“First, let me thank everyone for your warm reception and the wonderful turnout. As some of you know, I don’t really do speeches, but this last painting is special. I debated showing Inner Light, but in the end decided others needed to see the subject as I do.” James moved to the side, releasing his grip on one forearm crutch. He touched the sheet but didn’t move it yet. “You see, sometimes when people reveal who they truly are inside, we find a vile, rotting corpse, but other times, what we find….” He trailed off and touched a recessed panel.

The sheet, which Chase realized was actually a curtain, slid aside to reveal a painting of… him! Well, it was him, but not him at the same time. The artistry was magnificent, but over half his face a lion was superimposed. The lion part even had his ear cuff clipped to the furry ear. Chase gaped, barely noting the gasps and clapping that burst all around him.

Chase moved to the side, trying not to attract attention as questions and praise swarmed James. He couldn’t stop staring at the painting, trying to see how it could possibly be a representation of himself, but couldn’t. He wasn’t powerful or strong like a lion. And while he knew he was decent looking, the man in the painting had an ethereal beauty that dumbfounded him. It was both humbling and uncomfortable to look upon and hear Jamie’s voice in his head saying that was how he saw him.

Chase was startled out of his thoughts when two of his friends, Simon Tyler and Dale Miller, nudged him. “Chase! Did you know about the painting? It’s amazing,” Simon gushed.

Chase shook his head. “I didn’t. He can’t really see me that way, can he?”

“With as much as you’ve done over the years to help and protect him, yeah, I think that’s exactly how he sees you,” Dale replied. “Of course, he’s obviously blind. But then, if he showed you as you really are, no one would buy his artwork.”

Dale and Simon cackled, and Chase glowered at the both of them.

“Maybe he’s trying to make up for conning you into working with Rhys,” Simon suggested.

“Harrumph! I still can’t believe I said yes, but you really think all this was planned? Seriously?”

“Eh, ignore Simon.”

“We’re going out tomorrow night to forget about the sexy ox, so don’t sweat it,” Simon said and winked. “Now, go congratulate James and smile. You look totally wrong with the scowl on your pretty face,” he instructed, turning Chase and pushing him toward the now advancing James.

Desires’ Guardian by Tempeste O’Riley

Desires Entwined series book #2

Most people see Chase Manning as the party-boy twink he seems on the surface. Only James, Chase’s BFF, knows the depth of his loyalty and the extent of the wounds Chase carries inside. When Chase meets Rhys Sayer things don’t go well, but he can’t shake his attraction to the huge, sexy man.

Rhys is a man of contradictions and fear—a strange combination for a PI and bodyguard. He’s in a bad place emotionally when he sets eyes on Chase for the first time. When Chase puts the moves on him, Rhys insults him, thwarting any possibility of a relationship. Rhys doesn’t see himself as a complicated man, but he dreads the very kind of connection he desires.

Just as they’re trying to overcome their uncertainties, Chase is put in harm’s way. Luckily Rhys and their friends have all the right talents to help Rhys save the man of his dreams.

Order: ♥ Dreamspinner Press ♥ All Romance ♥ ♥ Amazon ♥ B & N ♥ Add to: Goodreads

Other Desires Entwined series stories:

Giveaway Link!

About the Author:

Tempeste O’Riley is an out and proud omnisexual / bi-woman whose best friend growing up had the courage to do what she couldn’t–defy the hate and come out. He has been her hero ever since.

Tempe is a hopeless romantic that loves strong relationships and happily-ever-afters. Though new to writing M/M, she has done many things in her life, though writing has always drawn her back–no matter what else life has thrown her way. She counts her friends, family, and Muse as her greatest blessings in life. She lives in Wisconsin with her children, reading, writing, and enjoying life.

Tempe is also a proud PAN member of Romance Writers of America®, Rainbow Romance Writers, and WisRWA. Learn more about Tempeste and her writing at http://tempesteoriley.com.

Website ♥ Goodreads ♥ Twitter ♥ Facebook ♥ Google + ♥ DSP ♥ Blog

The awesome Grace R. Duncan is here today to talk about her new novel, No Sacrifice. There’s a giveway, too, so be sure to comment!

First off, many, many thanks to Shae for sharing her blog space with me today. I am here today to talk a bit about my upcoming release, No Sacrifice. Most of the time, research for me involves getting onto Google maps and clicking around an area. I am sure Google has save many an author quite a bit of money in research. Once upon a time, if we wanted to know what a place looked like, we had to hope we had someone who could take pictures for us and mail them to us or we had to actually travel there. But now we have the amazing thing that is the internet. Along with pictures from individuals, we have the wonder that is Google Maps Street View.

When I started to write No Sacrifice, that’s the first place I went. I didn’t live in Southern California. I’d never lived in SoCal. In fact, I’d only ever driven through it a few times. (And that was almost all highway. Yes. Highway in LA. Yes, I was nuts. Moving on…) So, while I had vague information, I had nothing solid. To Google I went and was able to find a place I felt comfortable setting my boys down and started to explore. I managed to get a real feel for what the area looked like, what kind of apartments they’d have, the general restaurants in the area and everything.

Then I got the opportunity to go to BentCon in Burbank last November. By this time, much of No Sacrifice had been written. But I figured I’d be able to see if I needed to change anything, at least. Well, as happens with most cons, I spent the vast majority of the weekend in the hotel.

But I did take a nice walk down to the shopping center and on the last day, the wonderful Rhys Ford took me into the main part of Burbank for a drive through!

Continue reading →

Today Brynn Stein is here to talk about her first year as a published author. Share your own experiences, and be sure to check out her novella, Haunted.

Experiences of a Newbie

It’s coming up on a year since my first book was published. I can’t believe it’s been that long already. The last year has been a fantastic ride, but I found there was a lot to learn and it needed to be a steep learning curve.

I had always wanted to be a writer and never really thought it was an attainable dream. When I found it might be, I honestly thought, getting my story published would be the hardest part. Dreamspinner made that part easy, actually. They walked me through the process, provided talented editors and a gifted artist who produced a fabulous cover. The publishing part really was the easiest part.

It was the all the stuff that came after the book release that I had no idea even existed. Dreamspinner does some PR: sends out the story to various review sites, and creates buy links etc. But that wasn’t all there was to it.

I had no idea what all I needed to do, let alone how to do any of it.  Fortunately, there are a lot of very helpful authors on the Dreamspinner email list, as well as on Facebook, Twitter, and other places that were ever so willing to help out. I wouldn’t be able to even begin to name all of the people who helped, so I won’t try. They know who they are and that I will always be indebted to them. I thanked each one personally at the time. But I wanted to take this time to at least mention them in a general sense.

There were people who walked me through setting up a Twitter account and being able to get my book cover to appear on the side of my Twitter page. A small thing, maybe, but at the time, I couldn’t figure it out, so it was a huge help. I was more familiar with Facebook since I already had a personal account, but there were people who helped me set up an author’s page.

There were lots of people who helped me figure out how the heck to use WordPress and to get my blog page to work for me instead of just existing. And I do mean lots of people and lots of help. I found WordPress a little daunting, and still don’t have all the bells and whistles figured out, but my fellow authors were a godsend when I was just starting out.

I also needed a lot of help to figure out how to use Triberr. If I thought WordPress was intimidating, Triberr was downright terrifying. But again, people seemed to come out of the woodwork with tips and invitations to their tribes, and really, just any help I needed.

And, of course, there were lots of people who invited me to their blogs to help me publicize my e-book, Haunted, and they continue to let me visit to keep my name out there (like today’s host, Shae Connor), and people who have already agreed to host me when my new book, Living Again, comes out this summer, as well as when Through the Years comes out in the fall.

I guess the upshot of all of this is that no author can do this alone. Or at least I found that I couldn’t. It took a lot of help from people already in the field. Several of my non-author friends in real life, have been astonished that other authors would be willing to help. “Why would they help possible competition?” A lot of people have asked. And while, I’m not sure I really consider myself competition for most of the very talented authors out there, I haven’t found that attitude among any of the authors I’ve had dealing with. Where it would be quite understandable for people to let fellow authors sink or swim on their own, everyone I’ve ‘met’ seems to have exactly the opposite viewpoint. They seem to welcome newbies into their ranks and go out of their way to make sure we know what we’re doing…to help us be the best we can be…with everything from tips on publicizing to advice on good writing practices and information about conventions, etc.

I’ve been surprised and impressed by the level of care and concern offered by existing authors to me as a newbie as well as to other newbies who have appeared on the scene since. As thrilling as it was, and continues to be, to see my stories in print, it has been an even more eye-opening, and fulfilling experience to interact with fellow authors in such a positive and meaningful way.

No matter how much I’ve already thanked individual’s for their help, I can never say enough just how very grateful I’ve been, and continue to be, to be a part of this fantastic community of authors.

How about you, readers of this blog and possibly fellow authors? What were your experiences when you first started out in this field…whether that be just recently, or long, long ago?  Please comment below. I’d love to hear how our experiences compare, as well as to just discuss this with new friends.

In the meantime, you can contact me, if you wish, at any of the following places:

My blog: http://brynnstein2.wordpress.com

Social media:
https://twitter.com/BrynnStein
https://www.facebook.com/brynn.stein
http://triberr.com/brynn.stein

Dreamspinner page:
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/index.php?cPath=55_887

You can also sign up to appear on my blog: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Am6LvGXdyttKdGFCcmpQRkw2Nm1Hal9UdVdSRVlqLWc&usp=sharing

Jana Denardo is here today to talk about the location for her new steampunk novella, If Two of Them Are Dead. Thanks for coming, Jana!

Once I settled on Hyde Park, NY, as the backdrop for If Two of Them Are Dead, I knew the victim and her family had to come from money. This small rural town doubled as the home for some of the country’s most wealthy families. The Roosevelts have a home here, though the huge estate you can tour today wasn’t established until about twenty-five years after my story. The house before it was less manorial.

The Vanderbilt mansion would have been a common sight to Abraham Westbrook and in fact, I shameless stole the facade of this house for my novella. It’s an amazing Beaux Art building and not being an architect who can imagine places like this, I rely on visual cues from established homes. Victor, however, is not that impressed by the house. He thinks it looks cold and like a mausoleum.  Of course, once he’s inside Abraham’s home, he’s quite blown away and more than a little intimidated. Victor’s entire dwelling could probably fit in Abraham’s ballroom.

Wealth and classism do play a prominent role in the story. It stands between Victor and doing his job, not to mention between him and Abraham. I placed Abraham and his brother, Benjamin firmly among the legendary 400, who are mentioned in the story (for that matter so are the Vanderbilts and Roosevelts). For those unfamiliar with the term, it came from Mrs. Caroline Astor. The Astors were as close to royalty America had in the late 1800s and she wanted a ballroom capable of hosting her famous parties. It was said that it could hold four hundred people.

Abraham and Benjamin belong to this group. They were born into their family’s astonishing wealth and both have taken it to even higher levels, Ben continuing in the fur and textile business their father left them, while Abraham went off on his own making airship engines and other fantastical steam-driven inventions. However, being richer than Croesus hasn’t always made Abraham happy. He inherited a ton of responsibilities. He has no respect for people in his class who just sit about doing nothing but spending their inheritance. He’s a man who prizes intellect and ingenuity more than money.

Abraham is also very aware that his very wealth is an impediment to solving his sister-in-law’s murder and to him getting closer to Victor. The first problem is one he has no solution for. He knows that people in his social class wouldn’t want to speak to the police, and many see it as an affront that they could be suspects. As for the problem of Victor, Abraham knows the man is uncomfortable with the differences in their classes. His solution is a simple one. Abraham is already something of an outcast for his love of inventing and working with metal. He’d rather be talking to and funding Nikolai Tesla than attending one of Lady Astor’s parties. Playing up the eccentric millionaire gives Abraham the perfect out when it comes to befriending Victor. His determination to pursue the relationship makes all the difference.

Thanks to Shae for having me over!

Called to Hyde Park, New York, ex-Air Corpsman turned detective Victor Van Voorhis comes to only three conclusions about his newest case: the gulf between his status and the wealthy Westbrook family is no trifling matter; someone brutally killed a young mother; and the victim’s brother-in-law is one of the most intriguing men Victor has ever met.

Inventor Abraham Westbrook lost his wife five years ago and is worried about the effect another death in the family will have on his children. He spends most of his time tinkering with steamships, but even his inventions can’t distract him from wishing Victor was in his life for any reason other than a murder investigation—one where Abraham himself is a suspect. He’s hidden his desires all his life, but no longer. Somehow, he’ll catch the detective’s eye.

With murder standing between them and a killer stalking the Westbrooks, Abraham and Victor’s chance at happiness could go up in steam.

Excerpt

Unsurprisingly, wealthymen like Abraham Westbrook thought they were in charge of everything. Victor had expected it, but that didn’t make it any less aggravating when Abraham insisted on meeting his brother at the airstrip. When Victor couldn’t dissuade him, he allowed Westbrook to accompany him in his police-issued horseless carriage to the small strip out on the edge of town, where it wouldn’t bother the well-heeled Hyde Park residents.

From the red, black, and yellow bladder on the airship, Victor knew it was from the Dunn line. There probably wasn’t an airship he couldn’t name after a quick glance. A frisson of grief over his injury-ended career as an airman peeked out of a dark corner of Victor’s mind as it so often did whenever he was at an airstrip. Next to him, Abraham shifted his weight back and forth as they waited for the Dunn ship to dock.

“You don’t have to be here, sir. If you need time to yourself after what’s happened, you could wait in the station.” Victor pointed back over his shoulder at the small but well-appointed building. “Or the automobile.”

Abraham offered a weary smile. “Thank you for the concern, Detective. I need to be here for my brother.”

Victor nodded. He doubted he would be any different. In retrospect, it might be good Abraham had insisted on coming, because Victor didn’t know what Benjamin looked like. He followed Abraham’s lead once the passengers began to disembark. He probably could have picked Benjamin Westbrook out of the crowd based on the stiffness of his posture and the anguish etched into his face.

Benjamin Westbrook was quite different from his brother. He wore a suit—that probably cost half-a-year’s pay for Victor—impeccable in every sense and traditional, stolid deep blue with a white shirt. While Abraham’s hair was longer than was usual and a deep brown, Benjamin’s hair might even be more conservative than Victor’s, a more muddy and unattractive shade of brown. He lacked his brother’s tall, lanky form. Victor knew he had nothing to base it on, but Benjamin’s face didn’t look like he smiled often.

Abraham briefly embraced his brother, and Victor overheard his mumbled “I’m sorry, Ben.”

Benjamin caught his brother’s wrist. “Is it true? Is Permelia dead? What are they doing about it?”

“It’s true. I truly am sorry, Ben.” Abraham beckoned Victor forward. “This is Detective Victor Van Voorhis. He’s going to get to the bottom of this for us, and he has some questions for you.”

Victor certainly hoped Abraham was right. Benjamin looked less convinced. His pinched face was as cold as Abraham’s had been warm.

Buy Link

Jana Denardo’s career choices and wanderlust take her all over the United States and beyond. Much of her travels make their way into her stories. Fantasy, science fiction, and mystery have been her favorite genres since she started reading, and they often flavor her works. In her secret identity, she works with the science of life and gives college students nightmares. When she’s not chained to her computer writing, she functions as stray cat magnet.

Jana is Queen of the Geeks (her students voted her in) and her home and office are shrines to any number of comic book and manga heroes along with SF shows and movies too numerous to count. There is no coincidence the love of all things geeky has made its way into many of her stories. To this day, she’s still disappointed she hasn’t found a wardrobe to another realm, a superhero to take her flying among the clouds or a roguish star ship captain to run off to the stars with her.

Author Links
http://jana-denardo.livejournal.com/
http://twitter.com/#/JanaDenardo
http://www.facebook.com/jana.denardo