Author: McKay

I'm a writer, a teacher, and a knitter. Not necessarily in that order on any given day. I'm also the McKay half of Ari McKay.
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Striking Sparks is ready for preorder!

McKay

Our new contemporary romance, Striking Sparks, is coming out next month, and you can preorder it now from Dreamspinner Press!

Striking Sparks is our first contribution to the Dreamspun line (and it definitely won’t be our last), and it will be available on December 15.

The stakes are high and the heat is on.

Beau Walker, owner of the Barbecue Shack, needs the help of Jake Parnell, his one-time rival and secret crush, in a televised barbecue competition. Beau is a proud man, but the stakes are high, and smart, sexy Jake is his only hope, even if being around Jake reawakens the attraction he’s fought for years.

Jake left his hometown, determined to build a life somewhere his sexuality wouldn’t hurt his family’s restaurant business—and far away from hunky, obstinate Beau Walker. Then his twin, Josh, is killed, and Jake returns to support his brother’s wife and children. Despite his reservations, he agrees to go head-to-head against Beau on national television. Between stress and grief, as well as pride and determination, only one thing is certain—the heat between Beau and Jake extends well beyond the kitchen.

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First re-home!

McKay

Ari and I are pleased to let everyone know that we’ve successfully started the re-homing process! We’ve revised and significantly expanded Letters from Cupid, one of our Valentine’s Day stories, and the second edition will be released in February, 2017, by Dreamspinner Press.

This is one of our favorite holiday stories, so we enjoyed revisiting it. We found several places where we could develop Macon and Derek’s budding relationship outside the letters, and we developed Macon himself more. While rereading it, we realized we hadn’t even identified what he teaches! So we made him part of the creative writing faculty in the department and had the book he was working on be a collection of short stories. We also let Mark — Derek’s ex, who breaks up with him at the beginning of the story — be a little more prominent.

Even though the revising and re-homing process has put some extra work on our plate that we didn’t expect, I’m finding it quite satisfying to go back and look at older works with an eye toward improving them. I think Letters from Cupid had room for growth, and I’m pleased with the changes we’ve made. Hopefully our readers will like them as well!

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Changes

McKay

If you’re a returning visitor to our website, you might notice it looks a little emptier than it did the last time you were here. Due to some changes with Torquere Press over the last few months, Ari and I have decided to ask for the rights to our works with Torquere be returned, and we don’t have any plans to publish with them in the future.

This wasn’t a decision we made lightly since it meant pulling the majority of our works from distribution. We’ve also felt a great deal of loyalty to Torquere since they’re the ones who accepted our first book back in 2012, and we’ve had a good working relationship with them since then. But we feel this decision is in our own professional best interests, and it’s purely a business/financial decision. We aren’t leaving with any ill will or animosity, and we’re especially grateful to the editors we’ve worked with, Michelle and Jaymi, for their help and hard work.

Although our catalogue looks really light right now, we’re actively seeking new homes for our books. At the very least, we want to revise and rerelease the Blood Bathory series and revise, rerelease, and continue the Herc’s Mercs series, especially since #6 was due to come out soon. We’re discussing the options for all of our previously released books, and we hope you’ll see them again — along with new works, of course! — in the future.

In the meantime, we do have a new book coming out from Dreamspinner Press in December: Striking Sparks. We recently got the amazing cover art for that book, and as soon as we get the promo packet, we’ll share it here.

Next summer, we’ve got a spin-off of Striking Sparks coming out: Breaking Bonds. We’ve also submitted a spin off of Finding Forgiveness, which focuses on Carlos Hernandez, and we’re waiting to hear back about that. So irons are in the fire! This change is an unexpected one, but we’re moving forward, and we’ll keep you all updated about when and where you can find our Torquere works once we’ve found them a new home, wherever it may be.

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It’s here!

McKay

Blood Bathory: Be Not Proud is out! It’s 339 pages and 101,000 words. The e-book version is $6.99, and you can purchase a print copy on Amazon as well.

If you want to catch up on the whole series, Torquere Press is offering the first two books in the series for 20% off!

The exciting conclusion of the war between Elizabeth Bathory and Gaia’s Children has arrived!

It has been five centuries since Antonio de Barajas, one of the oldest surviving Theriomorphs, lost his mate Raphael at the hands of his worst enemy, and Thrace has mocked his pain; but at long last, he has a chance to find love again. As two ardent suitors vie to win his heart, Gaia’s Children face the united force of Elizabeth Bathory and her sire, Thrace.

Thrace will stop at nothing to get revenge against Gaia and her children for the loss of his wife, even allying himself with terrorists who possess a weapon of mass destruction. Now the Theriomorphs and the Dark Guardians must race against time to discover Thrace’s plan and stop him before he succeeds. Antonio risks losing far more than his heart this time, for if he and his team fail in their mission, it will mean the deaths of millions of people and perhaps the destruction of Gaia herself.

Have a sample behind the cut!  Continue reading “It’s here!”