BREATHE available at Amazon, ARe & Fictionwise

Hope everyone is having a great weekend. I’m back online and very happy about it. Our cable modem died yesterday, so I wasn’t off-line for long, but it was still an annoyance. It’s amazing to me how much I use the damn internet in one day. From the dictionary to email to random questions where I want an immediate answer. I think maybe I’ll take a week off-line someday and see how long I can actually make it.

In more interesting news, I’ve got a few links to share.

Breathe is now available at…
All Romance eBooks
Amazon (US)
Amazon (UK)
Fictionwise

In related news…
Book Lovers Inc is celebrating its Blogoversary and they are having a giveaway, including a free copy of BREATHE. Happy Blogoversary, Book Lovers Inc!

And in other news…
This is cool: MORE has been nominated in the Preditors & Editors Readers’ Poll. All nominations are selected by readers. Voting is open until January 26.

Thank you all for your continued interest and support. Have a fab weekend!
Sloan

More wins Best Gay Romance Rainbow Award

Posting late again this week but wanted to share some exciting news about an award, an upcoming contest for readers, and a few reviews.

MORE wins a Rainbow Award
I am thrilled to announce that MORE won first place in the Best Gay Contemporary Romance category of the Rainbow Awards. I would’ve been excited to see my debut novel in the top 10, but to see it win was both shocking and fantastic. Thanks to Elisa for hosting the awards and the judges for volunteering their time. Congratulations to all the winners, including the other top winners in my category, Marie Sexton and Eden Winters! You can view the full list of categories and winners here.

Happy Holidays Reader Contest
Next week I’ll be starting my first Happy Holidays blog contest. I’m giving away gift cards and free ebooks. Be sure to check back on Monday to find out how to enter.

Reviews for BREATHE
Thought I’d share the links to some reviews and mini-reviews for BREATHE. Thanks to Chocolate Minx (at Literary Nymphs), Chris (at Stumbling Over Chaos), and Wave (at Reviews by Jessewave) for taking the time to read my second release. Reviewers are like gold to newer authors like me (every mention of our work helps us get noticed in the sea of new book releases).

And lastly this week, I just want to say thanks to everyone who has picked up a copy of BREATHE. I hope you’ve enjoyed Jay and Lincoln’s story.

Have a fab weekend everyone!
Sloan

Guest Blog: What I Learned Writing Two Erotic Romances

I’m the guest at Tara Lain’s blog, sharing what I’ve learned from writing my two erotic romances, MORE and BREATHE. I’m also asking if you can tell when an author has passion (or not) for their story? Stop by and leave a comment. I’d love to hear what you think.

What I Learned Writing Two Erotic Romances

Thanks,
Sloan

Back to Walter’s story (dang, this book needs a title)

Happy Friday! Hope everyone is doing well. I’ve had the best week. Does that sound like bragging? Really, I’m just feeling good this week and wanted to share. Just before we celebrated Thanksgiving here in the US, I took a week off from writing (which was both necessary for many reasons and incredibly scary since I haven’t done that in a long time). Well, this week I headed back into a more normal writing schedule, and things are moving along nicely.

Here’s where my current projects stand and some other news:

  • Home Again
    I have a tentative title and a first draft for my friends-to-lovers story. For now I’m calling it HOME AGAIN. The draft is pretty rough, but I’m really happy with the story and characters. I can’t wait for everyone to meet Kyle and Evan.
  • Walter Simon
    So now I’m back to working on Walter’s story (this book desperately needs a title, but nothing has come to me yet). It’s a stand-alone story with a secondary character from MORE, Walter Simon. I decided to take a break to get the first draft done on HOME AGAIN, but this week I was able to get back to Walter’s. I’ve kept the poor guy waiting on first base for far too long now.
  • Contest News
    I’m going to be hosting a Happy Holidays contest on the blog this month. It’ll be winner’s choice of one free ebook from my work or any Loose Id title. Check back in the next week or so for details.
  • Blogging News
    I’m going to be guest-blogging at author Tara Lain’s blog next week. I’ll be talking about the differences between writing MORE and BREATHE. If anyone has questions about either book, I’d love for you to stop by and post a comment. I’ll share the link to the blog when it’s live.
  • Banners
    I have a couple of new banners and skyscrapers that I’m using for online advertising. Feel free to grab one for your own website or blog if you’d like. They can all be viewed here.

I’m hoping to do more Friday posts than I have been in the past few weeks. Some of these will be writing updates like this one. For those of you who follow the blog regularly, this might get a bit repetitive. I apologize for that, but I think it’ll be a good way to keep my updates easily accessible for those new to visiting my site as more people become familiar with me and my work.

If anyone has any questions about my books, my current projects, or anything at all, feel free to contact me or add your question in the comments section of this post.

Hope you all have a great weekend!
Sloan

More about Matthew Stewart

I’ve already posted some of my original character details and pictures for Luke and Richard (from More). Now I’m sharing about Matthew.

These are directly from the original character sketch sheet, including the photos I used for inspiration before writing the book.

Matthew Stewart

Photos for Inspiration
The final result of what a character looks like may be nothing like the photo, but an image gives me something to visualize, making him a bit more real.

(c) istockphoto, RobertDodge, 2007

Sampling of Character Sketch & Personality Traits

  • Full name: Matthew Stewart
  • Nickname: his mom calls him Matty.
  • Works at a music/book store in the mall.
  • Lives with his mom whom he adores.
  • His parents are divorced. Hasn’t seen his father since the man left, when Matthew was in high school.
  • Came out in high school.
  • Doesn’t like Chinese food. Loves Italian.
  • Doesn’t have much in the way of a savings account.
  • Strengths
    • Lively, energetic, funny (despite his shyness)
    • Always has a smile
    • Laughs a lot
    • Empathetic
    • Inquisitive. Curious. Asks questions.
  • Weaknesses
    • Shy, nervous, self-conscious
    • Trusts too easily, even when others have failed him
    • Doesn’t speak up when he should
    • Speaks with uncertainty
    • Has issues with people who drink alcohol around him.
  • Zodiac Sign: Scorpio (Source)
    • Life Pursuit: To survive against all opposition
    • Scorpios lead fate filled lives and have intense and dramatic personal relationships.
    • Old and wise beyond the average, Scorpios often know all the answers, except sometimes; they too often have difficulty finding what they need to develop their own happiness.
    • Coming to grips with their extraordinary emotional depths and sensitivity isn’t easy for those around them.
    • They are different from all other zodiac signs and this difference has them walking, working and loving to a different beat.
    • Their eyes often blaze with feelings that words never express, and beware on the days or nights they hide their feelings behind dark glasses, there is likely to be a storm of some kind brewing.
    • They often wear a mask. Too often they say “no” when they really mean “yes.”
    • Once they find true love they can be the most faithful dedicated of all partners.
    • When they are negative about something or someone, or critical of themselves, they can tend to get in their own way.

All my blog posts with behind the story information are also archived on my website at www.sloanparker.com

Hope you enjoyed a look at some of my initial ideas for Matthew.
Sloan

 

Image source (first picture): I can’t recall from where I purchased or downloaded this one. If you hold the copyright and wish to have it removed, please contact me.