We’re about a week away from Still Butterflies coming out on August 14th! Yay!
I’ve updated the store on my website so you can now order Still Butterflies from me directly as well as the My Butterflies Audiobook (the Still Butterflies Audiobook will be added once it’s done). I don’t have Still Butterflies in stock yet as I’m still waiting on my proofs from Ingram, but you can still pre-order (I get my stock from them).
I’m taking a break from writing (sort of) for August, so I’ll be getting some reading done as well as finishing my book events prep.
Hi! Hope you all are well! Buckle up because this is going to be a long one!
It’s been a while, I know. The main reason for that was I have been working on Still Butterflies like a mad woman because I had a hard deadline of July 31 for the book to be done (that’s when I have to get it to my audiobook narrators).
If you have been following my Instagram stories, you’ve probably seen some exciting updates over the last month or so. The most important one I posted last night, which is that Still Butterflies is available for pre-order and will be out 8/14/25! (My social media gurus are going to be making a post soon.)
If you’d like to pre-order the ebook, you can do it on Amazon, or several other platforms here (there will be more added to this link but it takes time for the distributor to get to all the different companies). I plan to have the pre-order up on my website within the next few days.
ARC sign ups will open soon.
For those wondering, the Butterflies Series is a duology, so Still Butterflies will complete Jax & Tess’s journey. I will try to get a preview of the first few chapters up ahead of time, but for those that want a little info sooner than later, the bottom of this will have some sneak peeks & nuggets of information. If you want to be totally surprised, you can skip the bottom (it’s beneath the label “SNEAK PEEK/PREVIEW”).
Before we get there, I have more exciting news! I have been searching high & low for vendor/author events to sign up for, and I’ve found some that I’ve been accepted to. Everything is within driving distance from me, but hopefully I’ll be able to travel to farther away events soon! Here is everything I am confirmed for as of this now:
September 13, 2025 (rain date 9/27/25) – Country Fair, Veterans Community Park, 100 Calais Road, Randolph, NJ 07869 | 11 am – 5 pm
September 20, 2025 – The Great Book Swap, Liquid Church, 299 Webro Rd, Parsippany, NJ 07054 | 11 am – 4 pm
March 14, 2025 – Books In Bloom, Randolph Community Center, 30 Calais Road, Randolph, NJ 07869 | 10 am – 4 pm
I’ve applied to a couple of others, but I’m waitlisted, so we’ll see.
I will have event exclusive merchandise, like stickers, bookmarks and other story related stuff. Also, I am creating an art book with all the art done by @akumabrushes for this series. Since it will have NSFW art in it, I will only be selling it at events for now (P.S. It was actually pretty difficult to find a printer who would print NSFW art books; I found only 1 that I could figure out). If you are dying to get the art book but cannot come to one of the events, we can discuss after it’s ready, but no promises. Akuma is working on 1 art piece now and has 1 more later this month, so the book won’t be ready until probably September.
Speaking of events, I will be attending (as an attendee) Villains & Vixens in Dallas, TX. It’s September 5 & 6, 2025. If you will be there, I would love to meet you, so let me know! The Butterflies Series audiobook narrators, Laura Horowitz & Gregory Salanis, will both be there as vendors! (I’m so excited to meet them! They will actually be recording Still Butterflies right before the event!!!!!)
Now that Jax & Tess’s story is basically done, what’s next?
I have been working on Dead Roses, the first book of the Dead Roses trilogy and have about 3/4 of the first draft done. I will need to write at least the first draft of Last Rose, the second book, before I publish the first. The third book, Final Thorn, is a separate story but connected to the first two books. It takes place several years later, so it’s kind of it’s own story. I won’t need to have that one done before I publish books 1 & 2.
Don’t know about Dead Roses? Let me give you the elevator pitch: In the mists of a secret steamy affair with her smokin’ hot new colleague, FBI Agent Katherine Slater is stalked by a serial killer with an unhealthy obsession…her.
This is a romantic thriller series. The pitch might have the word “affair” in it, but I promise there is no cheating in this one. They are both single.
Some of the tropes & micro-tropes: secret office romance, fuck-buddies to lovers, stalker, he falls first, law enforcement, insta-attraction, spicy, forced proximity, some fucked-up shit goes down
Katherine Rose Slater (aka Kate) – 30, widow, workaholic, fiery redhead, has a master’s degree in psychology
Matteo Enzo Rossi (aka Matt or Teo) – 32, transferred to Kate’s office after working undercover for several years, tattooed & pierced, tall & yummy, bilingual and speaks to Kate in Italian, has a law degree but has never practiced law (have you notice I like sexy nerds?)
There are a lot of triggers for this series. It’s not a dark romance but it has dark themes. Some of the triggers in the series (not all are in all books) include: death of females of all ages & in many different ways (guys die too, but a lot more females), stalker (who is a complete sicko), mental health & suicide, fertility issues, kidnapping, school shootings… yeah, it gets dark
It’s a story I have been working on for YEARS. It’s a complex story to write, but I love it so much.
I’ve also been working on (yes, I’m still talking/typing – I’m a writer, I can’t help it) a paranormal romance that involves werewolves/shifters. It’s a stand alone, but I may make it a series where all the books are stand alones. I work on it when I need a break from the darkness of Tess & Jax’s and Matt & Kate’s stories. It meant to be fun and with as few triggers as possible.
My guess is that the paranormal romance will be out before Dead Roses because I have about 2/3 of it left to write and ~1.05 books of Dead Roses/Last Rose to write (I have part of both written).
Okay, finally we get to the end.
SNEAK PEEK/PREVIEW
A LITTLE BIT SPOILER COMING
A LITTLE BIT SPOILER COMING
A LITTLE BIT SPOILER COMING
A LITTLE BIT SPOILER COMING
A LITTLE BIT SPOILER COMING
LOOK AWAY NOW IF YOU WANT TO BE COMPLETELY SURPRISED!!!!!!
LOOK AWAY NOW IF YOU WANT TO BE COMPLETELY SURPRISED!!!!!!
LOOK AWAY NOW IF YOU WANT TO BE COMPLETELY SURPRISED!!!!!!
LOOK AWAY NOW IF YOU WANT TO BE COMPLETELY SURPRISED!!!!!!
LOOK AWAY NOW IF YOU WANT TO BE COMPLETELY SURPRISED!!!!!!
YOU’VE BEEN WARNED
YOU’VE BEEN WARNED
YOU’VE BEEN WARNED
YOU’VE BEEN WARNED
You’re like me and want sneak peeks/little nuggets, so here ya go!
My Butterflies ended on Thursday morning. Still Butterflies picks up Friday morning (so no time jump).
Based on the art above, you probably figured out Tess finally gets to meet Mr. Toasty Toes
There are spicy scenes from both POVs (at least 2 each). The first spicy chapter is 8.
This book is DARK and some readers may need to skip chapter 26 (there’s a warning in the beginning of the book about that)
Things to look forward to: Jax & Tess get back together! (This should be obvious.) More Ferris wheel (did the cover give that away?)! More charms. Jax singing & playing for Tess. Jax reveals a couple of big secrets. Tess’s parents being awesome.
There is a HEA (it’s romance, so it’s unforgivable for there not to be. I’ve already broken code w/ the cheating), however, Jax & Tess have to work for it.
There are 2 big time jumps.
Jax struggles with his demons.
I’ve cried several times while writing & editing this book.
Alright, I better wrap up now. Thank you if you’ve actually read all this.
Hi! It’s been a while but I come with some big updates!
Still Butterflies is coming along and will be published within the next few months. In case you missed my IG story, I just ordered my first proof copy and should get it Monday. It’s a little early to have ordered it, however, due to my full-time job, I have screen fatigue and need a break from staring at a computer screen (also, you’d be amazed at how many typos and issues I find when looking at the text in a different format).
I still have to go through several rounds of editing, send to a professional editor, then edit some more. Once I get feedback from the professional editor, I’ll know when I will be able to publish it. The narrators for the audiobook are recording in August so it has to be done by then. I am expecting to have the ebook, paperback & hardcover out before the audiobook, but there won’t be as long of a wait for audiobook listeners this time between the release date and when I can get the audiobook out.
So, now that the Butterflies Series is wrapping up, newer readers of mine might not know that Jax & Tess’s story has always been my practice story (I love them so much but they were not the first story I ever tried to write). Back in 2011-2012, I thought up a story about a serial killer who stalks and torments an FBI agent, who’s in a secret romance with one of her colleagues. I tried writing my first novel back then, got overwhelmed, didn’t get that far and stopped. I didn’t try to write any stories again until February 2017, which was when Jax & Tess popped into my head.
So, now that I have my first novel series under my belt, I’ll be going back to my original babies, Kate & Matt in a series called Dead Roses. When I wrote it in a story app, it was by far my more popular story. It’s a trilogy: Dead Roses, Last Rose & Final Thorn. It’s a very complex story to write due to the nature of it. There is a lot of foreshadowing, needing to be careful about not giving too much away too soon, and thinking like law enforcement but also getting into the head of a psychopath. There are times when I need a break from writing it; not only is it complex, there are a lot of dark topics in it. It’s a romantic thriller and written in first person from Kate, Matt & “Unknown’s” POV (Unknown’s POV so readers can get glimpses into what’s happening that Matt & Kate don’t know about, or know about yet).
The plan is to completed Dead Roses and the manuscript of Final Rose before I publish the first novel as, because the story is so complex, while I write the second book, I may need to go back and change things in the first book. I may take a break after the second book is released because the third book, although not a standalone, it a separate plot from the first two books. There is a time jump between them. Dead Roses and Final Rose start in March and end in the summer (so a short amount of time).
Hopefully readers won’t have to wait too long though since I already have 82k+ words of Dead Roses written (I have other scenes from the other books written too), so it’s about 2/3-3/4 done.
For those that don’t know anything about Dead Roses, here is a tempter (this is a temporary one as this art was used for the story app version; my artist will make new art for the novels, but needs to finish up Jax & Tess art first).
I can hardly believe we are less than a month from My Butterflies being released. I started writing the novel version of this story only a year ago and now after a year of metaphorical blood and literal sweat & tears, it’s ready to go! I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous as all get out.
I have the first five chapters up to read now and you can find them here.
Regarding the pre-order bonus/incentive: If you pre-ordered the book and/or a book box and have not already done so, please complete the age verification form. If you pre-ordered from anywhere besides me, keep your proofs and submit them to this form after you receive your book or the ebook shows up in your library. The pre-order incentive includes exclusive art (SFW & NSFW), stickers, a bookmark, coupon (for my website) for Still Butterflies and a signature book plate where I am not sending you the physical book directly.
If you were on my ARC team, please don’t forget to read and leave a review! Reviews really help! Here are some places you can leave a review: goodreads | Fable | B&N | Amazon
Time is moving fast and I cannot believe I’m only about a month out from sending MyButterflies ARCs! (If you’re interested but haven’t filled out the form yet, you can find it here.) Anyway, I’m excited to share that I’m offering 2 pre-order bonus options!
My Butterflies Book Box pre-order option: If you pre-order any of the 3 book box options (only on my website), you’ll get some bonus items in your box that will not be available in post-release book boxes at this time. This includes some NSFW/mature/explicit art. In order to receive the NSFW content, you will have to complete this form to confirm you are at least 18 years old. (At the time of this writing, only the ebook and paperback book boxes are available for purchase as I am currently waiting on the final hardcover book for weight in order to calculate the shipping costs, but it should be up on the website within the next week or 2.) Don’t forget there’s a coupon code valid until August 31, 2024 for $5 off any of the book boxes: jaxtess4ever
Book pre-order option: If you pre-order My Butterflies on any website/platform in any format (ebook, paperback, hardcover), you can complete this form after the book is released and I will mail you some goodies. Ebook pre-orders are currently available on Amazon and several other ebook platforms. Physical books will be up for pre-order closer to the release date.
Please note that My Butterflies will be released October 31, 2024. The audiobook will be out late winter/early spring 2025 and will unlikely have a pre-order option. If you have any questions, please reach out!
Hey all! I’m excited to announce that I will be releasing a book box for My Butterflies! Specifically, a mystery/adventure/journey box that will make reading the book more immersive.
What does that mean? As you read the book, you’ll come across notes that instructs you, the reader, to open a specific package, envelope, etc… The item will be related to that specific scene in the book.
There will be 3 options:
Paperback option
Hardcover option
ebook/audiobook/already have book option
The physical book versions will include a signed copy of the book. The 3rd version will have a signed bookplate. The physical book versions will also have the reader open the item in the middle of the scene while the 3rd option will instruct the reader to open at the end of a specific chapter as to not spoil anything before you’ve read it.
Regarding pricing, I don’t know yet as I am still working on logistics and the final cost of the book printing. What I can say is the only difference in the price between the 3 options would be the book price (so the cost of the mystery items will be the same regardless of what option you pick). These will be on sale (eventually) through my website, but I’m also still working on those logistics. I’m going to try to set up a pre-order for them, but we’ll see.
More info to come including how many items will be in the box, pricing + shipping and availability.
Here’s an early announcement before I post it anywhere else! Some online stores are still processing, but My Butterflies ebook is available for pre-order on several online stores like Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, etc… through Draft2Digital https://books2read.com/u/brMPkY, which is an aggregator (meaning I upload to them and they distribute to other online stores/platforms).
My Butterflies, which was published as Music From His Heart on an interactive story app, will be published in paperback, hardcover and ebook October 31, 2024. The audiobook is anticipated early spring 2025. Sign up for my newsletter to stay updated, chances for freebies and sneak peek chapters before release.
