Ramblings of an Australian Writer

Rachel Lacey and Mia Sosa have teamed up with over 30 romance authors to offer you a special giveaway, in light of the recent natural disasters that have affected parts of the United States, Mexico, and the Caribbean Islands. To enter, just email us at romancecares@gmail.com showing proof of a donation (please remove sensitive information) to disaster relief efforts, and you will receive 1 or more free ebooks - chosen at random - from a list of books from participating authors. Some people will even receive an entire series! Please help us spread the word by sharing this giveaway on social media using the hashtag #romancecares.

Our hearts and thoughts are with everyone who's been affected. <3

Entry Details:

1. Please email romancecares@gmail.com by Friday, October 13 showing proof of a donation to disaster relief dated between August 1 and October 13, 2017.

2. In your email, please indicate your preference of Kindle or Nook copies for your gifted ebooks.

3. If you've already read any of the books included in the giveaway, please let us know in your email, and we'll do our best to gift you a book or books you haven't read yet.

Our Awesome Participating Authors:

Jennifer Bernard - Setting Off Sparks
Marnee Blake - Altered
Asa Maria Bradley - Viking Warrior Rising
Laura Brown - Friend (With Benefits) Zone
Celeste Castro - Homecoming
Olivia Dade - Ready to Fall
Alexis Daria - Take the Lead
Jen Doyle - Calling It
Kate Forest - Interior Design and Other Emotions
Calista Fox - His Angel of Starlight Bend
Megan Frampton - the Dukes Behaving Badly series
Codi Gary - Crazy for You
Mia Hopkins - Cowboy Rising and Cowboy Karma
April Hunt - Hard Justice
Ryvr Jones - Shadow and Bones
L.J. LaBarthe - The Archangel Chronicles (complete 9 book set)
Rachel Lacey - Crash and Burn
Ruby Lang - Hard Knocks
Jessica Linden - Fight For Me
Tracey Livesay - the Shades of Love series and the In Love with a Tycoon series
J.L. Lora - Boss
Sarah MacLean - the Scandal and Scoundrel series
Kelly Maher - The Bridesmaid and the Hurricane
Tif Marcelo - North to You
Liz Maverick - The Transporter
Harper Miller - The Sweetest Taboo
Steph Nuss - the Love in the City series
Priscilla Oliveras - His Perfect Partner
Tamsen Parker - Rogue Desire and In Her Court
Annie Rains - Forbidden Kisses
Sara Rider - Going for the Goal
Lydia San Andres - A Summer for Scandal
Susan Scott Shelley - Making His Move
Sabrina Sol - Delicious Satisfaction
Mia Sosa - Acting on Impulse
Elisabeth Staab - Losing the Fight
Mia West - Marked by Fire
Tara Wyatt - Dirty Boxing

The final book in the Archangel Chronicles will be released on the 2nd. It's available for preorder now on the Dreamspinner site, but it is indeed the last one.

I have been so incredibly lucky to be able to write this seriews and have it find its home with DSP. I began them wanting to write about Archangels and Archdemons and how the two ancient enemies would interact in crisis that were bigger than their animosities. I also wanted to develop romantic relationships within that framework, and the main one is that of Archangels Michael and Gabriel.

Theirs is a love that is essentially "friends to lovers." I'm sure many--if not all--of us have had a crush on someone and kept it as quiet as possible for various reasons, and in Michael's case it's purely a lack of self-confidence. He doesn't feel that the dashing, handsome, outgoing Gabriel would have any interest in him at all. He hides it so well, so deep within himself that it's kept buried for centuries. Michael is shy and retiring, keeping himself separate from the rest of the Brotherhood and so it isn't until a meeting of all of the Archangels that Gabriel catches his attention and is drawn to Michael more than ever before. A slow and gentle courtship begins as the two open up more and more to each other, their relationship and their love growing.

Of course, nothing is ever easy and there is always some plotting or misdeeds that interfere with the path of true love.

Now, with nine books in the series, everything is over and with a happy end for everyone--except the bad guys.

I hope everyone has been with these characters since the first book will enjoy the last and I hope that new readers of the series will enjoy it just as much.

Thank you to all my readers, past, present and future; to Elizabeth and DSP for publishing the series; to Cate and Meredith for beta'ing; to Ericka, Lynn, Ian and the editing staff; Anne for the amazing covers. <3 <3 <3

The Archangel Chronicles can be bought here.

Reading order:

1. No Quarter
2. No Surrender, No Retreat
3. No Shadows Fall
4. The Wind-up Forest
5. The Crystal Lake
6. The Bone Cup
7. A Shot in the Dark
8. A Fire in the Heart
9. A Candle in the Sun

I've been blog-silent for the majority of this year, limiting my posts to reporting new releases and the like. There's a reason for this silence--this has been the worst year I can remember.

It started on an uneven keel: on the one hand, I'd moved house and the new place is lovely, in a gorgoeus, leafy suburb, near a terrific shopping center, close to a library, a swimming pool, my doctor and more. But it took three months to get the Internet on, due to the lack of room left on the copper wiring of our outdated telecommunications system. I had to get an antenna put on the roof, and there was a delay on that because the weather alternated between hotter than Satan's armpit or wetter than a swamp or both. Once it was up though, hooray, because yay, Internet!

And then a few months after that, my father died. Other personal issues have arisen which have been... less than good, let's say. Things were quite grim in my head for a while--we can be our own worst enemies sometimes, I think. I suffer from depression, yes, it's true, and I manage it with anti-depressants as best I can. Between the situation that's arisen since my father's death and those other personal issues, well, it's been a dark year so far.

On the good side, I've had books out! Ice with Less Than Three Press; The Wind-up Forest, The Crystal Lake and The Bone Cup with Dreamspinner Press--these are books four, five and six of The Archangel Chronicles. Volume two of the Rockin' Hard anthology came out in paperback with Less Than Three Press, and that contains my short, Capsicum Head. All good things, things I'm proud of, things I'm thrilled about.

I wrote. I wrote my guts out, as they say. I wrote books seven, eight and nine of the Archangel Chronicles intended to be the last three. Sometimes, writing is the best medicine. I also got my edits on Mythica, which is out with Bottom Drawer Publications soon. Dreamspinner contracted the last three Archangel books, much to my delight. I wrote some more, submitting Waiting For The Moon and You a month ago.

But this is the thing about depression. Depression doesn't really care what you do or achieve. Depression is the monster under the bed that rises up when it damn well feels about it and too bad what you might want. Depression is insidious, touching every part of your psyche.

Robin Williams died yesterday, and his passing had a huge effect on me, more than I thought it would. Not just because Dead Poet's Society was my teenage inspiration or quotes from Mrs. Doubtfire became the hilarious calling card in a group of friends. Not just because he was a comedic and improvisational genius or because Good Will Hunting was everything I loved about my past as an academic or The Fisher King was moving and touching. Because Robin Williams was dealing with the monster under the bed--depression--and that monster doesn't discriminate.

I have seen some people talk about him being "selfish" which just... well. So this is my link for the day, the week, the month, hell, for all of us who live with depression or depression sufferers. There is nothing selfish about suicide.

Today, Lauren Bacall died. She was a classy, intelligent, beautiful, strong woman. I hope that she and Robin Williams are together in the great beyond, enjoying a coffee and a laugh together.

May 17th is the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia and you can learn more about that here: http://dayagainsthomophobia.org/ In the meantime, the Hop is going on and there are loads of interesting posts, the masterlist of which you can find here: http://hopagainsthomophobia.blogspot.com

I have contemplated for a while what I would discuss for this year's Hop Against Homophobia and Transphobia. With the political climate here in Australia being, shall we say, turbulent. However, it was clarified for me that what I would discuss would be the current government's stance on same-sex marriage.

This is a topic that—in the hallowed halls of Parliament—is a hot button issue. The Labor Party, who are currently the Opposition, are for same-sex marriage and for a conscious vote within caucus. The Liberal National Coalition (LNP from this point on) are less inclined. Leader of the Opposition in the Senate Penny Wong, a long-time Labor MP, is out and proud, and she and her partner have just celebrated the arrival of their baby daughter… but they cannot be legally married in this country.

It is easy to say that this is due to homophobia within the ranks of the current LNP government. That may, perhaps, be part of it; I can't say either way. What I can say, though, is that it's a topic that our current Prime Minister has dismissed as being "the fashion of the moment." [1] He has also said, "There is no doubt that (homosexuality) challenges, if you like, orthodox notions of the right order of things," [2] and when asked in an interview for 60 Minutes how he feels about homosexuality, Mr. Abbott replied, "I'd probably I feel a bit threatened." [3]

In October 2013, Mr. Abbott said that while he would attend his gay sister's wedding, but that he couldn't support gay marriage, because, "'I am a traditionalist on this,' he said.
"'From time immemorial in every culture that's been known, marriage, or that kind of solemnized relationship, has been between a man and a woman.'" [4]

This all came to a head when the ACT (Australian Capital Territory) where the national and state capital city, Canberra, is and where federal parliament sits, passed a bill to legalize same-sex marriage. The ACT was the first state or territory in Australia to do this and there was a nationwide hope that this was the first step in the entire nation passing similar bills.

Not so. A challenge to the bill was made in the High Court by the LNP Federal Government. The High Court does not make policy, but interprets the law, and it has ruled that only Federal Parliament has the power to make marriage laws. Therefore, by that ruling, the ACT bill to allow same-sex marriage, could not operate concurrently to the law currently in effect, which is the Marriage Act, amended by former Prime Minister John Howard in 2004 to stipulate that marriage is defined as being between a man and a woman.

While some LNP MPs support same-sex marriage and would support an amendment to the Marriage Act, it is becoming very clear that the Prime Minister does not consider this an important issue that needs to be addressed. So those couples who celebrated their weddings in the ACT in that brief period that they were allowed to be married, had their happiness dashed by the ruling of the High Court, which only interpreted the laws, and dashed further by the LNP government's refusal to reconsider.

Many couples are looking forward with a positive attitude and their stories are heartwarming and give hope for the future. The Australian Greens and many Labor MPs are determined to bring same-sex marriage legislation to the table in Parliament again. The full document (and some of the lovely stories—and not so lovely attitudes from bystanders) can be read here. (NB: Warning—may contain material that could be considered triggering for some.)

And so we come to New Zealand. A year ago, in April 2013, the law was passed allowing same-sex marriages to take place and be celebrated and legally recognized as lawful marriages. There was a great deal of joy and jubilation. The bill that was passed in New Zealand defined marriage as a union between two people rather than between a man and a woman. The figures in the year since the passing of this bill are very interesting.

"Figures released by New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs show that from August 19, 2013, when the law became operational, to March 31, 2014, there was a total of 385 female couples and 285 male couples.

"Of these, nearly a third of the couples were Australian citizens." [5]

This illustrates so clearly why the marriage laws here in Australia need to be changed and why the Marriage Act needs to be amended. It also illustrates how unequal the treatment of same-sex couples is here and that there needs to be additional amendments to make same-sex marriages performed overseas legally recognized as being marriages here in Australia, just as marriages between a man and a woman are. At the end of April, 2014, Senator Sarah Hanson-Young of the Australian Greens plans to bring a bill before the parliament to at least recognize those marriages performed overseas as being legal here in Australia. I, for one, hope it passes.

Meanwhile, Mr. Abbott and those who agree with him, have not discussed the issue since the ACT bill was struck down and repealed. That is, until a group of high school students in Year Nine (ages 14-15) from Newtown, New South Wales, on a field trip to Canberra, had a surprise visit from the PM. I rather suspect that Mr. Abbott got a LOT more than he bargained for with these awesome, brilliant kids.

Those teachers and parents should be damn proud of those kids, as indeed, are the majority of Australians. Not only did they ask Mr. Abbott tough questions about asylum seekers, why the Minister for Women (Mr. Abbott himself holds this portfolio as well as being Prime Minister) is a man, but they asked him repeatedly about same-sex marriage.

Happily, one of the students filmed it and it is on YouTube for all to see. I share with you now the video of a group of high school kids asking the Australian Prime Minister tough questions and his fumbling and bumbling for answers.

References:
1. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/14/tony-abbott-gay-marriage-fashion
2. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/tony-abbott-gay-remarks-dangerous/story-e6frf7jo-1225838436495
3. http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=1020354
4. http://www.news.com.au/national/prime-minister-tony-abbott-says-he-will-attend-sisters-wedding-but-not-support-the-marriage/story-fncynjr2-1226745544432
5. http://gaynewsnetwork.com.au/news/a-year-on-one-third-of-nz-gay-marriages-are-of-aussie-couples-13623.html



Further Reading:
http://gaynewsnetwork.com.au/viewpoint/tony-at-the-wedding-12281.html
http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/tony-abbott-quick-to-kill-samesex-marriage-20131214-2zdvq.html
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-12-12/high-court-decision-on-act-same-sex-marriage-laws/5152168
http://gaynewsnetwork.com.au/viewpoint/what-a-croc-12170.html
http://www.samesame.com.au/news/10688/Student-asks-Abbott-Why-are-you-so-against-legalising-gay-marriage

Notes:
All emphasis are my own, not the original author's.

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As part of the Hop, I am giving two lucky readers an eBook copy each of The Wind-up Forest and The Crystal Lake. Leave a comment to go in the drawing to win one of these bundles!

The Wind-up Forest: Archangels Book Four.
Blurb: Archangel Gabriel is hoping for a quiet period in his life to enjoy his relationship with Archangel Michael, but someone has other ideas.

New dangers arise when the Holy Grail is stolen. Gabriel, Michael, and the rest of the Brotherhood of Archangels and their allies must somehow thwart the twisted desires of the thief.

Their search for the Grail takes them all over the world, calling on old friends like Uriel and Raziel, and forging powerful new alliances. Though they face a fresh set of perils in pursuit of the thief, the enduring comfort Gabriel needs so much, that of his beloved Michael, never abandons him.

The Crystal Lake: Archangels Book Five.

Blurb: The thief of the Grail has been identified and the Brotherhood of Archangels is moving to counter her evil machinations. But as demons flock to the side of the thief and betray Hell, monsters are enslaved and shifters and an angel turn traitor. The love between Gabriel and Michael is tested as they join the rest of the Brotherhood on the trail of Naamah. Danger makes strange bedfellows in the form of Lucifer, the Archdemons, and Lilith.

A traitor lurks among the angels and humans, and the Venatores are discovering vital new information. Lovers Liam, a Necromancer, and Baxter, a shifter working for Michael's Venatores unit, must face not just the living but the dead. Archangels Raziel and Uriel contend with demands on Raziel's power that wear him to the brink of exhaustion. The Brotherhood will need all their strength to prevail against the threats surrounding them.

I have glorious new cover art, by the amazing Anne Cain. This is the cover reveal for book five of The Archangel Chronicles, my forthcoming novel from Dreamspinner Press called The Crystal Lake. Anne's outdone herself with this one, I reckon. It's gorgeous and I love it. And here it is!

Good news and frustrating news (for me, at least!) is that the first three books of The Archangel Chronicles have gone into second edition. They've all been edited--and I'm working on book three, No Shadows Fall as we speak--and re-released. What does this mean for those who have read the first editions? Well, there's some new scenes and conversations and other scenes have been tightened up. The third book is going to have the most changes done to it, I think, although I'll be able to say for sure on that when I've finished the edits. :) In any case, it's very exciting for me and very gratifying to fix up those things that have niggled at me since original publication.

I've also started working on edits for book four, The Wind-Up Forest, which will be out in early 2014. This is the first book of the second trilogy of The Archangel Chronicles, and I'm very excited about it. The universe of the Archangels is rocked by two things--the theft of the Holy Grail and the fact that the Holy Grail (in the book's universe) actually exists. Even Raziel, Doctor Science, Archangel of Secrets and Mysteries, who thinks he knows (nearly) everything, was surprised that the Holy Grail wasn't a myth!

As with all things in life, there have been dramas, and in my case, those dramas have been related to the pressures and stresses of moving house. I've moved from one side of town to the other and while the house I'm in now is lovely and has a great back garden, there's a few issues that need to be dealt with by landlords, so those are things that we're thinking of quite a bit. Having said that, the neighbors are lovely, the nearby facilities are fantastic, and there's a lot of community awareness and activities that I find really interesting and I'm keen to look into that further, probably in the new year. Which is when I can finally get back into my non-writing love: weaving. I'm very excited about that too.

My contemporary paranormal, Mythica is out with Bottom Drawer Press, an Australian publisher, in 2014, and that's something else to look forward to. All new characters and M/M romance, set in country South Australia, in the towns of Ardrossan and Tiddy Widdy Beach, if you're keen to Google those and see what the area looks like. It's very pretty, right by the beach.

Unfortunately, with the moving has come internet issues, which are all relating to technical situations with the lines and the copper wiring of those lines. It's taking some time to get a connection set up as a technical dude is coming to visit--hopefully soon--and install an ethernet line and a few other things. So I'm limping along on air-internet, aka the dongle of doom, and trying not to use all my allowance up before I have to top it up is very, very hard.

Anyway, it's nearly time for the festive season to be upon us, so I wish you all the best for the season and for the new year and hope that 2014 is wonderful, safe and brings you nothing but joy and good things.

Love you all,

L. J.

It's been a while since I've posted here and I can only say that life has been extremely busy with one thing or another. Suffice to say that when I got a certain email from a certain publisher yesterday, there may have been the sit-down version of the happy dance going on in my home.

And what did the email entail? Well. See this awesome art below? (Click to see full size.)




These are my Archangels, all ten of them, as drawn and inked by the incredibly talented Danielle Ellison of Mad Robot. And they have three more novels that have been contracted by Dreamspinner Press.


I am so happy, I can't even. These three forthcoming books pick up after the end of book three, but it's not essential to have read the first three novels to follow these new ones. So what's going to happen in these three? Well, the Holy Grail has gone missing and Bad Things start to happen. It's up to the Archangels and their allies to fix things up. There are new characters and old, and the continuing relationship between Gabriel and Michael as they work through this new challenge presented them. The books are called, in order:

The Wind-Up Forest
The Crystal Lake
The Bone Cup.

In other publishing news, City of Jade is out now and has already recieved some really wonderful reviews. It's available here--ebook and paperback, if you're curious. Ice, my novella with Less Than Three Press goes into serial in October, and here's the info for that. Just before that starts, Capsicum Head, my story in the Rocking Hard rock and roll serial anthologies goes live, and more info is here if you want to sign up for that and the other stories in the collection.


Also, dear New Zealand, you make the BEST sour apple soda I have ever had. Please make it available in more shops in Australia, like, supermarkets, yes that would be awesome. Macs Sour Green Apple is *amazing.* Finally, my rosemary plant has begun to flower and it's so pretty. I had no idea that rosemary flowers were so lovely. I've always had a black thumb and I think I've graduated to a grey-green thumb, as only half my plants die now! It's a step up from all of them, right? Right! :D So here is my pretty rosemary flower to end this update of writing stuff.