August 16th is the day! Release... has never felt so sweet.

Yes, after TWO FREAKIN' LONG YEARS The Cost of Loving will finally be coming out! In fact, it was listed on Dreamspinner's "coming soon" page today! This has been one of those books that has been a frustration, a letdown, a challenge, and a learning experience.

First, the cover... Done by Enny Kraft and gorgeous!

The cover was done LAST SUMMER! And like an idiot I revealed it to the world. NEVER DO THIS! If you are an author, revealing the cover without a contract is NOT GOOD. I was waaaay to hopeful and not smart about it. It got people all excited. They loved the cover, and then the release didn't come, and still didn't, and wasn't going to happen soon. It was very disappointing. For me as well as for you. I REALLY thought TCOL would have come out last fall. I really did. I thought, "I have an editor. She'll take, what, a couple weeks? I'll self-publish. It will be cake!" Well, my cake looked like o pool of melted ice-cream. She (the editor) took over six months! The Cost of Loving was a nightmare of grammar problems and plot details. I had to rewrite two chapters. Then the ending was NOT what readers want and I had to rethink it. I spent lots of time (and money) to get this book "ready" to submit again. It had been rejected three times at this point. (The point where I decided I needed a professional editor.) Authors and rejection, although they seem to go along together often, do NOT like each other. We don't mix. There is seething hatred for the word "rejection", yet one we can't avoid and have to tolerate and accept else we drown in despair. So, I prematurely released the cover and the book never came out. I think I crushed everyone. So-I'm learning. Forgive me, but I am learning.

It was also a big letdown to have written something very close to my heart and hear from an editor it (basically) sucks. When I was rejected (3 times) no one said WHY. Well, all the little things that added up to big things that the editor found wrong told me why. I can't write! Well, I can, but I can't edit worth crap! It is really hard for me to notice the missing details and character issues, not to mention the grammar mistakes. So, more learning for Wade! And the editor's comments and corrections came not to long after I had gone over editor revisions with DSP for Jock. So I was seeing patterns that I have. Things I ALWAYS get wrong. I have a list now. Words I misspell. Words I use wrong. The list is way too long. The next challenge will be seeing if my "learning process" took as I write the next one. I'm working on Names Can Never Hurt Me. It's at 48k; half-way done. We shall see if my editorial experience paid off. PLUS, I'm taking a class this fall--Modern English Grammar--so maybe I will learn a thing or two about grammar. IDK.

Anyway.... My release day is AUGUST 16, 2013! The Cost Of Loving. HERE is the eBook link. The paperback says it has 350 pages. A long book! Enny Kraft is the cover designer. So glad to see her name listed!

This is the book blurb:

Matt Dixon, a young firefighter, is the golden child of his family, and he never dreamed that coming out would challenge more than the way his church sees him. 

For years, Matt has led a double life hoping to avoid ridicule. When a self-righteous pastor’s statements provoke him to defend his recently deceased best friend’s honor and subsequently out himself, he suffers the brutal aftermath of his revelation. Everyone in his life, including his family and his new lover, Darian, must deal with the ramifications as Matt struggles to come to terms with guilt, shame, and his very belief in God. 

Darian Weston lost his fiancé when Jamie took his life, and his feelings for Matt added guilt to his burden of grief. Confused and lonely, Darian clings to Matt despite his inner strife. But small-town realities keep intruding, and if Matt and Darian hope to make a life together, they must first take a stand for what they believe in, even if they fear the cost.

There IS a "pre order" button; I didn't see it the first time. :p

Thanks for your patience and support. Without YOU, the readers and fans, I'm not sure I could have made it this far. Thank you! Thank you! You are the best!

Hugs,
Wade