Thursday Update-8/28/14

Hello everyone and Happy Thursday! I hope everyone is having a great week. Mine has been described in two words: Moving SUCKS!! I have spent the whole week moving and, as a result, it has been a bad writing week. But my move is complete and I should be more productive next week. But here is my update, such as it is, for this week.

My big news: Death Gets a Boyfriend WILL BE RELEASED ON SEPT. 24, 2014!!! And it is now available for pre-order right here. So go get your copy now!

I am also working on a huge blog tour that will start on September 15th. Most of my time this week has been spent working on posts for the tour. I don't even have half of them done so I have a long way to go. But I am really happy with all of the posts so far!

I think that's about it for this week. Don't forget the final post of The Saga of Steve and Joey will be this Monday so come back and find out how it all ends. Until then, have a great weekend everyone!

~Sophie

"Death Gets a Boyfriend" Release Information

EXCITING NEWS!!!! Death Gets a Boyfriend will be released on September 24th. And while you may have to wait that long to read it, you can pick up your copy right now here. So go pre-order your copy today!

The Saga of Steve and Joey-Part 34

Hello everyone and Happy Monday. Today I bring you Part 34 in The Saga of Steve and Joey, which means there is only one part left! It is going to be tough to say goodbye, but it is time. For now, however, I hope you enjoy the penultimate part as Aiden graduates high school.

Part 34

Joey

I sit in the stadium, holding my breath as they start calling the children whose last names begin with “m”. I can’t believe this is actually happening. It seems like just yesterday I was getting the call that Margie had a baby for us and now my Aiden is graduating high school. And in the fall, he’ll be going to college.

It doesn’t feel right, knowing that my baby is going to be leaving for college soon. I always knew this day was going to come, a looming black cloud that hung over me for years. And now the day I was dreading is finally here.

And yet, as I sit on a cold, metal bleacher next to Steve with Aiden sitting somewhere down in the mass of students, I think maybe it won’t be so bad. As much as I want Aiden to stay young forever, it is impossible to ignore the excitement every time he mentions college. I know that he loves us, but he is just so ready to move on and take that next step in his life. I wish I was that ready. I know it’s time to let him go and that he isn’t really leaving us forever.

Steve is constantly telling me that everything will be alright. And I think he may be right. I know there will be a lot of tears in the coming weeks. I can’t even imagine what will happen when I have to take him to college. That might be a day when I never stop crying. But I have to have faith that everything will be okay. That this new phase of my life won’t turn out so bad.

“Aiden Matheson-Rogers.”

I stand up and start to clap, the tears already starting as the principal of Aiden’s high school calls his name. I watch as my only son walks up on the stage, a huge smile on his face as he shakes hands with the principal and accepts his diploma. He turns and looks up at the crowd and, even though I know he probably can’t see me in the mass of people, I feel like he is smiling just for me.

Much too soon, another name is called and Aiden walks off the stage.

“What do you think of that,” Steve asks, as we sit down. “Our Aiden. A high school graduate.”

“Yeah,” I say, my thoughts still spinning.

Normally, this is where Steve would say something reassuring, but I think he knows now is not the time. Instead, he settles for leaning over and gently kissing my cheek.

As the ceremony winds down, I try to tell myself that it will all be okay. That Aiden will be fine. And Steve and I will grow old together just like we were meant to. And even though there is still a big part of me that wishes I could go backward in time, I try to find solace in the hope that it will all be fine. After all, my son just graduated. And no matter what that means for the future, it is something to celebrate.

And that is part 34. Only one part left. So be sure to come back next week to see what happens to Steve, Joey and Aiden!!

Thursday Update-8/21/14

Hello everyone and Happy Thursday!!! I hope everyone has had a nice week. Mine has been very busy and as a result I have had another bad week of writing. But that's okay. In two weeks, things should have settled down enough that I can get back on track. So here is where everything stands now.

This week, I have spent a lot of time working on the upcoming blog tour for Death Gets a Boyfriend. There are a lot of posts and interviews coming up on my tour that have to be written. So that has taken up the bulk of my time.

The only big news that I have the week is not the best. Finding Love in the Darkness was not selected for publication.While I am disappointed, nothing will deter me from my writing. I have no plans to work on short stories for a little while though. I don't seem to have a great track record with that, so I am planning to double down on my novels. Maybe I will try again if I see a good open call, but for now, I plan on taking a break from that.

I think that's about it for this week. Don't forget The Saga of Steve and Joey is ending on September 1st so be sure to check out my last two posts. Until then...

~Sophie

The Saga of Steve and Joey-Part 33

Hello everyone and Happy Monday! I have a brand-new part in The Saga of Steve and Joey for everyone to help kick off the week. Aiden is 16 and learning how to drive in this one. But before I begin, I have an announcement to make. As some of you may have guessed this story is starting to wind down. I have decided that there will be two more parts to make it a 35-part series. I expect the last post to be on September 1st. But just because this saga is ending doesn't mean it is the end of Steve, Joey and Aiden. There will still be special snippets of their lives that I post every once in a while. And I will start posting a new free serial sometime in the fall so we have that to look forward to. Until then, enjoy Part 33 of The Saga of Steve and Joey!

Part 33

Steve

“No, brake. Brake!”

I take a deep breath as Aiden slams on the brakes, lunging me forward in my seat. Letting out a long breath, I turn to stare at Aiden who is still clutching the wheel in a white-knuckled grip.

“I know there are a lot of jokes about running yellow lights,” I say as gently as possible. “But we stop when the light is yellow.”

Aiden swallows and looks back out at the road. I turn back too. The SUV is a little bit out into the intersection, but it isn’t too bad. Cars will be able to pass us easily. Actually, I will admit that for his first time Aiden is actually doing quite well.

Finally the light turns green and Aiden teases the gas to inch forward into the intersection. I expected him to go a little slow after I almost yelled at him, but when he doesn’t pick up the speed I have to smile.

“Aiden, you can go above ten miles an hour.”

“I know,” Aiden says tersely.

My smile starts to fade when I realize not only is Aiden not going faster, there is a line of cars forming behind us.

“It’s okay. Just press a little harder on the gas.”

Aiden does but not hard enough to go above twenty. I sigh.

“Son, I’m sorry if I freaked you out back there. But you really are doing quite well for your first time. I mean, you haven’t had any real close calls and everything is going fine. Just go a little faster because these cars behind us are getting impatient.”

Aiden swallows and nods before finally picking up the speed to thirty-five. I purposely chose a residential area to drive in so that Aiden wouldn’t have to worry about highways or other intense driving areas, but there were impatient drivers everywhere in America.

I can’t help but be proud as Aiden doesn’t let those drivers get to him as he just focuses on the road ahead. I always knew Aiden would be good at this. He is just such a driven and focused child. I wish Joey could have been here for this, but we both agreed that Joey would freak out which would cause Aiden to panic. Better for him to stay home until Aiden is a little more comfortable.

After about an hour of driving around, I tell Aiden to head home. I smile as Aiden doesn’t say anything just nods, too busy focusing on the road to say anything else. Thanks to living here his whole life, I don’t have to give Aiden directions and, after only a few minutes, he pulls into the driveway with no mishaps.

Aiden cuts the engine and lets go of the death grip he has on the wheel before turning to face me.

“You did good, Aiden. Really good.”

The smile on Aiden’s face tells me everything I need to know. Before I can say anything else, I see Joey open the front door, looking over at the car as if expecting to see a huge dent in it or something.

“Go on and tell your dad how it was,” I say, nodding to Joey.

Aiden turns and sees his other Dad before thanking me and jumping out of the car. I take the keys before sliding out of the seat and waking to the door to share in Aiden’s excitement. After all, there is a lot to be excited about.

And that’s Part 33! Only two more parts left so be sure to come back next week for Part 34!

COVER REVEAL FOR "DEATH GETS A BOYFRIEND"

It is time!! I present to you the cover for Death Gets a Boyfriend!

 It was created by the amazing Christy Caughie so thank you to her and the entire DSP art department! And in case you were wondering Death is the hot blonde. Not quite what you were expecting?? Well, I have the feeling that my Death will change how you think of the Grim Reaper forever! The pre-order link will be available soon so stay tuned for your chance to own Death Gets a Boyfriend!!

Thursday Update-8/14/14

Hello everyone and Happy Thursday!! I hope everyone has had a great week. If not, hopefully I can cheer you up at midnight. Why? Because that is when I will be revealing my cover for "Death Gets a Boyfriend" to the world!!! So be sure to come back here and see it then. In the meantime, here is what I have been up to this week!

This week has been all about Death Gets a Boyfriend  and not just because of the cover reveal. I have spent all of my time this week working on the galley proof and the upcoming blog tour. I am so happy with this book and I can't wait for everyone to read it! Plus, I am working on some very exciting posts for the blog tour that I think fit in perfectly with the humorous book. So stay tuned for more information on that.

Because I am still working on the move, I haven't had time to work on anything other than Death. I am hoping next week will be a little calmer, but it may take me until September until I can start serious work on HWHGML again.

I don't really have much else to report. Still waiting on word for my pending stories. But hopefully soon. Until then, I will see everyone later for the cover reveal! Have a great night everyone!!

~Sophie

The Saga of Steve and Joey-Part 32

Hello everyone and Happy Monday! I have a new free read for everyone that I hope you will all enjoy. Aiden is 14 in this one. Enjoy!

Part 32

Joey

“Bye, Daddy.”

“Bye Aiden,” I call as Aiden rushes out the door. I slowly follow him to the front door and wave to Amy and Dave, Gordy’s parents, who are sitting in her SUV. I can’t see Gordy since he is sitting in the back seat, but I can imagine how happy he is. After all, Aiden and Gordy are going to be together all weekend. It has become a tradition for the boys to go camping with Amy and Dave one weekend towards the end of summer. And it’s one that Aiden always looks forward to, especially now that he is two weeks away from high school. He hasn’t mentioned it, but I know he’s a little nervous to start high school. I just hope that Gordy puts some of those fears to rest.

When the SUV is safely out of the driveway and heading off to the camp site, I turn and walk back to the kitchen. I was working on dinner when Aiden left and I need to continue if Steve and I want to eat tonight.

I am almost done when I realize how quiet the house is. Aiden has only been gone for a half an hour and yet it already feels like something is missing. Of course, there is, but it feels wrong now.

With a start, I realize that in a few years, it will be like this all the time. In four years, I will be helping to get Aiden ready for college, not just a camping trip. A knot settles in my stomach. I don’t want to let my baby go. It feels like just yesterday when he was put in my arms for the first time.

“Honey, I’m home.”

I look up as Steve walks in the kitchen. He comes over and gives me a hug and a kiss before slowly pulling back.

“What’s wrong,” he asks, concern thick in his voice.

I shake my head to try and clear out the bad thoughts, afraid I will lose it if I open my mouth.

“Aiden left,” I say simply.

“Well, you knew that,” Steve says, clearly not understanding where this is going. “So what is it really?”

“I don’t know. I guess it just hit me that we only have a few years left with Aiden before he’s all grown up.”

“Hey,” Steve says, taking me into another hug. “It’s okay. We still have four years left. And even when he does go away, it’s not like he’s going to disappear out of our lives.”

“I know. I’m just being all depressed.”

Steve kisses my cheek.

“Steve?”

“Yeah?”

“Have you ever thought about adopting another child?”

Steve releases me and gently turns me around. “No,” he says gently. “Have you?”

“A little bit.”

“Joey. I know Aiden growing up has been hard on you. But another child isn’t going to solve that. I mean, are we just going to keep having kids until we die so we always have a little one?”

“No,” I say, despondently, knowing that’s exactly what I want.

“Getting another baby won’t solve anything. You just need to cherish the time we have with Aiden while he’s still at home and think about the benefits we will have when he’s gone.”

My mouth drops open in shock. “How can you say there will be benefits to losing our son?”

Steve leans in and gently whispers in my ear. “More alone time.”

I gulp as arousal shoots through me. We share one look before Steve grabs my hand and leads me to the stairs, ready to take me to the bedroom. As we run up the stairs, all I can think is that maybe there would be one perk to Aiden growing up. It’s only one, but it may just be enough to get me through the next forty years of my life.

And there’s Part 32. I hope everyone liked it. Next week Steve takes Aiden on his first driving trip. I hope to see everyone then. 

Thursday Update-8/7/14

Hello everyone and Happy Thursday!! And because it's Thursday, it's time for a bright and shiny writing update! So here is what I have been working on this week.

Big News for this week is that I now have the cover for Death Gets A Boyfriend. I will be revealing the cover here on my blog and all of my social media accounts next Friday, exactly one month before my blog tour starts. So be sure to check that out, because the cover is amazing!!!

As for the writing part of this week, things have actually started to get back to normal. I didn't feel compelled to work on When It All Falls Apart  this week, which is a huge sign of my mental well-being. Instead, I have resumed work on His World, His Game, My Love. Things are still going a little slower than I would like, seeing as I am still working on moving, but progress is being made.

I think that's the only real news I have this week. The Janiman and Death are still is editing and I am still waiting on word from MWMGML and Finding Love in the Darkness. I will update everyone as soon as I hear anything. Thank you everyone and have a great weekend!!

~Sophie

The Saga of Steve and Joey-Part 31

Hello everyone and Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a great weekend! I did and now I am back with a brand new part in The Saga of Steve and Joey!! So I hope you enjoy it!

Part 31

Steve

I am continually amazed by the ingenuity that Joey shows when it comes to this family. Joey made the observation a couple of weeks ago that now that Aiden is ten we weren’t really spending as much time together as we normally did. It just isn’t that easy with Aiden spending time with Gordy and his other friends. Not to mention all of the birthday parties, art classes and everything else. I suppose this happens to a lot of families as their kids grow up and start to get lives of their own.

But that wasn’t good enough for Joey. He came up with the idea to have a family game night every Thursday night. At first, I wasn’t sold on the idea, but I have to admit that it was a great idea.

“Pay up, Dad.”

I snap out of my own thoughts to see Joey throw his head back in disgust as Aiden cheerfully moves his Dad’s piece to Boardwalk. Or should I say Aiden’s Boardwalk. I’m not sure how Aiden gets so lucky, but somehow he managed to get enough money to not only buy both Boardwalk and Park Place, but he already has two houses on both blue properties.

Smiling, I watch Joey count out what amounts to a sizable percentage of his fake money and hand it over to Aiden. Aiden takes it with a smile and starts to count it.

“Hey,” Joey exclaims. “You don’t trust me.”

“It’s not about trust. It’s about making sure. You always tell me to double-check my homework. It’s the same thing.”

I try to stifle a laugh as Joey’s face turns bright red. Joey gives me a disbelieving stare as I try to pull myself together. It doesn’t work to well and he playfully pushes my shoulder to try and get me to stop. It takes me another few seconds, but I finally pull it together.

“You know, you shouldn’t encourage him,” Joey says, clearly displeased.

“Hey, he’s right. And you’re just mad that you landed on Aiden’s houses twice now.”

“You would be to if you stopped rolling twelves.”

I shrug. “Hey, the dice will do what they want to do.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Joey grumbles. “Well, it’s your turn.”

Smiling, I pick up the dice and shake them up before dropping them on the board. I land on one of my own spaces and hand the dice to Aiden.

We play for a little longer before Joey goes bankrupt after landing on Aiden’s hotel-owned Park Place. We probably could keep playing for a little while, but it is getting late and Aiden and I am pretty evenly matched. He may have the blue properties, but I have three other property sets with various sets of houses and hotels that were slowly bleeding him dry. So I call the game. I think Aiden might ask for a count of the money and assets to see who won, but he doesn’t.

So instead, the three of us work to put the game away. When Joey goes to put the game away in the closet, Aiden turns to me with a smile.

“You know, I like this new game night. It’s fun. Even though Daddy’s not very good.”

“I heard that,” Joey says, walking back into the living room. “And while I can’t do anything about it tonight, we will see next week. Maybe I will pick the game.”

“That’s cheating,” Aiden exclaims.

“No, we said we were going to take turns picking the games,” Joey replies. “And I think I may just pick Trivial Pursuit.”

Aiden’s eyes bug out of his head. Because he’s only ten, he doesn’t have nearly enough knowledge to best us in Trivial Pursuit. The fact that Joey knows all sorts of obscure facts and usually beats me by a healthy margin doesn’t help Aiden either.

“You wouldn’t,” Aiden questions.

“What were you saying about me not being very good at games?”

“I lied. You are the best ever at playing games. You just had a…bad night?”

Joey and I laugh at Aiden’s sloppy comeback.

“It’s okay, Aiden. I won’t pick Trivial Pursuit. At least not if you go to bed soon.”

“Bye,” Aiden says as he dashes to the stairs.

“Hey,” Joey calls right before Aiden reaches the stairs. “I like playing with you too.”

Aiden gives us a huge smile before heading up the stairs.

“I like this game night thing,” I say as I walk up behind Joey and wrap my arms around his waist. “Where did you come up with this idea anyway?”

“Google.”

I snort before leaning down and kissing Joey’s cheek. “Well, Google does have some good ideas.”

“I thought so.”

“But you are going to have to get better at Monopoly.”

Joey just laughs.

And there’s Part 31! I hope you all enjoyed it. See you next week for the next installment of The Saga of Steve and Joey.