NOT UNTIL YOU TRUST is out! (And an Author/Agent Chat Announcement)

So it's Tuesday again! Boy, the weeks go by fast, don't they? Today we've reached the halfway point in the serial, Part 4, NOT UNTIL YOU TRUST. This installment has one of my favorite sexy scenes in the book, so I hope you'll check it out.

Also, my agent Sara Megibow and I are doing a Twitter chat tomorrow night at 8pm central to talk about behind the scenes of NOT UNTIL YOU. We'll be using the hashtag #behindthebook. Sara's going to be asking questions and such and you can peek in. We'll also be taking questions from readers or other writers as part of the chat too. So I hope you'll pop in!

That's all for now!

Naïve Cela has gotten a peek into the world of BDSM. But, as Roni Loren’s titillating Not Until You series continues, will Cela really take the plunge and leave her vanilla life behind?

Despite desperately wanting to satisfy her curiosity, Foster is not about to introduce Cela to his true dominant side. For one thing, she’s far too innocent to participate in that kind of lifestyle; for another, he doesn’t want to get attached when she’ll be leaving town so soon. But when he comes home after a frustrating day and finds Cela hanging out with Pike, all of Foster’s possessive urges rise to the surface. 


Cela is left breathless and shaken after getting a glimpse of Foster’s dominance unleashed. Maybe he was right, and she isn’t ready for something so intense. But when she can’t get her mind off their nights together, she comes up with a daring plan to see just how much they’re both willing to risk…

Buy it on Kindle or Nook

Natalie Bahm and Agent Sara Megibow On Self-Pubbing For a Good Cause

So, today I have a special treat for you guys. My agency-mate Natalie Bahm is here, along with our agent Sara Megibow to talk about the amazing project Natalie is launching this week.

Just to give you a bit of background, I met Natalie through blogging a few years ago. She is one of the nicest people you could meet (finally got to meet her in person this summer), and I totally credit her with having a hand in my own publishing journey. Because if you've ever read my "how I got my agent" story, you know I originally got to Sara through a client referral. Well, that client was Natalie. So I'm forever indebted to her. ;)

And now I'm more than thrilled to share her debut book with you guys. And here's the deal--she's giving all of the money she makes on this book to a family with a sick child. ALL of it. How amazing is that?

So read about her journey with Sara to self-pub this book and then go pre-order the book. Not only will you get a fantastic story, but you'll be lending a helping hand as well.

Now, over to Natalie and Sara...

 

Natalie Bahm

Natalie:

In two short days my very first book, The Secret Underground, will debut. Last spring I decided to self-publish it as a fundraiser for the family of sick baby named Jayden.  Only, I didn’t self-publish the normal way.  My agent, Sara Megibow, and agency, Nelson Literary, helped make it happen. It’s been a pretty unconventional journey and Sara and I wanted to share some of it with you.

 

 

 

Sara:

There are lots of great reasons to self-publish. There are bad reasons too (like giving the middle finger to NewSara Megibow York or because an author doesn't want to wade through the rejection process). 

Natalie didn't ask me, "can I self publish this book?" Instead, she asked, "how do I create a book that can be used as a fundraiser for a charity that I believe in with all my heart?" Since raising money for Jayden was our number one goal, we had to make a career choice based on that end result. And, I am so proud of this team because that's exactly what is happening. With each purchase of The Secret Underground - whether in ebook format, print format or audio book, whether from amazon or Kobo or Nook or iBookstore -  Jayden's family receives money for their much-needed health care costs. What greater success is there? We're helping a baby and his family and self-publishing is allowing us to do that.

 

Natalie: 

I honestly never imagined stepping into the self-publishing world.  I’m the kind of person who struggles to make decisions and gets really stressed over details.  And, as some of you know, self-publishing is all about the details. 

When I heard about how Jayden’s family was struggling, I knew I had to do something to help them. I talked to Sara about doing a book for Jayden and she and I discussed options. We decided that the only way we could get a book out quickly and send all of the profits to Jayden’s family was to self-publish. 

To be honest, the idea terrified me.  Luckily, I didn’t have to do it alone.

  

Sara:

At Nelson Literary Agency, we pride ourselves on operating in an educated and holistic publishing environment. As an agency, we keep up to date on what's going on in publishing and communicate any and all opportunities to our clients as they present themselves. 

This is a fancy way of saying that two years ago it became very apparent some clients were interested in self-publishing as opposed to traditional publishing and some were interested in doing a bit of both. So, the agency set out to create a system in-house to offer these options to our clients. The idea is that each client can handcraft an author career - combining traditional publishing deals with self-publishing opportunities as they see fit (with agent advice and feedback). Just to be clear - clients can self-publish on their own without us if they want to - we don't own their rights as a publisher would.

In short, the NLA Digital Platform was created just for cases like Natalie's - to offer NLA authors more options for their books. Like I said above, the number one goal in creating The Secret Underground was to have a book that could operate as a fundraiser for charity. So, we really had to be creative when coming up with our business plan. I'm glad that my boss and our excellent staff paved the way so Natalie and I could really benefit from everything self-publishing has to offer.

 

Natalie:

There were several major benefits to having the agency’s support.  The biggest thing for me was I didn’t have to do anything alone.  Sara and the NLA Digital Liaison, Lori, helped with every single thing—from selecting editors and a cover artist, to formatting files for the different distributers, to developing a marketing plan.

Another perk was having access to things that aren’t available to most self-published writers—like having ARCs on NetGalley and getting the book distributed to booksellers (like Overdrive) who don’t usually work with self publishing authors.

But, I’ll be honest, even with all the help it was still A TON of work.  Now that it’s done though, I wouldn’t change a thing.  I know it will make a difference to Jayden’s family and in the end, that’s all that matters.

 

Thank you so much for letting us visit, Roni!

 

The eBook version of The Secret Underground is available for preorder through Amazon and iTunes.  On Friday you’ll be able to order it from most other online booksellers (including Kobo, Sony, B&N, Google, Overdrive, etc).

 

The print version will be available Friday on Amazon. 

The audiobook should be available shortly from Amazon, Audible, and iTunes.

For more information about Jayden visit http://helpbabyjayden.wordpress.com/

Click HERE for details about The Secret Underground

Blurb:

Twelve-year-old Ally is the only witness to a bank robbery in her small town. Unable to block out the memory of the robbers, a notorious gang known as the Gauze Men, Ally joins her little brother and a bunch of neighborhood boys digging a hole in her backyard.

Only the hole isn't just a hole - it's a massive set of tunnels snaking beneath the neighborhood and heading for an abandoned steel mill. Ally is old enough to know the danger, but she reasons spending time with sixth-grade heartthrob Paul is more fun than sitting at home with her worries. And dangerous it is - none of the kids' parents realize the tunnels exist, but the Gauze Men might.

 

You can visit Natalie and Sara on Twitter @NatalieBahm and @SaraMegibow

Here's a video to learn more about Jayden: 

Now, (Roni here again), everyone go forth and purchase! Buy for your family or friends if you're not into middle grade. It will be the best money you spend all week. And I'm sure his family thanks you.

Author Jane Kindred on Romance, Orgies, & The Devil's Garden

Based on what Jane is about to blog about, I feel a little bad saying I'm currently one of those friends at the RWA "orgy", but alas, that's where I am. Though I promise I am not scantily clad and I'm profusely cursing the stupid heels I had to buy.

So without further ado, here is Jane...

 

Click image to view full cover

 

When All Your Romance Writing Friends are off Having an Orgy Without You

Perhaps they’re not having an orgy, exactly, but it’s what I prefer to think. I mean, if everyone’s going to have fun without me, at the very least I should be allowed to imagine them all doing terrible, wonderful things to one another. After all, they’re not here to defend themselves, and I’m forced to live vicariously.

This week (if you’ve been here under this rock with me and didn’t know) is the annual Romance Writers of America Conference in New York City, where hordes of high-heel wearing, half-dressed women descend upon Manhattan. (I’m only guessing based on the tweets I’ve been seeing for months with pictures of shoes and dresses. Like I said, I get to make up what’s going on there, since none of them are here to defend themselves.) I understand there’s even a big, girl-filled dance floor at the infamous Harlequin party. Probably nothing like the all-girl dances I’ve been to, but what the heck, I’ll just imagine it is. What happens at the RWA Harlequin Black and White Ball stays at the RWA Harlequin Black and White Ball.

Right, um, where was I?

Oh, yes, so here I am slaving away at blog posts and novel revisions while everyone else is off having fun. So why am I not at RWA? Well, for one thing, it’s bloody expensive. For another, I’m not exactly a romance writer. My debut novella The Devil’s Garden is just out from Carina Press. Uh, yes, that’s Harlequin’s digital imprint. But I’m not a romance writer. I swear. Not that there’s anything wrong with that! It’s just that I feel compelled to explain when people hear I’m being published by Harlequin. I don’t want anyone to be disappointed when they pick up my novella expecting a typical romance hero and heroine with an HEA. (That’s Happily Ever After, for those of you who, like me, have been living here under this acronym-deficient rock.)

There is a touch of a romance thread in the novella, and an HEA of sorts, and even a tiny bit of very soft-heat erotica, but The Devil’s Garden is a traditional fantasy. And there is nothing typical about my hero and heroine. Or is it heroine and heroine? Or hero and hero? Well, it all depends. It’s neither and both. If I explain, I’ll have to give away spoilers.

What I can tell you is that the main character, temple courtesan Ume Sky, is also on occasion street urchin Cillian Rede. (That’s Cillian with a hard “C”, as in Cillian Murphy.)

*pic no longer available

Damn, look at those eyes. Can he be my B.O.W? (That’s Boyfriend of the Week for those of you who just fell into Roni’s blog out of the back of a turnip truck with me. Which reminds me, what is it with turnips being maligned, anyway? Well, there’s a Google search for that.) Are you getting the impression that I’m easily distracted? No comment. It’s been a long week. Plus, all my friends are off bumping and grinding in high heels and slutty dresses in the Manhattan heat without me.

At any rate, despite my illegitimacy as a romance writer, I grew up on gothic romances by Victoria Holt, Mary Stewart, and Phyllis A. Whitney. Not exactly the steamy stuff, but it left me with a love of intrigue mixed with mysterious, hot-headed gentlemen in fabulous coats and gutsy, conflicted heroines in gorgeous dresses. And I think you’ll find quite a bit of that seeped into The Devil’s Garden.


In The Devil’s Garden, appearances can be deceiving…

Ume Sky enjoys her place of honor as temple courtesan for the reigning Meer of In’La—until an assignation with a client ends in violence. Her elite status stripped away, Ume is forced to return to a life on the streets as Cillian Rede, the boy she used to be.

Cillian finds temporary harbor with dockhand Cree Sylva, where fear keeps him from revealing his former identity, but as the two become lovers, Cillian learns Cree is not without secrets.

When Cillian has the opportunity to regain his position through a liaison with the Meer himself, he is torn between his feelings for Cree and his need to live as Ume. But there’s even more at stake when Ume finds herself entangled in a plot to rid the Delta of divine rule…

The Devil’s Garden is available now from Carina Press.

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Jane Kindred began writing fantasy at age 12 in the wayback of a Plymouth Fury—which, as far as she recalls, never killed anyone…who didn’t have it coming. She spent her formative years ruining her eyes reading romance novels in the Tucson sun and watching Star Trek marathons in the dark. Although she was repeatedly urged to learn a marketable skill, she received a B.A. in Creative Writing anyway from the University of Arizona.

She now writes to the sound of San Francisco foghorns while two cats slowly but surely edge her off the side of the bed.

You can find Jane on Twitter: @JaneKindred
on Facebook: www.facebook.com/somewherebetweenheavenandhell
or on her website: www.janekindred.com