Leta Blake Recommends Kit Brisby’s ROGUE MAGIC! Check it out! #gay #romance

I’m thrilled to welcome Kit Brisby today to talk about her excellent book Rogue Magic! It was one of my favorite books I beta read last year and I highly recommend it!

Let’s get started:

1. Rogue Magic is deeply romantic, but more than that it’s a wonderful but never heavy-handed allegory for persecution based on religion, race, or any other human quality that might go against the values of the established culture. Was this intentional on your part?

 

Persecution based on religion, race, and countless other identities has existed for centuries. It’s a common theme in stories, and I don’t think I was doing anything revolutionary here! When I wrote this book, the political climate in the United States hadn’t quite reached its current fever pitch. I’ll be honest – I hoped that by the time the book was released, our nation might be entering a time of healing under the leadership of the first female president.

But that’s another story entirely.

Ultimately, I believe #ownvoices is incredibly important, and while ROGUE MAGIC might be read as an allegory about what marginalized people face today, I urge readers to seek stories written by members of those populations. I’m a queer white woman with anxiety. I can speak to those experiences, but I can’t begin to speak to the lived experiences of people of color, Muslims, and other marginalized people. I’m touched that readers have drawn parallels but a direct parallel was not my intention.

 

2. Do you remember the first moment this story came alive in your mind? The point of inspiration? Can you tell us a bit about it and how it made you feel inside?

 

The opening scene was always the foundation of this book. The act of sacrifice and the immediate consequences. The mix of confusion and fear and empathy. I get a little squiggly feeling in my stomach over that scene, and it’s that kind of excitement/inspiration that fuels me as a writer as the story unfolds.

 
3. Was there a point with this story when you felt like it was too much, or that you’d never be able to complete it satisfactorily? What got you through that time and led you to persevere?
I’m always very excited for the first 15,000 words of a new draft. Then I enter the “despair and whining” phase until I’ve got about 15% left. I stick to a fairly stern drafting schedule that gets me through the agony of the “I’ll never finish this garbage” doldrums. Revisions and line edits can be rough, but in this case I had amazing guidance. That always makes the hard work more gratifying.

 

4. Many authors write with music playing or use songs to drive inspiration and channel emotion. Is there a particular song (or songs) that will forever be attached to Rogue Magic or its characters for you?

 

I listen to moody Google Play Radio stations when I’m writing. I also listen to short, curated playlists that help me get into characters’ headspaces. The Shins played a large part in ROGUE MAGIC’s playlist, along with a little Belle and Sebastian. I have a feeling that was more Levi’s influence than Byron’s.

 

5. You have an annual star chart you use to track your writing and edits. I found it deeply inspiring and started doing a similar one for myself. Do you want to briefly explain it?

 

I’m deeply inspired by author V.E. Schwab. She popularized the “star chart” method and uses monthly calendars. Her productivity is amazing, and she’s very transparent with her fans about the amount of labor that goes into producing a book. Using a star chart to tracking drafting is particularly motivating, but I’ve found a lot of value in visualizing revisions, which aren’t nearly as sexy as cranking out brand new words. (But they’re so much more important!) I use a year calendar from NeuYear.net to track my book-related work.

 

6. What is the one thing you hope readers take away from Rogue Magic and what is the one thing you are most proud of when it comes to the book?

 

I hope readers enjoy themselves as the story unfolds. I’ve found great comfort and escape in books throughout my life, and it’s truly the greatest honor to offer that to others.

*

Thank you, Kit! Congratulations on the release of Rogue Magic! 

Review: The River Leith – I’m With Geek “Ultimately, The River Leith is a delight: devastating, hopeful, sexy, romantic, and true.” #gay #amreading

“The River Leith is a short book. It could be completed in a day, and it is engrossing enough to do so. As with her previous book, Training Season, Blake showcases her skill for writing unique, involved and developed relationships. Her sex scenes are also wonderfully written, realistic and free of purple prose while still being romantic (but I’m With Geek will be sure to discuss them in more detail in a later Between the Sheets article.)

Ultimately, The River Leith is a delight: devastating, hopeful, sexy, romantic, and true.”

via Review: The River Leith – I’m With Geek.

“Elegant story-telling. I couldn’t put this one down.” Review of The River Leith by Leta Blake

“Elegant story-telling. I couldn’t put this one down. As would be expected with a story about a man with amnesia, there’s a lot of introspection and revisits to the past, yet it never once felt like the story had stagnated. In fact, the pace was so right, measured. Loved every word.”

via Goodreads | Lane Swift’s review of The River Leith.

AMAZON|KOBO|B&N|iTunes|ARe

AMAZON|KOBO|B&N|iTunes|ARe

Memory is everything. 

After an injury in the ring, amateur boxer Leith Wenz wakes to discover his most recent memories are three years out of date. Unmoored and struggling to face his new reality, Leith must cope anew with painful revelations about his family. His brother is there to support him, but it’s the unfamiliar face of Zach, a man introduced as his best friend, that provides the calm he craves. Until Zach’s presence begins to stir up feelings Leith can’t explain.

For Zach, being forgotten by his lover is excruciating. He carefully hides the truth from Leith to protect them both from additional pain. His bottled-up turmoil finds release through vlogging, where he confesses his fears and grief to the faceless Internet. But after Leith begins to open up to him, Zach’s choices may come back to haunt him.

Ultimately, Leith must ask his heart the questions memory can no longer answer.

FREE! Will & Patrick Wake Up Married (Episode 1 in the Wake Up Married serial) – April 18 – 22 only! #gay #romance

“I truly adore this series more than words can express. The writing is stellar and the storyline just keeps getting better and better.” – Bayou Book Junkie Reviews

“Ms. Blake and Ms. Griffiths have crafted an endearing tale full of promise, humor, tension, drama, sadness, and forgiveness. An incredible read!” – Alpha Book Club

“If you haven’t read these stories yet what are you waiting for?” Sinfully Gay Romance Book Reviews

FREE April 18 – 22 on Amazon! 

“Oh Mrs. Leta Blake you are fast becoming one of my favorites!” Review of The River Leith #gayromance

“Oh Mrs. Leta Blake you are fast becoming one of my favorites! This is one of those stories that kinda leaves you breathless. I mean think about your partner…now imagine he/she doesn’t remember anything about you or your relationship together. Is the love you share strong enough pull them to you regardless??? Well this is that story. Leith has lost the last three years and Zach has lost his lover and best friend. The story takes you through some of the frustrations they have while traveling the path back to each other. I’m not sure I could be as strong and Zach or Leith for that matter.Again I wish I had he gift of words to truly describe this story to you. The only thing I wish Mrs. Blake would have included in the story is the same thing Leith wanted which is how they met…ugh! I want to know that story too!”

via Goodreads | Bookjunkie12’s review of The River Leith.

AMAZON|KOBO|B&N|iTunes|ARe

AMAZON|KOBO|B&N|iTunes|ARe

Memory is everything. 

After an injury in the ring, amateur boxer Leith Wenz wakes to discover his most recent memories are three years out of date. Unmoored and struggling to face his new reality, Leith must cope anew with painful revelations about his family. His brother is there to support him, but it’s the unfamiliar face of Zach, a man introduced as his best friend, that provides the calm he craves. Until Zach’s presence begins to stir up feelings Leith can’t explain.

For Zach, being forgotten by his lover is excruciating. He carefully hides the truth from Leith to protect them both from additional pain. His bottled-up turmoil finds release through vlogging, where he confesses his fears and grief to the faceless Internet. But after Leith begins to open up to him, Zach’s choices may come back to haunt him.

Ultimately, Leith must ask his heart the questions memory can no longer answer.

“This is my first Leta Blake book but will not be my last!” Review of Smoky Mountain Dreams #gayromance

“This is my first Leta Blake book but will not be my last!! I loved everything about Christopher and Jesse. I immediately felt their connection and attraction. I also knew it wasn’t going to be a smooth ride. I am a self-proclaimed angst lover (both reading and writing it) and this had just the perfect amount of constant turmoil that made me read into the middle of the night hoping this couple would find their happily ever after.”

via Amazon.com: PhoebeWilson’s review of Smoky Mountain Dreams.

AVAILABLE ON KINDLE UNLIMTED AND AMAZON

 

 

“This book was every bit as outstanding as the original!” Review: Leta Blake – Training Complex – Hearts on Fire Reviews

“Sometimes it’s hard for a sequel to live up to the expectations of a first book that leaves such a lasting impression, but I’m thrilled to say that this book was every bit as outstanding as the original – *happy grin*!”

via Review: Leta Blake – Training Complex – Hearts on Fire Reviews.

 

“I don’t think any fans of Training Season will be disappointed in [Matty & Rob’s] continued journey. Leta Blake is a story goddess!” – 3 Chicks After Dark Reviews
“I just can’t get enough of Matty and Rob and love them so much.” – Jay, Joyfully Jay Reivews
“These two love like no others. Leta brings that all consuming, old fashioned, From Here to Eternity feel to the love they have. Of course on a hotness scale it just explodes. SO HOT!” – Diverse Reader Reviews
“This sequel gave me a book hangover of the best kind!” – Rainbow Gold Reviews

Buckle up – Matty’s back!

Figure skater Matty Marcus didn’t capture Olympic gold, but he won rancher Rob Lovely’s heart.

After Rob sold his ranch and Matty hung up his skates, they started a new life together in New York City. Now Matty has taken on a fresh challenge as a figure skating coach, and Rob’s second career as a physical therapist should be everything he’s dreamed of. But in the brutal heat of their third summer in the city, Rob yearns for the wide-open country, and the intensity of city life awakens Matty’s demons.

Matty asks for increasingly intense BDSM scenes, and his disordered eating and erratic behavior ramp up the stakes. Rob struggles to stay in control, and after a well-intentioned anniversary gift goes awry, he still thinks he can handle the fallout. But the concrete jungle is closing in and his coping skills are unraveling.

Their love is deep, but Rob will have to admit the truth about what he really wants before they both tumble into chaos.

Click for reviews and praise for Training Complex!
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“I feel like a better title for this book would be ‘Perfect Season’ .” Review of Training Season by Leta Blake

“I feel like a better title for this book would be “Perfect Season” because that is what it was all about to me. It’s what we want: perfection. It’s what we want to see in others: perfection. It’s where we want our lives to be – the place we want to live. It’s just not always the most realistic viewpoint to carry.

I’ll spare you the blurb, which actually describes this gem perfectly.

From the characters to the prose to the level of angst and love this one delivers a Gold Medal winning performance. I loved both characters – though sometimes I didn’t like them very much. It felt absolutely real. We all strive for the “Perfect Season” in our lives and so very rarely do we get it – until we look back on what we’ve done, seen, loved, and worked towards and realized that it really was all for a reason. Sometimes we get kicked down so hard that we think we’re so far underground we won’t see the light of day, well, ever – and yet we keep going. The drive, the motivation, to do something like Matty is doing seems foreign to many – but people who have it, who give like that, who commit like that, it’s overwhelming, painful, endorphin producing, rewarding, and downright costly. All at the same time.

What great fortune to also find a book that contains BDSM but is not about it. No fancy schmancy clubs here with paraded twinks naked with collars. No discussion or negotiation, no BDSM101 lecture, nada. No “Boy” this and “Sir” that protocol. Just honest need, want, and desire that gets expressed with a more D/s theme running through. I will definitely say that this one has two kinks that are neither common nor comfortable for a great amount of people: breath play and medical (enema). Yet I would challenge anyone to read this and not to understand what was going on, how these fit in to the story, and come away with the thought that it was those things that identified the book. Because they just so don’t. The scenes’s are memorable for how they express the characters relationship and growth and understanding. They are expressions – of something far greater and far more importance. Divine.

A top 5 pick of the year for me. I very rarely stay up until 4am to finish a book. I did here and didn’t regret it one bit and didn’t even wake up tired. I woke up with this feeling that I’d just left my Grandma’s house on Christmas day after all the food, festivities, and love and I so want to go back to that place again. For that moment, in that time, at that place – it was, for me, The Perfect Season.”

 

Amazon.com: AlexJouJou’s review of Training Season.

 

“Does Training Season by Leta Blake live up to all it’s crazy hype? IT SO DOES!” – Breann, Boy Meets Boy Reviews
“A tale told with such flair and tenderness, and with such insight into the two main characters that I will read it over and over again.” – Susan Mac Nicol, The Romance Review Site
“If you are looking something real with passion that leaps off the pages, read this book. Now. You will NOT be disappointed.” – Mama Kitty Reviews
“I am stunned. I am shocked. What did I just read? A wonderful story? A gorgeous tale of love, hope, loss, acceptance, forgiveness? All of the above? You bet your sweet ass.” – The Risque Redhead Reviews
“I loved it in pretty much every way it’s possible to love a book and its characters.” – Lisa, The Novel Approach

“This story is beautifully written, almost lyrical in its flow, like the fairy tales of yore.” | Review of Levity by Leta Blake

“This story is beautifully written, almost lyrical in its flow, like the fairy tales of yore. Of course, the evil witch came along and presented our heroes with an impossible choice. Without giving too much away, the characteristics and growth of both heroes made it possible for them to save the world and each other, and live happily ever after.

This was a light (ha!), fun, engaging story. Great for a beach read, a comfort read; one of those moments you want something you know will make you laugh, smile, and feel good.”

Amazon.com: jeayci’s review of Levity (formerly Earthly Desires).

Previously released in 2012 as Earthly Desires.

Spend Christmas In the Smokies with Christopher & Jesse! Smoky Mountain Dreams by Leta Blake #gay #romance

Set during holiday season and ending on Christmas Day, bestselling gay romance, Smoky Mountain Dreams, warms up the cold nights!

Sometimes holding on means letting go.

After giving up on his career as a country singer in Nashville, Christopher Ryder is happy enough performing at the Smoky Mountain Dreams theme park in Tennessee. But while his beloved Gran loves him the way he is, Christopher feels painfully invisible to everyone else. Even when he’s center stage he aches for someone to see the real him.

Bisexual Jesse Birch has no room in his life for dating. Raising two kids and fighting with family after a tragic accident took his children’s mother, he doesn’t want more than an occasional hook-up. He sure as hell doesn’t want to fall hard for his favorite local singer, but when Christopher walks into his jewelry studio, Jesse hears a new song in his heart.