SJ Himes

The Realms of Love

Personal

Announcement Regarding The Boys Club Series with Luna David

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Friends, if you’ve been following me you know that lately I’ve had a few struggles with mental, physical, and pet health. It’s been exceedingly hard for me over the last few years with several difficult life events, and the last few months took me to a literal breaking point. As such, I’ve had to spend a lot of time re-evaluating where I want to spend my creative energies, and what’s best for my mental health.

Sadly, I will not be writing or releasing my daddy-kink series I was planning to co-write with Luna David. THE SWEETEST ACHE will not be released in any form, and my participation in our shared venture will come to an end.

My decision to cancel the book is recent as of this past weekend. My difficulties in writing the book are far older and have been present almost from the very start.

There have been months’ worth of soul-searching, contemplation, and discussion with Luna over options for writing the book, trying to avoid my eventual breakdown. Each plan forward that we came up with failed miserably, each a failure on my part; leaving me even more despondent and stressed out. I have done myself real, actual mental harm by trying to write this book, and even now, just thinking about it, leaves me ill and upset. This final decision to stop completely is mine alone, and Luna has graciously accepted my mea culpa and is willing to take over the series without me.

Luna David is an exceptional friend, author, and human being. I have let her down more than anyone else, and I wish that I had the insight and courage to be more honest with myself, and with Luna, when things first began to get so difficult. One of the reasons this went on for so long is it pained me to disappoint her, and that foolishness is my own fault entirely. I should have listened to what my brain and body were telling me sooner, and I should have spoken to Luna about what was going on with me years ago.

Luna and I remain great friends, and this splitting of ways only pertains to The Boys Club series. Our friendship remains the same, and I value her presence in my life far more than any royalties or reviews garnered from a book.

The Boys Club series will remain with Luna David, who will be taking over creative control, and the series will focus on her personal characters and plots. Any mention of the characters that I created will be adjusted to reflect Luna’s characters and plot points. This will be a minor change, and as readers have not been introduced in any real way to the characters I created, their removal will not affect or impact Luna’s book LET ME IN, or future titles in the series. The characters in my book had not been introduced to readers in LET ME IN aside from a bare mention of their names. Any changes to LET ME IN will be minor, as our books were designed to function as standalones in a shared universe, and my book’s absence will not negatively affect her current book or any books she writes in that series in the future.

I am deeply sorry for the disappointment, frustration, and bitterness this announcement might engender in fans of LET ME IN. I am sorry. Please support Luna as she takes on The Boys Club series and shapes it into something amazing and exciting. She has the talent and the drive and will do great things with the series. I wish her all the luck in the world, and I will be supporting her every step of the way.

Thank you all for your time,

Best regards,

SJ Himes

Always Worthy

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Licensed Stock photo

 

When I was a kid, I started writing fiction. An elementary school assignment to write a short story over the summer turned into a 106-page handwritten epic fantasy (it had a strong romantic subplot, too!) and I eventually moved into poetry as a teenager, and I wrote some short stories. Most of my English teachers told me I had talent, and I appreciated it, but something in me eroded any belief I might have had that I could make a career out of writing. I went for the lesser of my two passions–science–and due to my brain’s absolute inability to do any kind of math, I flunked out of college. (I majored in Pre-Vet and genetics, with a minor in Classical languages and history–I should have done ANYTHING else.)

When I left for college, I stopped writing, figuring there was no point in it if I was majoring in other subjects. Plus, BOYS and GIRLS and OMG I can do anything I want! (That was another thing–I had zero control or discipline as a teenager ten states away from home and any accountability to anyone, and I ruined myself.)

When I flunked out of college, that killed everything in me. Laden with student debt that didn’t come with the benefit of a degree, I just stopped everything. Went to work to pay for gas to put in my car, some food on the table, and an occasional book. Nothing more. Moved halfway across the country for a man, started a job for the pay and benefits that destroyed my soul for nearly a decade…..in that time, I wrote probably less than a hundred words. From 19 to 30, I wrote nothing, dying inside, hollowing out.

It took a TV show about a high-functioning sociopath (his words, not mine!) and the resulting flood of fanfiction to get me writing again. From February 2014 to April 2015, I wrote a couple million words, a good portion of which was a 537,000-word fanfiction for BBC’s Sherlock.

I was suffocating and stressed out and falling apart and carrying more responsibilities than I should have been, and I had dreams left behind and deep, unspoken wishes I wanted to fulfill. A dream I refused to voice aloud for nearly twenty years was to be an author–but for some fucked up reason, I thought I was unworthy. I let the preconceived notions of how much work it would take and my lack of interest in writing literary fiction to mean I wasn’t going to be able to do it. So I let it go, and that pains me more than I can say. I let imagined gatekeepers of publishing keep me from my dream of dreams and I made life harder for myself by pursuing something I wasn’t suited for or capable of doing, and then settled for a job that paid well enough to hurt to leave, and left me too exhausted to dream.

Five years and one week ago I got sick of reading horribly written Johnlock fanfiction and decided to write my own. That turned into a 537,000-word adventure, and it gave me the courage to try my hand at writing my own original work. The love of writing never left–but I had to encourage it to grow, to flourish, and I had to FEED the need to write. I had found m/m romance along the way and decided to try it myself. The rest was inevitable.

I think this whole recollection of the last 25 years of my life has to do with the fact that I thought, before anyone else, I was unworthy. That writing professionally would be too hard, that I would be starving for fame and fortune and that the gatekeepers wouldn’t let me in–I sabotaged myself long before I ever got my first rejection. I didn’t believe, at any point, that I could do it. So I didn’t.

Now though, looking back at the timing– Self-publishing in the early ’00s was a different beast than it is now. I’m not sure at all how life would have played out if I tried making a career of writing back then. I know several authors now who began then and are still here publishing today and living their best lives–but still, there’s that doubt again.

As a teenager, I thought myself unworthy of the career I wanted.

As a twenty-something, I let forced pragmatism and “reality checks” curb my dreams and burying them beneath the daily grind of working for Uncle Sam.

It took me reaching my breaking point to fight for my dreams, to fight for a better life for myself. I lost everything I thought was important to me and I reached for something better.

I guess all I can say, to anyone reading this right now, is really simple:

You will doubt yourself. Don’t let that doubt kill your dreams. Speak that hidden wish aloud and fight for it.

What’s Next June 2018

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The Beacon Hill Sorcerer

Book #4

I just released Book #3 of BHS, The Necromancer’s Reckoning.  This is, for now, the last book in the series with Angel and Simeon as the main characters. I’m shifting focus to Isaac, our favorite broken fire-mage, and his wounded soul. I can’t wait to share his story, but he and I are learning who he is as we go, so once we both figure it out, I’ll have a more concrete idea of when the book will be available. I am hoping it will be before Christmas 2018, but do NOT take this as gospel. Real life never lets me release a book when I think I can.

What I can share is that Isaac is NOT Angel. Sure, they’re both snarky and witty, brash men, but Isaac is not Angel. They are brothers, but two different people, so expectations need to be tempered. He is his own person, and the Salvatore name has never defined him. He has his own demons to battle, and Angel can’t win the fight for him. Isaac learns who he is, how to stand on his own two feet, and solves a mystery, and falls in love while doing it. Mastering the Flames is the title for Isaac’s book, Book #4 of The Beacon Hill Sorcerer. (Cover reveal closer to release.)

Beacon Hill Sorcerer Anthology

I’m moving to Maine end of July 2018. (Not there yet, despite what my Bio says. I posted it early because I’d forget otherwise.) Before I move, however, I will be releasing an anthology of short stories and a short novella featuring our favorite necromancer and his vampire mate. Plus, a wee beastie with a big secret. Tentatively titled A History of Trouble, I hope to have it finished before the end of the month and available for sale near the end of July.  Cover reveal in July 2018.

Spin-off Series!

I am happy to announce that there will be a spin-off series from BHS, set in the same world with the same rules, but with new characters, new stories, and new loves. The first three books are roughly outlined (a stack of sticky notes, the rest in my head) and already have covers. I just need time to write them. Maybe once I have my own place in August I can focus more on writing. I can’t share just yet what the books will be about, but I can answer these two questions. 1) Yes, there will be cameos. 2) Most of the books will be standalone, and won’t require a series reread to follow along.

Reckoning Audiobook

The audiobook for Reckoning will occur when it can. I am keeping the series in Joel Leslie’s capable hands, and he’s booked solid, so we need to wait until he has time in his schedule. He’s worth waiting for.

The Wolfkin Saga

Caius & Shadow Novella

Potential spoiler for The Wolfkin Saga!

At the end of Book #2, Wolf of the Northern Star, Shadow returned. Caius had his second chance, and he took it. A massive change and a miracle in one, Caius and Shadow have a whole new set of challenges to face. A long-missing beta, a violent and psychotic clan leader planning vengeance, and a human government far too curious about the events in Book #2. No idea when I’ll have this book ready, but it has been started. It’s waiting for room in the Writing Cluster before I begin serious work on it.

The Wolfkin Saga Book #3

This book in the saga will focus on Burke and his trials with his young mate. I’ll be starting this book after GRL, sometime in November, and since the Saga books are sooooo long, I will not be pressuring myself to get this out by a certain date. It will be done when it’s done. I will keep everyone updated after I begin, but nothing concrete in the way of release dates. (As usual.)

Realms of Love Series

The River Prince, Book #2

The River Prince is a standalone book in the same universe as The Solstice Prince, and while there is a connected over-arching plot, none of the books need to be read to understand the other. It will be featuring a new couple, a new country, and a background tension that will eventually erupt at the end of the series. (Jaime and Maxim will be back!) Book #2 is about a young prince sacrificed to a marriage of convenience, treachery and a conflict that will change the face of the world. Magic, epic love, magical creatures, and adventure await!

The cover will be again drawn and designed by the amazing Sarah Jo Chreene, who did the cover and interior illustrations for The Solstice Prince. Book #2 will have a single interior illustration this time. See my progress on the Work in Progress page here on my site.

 

Recommended Read

Hailey Turner and the Metahuman Files

One of the BEST Scifi series I’ve ever read is Hailey Turner’s Metahuman Files. Futuristic, powerful, epic, and sexy as hell, I adore this series. Book One is In the Wreckage, and I LOVE Kyle!! He’s MINE! Dibs!

 

Amazon Global Link

Blurb:

A Marine with honor.

After surviving a horrific chemical attack that turned him into a metahuman, Captain Jamie Callahan got a second lease on life. For three years he’s been working for the Metahuman Defense Force and leading Alpha Team—all against the wishes of his family. The job requires his full dedication, so it’s no surprise Jamie doesn’t have time for a relationship. An enticing one-night stand with a gorgeous stranger is all it takes to show Jamie exactly what he’s been missing. When a mission to take down a terrorist cell brings that same stranger back into his world, Jamie’s life gets complicated.

A soldier with secrets.

Staff Sergeant Kyle Brannigan was only looking to relieve some stress after a long mission. He didn’t know the hot guy he picked up at a bar was the leader of the MDF’s top field team. When Kyle and his partner get seconded to Alpha Team to help fight a terrorist threat, he has to balance his desire for Jamie against his duty to keep his secrets safe. That gets harder and harder to do amidst regulations both are tempted to break.

Two men trying to survive.

Giving into passion could cost both their careers. Abiding by the rules will only result in heartache. An attack on MDF headquarters brings with it a choice Jamie and Kyle can’t escape—duty, or love?

In the Wreckage is a 100k word steamy m/m sci-fi military romance with a HFN ending. There is military violence within the story that may not be suitable for everyone, as well as explicit intimate scenes not suitable for readers under 18.

Hit up Hailey Turner’s website for more information about this explosive and action-packed series.

Hailey Turner Website

 

 

Thank you, everyone, for stopping on by! Happy reading and I’ll see ya next time. <3

 

Sheena xoxoxo

 

P.S- Find me at my Facebook readers’ group, SJ Himes’ Realms of Love for up to date information. Come hang out with us!