Sweet for Summer by Author Nancy Fraser

 

Spring cleaning, winterizing in the fall, hibernating in the dead of winter. What does that leave for summer?

Relaxation, reading and reivention, of course. Whether it's a much needed vacation ... away from work, away from isolation, away from the contraints we've all experienced these past two years... we all need some form of relaxation.

What better to way to relax than with a great book... whether you're on the beach (I wish), or just curled up in a chair with the air conditioning blowing around you. A great way to relax, is to read.

Then, there's reinvention. The task I've set myself for the brunt of the summer. Why? Because it keeps me inside and away from the heat and the sun (I'm allergic). But, mostly, because my writer's soul needed it. I've been in a loop --  Write, Edit, Publish, Repeat --- for a few years now, and always in the romance sub-genres I'm accustomed to.

Those of you who know me may not believe this ... but I was burned out on writing steamy lovescenes. 

Don't get me wrong... I'm still planning to finish series I've begun, still intending to write across multiple genres, but I've also added a new sub-genre I never expected to write. Sweet, inspirational (although not necessarily religious), short novella length books.

Enter the world of MAPs (multi-author projects) -- the place where all those Mail-Order Brides, Proxy Brides, Western Historical series were born! Out of curiosity, and the need for a change, I took a look at one, and then another, and then another. And, suddenly, I was hooked. My only concern was that they're all KDP/Kindle Unlimited exclusive. However, I'm always willing to expand my horizons. Plus... a huge bonus ... the readers who follow these MAP books are the most devoted I've ever seen. And that's saying a lot given how long I've been doing this.

My first MAP comes out in mid-August. I really fast turnaround given I only signed up at the beginning of July. However, they had an unexpected opening, so I took it. And, I'm so glad I did. I learned a lot (not easy for an 'old dog') about not only the most efficient writing proccess, but also about myself.

Here's a quick peek at the first product of my writing reinvention ...

Seth's Secretive Bride ~ part of the Matchmaker Mix-Up Series!

When Hannah McGibbon is forced out of her family home, she has nowhere to go. In a moment of desperation, she responds to an advertisement for a matchmaking service.

Widower Seth Temple needs a wife. Not for himself, but as a mother for his 7-year-old, emotionally challenged son. At the urging of his housekeeper, he sends in his application to be matched to a like-minded woman.

Unfortunately, what they both want is not what they get. Due to an unforeseeable mix-up with the usually stellar matchmaking service, Hannah is sent to Colorado rather than California. And, Seth is sent a young, red-headed spitfire, rather than the mature woman with a background in education he’d requested.

What will happen when he explains to Hannah that love and romance are low on his priority list and not part of his plan for a wife? And, once the matching service offers to set things right, will Hannah want to leave?

Available exclusively on Kindle Unlimited

And, of course, there's a trailer...

Wishing everyone a wonderful summer and great reading! And, don't forget to feed your Romance Gems' social media fix by following our Facebook Reader Page.

Nancy

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Where did Summer go? by Peggy Jaeger

Next week it will be August already. I think every summer about this time I ask myself ( and anyone who is listening to me, which, truthfully, isn't many!!) "Where did the summer go?"
Even during this horrible pandemic, with the country in such a weird state of shut down/don't shut down, I still feel as if the world is zipping by and I don't have enough time to do everything I want, or need, to do, despite being more of a hermit than usual.

Case in point: this summer I had 4 things on my work calendar that were a priority( In addition to the 99 everyday things that weren't):
1. finish my Christmas romance and get it ready for an October release
2. Start the next book in my Pride of Brothers series and finish the first draft
3. Plot the next three indie releases I have planned in my head
4. Blog at least 3-4 times per week on my website

I figured June, July and August would be more than enough for 1-3. #4 I do anyway.

Then reality hit.

June was a crazy month in which a routine dermatology appointment knocked me out of the stratosphere with another cancer diagnosis( my fifth!) and a topical chemotherapy treatment that made me even more of hermit because it made my face look like an uncooked pizza. You'd think because I was isolating myself ( and not for Covid!) I'd get the work done.

Nope.

I was too devastated by the diagnosis and spent the better part of my hermitage (is that a word?) watching old DARK SHADOWS and CSI episodes on HULU instead of writing two books.

July rolled around and I realized I'd wasted a month wallowing, so I started on #1-3. I didn't get far with any of them because...life in general interfered. Taking care of my isolating and aging parents, getting lost in social media rabbit holes, promoting my two latest releases and doing Zoom and FB Chat events for them, even helping promote other authors on my blog, all took  up so much time, that before you know it, here we are just a few days from August.

I'm determined to do better in August.
I need to get my Christmas book edited ( it is done, thankfully!); I need to make a serious dent in Book 2 in the Pride of Brothers trilogy ( 15,000 words in so far.) ; and those next 3 indies need to be written down before I forget them.
I can do this. I know I can.

The phrase famous last words seems to be rolling around in my head, though. Hee hee

Have you heard about the  LAST CHANCE BEACH- Summer's End? It's an anthology of 14 romances from the Romance Gems. Short, sweet or sassy, you're guaranteed to find a story you love.

And don't forget my very own Summer Romance, VANILLA WITH A TWIST a One Scoop or Two novella.

"There's never a wrong time for ice cream." ~ Tandy Blakemore, owner of Vanilla with a Twist

Have you checked out the monthly Romance gems giveaway? 

Until next time, peeps. Stay cool and stay healthy ~ Peg