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About S.J. Maylee

S.J. Maylee fell in love with storytelling at a young age and with it came a deep-seated desire for everyone to find their happily ever after. She’s finding the happy endings for her characters one steamy story at a time. When she’s not reading or writing, you can find her caring for her garden, laughing with her two young sons, or dancing to her husband’s music. She’s a PMP (Project Management Professional), Nia instructor, and coffee addict. As a writer she has a tendency to break hearts, but she always glues them back together

ROW80 Check-in #79 The Revealing Journey

The writing challenge that knows you have a life.

Understatement of the year -> NaNoWriMo is an interesting experience. This challenge is revealing all sorts of things I didn’t know. This isn’t the first time I took my writing seriously, but until these last nine days, I didn’t really see what I was capable of and I can now also see my own personal limits.

I’ve often struggled with all of my distractions. As a stay at home mom who also works from home, distractions are my reality and social media compounds the issue. Having this word count goal hanging over my head has gotten me to see my day in a whole new light.

I had a productive week. Yes I did. For the girl who’d never written more than 3k in one week, I’d say writing over 9k was certainly productive. However, there were a few things around the house that didn’t get done and I’m not sure if they’ll get done until December, lol.

Thank goodness I’m not hosting Thanksgiving this year. 🙂

I’ve always said I’m a mix of plotter and panster. My plot lines change and grow as I go, but I struggled this week when I didn’t have things plotted. I averaged 1300 words a day and I’m now 1k behind my NaNoWriMo goal. My most productive hours were those that had been pre-plotted. Sure, things still changed while I went, but only those scenes that had a direction got the easy traction.

Hi. I’m S.J. Maylee and I’m a plotter. 🙂

NaNoWriMo is revealing. I’m still not sure if I’ll win, but I’m looking forward to what else this journey will reveal.

You can find me here: http://nanowrimo.org/participants/sjmaylee

Click to see: Join us for the First Annual EVERNIGHT READERS' CHOICE AWARDS!The nominations are still open for the First Annual Evernight Publishing Readers’ Choice awards. I’d love your support. There are 36 exciting categories. You may skip categories, however nominations are limited to one per category per person. 

Enter your name and email address at the end of the nomination form for a chance to win a $25 Evernight Gift Certificate!

 I believe you have until November 15th to nominate your favorite Evernight books and the semi-finalists will be announced and voting begins on November 17th. Click the pic to find enter.

The Goals – week-5 results

    • Spend at least 1-hour a day with my characters- done.
    • Daily progress in writing craft, word count, editing, and/or plotting- This goal is definitely done. I started the week ahead of my word count goal because I knew I was starting the week out of town. The rest of the week I kept going and pushed the word count. Plotting troubles sent me on a detour the last couple of days and I lost my footing a little bit, but I hope to catch up today. I wrote over 9k this week. 😀
    • Take care of and be kind to myself- half done. My week started with spending time with my in-laws. My FIL is in hospice and it’s an incredibly hard time. Lots of tears were cried this week and it looks like it’s going to be another hard week ahead. It’s definitely a perfect time to be kind to myself and I’m doing the best I can. I’m letting the tears come, but I could be doing a better job taking care of my physical needs. Week 6 Priority.

What you might have missed here this week:

A visit from The Housewife and the Film Star by Doris O’Connor

Twice the Fun – TRR’s Year End Splash and Readers’ Choice Awards

 

Twice the Fun – TRR’s Year End Splash and Readers’ Choice Awards

click to go to the TRR's Year End Splash pageThe Romance Review sure knows how to throw a party. Their Year End Splash is underway and with over 400 authors the prize list is long. The Grand prize is a $100 Gift Certificate! Plus, there are more than 400 prizes up for grabs during the whole month of November. You can enter to win the grand prize and all the others by playing games, like a cover matching game, multiple choice, and hangman games.

Before you play, all you need to do is register and login. It’s easy to do and it’s free. TRR is a great place to hang and find new books. They have over 10,000 books in the database and over 3,000 reviews!

Check them out:
Romance | Erotic Romance | GLBT

I have a question of my own up today at the Year End Splash. You can play it anytime on November 8th, from 12:00am EST to 11:59pm EST. Wahoo! 🙂

The fun starts here: http://www.theromancereviews.com/event.php

click to see the EP Blog: Join us for the First Annual EVERNIGHT READERS' CHOICE AWARDS!Also going on right now is the First Annual Evernight Publishing Reader’s Choice Awards! it’s a really great way to show your favorite EP author some love. There are 36 categories to nominate such as your favorite book, author, hero, cover, etc. You may skip categories, however nominations are limited to one per category per person.

I’m hoping you’ll consider nominating my book, Taking Chances. Lydia’s the relateable heroine and Jake’s the hero that can’t resist her. Together they make sparks fly and have one heck of a HEA. Plus, that cover. Yes, I love my cover. 🙂

See Taking Chances on My Books pageThere are a lot of great choices to nominate. I sure do have several favorites of my own. Love that publisher of mine. 🙂 Simply enter your name and email address at the end of the nomination form for a chance to win a $25 Evernight Gift Certificate!

You have until November 15th to enter your nomination. Semi-finalists will be announced and voting begins on November 17th!

Enter your favorites here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/EvernightAwards

A visit from The Housewife and the Film Star by Doris O’Connor

Thanks so much for having me here today. 🙂

Film Stars, we all love them right? I’ve had my fair share of crushes over the years, and ever since I first watched the grand old American movies on my battered little black and white telly, when I was growing up, I’ve loved the movies. I used to blow my entire pocket money on cinema tickets.

Those were the days…

Nowadays, I’m lucky to get to the cinema for special occasions, and then it’s usually for kid’s birthdays, so we’re watching what they want. I don’t read magazines or the papers, and if it wasn’t for my teenage children, I wouldn’t know who half of the big actors are these days.

So when I first came up with the idea for this story that was very much in the back of my mind. With the yummy visual of tall Alexander Skarsgard in my mind—those who know me will know of my obsession with this particular Swedish actor, lol—an idea was born.

What would happen if your simple Mrs. Ordinary were to meet one of these Film Stars? Sylvia is a mum of three, a widow with a painful past, who is not looking for another relationship, let alone with a man of Sven’s reputation.

Sven is a jaded A-Lister who needs to repair that damaged reputation. He’s a tortured soul who doesn’t trust women, not one little bit. However, all that changes, when Sylvia literally falls into his arms. This mystery lady is a contradiction in terms, and the fact that she doesn’t seem to know who he is… well, that’s a temptation he can’t resist.

As their private affairs get aired all over the papers, and family, friends, and managers alike, all have an opinion on their relationship, do they stand any chance of making it work?

Can he trust this woman, or will she prove to be like all the others?

Can she place her trust, her submission, her kids, in the hands of this man, or is history going to repeat itself?

THATFSThe Housewife and the Film Star

by Doris O’Connor

Released: October 21, 2013

Publisher: Evernight Publishing

Blurb:

When international movie star Sven Larsson meets young widowed mom of three, Sylvia, the sexual chemistry between them is instant and explosive—and plastered all over the papers. Sven needs to repair his damaged reputation. The last thing he needs is another scandal, but the Dom in him can’t resist the challenge Sylvia represents.

Having survived an abusive marriage, Sylvia is not looking for another relationship, let alone a kinky one with a man of Sven’s reputation. Her submissive side can’t help but be drawn to him, especially once she gets to know the man behind the public image. She can’t help but fall in love with the private, broken Sven—even if he doesn’t do love.

With the paparazzi breathing down their necks at every turn, and past demons raising their ugly heads, will they ever be able to find happiness?

Be Warned: BDSM, anal sex, sex toys, spanking

Excerpt:

George finally stopped the car, and before Sylvia could determine where they were, Sven produced a blindfold out of nowhere.  He tied the thing over her head, and forestalled any protest she might have uttered with a heart-stopping kiss.

“No peeking now.” Sven’s low voice in her ear, one arm ‘round her waist, was the strongest aphrodisiac ever. Sylvia was sure she would simply dissolve into a puddle of drool were he not holding her up. The cool night air skittered across her heated skin, and the gentle sounds of lapping water made her wonder where they were.

Her heart leapt in her throat, not from fear but anticipation. She could never be afraid when Sven was holding her so carefully. The whispered conversation with George in Swedish was interspersed with laughter, whilst she leaned against the Jag, desperately trying to control her breathing and telling the sensible side of her brain to fuck off. She was done with being sensible, and, whatever happened over this weekend, she was going to meet it head on.

“Bye, Sylvia.” George’s laughter made her wave her hand in the general direction of his voice, and then she was back in Sven’s arms. His by now familiar scent wrapped itself round all her female senses.

“Ready?”

No.”

She couldn’t stop the squeaky protest of her last remaining sensible brain cells escaping, and his answering amused chuckle in her ear had heat rising in her cheeks.

“Trust me?”

Did she trust him? Now that was one hell of a question. The tenseness of his arms matched the tremor in his voice.

“Baby? We won’t do anything you don’t want to do, I can promise you that. I can call George back right now if you’ve changed your mind.”

The heat of his body surrounded her like a physical caress and stoked the fire in her belly to flashpoint as he waited for her answer. Everything seemed to be heightened in those few moments. The sounds of the water, the creak of ropes, the breeze that lifted the hem of her skirt, and Sven’s heavy breathing, as his hands skimmed across her back and up to her neck to tilt her head up. Feather light kisses whispered across her face, and his warmth surrounded her. The only place their bodies touched was his hands and his lips on her skin as he murmured in Swedish in-between kisses, and she couldn’t help the sigh of delicious anticipation as her body relaxed into the sensations assaulting her.

“I should warn you, though. I have every intention of convincing you that you need to stay with me, and, once I get inside you, I shall not let you go. I’m going to fuck you so hard you’ll be hoarse from screaming my name.”

The growled words zeroed straight to her core and left a trail of fire in their place. Not caring where they were anymore, she groped blindly until her fingertips connected with the cotton of his shirt. Bunching the thin material in her fists, she pulled him toward her until her breasts were pressed flat against his shirt, and she could feel his thundering heartbeat match her own.

“I haven’t changed my mind, Sven. Please I want you inside me now.”

“Thank fuck for that, baby, and hold onto me.”

Before she could draw another breath, he lifted Sylvia against him. Her dress rose up high as she automatically locked her legs around his hips. One shoe clattered to the ground, and the cool breeze on her exposed backside hitched her own arousal even higher. Sven rushed to carry her indoors. Every bounce against him brought her wet and aching pussy in direct contact with the rock-hard erection straining through his jeans. The friction his movements created against her clit brought her closer and closer to another release, and her hips moved against him of their own accord, whilst she whimpered her need into his shoulder.

A door banged shut behind them, and Sven’s vicious curse rumbled through her. He pinned her against a wall, and his body held her up, his hands stilling her hips.

“Don’t you dare go without me, Sylvia, not until my cock is in you, filling you, making you mine. I want that tight cunt of yours squeezing my cock this time.”

Sylvia almost screamed as his hand found her slick folds and ripped her knickers clean off. Her need to get herself closer to those clever fingers overwhelmed her completely. Her needful whimpers hung in the air between them as Sven probed her entrance. He stretched her, and his mouth found hers. His tongue mimicked his fingers as she once again hovered on that painful edge.

A nip of teeth on her lips made her groan in frustration at the loss of his fingers.

“Sven, please, I need…”

“What, lady, what do you need … this?”

A hard thrust of his still-clothed cock had her bite in his shoulder, helpless with the need to have him inside of her. God, what was happening to her? This wild creature begging him to fill her wasn’t her, was it? But she was going to explode if he didn’t do something, anything.

“Give me a minute to get out of these fucking trousers.”

The loss of his body felt like a physical ache. Every atom in her body craved his touch, his scent, fuck, just him, and she helplessly squeezed her thighs together, intensifying the ache only he could fill. Time went agonizingly slowly as she listened to the rustle of clothing, accentuated by their heavy breathing until the rip of foil raised her anticipation to fever pitch again.

Yes, please yes…

He gripped her thighs with his strong hands, and spread her wide. With Sven’s agonized growl in her ear he lifted her against the blessed wall again, and his cock nudged her entrance.

“God, you’re so wet, so ready, baby. I wanted to take this slow, but I can’t. Fuck, I want you so much.”

****

Available from:

Evernight  Amazon  Bookstrand  ARe

Author Bio

Author picGlutton for punishment would be a good description for Doris… at least that’s what she hears on an almost daily basis when people find out that she has a brood of nine children, ranging from adult to toddler and lives happily in a far too small house, cluttered with children, pets, dust bunnies, and one very understanding and supportive husband. Domestic goddess she is not.

There is always something better to do after all, like working on the latest manuscript and trying not to scare the locals even more than usual by talking out loud to the voices in her head. Her characters tend to be pretty insistent to get their stories told, and you will find Doris burning the midnight oil on a regular basis. Only time to get any peace and quiet and besides, sleep is for wimps.

She likes to spin sensual, sassy, and sexy tales involving alpha heroes to die for, and heroines who give as good as they get. From contemporary to paranormal, BDSM to F/F, and Ménage, haunting love stories are guaranteed.

Stalking Links

Website Blog Twitter Facebook Pinterest  Evernight Publishing

Amazon All Romance E-Books BookStrand Barnes&Noble

Weekend Writing Warriors – Fears and Instincts

Click the logo for the Weekend Writing Warriors blog

Click the logo for the Weekend Writing Warriors blog

Welcome friends old and new. I’m glad you came. Today, I’m sharing from my debut, TAKING CHANCES.

In Previous Weeks: Jake and Lydia entered the room where they’ll be working together. They’ve shared a few heated moments. LAST WEEK: Lydia teased Jake and poked him in the chest with her finger. THIS WEEK: I’ve skipped a bit again. At this point, Jake fears he’s scared Lydia. She’s left the room for a few minutes. Let’s see how this affects him.

Her face said it all. She’d shut him out.

The Dom in him ached to get out and not simply because he found her attractive. Something in her demeanor pulled on him and commanded him to push her limits. His hand smacked the table as frustration swept through his body. It was hard to ignore his instincts. Even now he wanted to go to her and help. God help him, he wanted to touch her again.

Fears and instincts are at play, but he can’t deny he wants her. <~ You can <tweet that> if you want. Come back next week and find out more OR find those buy links below and find out today. 🙂

Join us for the First Annual EVERNIGHT READERS' CHOICE AWARDS!Evernight Publishing is holding their first ever Readers’ Choice awards! Nominations are currently being collected. Please consider nominating me or any of your favorite Evernight authors today. Click the graph to see their post on the event.

Click here to add TAKING CHANCES to your Goodreads TBR list

5 Star Review: “Taking Chances, is a must read for anyone who wants a great story, well written, smoking hot smexy scenes and an oh so hot hero.”

5 Star Review: ”Taking Chances is SJ Maylee’s debut novel and she does an excellent job of creating interesting characters searching for connection while providing enough kink and spice to heat things up.”

5 Star Review: “it’s well written, there’s no slw moments and it’s packed full of hot sexual tension”

BLURB:

Lydia’s father walked away from her when she was eight. She’s struggled to not let him affect her, but fears she wasn’t loveable enough to make him stay. Jake wants to takingchances1mlove one woman, but after scaring the last woman he met outside of the club, he doubts he has the right. She protects her heart by sticking with her fantasies, and he lives by a set of rules that excludes women who choose a vanilla lifestyle.

The two will be kept in a conference room working together until their special project is complete. If Lydia and Jake hold tight to their bland lives, they’ll always yearn for love that is out of reach. But together they can find common ground, passion, and a reason to take chances. Once they discover the grand possibilities of the love they desire, they find themselves in the very place they tried never to be again, facing unguaranteed love.

BUY LINKS:

Evernight | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

BookStrand | All Romance Ebooks | Kobo | iTunes

Thank you so much for visiting me, it means a lot to me that you took the time to visit my little place on the web. Don’t forget to check out the other Weekend Warriors, the Snippet Sunday Facebook Group, and Saturday Spankings too.

ROW80 Check-in #78 – Crazy Fun

The writing challenge that knows you have a life.

To NaNoWriMo or not? All month I said no. I have a book releasing this month. I need to finish polishing and submit my next story. My FIL is now in hospice and I’ll be seeing him as much as possible. It’s the first of the last two crazy months of the year. I said no. I kept saying no because internally I kept saying yes. I should have known.

The last day to plan came and guess what I was doing? Signing up for NaNoWriMo and prepping to write. OMG! Yes, I’m crazy, but I’m doing it.

You can find me here: http://nanowrimo.org/participants/sjmaylee

Click to see: Join us for the First Annual EVERNIGHT READERS' CHOICE AWARDS!Evernight Publishing is holding their first annual Readers’ Choice awards. I’d love your support. There are 36 exciting categories. You may skip categories, however nominations are limited to one per category per person. 

Enter your name and email address at the end of the nomination form for a chance to win a $25 Evernight Gift Certificate!

 I believe you have until November 15th to nominate your favorite Evernight books and the semi-finalists will be announced and voting begins on November 17th. Click the pic to find enter.

click to see the Year End Splash at The Romance ReviewsI’m taking part in The Romance Review’s Year End Splash. It’s a fabulous event with over 400 authors. There are more than 400 prizes up for grabs during the whole month of November and the Grand prize is a $100 Gift Certificate! You can find my game on Nov 8, from 12:00am EST to 11:59pm EST on the event page at their site. Hop on over then and enter for your chance to win a copy of my debut, TAKING CHANCES.

You’ll need to be registered on their site to enter, but it’s quick and free. Click the pic to start the party.

The Goals – week-4 results

    • Spend at least 1-hour a day with my characters- done.
    • Daily progress in writing craft, word count, editing, and/or plotting- half done. Again, the beginning of my week got swallowed by the evil day job and my volunteer responsibilities. I also attended a field trip for my youngest on Monday and worked his school party. By the time I got back on track, I made some decent progress on my WIP on Wednesday and Thursday I decided to NaNoWriMo. WHAT!! I had one day to prepare. Yes, I’m nuts. I pulled out one of three stories I’ve been wanting to write. I built out my structure in Scrivener, started my beat sheet, and named my characters and places. Friday came and went with only 966 words. Yesterday, I got back on track by adding 4,041 words. Yes, you read that right. 4k in one day. I’ve never done that.
    • Take care of and be kind to myself- I had a couple of long chats with each of my two besties from High School and that did this girl a lot of good. We ranted and got out the uglies of our lives, then me moved on to happier things. They love to tell me how much they love my stories and how excited they are for my ROTG to release. They’re great cheerleaders. I hope you have cheerleaders in your lives. Give them a call this week. Tell them how much you appreciate them and let them put a smile on your face.

What you might have missed here this week:

Daily Picspiration – A Beautiful Day

Spotlight: Night of the Horse by Elodie Parkes

Flash Fiction #51 – The Exploration

Flash Fiction #51 – The Exploration

Thanks for stopping. Another picture…another 100 words.

November 1, 2013

Clara pulled herself to standing and followed Samuel into the water closet. Before they found out when they were, they’d be given a few minutes to get used to their new forms. Steam billowed between their bodies and tickled her senses.

She stopped in the middle of the water room and watched Samuel. Water rolled over his strength and a new kind of heat rippled through her. She fell to his feet and felt her way up his leg.

“Clara, what are you doing?”

“I’m not sure, but I don’t want to stop.” She gripped his hips.

He growled. “More.”

~~~

Hope you enjoyed my flash today!! Don’t forget to follow the link to get to the other FFF posts. Flasher Fiction Friday. Or click away on the links below.

Doris O’Connor: http://thetardisscribbles.blogspot.co.uk/
Michelle Howard: www.michellehowardwrites.com
Davee Jones:  http://finless.blogspot.com/
Pablo Michaels: http://www.pmmanmanromance.com
J S Morbius: http://morbiussworld.blogspot.co.uk/
Muffy Wilson: http://muffywilson.blogspot.com

Spotlight: Night of the Horse by Elodie Parkes

Elodie Parkes is back today (click here to see her interview and post for The Last Time). Today, she’s sharing her release from on of my favorite lines at Evernight Publishing, Romance on the Go. Plus, she’s sharing a GIVEAWAY you’re not going to want to miss. Keep your eye on the Evernight Publishing site because Elodie has a new release coming soon, Swoop on Love.

click to see all Spotlights seen here at SJs

‘Night of the Horse’ is erotic paranormal romance. A steamy, contemporary love story set in present day England in a semi-rural town.

Summer has just begun and Rosie, our heroine is feeling wistful. She’s lonely and beginning to wonder if she’ll ever find love.

When she meets our heroes, it’s Lust at first Sight

Jude

He’s passionate, enigmatic, alpha, and sexy.

Justin

He’s sensual, gentle, loving, and sexy.

Night o the Horse cover - click to see on GoodreadsNight of the Horse

A lonely young woman signs up for dance lessons. Two gorgeous guys find her as fascinating as she finds them. On the country road where she lives, she hears horses in the night, and opens her bedroom window to watch them gallop. They’re beautiful, a silver white horse and tall black horse…they turn to stare at her. Had they heard and understood when she sighed over them?

The characters meet excerpt:

Rosie hesitated in the shop doorway. The door opened with the tinkling of the bell and a man stood before her. Taller than her by a head and some, Rosie found herself staring at his chest. She noticed his muscles even through his loose denim shirt. She looked up into his beautiful face. His eyes were such a dark blue they were almost black in the shade of the doorway. His eyelashes were long, thick, and definitely black. He had almost black hair, glossy and long, but tied back. She stared up at him.

He looked down at her and smiled.

“Are you coming into the shop?” His friendly tone made Rosie smile, too.

As he blocked the way, she nodded. “I’m about to inquire about the dance lessons. I saw the poster.”

The man watched her closely, as if taking a mental picture of her.

“I’d love to see you there. Come in and sign up.” He turned and pushed the door open again, holding it so she had to pass close to his body. Rosie enjoyed the proximity, letting herself dream for a moment that she could be held in his arms, pressed against his muscular chest.

“Thank you.” She expected him to leave the shop then, but he followed her to the counter and passed around to the other side. Another young man came out of a small office situated towards the back of the shop and jogged down to the counter. He was very attractive, his short, spiked hair almost white it was so blond. His eyes were a lovely chocolate brown. His smile lit up his face as he moved around the dark-haired man to talk to Rosie.

“How can I help you?” he asked. A flicker of amusement passed over the dark-haired man’s face. She looked past him to the blond one.

“Well … I’m thinking of enrolling for the dance classes.” Nervous around the two gorgeous men, her heartbeat sped up.

“You must. She should. Don’t you think, Jude?” The blond guy stood alongside the other man and addressed him.

“I do.” Jude accompanied his answer with a sultry look directed at Rosie.

She felt confused for a moment. It had been so long since a man gazed at her with any interest, and now, as she looked from one man to the other, she saw they were both interested in her. A wave of elation mixed with fear welled up in her. She wanted to run out of the shop.

“I’m Justin and this is Jude.” The blond man introduced them both and waited for Rosie to provide her name.

“Rosie Cartwright.” Rosie’s voice came out in a whisper.

“Cartwright. Mmm.” Justin glanced at Jude.

“We’re starting classes this evening, Rosie, so please sign up.” Jude’s voice and stare was dreamy. Rosie felt so drawn to him, and yet when Justin handed her a small form and a pen, his fingers touched hers and a jolt ran up her arm into her heart. She looked into his chocolate brown eyes, and then at his enticing lips, wanting to kiss him.

“Is it okay to come alone? Will there be other people there to partner with?” Rosie felt foolish and needy as she asked this. She scribbled her name, address, and cell phone number onto the form, and ticked the box to pay by credit card.

Jude leaned onto the counter top and turned the form around to read it. He looked across into Rosie’s eyes, his sapphire-blue gaze broadcasting sexual heat.

“I’ll partner you. I do that. Justin teaches, but he partners too if necessary. We have lots of people coming, almost twenty. You can start this evening, can’t you, Rosie?”

She nodded. “I can. I will. Do I need to pay now?”

Justin took the form out of Jude’s hand. “No, Rosie. See how you like it tonight, and then decide on the six-week course. If you go for that then you will need to commit to both Saturday and Wednesday sessions. Here’s the brochure.”

Rosie watched as he took a colored bi-fold from a stack and offered it to her. His fingertips brushed against hers. She opened the bi-fold to note the lessons were held in the village hall, and glanced back at both men. “Do I need special shoes or anything?”

Both of them smiled at her, their gaze soft and kind. Jude answered. “No. Just shoes that will stay on and not trip you when you’re dancing.”

Rosie didn’t want to leave the shop, but she knew she must. She backed away from the counter waving the colored brochure gently. “I’ll see you this evening. Thank you, for this.” The words she didn’t say hung in the air as she left the shop.

She walked up the main street feeling incredibly happy. They both like me. I’ll get to dance with Jude. I’ll feel his arms around me. How completely yummy. What a surprise. This is so great. Justin is incredibly sexy. Wow.

Copyright Elodie Parkes 2013

BIO:

Elodie Parkes is a British author writing romance, erotic, contemporary, and often with a twist of mystery, paranormal or suspense. Her books are always steamy, cool stories and hot love scenes.

Elodie lives in Canterbury with her two dogs. She works in an antique shop by day and writes at night, loving the cloak of silent, darkness that descends on the rural countryside around her home.

Elodie writes for, Hot Ink Press, Moon Rose Publishing, Eternal Press, and Evernight

She has also released titles as an individual indie author.

Find Elodie online:

Blog Tumblr Facebook Twitter Google + Pinterest YouTube..

Amazon USA..Amazon UK Smashwords Barnes and Noble ARe Manic Readers

Elodie is giving away five copies of the book, ‘Night of the Horse.’ Enter the draw via the rafflecopter with just a comment on the blog.

~~~>> a Rafflecopter giveaway <<~~~

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Daily Picspiration – A Beautiful Day

I’m back at Daily Picspiration today with a brand new flash. See the words here or there, but the picture that inspired these words can be seen there at this link.

_________________

Charlie pushed past the swings. He was done waiting for Susan. He couldn’t believe he’d agreed to her request and come to this forsaken place. The kids ran around with not a care in the world. Their giggles grated across his nerves like sandpaper. The cloudless sky pissed him off too.

This day was an exact replica of the day Susan broke his heart and refused his proposal. 

“I’m not ready.”

Those three words were on a constant repeat today. He couldn’t get them out of his head. It didn’t matter that he still loved her or that she might have been right. He could find nothing redeeming in being here again.

His phone rang with a new text. “Look up.”

Amongst all the blue, he spotted a plane with a sign dragging out the back.

He was wrong. This day could be fixed by letting go of just one word. The three words repeating in his mind were now replaced with a new message and it made a drastic change to the path of their future.

It was a beautiful day.

_________________

Hope you enjoyed my flash. Visit Daily Picspiration to read a little about each author. You can go back daily for something new and go today to see the picture that inspired these words.

See all of my flashes at Daily Picspiration here –> http://picspiration.blogspot.com/search?q=S.J.+Maylee

Weekend Writing Warriors – Pokes and Promises

Click the logo for the Weekend Writing Warriors blog

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Welcome friends old and new. I’m glad you came. Today, I’m sharing from my debut, TAKING CHANCES.

In Previous Weeks: Jake and Lydia entered the room where they’ll be working together. They’ve shared a few heated moments. LAST WEEK: Lydia reeled from her bold move. THIS WEEK: I’ve skipped a little bit again. Lydia teased Jake and poked him in the chest with her finger.

Her smile disappeared when he took hold of her finger. It must have been contagious, because his face lit up. She tried to yank her finger from his grasp, but it seemed to only encourage him to increase his hold.

“Hey, you let go.” She laughed and continued struggling to regain control over her finger. His amused expression made her giggle, but in the next second it was gone and his stern business face returned.

“Okay, sorry, but don’t poke me. Next time, I might not be willing to let go.”

<~ You can <tweet that> last line if you want. I really hope he keeps that promise. Come back next week and find out more OR find those buy links below and find out today. 🙂 

Click here to add TAKING CHANCES to your Goodreads TBR list

5 Star Review: “Taking Chances, is a must read for anyone who wants a great story, well written, smoking hot smexy scenes and an oh so hot hero.”

5 Star Review: ”Taking Chances is SJ Maylee’s debut novel and she does an excellent job of creating interesting characters searching for connection while providing enough kink and spice to heat things up.”

5 Star Review: “it’s well written, there’s no slw moments and it’s packed full of hot sexual tension”

BLURB:

Lydia’s father walked away from her when she was eight. She’s struggled to not let him affect her, but fears she wasn’t loveable enough to make him stay. Jake wants to takingchances1mlove one woman, but after scaring the last woman he met outside of the club, he doubts he has the right. She protects her heart by sticking with her fantasies, and he lives by a set of rules that excludes women who choose a vanilla lifestyle.

The two will be kept in a conference room working together until their special project is complete. If Lydia and Jake hold tight to their bland lives, they’ll always yearn for love that is out of reach. But together they can find common ground, passion, and a reason to take chances. Once they discover the grand possibilities of the love they desire, they find themselves in the very place they tried never to be again, facing unguaranteed love.

BUY LINKS:

Evernight | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

BookStrand | All Romance Ebooks | Kobo | iTunes

Thank you so much for visiting me, it means a lot to me that you took the time to visit my little place on the web. Don’t forget to check out the other Weekend Warriors, the Snippet Sunday Facebook Groupand Saturday Spankings too.

ROW80 Check-in #77 An Anniversary, Contract, and More

The writing challenge that knows you have a life.

This week I’ve experienced the polar opposites in emotion. It was a struggle, but I found a takeaway.

Two years ago, I started this blog and started taking my publishing dream seriously. For me, that included trying to find consistency in my writing time, studying my craft, meeting like minded folks like all of you, and hitting send.

I’ve stumbled with each of these steps. It’s hard being out here with no one pushing you, but your own dreams. Thank goodness my muse doesn’t take no for an answer, lol. There is something that bothers me though. Why did I wait so long to take my dream seriously? If you have a dream that you’re not actively pursuing, I beg of you to wait no longer and take a firm step forward today.

Coming-SoonEvernight Publishing published my debut in August. They took a chance on me and they’ve agreed to publish me again. Queue the silly happy dance. I’m thanking myself again and again for taking a leap two years ago, starting this blog. You can find more information on my Coming Soon page here.

Two years in and I have two contracts. I’m very curious where I’ll be two years from now.

yodaThe week wasn’t all sunshine however.

I lost my kitty to kidney failure this week. He was only 14. The loss keeps knocking me down too, like the first morning when I had no furry friend to feed or say goodbye to when I left the house, or that first night when no one curled into my lap. Yoda was a sweetie and he often sat between me and my keyboard. I called him my writing partner and I miss him terribly.

If you’ve been meaning to start something. If you have a friend you haven’t seen in a long time. If you have a dream you’ve been neglecting. Stop wasting time. Do something today. Don’t wait for the right day to arrive. Do something now. 

Since music has a magical power, similar to reading a book, that helps me through life events, I thought I’d share a group my hubs recently brought to my attention. They’re called Lucius and they’re a Brooklyn-based quintet. I hope they take you to a happy place.

The Goals – week-3 results

    • Spend at least 1-hour a day with my characters- done.
    • Daily progress in writing craft, word count, editing, and/or plotting- half done. Several days got swallowed up when I lost Yoda, but I’m working my way back. This week was also hard on progress because I’m attempting to weave things into the story I missed the first time around. I spent a lot of time rereading sections and checking and rechecking for story and flow.
    • Take care of and be kind to myself- I might have made some unhealthy choices this week, but I allowed myself to feel. I’m trying to get back to a place that doesn’t sideswipe me so easily. Here’s to a fresh new week of good choices and moving forward.

What you might have missed here this week:

Don’t Miss The Writers Helping Writers AMAZING RACE!

Review: Everlasting by Tmonique Stephens

Inside Look with Erin Leaf author of Mr. Rockstar