• I supposed people would like to know what’s up, the few people that are interested anyway. More or less, writing what was going to be my first full-length project has become really difficult now that I’m toward the end and I can’t decide on what I want to happen with making one character or the other look bad to anyone who reads this. I’ll eventually get it done, but for now- it’s dropped from my priorities until I can get motivated because I love mixed martial arts and it’s my first venture into writing sports fiction.
• In the meantime, I’ve still got a project I started toward the end of last year going slowly, that being Live by the Sword. As I said in the last blog, it’s a lot different than I imagined it because it’s centered around a yakuza turned chef’s apprentice who uncovers a lot more than meets the eye.
• On November 2nd, I’m set to get back into catering for an anniversary party.
• I was working on something that I was going to base around periods of my own life, but reliving certain moments isn’t something I’d like to do at the moment, though in my heart, I feel it needs to be done.
• Currently, I’m doing review requests, so if you’ve got something you want honestly reviewed, just fill this form out. It goes directly to my email.
• Also, I’m currently taking my published short story down because I know there’s more of Vance’s story that can be told in New Mexican Predators.

Okay, if you noticed the title, you’ll see that the second part of that says “Cooking Plans for 2014.” I know we just got into 2013, but I feel like making some plans for the next year. This is going to be a short blog, so bear with me.

Okay, so I started my culinary path in 2012 and the year ended on a good note; an anniversary dinner and doing some service for my brother Drako. That was just the first step on my road to being a caterer. Hopefully, 2013 brings me some business on that front. I’ll continue to promote myself, in that regard.

Anyway, I want to talk about my first book of the year. I’ve decided that this book would be the first in a series of a sports fiction. I think I mentioned it in a previous blog, but I’ve come to a decision. I need to get with a cover designer for The Welter Way. Also, I’ve realized that this book will be going through a lot of major changes. It’s gonna be different from the way I had planned it.

That’s not all, though. I’ve got a crime drama planned that has yet to be titled and I really should get to work on Live By the Sword, but that particular book is going to take a while to work on since it’s set in this period: a world without firearms, and that’s been pretty hard to work with, which is why it’s coming along a lot slower than I had planned.  But I hope for that one to be done before this year is up, though.

Now, for my plans for 2014 involve a cookbook I’m trying to put together. Originally, I had planned on 150 recipes that go over everything a cookbook’s supposed to go over. I’m still planning that for next year, but I’m trying to decide if I should promote that side of me by adding a recipe at the very end of every book that I publish. I’ll try that once, just to see how it goes over.

Now, to talk about my website. I will most likely launch two websites but I’ll settle for one and that’ll be for the author in me.

So, Fatal Healing by Drako came out on December 3 and his party for the book was yesterday. I felt honored to be a part of that, aside from being assaulted with utensils. Even I had to laugh at the videos Drako posted. I posted a POV shot of the beating. Don’t ask. Being a big fan of his series, I felt that as part of the Den, I needed to be there. Not ’cause he demanded my presence, but because this was my idea from the get-go and I needed to see it through.

Food was great, discussions were fun, and I even posted a raw, uncensored interview with the man himself on my YouTube channel. Questions ranged from writing in general, the series, his first book, his favorite forms of literature, influences, and even a rant from him on Twilight when the conversation shifted toward vampires.

“Ow, bitch, you shot me!” -Kia, on vampires being shot upon me mentioning the effects of silver on vampires in the Blade universe.

I still stand on heart and headshots.

I suppose I should get back to Live by the Sword, since school is done for the winter and I’ve got nothing but time.

So, two days ago, I managed to procure a copy of Fatal Healing by my brother, Drako. Needless to say, this continuation of the Dragon Hunters series has me wanting more. The next book being released will be The Three Fates, due to there having to be three new overseers of destiny because of Cronus killing the Moirae in the Dragon Witch. I suppose I should just get on with it.

As I said in one of my previous blogs, the book is about the god and goddess of healing Apollo and Odele going out to rescue Odele’s mortal twin brother from the clutches of the former god king Cronus, who is holding Cassius hostage in the realm of Lucifer (useless son of Erebus and Nyx). But we get more than we’ve bargained for regarding this latest edition to the series. Brandon, the new god of darkness, has his own issue he needs to stop running from. I loved how he was forced to come to terms with it, even after he confronted said issue and continued to be in denial. Now, if only Demun would stop running from his. But I guess we’ll learn more about that coming soon.

(Before I continue this, I just want to say that Hera practically implied that Adonis was the soul mate of Brandon in The Lost Dragon.)

Hera to Andreas: “Both boys have met their soul mates…”

Anyway, Brandon, Apollo, and Odele confront their issues head on despite the two-front assault by Cronus and Typhon. If you’re interested in, I promise that it’s a good read. Drako has become one of my favorite authors. He’s in my top five. Trust me, read anything by him and you will never be disappointed. Ever.

Moving on, I changed my mind about a series called The Vigilante’s Handbook I had decided not to publish. I think I will, because it sounds like a good idea. But only after I complete and publish this book I’m working on called Live by the Sword. Live by the Sword is the first book of a possible series set in a world without firearms after a war between the United States and Iran that pulled 85% of the world’s nation into the conflict. It’s centered around a young apprentice of a popular chef whose restaurant is harassed daily by a local gang offering “protection services.” Eventually, the apprentice reaches his limit and fights  the thugs, who retaliate after a vicious beating at his hands, by bombing the restaurant, attacking the chef, and later kidnapping the chef’s wayward daughter.

Unfortunately for the gang, their malevolent actions force Ben’s hand. In order to save the girl, he must return to the violent world he left behind and pick up the sword he swore to never wield again as atonement for the atrocities committed as a hit man. Ben swore that he would never again take a human life, but he has to prevent the unthinkable from happening to his boss’ only child.

And now, I want to talk about the release party. I’m going to have to bring it if I want to make this first party a blowout for my brother. I’m going to have to bring it so I can get some business for the future.

Well, now that I know what I’m gonna have to do to get this party to be a blowout tomorrow, I think I should sign off for tonight and blog again when we get tomorrow over with.

Also, I have a short story out on Kindle and Nook, but here’s the Smashwords link.

So, I’ve made up my mind on a lot of things. The first thing I’m doing at this time is releasing a short story I’ve been doing for quite some time. It’s a short story called Hunter.  Hunter is set in the American Frontier and is about the vengeance of Edward Vance. Edward has tracked down the outlaw that murdered his sister and blinded his younger brother and proceeds to take on the entire Mallett Gang. I’ve got it out for Kindle and is processing for Nook.

Short story details out of the way, I wanna go deep into the Release Party. I’ve decided to just do a Italian/Greek theme as far as food. I’ve decided on a quick menu as well with just five days to go until the party.

• Mostaccioli
• Greek themed pizzas (stuffed with feta cheese)
• Italian/Greek wings/tenders

Well, that’s pretty much it for now. I should get back to writing my book I plan to release in 2013.  Originally, I wanted to publish a work I had been doing since I was sixteen but since I’ve been online and some people love it, why should I make ’em pay for it? Not to mention that Damijin Spade has been my pet project, as far as writing goes, for almost ten years and he interacts with other characters created by my fellow unpublished independent writers that I’ve worked alongside since 2008. So, with that being said, I’ve scrapped that idea for a coming story. Details to come.

Oh, and follow me on Twitter @ForestofDragons

First of all, I managed to score an interview (on my own), for the first time in five years. It was a marketing firm whose biggest clients are the St. Louis Cardinals, St. Louis Blues, and St. Louis Rams. I went in on Wednesday and answered every question honestly, though the interview was very brief. How I think it went and will I get a call back is another question that’s meant for another time.

So, I finally managed to get around to the Sleeping Beauty Trilogy‘s conclusion. Damn, I gotta say that was pretty damn good. I’m not an uber-fan of Lady Anne Rice, but I can see why Drako loves her so much. Anyway, I think I should get to the review. This one’s going to be really, really short- since I want to get to the point and talk more about the Fatal Healing release party.

We pick up where Beauty’s Punishment left off, with Beauty, Tristan, and Laurent being captured by Arabs and being taken to Saudi Arabia (ooh, a sultan!), if this were set in the modern day. The story focuses more on Laurent in first person than it does Beauty, but Beauty does have her moments.

The new slaves are brought to the palace in a line, each man chained to the next. Laurent, being his rebellious self, is confronted by his new “Master”: a man by the name of Lexius. Lexius is a strong man, at least until he meets Laurent, who manages to switch their roles of lord and slave really quickly. Laurent whips Lexius before taking him briefly, to Lexius’ discovered pleasure. The Arabian lord’s secret desire is to be a slave; he desperately wants to be whipped, commanded, and raped by other men. From there on, the two carry on an intense sexual affair, with Laurent as master when it suits him.

But I can’t leave out Beauty. Beauty is introduced to her new life by being introduced to the Sultan’s harem. However, she takes a liking to the harem girl Inanna. When the two get intimate, Inanna becomes embarrassed and refuses to let Beauty touch her. Beauty discovers that it is because the woman’s clitoris and labia have been assaulted and mutilated, the same as every woman in the harem. This makes Beauty angry at the Sultan, but she and Inanna still engage in their sexual activity. Both women satisfied, they fall asleep in each other’s arms.

The next morning, Beauty is awakened by pounding on the locked door. She escapes the room, only to find guards are chasing her. They don’t belong to the Sultan; they’re the Queen’s men, led by the Captain of the Guard. They’ve come to rescue Beauty because of the strong alliance between the Queen and Beauty’s family. However, the trio do not want to be rescued.

As I said, I wanna make this short and patience ain’t my strong suit. Here’s the spoilers:

Beauty was rescued because her service was up.

Tristan and Laurent get sent to be ponies for a year until Laurent is informed that he is King of his lands due to the death of dad.

Beauty still longs to be a slave and is surprised and overjoyed when King Laurent orders her to marry him and become his queen, torturing her sexually the entire way home.

Okay, now I wanna get to the release party. Mainly ’cause I’m excited as hell for it and it’s going to be the first time I’ve actually catered and cook for a full party. I don’t know how big it’s going to be or where, but I think Drako needs to do some talking with the LGBT Center of St. Louis for the following reason, other than promotion. And so, nii-chan, I’m directing this part to you.

You, sir, are an LGBTQ writer- I’m sure you realize that. I’m sure Leon (director of the LGBT Center of St. Louis) would have zero beef with you if you were break it down to him properly that you’re a  published author and you’re trying to get yourself out there even more than you are now with a release party.

The address to Drako aside, I need to get down to business. once again, the Fatal Healing release party is set for December 15, 2012. As far as what I think should be served for the party, ’cause the ball’s in my court- Drako asked me could I make him mostacciolli one day. I told him to give me his mom’s recipe and we’d be cool. But I’ll do him one better. I will serve it at the release party. That is confirmed. If he’s down for it, I’ll serve some pizza made with feta cheese and olive, to keep the flavors Greek. Throw on some Greek chicken wings, Greek chicken wraps… possibilities are endless. If Drako wants a Greek thing, it’s up to him. If he wants other things, that’s up to him as well. He wanted to leave me in charge of his party, but I don’t mind getting some input from him as well.

In the meantime, the party’s venue is to be determined.

So, I’m making another post. The first one was to introduce myself to WordPress. This one is to… well, it’s to share what’s up.

So, I’m watching the Ultimate Fighter Fridays, which has Shane Carwin and Roy “Big Country” Nelson coaching a team of eight welterweights apiece until there’s one left to win a six-figure contract into the UFC. Aside from John Manley’s guillotine choke finish of James Chaney, the sixteenth season has been… well, let’s just say an utter disappointment would be an understatement. This season is almost as bad as The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights (season 10). All that hype for Kimbo Slice and the only thing he manages to do is get held in a crucifix and beaten with the softest shots ever.

Bad judging and bad fighting all around. Basically, the previously mentioned fight has been the only one that hasn’t gone to the judges. Right now, I’m watching the first quarterfinal fight (Neil Magny vs Bristol Marunde, both from Team Carwin) and the first round was not impressive at all and the second round is going the same way. You would think that these guys would want to try to win $5,000 for every fight they finish, and $25,000 each for Knockout, Submission, and Fight of the Season (started in Faber vs Cruz). Sounds like Dana White’s gonna save a lotta money this season.

And here’s an update: Neil Magny wins by unanimous decision, but there were many times he could’ve finished the fight. There’s one more fight in this episode: Igor Araujo vs Colton Smith… and these idiots were about to fight during the weigh-ins. All that hype Igor got for himself and he’s just getting owned. And we’re looking at another decision. DID ANY OF THESE GUYS WATCH THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER 5?!

To explain: Noah Thomas and Marlon Sims were drunk and got riled up in the backyard of the Ultimate Fighter house. Allen Berube instigated the whole thing by telling the pair that they weren’t gonna kicked off the show when clearly one of the rules of TUF, decreed by Dana during the famous first season, is that if you fight outside the Octagon, you’re done. Not to mention that there are cameramen with you 24/7 and Dana is watching every second of every minute of footage being recorded. The two fight, then stop, then start up again, then stop. Next morning, Dana shows up at the house and gives a speech about the original form of MMA and how people hated the sport until he and the Fertita brothers came along and made the UFC the guideline of MMA. Long story short, he sent all three fighters home for embarrassing themselves and the sport of mixed martial arts. Then again, it’s not like they had anything to lose ’cause they had lost their fights.

To get back on track, I wanna talk about the Fatal Healing release party first. Drako thinks a Greek array of food would be a good idea, but I’m still undecided. I almost wanna hook up at spicy thing, which would be a play on dragon flames, but I don’t wanna necessarily kill poor Drako or anyone else with sensitive taste-buds.

The next thing is that the release party will be on December 15, a week and some change after the official release of the book.