I think I’m in one of those moods where I just want to watch (and re-watch) movies. I bit the bullet and got a Netflix subscription, and even though the Canadian site doesn’t have as many movies as the regular site, it still gives me enough TV shows and movies to keep me occupied.

Last, but not least, I found the perfect movie snack (or anytime snack). I was watching Steven and Chris today because it’s a holiday and I’m home free, and they had a wonderful set of recipes (as usual). One really caught my attention… Junk Food Cookies! How can you go wrong? I really want to make these:  http://www.cbc.ca/stevenandchris/2012/01/junk-food-cookie.html 

“Find life experiences and swallow them whole. Travel. Meet many people. Go down some dead ends and explore dark alleys. Try everything. Exhaust yourself in the glorious pursuit of life.”

Lawrence K. Fish, Businessman

I think I’m particularly caught on the “try anything” and how that relates to my writing. Maybe it’s time to try something different. Although, I still have multiple manuscripts that need to be finished first. Maybe when I’m done with the next Broken novel I can experiment… It will definitely be interesting!

As a writer of GLBT romances and as a GLBT writer (not the same thing, despite what some think), I find words/phrases like “uncomfortable” and “too much” make my chest ache. As a human being, I find discrimination and exclusion make me want to stand up and shout out my support as loud as I can.

I write gay romances. I am gay. I realize those two things, separately or together, make some people “uncomfortable”. I realize that some people might think that who I am and what I write is “too much”.

I’m lucky that I’m surrounded by people — family, friends, writers, associates — that are “comfortable” with me and what I write. I’m blessed that there are people in this world who think what I write and who I am are “just right”.

I answered the call to arms and tweeted, facebooked, and emailed both RWA and the RWI chapter; but I’m not going to focus on the bad anymore. I’m going to focus on the good.

I’m thankful for the Rainbow Romance Writers, an organization I’m fortunate enough to have had a hand in building as their first president. I’m thankful for my outstanding Calgary RWA chapter who support me and my writing and who are some of the most loving people you’ll ever meet. I’m thankful for my critique partners for making me a better person and my friends that aren’t in one of the above groups Above all, I’m thankful for my family who love me and make me believe every day that I’m special and worthy.

I’m thankful for people who stand up for what they believe in.

Jade

P.S. If you’d like to send a polite letter to RWA, you can email them at info@rwa.org.

I’ve been in love with Patricia Briggs for what seems like forever. Hands down, everything she writes I’ll read. And re-read. And then re-read again. I had the hardest time picking which cover I wanted to feature for her, because I think Dan dos Santos is a genius when it comes to art, period, but particularly when it comes to taking something out of a book and bringing it to life on the cover. And I particularly love how, on the Mercy Thompson covers, her tattoos change depending on what is inside the book. It’s awesome. You can look at the cover and figure out what’s going on without even having to read the back! Anyway, because I couldn’t choose what cover to feature, I just picked one at random, so here’s Bone Crossed by Patricia Briggs. And here’s his website, so you can see what amazing artwork he’s done: http://www.dandossantos.com/ 

Next up is Love Like Ghosts… part of the Bay City Paranormal Investigations series by Ally Blue and featuring the delectable Adrian and Greg in their continuing relationship. It’s a romance, but it’s more than that and this cover perfectly portrays that. Ally writes good ghosts… I don’t even know how else to describe it. It’s original and enthralling. I love this series, and cover artist Kanaxa has taken everything that is good about this book and managed to portray it perfectly on the cover. Plus, that script!! Awesomesauce.

And finally I want to drool over Demon Whisperer by Tawny Stokes. Tawny is one of my closest friends and in Demon Whisperer she’s written a book that I literally could not put down. Seriously, it’s got demons, necromancers and an  International Order of Exorcists… And this rocking cover by April Martinez. The colours, the guy, his eyes! If you haven’t read this book, you have to check it out.

Actually, that goes for all three… Pardon me while I go re-read something…

Code — Felidae

First up is Bound to Please by Kimberly Gardner. I had the pleasure of being able to read this while Kimber was writing it and I have to say it’s both a fabulous book and a rocking cover. I mean, seriously, the way the rope connects all three characters in such a sensuous way is stunning. The facial expressions perfectly nail down the conflicts and personalities of each, and I’m in love with their hair (and those rocking bodies!!).

I’d like to sum it all up with a very heartfelt “yum…”

 Next on my Anne Cain lovefest is My Fair Captain by JL Langley. Hello sexy! Check out that chest, that jawline, the perfectly tied cravat on the cutie in the background Sexy Hairy Chest Man (aka Intergalactic Navy Captain Nathaniel Hawkins) is just perfect *insert swoon* both on the cover and inside the book.

I adore JL Langley, and I love the way her mind works. Both My Fair Captain and The Englor Affair (which Anne Cain did the cover for, as well) are definite re-reads in my house. I can’t recommend them enough and I’m so glad they got such kick-butt covers.

Finally, to wrap up today, I wanted to drool over Sursein Judgment by Jet Mykles. I think after all the fabulous covers Jet’s gotten, it’s quite fair to say she’s been blessed by the cover art gods. Sursein Judgment is such a fantastic book, and I love love love this cover. The purple, the hair, the sexy look, the beast in the background *faints*. Where was I? I want to wallpaper my bedroom with this cover. And now I want to go back and re-read it again…

 The good news is that I can look at these covers whenever I want… the even better news is that I realized there are so many wonderful covers that I love that I’m going to feature more of them on here.

Aella by Jade Buchanan
Aella is searching for strength. When the seals under her care start to die, Aella needs all the help she can get. She asks two mermen, Damon and Pythias, for their assistance but they have secrets about themselves they aren’t willing to share, and their help could come at a very high price. Can Aella trust Damon and Pythias?  Or will misplaced trust leave her under their spell, and in their control?

Starting, naturally, with the book that started it all… Heaven by Jet Mykles. I adore this book. I adore Jet, of course, and she’s one of the best critique partners anyone can ever have (hands off, she’s mine! LOL) but this book and this cover are just divine. Seriously, how can you not love this? That hair, that back, that bum… *bites*

I could go on and on about my love of all the Heaven Sent covers, but then this would turn into a post about Heaven Sent and it’s supposed to be about other covers too LOL!

So, I’ll simply say that I love them all and move on… to another one of my critique partners, Willa Okati. Specifically, The Brotherhood 10: The Salt of the Earth by Willa Okati. I fell in love with the Brotherhood books way before I started writing, but this cover just killed me when it came out. It’s so sweet, so meltingly sweet, that I love it to death. And it has nothing (well, almost nothing) to do with them both being gloriously nekkid. It’s the pose and the way they’re so wrapped up in each other that nothing else matters. *swoons*

Last but certainly not least, is another favourite by Jet Mykles. Yes, I’m putting her in twice. Because that’s just the way I roll. There were many more covers to choose from, including the cover for Drawn Together by ZA Maxfield and the multiple covers for the Blue Ruin series by Katrina Strauss, but Snagged by Jet Mykles was one of the first gay romance books I read and it captured my attention. When she reissued it with this cover it completely blew my mind. It fits the characters so freaking well it’s insane. Love it.

For more artwork by the talented and fantastic PL Nunn, check out her website: http://bishonenworks.com/

The ladies over at Fiction with Friction are doing free fiction week again! My story released today and there will be stories coming out over the next week, finishing up with Kimberly Gardner’s post on New Years. Enjoy!

http://www.fictionwithfriction.com

My anthology, Escape, which contains The Frog in the Room was also nominated for Best Anthology so I’m tickled!!

 The final awards will be announced on February 14, 2012.