Hey everyone! Please give a very warm welcome to Raven McAllan, who's hear to talk to you about the excitement of being published, and her latest release, "Rian's Return"!
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You never lose the thrill, the heart-stopping,
pulse jumping, squeal and high five feeling when a book is published. It
doesn't matter if it's your first or thirty-first. It's still a fabulous
moment. One to hold to yourself; savor and then shout and share with the world.
Because you've done it. Something lots of
people say they will. But don't.
Write a book, take a deep breath and share
it. Your baby, your creation and you’ve put it into the world to be cried over
laughed at praised and yes, torn to pieces.
It's a strange feeling to see your name in
print, and then read your words, all tidy and well perfect. (I'm ignoring the
errors we all miss and see as soon as it's published) To see a cover made
especially for you, and read your dedications. To read it through the eyes of a
reader not the writer. And at the end think… This is mine!
I'm going to do hat again today, because
Rian's Return is out from Breathless Press…
Four men or two couples. Sam, Rian, Ed and
Ali. Could they work it all out?
Sam knew it was time to move on. Ed seemed
the very person to help him.
Would they manage to overcome the obstacle
in their way? Namely Rian.
Rian is devastated. Just because he'd sent
a Dear John email—or should that be a Dear Sam—did Sam have to accept it?
Ali couldn't believe his eyes when he saw
the one guy he'd lusted after all those years earlier, walking along the street
in the rain. Could he persuade Rian it was time to move on and get his reward
for doing the right thing?
Excerpt
“Rian? Rian Dahnaan, is that really you?” He
turned and looked at the owner of the voice. “Ali Meershum? What the hell are
you doing here?” A tall, dark-haired man got out of the car and made his way
toward him. “A degree. Plus soaking you, it seems. Sorry, man.” Rian found himself
enveloped in a strong pair of arms and hugged tightly.
Wow. A surge of electricity sped down his spine,
and into his groin. Whoa, Rian, be careful. “No problem,” he said
faintly, once he was loose and able to speak normally. “Just one more shitty
thing to add to my already shitty day.”
Ali looked at him curiously, before all but
pushing him into the car and then moving to the driver’s seat.
“Seatbelt.” Ali secured his, before setting
the vehicle in motion. Rian fastened his own belt and pondered on this turn of
events.
“Where are you staying?”
“I don’t know; a hotel, I guess. Can you
recommend one?” He shook his head, scattering raindrops all over himself, the
upholstery, and Ali.
He saw Ali looking at him briefly as the car
turned a corner. “Conferences on all week. All the hotels are full. I’ve got an
apartment, though, and it’s got plenty of space. If you fancy, you can stay
with me. I decided it would be better to have my own place while I studied.”:
Rian looked at his old friend. How did I
never notice how well he filled his clothes? Probably because at eighteen he
hadn’t been quite so well-endowed. Or wore his jeans to enhance it so well.
Phew! Down, boy, you’ve no chance there. He probably has some rich heiress
tucked away. And you’re supposed to be in love with Sam, remember? So why
did he feel like something momentous was about to happen?
“If you don’t mind, that would be great, just
until I decide what to do next. But aren’t you a bit old to be taking a degree?
Besides, I thought you already had one?”
Ali brushed that comment aside. “I’ve got a
straightforward business degree, yes, but it isn’t from here and not as
prestigious as the one I’m doing now. Individual Studies is something few
people are able to do; it’s incredibly demanding. The competition for the
course was tremendous. Besides, I need to show people, especially my father,
that being gay does not render me impotent in any way, especially in the
business world.”
Rian was sideswiped. Double whammy. Oh
shit. That’s Sam’s department; this could be complicated. And Ali’s gay? All
those years ago, and I never knew.
Ali looked at him, his concern obvious.
“What’s the matter? Don’t tell me you’re homophobic?”
That made Rian laugh.
“No, I’m not homophobic.” He smiled. “So, er,
you’re gay? And out?” He could feel the tension in himself as he waited
anxiously for Ali’s answer. “You, um, have a partner?”
Ali shook his head.
“Gay, Yes. Out, sometimes. Partner, nope. How
about you, you married or anything?”
He doesn’t know, Rian thought bemused. He really does not
have a clue. Bugger. There I was, hoping that hug might mean something. He
realized Ali was still waiting for him to answer.
“Oh, er, not married. I thought it might
happen, but the bloke I was seeing didn’t wait for me. But then, in all fairness—not
that I feel much like being fair—I had told him months before it was over.”
“Man, that’s bad. You
would have thought that—Hold on...’Bloke’? As in male? As in...?”
Buy Links:
Breathless Press: http://www.breathlesspress.com/index.php?main_page=product_free_shipping_info&cPath=1&products_id=437&zenid=iceugrk27gebuu1ov57eac79s7
Bookstrand: http://www.bookstrand.com/rians-return
Personal Links:
Website: http://www.ravenmcallan.com
Facebook (personal): https://www.facebook.com/rmcallan
Facebook (like): https://www.facebook.com/ravenmcallan
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RavenMcAllan
Raven's Bio
Raven lives in Scotland, along
with her husband and their two cats—their children having flown the
nest—surrounded by beautiful scenery, which inspires a lot of the settings in
her books.
She is used to sharing her
life with the occasional deer, red squirrel, and lost tourist, to say nothing
of the scourge of Scotland—the midge.
Her very understanding, and
long-suffering DH, is used to his questions unanswered, the dust bunnies
greeting him as he walks through the door, and rescuing burned offerings from
the Aga. (And passing her a glass of wine as she types furiously.)
