Monday, November 28, 2016

Wade Kelly Newsletter

YES! I am starting a newsletter. I plan to send it out monthly, starting on December 1, 2016. I hope I have something interesting to say. I will try to keep the content as different as I can from other social media. If you would like to sign up, here is a link: NEWSLETTER!


This is just another way for people to stay in touch with me, especially those who do not have facebook.

Thank you for your love and support! <3

AND, Thank you to all of those who participated in the Big Gay Fiction Giveaway!

xoxoxo,

Wade

Saturday, November 26, 2016

The Big Gay Fiction Giveaway

Running from November 20-27, I am a part of a huge giveaway through Instafreebie.com

You can find out about what authors of the 85 are participating by clicking on:

http://www.jeffandwill.com/biggayfictionpodcast/big-gay-fiction-giveaway-november-20-27/

Or

http://www.michaeljensen.com/free-books/





My contribution to this event is Misplaced Affection because it is the only book I own the rights to. If you already own that book and would still like to be a part of my monthly mailing list (The one I am starting on December 1st,) you can click HERE.

Thank you for stopping by my blog :)


Thursday, October 6, 2016

Dirty Dozen - Brandon Witt

Hello, lovely readers. Thank you for stopping by for this special post from Brandon Witt, who is part of the "Dirt Dozen." Each year, the Dirty Dozen gears up for GRL with a blog tour. 12 authors, 12 days, 12 posts. This year the authors include: Brandon Witt, TM Smith, Jordan L. Hawk, Alexa Land, Jeff Adams, LE Franks, Morticia Knight, Jake C Wallace, K-lee Klein, Tempe O'Riley, AE Via, and myself. Each author can up with a question for this interview style post, and the author of the day answers the questions. It's fun! So let's get started.

I've met Brandon and I can tell you he is a warm and wonderful person.



Thank you, Brandon, for joining me. One for Brandon's novels is titled The the Stars Fall. I am currently listening to the audio and I think it's wonderful. It is a very warm and sweet romance. For those readers who like books without graphic sex, this one is for you! It's all about the relationships! I liked it so much, I have another of his audio books when I'm finished this one.


On with the questions....

Tams asked – If you could spend the day with one of your characters, which one would it be, and why?
Donnie Durke, from The Shattered Door.  The idea of this book came to me on the way home from my cousin Gabe’s funeral.  He was twenty-five or twenty-six, I was twenty-four or twenty-five (I think, time does funny stuff to one’s memory).  Donnie was based off of my cousin Gabe—beautiful, kind, funny, charming, too good to be with us on earth for very long. I still miss him.


Jeff asked - What are you working on currently and what's its inspiration?
I’m working on four novellas in a series called Mary’s Boys.  All four of them will be out in ebook by GRL 2017 (and will be combined in a paperback edition at the same time as the 4th one is published).  They are all set in Denver at Hamburger Mary’s, which is a gay restaurant chain.  This is my first time doing novellas, and they are a little more traditionally romance focuses than my normal.  If you read Under a Sky of Ash, and enjoyed the drag queen ManDonna, you’ll be thrilled to know she shows up in all four stories.

Wade asked - If the lead character in your current novel were to read your other books, which one would be his/her favorite and why?
The first book of my Rocky Mountain Boys series will be on pre-order by GRL Kansas City.  One of the lead characters in that book is Luis Martinez who moves to Estes Park, Colorado from California in a spur of the moment leap in order to re-start his life.  I think he’d most appreciate The Imperfection of Swans, as Kevin does something similar.  He doesn’t move away from home, but abandons his high-paying corporate job to open his dream wedding dress shop.

Jake asked - If all of your MCs were thrown into a strange and dangerous world where survival relies on ingenuity, creativity, common sense who would come out on top?
I think Brett Wright, from my Men of Myth series.  His combination of demon, mermaid, and human ancestry would aid him well.  Not to mention the fact that he’s immortal.  At least, as far as he knows….

Brandon asked (yes, I guess that means he's talking to himself. lol) - What musician or album do you think people should listen to as they read your work because it fits the soul of your words (either a specific title or your writing in general)?
I have to go with Joy Williams’s Venus album if you’re reading The Imperfection of Swans.  It was on constant replay as I wrote the last of that book.  And the title came from her song, You Loved Me, even though it doesn’t mention anything about swans.  

In general, if you play Joy Williams, Amy Grant, The Civil Wars, Adele, Faith Hill, Natalie Cole, Erin McCarthy, Sara Bareilles, John Mayer, Mills Brothers, Pasty Cline, Leighton Meester, and Matt Alber, I think you’ll have a pretty perfect back drop for my contemporary novels.  My Men of Myth series would need a different playlist.

Morticia askedIf you could be one of your characters and live their life, who would it be and why?
I can’t say I’d want to face all that Brett Wright had to face in my Men of Myth series, but I’d still like to be him.  To live under the ocean with the mermaids and mermen???  Yes, please!

Tempeste asked–  If you could be a fruit, any fruit, which would you be and why?
I think a fig.  They always get put on charcuterie boards with all the best cheeses.  That would be heaven.

Jordan asked –  What is the thing you enjoy most about gatherings like GRL?
Seeing friends that understand me in a way that no other people in my life can understand me.   We all have a shared, geeky bond of writing and/or reading.  It’s wonderful. And relaxing.

LE Franks asked –  What is the most vivid romantic moment from any film that has lingered the longest and meant the most to you…. and why?
In The Last Unicorn, which you must see, the prince refused to be responsible for the Amalphia remaining human when she should be a unicorn.  He put his love for her above his desire.  As a result, she is the only unicorn in existence that can experience regret and truly know love.  It’s beautiful.  And yeah, I know, I’m fucked up.

K-Lee askedIf you could take any fictional couple or character (television, movies, real-life, books) and add them to one of your books, who would it be and why? 
The entire cast of Downton Abby.  I want them in every book I write and I want them in every room of the house.  And I want to have Maggie Smith simply sit there and pass judgment upon me.

AE askedWhat kind of quirky habits do you have before or during the time you write?
I have a very strict routine I follow.  From the food I eat, to the coffee I drink, to how long I write at a time.  I’m not one that can sit and write anywhere.  I’m a creature of habit.  And I have all of my My Little Pony characters assembled to the left side of my computer.  Whenever I start a new book, they get rearranged.

Alexa askedWhen you write, do your characters hijack the story, or do you keep a tight grip on the reins?

I’m a huge planner and outliner.  We’re talking family trees, pages of characters notes, lists of questions and problems, etc.  That said, I may have to do multiple outlines, as the characters nearly always change what I think is going to happen.


This was great! Thanks for answering all those fun questions. For readers who wonder about some of his other books, I'll list a few.






Bio: 









  
And we have a 12 ebook giveaway!



a Rafflecopter giveaway Rafflecopter direct link: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/bde26371274/?







Thursday, August 25, 2016

Soccer Jerseys for the JOCK Series

Hello, lovely readers.

I had SOCCER JERSEYS made special for the soccer players of my jock series.


You can choose home or away colors for 8 different characters:

Jackson #1
Garber #3
Archer #7
Montgomery #11
Rafferty #14
Harder #19
McAvoy #00
Reid #68

On the WEBSITE you will see Jackson and Montgomery listed as examples of the back of the shirt, however, there is a scroll menu when you choose the color of the shirt where you can pick the player, then another scroll to pick the size. The cost is $31.99 plus shipping. (There will also be MD sales tax) There is an additional cost for larger sizes. $2 more for 2XL, $3 more for 3XL and $4 more for 4XL, but I still think they are reasonably priced for good quality soccer jerseys. I will take a pic of me wearing mine and upload it soon. You may order directly from me, or from the printer's website. I list shipping charges on my website which may vary from the printer.


There was also a question of sizing. I measured the Med and Large shirts myself and the medium shirt was 40" across the chest under the arm pits. The large was 44". I normally wear a large at 42". The large I tried on was a tad big, but it is a sports jersey and I think they do that on purpose. Personally, I am going with a medium because it fits fine. That's just me. :) The printing company is working on a size chart for me to post. It's coming soon. 
Thanks. I hope you like them.

This initial store will run for about 4 weeks. Orders may be held until the end of this 4 week period, depending on the amount of sales. I will be made aware of sales and if they are higher than expected, then the wait for your shirt may be less than 4 weeks. This is JUST starting, so bear with me.



Wednesday, August 17, 2016

My Life Is Never Simple

Hey there, good people. This summer has been the fastest summer of my life. Just crazy busy and weird things piling up.

So first, there was 5 weeks of tennis for my girls right after school let out. I have 2 daughters, 15 & 11. Tennis was 3 times a week for 5 weeks. I thought I'd have some time for myself, while they were playing, but somehow time flies. Those five weeks went by so darn fast between tennis and swimming at friends houses and me driving them to spend the night etc. And all of a sudden it was August and I didn't remember July.

Yet, also during the summer, and extending back to like April, I've also been worrying about my mom and brother. My mom has emphysema and my brother and I have been talking to doctors and stuff. A lifetime of smoking did this, but condescending doctors are not helpful. I'm taking it one doctor's appointment at a time and being there to take her wherever she needs to go. She lives with my brother an hour from me so doctor appointment days take most of the day.

THEN, because it's never simple for me, I fell in my driveway and scraped my knee. A small cut. It ripped my only jeans so I was mainly upset about that, but 5 days after cleaning it out the area swelled up and got freaking HOT. I went to the doctor and they said it was infected. I was on TWO rounds of antibiotics, but it is STILL swollen. I have another appointment today with my orthopedist.

August has been crazy and this is only week 3. Week 1 was a HUGE kids festival thing my church is involved in. My kids are in it and I volunteered to serve snacks. It was Aug 1st-5th and pretty much exhausted everyone. It was a good week. Fun. Exhausting. And I took drugs for my knee, but also had gone to get blood drawn three times. I had gotten it in my head that I needed to know that I was healthy because I need to be strong for my mom, my brother, and the rest of my family. All tests came back good except one. My liver and kidneys are good. My cholesterol is good. My heart is fine. My blood pressure etc. My thyroid, however, is not. Durning Kids Fest Week, the doctor called to tell me I needed to see an endocrinologist immediately. I asked, "Will I die tomorrow?" because she sounded worried. The Doc said no. I was glad because I was going on vacation August 8-14. I figured my thyroid had probably been off for a long time so another week wouldn't matter.

I had gone to the doctor in the last week of July because I wanted bloodwork done to know if there was anything else wrong. I'd been seeing a therapist since January and the anxiety and depression hadn't gone away. I rarely slept. My heart was always racing. My mind never shut down. So the doctor prescribed a low dose of Lexapro. I've been on that for 3 weeks and I haven't slept this good in a year. I thought most of my mental issues were over my sadness and troubles with my son. Our argument and his leaving last July rocked me to the core. The Lexapro has really helped!

Anyway... I was on Lexapro the first few weeks of August and now I'm on a medication for my thyroid. Yesterday I had an appointment with my doctor to discuss my thyroid because the only Endocrinologist in town can't see me until October. I have Hyperthyroidism. My TSH # was undetectable, while T3 & T4 are elevated. In a perfect world, maybe they could straighten out my Thyroid and maybe I wouldn't need Lexapro. IDK.

What I do know is that Vacation was relaxing. I listened to several audiobooks while my kids swam. Sutphin Boulevard, The Starving Years, and Beneath the Stain. All were good! Beneath the Stain by Amy Lane was outstanding!

When I got back, I hit the ground running and took my mom to the pulmonary specialist at 9:30 in the morning Monday. (Which meant I had to leave my house at 7) Tuesday, I saw my doctor, and my daughter had a dr appointment for her 11 yr wellness visit. Today I have another dr appointment, and Thursday I see my therapist. GO. GO. GO. I never get a break.

The one thing that had troubled me and plagued me since January is the inability to write. I know my brain is a mess. I've been screwed up since July 2015. I thought seeing the therapist would help, and it has in many ways, but my creativity has disappeared. I have ideas, but no voice. I have words, but no passion. Not sleeping for months didn't help. I hope straightening out my body will fix my brain. I want to find my voice again.

One person who wrote a review for JOCK 3 on Goodreads said, "Wade Kelly has outdone herself with this one." I am so glad for that because I love this book so much. But I worry I won't find myself again. I want JOCK 4 to be incredible. I want people to weep with Rob because you know J4 is for him.

So this has been my life this year. I told the doctor I always have weird things going on. I plan to die from a satellite landing on my car while I'm on the Baltimore beltway. She laughed and said, "Oh, my. I hope not." But this is how my mind works.  Nothing is simple. Nothing is normal. Always weird. We had discussed my family history too and I said everyone died of weird things like drowning not any specific disease like heart attacks. My two grandmothers died in their 90's. The people who died younger all smoked. I don't smoke, so I hope that will help change history.

So this is all very candid. This is me. I'm not hiding, I'm not exaggerating, and I'm not saying I have the worse life ever. I know people have it way worse than me. I am just saying this is why I disappear sometimes. I live in the fast lane sometimes and it has to do with taking care of my family. I want to write. I will write. I live to write. Just lately weeks have flown by so fast I can't think.

JOCK 3 is coming up fast. August 26th! I hope you like it. Follow the interviews and comment to win.

I love you guys. My readers and fans mean so much to me you have no idea. Thank you for understanding and standing by me through everything.

I guess that's all I have to say.






Wednesday, July 27, 2016

Blog Tour for JOCK 3

Hello, lovely readers.

This is the blog tour for JOCK 3, Back Off! That's My Jock




The tour has 12 stops.

7-27 Caraway Carter
8-1 Jeff & Will's Big Gay Fiction Podcast
8-17 2 Chicks Obsessed
8-19 Prism Alliance
8-22 Love Bytes Reviews
8-24 Ashely John's blog
8-25 Dreamspinner's Blog
8-26 RELEASE DAY Elisa Rolle
8-29 Joyfully Jay
8-30 Long & Short Reviews
8-31 TTC Books and More
9-2 MM Good Book Reviews

Here are the rules for prizes:

 I, Wade Kelly, will be giving away one GRAND PRIZE (items listed below) and three runners up prizes of a $10 gift card for Amazon. All you need to do is leave a comment. ALL comments are logged for a chance at the prizes. BUT, ONLY those who leave a comment on 10 out of 12 BLOG STOPS will be entered into the Grand Prize drawing. Last time I think there were 15 people in the Grand Prize drawing.

Note: If we’ve never chatted and you aren’t on Facebook, it is a good idea to leave an e-mail address because I need to know how to reach you. If I can’t, and I reply to your comment on the blog post that you’ve won but don’t hear from you, I have to give the prize to the next person on my list. Each comment gets you a chance in the drawing. If you leave one on each, that is eleven entries PLUS you are listed in the Grand Prize drawing. For a reminder if the rules, and where I’m stopping next, visit THIS BLOG POST! I will update the links as each post happens.

Grand Prize includes all of the following:
1)   One of my famous spoons in the colors of your choice (If you already have one, I'll send something else.)
2)   One signed paperback from my back list (Not counting JOCK 3)
3)   An e-book copy of JOCK 4, when it comes out. (Not under contract yet)
4)   An AUDIOBOOK of your choice. (Promo code)
5)   And last, but not least, a soccer jersey for the player of your choice from the players in JOCK 3. AWAY OR HOME Jersey. (I’ll list them on my website along with pictures of the jerseys. They come in adult S, M, L, XL, 2XL, 3XL, & 4XL)

So there you go. If you have any questions, please let me know. Comment here or email me: writerwadekelly@gmail.com




Hello, lovely people. I have picked the winners.
The runners-up for a $10 gift card from Amazon are:
Kristian E.
Sheila S
Ineztey G.
There were 11 contestants in the final grand prize drawing. 
The winner is... drum roll....
Jen CW

I appreciate all of you following the tour around to 12 stops! WOW. Such dedication. I hope you will come back the next time I have a book tour. I'm still writing JOCK 4, but I hope that one will be out next year. We'll see. I need to finish writing it first. Thank you for your support!
(Edit: 9/5/16 10:50 am EST)

Thursday, July 7, 2016

Inconsistency

Well, for anyone who knows me or has followed my blog for a while, you already know I'm inconsistent even if I WANT to be consistent. I guess what it comes down to is laziness and the lack of things to say. Maybe once I have more consistent publications, I'll have more to talk about. IDK.

News... JOCK 3 comes out August 26, 2016. I have a cover reveal set up on Caraway Carter's blog HERE. As well as a blog tour to talk about the book and me as an author. I hope you can join me. I'll be on the following blogs:

Caraway Carter
Ashley John
Jeff & Will's Big Gay Fiction Podcast
Elisa Rolle
2 Chicks Obsessed
Joyfully Jay
Prism Alliance
TM Smith
Love Bytes
Long & Short Book reviews
& MM Good Book reviews

Not in that order.

I'll have actual links in ONE blog post later on, which I'll update with each blog post on the tour so I can list all of them in one place for your convenience.

Currently, I'm writing JOCK 4. The title may change so we'll just call it JOCK 4, or J4. I've been having difficulty writing this for several reasons. I have some personal issues with my son, which have affected me deeply. Since I'm a highly emotional person, this past year has been difficult on me. I also see this as a book which NEEDS to be amazing. It is the last of a 4 book series and I don't want to let people down. It needs to rock and therefore I think I've been putting too much pressure on myself. I probably just need to write it and see if my beta readers think it's okay. Going is slow, but I'm sure I'll get there.

JOCK 3 blurb:

Defining his sexuality didn’t make sense until his best friend spelled it out.

Doug Archer did some pretty idiotic things in the first eight weeks of his junior year of college. First, he kissed his gay best friend, and second, he kissed a guy he’d mistaken for a girl. Not stellar moments for Doug. If he isn’t careful, he’ll lose his spot on the soccer team to the new freshman, or worse, he might misconstrue his new friend Rob’s overly affectionate tendencies for flirting. But if Doug isn’t bothered by another guy’s attention, and he normally dates girls, does that mean he’s gay or bisexual?

Sam Garber suppressed his same-sex attraction his entire life. His father told him it was immoral, and Sam did everything he could to bury his feelings. However, after meeting Doug at a party and kissing him, Sam can’t think of anything else. He decides dating girls is the best way to keep his secret hidden. With playoffs in sight, this is no time to think about guys in any other context than soccer. Only, neither boy anticipates the difficulty in suppressing his attraction for another jock!

Let me know what you think. I'll have prizes on my blog tour so please consider following it :D

That's all for now.

Thanks,

Wade

Thursday, June 16, 2016

Orlando

The following was a post I did on Facebook, but not everyone who follows me is on facebook. So, here ya go....

I saw my therapist today. Among other things, I expressed how hard it is for me not to be afraid to take a stand and speak my mind, especially in light of how I've been treated in the past. I said I wish I was brave. She told me she heard a quote somewhere that said bravery has nothing to do with not being scared. It has to do with being scared and still doing what you have the need to do. I've been trying to be more accretive for years. 2010 was a soul-crushing year in many ways, but I've changed since then. I have been getting stronger and braver over the years that followed. (There are people on FB who know this.) This past year has also been an emotional rollercoaster for personal reasons, which lead me to the therapist. However, the Orlando tragedy has changed me. I am a straight, white, woman, mother, wife, housewife, who is generally safe in my little house in the woods. No one is holding a gun in my direction. If I stopped writing, then there wouldn't even be a trail toward me after a period of time to even suggest I stood for anything. I am generally a quiet, non-confrontational person. I keep much of my opinions to myself. (Especially on FB. No drama from me.) But those people who died could have been someone I knew or loved and it makes me pause on a whole different level to look at myself and how I effect the world (Sorry if I should have said affect. hate those words) I can't sit quietly. Sure, I'm afraid about people who will reject me or hate me for being an advocate for human rights/ LGBT rights, but as I said no one is pointing a gun at me. The people the died we living their lives, being brave enough to go to a club where they felt safe. And some one took their breath from them. My therapist said she can see I have a passion for the gay community. She was happy that I changed my profile picture to my NOH8 photo. But changing a picture, is only a tiny step. I need to be more vocal to the people in my community and to my delegates and senators etc. The LGBT community is small compared to the rest of the population. They need advocates willing to be scared to take a stand with them. I've been to three gay clubs in my life. 2 of them I was there early with friends and was told nothing exciting happens until after 10. hahah. I go to bed at 8:30. But I did venture to watch a dancer I know in a club one time. (not sure if it was a gay club or not) If that hateful person had chose that club that night, then yes, I could have been among the victims simply because I wanted to a have fun with my friends. I can't live in fear. Those people went out that night not knowing they would die. They were trying to live. I want to live. I want my friends to live and have the same rights as me. To have the same security of going out in public and not feeling ashamed, scared, or marginalized because they love someone of the same gender. So if you are straight, and you care enough to take a stand, please do. We need to pull together! Love more, and hate less. Love is supposed to conquer hate, but it doesn't do it by itself without people who are willing to love.
Hopefully I didn't say this all wrong. I'm just typing what I'm feeling. I'm tired of being scared because life is too short to worry about what others are going to think of me if I stand for gay rights.
And remember: if you love someone, tell them. Have coffee with your friends. and spread love, not hate.