Never Say Never ~ by Joanne Jaytanie

I've been crazy busy the last two months, and I veered off my writing schedule for the year. But, I didn’t do so lightly. I weighed the pros and cons and thought it was well worth the left turn. One could even say that I didn’t take a sharp turn, rather a slight bend. 

I was invited to take part in a Christmas collection with a fantastic group of authors. And, if you look closely at my very professional list and read #7, it says Christmas book 3. 

For the last two years, I've wanted to do another Christmas story, but I never made the time. It worked out that the theme of our Christmas collection: Christmas at Mistletoe Lodge couldn’t have been a better fit for Forever Christmas in Glenville, book three, Christmas Chemistry.

The cover turned out perfect. It always does when Linda Boulanger designs it. The special part is the Doberman. It's my beautiful girl, Maya. I still remember the day I took this photo, she was chasing snowballs. It was a perfect moment.

I was nervous that I wouldn’t make the deadline – two deadlines on the same day, but I made them. I stuck to my writing schedule, and more importantly, I have an editor that is always there and willing to take on my next project. I took care of my new puppy – Mazie, just in case you haven’t heard 😉 and made dinner. Everything else took a backseat, and I made my deadlines!! 

A few weeks before being invited into the Christmas collection, I committed to a different type of story with the authors of Romance Books 4 Us. Each author in the book is writing their own serial or episodic story for Soldiers of Fortune or SOF. Volume 3 of SOF releases on October 15th, and it's the part 2 of my story, Dogs of Fortune.

I hadn’t included dogs in either of my last two books, Salvaging Truth or Twice As Bad. I think I was having withdrawals. Christmas Chemistry is Gina's story, and she's been in love with Dobermans since the day she started working at Forever Christmas, in Christmas Reflections, book 1. So, along comes Angel and the two are nearly inseparable. And Dogs of Fortune – well, doesn’t the title tell it all? It has dogs! Blair Sellick is a well-known dog trainer with exceptional skills. Some, like Zane Kelly, might even call her psychically enhanced.

So, if you haven’t seen me around the watercooler (otherwise known as FaceBook) much lately, now you know why. I've been WRITING. I love it, I do. I certainly wouldn't want to try and keep up this pace for an entire year.

This is the first time in over two years that I've written in a collection with other authors. I'd said that I wouldn't do multiple-author collections again because they pull me away from my writing goals. I have my reasons for the choice to do so this time…What were they? If you want to know the answer to that question, you must attend the workshop I’m co-teaching with my dear friend, Jacquolyn McMurray, this Friday at the Emerald City Writers Conference or ECWC. What’s the workshop? Participating in a Collection: Pros and Cons. We chose this topic back in February, and I already had my year planned out, or so I thought.

Kinda ironic, wouldn't you say? Yep, that's my life.

I'm beyond thrilled and honored to be a finalist in the ECWC Best Blurb Contest! Thank you, judges!

For more information on my new and upcoming releases, or the ECWC you can visit my personal page.

Until next time…

Joanne

What do your summer plans hold? by Joanne Jaytanie

Are you traveling to an exotic destination you've never visited before? Maybe you're taking a road-trip down the coast or visiting friends and family you haven't seen in ages. It could be your idea of a vacation is to hang out at home with your family and pets. Are you someone who enjoys sitting out on your porch, enjoying your morning coffee and soaking in the world around you?

Early this year I had the opportunity to spend nearly a week at Disney World and a week in Hawaii. 

Two places I’d never visited before. I shared tons of pictures and wrote a couple blogs about my explorations. You can find them here on my personal page. So, my vacation days are all used up for this year, except maybe a weekend away, here and there. Instead, I'm spending the summer at home and trying to stay focused on my writing. So far, I'm on target.

This past week I finished my final edits on Twice as Bad, Miss Demeanor, P.I., Book 2, and I can’t wait for it to be released. This is a fun series to write. It takes place in Seattle, where my P.I., River Nightingale owns a private investigation agency in Pioneer Square and her boyfriend, Gage Hamlin is a lead homicide detective. Here’s the book blurb:

For private investigator River Nightingale, the stakes are high, and her losses are twice as bad.

River has already lost a partner to a better job, and now a truck has mowed down another partner and a key informant. Her surviving crew is reeling and dead set on finding the killer. Working with them is a Seattle PD homicide detective, Gage Hamlin. Gage and River have been a volatile combination since day one, but now it’s twice as tense, as they both seek the killer and Gage struggles to keep River alive.

On the waterfront, Seattle is known for slinging fish, but River’s stakeout of a seafood plant reveals that fish aren’t the only thing being sold on the docks. And if River isn’t careful, fish aren’t the only thing that will end up dead on the docks.

I’m currently working on a story that will be part of the S.O.F. Soldiers of Fortune series. We are the authors of Romance Books 4 Us, and we're trying something different with this series. We’re writing in installments or as I like to refer to them as—episodes. Each of us is writing our own stories about one of the members of S.O.F. The Soldiers of Fortune, Volume 1, was released in June. Zane's story will begin with volume 2, which will be releasing on August 15. I hope you’ll read along. Here’s the setting: 

 They are the Soldiers of Fortune... and these are their stories.

Rhett Fortune settled on the small parcel of land he purchased in 1858 with his wife Clara and founded the beautiful landscape that surrounded his newly built home and what is now known as Fortune, TX. A veteran of the United States Army and as a Colonel who served with honor in the Mexican-American War, Rhett and Clara raised a large family. Sons and daughters, and grandchildren to follow, their clan grew throughout the decades. 

Now in the 21st Century, two of their descendants remain at the helm. Chance Fortune, a former member of the Army's Delta Force and co-founder of Soldiers of Fortune, has an innate duty to serve and protect. Working with his brother, R.J. Fortune, a former Navy SEAL and wounded warrior, they take the cases that their government won't. And vow to protect the civilians that no one else can. 

They have quietly put out the word, and now, after three years, other former brothers-in-arms have contacted them bringing situations that span not only the country but the globe. On Fortune family land they have built a facility out of the public eye for their office, a helicopter, a gun range, and whatever else they might need.

Next on my summer schedule is The Winters Sisters, Book 5. I can't wait to get back to their world. Life is never dull on the Winters campus, and it's about to get even crazier. Back to the world of genetic engineering, corporate corruption, psychics, and Dobermans. You never know what each new day will hold.

I hope you have a fantastic summer full of love, excitement, adventure, and memories that will last a lifetime. And if you feel like relaxing in your lounge chair and soaking in the day, why don't you pick up a book. You never know what adventure you’ll discover between the pages.

Click here for more information on Joanne's books and blogs

Until next time~

Joanne