What's coming up this year?

As soon as one of my books is published, I immediately get messages asking, "When is the next one coming out?" or... "I really hope you're doing a story on ______ next!" I truly appreciate this excitement. It not only tells me you loved the book you just read, but you want more. And yes, I like to give you whatever I can but...there is a bit of a schedule I have to follow.

Right now I'm focusing on finishing up the McCallan series. I have Kellie's story, "Maybe This," that I want to publish in May. Then I'll start Max's story, which will be the final book in the series. I'm hoping to have that done by the fall at the latest.

For The Fighter's Block, yes I'm doing a book on Cody. I have who I want for the cover but I don't know when I'll publish the book. I'm assuming before Christmas. However, there's a special edition for that series that you guys are going to pee yourselves over so....I'm not sure if I want that one to come first or not! We will see how many distractions are presented to me this year lol. Maybe I can get them both out in 2015!

xoxo

Hadley

Tease me, please me...

Newest teaser for The Fighter's Block II

News on The Fighter's Block series!

New Book Covers are out! Book 1 has a fresh new look, and Book 2 released just today!!

Facts About a Writer of Fiction

Well I'm a mystery to many! I know I keep to myself a lot, but I really am personable if you give me a chance =) If you don't know me well, here's an introduction:

About my writing:
I write contemporary romance with a huge helping of sexy. I have a great sense of humor, so I like to add that in a lot of my stories too. I also have some romantic suspense thrown into the mix, which also contains a lot of sexiness and humor. Most of my work consists of full-length novels (100k+ words) because I'm big on character development. I like show what a character is like through both their actions and dialogue. Readers that like to hurry from one book to another have a hard time reading lengthier stories like that, but I'd suggest reading mine anyway because I feel they will hold your attention. I mix a variety of elements into my stories which tend to offer something for everyone. Mainly I'm kind of all over the map myself and have a variety of interests in my own life. I like sharing my experiences this way and add them to my fictional stories when I can!

About me:
I live in the Northwest in Washington State
But I would love to live somewhere sunnier!
I love to travel but hate flying
I'm a sports and music junkie
I do not like feet. Unless they are on a baby. And I like my own. Good thing they are cute because I would probably shun and despise myself.
I'm a very proud and blessed mommy
I have a dog, two cats, and a ferret
I have a very long bucket list
The Golden Rule is an essential part of my life
I hate stereotypes and labels
I like gardening. Yep. Flowers rock! (and I've been known to make a few bridal bouquets and adorn the rest of a wedding party too)
The world would be a much happier place if people didn't judge or gossip about one another
I'm addicted to sugar and have to avoid it (but you can bribe me with candy or cherry Pepsi)
I like intelligent people. Not necessarily book smart peeps, but compassionate-smart people
I'm kinda tech-savvy
I'm a pretty good photographer
Been playing the piano since I was 10 years old. Sheet music makes for a good bribe, too.
I can strum a few tunes on the guitar =)
I've danced for most of my life and love to choreograph
Now and then I design sets for plays and dance productions. Yeah, I'm a bit artsy
Surfing is fascinating, along with motorcycles and muscle cars :)
I have an anxiety disorder that is extremely annoying. I'm a very laid back and easy going person, but bam, something will trigger an anxiety attack. 90% of the time I can manage it naturally, but at night it's more difficult.
I'm a good listener and pretty objective if you want my advice. Years of being a youth and adult counselor have polished me this way, and years of mentoring families of ill children in cancer units.
I love baseball. It's my favorite sport to watch. My team is the Washington Nationals (and for those of you that are NOT baseball literate, that's in D.C.) Football is a close second. Go Seahawks! Any other sporting event, sure. I like it all. But most of my spectating time is spent on those two!
I play a lot of indoor co-ed soccer. It's kinda brutal sometimes. Almost like rugby!
I have a degree in business management but almost went to college on a sports scholarship. I blew my knee out my senior year, though. The offer was still there for me after rehab, but psychologically...I just wasn't ready yet. I turned it down.

And big surprise, I love to write! So that's what I did instead, and I will probably always write. It's an outlet for me, but I've also connected with so many amazing people in the last couple of years. Despite some unfortunate struggles in my life, I am very grateful for so many things right now. And the reader community especially. You guys have made such a difference in my life I just can't even explain how much it has meant to me! Thank you from the bottom of my heart <3

~Hadley

Review of Reviews

Okay, let me start out by saying I am a strong believer in everyone being entitled to their own opinion. This blog post is not bashing anyone that has left a bad review for an author; it’s about the reviews that leave us asking “WTF?” …On that note, let’s begin.

It doesn’t bother me if someone doesn’t like my book. Sure, in a strange world everyone would love my work and dub me the best writer ever. But we live in a very diverse world and that would never happen. We all come from different backgrounds, have varying circumstances, and have particular likes and dislikes. Therefore, it is expected that there will always be good and bad reviews on a book.

But here’s where I have a problem with reviews in general:

*When a reader basically summarizes the book. Hello, there is already a synopsis about the book available. If you need to add a couple more points because you feel it is valuable to your review, go right ahead. But to outline the entire story? It’s not necessary. We would rather know how you FEEL about the story, not give a bullet point presentation on it.

*When 90% of the review is quotes from the book. Okay, a short quote or two from the story is pretty cool to add, but please don’t fill your entire review with them. Again, we want to know how you FEEL about the book; what do you like about the quote or the character that’s saying it? When I read reviews like this, I honestly feel that the reader didn’t read the book at all and just grabbed quotes to fill a review. That’s truly what it looks like to me and I actually know people that do this because they skim-read books.

*The infamous DNF review WITH A RATING! Okay, so you couldn’t finish the book for whatever reason. No big deal. I’ve read plenty of books I didn’t care for. But to give an author a ONE STAR rating…. I just don’t understand it. First of all, I can’t rate a book I never finished. It was my choice to put it down for whatever reason, but I have no clue as to what the entire book is like BECAUSE I DIDN’T READ IT!!! So how can readers give one-star reviews on books they didn’t read? I’m sure there are people that disagree with me, and maybe you can send me a message to give me the other side of this debate, but I absolutely disagree with a reader rating a book they didn’t finish. When you read ten percent of a book and mark it DNF, please do not rate it. I don’t care whose book it is, you have no reason to do that. I realize some people believe if they couldn’t even finish the book it deserves a shitty rating, but if you’re gonna grade someone on their work, you at least need to have read it.

*Complaints that could have been avoided if you’d READ THE SAMPLE FIRST!!! You get a free sample of most ebooks, right? SO READ IT! I’m tired of reading reviews of books that say, “I just didn’t like reading first person.” WELL GUESS WHAT? You can figure that out from reading the sample. And you can usually figure out if the writing is good, too. Also in this category, people who complain about how long or short a book is. I’m pretty sure the information is right there when you purchase the book.

*Reviews that attack other readers or the author. I just CANNOT stand reviews that say “I have no idea why there are so many 5-star reviews for this book.” Or, my personal favorite, “All the rave reviews must be from the author’s friends and family.” … Okay, let me just say this. When I published my first story, NOT A SINGLE FRIEND OR FAMILY MEMBER OF MINE KNEW I PUBLISHED A BOOK.  This was my choice. I wanted authentic reviews from readers that did not know me. I got A LOT of fabulous reviews for that book and I still do. However, at some point, there were actually a couple of reviewers that literally berated other readers for giving it 5 stars, and they even claimed that I “obviously” had my friends and family leave great reviews. Okay first of all, FUCK YOU. I didn’t know a single person on there that left a review. And second of all, don’t ever leave that in any book review. It’s rude, immature, and it’s not relevant. It’s fine if you don’t understand why other readers liked a story, but realize that your preference is just different. If you don’t trust a review, then only get recommendations from your friends. Don’t ever attack other readers for the stories they like, that’s just ridiculous. Be respectful, for shit’s sake.

In closing, I realize that not everyone cares how they review a book, and to be honest, a review is a review and we’re grateful you took the time to leave one. But if you want to be a productive participant in the reader/author community, there are a few basics that can make this interaction successful. And when you anonymously leave a review, it doesn’t give you the right to be an asshole. I understand that sometimes tact is a waste of time these days, but consider the Golden Rule now and then and see if Karma rewards you somehow. You may find a random happy little morsel in your life when you least expect it =) 

xoxo,

Hadley

NEW RELEASE, December 14, 2014