K-Lee is doing a giveaway for an ebook copy of Textual Attraction. Leave a comment and tell us which piece of technology you just can’t live without. Contest will be open until December 1st.
Tell us a little about your writing process. Do you write slowly and steadily or all in a rush? Do you plot or pants?
I’m a very sporadic writer. I can go a few days with nothing on the page, then suddenly BAM! I’ll write 4000 words in one sitting. I also have at least three stories going on at the same time. I just can’t write one story at a time. I would love to say I’m an organized plotter, but alas, I’m a very disorganized pantser. I usually have a plot idea first, but then my characters are given priority. I always know physical appearance, ages, mannerisms, likes, dislikes, etc. If I’m lucky, I have the beginning and the ending of my story with maybe a little in the middle. Of course, this rarely happens so I just go on my merry way and hope things eventually tie-in together. As for an actual written outline, I’ve tried and failed every time. Lol.
Do you have comfort reads? What are they?
My comfort reads are very important for my sanity. I have quite a few, but most are old school books. The Home series by TA Chase. The With or Without series by JL Langley. Bareback series by Chris Owen. Keeping Promise Rock by Amy Kane. Taking the Odds series by James Buchanan. Drawn Together by ZA Maxfield. And I embarrassingly admit, there are certain fan-fiction writings which are also important comfort reads for me, especially Stucky.
How do you decide what project to work on next?
I do a lot of “PAX collections” with Amber Quill where there will be a general theme and the writers submit stories based on that theme. Those are interesting to do because there can be such variations, and because they keep me writing. I also do a lot of series (often not on purpose) so those books are always waiting to be written. And my muse can be quite fickle so some days I may plan on writing one thing and end up writing something else.
Is there anything you must have while you write? Caffeine? Chocolate? Peace and quiet? Strangely enough I write best in the bathtub on my iPad and I usually have a movie or TV series going, as well. My muse must like the water – sometimes for up to three hours. I also write with music, and depending on the story, I’ve been known to listen to a singer, album or even song on repeat for a really long time.
When is the last time you laughed really hard?
This is going to sound ridiculous, but it was at a gif of The Winter Soldier and Captain America where Bucky is dancing and wiggling his hips. I still giggle at it every time I see it (on my iPad where it seems to have made a home). I think you have to know my obsession with those two particular characters to understand. đ
You’re stranded on a desert island. What do you most hope you find in FedEx packages that wash ashore?
Sebastian Stan, Chris Evans, Salt n Pepper potato chips, Coke Zero, and an acoustic guitar. (see my obsession per question #5)
Do your characters ever make you angry?
I have one character that I favor and love with all my heart, but can also make me see red. He is, of course, Brett Taylor from Unbreak My Heart. Brett and I both went through a pretty tough time when I wrote his original book â I broke him and myself in the process. He’s also the one character that sticks with me the most and is easiest for me to step into. He’s bossy, always tries to butt in when it’s not his turn, but has a heart of gold. I adore writing him because under all that tough, alpha cowboy exterior lies a sappy old-fashioned romantic who loves with all his heart and everything he has.
What are you working on now?
I have a short story coming out on December 6 from the aforementioned Unbreak My Heart series called Unbridled Hearts. And right now I’m writing a novella called Gimme Shelter involving two musicians (a fiddler and cellist), another novella tentatively titled Twist of Kate with two feuding neighbors and a cat, the sequel to Finally Home, and the second story in my Stone Magic series featuring Dart. I’m also rewriting a couple of free short stories called Lazy Sundays and Lazy Valentines. They’ll be combined into one novel with the rest of Scott & Devon’s story. It’s one of my most popular pairings and I’m excited to work on them again. So, as you can see, I like to stay busy, or maybe, enjoy being a little insane most of the time. đ
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Lewis has spent most of his adult life looking after his aging parents, and he recently ended a relationship with a domineering guy whoâd been nothing but bad for him. Despite his less-than-stellar track record with men, heâs still hopeful thereâs someone out there for him, but heâs learned to be careful with his heart.
So he canât figure out why a cryptic, gruff, drunken voice mail from a stranger named Jerry doesnât make him hit the DELETE button. Itâs clear the manâs got the wrong number. But when Jerry begins to text, Lewis finally responds saying heâs not the guy Jerry wants. Jerry, however, is nothing if not persistent, and he keeps texting and teasing Lewis, even after he knows the truth.
Lewis is surprised when something sparks between them. Jerry turns out to be charming and witty, and they develop an odd friendship through text messages. When Jerry suggests they finally meet in person, Lewis is apprehensive, yet curious. Can he take the big step to meet Jerry face-to-face? More importantly, can he maybe even trust Jerry with his heart?
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Excerpt
âIâm acting ridiculous,â he said to absolutely no one. âItâs only a phone call. Doesnât mean it has to be bad news or any news at all.â Heâd seen his mother earlier, and heâd heard his father shuffling around the apartment, so Lewisâ two biggest fears were unfounded.
With the gentle slide of his finger, he arrived at the voicemail page. He didnât recognize the number, but he threw caution to the wind, guessed his password in two shots, and pressed the play button.
âHey, Tom. Itâs JerryâŚâ LOL!
Tom and Jerry, really? Now all Lewis could picture was a feuding cat and mouse, and that made him feel oldâold and extremely curious.
âI know we didnât end on good terms last week, but I found that color-challenged knit cap of yours in between the cushions of my couch. I know youâre pretty attached to it, so I figured youâd want it back. You already have my numberâŚor maybe you donât. Itâs 555-6722, so, you know, if you want it just give me a call or else Iâll just drop it in the lap of that homeless guy down on Seventh. Doesnât matter to me. Yeah, okayâŚwell, laterâŚor not.â
Lewis quite liked the deep, raspy voice. It was one of very few kinks for him, surely obtained from television and movies with hot growly men in them. J Kink aside, he found himself interested in the stranger in the message, despite the weird cartoon names and telltale slur he attributed to alcohol. The background noise was rife with loud music and glass bottles clinking together. Calling from a bar to return, or not return, an ugly cap didnât seem the perfect way to go about talking to someone. But who was Lewis, who rarely used the phone at all, to judge?
When he finally fell asleep, visions of knit caps danced in his head. They sat atop two lumberjacks he was certain heâd seem in one lumbersexual calendar or another. Yeah, that was definitely another kink of his lately. Unfortunately, they had the disturbing faces of a cat and mouse with appropriate matching plaid shirts and sexy growls. The men-animals were moving in what Lewis could only describe as the worst twerking dance ever, and, oddly enough, were accompanied by a dance version of âEverybody (Backstreetâs Back).â
Textual Attraction
Available November 22, 2015 from Amber Quill Press
35% off during first week of release
Buy link
http://www.amberquill.com/store/p/2295-Textual-Attraction.aspx
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Bio
K-lee Klein has lived in one part of Western Canada or another for her entire life. Sheâs a doting mother of three now-grown kids, and has had characters and plots running around her head for as long as she can remember. In an attempt to avoid major writer’s block, she keeps the image of muse on her leg so he can’t run off too far, unfortunately it doesn’t work all the time. K-lee’s days consist of planning her next tattoo design for her growing collection, having a lot of baths since her muse loves the water, and fighting off an abundance of fabulous gay men, large and small who continually bounce off the walls of her skull, competing for their turns to tell their stories.
Among her favorite sub-genres to read and write are rock stars, cowboys, shifters, friends-to-lovers, and opposites-attract relationships. But to be honest, sheâs open to almost anything if it involves messing around in the heads of her characters. Sheâs also big on seriesâbecause she has a hard time letting her characters goâand is usually working on a handful of stories in various stages of completion all at the same time.
Places to find K-lee.
Website â kleeklein.com
Blog – http://chaosinthemoonlight.blogspot.ca
Twitter – https://twitter.com/Klee_Klein
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/kleemoon
Facebook author/reader group https://www.facebook.com/groups/812548795471921/
Amber Quill Press – 35% off through December 3 – http://www.amberquill.com/store/m/237-K-lee-Klein.aspx
This looks soooo cute!!!
Whoops. guess I should read the whole contest message… Absolutely can’t live without my kindle! Having all my favorite books at my finger tips is AMAZING!!
I think a lot of people would say the same thing, Blaine. Thanks for reading the post. I will say that Lewis & Jerry are a little cute. It’s definitely not one of my angstier books.
Hugs,
K-Lee
I loved reading about your writing process! It’s always fascinating to me how others create. I enjoy seeing writing spaces (which may double as bathtubs).
Go STUCKY!
Ha! Hi Atom. Thanks for stopping by. Everyone has their own quirks, right? Yeah, my tub is like my writing studio.
Hugs,
K-Lee
Go STUCKY!
I’d say it’s my e-reader, though I do like TV!
I’m thinking a lot of men would say the tv but when I asked my hubby, he said his iPad or laptop because he can watch stuff on them too. I think e-reader is a popular choice, Trix. Thanks for stopping by. Good luck!
Hugs,
K-Lee
Without a doubt my ebook reader or tablet (for reading or research, lots of research)
Tablets (or iPads, in my case) are such wonderful things. Thanks for reading the post, Sula. Good luck!
Hugs,
K-Lee
I can’t live without my phone because it doubles as my eReader.
I think I lean towards my iPhone, too, Kerry. I can read, write, talk, do whatever, but my iPad (Bucky’s Pad) is in the top 2. Thanks for dropping by. Good luck!
Hugs,
K-Lee
You don’t have to enter me, obviously, ’cause I’ve already read your new story and I LOVE IT!!! Lewis and Jerry are adorable together!!! I just wanted to comment ’cause in spite of the fact I’m a total gadget girl (which you know!) and I have a phone, an iPad, two Kindles, a Surface, etc., the one thing I couldn’t live without is probably my MacBook. I can do everything on it…read, watch, listen, write, shop, game. But my second thing would probably be my iPad mini–I have a fairly seriously gaming addiction AND I can read on it. đ
I panic at the thought of my laptop not working. I had a brand new one crash one time and lost everything including the new book I was half way done with. It just isn’t fun when that happens. So yeah, it would be my laptop. đ
Thanks for the great post and giveaway chance! I couldn’t live without my phone since it doubles as my ereader usually.
I used the random winner generator to pick and that person is
Atom Yang!
Congrats! And thanks to everyone who dropped by.
Hugs,
K-Lee