The Fall will be a busy season for this young writer...

Why, you may ask? Well this time last year, I was still reeling from the high of publishing my first novel, When You Come to Me, which, since it's release last year has sold somewhere over 2,000, perpetuating my legitimacy as an author.

The reality of how far I've come in a year's time still hasn't settled in, so while I'm still riding on Cloud Nine, I'll milk the experience for all it's worth in the interim.

I've been working on a number of projects this summer, and reading excessively, getting myself geared up for a pretty exciting Fall season.

Earlier this year, I started writing a novella entitled The Trail's End, which I initially intended to release on my birthday (October 1st), but got a pretty great surprise in June: I was invited to Whidbey Island, Washington, for a week-long Master Class and creative writing residency.  I will be working on the novella at length, getting advice from the experts, while enjoying an amazing view of Mount Rainier.

Go ahead and click that thumbnail :) 

And if you haven't read it yet, When You Come to Me ends with a cliffhanger that have angered a few of the readers because they've become so attached to Brandon and Natalie's story.  So, I've started work on the sequel of which is called "Skin Like Dawn", which chronicles their story after the honeymoon phase is over.  I've already shared the outline of this story with a couple of my closest friends and they love it so far.  While it doesn't have a release date yet, I'm hoping to put it out there early next year!

My main focus in the meantime is making sure "The Trail's End" is perfect and ready for release at the end of this year -- just in time for the holidays!

I sincerely thank everyone for joining me on this journey.  I can only get better from here!

Have You Added One of My Books to Your Summer Reading List Yet?

Tritely put, the summer season is probably one of the best times to catch up on reading.  There's just something about the balmy heat and the breeze sweeping across our faces that lulls us into succumbing to our own imaginations. And what better way is there than to pick up a good book and get lost in it?

June 1st will mark one year since my first book was published.  Since then, I've managed to release 4 more publications, all of which have sold over 100 copies each.  For an independent author, that's more than I could have ever dreamed.

This comes as no surprise that I love to write. But what excites me more is someone reading what I've written and loving it.  So, as I meticulously compose The Trail's End and form it for its release this fall, I want people to read my work, get lost in the words, the characters, learn about my inspiration.

Add these to your summer reading list - you won't be disappointed :)

When You Come to Me (Special Edition) is HERE! Read it for FREE now :)

WHEN TRUE LOVE COMES IN THE FORM OF A FLYING BEER BOTTLE.

When Brandon Greene, an oatmeal-skinned junior from upstate New York, drunkenly hurls a beer bottle at an unsuspecting, brown-skinned Natalie Chandler, both their worlds are changed indefinitely.

Brandon makes his intentions clear from the beginning: he is hopelessly in love with his girlfriend, Sophia, but does not want to marry her. He does, however, want to be friends with Natalie.

Neither Brandon nor her curiosities about him make sense to her at all, and her complacency begins to tumble, as she and Brandon grow closer. She's thrust into a love triangle that she wants no part of and suddenly, a streamlined future to success in the medical field is the last thing on her mind — all she sees now is a shade of gray. Brandon and Natalie have a powerful dynamic; but can it stand the weight that time, spatial disparity and color have placed on them? When You Come to Me is a sometimes humorous, sometimes dramatic take on the loss of innocence in its most colorful form.

I am exceptionally fond of this story.  I've written countless pieces, and each have meant something to me.  But there will always be something about the characters in this novel that will always touch me.

Brandon and Natalie are quite normal in the grand scheme of things: they're both young and attractive, they both come from large, tight-knit families, they're both strong-minded and intelligent.

But what sets them apart?

Of course there's the obvious: one is white and one is black. One comes from the North and one comes from the South.

But what else?

I've read my fair share of love stories and have even experienced love in a realistic form.  But the thing that makes Brandon Greene and Natalie Chandler so different is that their dynamic felt real.

The most common feedback I've gotten from readers is that Brandon and Natalie, despite their obvious flaws, never lost sight of each other.  Their believable, tangible chemistry had everyone rooting for them in the end.

I ultimately wanted their relationship to be successful, but I wanted it to be as realistic as possible.

It was never about the destination per se, but more so about their journey.

Natalie had to grow, had to learn how to love a man, had to adapt to change better.  Brandon needed to be more patient and understanding of her needs, Brandon needed to find himself altogether.

In the novel, their love stretches a span of 8 years. And while some have complained that the story was "too long", I wanted it to be that way.  I wanted the readers to become a part of their lives, empathize with them, become them.

With that, I present to you a free, updated version of When You Come to Me.

Don't Have an iPad? No worries! Download a PDF version of what it would look like on an iPad! When You Come to Me (iPad PDF Version)

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