The Many Faces of Love - 9 Novels of Love for 99 cents!

This little beauty has just hit the virtual shelves and it's a wonderful collection of love stories written by Booktrope authors.  I am very proud to be a part of this collection. 

Featuring: Arielle Immortal Passion by award-winning author Lilian Roberts, Another Tomorrow by Julie Farley, Between Heartbreak and Happiness by multiple award-winning author Sarka-Jonae Miller, Flirting With Magick by Leigh Bennett, The Heiress of Santorini by #1 best-selling author Angel Sefer, Is This What I Want? by Patricia Mann, The Passion Thief by Anne McCarthy Strauss, Rydin’ the Storm Out by PJ Fiala, and Trigger by Jill Meengs.

Praise for the Authors

"In this honest and thoughtful exploration of a marriage coming undone, author Patricia Mann offers no easy solutions. Instead she takes us into the heart of what love and family is all about and reminds us there is no one-size fits all. A thoroughly satisfying read." - Eileen Goudge, New York Times Bestselling Author

"This novel was very daring, dashed with forbidden romances and served with a great amount of hatred, revenge, and regrets... Sefer entertains the readers with a series of entanglements that gives the novel a chilly air of suspense. She shocks the readers with the cruelty of the acts of violence that occur within supposedly bold Greek families where pride, tradition, and legacy is revered. The message on forgiveness and maintain strong family bonds despite conflict and tragedy is what really makes the novel spectacular and heartwarming." - San Francisco Book Review

"I do not know where to start with this book, except to say that I loved it!" - Lustful Literature

"Jan, the much lovable yet so far from perfect anti-heroine of this refreshing novel, seems to be plumbing new depths at each turn of the page, as her fairy-tale like, easy going world gradually crumbles around her... Revivifying and fun... this novel is a comforting reminder that it isn't all that easy to be a young woman discovering that most of the time the only prince charming who can save us is our own little selves." - San Francisco Book Review

"Meengs has a descriptive yet eloquent style that illuminates the adventures of the characters in Trigger... there is just enough clandestine spy, European romance, mystery and self-discovery to make Trigger a very intriguing read." - Christina B. Steele, Readers' Favorite

"The Passion Thief is an excellent story of finding one's self amidst the chaos of life. As we age, for women in particular, all of the variables in life that are beyond our control seem to culminate, leaving us to question where our priorities lie. While it is a work of fiction, the book is a testament to that. If anything, the book serves as a cautionary tale that the grass is not always greener on the other side." - San Francisco Book Review

"Lilian Roberts has an almost poetic way of writing... There was this lovely flowing way about the words that I haven't seen in sometime. This book is definite MUST read and you don't have to love paranormal stories to read it." - Joe Cool Review

"Julie is a beautiful writer with a warm heart and this is evident from page one of book one and it flowed through to Another Tomorrow." - Whairigail Adams, All Things Books


Buy it here at this fantastic price!

What else is happening?

Life in the Bennett household has been busy.  Summer is over we have completed one term of the 2016 school year.   

We recently had to have our carport rebuilt after a neighbour's tree smashed through our first one, narrowly missing the house.  We are treating the brand new carport as the first in the home improvements we make in order to sell and move on to a bigger and better property.  The kids are getting older and need to spread their wings a little more while we could also use a little more storage space. 

Mr Xbox and myself are getting smaller! We have completed an 8 week healthy eating and exercise program which has so far seen Mr Xbox shed around 15kg and myself, 7kg.  I have 3 more to go to hit my goal and he has around 5 but more importantly we are both eating better, feeling good and will continue with our new healthier lifestyle.   I'm working on documenting it all as it's been not just a physical change but mentally and emotionally as well.  Stay tuned!

As for the writing, I'm still as slow as a week of wet Wednesdays but am working on the next romance novel as well as the sequel to Avalon's Child so will hopefully have something new for everyone to read by the end of the year.   I will keep you posted.

In the meantime I hope you enjoy the 9 novels of heartbreak, passion, true love, and everything in between, with The Many Faces of Love. 

Five Months Till Forty. The Blog is getting an overhaul!

Actually it's more like six months till the big day but I'm currently very influenced by my almost ten year old's obsession with Five Nights at Freddy's and everything 'Five Nights at..." thereafter.  Plus it sounds better.


It is blatantly obvious that blogging most certainly isn't my forte (ha, pun?  Help me out here)  but it's not because there is nothing to say.    If you could somehow stream my thoughts onto a page,  I'd have a millions posts by now.    Actually, maybe that's not such a good idea.

What started as a lifestyle blog took on a life of its own and became primarily a writing and book blog after I released my first novel.  It was great for awhile but very soon all the other parts of my life were pushed aside and when it came time to write about other aspect of what was happening in my life, thoughts, and opinions it just seemed a little too contrived.

So this is the introduction of my overhauled blog.   And what better time than to coincide it with my fortieth year which includes a child starting high school, an overseas trip, some work to the house and garden, and of course more books.

Looking forward to the chat :)

Submissions, Signs and Signatures AKA I've just signed with Booktrope!

It's funny how something you don't think about too much, that you just do on a whim, can lead you into a whole new direction.

Booktrope are a publishing company based in Seattle who have pioneered a concept called Team Publishing.    You get many of the benefits of self-publishing but with the support of a traditional publisher.

It started when a post from Sarka-Jonae Miller (Book Spotlight coming soon)  arrived on my newsfeed asking for  self-published authors looking for a book deal.     I have really only submitted my work a handful of times, not actively seeking deals (and of course having no luck)  but figured there was nothing to lose so put Flirting with Magick through.

This was my mindset throughout the experience:

Day 1-6

Submitted book.   Not really thinking too much about it at this stage.    Would be nice to get through but plans are already in place and nothing will change if nothing happens.   Have received some info but of course I don't want to get too involved.  They might not take it and I don't want to get myself all worked up!

Day 7

Sarka replies saying she enjoyed it (Yay!) and would be happy to refer it.   (Yes please).   It's great that it got past that first screening.   But I'm not going to think too much about it.

Day 8-9

Still not going to think too much about it, but having been reading all about it and it sounds pretty good.

Day 10

Get an email from Jesse James Freeman, the Community Manager, after Sarka e-introduced us.   He gives me more information which I'm trying not to think about nor get too excited about because really, it's fine if they don't take my book.    I ask some questions but they are pretty lame, and contact Facebook friends and booktrope authors Patricia Mann (excerpt and guest post coming up)  and Meredith Schorr who have also both recently featured on my blog (that's a sign, right?) They both tell me that Booktrope is wonderful!


Day 14

Haven't heard for a few days.     I consult some free tarot readings and psychic signs to see if it tells me anything.

Day 15

Get an email from Jesse apologising as he has been away but that my manuscript is still being reviewed.  (Arrgh) That's cool.   I'm not fussed.   (Yeah, ok, I'm a little anxious)   But I do ask a few more (better) questions.    Do another online psychic reading, even though I really don't care. Really. OK, I do.  A little bit.   I haven't done tarot or readings in years!  They're fun.

Day 16

Wake up to an email and it's the answers to my questions.    Jesse is sounding very positive but I don't want to read into it.  Read email to my husband and friends to see if they can overanalyse as well as I can.  (They can)


Day 17

Wake to an email asking about my full name.  I squee but hold it in and send back a very formal and cool reply like 'yes, that is correct.'  Because it's still not a yes and might be very simply a formalised 'no', possibly.

Later that day:

Receive an email asking if I would accept a contract.    I sit on it for a bit, as though  the chances are there that I might not and I get asked this all the time.   Then I accept, a contract is sent through, and I sign it.

The End

Actually that is just the beginning!    Sarka will be my book manager and I will select a team to help with the re-release of Flirting with Magick!    Well tell you more soon.  

My Writing Life... and Cake Decorating

It occurred to me last night when I was trying to get to sleep that writing isn't actually my life. Should it be? Probably not.

My life is like a cake. We'll call it a nice, rich, moist chocolate mud cake. It includes my family - my husband who is also my best friend and with whom I get along with quite well on a daily basis and my three kids who, as kids have their days but really don't give me as much grief as they probably could, my friends, my other immediate family - mum, dad and brother, extended family, my house and how I'm trying to make it into a wonderful home.

Writing for me as much as I love it - I love using my imagination, creating stories and scenarios, developing irrational attachments to people I made up - is just the icing, and the decorating is what I could do with it. Now if there was no icing and decorations, if for any reason I stopped writing, it wouldn't affect the richness and goodness of the cake, but I'm sure it will be missed and eventually it will be added again.

If for any reason the icing doesn't quite work out as planned, for example, it doesn't quite come together, the end result still needs work, someone doesn't like it and gives it a bad review (wait, what?), or it simply just isn't right, other than the surface (loosely translates to me swearing and crying for a couple of days) the cake isn't really affected. It's still a pretty awesome cake.

Now my goal is to make that icing and decorating so beautiful and wonderful that it can only enhance the enjoyment of the cake. Because lets face it, who doesn't like a cake that has been presented as the best it can be.

Now I want cake.

*The above analogy really has nothing to do with cake decorating. In fact, I'm really shit at it. The cakes I make are usually quite yummy but the top is almost always either domed or sunken and the icing is just spread on and that's the end of it. I have tried but soon realised I'm much better off paying someone who is good at it to do it instead. I may one day try to gain some cake decorating skills but at this point in time don't have any solid plans to do so.

Case in Point

Mindcraft cake I made for Mr Paleo 2011

Plants Vs Zombies cake I ordered for Mr Maker 2012  (Diddlyscrumptious)

Brain cake pops to go with the Plants vs Zombies cake, also made by Diddlyscrumptious.  I'm sure they're a metaphor for something too but who cares?  They were amazing!

Completing the NaNo Novel and other crappy first drafts

I didn't announce it on here as it happened, but around this time last month I completed my first NaNoWriMo with 50,508 words.   Yay!

A few months ago I finally finished the shitty first draft of my first novel.   It only took um, about six or seven years give or take.  But at least now it is done: ready for improvement, tweaking, changing completely.  The most amazing thing about this particular journey is that for around seven years I have stuck to the one thing!

So I have not one but two novels to rewrite, edit and polish!

One of the prizes for winning NaNoWriMo is 5 proof copies  of your novel so my goal now is to have something finished so I can take advantage of the offer.

Of course being the Virgo I am this is going to to take blood, sweat, tears and loads of other cliches to get it done so that it is 'perfect'.

Here goes....

nanowrimo

This year will be my first NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) in which the object is to write a shitty first draft of 50,000 words in 30 days.  I say 'shitty first draft' (aren't they all?) because the focus is on quantity not quality and editing as you go only wastes valuable time as well as words.

My main reason for participating is to get into the habit of writing a lot in a short space of time (considering my first novel's first draft took seven years of me fart-arsing around with it so I want to do this one in a more reasonable time frame).

So the next question is, what will I write?   I've got two more stories worked out in my head, vaguely plotted and characterised.  One is a fantasy and the other a horror.    I'm thinking of going with the fantasy story, mainly because it's the most worked out as far as characters are concerned, and also for the simple reason that horror writing for me can't be done at night :-)  I'm a wuss. 

Anyway, I've committed myself now.   And really looking forward to it!

Hello from Buff Cosmetics and The Lazy Pagan

Hi There

I've created a new blog to encompass the ones above and much more. As much as I love talking about beauty and paganism I found the subjects to be way too limiting as I had so much to say about other things and, if you have read the other blogs, so little to say about those particular topics.

So A Broom With a View has been born and is much more personal. There will still be a lot of beauty and makeup talk and much Earth friendly chatter, but truth is, I don't walk around with a makeup brush in my hand nor do I constantly try and find new ways of building spirituality.

I'm a mum of three boys which is an experience in itself, housewife (love using that word - it's kind of unPC), writer, bibliophile (or maybe just a bookworm), music enthusiast, business owner (albeit a pretty crappy one - more of a business planner) film lover, dog owner, Nigella-in-training and enjoy a myriad of other things.

If anything, it's probably more of a way of putting off things to do like get on with my novel or the housework!