I’m just popping in to share this image. This is my life now. My two geriatric cats have declared war. The sounds are worse than the deep growls of hellhounds, especially at three in the morning. Tessa has decided I’ve betrayed her and struts around with her tail twitching. Pumpkin is much smaller than Tessa, but her growl is terrifying. If I sit with Pumpkin on my lap, Tessa sits at the foot of the chair, glaring up at us, and both cats hiss back and forth at each other. I have to carry Pumpkin to the water and feed bowls—and the cat box—because Tessa tries to block her. When they do battle, the sounds are something I wish I could record because you wouldn’t believe how fierce these two old cats sound!
How long will this last?!!!! Seriously, any advice will be appreciated. And no, neither will be rehomed. Period.
Hello Delilah! Thank you for inviting me today to speak about my new release! Another anthology—which surprises no one. I get a huge thrill when I’m able to try something new, and boy, is Flying Heartssomething different!
When I signed up for the sports anthology, I had gay archers in my mind. Rivals to lovers. The Olympics. Helping each other out. Then I spoke to a friend who actually does archery, and my story was beyond improbable. So, then we came up with a story that was so convoluted that I backed out of the anthology entirely. I just didn’t have a story.
Fast forward a couple of months. I had a pre-made cover I’d bought, and I needed a title for it. I asked Plot Whisperer. She asked a few questions about it, and…fifteen minutes later, she had an idea. Together, we worked through most of it, but she left me to fill in the blanks. On the cover was a woman between two men in a passionate and loving embrace. Okay, so who were they? Why were they wearing odd outfits? What was their story?
Out tumbled Flying Hearts. Yasmine and Kaden are trapeze partners. They’ve been together since their early teens. Only romantically when they turned eighteen. And Nick? Well, a rigger, of course. A guy who knows his way around ropes. Only…yeah. I realized this was a kinky book—that Nick’s into bondage with those ropes as well. The next thing I knew, I had an MMF BDSM story. Because, let’s be honest, everyone gets it on with everyone in this very steamy tale.
I approached the anthology people, and they were happy to add me back in. So, along with all the traditional sports stories, there’s a little one about two trapeze artists and the rigger who makes them very happy. I love telling nontraditional stories. I love taking risks—and this definitely is one.
I hope everyone will run out and snag a copy of Well Played. Over 1,000 pages of sports goodness wrapped up in over 20 stories!
Thank you, Delilah, for hosting me today. As a thank you to your readers, I’d like to give away a $5 US Amazon gift card. Tell me—what sport would you love to see a story about? Random will pick the winner. Good luck!
Well Played
True love often isn’t a slam dunk.
No matter how hard you try, sometimes you fumble.
You want to get to loving strokes and fore play but there may be hurdles to overcome.
If a happily ever after is your goal, step up to the plate and hope you don’t strike out.
Well Played, the first Sports Romance collection from The Romance Cafe is coming in 2024.
Authors:
Kenna Shaw Reed
Cecelia Conway
TL Hamilton
Sharon Michalove
Kalli Dean
Katherine Isaac & Crystal North
Maida Malby
J.T. Silver
Katharine O’Neill
Danielle Sibarium
Ariana St. Claire
JCC Downing
Juliet Martini
Harper Michaels
Sofia Aves
S L Hollister
T.S. Simons
Toni Denise
Belinda E Edwards
Melinda Pine
Gabbi Black
The anthology will only be available for a limited time.
I’ve trusted Kaden with my life on the trapeze since we were fourteen, and with my heart since we became lovers at eighteen. People give us odd looks when we say we’re in an open relationship, but I’ve never been concerned about Kaden’s other partners. But then Nick lands in my life, and suddenly Kaden’s not the only man I can see.
Kaden
I’ve had a super partner in Yasmine—both on and off the trap. I assumed she was happy with our open relationship. She’s got her studies, and I have my…temporary bed partners. All is going well until a domineering rigger arrives. Suddenly, everything changes.
Nick
As a professional rigger, I know rope. I’ve worked in the entertainment industry for almost fifteen years, keeping people safe in front of audiences and in private. Rope is not just my profession, it’s my pleasure. Yasmine intrigues me, and when Kaden tries to interfere between her and me, it’s going to be a competition to see who comes out on top.
Flying Hearts is a 15k steamy BDSM short story about a couple who didn’t know they needed more, and the man who’s tying them in knots.
About Gabbi Black
Even though Gabbi Black is a firm believer in happy endings, she makes her characters work for it in every romance she writes, no matter what the genre. From contemporary to BDSM, they are penned early in the morning in her home in beautiful British Columbia while her trusty ChinPoo dog keeps her company. She also writes gay romances as Gabbi Grey and small-town romances as Gabbi Powell.
I’ve talked before about our menagerie of indoor animals—cats, dogs, bunnies. When my parents passed and my daughter’s family moved in, we combined two families’ pets. We figured that through natural attrition we’d winnow down the pets.
And then yesterday happens. My daughter drove the two youngest to school and on the way home, she saw something tiny and black wobbling across the road in school traffic and very quickly stopped her car, stopped traffic and scooped up…a very tiny, dirty, scared kitten.
Meet Binx. We thought we’d get her to the vet, give her a good bath, then try to rehome her, but you know how that works. Once she was in our home, all the girls fawned over her, named her, and she’s ours.
She’s our second Halloween cat. Years ago (16 years?), I stood outside in the middle of the night to watch a rare full moon when I felt something furry weaving figure eights around my ankles. Pumpkin is still with us. Old and grumpy, but still healthy. But cats are easy, right?
We’re rejiggering what cats stay where, and Pumpkin is going to join Tessa and me downstairs. Guess I’ll need a new picture…
For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, tell me whether you have pets and if you’ve rescued any yourself!
It is a thing! And definitely a holiday I can get behind. Some Canadian computer museum started this holiday in 2010. How can you celebrate it?
Start with the files you have saved to your desktop. Did you save a recipe you never tried and won’t? Delete it. Do you need those files cluttering up your desktop when you open up your computer every day? If not, delete, or save them somewhere that makes better sense.
Then open your files in Explorer. Have you accumulated more junk there? I know when I’m working on a book, I can accumulate a bunch of pictures of settings I want to use, but when I’m done with the book, why keep them? Delete. I also don’t need every version of the book file I saved. Delete, delete!
When I’ve gone through all my files, I like to follow with emptying out my Downloads and Recycle Bin, followed by running a quick Disk Cleanup to clear out my computer’s memory.
Afterward, I feel virtuous for cleaning out my virtual files. For a chance to win your choice of download from among my backlist of books, tell me how often you clean out your virtual files!
I was lazy yesterday and didn’t post my Saturday puzzle. So, today’s post includes the puzzle-contest at the end of this message! Be sure to scroll down if you want to play!
Report Card
Last week…
I worked on edits for one author.
I published the Delta Heat books in online stores other than Amazon (went wide!).
I slept—a lot, again. I’m still on the mend from the latest chemo round. (I have a scan coming in early November to see whether my cancer is diminishing.)
This next week…
I’ll be working on edits for possibly three authors this week and will finish it by the weekend. I’ll be busy, busy, busy!
I’ll try working/editing the pages I’ve already written for Ignition and, hopefully, finishing a new chapter.
I’ll be working on revisions of The Demon Lord’s Cloak, which releases November 12th. Have you pre-ordered your copy?Â
I’ll be deciding whether I’ll participate in NaNoWriMo this year. It’s a “write 50,000 words in November” challenge. It is probably/definitely more than I can commit to, but I so want to get back to writing…
Open Contests
Be sure to check out these posts and enter to win the prizes that are still up for grabs!
I am beyond excited for this series to begin! I just finished watching the trailer and thought I’d share it with you!
For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle then let me know if this show excites your interest! Or let me know what new upcoming series you’re dying to see!
‘Tis the season and all. No, not that season. However, Halloween is drawing closer, and I know there are romantic tales to tell.
For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, study the picture above then tell me a story about this couple. The story doesn’t have to be long or even any good. Just have fun with it!
Tagged: halloween, holiday Posted in Contests!|7 People Said|Link
Last 5 people who had something to say: Kimberley - BN - Mary Preston - Kerry Pruett - Jennifer Beyer -
Hello Delilah! Thank you for inviting me today to discuss the release of my new novel! Sleigh Bells and Second Chances is a book close to my heart. It’s the third big book in my Love in Mission City series. The first two, Ginger Snapping All the Way and Stanley’s Christmas Redemption, were published in 2021 and 2022, respectively. I’ve written a series of novellas and short stories in the interim (and book 2.5, The Beauty of the Beast). I’ve been waiting for the right story to come along and knock me out of my complacency about the series (although I’ve published more than half a dozen full-length novels in other series in the interim—I’ve been busy!).
One night, as I was drifting off to sleep, I had an image of a man coming back from Ukraine. He was Canadian. Although he’d been fighting as a combatant, he wasn’t recognized by the Canadian government. NATO has chosen to stay out of the war in Ukraine. Instead, we’ve provided material support and troop training to Ukraine, but we haven’t stepped into the fray of the war caused by Russia’s illegal invasion into a sovereign nation. No one wants World War Three. On the other hand, many Canadians sit and watch the war and are horrified by what is happening to our close democracy-loving friends. Canada has one of the largest ex-pat groups of Ukrainians in the world. Growing up, my best friend came from a family of Ukrainian immigrants. Most Canadians are empathetic.
Okay, so that’s the background. Ryan went to fight in a war where he had no business being. Plus, he’d been an overweight gamer who lived in his rich father’s basement. Aside from a degree in computer science weighted heavily in coding, he had no real-world experience. Something about a democracy being invaded by another country hit him hard, though. Knocked him right out of his complacency. So, he went to Ukraine.
He fought hard for two years with cyber security work and, eventually, as a drone operator. He was wounded, lost a bunch of his friends, came back to Canada, and has been recovering ever since. I envisioned him at the therapy ranch I’ve created, which has featured prominently in many of my stories—including all three previous big books in this series.
I woke up in the morning with my wonky note in my Messenger feed with a friend. Great! Ryan was nearly fully formed. But…no clue who would be the man he’d fall in love with.
Enter Plot Whisperer. We’d plotted a large number of short stories and novellas, and she was thrilled to be presented with the opportunity to work on a plot for a novel. This time, I took the dogs for a walk and she…did her magic. By the time my dogs were cared for and I was in my pajamas, she had a story for me. And man, was it a good one.
Still, I sat on the story for a long time, working things out in my mind. Writing other books. Popping out short stories for anthologies. Then…I was ready. I polished up a blurb, put the book up for pre-order, and then wrote a bunch of other stuff including an LGBTQ YA that I’ll be back in the New Year to share with you. Eventually, I wrote Sleigh Bells. Only I cut the timing super close. My editor wasn’t thrilled with me, but she pulled a rabbit out of her hat. My beta reader pushed hard. My narrator waited patiently. Now the book is published and the audio is on pre-order. I’m hoping readers love ex-soldier Ryan and shy, stuttering handyman Simeon as much as I do. This is my longest book at nearly 100k words. It’s, I think, one of my most emotional books. At times, proofing the audio, I might’ve teared up. It’s a love story, though, so guaranteed happy ending.
Okay, so that’s my story with this book. As a thank you for having read that narrative. I’d like to offer up a prize. I’ll happily give, to one lucky commenter, a copy of all three of my books so far in the series (Ginger Snapping All the Way, Stanley’s Christmas Redemption, and The Beauty of the Beast). Just let me know your favorite Christmas romance – be it book, movie, or television episode. One winner will be chosen by random. Good luck and thanks Delilah!
Sleigh Bells and Second Chances
Feeling worthy of love is sometimes the hardest battle.
Ryan
The moment I landed in that war zone, I knew I’d made a big mistake. I wasn’t a soldier, and my good intentions almost got me killed. Being wounded and shipped back home to Canada was both a blessing and a curse. I’m safe now, but I can’t stop thinking of the men I left behind. My therapist claims Healing Horses Ranch will help heal my wounds—physical and mental—but I’m not sure how much tranquility and wholesome fresh air I can take. But then I meet a beautiful, shy man who makes moving forward seem almost possible. Can I let go of the past and reach for a future with Simeon?
Simeon
I’ve made peace with being different from the folks around me. I love my home in Mission City, and if anyone needs something fixed, I’m the guy they call. When the owner of the therapy ranch hires me for a big project, I’m excited to get started. I always work alone, but one of the patients keeps hanging around, and I can’t bear to send him on his way. I can see how much he’s hurting. If helping me helps him, that’s a win for us both. As we share the work, something about that wounded man draws me deeper and deeper in. I’m no therapist, and I have my own issues, so am I a fool to be thinking about a future with a guy who’s likely to leave once he’s healed?
Note: Sleigh Bells and Second Chances is a slow-burn, age-gap, hurt/comfort, mid-angst, gay romance novel with a shy handyman, a reckless former gamer, a precocious borrowed kid, and a therapy dog named Tiffany.
About the Author
USA Today Bestselling author Gabbi Grey lives in beautiful British Columbia where her fur baby chin-poo keeps her safe from the nasty neighborhood squirrels. Working for the government by day, she spends her early mornings writing contemporary, gay, sweet, and dark erotic BDSM romances. While she firmly believes in happy endings, she also believes in making her characters suffer before finding their true love. She also writes m/f romances as Gabbi Black and Gabbi Powell.
