You all -- I am so excited to have a new book coming out 7/26/22!

FALLEN COMRADE, book #1 in the Project Morpheus romantic suspense series, is being published by Evernight and I cannot squee enough about how much I love this book!

This is the book that has been in the ether for about 6 years. In the book, I took some big-time writing risks and tackle challenging topics and situations. Quite frankly I allow things to get very uncomfortable and scary (spoiler alert, it's a happily-ever-after -- no worries -- I've got you!). It was emotionally difficult for me to write and even harder to execute with appropriate sensitivity and, also ... application of the laws of physics (you'll see what I mean when you read it).

Here's my blurb:

Ex-Green Beret Jake Zimmerman’s Georgia mountain seclusion is shattered when the one woman he should never have left, pregnant Kiera McNeill, shows up on his doorstep. Her life is in danger, thanks to a botched Morpheus Squad mission. If the nature of her baby is discovered, evil forces will stop at nothing to capture Kiera. When Kiera learns of Jake’s top-secret Morpheus Virus running through his veins, she realizes that her protector is the deadlier threat.

Kiera knows the secrets of Fallen Comrades, a billion-dollar “charity” which siphons donations away from wounded veterans and into the pockets of power-hungry CFO Beau Lequire. Now her sadistic ex-boss, Lequire, wants revenge. Her only chance of escape rests in the lethal hands of the man who once rejected her: Jake. All she needs to do is suppress her feelings for Jake long enough to destroy Fallen Comrades, stay alive, and save her baby.


I can't wait for readers to jump into the world of the Morpheus Squad with all the extra EXTRA ALPHA-ness of this group of ex-Special Forces team who were subjects of a military experiment gone dreadfully wrong. Now they are super soldiers ... and ticking time bombs.

But you know how I roll -- in my books even an alpha male will sacrifice his heart and body for the people in his life. He cares about others and the world around him, ensures consent with his partner and respects his partner, and knows how amazingly smart and savvy his partner is and how lucky he is to be with his partner. Hey, look: those are the rules in my books!

Big thanks to my fabulous ARC team and reviewers who have had such kind things to say about this book! I appreciate everyone who has taken the time to read and comment on this story! Your excitement and feedback makes me want to write the next book. (Insider hint: It's already written and it is a WILD RIDE! With the next book, HIDDEN COMRADE, I will break your heart* and then put it back together even better.)

If you've thought about checking out FALLEN COMRADE, please consider PREORDERING HERE. Those preorders really help give a boost when the book goes live on 7/26/22. The more boost, the more people who see it, the more action/adventure/love I get to spread into the universe!

Here's my amazing cover!!!

*Not literally breaking your heart, because that would be malpractice and whatnot. Next book will emotionally tug at some heartstrings with so much sexy vulnerability that still manages to occur even when the couple is running for their lives. You have to see it to believe it. >STAY TUNED!<

So basically I'm using this blog post to expand on some mentoring activities I might be doing later this year. They said "100 word bio" and I basically used 5 words to say "more mentoring info at: my website"  

That's not cheating. That's using resources effectively and working within parameters!  :)

Over the past several years I've done varying levels of mentoring. You'll see me supporting great causes like Romance for Reproductive Justice with my usual offering of a 3 chapter critique. I've done some volunteer mentoring for Tessera Editorial clients and had a fun time working with folks there! I'm proud to say that I've had a small role to play in teaching craft and spiffing up the first 3 chapters for several terrific new authors. Some of whom have gotten book deals with television rights. Looking at you, Yas! (I'd love to take credit for any of it, but that was all due to her amazing story.)

What I can bring to the table are all the cautionary lessons of my mistakes in publishing. How NOT to do queries. How NOT to freak out on revisions. How NOT to pick a totally un-marketable genre to write (but wow was it fun!). How NOT to do deep POV. How NOT to create characters and plots. All these mistakes? Two thumbs, right here.

The things I tend to point out for mentees include: finding the right place to start the story, ramping up suspense/tension, and incorporating deep point of view. I like working in digestible chunks of book and time (1-3 chapters at a time with turnaround for thinking through the info and doing a revision).

My schedule can get hectic as I work as a rural doctor, though I try hard to time my writing workshops and mentoring chats on days I'm not on call. It's just ... some weeks (months) I'm on call ... a lot. What I like to see is mentees take the first few chapters of our in-depth lessons and use that to identify areas of their writing to strengthen throughout the entire manuscript. Like, the lessons we dove deeply into in chapter 1 -- deep POV, establishing character traits, tightening the story line, increasing tension -- the mentee should be able to start applying those concepts with more confidence as they go back through their entire manuscript.

Type of romance? I probably need something with paranormal, suspense, or medical elements -- whether we're talking historical, contemporary, or romantic suspense. And funny is fabulous! Cussing is just fine, too -- I mean, I had to de-f%$k an entire manuscript once, so I cannot cast any stones here!

I would probably not be a good mentor for small town relationship contemporaries where there's not a lot of drama, cozy mysteries, procedural type books (law/crime), literary fiction, or procedural historical (regencies where the details create a lot of the drama -- I'm just not an expert in historical manners and social mores at a level needed to do a proper job teaching). Now if you want to bring me a Victorian mystery corpse or phosphorous workers ("The Dress Lodger") then I might bite! Sci-fi and fantasy romances like H. E. Trent's Jekh series? Um, yes please!

I hope this clarifies my mentoring style and types of manuscripts that might be good matches for what I can help with. If there are questions, please let me know!

 
So I am admittedly a smidge reclusive -- er, reluctant -- to do videos that go out on the interwebs. But I couldn't pass up the opportunity to sit down with Shay Baby of Brown Book Series at the recent Chicago Spring Fling Conference and boy was it a hoot!


Shay is the loveliest person and made the live interview mostly painless.


I did my best to name drop other authors and indepedent bookstores, but honestly I ended up saying whatever hit my brain and BOY OH BOY IS THAT DANGEROUS!
 
Anyway, feel free to check out yours truly in live action in all her awkward, ghost-like glory FULL YOUTUBE INTERVIEW HERE


If you want the highlights, here you go:

1) breaking news at 2:16

2) editing while waiting for a patient to dilate 4:11

3) preparing for speaking engagements by drinking heavily 7:12 

4) where I say a very bad word on live-streaming video 9:15

5) I take over the interview and turn it on Shay at 9:41 because I'm too nervous for her to ask me more questions

6) talking about running 50K's at 20:30

7) where my research methods make it sound like I have a body in the basement 25:44

8) where things start to go off the rails 26:51

9) it looks like I'm endorsing drug use but I'm not at 29:25

10) I end up offering counseling to Shay off-camera because this interview is GONE GONE GONE by 30:39


And here's a bit of Twitter shenanigans HERE and HERE

Oh my gosh, it's been so long since I did a blog post. You all know about my work in rural medicine. To say that it's been a wild and exhausting few years is a massive understatement. The things I've seen ... yikes. Fair to say, I can't wait for everyone to be vaccinated and for COVID to be in the rearview mirror.


So I was reminiscing on Twitter about my one brush with brief, viral fame. I unwittingly did THE POST. You know. The one that captures the imagination of the Twitter masses! And funny enough, all I had done was repost a picture I'd seen over on Facebook to Twitter, because my brain immediately went OMG IS THAT WHAT I THINK IT IS?

I flippantly posted in the morning at breakfast and then went to do rounds at the hospital. That was back in the day when Twitter would notify you via email if there was a comment or a retweet. Welp. Apparently after like a few tens of thousand of these, Twitter basically gets pissed and stops sending email notifications. News to me. But before that occurred, my phone blew up in between patients with c-diff colitis, community-acquired pneumonia, and urosepsis.

It wasn't until over lunch hour that I could get away and look at my computer (because I don't have Twitter on my phone -- I really don't like mixing Doctor Job and Writing Job). By then, I had something like 500K impressions. It was happening so quickly in real time that you could see the numbers increasing every few seconds. Likes, retweets, impressions, profile views.

Oh. My. God.

Not going to lie. I broke out in a cold sweat. How viral was VIRAL? Like, who would see this outside of Writing World Twitter? I mean, sure, my profile picture is the best (and only slightly enhanced) version of me and I typically look like total ass at work, but it's similar ENOUGH. I prize my privacy as a physician and have been vigilant about maintaining total secrecy about writing life with my medical colleagues, staff members, and employer. (Long story, but my books have dark themes that might not be appreciated by a super square healthcare organization. A physician friend of mine was fired for writing sexy romances. Duly noted.)

Anyway. Back to the cold sweat. So there I am, sitting in an empty patient room, computer hooked up to my hot-spot for internet because I don't want to send ALL THAT through the corporate servers, and my heart is pounding. Do I yank the tweet? Stare at it? Or do I respond? I chose to respond, and had some fun with it, but the next several days were wild in terms of retweets and likes and messages. You all, there were even made-up articles about me and this tweet in places like BuzzFeed.

I'd love to tell you that going viral resulted in a gazillion purchases of my books and drove new readers to my work and made me a bestseller. Nope. Not even close. I'm guessing like two or three books and perhaps a handful of new follows. Probably because I didn't do that thing you're supposed to do when you go viral, where you put the "buy my stuff" post. I had zero situational awareness to think to take advantage of the brief rise in traffic. But yes, it was a fun ride!

So here we are 5 years later...

You all. It still looks like a sanitary pad.

​

In another of my first forays into interviewing, I chatted with the fabulous LaQuette about her upcoming release.

Hi, LaQuette! Thanks for taking time to give an interview for your upcoming steamy contemporary book, Jackson, about a Texas Ranger and the amazing and smart woman with a heart of gold who teaches him to trust again.
 
Hey Jillian! It’s so good to connect with you again.  As soon as outside opens back up, I’ve got a monster-sized hug waiting for you.
 
Right back at you! I can’t wait for the world to recover. Okay. So, I remember reading your fabulous St. Jared's Memorial series, based around a hospital in New York City. This new book’s Texas setting is quite a departure from the big city. Tell me how you picked Texas and developed your background for this setting.
 
Goodness, no! I’m a concrete princess to my heart. Lol  I have family and friends all over the south who’ve given me a few occasions to visit the Lone Star State. Although I was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, I grew up with my Southern Baptist grandmother in the house with us.  Many of the traditions she taught me have helped shape who I am.  So I wanted to write a story that kind of hearkened back to those days spent at my grandmothers knee soaking up everything she taught me.
 
What was the hardest thing about writing this story? Easiest?
 
The hardest thing was not having them sleep together from their first meeting.  Jackson and Aja have this electric chemistry between them.  It’s visible from the first time Jackson sees her image in a photo.  By the time he actually meets her, he’s halfway to falling in love already.  Aja is just the same.  Jackson gets on her last nerve, but she doesn’t let her annoyance blind her to how attracted she is to him.  The easiest thing was Aja nurturing moments.  She nurtured those she cared by taking care of them.  She wasn’t domesticated in any way.  She just has a talent to cook the thing that’s going to lift your soul when it’s at its lowest point.
 
The cover says "Restoration Ranch, Book 1." I want to know where books 2-10 are! What can readers expect from this series?
 
Ha! There will never be a ten-book series by LaQuette. Lol. There are three books in this series.  Book two is titled Colton, and it follows Jackson’s best friend and colleague, Colton, and Aja’s network director, Seneca.  What can I say about Colton?  It’s an absolutely filthy book.  Honestly, it makes Jackson look tame.
 
Restoration Ranch is a series about redemption.  It’s a place where anyone can go to lay down their burdens so they can heal.  Each hero is a law enforcement agent who has to learn sometimes people do the wrong things for the right reasons, and that one bad act doesn’t mean a person is irredeemable.
 
You know I can’t help myself and have to ask medical questions, LaQuette. Your St. Jared's series of course has characters with medical backgrounds and medical scenes in it. Clearly that's something you know well as a Registered Respiratory Therapist. How have you applied your medical background to this new series? Can we expect some gruesome injuries or medical situations to play out in the pages of these books?
 
My friend tells me I’m not happy unless I’m killing people on the page.  She’s partly right.  I do use my knowledge as an RRT to help with physiological things in my book.  So, if I’m writing about an ailment, or an injury, I can present it in a fairly accurate way.
 
Do you have a favorite line in this book?
 
Absolutely! The couple sneaks away during a party for a quickie.  This scene follows as the heroine is trying to clean up the aftermath of their lovemaking while the hero is teasing her.  “If Aunt Jo finds out you had your naked ass sitting on top of her deep freezer, she’s going to take a switch to both our hides. I’m not going out like that.”
 
Do you imagine Jackson as your book boyfriend when you were writing this story? Because, that cover ...yum. Talk about Broody McBrooderton!
 
No, I didn’t.  I initially imagined him as model/actor Travis Cure.  But we couldn’t find any purchasable photos of him, so we went looking and found that deep-toned, beautiful, brick wall of a man. I am certainly not mad at his likeness ending up on my cover.
 
He really looks nice, right there on the cover, looking right at me. I mean, looking. You know. Anyway. Did you bring any of your life and professional background to Aja's story?
 
Absolutely, especially the way she interacts with the older generation in her family.  She’s a boss, but when she’s in the presence of her aunt and uncle, she shows reverence.  That’s very much how I am with my elders.
 
What's your favorite genre of fiction/romance?
 
Erotic romance, both to read and write.
 
NY versus Chicago pizza?
 
That’s not even a competition.  New York wins hands down.
 
Curiosity from a rural dweller. What's NY feel like right now in the pandemic? Business as usual or can you tell a difference in the crowds or the vibe?
 
New York was hit hard by Covid.  The city that never sleeps suddenly came to a crashing halt.  Businesses are open, but there are major restrictions put in place to keep people safe.  Everything as we know it has changed.  But, hopefully, things will get better as more people take the vaccines.
 
Sexiest man alive and why is it Idris Elba? Please show your work for full credit.
 
Honestly, Idris is fine as hell, but there are other men who’d catch my eye before him.  Morris Chestnut, Matt Bomer, and the only man I’d divorce my husband for, Roman Reigns.
 
>quickly looks up new pictures< Ah. I see your point. Very handsome! Okay, so when your series could be adapted to film or Netflix, who would play the lead roles? 
 
Amber Riley would be cast as Aja.  As for the hero, now that I’ve seen this model on my cover, I can’t imagine anyone else as Jackson.  I don’t know that gentleman’s name.  But good Lord, he’s fine.
 
Amber Riley brings so much amazing energy to everything she does. She’d be great! Would you want to be directly involved in the film, or could you trust Shonda to take your series and run with it?
 
I’d leave it to the experts with the option to consult.  Shonda hardly needs me telling her how to make a hit!
 
What's your best RRT advice you could give someone -- besides "don't smoke?" 
 
Drink water.  Mucus builds up becoming thick and viscous when you’re dehydrated, blocking the flow of air.  That stuff can cause havoc in your airways if left unchecked.
 
Old school McIntosh vs Miller straight blade direct visualization of cords vs screw-it-just-give-me-the-glidescope?
 
The only blade I ever intubated with was a McIntosh.  In my opinion, it fits the anatomy better and if you’re losing it properly and your patient is well-sedated, in my personal experience, it causes less injury to the mouth.  Mind you, there may not be any science behind that. Lol. But that’s why I prefer it.  
 
I don’t intubate without visualizing the cords.  I’m all about causing the least amount of trauma as I can while I’m in there.  If I can’t see the cords and it’s a desperate situation, I’m calling for the anesthesiologist.
 
Should doctors ever touch the ventilator settings and why is the answer always "GOD, NO?"
 
They should absolutely never touch the ventilator. They don’t understand the intricacies of mechanical ventilation with respect to the machine.  So, doctors might learn about tidal volume and peep, but often they’re not given the type of intense training it requires to be able to use the machine, create a specialized therapy plan with respect to ventilation, and apply that therapy.  So, when in doubt, page your respiratory therapist who has spent two to four years studying nothing but the cardio-pulmonary system.
 
You know I was kidding, right? I would never touch the vent, I promise. What's one writing workshop you could give right now, off the cuff, and speak with authority for 45 minutes?
 
Writing hot sex scenes that will leave your readers begging for more.
 
Favorite beverage?
 
Coffee and water.
 
Favorite snack?
 
Cheese and graham crackers.
 
Hopefully not together… Favorite place to spend time relaxing?
 
On my couch. The only place better is my bed.
 
Favorite show to binge-watch?
 
I love old-school 80s/90s cartoons.  At least once a year I binge the original She-Ra and He-Man.
 
LaQuette, thanks for being a good sport with all of my questions -- some of which I know were random. Is there anything else about this new series or your writing that you want readers to know?
 
Yes!  Jackson releases February 23rd in Walmart, Barnes and Noble, Books A Million, and across the usual e-tailers such as Amazon and Kobo.  And if you’re interested in finding out more about my work, click one of the contacts below.
 
Website: LaQuette.com
Email: LaQuette@LaQuette.com
Linktree: LaQuette
Facebook: LaQuette ~ Romance Author
Twitter: @LaQuetteWrites
Instagram: @La_Quette
 
 
Thank you for taking the time and all the best with your new steamy Restoration Ranch series! I can't wait to read it, and I know that readers are going to love it, too!
 
Thanks so much for having me! 💋