Mid-June Writing Updates!
All the projects that have kept me busy through the first half of the year.
Hello friends,
Reporting to you from the revising/editing cave since I’ve got a short story and a holiday novella I’m wrapping up revisions/edits for.
More on that in a bit, but first, my Emma Awards for Best Historical Romance and Best Novella Romance for The Deed with the Duke have arrived! Not the most glamorous photo, but again, I’m doing little else but revisions and edits right now so this was just a quick break to get these beauties on my bookshelf.
I’ve been steadily working on wrapping up the first draft of Diwali with Her Duke. Beta read? Check. Developmental, line and copy passes? Check. Now, I’ll make these edits, read it through once more for flow, and send it back to my beta reader (fellow historical romance author Isabella Kamal) for a final read before sending it again to my editor (fellow historical romance author Amber Night) for a review pass, and then on to the anthology coordinator (fellow historical romance author Katherine Grant) for her proofreader to review. I’m working on the back-cover copy and taglines for promo too.
I also whipped up an invited short story for Bothered Stories. Sierra Simone has written a piece for them too, and it’s great to be in such esteemed company. I wanted to explore the idea of the “villainess” “evil queen archetype” (or in this case, duchess) through the difficult choices Kairav’s mother made, and the conception lore around his birth. Her extramarital affair forms part of his backstory, since he’s a claimed heir.
I wanted the question/theme/thesis of this story to be “what happened to make the evil queen evil?” Even more importantly, what sacrifices did a “villainous” woman have to make to keep her power, especially in a period when women were afforded so little agency, like the Regency era? Women are often painted unfairly in narratives, without their voice in the telling of the tale, and without nuance in that telling. They’re forced into countless reductive dichotomies, for example, Madonna or whore, and I wanted Farida to have the chance to tell her own story in her own voice and words.
Her story focuses on the final time these lovers meet before she’s pregnant with her son. As the origin story for Kairav, it’s also a story of what lengths a mother will go to provide the best for her child—even before he’s ever in the picture. She’s not always likable, she makes flawed choices, but for reasons that made sense to her at the time. Farida did the best with what she knew. In Thanya and Kairav’s book, she sees a lot of herself in Thanya and wants to protect her son from the same doomed marriage dynamic.
Farida’s story is more pragmatic in nature, and I like the contrast of a flipped power dynamic in her relationship with her pirate/smuggler lover. She’s calling the shots of when they meet, for how long, and for what purpose—not him—which is rare for the time period. Because this piece is more erotica/erotic romance focused there’s not a conventional HEA, and I enjoyed the creative challenge of writing a different kind of romantic setup in 5000 words or less.
The idea suddenly sank its claws into me and I plotted much of it sitting in my car in the grocery store parking lot before going in. As I wandered the aisles more dialogue and scenes came to me. Because the muse was present in full force, I wrapped the first draft up in under a week, and my early readers loved it! Author friends are the best friends, so oodles of thanks to Lauren Hayworth and Melissa Kendall for feedback on where to trim and tighten, and to Hillary and Jane Hadley for wanting to read it for fun and cheer me on.
It’s now time for me to dig into developmental, line, and copy passes for this piece too. It was so fulfilling to exercise and flex my short story muscles again, and to know I’ve still “got it” and can write a compelling, emotional, angsty story in under 5K words. I haven’t written a piece that short since my Best Women’s Erotica of the Year piece “Call of the Asphodel,” and I also wrote short stories for Rosy’s app in the past across many romance genres and heat levels. I loved this energizing brief break from my longer projects and hope I’m invited to write another piece for them in the future. It’s a great way for me to build bridges to my books and explore other characters in my world, and for us to share audiences. I’d love to write a piece set in historical India for them too and connect the story with my forthcoming free-for-subscribers novella (it’s next on the docket after these Panchal family books).
Speaking of Panchal family books, I’ve added more transition elements to Unmasked by the Duke to get the second half of Thanya and Kairav’s book ready for my beta readers. And, here’s a little teaser excerpt for you today from Thanya and the Duke of Ramsgate, submitted without context, other than to say, things are very intense here at Eyethorne Castle 🦌 🐅 🌕. You can check out more of the Friday Spark teasers I’ve been sharing for their book on Instagram.
I’ve mentioned that Thanya thinks of Kairav as a panther, and Kairav thinks of Thanya as a shark. If the above excerpt is not enough evidence, then consider the below.
And one more little shark-ish teaser, as a treat 🦈 🐈⬛.
Given that last May after my father died I wasn’t sure how I’d write another word again or finish any of these books, I’m beyond grateful to be writing and completing projects again. This summer is definitely still hard, especially as we approach Father’s Day advertising everywhere, but I appreciate the support of my author friends and readers 🫶🏽.
Remember if you’re eager for more, you can find character art and other exclusives in my VIP Subscribers area. The password info is in each email’s footer!
Besotted Books
If you’re a fan of historical romance there’s still time to support Andie James and this effort to bring you ALL NEW historical romance.
The Kickstarter runs through JULY 3, and I’ve backed at the Duchess level to get EARLY access to 36 BRAND NEW historical romance titles! This is the lowest price for these subscription tiers, and Besotted Books needs our support now for the business to begin, so don’t delay and back today!
Bookstagram and traditional publishing keep insisting historical romance is “dead,” let’s prove them wrong, and show up loud and proud for a genre we are passionate about and will continue to read, write, and invest in!
For more information on Besotted Books and all the details on the Kickstarter campaign, please visit the website and follow on Instagram.
Another way to support is by spreading the word far and wide! If you are an author and willing to share in your own newsletter, if you are in any reader groups, or wish to share on your own social media, any attention you can bring to Besotted Books is most appreciated! To make sharing easy, Andie created a Media Kit with images, copy, and links.
There’s been a little research here and there for adding details to my works in progress, but I can’t specifically think of something to call out here, so if I remember something that occurs to me as I’m working on edits I’ll add it to my next newsletter for y’all to enjoy!
Songs that have been in recent constant rotation on the writing playlist include:
Here’s a roundup of books that are on my mind. Follow me on BookBub so we can keep up with each other’s recommendations there too :)
Lauren M. Hayworth, Lindsay Barrett, Celine Oliver, and I are buddy reading (reread for me and Lauren!) A Lady Awakened by Cecilia Grant.
It’s one of my faves (also reading it as a comp for Unmasked by the Duke) and I’m struck again by so many sections I loved before in my first read too. You can read my original thoughts in the post below.
Angsty, anxious, awkward: Historical romances that explore the good, the bad, and the ugly of marriage
Hello my friends. Occasionally, I have collected musings that don’t necessarily fit neatly into my newsletter updates, or are lengthier than I want for my newsletter updates, so I’ll organize them into their own special issue to shine.
I also reread A Dangerous Kind of Lady by Mia Vincy as a comp reread for Thanya and Kairav’s book (and sent this book to Lindsay to read as well!). Again, it hit perfectly the second time, and the heroine and hero do share some personality dynamics with Thanya and Kairav.
I also reread The Raven Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt. Three of my beta readers comped Thanya and Kairav’s book to Hoyt, and two of them specifically mentioned this book. I first read it three years ago, and yes, the London + country setting, setup, the heroine, and many other elements definitely correspond. I loved it and it's definitely one of Hoyt's funniest books! It's wild how subjective reviews are to mood (a good thing to remember when it comes to my own reader reviews and student evals…), this time I was thoroughly enamored with this book, when previously I think I was expecting something more in the vein of Maiden Lane and grittier/darker in the writing (Unmasked by the Duke has some of that darker-edged writing too).
Private Arrangments by Sherry Thomas. Another reread I wanted to confirm would be a good comp. Celine Oliver and I both believe Thanya and Kairav have some similar messiness in their marriage, but like, less mean, lol. No one writes a marriage in crisis like Sherry tbh. The same quotes were still hitting for me, and I found new ones to love as well. I also sent this book to Lindsay, and if you’re into this book, and Sherry Thomas, (and who isn’t?!) then you will want to check out the recent First Encounter episode on this book too.
“Your love is a terrible thing.”
“The rooms upstairs aren’t safe. You don’t know what other damages could have been done.”
“I’ll take my chances. There’s bound to be a bed in this house that’s less dangerous than yours.”
I also had the pleasure of reading and blurbing The Vampire’s Guide to Wooing a Dressmaker by Melissa Kendall. Here’s what I said:
Sweet, spellbinding, and seductively delicious, Melissa Kendall's The Vampire's Guide to Wooing a Dressmaker is a tasty treat of a romance worth sinking your teeth (or fangs) into today! I'm so looking forward to reading the remaining books in this series as well.
I’m also keeping company with my friends’ words this month. With Celine Oliver and Hillary Bowen I’m buddy reading Favors from a Gentleman by Lauren Hayworth, and I’m reading a top-secret draft by my dear friend Isabella Kamal too 👀 🥰.
Isabella also has an ARC signup open for her first book from Dragonblade, and I signed up for that as well! Click on the book cover below to preorder (for 99 cents until June 23) too!
My editor and author pal Amber Night also has a forthcoming novella in a multi-author collab series, and you can preorder A Scandal in White through August 18!
The spectre of a looming wedding. The blooming of a fragile bond.
Lady Lydia Cavendish did not expect her recently departed father to leave her everything. Yet what seems a miracle, offering freedom from her controlling brother Rupert’s whims, soon turns into a stranglehold. Because there’s one condition: she must get married first, with Rupert’s consent. And quickly, if Thornleigh Hall is to outlast its debts. As heiress, the responsibility for the estate rests heavy on her shoulders.
Assistant to the groundskeeper, Thomas Brooks, keeps to himself. More tolerated than accepted by the other staff, a life of tending flowers has been enough since his beloved sister departed for a brighter future in London. When he stumbles across an injured, distraught Lydia in the twilit forest, his only impulse is to help.
What begins as a chance meeting soon blooms into a delicate connection. As Lydia repays Thomas’s kindness by reading him his sister’s letters, something quiet grows in the stolen hours. But her impending nuptials to Rupert’s best friend loom large. Soon, both of them are caught inside a tangled and conflicted net. Between duty and attraction, safety and freedom, which will win out?
And is it truly worth risking it all for love?
Part of ‘A Society of Scandal’, a multi-author collaboration aiming to highlight the joy of reading historical romance and escaping to the past in this wondrous genre.
Not much watching given all the reading, writing, editing, and revising!
But I did watch Hoppers with Mom and cried at the end 🥹.
She hadn’t seen Zootopia 2 yet, so we watched that together too.
And I got Mom into Miss Scarlet (a rewatch for me) so we’ve been watching an episode here and there after our evening walks and her yoga class.
As far as what I plan to watch this summer:
Season 3 of one of my faves, The Law According to Lidia Poët.
The Counte of Monte Cristo.
I’d like to try The Forsytes too.
All my friends have been raving about The Other Bennett Sister, so I may need to get a Brit Box trial for me and Mom to watch this too.
Not much hobby-ing yet, because of all the reading and writing, but my friend Nic Cole told me about Pronunciator’s language programs since she’s using it through her library, and fortunately my library has access too! I’ve been wanting to keep up with my Gujarati knowledge with more time during the summer, and this is one of the only language learning programs that offers the language (most only have Hindi). So, I’m hoping to start that soon and practice my conversational skills with Mom while I’m visiting. She’s my main connection to my language and culture that I have left, now that Dad is gone, and I want to appreciate that while I still have it ❤️🧿🕉️.
Two promos to spice up your summer reading!
Make sure you’re keeping up with the traveling research tour for Romance for History Nerds, featuring books from fifteen historical romance authors. Each author’s landing page includes info on the real history behind each story so have fun browsing and learning.
I’ve teamed up with a group of amazing authors to make it easy for you to keep your TBR fed, all in one place, check out this collection of historical romance from all time periods to find your next favorite read today.
Hope you get around to watching The Other Bennet Sister. I loved it.