Featured Author: Jack Getze

About the book:

Wall Street’s miasmal garbage washes up on the Jersey Shore when a small time broker falls in love: Is he attracted to the beautiful lady — or her brother’s inside information? Held spellbound by a steamy, auburn-haired woman with a questionable past and a get-rich-quick, insider trading scheme, Austin Carr knocks down a beehive of bad-acting Bonacellis, including the ill-tempered Mr. Vic Bonacelli, who wants his redhead back, and local mob lieutenant Mama Bones Bonacelli, architect of a strange and excruciating death trap for the fast-talking stockbroker she calls smarty pants. To survive, Austin must unravel threads of jealousy, revenge and new affections, discovering the fate of a pseudo ruby called the Big Mojo, and close the lid on a pending United States of America vs. Austin Carr insider trading case. Can Austin and his Jersey Shore mouthpiece possibly out maneuver the savvy U.S. District Attorney from Manhattan? Does anything matter for Austin again if Mama Bones flips that switch?

“Gordon Gekko meets Janet Evanovich in this wry and winning caper–Jack Getze does it again!” ~Hank Phillippi Ryan, Agatha, Anthony and Mary Higgins Clark Award winning author of Truth Be Told

Interview with Jack Getze

Jack, where’s home for you?
Whereever my wife and family are, honestly. I've never quite fit here in Jersey, but after visiting Los Angeles and the suburbs where I grew up -- Alhambra, San Gabriel, Pasadena -- I have no desire to move back. My friends and family have pretty much moved away or died, and the Greater L.A. area is so crowded, the traffic is a dragon.

Where did you grow up?
I went to school on the east side of Los Angeles -- Alhambra -- where I learned to love all things Mexican. This had something to do with my last name being Getze. With lockers assigned alphabetically, I learned to get along closely with a dozen guys named Gomez, Gonzales and Garcia, even befriending a few. I have enormous respect for the culture, and what I miss most about Valley, Garfield, and Atlantic boulevards are the fresh-cooked tortillas wrapped around slow-cooked meat -- tacos and burritos. The wisest, toughest and best man in the Austin Carr series is bartender sidekick Luis Guerrero.

What’s your favorite memory?
I coached Little League baseball for a number of years. My teams were about having fun, learning the game, never winning or trying to be the best. One year we went most of the season without winning a game. My boys were having fun, but they weren't very good or even dedicated. A rag tag bunch of wild boys is what I had for a team that season. One day we played the undefeated champions of our league, and I heard one of their coaches tell his players before the game they could beat us "with our hands tied behind our backs." Well, I was incensed. I called a rare team meeting minutes before the game, told my kids what I'd heard. I said I don't care if we win or not, but let's try hard, let's show these guys a game they can't win with one hand. Make them play their best to beat us. Well, I fired my boys up. They were angry, too, I guess, because we played out best game ever -- hitting, fielding and heads-up base running. My boys played the game of their young lives, and -- what a shocker -- we beat that undefeated team, their only loss all year. My one and only "Win one for the Gipper" speech. Motivation is important in life.

Great story! What’s the most valuable thing you’ve learned?
Every day alive is a gift not to be wasted.

What makes you nervous?
Crowds and loud noise. Went to a rock concert once in 1969 and haven't been to another since. I've walked into bar-restaurants where I had to turn around and walk outside. My wife wasn't happy, but no way I was sitting down in that place, trying to relax and have a conversation.


Oh, I'm with you there. What makes you scared?
How and from whom Americans get their information. I believe honest, and thus impartial, journalism died decades ago, replaced by advocacy. News sources no longer publish both sides of an issue, just arguments they believe and facts coinciding with their opinion. Americans were always under-educated about economics -- it's boring, something for rich people. Nothing could be further from he truth. I worry my great grandchildren could lose their freedom.

Do you have another job outside of writing?
I'm housewife for a bread-winning grandma. I'd tell you more, but I have to go do the dishes again. They are never done!

What’s one of your favorite quotes?
From Elmore Leonard: "If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it.”

Love it and Elmore Leonard! Is your book based on real events?
A lot of it. Back in the 1990s, I had to defend myself against insider trading charges in much the same way Austin does in Big Mojo.

Yikes! Are you like any of your characters?
Yes again. Austin Carr is the devil on my shoulder, the voice telling me to do and try things I know I shouldn't. Over the course of the series, Austin does grow up a little bit, and hopefully, he'll one day actually reach adulthood. I think this whole arc parallels my own experience. Ha.

Who are your favorite authors?
Elmore Leonard, Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, James M. Cain, Ernest Hemingway, Robert Crais, Lee Child, Thomas Perry, John D. MacDonald, Somerset Maugham.

An excellent list. What’s one pet peeve you have when you read?
I dislike author intrusion. I guess most readers don't mind because I see this stuff in bestsellers of all kinds, but I'm thrown right out of the story when I read something like, "Little did she know her actions would soon ..." I always stop reading and think, so who the heck said that? Which one of the characters I was listening to said "Little did she know?" Oh, it wasn't a character? It was the author? Well, get the heck out of the story, will you please. Honestly, even when I read a dialogue tag like, she said sarcastically, it bothers me. It's writer laziness, telling instead of showing. The words spoken should have conveyed sarcasm.

Here, here! 
What's your writing routine?
I begin writing first thing when I get up. Start the coffee, open up the page I worked on last. It's a routine I started more than forty years ago. I had to write fiction BEFORE I went to work writing for the newspaper, because at the end of the day, I had nothing left. I wrote pretty much all day for the Los Angeles Times, many bylined pieces, but more just rewrite -- combining wire services, press releases and maybe an interview into three paragraphs or three pages. I was fast with (in those days) a typewriter, too, so whenever a story broke near deadline, I was the first guy the editor looked for to write it. Five hundred words in fifteen minutes was a way of life for John H. Getze. Glad I'm Jack now. I write what I want.

You can be any fictional character for one day. Who would you be?
Dr. John Watson so I could follow and write about Sherlock Holmes. First it was the Hardy Boys at ten and eleven, then Arthur Conan Doyle as a teenager. I was hooked on mysteries forever.

Other books by Jack Getze:

Down, Out, and Dead (Big Mouth: An Austin Carr short story in an anthology of shorts)
Big Money
Big Numbers

About the author:

A former reporter for both the Los Angeles Times and Los Angeles Herald-Examiner, Jack Getze is Fiction Editor for Anthony nominated Spinetingler Magazine, one of the Internet's oldest websites for noir, crime, and horror short stories. His Austin Carr Mysteries Big Numbers and Big Money were re-issued by Down and Out Books in 2013, with Big Mojo out in 2014, and Big Shoes in 2015. His short stories have appeared in A Twist of Noir, Beat to a Pulp, The Big Adios and Passages.

Connect with Jack:
Blog  |  Facebook  |  Goodreads  |  Down & Out Books  |  Linkedin

Featured: Crazy Lady Authors

TREASURED MOMENTS

Presented by the Crazy Lady Authors, a collection of the good, the bad, and the ugly side of relationships. Hold on to your seats. Some of our tales will have you doubled over in laughter, bring tears to your eyes, and some will make you thankful for the place you call home.

Click on the book cover or author's name to be taken to their profile.

A Moment in Time - Kelly Cozzone Alexa Wright is a happily married mother. Her son, Eric, was born in a previous marriage and he struggles with his place in both families. She has vowed to make the best decision for her son. Eric wants to live with his dad. How can she possibly figure out what the right decision is?

 

Haunted Raine - R.E. Hargrave Lorraine Morrissey let life pass her by. Her wake up call comes when she realizes that her husband is rarely home, and she's filling her days with trivial tasks. A crazy idea to save her marriage leads to a summer vacation unlike any she's ever taken; one that involves buying a haunted house.

Coming Home - Teri Riggs Abby, a young Navy SEAL's wife, must learn to cope after her husband dies in the line of duty. Hoping to learn how her husband spent his final days, she heads to Bethesda to sit with her husband's best friend, a soldier who remains in a coma caused by the same IED blast that killed her husband. But can anything mend Abby's broken heart?

 

15 W. Gibson - Aubree Lane Knowing Uncle Sam is about to come knocking, Jimmy Franks enlists in the Navy. Leaving Suzy is the hardest thing he's ever had to do. Left alone to deal with their feuding families, Suzy Franks is heartbroken when Jimmy ships out. Her husband's letters of love brings comfort, but 15 W. Gibson is a lonely place without him.

The Agent - Samantha Jacobey An author of dark tales is looking for someone to represent her. An agent who thinks all writers are the same wants the job. Will one lunch date be enough to convince him that she's different, or will her clouded past continue to overshadow her future?

The Bench - Nikki Lynn Barrett Ten years ago, Neil spent a summer with his grandparents when he couldn't deal with problems at home. That one summer led him to his first love, Amber, until a family crisis pulled him away. Now he's back in town and face to face with the woman he never could forget.  

Summer Song - Linda Lee Williams June Gorman might be imprisoned in a nursing home, but her mind roams free. In her private world, memories and melodies go hand in hand. Every day she embarks on a musical journey through her life, one filled with laughter, love, pain, and tears ... her summer song.

 

Crazy Love - Jayne Hyatt Will Meg be forced to resort to using the crazy family tradition, which she has spent most of her life avoiding, in order to win the man of her dreams?

The Treasured Legacy - Holly Barbo Leone uses the last of her strength to share important family history with her only relative: her grandson David. Despite her final wish not to sell the family heirlooms, David and his wife, Anne, look into it because of their desperate need for money. But the pieces have secrets and the young couple finds themselves in unexpected danger.

Ghost Connection: Lost - Jami Brumfield Ghost Connection is a series centered around Cassandra O'Grady and her unwanted ability to see spirits. In episode one, Cassie and her ghostly best friend, Abel, help a girl save her family from a jealous boyfriend.

Poppy - Cherime MacFarlane A teenage girl learns that the father she adores is not her real father. From her friend's dad, Emma Kay learns her Poppy won her and her mother on the turn of a card. Wrecking her mother's car does not help.

Camael's Gift - Michele E. Gwynn In the heavenly realms, conflict and war are as routine as escorting souls to the other side. For Camael, his routine has just been disrupted as he finds himself drawn to a human woman he encounters while comforting her dying child.


Life Storms - Terri Hubbard Carle Throughout life, you face many types of storms. Learning to trust, believe, have faith and stand strong, will help Carley and her family, as well as Carley and Chad grow closer and stronger.


The Tree House - J.B. Yarbrough The day her brother is born, Izzy hears the words Down Syndrome for the first time. Frightened, she runs to the safety of her tree house.

   

Amazon US

Amazon CA

Amazon AU

Amazon UK

Goodreads

   

On January 16 and 17, 2015, all 14 authors will be gathering at one huge Facebook Release Party. Questions answered, teasers of their upcoming books, visits from special guests and huge prizes available to be won.

Come join the party...it's a BYOBB (Bring Your Own Book Boyfriend), but I'm sure these authors will have some available too.

     

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Featured Author: Brandi Haas

About the book:

Brandi Haas is no domestic goddess . . . but she’ll tell you that motherhood is probably the hardest gig in the universe: “The pay is horrible, the wardrobe is pathetic, and your boss (although utterly adorable) is usually a tyrant."

Brandi brings her trademark wit from the popular blog to this new collection, sharing stories of birthday party mayhem, mommy martyrdom, and snow shoveling majesty.
The setting is Anytown, USA, among barking dogs, picket fences, and eclectic neighbors.
Tales from Suburbia: You Don’t Have to Be Crazy to Live Here, but It Helps will make you laugh, warm your heart, and let you know you’re not alone. Mothers (and fathers) will recognize themselves, their children, and the absurd situations that family life brings to us all.

   

  

Interview with Brandi Haas

Brandi, tell us the story behind the title of your book.
Tales from Suburbia is the name of my blog and that’s what my stories are about: surviving the suburbs with a sense of humor.

Where’s home for you?
My family and I live in Kansas City, Missouri. I love the changing of the seasons, but I still loathe humidity!

I totally agree. Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Southern California with the mountains to the north of me and beaches to the west.


If you had $100 a week to spend on yourself, what would you buy?
I would buy books. I love reading and always have a stash of books on my nightstand just waiting for me to get a moment of peace to read.


What’s the dumbest purchase you’ve ever made?
I bought a blond curly wig once at the county fair when I was in my early twenties. I actually spent my grocery money on it. Man, those people at the fair can convince you to buy anything!


What’s the most valuable thing you’ve learned?
To be grateful for what I have, not sad about what I don’t have.

Have you been in any natural disasters?
I was born and raised in California—I have been in many earthquakes even a few big ones. Earthquakes never frightened me until I had my daughter, then they terrified me.

What’s one thing that you wish you knew as a teenager that you know now?
I wish I had known how to love myself. I never did as a teenager, but I absolutely love myself and who I am now as an adult.

What book are you currently reading and in what format (e-book/paperback/hardcover)?
I am finishing the Insignia series by SJ Kincaid in hardcover. I love flipping pages!

What are you working on now?
I’m working on the sequel to Tales from Suburbia. More tales of suburban nonsense!

About the author:

Brandi Haas is a former high school English teacher turned stay-at-home mom. Born and raised in California, she now lives in Missouri with her husband, daughter, and their dog, The WonderMutt. She is consistently inconsistent about her weight and age because, really, it’s no one’s business anyway. She sees humor in everything and began writing stories about her life as a way to share her insanity with the world.

Connect with Brandi:
Blog |  Facebook  |  Goodreads

Featured Author: Traci Hayden

 

Featured Author: M.C.V. Egan

Just Released: Heroes & Hooligans in Goose Pimple Junction

About the book:

Goose Pimple Junction is just recovering from a kidnapping and a murder, its first major crimes in years, when trouble begins anew. Life is turned upside down in the quirky little Southern town with the arrival of several shifty hooligans: A philandering husband intent on getting his wife back, another murderer loose in town, a stalker intent on frightening Martha Maye, and a thief who’s stealing the town blind of their pumpkins, pies, and peace. Together, they’re scaring the living daylights out of the residents and keeping the new police chief busier than a set of jumper cables at a redneck picnic. Suddenly, he has his hands full trying to apprehend a killer, stop a stalker, and fight his feelings for the damsel in distress.

Heroes & Hooligans is the second book in the Goose Pimple Junction mystery series.

Excerpt

Chapter 1

Marry in haste, repent in leisure. ~Southern Proverb


Lenny drove to his neighborhood bar with the windows wide open and Johnny Cash blaring on the radio, but he was oblivious to both. He was thinking about the phone conversation he’d just had with his ten-year-old daughter Carrie. It made him crazy the way her mother’s family called her “Butterbean.” What kind of a name was that for a child? But today he was crazy for a whole new reason. Jealousy and anger tore through him faster than small-town gossip. His daughter had spilled everything, and just when he thought he’d finally gotten a break, she said, “Mama kinda had a boyfriend but not anymore.” And: “Mama was kidnapped, but she’s back now.”

He pulled into the parking lot of the bar thinking, Boyfriend? We literally aren’t even divorced yet and she had a boyfriend? He pounded his fist against the steering wheel. He knew she’d been cheating on him. And now she’d done it right in front of their daughter. No doubt about it, he was going to have to do something about this Martha Maye situation.

Pulling into a primo spot at the front door, he looked up at the old rusty sign that had been over the entrance for years: TEETOTALERS AIN'T WELCOME HERE. He winced at the loud screech announcing his car door opening, followed by the same screech when he slammed it shut. He glanced around the parking lot and saw the same cars that were there every night. His feet crunched on the gravel as he walked, and he remembered waking up three months earlier and slowly realizing his wife and daughter weren’t there.

The familiar bacon and coffee smells were gone. Cartoons weren’t blaring on the TV. His wife’s clothes were missing, along with his daughter’s, her teddy bear, and her dolls. The bookshelves were dotted with bare spots where Martha Maye’s favorite knickknacks and paddywhacks had been. And then he saw the note on the kitchen table that said she was divorcing him and that he shouldn’t try to find them. The realization that she’d left him in the middle of the night and taken their daughter seared through him like a red-hot poker.

Pretty stealthy for a woman who could literally be outwitted by a jar of marshmallow fluff. If she thinks she can literally run out on me and then humiliate me by going out with some scumbag before we’re even divorced, she has another think coming. I’ll show her. I’ll put on the charm and win her back.

Country music blasted as he opened the door, turned his head, and spit in disgust. She literally can’t be let her out by herself. Just look where it got her: kidnapped and almost killed.

His daughter had told him they’d been staying at his mother-in-law’s house. He should have figured. He’d always known Louetta to be a meddlesome old biddy. She lied to me when I called looking for my wife and daughter. She aided and abetted a woman leaving her husband. She allowed nefarious suitors to court my wife. Both of them must have literally stopped to think and forgotten how to start again.
And then there was his no-account, good-for-nothing brother who, upon learning of the impending divorce, wanted to know if Lenny would mind if he dated Martha Maye. Boy, I’m gonna slap you so hard, when you quit rolling your clothes’ll literally be outta style. My baby brother and my wife. Yeah. Over my dead body. How could he even ask such a thing? Both of them were nothing but a bunch of backstabbing traitors.

He hitched up his jeans under his overflowing beer belly, swaggered into the bar, and ordered a Colt 45. The jukebox was playing, “I Want a Beer as Cold as My Ex-Wife’s Heart,” and he thought that was pretty darn perfect for his life at the moment.

Looking around the room, he spotted a hot blonde giving him the eye. He sucked in his gut—a move that didn’t yield the desired result—and looked back, waggling his eyebrows suggestively. She brazenly smiled back at him.

How dare Martha Maye leave me? I can literally get any woman I want. And two on Saturday.
A football star in high school, homecoming king, and voted best looking his senior year, Lenny was used to women coming onto him, not leaving him. He put the bottle to his lips and downed half of it.

That woman was literally lucky to have me. Sure, I’ve put on a little weight, but only in the gut. I practically have to fight women off with a stick. Looking around the room again, he saw female eyes on him from several tables in the room. Yessirree, sir, I still got it.

Lenny started to lift his bottle to his mouth again but halted midway when two men sat down heavily on barstools on either side of him; they looked capable of eating their young. Both men were muscular and tough. One was as tall as a telephone pole. One was as short as a gnat’s tail. The taller man had black eyes under bushy eyebrows, and the other man wore aviator sunglasses on a flat, wide nose. He pushed the glasses to the top of his head to give Lenny his best glare.

“We’ve been looking all over Hell and half of Georgia for you, boy.” Eyebrows scooted his stool in close, crowding Lenny.

“Shoot.” Lenny’s hand automatically moved to his ankle holster, checking for his knife. “That don’t surprise me none. You literally couldn’t find oil with a dipstick.”

“Solly says he’s had about enough of you,” Eyebrows said.

“Yeah,” Mr. Gnat joined in, “he’s had about enough of you.”

Lenny snorted. “You can tell Solly to blow it out his butt,” Lenny said boldly, more boldly than he felt. He shelled a peanut, popped it in his mouth, and threw the shell into Mr. Gnat’s face.

“Solly says not to let you off the hook this time.”

“Yeah, not to let you off the hook.” Mr. Gnat’s left eye twitched.

“What’s with Mr. Echo over here?” Lenny pointed his thumb at the short man.

The telephone pole ignored him and said, “Solly says you’ve screwed him over for the last time.”

“Yeah, the last time.”

“I didn’t screw him over the first time.” Lenny drained his bottle. He felt like his mouth was full of cotton. “Solly wouldn’t tell the truth to save his life from dying.” Lenny tried to stand up, but the men had him penned in.

“You can’t talk about Solly that way.”

“Yeah, not that way,” Mr. Gnat echoed.

Eyebrows looked behind Lenny to his friend. “This boy has the mental agility of a soap dish, Joey.”

“Yeah, a soap dish.”

Lenny leaned in real close to Joey, who said, “Whatta you think you’re doing?”

“Just wondered if I got close enough if I could literally hear the ocean.”

“Boy, what you need is an education,” Eyebrows said.

“Yeah, an edj-ee-cation.” Gnat strung the word out.

The men grabbed Lenny’s arms, lifting him off his stool. The song on the jukebox had ended, and Lenny heard the crunch of peanut shells as the men propelled him toward the door.

“Boys, y’all best not be messing with me,” Lenny snapped, trying to break free.

“That’s mighty big talk for a punk like you.” They stepped aside as someone came through the door, and then they threw Lenny through it. He landed on the ground but sprang right back to his feet, his dukes up, ready to fight.

Eyebrows was fast. He knocked Lenny to the ground again with a left hook. Joey followed up with two kicks to the ribs.

Lenny pulled himself into a ball, both to protect himself from further harm and to have better access to his ankle holster. But Joey saw the knife and kicked it away as Lenny drew it from his pants leg.

The men both grabbed Lenny by an arm again, pulling him upright, and Eyebrows punched him in the gut, causing him to double over. They double-teamed him and left him on the ground bloody and beaten, as cars whizzed past on the road in front of the bar.

Right before Lenny passed out, he thought: Tomorrow I’ll pack up and head for Goose Pimple Junction to reclaim what’s rightfully mine. I’ll literally be a devoted husband and father and get my family back. I ain’t gonna let that woman leave me. Nobody leaves Lenny Applewhite.

About the author:

Amy Metz is the author of the Goose Pimple Junction mystery series. She is a former first grade teacher and the mother of two sons. When not actively engaged in writing, enjoying her family, or surfing Facebook or Pinterest, Amy can usually be found with a mixing spoon, camera, or book in one hand and a glass of sweet tea in the other. Amy lives in Louisville, Kentucky.

Connect with Amy:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

  

Guest Post by Connie L. Smith

About the book:

Preston and Nick endured the breakup of all breakups when Nick accused her of cheating on him. He insisted, and she denied while the rain pounded against her driveway and thunder roared in the distance. Then they both ran – Preston to a life of Rock and Roll, and Nick to a career in the Army. 



Over four years later, they’re damaged and broken almost beyond repair. He’s carrying baggage from his military days, and she bears the scars of living a lifestyle she’s grown to hate. 



When Preston’s label forces her to take time away from music, their paths cross in a parking lot not twenty-four hours after her hometown return, anger and sparks flying in a confusing blend. But regardless of the feelings neither has been able to shake, too many lies and secrets stand in the way of the one thing they need in order to recover. 



Each other.

Guest Post by Connie L. Smith

Sometimes people get so caught up on their dreams that they don’t take the time to figure out all the steps that are involved in seeing that dream come to fruition. That overall concept has been a piece of my life since I first published Essenced back in July 2013. There was a lot I didn’t know about publishing, and many more things that I’ll probably learn along the way. One thing I’ve learned is that building a career in this field can be a long, drawn out process. If you want to see good book sales, you might have to do more than just write a book. It’s okay to want your book to be a hit immediately. . . But don’t be too surprised if it takes more time and effort to reach your goals in this business.

As important as that lesson has been for me, that’s not the point of this guest post. Instead, I’m writing this to comment on something that I noticed very vividly while going through CreateSpace to prepare a paperback version of Enscrolled, this last book in my Division Chronicles trilogy. What is that something?

Nervousness has yet to go away.

With my first book, I was anxious and excited, wanting to see my book do well but also experiencing a vulnerability that I hadn’t dealt with before. When you construct an entire story with characters you’ve made and a plot you had enough confidence in to create the novel, you’re really offering readers a view into your mind by putting the book for sale. It’s from your head, and it’s ideally been polished to the point that you’re willing to put your name on it and let people know it’s your product.

When the final product is something like 90,000 words of you, there’s room for a whole lot of you to end up on the pages.

So I was concerned that maybe I hadn’t built a story worth reading, that maybe people would just hate my writing style. Did I rush things, or was the pace so slow that people would lose interest? What if it was an idea that few people would even care about?

Then came a novella, In Your Wings. This was the first time that I’d written something that was primarily romance, and I was concerned that I’d completely botch the attempt. There’s something particularly revealing in writing romance, because you’re dealing with deep emotions and toeing the line of cheesy, and it was an odd moment when I finally published it for the first time in December of last year.

Then Emblazed, the second book of The Division Chronicles. This time, I worried about sophomore slump for my trilogy. Sure, some people seemed to like Essenced, but what if I ruined everything with the second book? The plot, the approach… What if it didn’t do justice to the book that came before it?

Then, with the end of the trilogy, I still worried. Would the ending be fulfilling to readers? Would the characters’ plights and actions flow with the previous books? Did it conclude the trilogy with quality and satisfaction?

And now, Tail Lights – my first attempt at publishing contemporary romance. And New Adult. Did I do the story justice? Is it compelling? Can you actually fall in love with these two characters in a way that would make an author proud?

I leaped away from the fantasy world I’d been involved with. Was it worth the risk? Did I create a good final product?

With another work waiting for its turn at publishing, I can tell you that the feeling of nervousness isn’t going anywhere. And, maybe, it shouldn’t. Maybe that would mean that I’m not pushing myself as an author, or that I’m not putting decent effort into what I’m penning.

There are plenty of lessons I’ve learned about writing and publishing, and this is one that really sticks. Every book might very well be a different piece of me, and publishing it for the very first time might always be nerve-wracking experience.

But… it’s so worth it :)

Excerpt from Tail Lights

Surprisingly, he was leaving his apartment when I reached his floor, and he smiled at me like no animosity existed between us. “Hey, Preston.”

“Hey, Preston,” I mocked, then held up the figurine and fastened a glare on him. “Take it back.”

He had the nerve to smirk. “How do you know I gave that to you?”

“Who else would leave a dolphin on my doorstep besides the guy who knows I love dolphins and wants to suddenly fix four years’ worth of betrayal?” His smirk disappeared, and I shoved the object closer to him. “Take it back.”

He shook his head. “I don’t want it back.”

“Well, I don’t want it ether.” When he arched a brow, I rolled my eyes. “Okay, it’s cute. It’s absolutely adorable, and it would look fantastic on my end table, but I can’t take this.”

“Why not?”

“Because I know what it means! You made a mistake, and you’re trying to make up for it. But it’s too late, Nick. And if I take this, it’s like saying that you have a chance to make things right, and you don’t.”

His brow again lifted. “You sure about that?”

I frowned. “Which part?”

With a grin, he shrugged in an almost casual manner, far too comfortable in a conversation that made me anxious. Evidently he’d meant what he said about mending things between us, and he wasn’t about to let my reservations ruin his determination. “You’re absolutely right about what the dolphin means, but are you sure I can’t make things right?”

“I’m so far beyond sure that sure isn’t even in my line of sight anymore.” I held the dolphin farther out, hoping that he’d take it. “I can’t keep clinging to things that weren’t good for me in the first place if I want my next four years to be any better than the last four years.”

Then he scowled. “And you think I wasn’t good for you in the first place?”

“I know you weren’t. If you were, you wouldn’t have believed Dad and dumped me, and. . . " Sighing, I waved the figurine in his direction. “Take it.”

“Your sentence trailed off,” he pointed out, a small smile forming on his lips. “That’s a good sign for me.” Eyes on me, he stepped closer, completely invading my personal space and causing the hand holding the dolphin to fall back against my stomach. After a moment of silently looking at me, so intense and needing, he pointed a finger at my face.

“That’s exactly why I can’t take it back,” he whispered. His finger moved to brush my hair behind my ear, trailing along my jaw before tracing my lips. I knew I should move, slap his hand away, something. But I couldn’t. I just stared, my mouth gaping in shock, my mind consumed with Nick and his caresses. “That was the biggest mistake of my life. And you are my life.”

His index finger exchanged for his thumb, outlining my bottom lip over and over. “I should’ve fought for this, and I’m not making the same mistake twice. I’m getting my life back.” Then he stepped away, gesturing at the dolphin. “That’s only the first step.”
Turning, he walked to the stairway entrance at the other end of the hall, leaving me standing – still gawking where he’d been and suddenly holding the dolphin figure much tighter.

About the author:

Connie L. Smith spends far too much time with her mind wandering in fictional places. She reads too much, likes to bake, and might forever be sad that she doesn’t have fairy wings. And that she can’t swing dance. Her music of choice is severely outdated, and as an adult she’s kind of obsessed with Power Rangers. She has her BA from Northern Kentucky University in Speech Communication and History (she doesn’t totally get the connection either), and is currently working on her MA.

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