Silent Bob

My fifth Music of the Soul book is published!

On August 15, 2013 my eBook, Silent Bob, was added at Amazon.com! Print on demand paperbacks are live too! Just like with Karaoke Queen, copies were selling the moment it went live!

Keeping with my own lame tradition, I'll start by saying a couple things about this book before I share the overview of the story with you. As with the rest of the Music of the Soul books, the two main characters in this action packed romance are women, you can find it in the "Lesbian Romance" and "General Romance" categories on Amazon.com.

This book is the fifth book to take place in the same world as Music of the Soul, A Deafening Whisper, Dating Game and Karaoke Queen and there is a flood of crossovers of events, locations and people (Kimi Soloman Roth has a huge part in this book). But it is a stand alone novel. You don't have to have read any of the Music of the Soul series books for this story to stand on its own. All the books in the series can be read in any order. This book demonstrates that lies of omission can still have devastating effects on people and there are no miracle cures. Acceptance and self doubt and realization play an enormous role in the story. We finally get to meet the mysterious Silent Bob that has played a background role in most of the Music of the Soul books!

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In Silent Bob, the book is narrated by the main character, Roberta Valentine. Bobbie has grown tired of her love them and leave them, party girl life. Moving into her thirties she feels empty and a desire to find a real, serious and lasting relationship only to be met by disappointment after disappointment.

In a chance meeting in a blizzard with her main competitor in the outdoor gear business, Blake, Bobbie finds herself continually frustrated with the vexing woman. They find they are both dating the same man. Blake slowly works her way into Roberta's heart. But the problem is, Blake is straight and harbors many prejudices about lesbians and sexuality.

Roberta hides the fact that she is the "Silent Bob" that Blake is so infuriated with. This causes a rift when the truth finally comes out. Then tragedy strikes!

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As always, I wanted to send a message, that normal is in the eye of the beholder, our scars make us beautiful, we only need to stop to look to see it... and things are not always as they seem.

I wrote this over a week or two but held it back to keep my monthly publishing schedule. I couldn't wait so I published it 18 hours early. I am nervous and excited and anxious to hear the reactions from my readers. As always, it may not be as polished or professional as most, but that's just my writing style. I believe this was a story worth sharing.

Mirroring the four previous books, I am floored at how quickly sales are building. I'm looking forward to writing more books in this series, to share stories of strong women accomplishing amazing things.

I want my readers to know that I love them and appreciate any feedback, positive or negative. I also accept peanut-butter cookies.

The next book in the series, Five Feet or Less is already completed and in the editing phase. Look for a September release!

There is a sneak peek chapter of the second book in my Valkyrie Chronicles series at the end of the book. Bloodlines. We get to see more of Kara, Kate, Arina and the rest as they defend Earth and Valhalla against the raging hordes of the Ragnarok!

I'd love to hear feedback and discussion from YOU about the characters in Silent Bob. I'd love to discuss the story with you!

Silent Bob Sneak Peek

Who is Silent Bob?

OK, I thought I would give a tiny glimpse of what you will see in the Silent Bob book from the Music of the Soul series that will be released on August 17.  I hope it is an enticing sneak peek.

Silent Bob, in the words of Kimi Salomon (Roth) from Karaoke Queen

   Her voice caught and I found I was tearing up a bit myself. We stopped for a second and both pulled out our water bottles and took a drink before she continued. "I didn't want to disappoint this woman that the gods had sent to me to be my guardian angel. I learned all I could about the business, about the outdoors. She showed me the majesty of nature and took me out here every chance we got."

   We started moving again, continuing our search. "She caught me sketching one day and excitedly brought me to the MAC. I was amazed at the works of art there. I had never seen such beautiful things. She got me an art set and art books for Christmas and encouraged me to draw. I still have the little magnifying glass she gave me to look at frost and snowflakes so I could witness the artistry of nature itself." She held up her keys by a little leather pouch.

   She took a cleansing breath as we reached the bottom of the ridge-line and started picking our way along it, looking behind every rock and outcropping. "She made me go back to school and basically raised me until I was old enough to get a place of my own. You know... my mother never went looking for me. Bobbie became my mother... my big sister. She taught me that the world wasn't this hateful, spiteful place I had always believed it to be. That it is full of beauty and wonder hiding where most people don't even think to look to find it. That beauty is everywhere, you just have to open your eyes, let it in. She brought peace into my mind to replace the all the rage. I can only hope that some day she can be proud of me. That is why she is my hero. That's why I seem to have my strange fascination with heroes. Because, if the others are like her, then this world truly is full of wonder. A place I'm happy to raise my daughter in."

If this tasty little tidbit sounded good to you, let me tease you with the fact that this is just the tiniest glance into this action packed, emotional journey into the life of Roberta Valentine... Silent Bob.

As always I'd like to hear feedback and discussion from YOU. Thanks for being such great fans!

Misadventures of Victoria Davenport: Operation Matchmaker

Operation Matchmaker short story is published!

On July 20, 2013 my eBook short story, Misadventures of Victoria Davenport: Operation Matchmaker, was added at Amazon.com! There will be no print on demand paperbacks until I have enough short stories for a "collected works" edition! This Vicky story now holds the record for first sale of my books. The first copy sold within two minutes of it going live! What can I say? You guys are the most awesome readers, ever!

The character, Victoria Davenport, or Vicky, has been the most talked about supporting character in the Music of the Soul series. More people have asked for more stories about her than any other (Silent Bob comes in a close second). But I understand. Who can blame you? It is hard not to fall for the super hyper, super loveable, blonde Einstein. One straight woman told me that she'd marry Vicky in a second.

I listened and have created the Misadventures of Victoria Davenport. The idea was for me to create a series of short stories about her years at Oxford and release one short story between each Music of the Soul book I release. Giving small doses of blonde explosion fun to my readers! Once I have five or so short stories I will release them in a collected works book with a new story or two included.

In this first story, Vicky gets her introduction to Oxford. She vows to find her new roommate Candice a boyfriend in Operation Matchmaker. And accidentally succeeds in her own fun loving fashion. We also get insight into the dichotomy of her genius and her scatterbrained personality... as well as her reason for finally accepting Oxford's offer and leaving her friends and family for a life in England.

As always, I want to let my readers know that I love them and appreciate any feedback, positive or negative.

I'd like to hear feedback and discussion from YOU about the characters in the Misadventures of Victoria Davenport. I'd love to discuss the story with you!

Valkyrie Chronicles: Return of the Asgard

Return of the Asgard is published!

On July 14, 2013 my eBook, The Valkyrie Chronicles: Return of the Asgard, was added at Amazon.com! Print on demand paperbacks are live too! I'm a little obsessive compulsive and was refreshing my screen until I saw the book go live a few hours after I submitted it. I ran around super-fast in tiny circles when I saw the first copy sell within ten minutes of it going live! I love my readers!

To keep with tradition, let me say a little about this book before I go into the story overview with you. This SciFi book has some lesbian overtones. The Asgard race are not as hung up on gender as we humans are.

This book is the first book in the Valkyrie Chronicles series. I have always been fascinated about Norse Mythology, especially the Valkyrie and the legend of Ragnarock. I decided to put in a twist on my take of it.

What if the legends were all just the stories of actual happenings that were interpreted the best way they could understand by the Norse people. What if the Asgard race were so far technologically advanced that it appeared to be magic to the people of Earth at the time? And better yet, what if a Valkyrie had been left behind when the Asgard left Earth thousands of years ago? That is the premise of this series.

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In Return of the Asgard, the book is narrated by the main character, Kara. She is a Valkyrie of Asgard who got left behind standing alone against the Ragnarok horde to allow Valhalla and the Asgard to escape. Defying the odds, Kara survived. She has fought and evaded the Ragnarok here on Earth for five thousand years. She can feel the approach of her people and she longs to go home again.

She is joined by an unlikely ally, Kate, a Seattle police detective, in her stand against the invading alien race to defend both Earth and Valhalla from the Ragnarok warriors. Kate shows dedication to justice and protecting the weak that rivals the Valkyrie. Their bond becomes something more than friendship as they hold the line together to herald the return of the Asgard!

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It took a week of nights and weekends to slam out my first attempt at a SciFi novel. I'm so paranoid wondering if it will be as well received as my romance novels. I did include an LGBT romance sub plot in the book for my Music of the Soul readers. I am excited to see the reactions from you all. As always, it may not be as polished or professional as other authors, but that's how I write. I truly believe this was a story worth sharing and I hope you find it to be a story worth reading.

If this book is well received, I will start writing the second book in the series.

As I always do, I want to let my readers know that I love them and appreciate any feedback, positive or negative.

I'd love to hear feedback and discussion from YOU about the characters in Return of the Asgard. I'd love to discuss the story with you!

Karaoke Queen

My fourth book is published!

On June 14, 2013 my eBook, Karaoke Queen, was added at Amazon.com! Print on demand paperbacks are live too! In the first few minutes, copies were already selling!

Now as always, I'll first say a bit about this book before I share the story overview with you. Keeping with the Music of the Soul tradition, the two main characters in this romance are women, you can find it in the "Lesbian Romance" and "General Romance" categories on Amazon.com. Why there needs to be a separate label I have no idea.

This book is the fourth to be set in the same world as Music of the Soul, A Deafening Whisper, and Dating Game so again there are some minor crossovers between places, events and people (We get to see Samantha from A Deafening Whisper as a three year old!). But it is a stand alone novel. You don't have to have read any of the Music of the Soul series books for this story to stand on its own. All the books in the series can be read in any order. This book is more emotional than music of the soul, but not as emotional as A Deafening Whisper, I hope the message that everyone is beautiful for who they are comes through in the story.

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In Karaoke Queen, the book is narrated by the main character, Skylar Roth. She was the victim of a horrendous crime and was left with terrible scars, physically and mentally. She was plagued by thoughts of suicide daily. Her daughter Samantha and music became her salvation.

She hid in the shadows of the London Karaoke scene since no band would have her.

She winds up being invited to an international Karaoke competition where she meets a rival, Kim, who shows her no quarter. Continually vexed by Kim, a relationship of respect grows between them. But it there something else going on? Something beautiful?

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Once again, I wanted to send a message, that there is beauty in all things, we only need to stop to look to see it... and things are not always as they seem.

I wrote this over a couple weekends (I was lazy) and I published this one the second I completed the editing comments since I am psyched to see the reactions from my readers. As always, it may not be as polished or professional as most, but that's just my writing style. I believe this was a story worth sharing.

Just like the three previous books, I am amazed at how quickly sales are building. I'm looking forward to writing more books in this series, to share stories of strong women accomplishing amazing things.

As always, I would like to let my readers know that I love them and appreciate any feedback, positive or negative.

I keep getting asked about some of the supporting characters, and if I'll share more about them. As always, I'm listening, I am about half way finished with the fifth book in the series "Silent Bob" there will also be a book of short stories about the adventures of Victoria Davenport in England in the coming months. However completion Silent Bob has been put on hold for a month as I complete my first SciFi book in the "Valkyrie Chronicles" series, "Return of the Asgard". A Valkyrie stranded on earth for thousands of years awaits the return of the Asgard.

I'd love to hear feedback and discussion from YOU about the characters in Karaoke Queen. I'd love to discuss the story with you!

Dating Game

My third book is published!

On May 17, 2013 my eBook, Dating Game, went live on Amazon.com! Print on demand paperbacks are live too! Once again, I am surprised at the reception to this book!

Following my own tradition, I'll tell you a little about this book before I tell you about the story. As with my other books, the two main characters who fall in love are women, so this book is also relegated to the "Lesbian Romance" category on Amazon.com. I am still of the opinion that lesbian/gay love stories should be in the general romance category, isn't love love?

This book is also set in the same world as Music of the Soul, and A Deafening Whisper, so there are some minor crossovers between places, events and people. But it is a stand alone novel. You don't have to have read Music of the Soul or A Deafening Whisper as this book as it is a story of its own. This book is a little lighter and more upbeat than the last book, which was extremely emotional, so I thought I'd give the readers a little break from the tears.

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In Dating Game, the book is narrated by the main character, Crystal James. She is an upscale party planner in Seattle, who has some amazing dual colored eyes. She also happens to be straight... she thinks. But it wouldn't phase her in the least if she was gay since her best friend for life, Beverly, is gay.

She takes Beverly out to the premier lesbian club, the Ballyhoo, in Seattle to get her friend over her broken heart and possibly make a hookup.

What Crystal didn't count on was meeting a spunky and charismatic girl, Riley, who shows more interest in her than in Beverly. After explaining she is straight, Riley mocks her straight dating capability. All in fun, the two make a bet that they could take the other on a better date. The loser has to humiliate themselves at the bar.

The lines between the game and their hearts are quickly blurred as they fall for each other. Misunderstandings and fear of rejection keep the two apart. Can their friends help bring the two back together?

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I wanted to make a light and happy story this time but still wanted compelling characters. I love supporting characters and feel that so many authors treat them as wooden furniture, so like I did with Sarina and Vicky in the previous books, I fleshed out the supporting characters in this one and gave them a life of their own.

I wrote this one weekend and I published this one the moment the editing was complete because I'm excited to see the reactions on this story, since it is a different flavor than the last two. As always, it may not be as polished or professional as most, but that's just my writing style. I believe this was a story worth sharing.

Just like the two previous books, I still only believed that when this eBook went live, that I'd sell just a handful copies to friends and family. But again I'm stunned to be on track to sell hundreds of copies in the first month! At one point I was ranked #4 in "Hot New Releases" on Amazon's "Lesbian Romance" category. I don't think I'll ever get used to this!

As always, I would like to let my readers know that I love them and appreciate any feedback, positive or negative.

The third book has only been out for a few days and some readers are pressuring me for a fourth. As always, I'm listening, and in this case anticipating! I've ALREADY submitted the fourth book in the Music of the Soul universe for editing. Karaoke Queen, will be published by mid June. I've already started on my fifth manuscript and should be able to release it early this summer.

I'd love to hear feedback and discussion from YOU about the characters in Dating Game. I'd love to discuss the story with you!

A Deafening Whisper

My second book is published!

On April 22, 2013 my eBook, A Deafening Whisper, went live on Amazon.com! Print on demand paperbacks are live too! This feels like a rerun of last month when Music of the Soul went live, I'm so excited!

Once again, I'll tell you a bit about the book before I move on to the story. Since once again, the main characters who fall in love happen to be women, this book is also in the "Lesbian Romance" category on Amazon.com. I still believe that lesbian/gay love stories should be in the general romance category, why label and segregate them?

This book is set in the same world as Music of the Soul, so there are minor crossovers between places, events and people. But it is a stand alone novel. You don't have to have read Music of the Soul as this book as it is a story of its own. This book is a little more emotional and both characters suffer from misunderstood afflictions, but I do promise, that no matter how bad things may seem, there is a happy ending.

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In A Deafening Whisper, the book is narrated by the main character, Mia Jacobs. She suffers from Tourette Syndrome and some other complications that are associated with that affliction.

Her life is pure hell at school as she endures harassment and ridicule at the hands of her classmates because of her episodes. When Mia finally gets to college, she is relieved. After all, people in college are more mature and that harassment couldn't possibly follow here there, right?

She quickly found that she was wrong. Just when it seemed that everything was about to start all over again, she is saved from a bad situation by the mysterious and rebellious Vee Taylor.

They quickly find that there is a strong attraction between them that they just can't fight. As their romance blooms, Vee's dark secret about her own health rears its ugly head.

Can their love endure all of the hardships that lie ahead?

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I was thinking about this type of story one night, while watching some Joss Whedon shows, how he can evoke emotions with shocking events yet keep most of the story light. So I thought I'd give it a go and sat down one weekend and pounded out the book, complete with the types of strong female characters that I find compelling.

A friend of mine suffered through the editing of my still terrible punctuation and grammar... I'm not sure how she survived with her sanity intact. Once again, it may not be as polished or professional as most, but that's how I write. I believe it was a story worth sharing.

Just like the previous book, I really believed that when this eBook went live on Amazon.com that I'd sell just a few copies to friends and family. But once again I'm on track to sell hundreds of copies in the first month! At one point I was ranked #13 in "Hot New Releases" on Amazon's "Lesbian Romance" category. I ran around super fast in tiny circles over that!

Just like before, I'd like to let my readers know that I love them and appreciate any feedback, positive or negative.

The second book has only been out for a week and already people are asking for the third. As always, I'm listening! I'm just a day or two away from submitting the third book in the Music of the Soul universe for editing. Dating Game, should be published within three or four weeks. I've solidified ideas for the fourth manuscript and should be able to release it early this summer.

I'd love to hear feedback and discussion from YOU about the characters in A Deafening Whisper. I'd love to discuss the story with you!

Music of the Soul

My first book is published!

On March 17, 2013 my eBook, Music of the Soul, went live on Amazon.com!  Print on demand paperbacks are live too!  Now it may look like I'm excited about that, but it is actually a series of exciting events culminating in this post.

First let me tell you a little bit about the book before I tell you about the story.  The two main characters in Music of the Soul happen to be gay women.  This automatically slammed my book into the "Lesbian Romance" category on Amazon.com.  But that was never the intent.  Some people (not all) automatically assume that means it is an erotic story.  That's just another flawed stereotype.  No, there is NO smut in my book.

The book is primarily a romance story, the fact that the two people in love happen to be lesbians is beside the point.  It shouldn't matter which two people like each other.  This book is about love, romance and empowering women.  In fact every major characters in this story is a woman, the men just serve supporting roles.

In most of the stories rattling around in my head, some of the main characters face adversities like handicaps, bigotry, bullying, illnesses and other afflictions that make them outcasts in society.  But they come out stronger in the end, after weathering the storm.

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In Music of the Soul , the book is narrated by the main character, Mandy Harris.  She is the rock world's bad girl who has really lost her way in life.  She leaves the music industry behind to try to find the pieces of herself she lost while skyrocketing to fame.   She returns to Vancouver, Washington... to where it all began.

There she meets the most amazing person, Anabella West.  A deaf girl who "hears" more in Mandy's music than anyone else.  This coupled with her amazing zest for life causes Mandy to become quickly enamored with her.

Through the good and the bad, they both learn to heal, forgive themselves and let love be their salvation throughout the emotional roller-coaster of the story.

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I thought it was a story worth telling.  So I sat down one weekend and churned out the entire book.  With my wife editing my terrible punctuation and grammar, I feel I put out a passable semblance of a manuscript.  Though it is not polished or professional as most, I still think the story carries trough.

When the eBook went live on Amazon.com, I believed that I'd sell maybe five copies to friends and family.  Imagine my surprise when hundreds of copies sold in the first month alone!  At one point I was ranked #10 in the entire "Lesbian Romance" category.  I was totally psyched about that!



I love all my readers and appreciate any feedback, positive or negative.

For the influx of people that have been requesting that I do another book.  I'm listening!  I finished another manuscript two weeks ago and it is in the final editing stages right now.  A Deafening Whisper, should be published within a week or two.  A third manuscript should be complete this weekend to hand over for editing.

I'd love to hear feedback and discussion from YOU about the characters in Music of the Soul.  I'd love to discuss the story with you!

Holy Crap! I'm an author!

It's official! I'm now an author. What does that mean? I don't know, I was hoping you could tell me. It has been an eye opening experience writing a manuscript, going through the editing process, then actually self publishing a book.

How the heck did this happen? It's not like I just sat down one day with an idea and typed it out over the weekend then had a book. Well that's a lie, that's how it happened. I'm just as shocked as you are. I'm not qualified, but was able to battle my way through. So as the old adage goes "If I can do it, ANYONE can do it!"

I just wanted to share my characters and tell a a compelling story, complete with my bad grammar and rudimentary knowledge of the English language. My primary language is sarcasm after all.

Now that I have figured out the process and requirements, any subsequent books SHOULD be much simpler to publish. I'll try to post information on my books here for discussion including progress on new titles.

I would suggest to anyone who ever thought, "what if" about writing, to just sit down and do it.  Self publishing throws away all the boundaries and restrictions that are normally hurdles to anyone wanting to share their stories.

I'd be happy to share my experiences with anyone who is interested.  Maybe I can help make your first experience in self publishing go a little smoother than my first attempt.