-
Life Update
Things have been more than a little crazy in my neck of the words these last few months. Of course, tax season was more insane than usual (thanks COVID), and didn’t end in April like it was supposed to. Work took up too much of my time, and there was literally no time to write anything from January to May. I barely had time to sleep or see my kids! Then in May, my oldest son officially left home. He enlisted in the Navy back in December. He was supposed to leave in June, just a couple of weeks after high school graduation. Well, he graduated early because he couldn’t…
-
Dying to Fit In
For as long as he could remember, Miles Mason lived in his brother’s shadow. He was expected to be the perfect athlete, with perfect grades, and even a perfect girlfriend. School was never easy for him, so his grades were far from perfect. He was overweight and uncoordinated, so being a perfect athlete was out of the question. And the perfect girlfriend? Well, Miles never questioned his sexuality until his best friend was bullied into suicide for being gay. Jeremy Carter was an amazing musician, as long as he was sober enough to play. On the outside, he seemed to have a perfect life. Every guy wanted to be him…
-
Free Time? What’s That?
So, I told myself for months that I wanted to have my first draft of Dying to Fit In done by January, before work gets all crazy on me. Well, I have definitely failed in that mission, but I am absolutely loving where the story is going. Unfortunately, I’m not sure I will have it done before my expected April release date. I still need to finish the draft. Edit. Design a cover (no ideas on that yet). All while working well over 40 hours per week. I’m also struggling with focusing on this story, instead of jotting down ideas for the next one (which is already fairly well planned…
-
Meet the Characters: Cam
Cam was first introduced as Cami, Gavin’s shy girlfriend in Out on the Ice, but her story really takes shape in One of the Guys. She recently moved to Wisconsin, living with her aunt, uncle, and cousin Abby after needing to escape her old home after her brother committed suicide. Cami isn’t even that upset when she discovers her first boyfriend is more into Jace. Instead, she vows to make sure he feels more supported than her brother did. She immediately launches a Gender/Sexuality Alliance at their school, where they find support in places other than each other. When Ethan finally realizes the possible repercussions of how he has treated…
-
Too Many Ideas; Not Enough Time
The release date for One of the Guys was this last Tuesday. I woke up to some super awesome reviews from my ARC team (Contact me if you want to be part of that team), but my work is never done just because the book is out. I want to keep up with the publishing schedule I have had going, which means my next book will be released in April. Of course, it’s not written yet, which might not seem like a huge problem since there is plenty of time between now and April. The problem is, tax season is in my way. Until the compensation from my books greatly…
-
Writing Update
One of the Guys is done and currently available for preorder on Amazon! It was one of the books that was harder to write, because I personally have no experience in coming out as transgender, and my own son wasn’t helpful (teenagers…), so I reached out to a really amazing support group that I am in. After listening to their stories, I hope I did it justice. I do have a few ARCs available for anyone that wants to read and review the book before it comes out next month. Just contact me, and let me know you want details! With all the behind-the-scenes work done in One of the…
-
Meet the Characters: Jace
Jace is just your typical star athlete. I mean, is typical for a teenager to hide some life-altering secrets, isn’t it? The only person in his life that knows about the abuse he deals with regular is his best friend Alex. Instead of treating him differently for it, Alex goes out of his way to make sure Jace doesn’t have to be home more than absolutely necessary, but while spending so much time together, Jace develops feelings for his best friend. But a championship athlete can’t be gay, right? Jace spends over a year of his life hiding who he really is. He forces himself to date girls so he…
-
One of the Guys
After losing her brother to suicide and witnessing the ridicule Jace and Gavin face at school, Cami Myers is determined to make her classmates feel supported. She can’t bear to imagine losing her new friends for the same reason she lost her brother. Gavin and Jace think all her work in forming the GSA is for their benefit, but Cami has a secret not even her best friends know about. Cami is not the girl everyone thinks she is. In fact, Cami doesn’t feel like a girl at all, but she is terrified to tell anyone her secret after seeing how Jace and Gavin are treated. Unable to deal with…
-
Meet the Characters: Gavin
Gavin is first introduced as Rory and Erik‘s son in Self Inflicted, and he has small roles through Scars Fade and Time Heals before really beginning his story in Out on the Ice. Gavin developed a love of hockey from a very young age, thanks to his Uncle Gabe. Despite the fact that Gabe couldn’t help out on the ice, Gavin spent every spare minute of his childhood at the rink with his cousin (and best friend) Ethan and quickly became a star of the team. It wasn’t until junior high that Gavin realized he was different from other teen boys. While his teammates were obsessed with getting girlfriends, Gavin…
-
Meet the Characters: Trent
Trent is definitely one of my darker characters, especially when he first appears in Summer Love Autumn Goodbye. He is introduced as a former friend of Chad‘s turned enemy. While dealing (and using) drugs, Trent is the reason Chad is arrested initially when he pulls the alarm when the boys break into the liquor store. Trent is a fighter. He attacks Chad leaving him fairly injured. He attacks Marissa leaving her terrified. But everything he does, he does it for love. Trent truly believes he loves Tamara and would do anything for her. Including helping her win custody of her child, even knowing the small boy would be much better…
