Evernight | S.J. Maylee

>> Click here for my Evernight Birthday Bash Post <<

Please help me welcome Bethany-Kris. She’s here to celebrate her debut,

Here we go, first question: Picture your favorite place in the world. Now, can you tell us a little bit about the place you’ve pictured?

Yellow, orange skies. White sand. Crystal water. (Clearly I need a vacation)

Lol, so do I! Tell us about yourself: Who are you and why did you start writing?

My name is Bethany-Kris, and yep, I spell it just like that with no last name. I’m a Canadian author, lover of much, and mother to two young sons named Rohan and Lexan. One is almost four, the other is almost two. They keep me crazy busy. I love just about anything that’s bad for my health, work way too much, and don’t write nearly as often as I would like.

I started writing during an ordered best rest with my first pregnancy. I posted online for free under a different penname. All that is still there, also. I wasn’t the best at first, but who really is? I got better. I met great people. Betas with awesome talent were suddenly working with me. So, I continued. Nearly five years later, I’m still writing, except now it’s on a more professional level.

That’s awesome. My sons are just a little bit older and they keep me crazy busy too. Motherhood is hard work for sure. When you are not writing what are your favorite hobbies?

Wait…writing is my only hobby! Ha ha. No, really, it is. Between my fulltime job and the two boys, two cats, and two dogs, when I get to write, it is my time away.

I know what you mean. Writing is such a joy for me that I don’t need or want time away from it. Can you tell us about your challenges in getting your first book published?

Well, my first, A Mile High, wasn’t the first book I put out there under a publisher’s scrutiny. A different manuscript was, and it was denied. That was a hard pill for me to swallow, but I did, and I continued. Three days later, my submission for A Mile High was accepted.

My story is very similar. Can you tell us about a criticism you’ve received that pushed you into a better writing place?

One of my stories from a long time ago was given a great deal of criticism, not because of the writing, the grammar, the editing, whatever…no, but because the readers didn’t agree with the choices I made in regards to the plot. Crit is one thing, bashing someone on a personal level is something entirely different. I made a choice then to turn cheek at bad comments, reviews, whatever. I’ll accept anyone who wants to help me be better, and by learning to overlook the ones who don’t have that to offer allowed me to enjoy my writing as I wanted it to be seen and heard. It made me happier with my own writing, honestly.

That’s awesome and a very important thing to learn. Which one of your characters would you most like to meet in real life?

Oh, Sal from A Mile High, definitely. He’s tall, dark, and handsome. He’s got the charm going on and the humor to boot. Not to mention his ability to convince a woman to sleep with him on a plane. Hands down, Sal.

He sounds like a fabulous book boyfriend. 🙂 What turns you on creatively?

Music, pictures, general circumstance. It can be anything that catches my mind’s eye for a moment. If I can plot something out in my head by the way the leaves turned color in a week’s time, I’ll do it. Inspiration hits everywhere for me.

What is your greatest fear?

Surprisingly, it’s not failure. Being a writer, I kind of figure there will be a time when something will be seen as a failure. No, my greatest fear kind of revolves around my beautiful children. I hope the lives I gave this world are proud of me for the accomplishments I’ve made. Every word I put to paper is for them, in one way or another.

That’s beautiful. I bet you’re a really wonderful mom. What is your greatest extravagance?

Heh—Phones. Seriously, I update mine at least once every six months. Something new comes out, and I gotta have it.

Oh, and books. I have a library in my house…no, really, an actual library. So, I pick up paperbacks and hardcovers by the handful every time new releases are out.

Wow, that’s so cool. I have books all over my house. I think when my kids are older, I’ll have to designate their playroom as my library. 😀 What is your favorite music (genre/artist/album/song)?

Lana Del Rey is a favorite artist. Anything by her makes it into my fave list.

The Civil Wars – Poison and Wine is also a song that haunts me forever.

Finally, Counting Stars by OneRepublic reminds me of A Mile High, so it gets a special mention.

I love The Civil Wars. They are uber talented. What is the one thing you do after finishing a story?

I celebrate, usually with coffee…and cigarettes (see, things that are bad for me). The manuscript can need hours of work, but I still stop to enjoy my moment of finishing something worth reading.

Yeah! I. Love. Coffee. It definitely helps me soak in a moment. (I’m not even going to mention the cigarettes. Nope. Promise.) Tell us a bit about the projects you are working on now?

I have two works in progress, A Love Unfinished. This is a paranormal/shifters romance that’s nearly finished, so I’m about to have a celebratory dance for that.

Another is The Scandal of Three, a ménage erotic romance that I have just begun.

But, right now, I’m working on promoting A Mile High. It’s a contemporary erotic romance published by Evernight Publishing. It’s brand new, and my first ever release.

Here’s the summary for it: Olivia wants a vacation, that’s all, but when the airline screws up her plans for a week getaway to the beautiful Barbados, instead putting her on a new path that intertwines with the handsome, funny, and charming Sal, she can’t say no to his offer of joining the mile high club. Their meeting is explosive, attraction intense, and when the flight ends, Olivia is unwilling to part ways but unable to voice her wants. Still, fate is at work with its own plan, and where it finishes just might not be where it ends up.

There’s nothing quite like sex at a mile high.

****

Thank you for having me on your blog today!

You’re very welcome, Bethany-Kris. Congratulations on your debut. 😀

A Mile High can be found at:

Evernight Publishing: http://www.evernightpublishing.com/a-mile-high-by-bethany-kris/

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/A-Mile-High-ebook/dp/B00FEXO4TQ/

ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-amilehigh-1304746-149.html

And you can find me on Twitter, Facebook, and Blogger.

I’m spotlighting another Romance on the Go today. I told you I love this line. Please help me welcome Douglas Black. Enjoy. 🙂

Hello everyone! Hello S.J.! Thanks so much for letting me come over to play for a little while. I’d love to introduce my latest release, ‘A Secret Love’. Like the weather we’re currently enjoying in Scotland (fingers crossed it lasts) ‘A Secret Love’ is very hot and steamy. It’s an erotic M/M story about Mark and James, a couple who have been forced to hide their relationship for years. I hope you enjoy this little sneak-peak into their secret world!

A Secret Love

by Douglas Black

Published: July 11, 2013
Publisher: Evernight Publishing

Blurb

James is nervous when he pulls into the car park of the secluded and conservative Caledonian Hotel. He slips off his wedding ring, gives a false name at reception and checks into his room.

When Mark finally arrives James expects their time together to conform to the usual pattern, but Mark surprises him. Mark wants candlelit dinners and walks on the beach. James, well, James just wants to make up for lost time. More importantly, he doesn’t want to get caught. They have six months left before they can leave behind everything they know and start a new life together and James is desperate to be discrete. Unfortunately, he never could control himself around Mark. Throw in an interfering old couple and some very public displays of affection and Mark and James’s short hotel stay might just be about to destroy not only the secrecy that has always shrouded their relationship, but also their plans for a future together.

Excerpt

Mark returned the kiss passionately. James trembled in his arms. Tension coursed through his body and he could feel it mirrored in Mark’s. He could almost taste the other man’s nerves in his kiss. James savoured Mark’s strong arms around him. He pushed his hands inside Mark’s suit jacket and clung to the warm, toned body underneath. The body was so familiar despite the amount of time that had passed since their last meeting.

“God I’ve missed you,” James said when he finally pulled away. Mark was breathless and didn’t respond at first, but the sexy, playful smile on his lips told James everything he needed to know. James took his hands and led him further into the room.

It was a large suite with living area and a huge bathroom. Mark swung a new sports bag, bright orange and emblazoned with sponsorship logos, off his shoulder and dumped it onto one of the two couches. He paused momentarily, reaching into his suit pocket.

James watched as Mark pulled out his phone and turned it off without checking for messages. He waited patiently until Mark had tucked it safely into his bag and smiled at him when he had finished. “Difficult getting away this time?” he asked.

Mark nodded. “I left as soon as I could. I was so scared I was going to miss the flight. I’m sorry it had to be mid-week this time. Will you get in trouble at work?”

“I have the flu.”

Mark smirked. “You look perfectly healthy to me.”

“It came on all of a sudden,” James said, closing the space between them. “Unexpected. Probably be gone in a few days. You know how these things are.” Mark nodded and James slipped into his arms once more. With his head on Mark’s shoulder, he turned to whisper against the other man’s neck. “I wouldn’t have been able to stand it if you had missed the flight, if you had cancelled. It’s been so long. It’s always so long.”

Author Bio

Douglas Black was born and raised in bonnie Scotland. He started writing erotica as a means of paying the bills when he was a student at university, but after graduation he found he no longer had the time to write. Over the summer of 2012, Black picked up a pen once more. After a brief, successful flirtation with self-publishing, Black’s novella ‘Business or Pleasure’ was picked up and released in April 2013. It quickly made the publisher’s best-sellers list. Douglas Black’s short story, ‘A Secret Love’, was published in July 2013 by Evernight Publishing.