Steam Steam Steam Heat & Dreams of Steam II

Steam Heat
We found out today that Elizabeth Darvill's first steampunk/romance story "Steam Heat" published by Harlequin is now available for pre-order from Amazon.com. This is super exciting news so join us in our bliss and take a peek!
Click here to see the pre-order on Amazon.



Dreams of Steam II Of Brass and Bolts
Also available now is the wonderful steampunk anthology "Dreams of Steam II" from Kerlak Publishing. This one is HUGE and has like 25 stories from 25 amazing authors. My steampunk/horror story "Bedeviled" is in this one and I can't be more excited. Click here for the e-book version.

Real Life Romance (His)

Two days ago I proposed to the love of my life Elizabeth Darvill and I'm so excited. So this is my companion story to her blog post which can be found HERE.

I've been planning this for a while and due to constraints, I haven;t been able to get the ring I wanted until recently. So I toiled over how to ask, what I would say and where I would do it for quite some time. Every night I would drift off to sleep planning and contemplating how when and where.

Liz wanted a Claddagh ring so I wanted to get her a real one made in Ireland. Ok, check. Then it was where do I pop the question? I wanted it to be in Nashville, and I wanted to do it at a memorable place. You know, one we could drive by in the future and say, "Wow, that's where it happened." After many Internet searches and running through every local cool place in my head, I decided that The Parthenon would be the best and most permanent location. Now how do I get her up there without raising suspicion?

A few years ago I helped one of my best friends in the world hatch a plan to propose to his girl at the same location. So I took the story we came up with and slightly modified it.

Before hand, she didn't have anything to wear so she mentioned she wanted to go get a dress of a shirt for date night. She wanted to run to Goodwill(Yeah that's how we roll) but when we left the driveway, I totally spaced out and went the other direction. Liz, said, "oh are we not going to look for a shirt?" So I turned around and we went to look. The ring was burning a hole in my pocket and while she looked for something fun to wear I feel like I was distant. Hey, my mind was elsewhere. She found an amazingly hot dress and all was well.

Keep in mind, this was going to be our date night anyway, so we had plans to go out, have dinner then a few drinks at the amazing Patterson House here in Nashville. So I concocted a story that there was a pop art exhibit that I wanted to stop by before dinner. Hey, that's totally plausible. That's something we would do. So I parked on the opposite end of the actual entrance of the gallery under The Parthenon which forced us to walk around the giant place. I was totally nervous and honestly, I'm not sure what I said. I had a bunch of things I wanted to say, (Like it was rehearsed) but I think I still hit the main points. In the end, I got on one knee and asked Liz to marry me. Well, she said yes. And I am the happiest boy in the world.

We finished the night actually going out to The Flying Saucer for dinner then to Patterson House for wonderful drinks from scratch and finally to ChaChah for a nightcap. Again... happiest Boy in the world.

Twilight at Forks Washington

So Elizabeth Darvill and I went for a very not normal trip for me. We went to the Twilight, (yes the movie/books) capital of the world, Forks, WA. We took a very enthusiastic fan (and self proclaimed wife of Edward Cullen) and went on an adventure.

First off, I need to say that I'm seriously impressed with the town of Forks and their unashamed embrace of the books and movies that made their town famous. Nearly every store had Twilight paraphernalia in the window regardless of the type of business. So it was totally normal for the Chinese restaurant, the lock and key store and the hotels to have posters and even merchandise on display. Also, there were tons of places that had Twilight themed food and beverage items. (Many were surprisingly good!)

Being in Forks for 3 days, we thought it would be best to just jump into the fandom head first and have no shame about any of it. Here's a quick rundown: The Bella Burgers and Twilight punch at Sully's Burgers are to die for. It's a diner/drive in kind of place and seriously, the burgers are awesome. The Twilight punch is nothing more than lemonade with strawberry and again it's really good. (Best meal in town if you ask me)

We also ate at the diner and sat at the same table where Bella and Charlie eat all the time. (The Forks Coffee Shop) The burgers were pretty good but the real star was the Berry Cobbler that Charlie eats all the time. I picked some up for breakfast and it was truly awesome.

Other stuff we hit that was fun:
Forks Outfitters (where Bella works and has an Employee of the year plaque) They also have Twilight themed coffee which so far is really good. The Cullen's house: Its a bed and breakfast that has the cap and gown art on the inside and sports a daily sign from the caretakers telling where the Cullens are that particular day.
The Swan's House: It's a private residence that pimps itself as the home of Bella and Charlie Swan. Really, there's nothing more than a sign in front of someones house but you can pull up and take pictures.
The Forks Police Station: Yes you can go to Charlie's workplace and take pictures with the cop cars and even walk in where there's a small Twilight display.
The Forks Chamber of Commerce: This place has Bella's truck(s) out front (one from the movie and one from the book which apparently is a different model) so you can take pics there and when you go in, there is Twilight posters, and merch everywhere. Also, the people that work there are insanely awesome and nice and will tell you all types of good info.
First Beach (La Push, WA): Fifteen miles away you can go to the beach where Bella and Jacob walked on the beach. It's kind of indistinguishable from the movie, but worth a very cold dip in the water.
The Forks High School: Yep. it's there too although this is not the same one that's in the movie. It has the same sign but isn't the actual place where the school scenes were filmed.
Dazzled by Twilight: This is their Twilight one stop shopping experience. The store is everything Twilight. You name it and they probably have it.
Three Rivers Resort: It's only a resort to those that want to camp in nifty little cabins. Half way to La Push, you'll find Three Rivers Resort with was a place with a full Twilight menu. We had the Werewolf Burgers (Which were good and HUGE) but still not quite as stellar as the Bella Burgers back in Forks.
Bella Italia: This is the place where Edward took Bella on their first date. It's 57 miles away in Port Angeles, WA, but a fun drive through the national park. The restaurant was surprisingly good. Yes we had the Mushroom Ravioli that Bella ate and while it was good, the carbonara was better.

Coffee Stops:
There are three main coffee stands in town. I got Mocha's at each and sadly none of them had Twilight themed stuff. Gathering Grounds, Mocha Motion and Shot in The Dark. The best was Gathering Grounds in case you're wondering.

The funny part:
I'm not even a Twilight fan yet I had a blast doing all the touristy things and just living life. Being this free is a wonderful part on life 2.0. There's also something awesome about small town charm that I really liked as well.

Okay, Pictures:

Me with Bella's truck


Twilight Punch (They come with fangs)


At First Beach


Vampire Threat Level


Werewolf Burger!


The Cullen's House (B&B)

Woke up to some awesomeness

Team Victoria
I'm currently in Washington heading toward the small town mecca of sparkly vampires with my insanely awesome, inspiring, talented sexy girlfriend Elizabeth Darvill... no kidding. I'm super excited to jump head first into the touristy goodness that is "Bella's Blend", "Jacob's Java", and "Edward's Espresso"... Yes those kind of sound dirty but I promise they're not... I think. Also, I'm sort of looking forward to gathering a Little inspiration for a sort of far off project I'm going to be working on where I'm thinking about throwing a little of the local Forks flavor into the story.

The Coolness
So this morning I woke up to some total coolness. Someone I met last year at my first bookfest ever wrote an amazing and insanely nice post on SWAG steampunk writers group. Check this out: http://steampunkwriters.ning.com/profiles/blogs/blame-it-on-nick-valentino-and-thomas-riley Yeah, how bad ass is that? Like my comment said, it really does make my year to read stuff like this and I will forever be so happy that I inspired someone. That's what life's really about right?

Ten Thousand Steam Heated Bedeviled Black Dresses

So after months of constantly struggling to get back on my feet, things are starting to look up. I have a ton of exciting projects, trips, anthologies and fun things coming up. I'll cut to the chase.

The Black Dress
I'm submitting "The Black Dress" to the Imagicopter Steampunk vs. Magic anthology. This story is a much more action packed take on the Ipswich Witch Trial.

Ten Thousand Years
"Ten Thousand Years" is my contribution to the Echelon Press steampunk anthology "Her Majesty's Mysterious Conveyance" and has a projected release date of October of this year. (It has a rad cover too!)

Bedeviled
My steampunk/horror short "Bedeviled" will be in Dreams of Steam II (Kerlak Enterprises)

Thomas Riley II
I'm still working on Thomas Riley II and I only have a working title for it but I have received some preliminary cover art from the amazing Will Routon. I can't quite show you yet... not that it isn't amazing but I don't think it's legal to show without every one's permission.

Dragon Con
It looks like the amazing Elizabeth Darvill and I will be attending Dragon Con in Atlanta, GA this year and we are super excited!


Steam HeatSpeaking of the Amazing, gorgeous and super talented Elizabeth Darvill, she just received her cover art for her first Harlequin book "Steam Heat" that is also due out in October. Here's the blurb:
In a world of speed steamers, poisoned air and soulless paranormal beings, two people hold the fate of millions in their hands—and their bodies…. As a half-succubus, Angel needs energy from sex to live. The temporary fulfillment she gets from strangers is nothing compared to the erotic encounters in her linked dreams with Ian, the man whose soul she shares. Lately the dreams have become more intense and intoxicating, which can mean only one thing: she and Ian are dying, just like the magical crystal that purifies the city’s air. Only by making love in person and joining their split soul can they heal both themselves and the crystal. Yet despite Ian’s amazing sexual prowess, Angel doesn’t want to give up her other lovers, like sassy steam engineer Jezebel. Can they resolve their differences and continue sharing a bed to save themselves—and the world?

Bedeviled

So very excited! My steampunk/horror short, "Bedeviled" will be in the new Dreams of Steam II "Of Bolts and Brass" anthology published by Kerlak Enterprises. I'm not sure when this will come out but last year they had it out by Dragon Con.

Bedeviled follows failing and drug addicted inventor Joshua Hardwick as he returns to his laboratory following a murder he just commited. Joshua speaks to a self proclaimed demon who calls himself Bartleby Green and seems to have control over the poor inventor. When Bartleby reveals his brutal plan to Joshua, he attempts to take control and alter his destiny by the most extreme action available.

I wrote Bedeviled based on my own personal demon who I also call Bartleby Green. Really Bartleby is more of a manefestation of Murphy's Law and all things life throws at me but in Bedeviled you get a little inside look at the demon (Both fictional and real) and his personality. Basically, it's a steampunk/demonic styled look at the Jack the Ripper killings. (You'll see how that fits in.)

In quick other news:
I'm now on Google+ click and friend me.
https://plus.google.com/welcome?hl=en-US#112014935462055692390/posts

The Update

Things have been crazy. Crazy in a different way than they were last year but still absolutely crazy. Last year to the day I was flying up to Chicago for the Chicago Tribune's Printer's Row Book Fest. This year I'm immersed in writing and a whole new lifestyle. Don't get me wrong, last year's lifestyle of traveling the country will surely come back to a degree, this is just a time to regroup and refocus because holy cow I have some serious writing to do, and in no time promote.

First up in the time before Thomas Riley 2 comes out I am in an international steampunk anthology on Echelon Press called "Her Majesty's Mysterious Conveyance" where each story has two requirements. 1) The story has to take place in a nontraditional steampunk country and 2) The story must revolve around a queen or Empress. My story is a Japanese steampunk tale called "Ten Thousand Years". I'm in it with some amazing authors including Elizabeth Darvill who wrote a Serbian steampunk story and Sean Hayden, amongst others. The cover poster is at the top of the page.

I also just submitted another steampunk short for the fabulous Dreams of Steam 2 anthology on Kerlak Enterpirses. This story is a really dark explanation/retelling of Jack the Ripper in a steampunk world. I went back to my horror roots on this one so it's much darker and eveil than my other steampunk works. Think the movie "Fallen" with Jack The Ripper and steampunk...

I have a few other shorts I will be submitting to anthologies soon and one will not be steampunk! Can you believe it? It will be nice to play around with a differetn genre after over 2 years of almost strictly writing steampunk. Not that I've lost anything for the genre, I still love it with all my heart.

Travel will be off and on this year. I know Elizabeth and I will be doing The Southern Festival of Books in Nashville, TN and hopefully Bookmarks in Winston Salem and The Texas Book Fest oin Austin but those are kind of case by case right now. I'll let you all know fo sure.

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