SF Pride 2013 & Summer Miscellany

Hello, everyone! Here's an update post to let y'all know that I have officially arrived in San Francisco (in one piece! without any (major) incidents on the road! ...more on this later...). Yesterday I attended the SF Pride festivities, and they were awesome.

The mood was definitely celebratory what with the Supreme Court's rulings earlier in the week. I saw at least eight completely nekkid dudes (without even looking for 'em), a pair of boobs, a bajillion cute boys in Speedos and undies, fantastic costumes and tutus, and, all in all, it made me so glad to be home. San Francisco truly is a place where it's a-okay to let your freak flag fly. :) And I embrace that freedom!

It's been a hectic week or so since I arrived in SF, so unfortunately I haven't had a chance to read the SCOTUS opinions in the Prop. 8 and DOMA cases. However, I will say that, based on the coverage, I'd be curious to hear the SCOTUS arguments and opinions on the Prop. 8 case if they had ruled on the merits (and not a procedural element). Serious stuff aside, though, it was still a success, and the fact that the Court refused to stay the marriages again is hopefully a sign that the tenor of the Court is perhaps more in tune with my feelings than I had thought.

Separately, I hope you all are having a fantastic summer!

My summer started out awesomely with my little cross-country adventure. In case you missed it, I moved from New York back to my hometown of San Francisco, and I drove cross-country in June. The (minor) mishap I mentioned earlier occurred in the beautiful state of Utah. After making it through Chicago, Iowa, Mount Rushmore, and the Rocky Mountains without incident, my brother and I were in Moab, Utah, to visit Arches National Park (totally totally awesome - sooo recommended!). I kind of sort of left the gas cap on the roof of the car. And um...I didn't remember it was there until I saw it bouncing off the back as I watched it get run over by a giant truck through the rearview mirror.

*facepalm*

Yup. Awesome. Luckily, there was an auto parts store that (a) was open on a Saturday and (b) had a replacement gas cap for a 1994 Volvo (loaner car - worked out beautifully!). Otherwise, the trip was really cool, and I saw some amazing things in this great land of ours. From the top down, here's Arches National Park in Utah, Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado (moose sighting!), and Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona.

In WIP news, I haven't really been working on my workplace WIP (with my lovely boys R and Q....and their hate sex on the printer machine, heh heh).  Life's just been a little too hectic, and I can't seem to focus on them. However, I do have a story coming out soon! Keep your eyes peeled for "Dream Lover" in Dreamspinner Press's August Cuddling anthology.

Also, thank you to everyone for the kind words on my latest story, the freebie BTW I Love You (available to download here). I'm so glad you guys enjoyed it - I had a lot of fun with Aidan and Jake.

I hope you all enjoy your summer! I'll be spending mine getting reacquainted with the City by the Bay, including trips to museums (already went to the Academy of Sciences last week - very nifty!), a New Kids on the Block concert next week, volunteer work, and fun local things like SF Pride that really make this city the unique place that it is. And if you're in the SF Bay Area, drop me a line - I love connecting with new people! :)

Hugs,

NJ

Free Ebook Download of "BTW I Love You"

My latest freebie m/m romance, BTW I Love You, is now available as a free ebook download (yay!). So if you'd like a copy of the story or would rather read it on an ereader rather than on the computer screen, check out the download links here: M/M Romance Group Website - BTW I Love You.

The original posting is available here on the Goodreads M/M Romance group, and if you are so inclined, go ahead and add it to your bookshelf and/or review it here on Goodreads.

Separately, on a sporty note, I saw an article recently about Tim Tebow and the possibility that he will sign on with...*drumroll*...the New England Patriots. *AHEM* As in...playing as Tom Brady's backup. And OMG did that fuel the fires! So yeah....some Man-to-Man sequel action might have begun percolating...just sayin'.  :D

I'm still on my road trip, so I won't be able to update too often. However, greetings from the Mount Rushmore area! :)

Hugs all around, and hope you enjoy the story!

NJ

"BTW I Love You" - Free Story Available Today!

Just a type-by posting to let you all know that my latest freebie story, BTW I Love You, is now available exclusively on the Goodreads M/M Romance group's page. Yay!  Downloadable copies will be available on the Goodreads book page here in a couple of weeks. For now, though, group members have exclusive access to Aidan and Jake's story here. Not a member? It's easy to join if you're 18 or older - just make sure you have a valid birthdate included on your Goodreads information. :) This freebie story is just one of over 150 stories that the group will be offering during this summer's Love Has No Boundaries event.

So yeah, get exclusive access to the story here! :D Hope y'all like the boys.

As a life update, things are pretty crazy around here. I begin my cross-country drive from NYC to San Francisco tomorrow. Yes - TOMORROW. *gulp* I know - that came up super fast! I've been packing, tossing, shipping, giving away, and donating all month. It's amazing how much I accumulated in my years here in NYC.

And um...it probably didn't help my packing timeline that I also just discovered YouTube videos that edited down the Queer as Folk series to the Brian-Justin relationship. *hides* Yes, I glommed when I should have packed. *hides again* And, yes, because I knew how it ended (*shakes fist*), every time they did something sweet or amazing or beautiful, I couldn't help but say, "I seriously love you guys, but you're gonna break my heart." Out loud. Because I um...get invested.

Anyway, huge tangent there, but circling back to the point of my post, go check out the story (if you are so inclined), and I hope you guys enjoy Aidan and Jake's tale of World Wide Web romancing. :) And if you feel like rating and/or reviewing on the Goodreads page, then that would be nifty, too.

Hugs and dark-haired heartbreakers,
NJ

SNEAK PEEK! - "BTW I Love You" Excerpt

Well, folks, I'm heading out soon on my cross-country roadtrip (I'm moving from NYC back to SF!), so I'll be a little incommunicado this month.  However, that doesn't mean I won't have a story for you guys to read - and a freebie, at that! :)

BTW I Love You will be coming out verrrrry soon (yay!) as part of the Goodreads M/M Romance group's Love Has No Boundaries writing event. This story about two college-aged boys will be a group exclusive, so you'll have to join the group to get exclusive first-look access to BTW I Love You and over 150 other stories!

You can find the blurb here, and here's a tiny sneak peek from the prologue at the very beginning of the story. Hope you like it! :)

BTW I Love You Excerpt:

PROLOGUE

The afternoon SoCal sun was bright and cheerful two days before Memorial Day weekend.  Aidan was walking back to his student housing apartment when his phone buzzed in his pocket.  He'd just taken his last final – a hellacious combination of lab and written exam for his upper div Environmental Engineering class – and the day that greeted him upon exiting the science lab was glorious.  Provided everything went well, knock on wood, he would at last be graduating next weekend from UCLA.

Aidan shifted his backpack to his other shoulder to fish out his phone.  When he saw who'd sent the text message, he grinned.

24 hrs until some fun in the sun! check your email. ;)

He glanced up to make sure he wasn't going to walk into a tree like he did last week and, seeing the coast was clear, tapped his screen to check his email. 

To:  Aidan Montgomery

From:  Jake Everett

Subject:  You & Me?

Attachments (1) 

Once the picture loaded, Aidan let out a bark of surprised laughter as his heart warmed at the sight.  Grinning, he quickly texted a reply to Jake.

If you're lucky. ;)

***

That's it for now!

I know...cliffhanger, much? :D Well, if you want to find out what was in the picture that Jake sent to Aidan, then you'll have to keep your eyes peeled for BTW I Love You this summer...very very soon.  Like...perhaps...this upcoming week. :D

Cheers,
NJ

LHNB Story - Cover Reveal!

Hi folks! Sorry I've been MIA, but I'm currently packing up to move from NYC back to San Francisco next week. In short, life is hectic! As promised, though, here's a sneak peek of the cover for my Love Has No Boundaries story, which I wrote recently as part of the Goodreads M/M Romance group's annual writing event.

Beginning in June and throughout the summer, the Goodreads M/M Romance group will release free m/m romance stories every day (approximately 180 stories in total!), and the only way to get exclusive access to them is to join the group. So if you like m/m romance and aren't yet on Goodreads, why not check it out and see for yourself how great of a community it is? Three stories have already been released as an early membership bonus, and many more stories will follow starting next month.

BTW I Love You will be released as part of the event, and the only way to get first-look access to the story will be through the group. If you missed it, here's the blurb for the story:

When Aidan logs onto the Internet one night during winter break, he hardly expects to meet tall, dark, and handsome Jake - let alone discover over the course of their chats and emails that Jake may actually be...well...pretty much perfect.  However, with Jake studying abroad 8,000 miles away, Aidan soon finds himself struggling with the intense feelings that he's developed for a man he's never actually met.

With an ocean between them and all of the doubts and questions that come with the distance, will their relationship ever find wings? And when they finally meet in person, can their online romance become an IRL happily ever after?

As is par for the course with me, it's fluffy, not-too-angsty, and has cute boys who may or may not have a little sexytimes fun in between the pages. :D

I'm leaving on my cross-country road trip next week, but I promise to post a small excerpt before then. Also, in life news, I went to Turkey last month, and it was awesome. (Maybe I mentioned that already, though?) Anyway, I also just went to Niagara Falls this weekend, and it was also awesome. :) As dorky as it may sound, my favorite part was either getting incredibly wet on Maid of the Mist or straddling the international boundary line between Canada and the US. So cool!

Until next week, folks!

Cheers,
NJ

In completely non-writing-related news...

I'm currently knee-deep in sorting through my apartment as I prepare for my move from NYC to San Francisco. So of course that means I'm finding any and every reason I can to procrastinate. *grins shamelessly* And one of those finds was a Chibi maker. What's a Chibi? Well...

This is a Chibi. Specifically, this is Chibi ME.

Yup, so that's my big reveal of the week. This is pretty much what I'd look like if I were a Chibi, right down to the black tank, grey cardigan, bright corduroys, black flats, and red glasses.  Plus the mug of tea in my hand (can't forget that!).

Anyway, if you're curious and want to make your own Chibi, check out the Chibi maker here at deviantart. But make sure you have an hour to kill because let me tell you - cartoonifying yourself can be STRANGELY addictive. :D

Putting the "pro" into procrastinate,
NJ

P.S. Actually, I lied - I have some writing-related news. My short story was accepted by Dreamspinner Press to be included in their next anthology! Woop woop! This is the one that just flowed out of me in the course of 2.5 days. It felt SO damned good to write, and I'm so glad that DSP thought so, too! So keep your eyes peeled for the Cuddling anthology, which will focus on established couples. More info on this story and the anthology later. :)

OMGWTFBBQ - I haz a story for LHNB.

So yes, I submitted my Love Has No Boundaries story last week (a whole two weeks early). Yayzerbeams! I'll keep y'all apprised of the date that it'll be posted to the group.

As a treat for the folks who actually check out my blog, I'm posting a blurb-y type thing right now. :)

Warning: I kind of suck at blurb writing, but I tried. >_< And it's right here:

When Aidan logs onto the Internet one night during winter break, he hardly expects to meet tall, dark, and handsome Jake - let alone discover over the course of their chats and emails that Jake may actually be...well...pretty much perfect.  However, with Jake studying abroad 8,000 miles away, Aidan soon finds himself struggling with the intense feelings that he's developed for a man he's never actually met.

With an ocean between them and all of the doubts and questions that come with the distance, will their relationship ever find wings?  And when they finally meet in person, can their online romance become an IRL happily ever after?

Stay tuned for more tidbits on the story, including the date when it'll be available and the official cover. The cover is pretty simple, but the picture is perfect for one of the scenes in the story. I'll also post a sneak peek excerpt soon. :)

Thanks for reading!
NJ