My guest today is author Michelle Miles who is talking coffee and sexy holiday stories. She also shares the story of how she revived her series by reclaiming her rights and taking matters into her own hands.
Hello! First a huge thank you to Reese for allowing me to crash her blog today. I so appreciate it!
Today I’m talking coffee. Okay I realize not everyone is a coffee drinker but my series, Coffee House Chronicles, is set in and around a coffee house. You don’t even have to LIKE coffee to enjoy these books. I started the series way back in 2006 with my debut novella, Talk Dirty to Me. There have since been many books with the same title but I’m here to tell you I was the first. 😉
One thing led to another and before I knew it, I had four books in the series. I had switched publishers and found the latter books in the series didn’t do as well. So I did what any author would do – I asked for my rights back and got them. I’ve been indie pubbing the books and getting them back into the hands of readers.
Have Yourself a Merry Little Latte was originally titled The Coffee Wars.
*yawn*
I hated that title from the get-go but at the time it was all I could come up with. Since it was set during Christmastime, I really wanted something snappier and something that was Christmas-y. I went to my fellow Plotting Princesses and asked for title help. These ladies are brilliant when it comes to that, let me tell you. I have them to thank for the title.
I call this book 2.5 in the series. Why 2.5? Well because it comes after the second book in the series, NICE GIRLS DO. You don’t have to read these books in order to get the story. It just gives you a richer reader experience.
I got a snazzy new cover. And now the book is up for pre-order and releasing November 19!
Here’s the BLURB:
All’s fair in love and coffee and the only thing that matters in this war is a lot of hot steam!
Lilly owns the new up and coming, Java Perks. She’s determined to be the number one coffee house in town, crushing her competition down the street, The Bitter End.
Meeting the mystery woman in his coffee house, David immediately wants her for himself. After a hot encounter on his desk, he can’t stop thinking about her. Until he learns she’s the owner of the place trying to put him out of business.
When David confronts Lilly accusing her of using him, she throws down the gauntlet. Now the two are at war and may the best woman win!
Have Yourself a Merry Little Latte, a holiday romance! Can’t wait? Pre-order now!
Smashwords: http://bit.ly/1eNCq3k
Kobo: http://bit.ly/19yEwvH
Want to win a prize package that includes the entire Coffee House series and gift cards? You can! Just head on over to my blog and help me celebrate the countdown to the release. Starting November 9, you can enter to win the prize package (open to US residents only). Comment every day until release day to get another entry to win. I’m posting excerpts and stuff about the book as well as asking a fun daily question. Hope to see you at the Countdown to Release!
I love the title and that cover is so perfect! Thanks for sharing how the book came about. Fun!
It’s interesting to hear how things like this come about. I’m hearing more and more about writers who have rescued their series this way. Many of the series have done considerably better indie published.
Oh I love hearing the behind-the-scenes stories authors experience with their books. Loved hearing your story, Michelle. Thanks for sharing it. I wish you great success on your upcoming release.
The rise of indie publishing has created an open dialogue that has given us a peek behind the curtains of publishing. Love that and how willing the writer community is to share their hard-learned lessons with others.
This sounds like the perfect story to kick off my holiday season! Love the excerpt. You had me at The Bitter End, btw. 🙂
Thanks so much for visiting, Barb!