{Thursday Thoughts): Secular vs Christian

Thursday Thoughts is a new feature here on my blog -- don't ya just love how I randomly create these new things? -- where I'll share whatever's on my mind. It could be about writing or editing or life in general. Today, I want to talk -- or maybe vent -- about the two different markets I've been simultaneously living in for the past several years. 

When I first started writing and publishing, it was within the secular romance market, and I'd found some decent success in that I'd gotten published with a variety of small presses, had good reviews and fans. I even managed to sign with an agent. Then I got into editing, and while I absolutely love doing that, it took a lot of time away from my own writing and publishing endeavors. There was a very long period where I didn't write or publish anything. 

Throughout that period, I became involved with Anaiah Press, which is strictly Christian fiction. An entirely new world of fiction had been revealed to me, and I quickly fell in love with it. I even wrote a couple Christian novels, and I thoroughly enjoyed that. 

But now, I'm firmly back in the secular market with my YA paranormal series, and it feels good. It feels like I'm back where I'm supposed to be. Not that I don't love CF -- I do -- but all of my current book ideas and series I want to go back to and finish are all secular. At this point in time, I don't have any intentions of going back to the Christian market as a writer. 

So, I guess consider this a head's up that moving forward, all my books will be secular. Does this mean I'll never write CF again? Of course not. If the muse comes knocking, I'll answer. While I will always try to consciously keep my books free of cursing, sex, and gratuitous violence, if the story calls for it, I won't shy away. But don't worry, it won't be graphic, and  I'll always be mindful to include content warnings. 

You're probably wondering why I'm doing this. A couple of reasons. 

1. As I said above, all my ideas lately have been secular, and if I don't write those, what will I write? I really don't have any brilliant CF ideas anymore, not since Perfectly Imperfect released earlier this year. And I don't want to not write simply because I don't have ideas for a specific market. 

2. I'm not gonna lie... Writing for both markets is exhausting. It's two completely different readerships with vastly different expectations. If I do an event that caters to CF readers, they'll be turned off when I then promote my secular books on my social media or in my newsletter. Conversely, marketing CF to secular readers doesn't go well, either. 

To any of my CF readers who choose not to continue following / supporting me as a result of this decision, I completely understand, and I promise I have no hard feelings. I truly want only the best for you :-) 

To everyone else who's still with me -- buckle up. I have a feeling this is going to be a wild ride. 

Re-branding and Book Updates

Last week, I shared some important updates with my newsletter subscribers. (Not signed up? Do so now!) And now, I'm going to share them with all of you...

RE-BRANDING:

Back when I started writing in 2010, I created the Kara Leigh Miller pen name, under which I wrote and published some rather steamy erotic romances. But then I had an idea for a young adult romance, (formerly known as The Georgia Corbins) which I also wrote and published as Kara. During that time, I was asked a lot about why I didn't create a new pen name for my YA stuff. And my answer was always -- Because I don't have the time or patience to create and maintain multiple social media accounts, and because I'd already built a following as Kara and I wanted -- no, needed -- to cash in on that from a sales standpoint. And I really didn't have any issues. 

Until I signed on with Anaiah Press, which is a Christian fiction publisher. For the record, I do NOT regret my time or my books with Anaiah. It's been such an amazing experience that I wouldn't ever change :) 

But clearly I couldn't continue to use the same pen name to write across a variety of genres like I had been. And so, it's come time to re-brand myself as an author. 

From this point forward, Kara Leigh Miller will ONLY publish young adult books. My alter-ego, Lexi Lawton, will publish the steamier New Adult and Adult books. If that's your thing, please feel free to follow Lexi on her website, Twitter, and Facebook. Also, sign up for her newsletter and get a FREE digital copy of Christmas Confessions -- an exclusive short story not available anywhere else!

OUT OF PRINT:

Due to various reasons -- issues with the publisher, contract expiration, etc. -- FOUR of my books will no longer be available for purchase after the end of August....

Love and Other Games

Love by Number (Aurora Island Resort #1)

Love on the Rocks (Aurora Island Resort #2)

Love at the Edge (Aurora Island Resort #3)

I know this might not sound like a good thing, but it is! Because I'm in the middle of a major re-branding, having these steamier titles removed helps me achieve that goal. Plus, this now gives me the opportunity to revisit these books, re-edit, maybe even re-write portions and then re-release them as Lexi. Be on the look out for those sometime next year :-) 

UPDATE ON TORN (THE GEORGIA CORBINS, Book 1):

If you follow me on social media, you'll remember that back in March, I was on the fast-track to having this book ready to release in early May. However, in a weird but exciting turn of events, the book landed in the hands of an editor at a publisher that I would love to sign with!

As a result, all of my carefully laid plans came to a screeching halt. I've recently heard back from this editor, and while she's interested in the series, there are some rewrites she feels need to be done before it's ready for publication. And after taking some time to really think about it and discuss it with her, I've decided to do it. All of her suggestions are spot-on and will only make the series stronger. I can't tell you how excited I am to dive back into this story!

Unfortunately, that means this series won't be published any time soon. I'm really hoping for sometime in 2017, but no guarantees. I do promise that this series WILL be back in the world at some point, though. I love it too much to just let it go.

WORKS-IN-PROGRESS:

While I've been busy working on the Collins Brother Series, I do have a lot of projects in the works and hope to have a new Kara book out sometime next year. In the meantime, this is what I'm working on....

Warped Remains -- A YA romantic thriller that's LOST meets AND THEN THERE WERE NONE. This is a co-written project that will be in front of an editor by the end of the month. 

Hallowed Ground (Graves Barren, Book 1) -- A YA paranormal romance series. It has the same tone and style and epic-ness of the Twilight Saga but without any vampires or werewolves. 

Untitled -- A contemporary YA romance that has a dual timeline (one told in present time and the other told via journal entries). It's a heartbreaking love story. 

Thanks for sticking with me, and until next time...

xoxo

~Kara