Good day, ladies and gentlemen! Our lovely host, Chris, was kind enough to ask me to do a Guest Post for his blog; and of course, I was honored to participate.
I’m twenty-six years old, and my “home base” is in Springfield, Massachusetts. I am not a college graduate. I completed but a single term at Smith College, having found out very quickly that the collegiate atmosphere was not for me. I’m most comfortable at my desk in my basement office, sipping wine spritzers and writing stories.
As I describe myself on my blog and my Amazon page, I’m a lesbian-romance author. As has been noted by other writers in the genre, it’s a difficult subject by which to earn a living. And yet: it’s my subject. My goal is to fuse lesbian-romance with quality writing – writing that would be respected by the highest minds in literature. And, also, I aim to tell stories that can be shared by everyone; related to by everyone; and understood by everyone. Erotica is not my cup of tea, by any means; and I feel that people who read my books are often disappointed by the lack of explicit content. But, again, that’s not my goal.
In addition to being a lesbian-romance author – I’m a Christian lesbian-romance author. My beliefs are very important to me: and one of those beliefs is, that God made everyone the way they are for a purpose, and it’s no one’s right to judge anyone else. We are who we are, and we do all we can to make the best of that.
I worked for a long time to get my books traditionally published, but all to no avail. I once received “honorable mention” in a writing contest presented by Guideposts magazine; but that’s about it. I’ve attended author fairs at libraries; I’ve brought business cards around to bookstores; and one autumn, I even set up a “Books for Sale” sign in front of my house. Someone called once to ask if I bought used books; and I said no. That was the only call I ever got.
So now, I am a proud independent author, just like so many other people. We’re all working towards the same goal; and though it’s uncertain whether we’ll make it, we do know that we’ll never stop trying. Until we’re dead. Or until our fingers fall off from too much typing. (But then again – they have that nifty “Dragon” voice recognition software, now. So, fingers or not, we will press on!)
Now, let’s see – what else could I add? Well, I have an adorable 13-year-old mini Dachshund named Mattie. He’s the prince of my heart, and the king of the house. And he knows it. Obviously, I love to read; but I also love music, mainly classical, and movie scores. My favorite time of day is 7:00 (PM) – because that means Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy!, and vodka sodas.
And that’s about it! I thank everyone so much for taking the time to read about a humble indie author; and I look forward to connecting with you!
Social media links:
WordPress – Twitter – Facebook – Goodreads
Amazon:
Germany – France – Spain – Japan – India
Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog 
So nice to meet you, CM! You’ve been wonderfully supportive and engaging, and I honor and support the path that you’re on. So nice to be aligned with you here on WordPress. Here’s to the widely lauded Chris as well!
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Hear, hear! To you, Claire! And to Chris!
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C.M.’s blog is an absolute delight to follow and I highly recommend it to all. (C.M., Mattie is indeed adorable …and I’m sure he knows it as well!)
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Thank you so much, Bruce! (Most of all for complimenting Mattie. He’s the easiest way to get to my heart!) 🙂
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A pleasure to meet you. C.M. Blackwood. Follow your heart. You have a fantastic body of work. Wow. 😀
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Thank you so much for your kind words!
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You are welcome. 🙂
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🙂
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Pleased to meet you, C.M Blackwood. I’m going to share this post on the FB page of a couple of friends of mine who are lesbians who write. Just now they are distracted by their beautiful baby boy. Good luck with what you are doing. I think you are write to aim for quality in your writing. That’s what will get you read by people beyond the narrow confines of genre, bringing an important message to a wider audience.
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Thank you so much for saying that, Frank. Your supportive words really mean a lot.
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Best of luck with this. I think sometimes trad pubs may be a little conservative and in this way actually dictate what the general public reads. I think you have a niche market which may not be HUGE but I can’t believe there wouldn’t be a demand. So go for it! Indie publishing could work very well for you. Good luck!
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Thank you for the good wishes, Ali! I wish you all the best, as well.
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Thank you!
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🙂
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Reblogged this on Smorgasbord – Variety is the spice of life and commented:
The Story Reading Ape is joined by C.M. Blackwood author of My White Dahlia, The Grey Rider and Bella
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Many Thanks for re-blogging Sally 😀
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Thank you, Sally! You’re a sweetheart.
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Hi Chris! 😆
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Hi Jessica – Good to see you again 😀
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CM you are a breath of light! I have said it before and I will say it again, I 💛 you! Love is a beautiful thing and there is no definition in color or gender. I applaud you for standing up, shouting out and celebrating love! PS… This is Jessica ☺️
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Thank you, Jessica! You don’t know how nice it is to hear a compliment like that. I appreciate it so much!
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Lovely to learn more about you, C.M. Great luck with your books. What a great selection! 🙂
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Thank you, D.! As always — I appreciate your support.
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