Tag Archives: lesbian romance

Get ready for summer with some free books!

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Summer is on the way and I’m more than ready to celebrate the good weather. What better way than by chilling with a cocktail (or in my case a new baby) and a good book. With that in mind, I’ve picked two of kindle ebooks to be available for free as part of the I heart Lesfic Mega Sale, running May 21st-25th.

 

The first, Dirty Little War is one of my favourites. If you’re a Kindle Unlimited member you can read it for free now, without having to wait for the sale to start. Many readers wanted to know what happens next, so I’ve written a follow on short story that you can get here: Evie and Carmen, the final chapter.

 

The second, Tapas and Tangelos will also be free May 21st-25th in kindle stores globally. Set in a sleepy Spanish town where lovers meet, it’s the perfect summer beach read.

 

That’s my little break from baby life to author life done. Even if you’ve already read my books, head on over to the I heart Lesfic site and grab yourself a good book at an amazing price.

Looking ahead to 2018

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2017 was a strange year for me, with a fair few ups and downs. I’m looking forward to doing things a bit differently over the next 12 months. I want to write more, connect with my readers more and spend less time getting pointlessly angry at social media. So what’s upcoming?

Lesbian fiction

Tis not quite the season any more, but if you’re desperate to hold onto the time when snow meant good things rather than a pain in the ass commute to work, then Happily Ever After This Christmas might be a lighthearted way of keeping the memory alive. I had great fun writing this and it was one of my high points of last year.

I’m working on a lesbian divorce story and honestly, I’m not sure how well it will go down. It’s not a comfortable read, but I think it’s an honest portrayal of many relationships. The one thing I have learned from 2017 is don’t publish something unless you’re absolutely sure. I’ll be thinking a bit longer on this one.

 

Lesbian Book Bingo

If you’ve been living under a rock, then you might not have heard about Jae’s Lesbian Book Bingo. It’s a fun way to read more of the books you love, branch out into some subgenres that you’ve never considered before and have the chance to win goodies along the way. Even though I’m probably not eligible for prizes as one of my books (Dirty Little War) is included, I’ll be playing along simply because it’s a great way to read more.

Check out the suggested reading list for January: Women In Uniform

 

Urban Fantasy

I have a (very) rough first draft of Book #4 in the Lazarus Hunter Series completed. There are still several subplots I want to interweave, but that’s not on my plan until March at the earliest. After the slowest of slow burns, things between Elizabeth and Monica reach boiling point.

Over the next few months I’ll be thinking about how to give back to fans of this series. Most likely it will be in the form of beta copies (where you’ll have chance to feedback and influence some plot points), free novellas and maybe some deleted scenes. If I move the series away from Kindle Unlimited, which is a definite possibility, then anyone on the reader team will get copies of the full series for free.

The planning is still in the early stages, but if you want to jump the queue and get involved then let me know at ckmartin.author@gmail.com, especially if you’ve already left a review on one of the books.

So that’s my rough plan for 2018. It’s staying flexible because I have some major personal life changes on the way and I refuse to beat myself up this year for things beyond my control!

Wishing you a happy, book-filled 2018!

Happily Ever After This Christmas (isn’t that what we all want?)

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With a little squee of delight (tinged with end of year exhaustion), I can say that my Christmas romance novel is published and finally available for purchase (or to read for free if you’re a Kindle Unlimited subscriber).

Although I usually enjoy writing grittier, darker plots, it’s nice to have a break sometimes. With the state of the world in 2017, it’s nice to step away from reality for a little while. Picturesque English village setting? Check. An independent bookstore? Check. Misunderstandings and mistakes? Check. Best friends who are funny and quirky? Check. Festive cheer with mulled wine and minced pies? Check. Humour? Check. A few tearjerker moments? Check.

Basically, it’s light-hearted and fun. Isn’t that what Christmas is meant to be all about?

Official blurby stuff:

This Christmas, can she finally leave the past behind?

Each year, creating the magical Christmas display at Johnson’s Independent Bookstore gets Kayleigh Johnson through the holidays. Staying busy to the point of exhaustion, she avoids the harsh reality that she is spending another Christmas alone. But when an inspector from the local council arrives late one snowy afternoon, her carefully controlled world is turned upside down once more.

Jo Pearmain is determined to do things by the book. Being a health and safety officer is hardly her dream job, but it’s one she needs to keep. Little does she know that as she closes down the bookstore Christmas display, she is destroying the small sliver of hope and happiness Kayleigh has left.

When she realises what she’s done, Jo’s determined to put it right, but Kayleigh is slow to forgive. The harder she works to fix things, the further Kayleigh pushes her away.

Can Jo convince Kayleigh they must work together to save Christmas for the village? And if she can, they might even save each other…

Happily Ever After This Christmas is a heartwarming romance about overcoming adversity and rediscovering the miracle of Christmas.

Available now at Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk

A story for the hopeless romantics out there (grab a free preview)

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Everyone knows I like my stories with a bit of grit and darkness. I can’t help it. Give me a heroine with a dodgy background she’s trying to escape from and I’m happy as Larry.

At the same time, 2017 hasn’t exactly been a stellar year. Just following the news is enough to give you a nervous breakdown. So, for Christmas, I thought I would make a change from my usual MO and go for a gentler option. Happily Ever After This Christmas is set in the English Cotswolds, at the independent bookstore owned by Kayleigh Johnson. A woman who is getting on just fine (or so she thinks), until Jo Pearmain walks through her door.

It’s not that Jo intends to completely destroy the other woman’s Christmas, it just sort of happens. It’s not really her fault, but the more she tries to fix things, the more determined Kayleigh becomes to not let her.

With the countdown on until Christmas Eve, will Jo finally be able to convince Kayleigh to forgive her? If she can, then she might also be able to convince her that together, they could become something wonderful.

I’ll be sending my mailing list a free sample chapter later this week, so if you want to check it out before it’s available for sale, then click this link to sign up.

September Roundup: Promos and short story thoughts

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Current Promo (time limited offer)

Dirty Little War eBook – on sale for 0.99 September 28 – October 5.

If you enjoy this novel, don’t forget you can sign up to get a free follow on chapter by signing up here. It contains spoilers for the entire book, so don’t read it until you’ve finished!

You’ll get notified of any new releases, but that will be all (I hate spam).

 

 

Don’t forget, if you enjoy it, leave a review! 

In other news…

There’s been lots of travel this month, which is great for coming up with new ideas. I’ve got a few bubbling away, but I’m also looking forward to all the new season TV to get a feel for what is good out there right now (and to see if Supergirl can redeem itself).

I’ve got a second round of edits back for my standalone romance and also my Christmas romance, so that’s a nice stack of work in the queue. Add that to my plans to relaunch the Lazarus Hunter series in October and the final quarter of the year looks to be as busy as the first. I’m really excited about all these books though, so I can’t wait to share them with you.

Short stories have been on my mind a lot lately. I don’t know many people who read short stories in the lesbian fiction genre unless they are free. From conversations with friends, even those readers with a Kindle Unlimited subscription prefer to get something longer (and therefore of perceived better value) than a quick read. I’m conscious that my sample size is small, so if you have any strong feelings, then comment below and it might change the direction of some of my plans for 2018.

 

Don’t forget, if you want to take advantage of the promo, make sure to click on the links above before it expires!

August Roundup: Free book promotion and other news

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Current Promos (time limited offers)

 

 

Recapture the summer with Tapas and Tangelos –  a romantic beach read set in a sleepy European town. Read for free between September 2-6.

 

 

The second book in the Detective Teddie McKay series, A Taste To Die For is on offer for only 0.99 between September 9 – 16. You can also pick up the first in the series, The Crochet Killer for the same price too.

 

 

 

Don’t forget, if you enjoy them, leave a review! 

In other news…

August 2017 will forever be known as the month of the great edit. Nearly all my time has been focused on The Lazarus Hunter series, which will be republished under a different name a little later in the year. It makes sense to separate this out from my lesbian fiction, even though it won’t be easy. In the long term, it will be better for everyone to keep them separate. Of course, if you are primarily a fan of that series, I’ll be providing ways for you to find it and get your hands on the next books in the series.

Another standalone romance is in the editing queue and my Christmas romance is also coming round for its next stage of edits. So with that many plates spinning, I have been quiet on social media. That looks likely to continue into September (when I throw some travel into the mix as well, just to stay on my toes) but by the time autumn rolls around, I hope to be writing some new things rather than just editing existing manuscripts.

Now, back to work!

Don’t forget, if you want to take advantage of the promos, make sure to click on the links above before they expire!

July Roundup: Current promotions, free short story and WIPs

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Current Promos (time limited offers)

Dirty Little War eBook – on sale for 0.99 only until July 29.

If you enjoy this novel, don’t forget you can sign up to get a free follow on chapter by signing up here. It contains spoilers for the entire novel, so don’t read it until you’ve finished the book!

You’ll get notified of any new releases, but that will be all (I hate spam).

 

The Crochet Killer – You can get the eBook for FREE between July 29 – August 2.

And if you enjoy Detective Teddie McKay, then the second book in the series, A Taste To Die For is on offer for only 0.99 between July 29 – August 5

Don’t forget, if you enjoy them, leave a review! 

In other news…

July has been a strange month. I have done lots of work, but it doesn’t feel like work. That might sound like a nice perk, but when you are a hyper-focused completer-finisher like me, the guilt starts to set in. I end up feeling like I’ve not done anything at all.

Another thing with writing is that sometimes, despite your original intentions and ideas, some stories just don’t work. It can be a labour of love to write an entire novel length work. Putting it aside and letting it go doesn’t come easily. It doesn’t matter how many books you’ve completed, it happens. So take heart newbie writers out there. The key is just to pick yourself back up and keep going.

The main focus for August will be whipping the second book of the Lazarus Hunter series into shape. This has been sitting languishing for some time, but like the new novel mentioned above, there was something not quite right about it. It’s taken me literally years to work out what that is, but now that I have, I can finally make progress. This is really exciting for me as books three and four are already written and have been waiting until this one got its act together.

However, with that comes the decision of whether or not to unpublish the first book and republish the series under a different name. As much as I love the book and it does contain some slashy, subtexty goodness, I understand that those who have come to my writing via lesbian fiction might be confused by a book that doesn’t fit that genre at all. I’ve tried to make it as clear as possible in the blurb, but there is always the chance of people reading a book they don’t expect. I haven’t made the full decision on this yet, but my gut feel is that it’s the right thing to do.

Don’t forget, if you want to take advantage of the promos, make sure to click on the links above before they expire!

It’s publication day! Tapas and Tangelos, a summer romance

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I’m so excited to be able to say that my latest lesbian romance novel, Tapas and Tangelos, is now available in both kindle ebook and paperback!

This was a huge amount of fun to write, mainly because of the many excuses to have adventures in the name of research. I’ve eaten copious amounts of Spanish food, visited cities, mountains and beaches, gone stargazing –  all in the name of making this book realistic. In total, I’ve spent about three months visiting Europe and bringing this story to life.

Unfortunately, it’s been a tough few weeks for me on a personal level, so the final stages of this have been a case of ‘the show must go on’. Nevertheless, I’ll always be sad I never got to share the outcome of this book with someone who had been so instrumental in giving me the confidence to publish my work.

Of course, the remaining two books scheduled for 2017 release are in various stages of completion, but today I get to just celebrate this one. If you’re looking for a lesbian romance that’s perfect for a summer beach read, with a little bit of mystery and intrigue, then check out the blurb below.

Thank you again to all the amazing readers who have supported me on this journey. Reviews are everything to an independent author, so if you enjoy this (or any of my other books) then please let the world know. I really do appreciate it.

Tapas and Tangelos

Hayley Jones has made peace with the fact she’ll always be alone. Instead of pining for love, she dedicates her time to running a locals bar in a quiet little Spanish town. Over the course of a decade, she has finally found a place to call home.

The night Kate Lanthorn arrives at the newly opened backpacker’s hostel, Hayley’s world is turned upside down. The attraction between them is immediate and intense. At Kate’s touch, the rules Hayley has made to protect herself are broken. For just one night, she allows herself to be the person she could have been in a different life.

Hayley insists it can never be more than a one night stand. A mistake they shouldn’t repeat, no matter how hard Kate tries to convince her otherwise. Hayley knows she should walk away. Even being ‘just friends’ is too dangerous. But her head and her heart aren’t playing the same game. The resolve she finds when she is alone in the darkness always dissolves when Kate walks through the door.

The more Kate pushes Hayley to venture out from the security of the bar, the closer she comes to discovering the reasons why Hayley left England years ago and refuses to return.

Will Hayley find the strength to walk away before it’s too late? Or will her past finally come back to haunt her and destroy everything she’s fought so hard for?

Tapas and Tangelos is a lesbian romance set in the heat and sunshine of Spain. A sizzling summer beach read filled with desire and intrigue.

Buy now or read for free with Kindle Unlimited: Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk

 

Writing, romance and sunshine

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It’s been a busy two weeks here in the sunshine. I’m almost starting to think you can have to much of a good thing. But a plan is coming together and I’m really excited for what the next few months will bring.

Creative – new ideas and first drafts

In a fit of inspiration, I’ve put together the first skeletal outline of a lesbian romance that I think will make the final cut for 2018. It’s a standalone, standard romance rather than anything of the urban fantasy, hot leather variety, so fits in neatly with the rest of my plans.

My summer romance for 2017 (title coming soon) completed the first draft and passed the alpha reader tests. The main criticism was that the sex came too quickly. I’m trying not to take that as some kind of personal judgement…

Editing – the slow, tortuous road to publication

With the first feedback, I’ve begun the editing process and as always, it’s not quite as bad as I feared. As a writer, there is always a sense of doubt with each book that when you read it back it will be utter rubbish. Don’t get me wrong, this is far from perfect. But it does at least make sense, rather than being 200 pages of random words and punctuation.

Publishing – and all the other bits that go on behind the scenes

With the shift towards fiction, I’ve had more time to manage my existing books. Previously available as ebook on Kindle only, I’ve been working on updates that will make the shift towards paperback. My new summer romance will be the start of dual ebook and paperback releases going forwards and my entire back catalogue will also be available by the beginning of June.

I’ve been also considering the move away from Kindle only and into other ebook retailers. However, I have a huge number of Kindle Unlimited readers and I know I could lose them in the move over to non-exclusive ebook territory. So that is on hold, pending review later in the year. I’d be interested to hear what anyone else thinks though.

Planning and dreaming – what’s coming up in the next few weeks

A lot of details will be finalised over the next few weeks and this is one of the most nail-biting yet fun parts of being an author. The title will be set in stone, the cover finalised and the editors will be hard at work on the final copy. Once those decisions are made and available to share, I always feel the transition from idea to a real book begins.

Then it will be off to reviewers and the nerves can really kick in!

Wishing you all a fabulous, fiction-filled weekend!

Where’s Wally? (Spoiler alert – somewhere warm and sunny!)

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It’s been a while since I did a blogpost, so apologies for the lack of updates. So why have I been missing in action? It’s been a bit of a whirlwind month and I’ve finally begun a nice long writing sabbatical.

Although I released Dirty Little War in 2016, most of last year was taken up with non-fiction work. Although 2017 started out the same way, I did manage to wrap up all those annoying projects in the first quarter so I could put the second quarter of the year to good use.

Specifically, to write the lesbian romances and urban fantasy stories that had to be put aside for far too long. To get myself back in the mood, the wife and I are in Europe, working on books and  taking time out from commuter hell. With the farce that it Brexit, it makes sense to enjoy this before the British politicians ruin this forever.

So, other than sampling lots of delicious wine and tapas, what does this mean…?

Research, right?

Creative – new ideas and first drafts

I’ve started researching a new urban fantasy idea that I suspect will have romantic undertones, but the characters haven’t quite fully formed yet. There is a definite connection between them, so if it turns into something interesting then it might be a 2018 release, which sounds far away right now, but these things roll around quickly!

I’ve also been putting the final touches (helped by all that food and drink ‘research’) to the first draft of my 2017 summer romance. The plan is currently to release before June, barring any last minute hiccups or the complete thumbs down from my editor.

Editing – the slow, tortuous road to publication

Another plan is to release the second book in The Lazarus Hunter series later this year. Full disclosure: I’m not happy with it in it’s current form, so I intend to do a serious edit before handing it over for someone else. It’s been a stumbling block for two years. Given that this is not a lesbian romance, or even with two specifically lesbian main characters, I’m also toying with branding options so people don’t leap from the romances to this expecting the same thing. It’s a tough one and I’ll probably end up reaching out to get opinions on it.

Publishing – and all the other bits that go on behind the scenes

Nothing yet, other than putting marketing plans in place and thinking about book covers. I’ve got a working title for the summer romance but again, it could get canned when my first round of test readers get to it. Instead I intend to enjoy this quiet time to actually reappear online after simply having no time for such things for months.

Planning and dreaming – what’s coming up next week

It will be a ‘more of the same’ kind of week. So I probably won’t do another blogpost and instead focus on getting the first draft truly finished so I can get the edits started on that. It feels strange not to have client meetings taking up so much of my time, so I want to get a few more ideas in the bank. The third quarter of 2017 is still up for grabs, so if non-fiction takes over again for a few months, I’d like to have something to run with in the background.

But for now, more wine, more good company and more romance. Research is the best thing ever.