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Download December 2!!
It’s that time of year again. Download December, where you can pick up free extended excerpts of previous and upcoming releases and also 99 cent ebooks. This is my second year holding this event, hence the “2” part.
Download December will officially start on Saturday, December 5th, and these books kick off the sale:
Free Sneak peeks*: The Stone Boy/Furies, The Player, RUSH
*A sneak peek is a promotional excerpt
At Last – 99 cents for December
**The Free SneakPeeks promo ended on Monday, December 7th**
HUI will be released in December.
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Dancing like no one’s watching
What I’m watching: HBO’s The Latin Explosion: a New America
I hope they include Celia Cruz. I was so happy to see José Feliciano’s segment. Many people know Feliciano’s hit Feliz Navidad, but his rendition of the star spangled banner was groundbreaking, and years before Marvin Gaye’s souful version.
Yes! they just showed vintage Celia!! Cuban born Celia Cruz is a Salsa legend. I hope someone does a big screen bio on her.
This is an excellent documentary. It was good to see footage of artists I still enjoy listening to.
I’ve got a few ebooks that I’ve kept under the radar, since I love creating unique story lines. So if you enjoy reading books featuring diverse characters who navigate through challenging life stories, then you may want to check them out.
The next romantic release from Wikkid.Sexy.Cool books highlights that age old debate. Can love co-exist with a burning drive to succeed?
This is why I enjoy digital editing, because I can manipulate stock photos to create covers and promos that feature minorities.
Excerpt:
“Oh, Imani, you’ve got company,” Julio sang, just before knocking on her bedroom door and getting the okay to enter.
Imani was on the verge of asking “Who is it?” when a familiar face peeked over Julio’s shoulder. Hui thanked Julio, who was bold enough to turn around and tell him, “Hey now, I told you to wait in the front room-”
“Thank you, thank you,” Hui kept saying, but Julio wouldn’t budge. Whenever Hui tried stepping around him, Julio blocked his way.
“Julio, it’s okay,” she finally said.
“Well alright then. Y’all have a good time.” He backed out of the room, closing the door slowly while giving Imani a comical face. “Adios.”
Once they were alone Imani acted as if it was totally normal that she was covered from forehead to chin with a frothy green beauty mask. “It’s an avocado peel. S’posed to clear my pores,” she told him. “It’s not really dry yet.”
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The Carina Press watch continues
Back in mid-September (of 2015), I mentioned on Dear Author how Carina Press lacked a multicultural or IR category. I got a response and a request to send an email to Angela James. I followed up with an email as requested, on September 16th.
I kept it short and to the point:
Hello Ms. James,
Thank you for responding to my comment on Dear Author.I just thought a category on Carina’s main listing of genres could benefit from an additional category representing diverse protagonists.It would also make the books you offer that feature a diverse range of lead characters easier to find on the site.Again, thank you for responding and being receptive to this suggestion.I wish I had better news to report, but as of the date of this post, Carina still lacks a category for either IR, multicultural or diverse characters.
Here’s a screen shot as of November 26th:
Why is this important? Well, for readers who enjoy romances featuring Angels and Demons (a niche category that’s listed on the site) they can readily find them, or male/male or female/female, djinn, BDSM, Minage, Shifters, Dragon, Vampires and Ghosts . . .
Quite simply, making it easier for a reader to find books with diverse leads benefits not just the reader, but also the publisher. Buyers can’t purchase these books if they don’t know the publisher carries them.
There’s an irony about all this that I hope won’t be lost. Imaginary creatures are front and center, but including a category or categories that reflect the world as we know it, somehow aren’t?
And in fairness, Carina Press isn’t the only publisher without a category or designation for diverse reads readily visible.
Here’s my hope, that publishers will start routinely including categories for readers who enjoy romance between people of different races and people with disabilities.
I’m a reader first and foremost. I also support authors who write for major publishers as well as indies. Yes, change takes time. As someone who has contributed labor for a web site redesign (for a large company), I recognize this. So, I’ll just stay patient.
UPDATE: No change as of 6/27/16.
Moving on:
Torii and Ethan are getting a sequel. I’m doing more research, and I’ve got a solid story line for their next ebook.
The next ebook release is HUI
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Hello from the Other Side
Hi!
If this is your first time visiting this site, I hope you’ll take the time to look around. I write for an underserved population. That is to say, my books feature leads of color (or co-leads who are minority). Most of my in house created book covers and promos reflect my writing platform, which is multicultural in scope.While I write primarily in the IR or interracial romance genre, my manuscripts also include scifi, historical romance, NA, YA and non-fiction.
Thank you for stopping by!
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School of Thought
My prayers are with the grieving families in Paris, and the nation of France as that country deals with another senseless act of terror.
Listening to: “You’re Been My Inspiration” by The Main Ingredient featuring the late, great Donnie McPherson. Donnie’s sweet, clear voice graced hits like “Spinning Around” “You’ve Been My Inspiration” and “I’m so Proud.” Most people know The Main Ingredient by their later hits, like “Everybody Plays the Fool” with Cuba Gooding as their lead singer.
For me, TMI will always be at their best during their hits featuring Donnie M. Please take a moment to listen:
Sometimes when I work on a novel an idea for a new story will pop into my head. I try to table any new book ideas until I release the others in line, but there are instances when the “voice” of a character or a story line comes flooding into my thoughts so strongly, that I have to write the info down right there and then.
So while HUI will be released shortly, I’ll also have other novels on sale that I’ve completed.
Upcoming novella couple:
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La Femme Lupita
Looking fierce and fabulous, Ms. Lupita Nyong’o
A brief pictorial bio on Imani Fairchild, ballerina.
Practice, practice, practice:
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The Dinner Date
“In Korea and China we have baby mice wine. It’s a cure for everything. You got asthma? Drink some baby mice wine. Bones ache? Nothing like baby mice wine.” The horrified WTF look on Imani’s face only egged him on. “We drown newborn mice in rice wine and it takes 12 to 14 months to ferment. Then it’s safe to drink.”
“How are dead mice ever safe to drink?”
He countered with, “Ah, but you Americans drink Tequila and swallow a worm.”
“Uh, sure. But I still think you’re punking me. I don’t think there’s any such thing as baby mice wine.”
“It’s true. Look it up on your phone, look it up on the Google.”
“I’m gonna do just that. You better not be messing with me.”
“Or what?” he challenged.
She pinched a crouton from her salad in order to throw it at him, but changed her mind after he kept laughing at her. No, she needed something else. Maybe a chickpea or a baby tomato bonking him right on the forehead would work.