Gush

Firstly, DB Moon has Razel Dazzle as this weeks "Must Read Monday" which is awesome!

Secondly, I'm afraid I'm just needing to have a little gush moment.

I wrote The Collector in October 2009, and after a couple of rejections and some feedback. I took my time and re-wrote it, and made it better. I was super excited when it was accepted, but during edits I had a mini freak out. There are so many fallen/angel stories out there - amazing fallen/angel stories - and I have to admit I worried that The Collector might be too simple; not that I wish to be insulting to my own work, but I did.

The Collector is the first novella in what I am hoping will be a four part series; each story will focus on a different type of angel. It is not the type of story where there is an ultimate battle between good and evil. It is more based on choices, and feelings. The Collector is concentrating on the angel, Kale, and the choice he makes.

I love the novella. I love the world, but as with every book I write a game of twenty questions ran through my mind. It's natural - so I have been told by other writers - to question the hell out of what you have written.

But when you receive reviews like the following - especially from a talented fellow author - you just have to feel that critical part of your mind to shut the hell up.

From Goodreads:-

"If you think you know what to expect from THE COLLECTOR, you'd better think again! This story is one twist after the next, each one a lovely--if a bit unsettling at times--surprise. Kale's job is to collect the souls of the dead and deliver them for judgement. It's a relatively simple task ... that is, until he stands ready to take Samantha. Something inside him changes in that moment, and rather than collect her soul, he saves her life. This tears a hole in the tapestry of time, and Kale's punishment is a bitter thrust into the world of mortality, where Samantha finds herself inexplicably drawn to him. His appearance into Samantha's life is complicated, to say the least, and there's a truth standing between them he knows may well devastate the one woman he dared to love.

I found myself on a roller coaster of emotion, at some points reflecting on my own life in some pretty large scale ways (something incredibly impressive of Ms. Morgan to draw from her reader), at others feeling for the fallen Kale, whose loss is one that hit me bone deep. The story draws on the past in a unique way, melding heroine Samantha's own abilities with a rather shocking turn of present-day events to create a blend of plot lines with which readers can readily identify. Every detail fits precisely into the story, every turn exactly as it should be to move the story to an inevitable, but utterly satisfying conclusion. Poignant and introspective, THE COLLECTOR is a fantastic read you'll think about long after the last page is turned." - Sarah Ballance (Fellow Noble Author)

Not only is this a compliment, but a wonderful reminder to why I decided to submit my writing in the first place. It just goes to show that despite my own views on my work that readers will see something entirely different, and at the end of the day it is your enjoyment and satisfaction that is the most rewarding part of being a writer. You guys make all the head-desk moments, and the pulling of hair totally worth it.

A big thank you to Sarah for a review that is going to have me smiling for a month if not longer. And a super big thank you to every single one of you who has purchased one of my stories. Thank you for taking the time to read them, I hope you enjoy the stories.