Juggling life with three-year-old twin girls, a partner, a needy dog, and a full-time job is not easy, which I am sure you can guess can’t be easy. And as much as I want to say that I’ve got it down. That I know how to keep everything balanced. I don’t… not one damn bit. As a mother and writer, I can only try my best without losing myself or my focus.
I have been writing since I was twelve and it wasn’t until college that I decided that I actually wanted to write a book. For a long time, after that, I decided I would actually publish the book to share with the world. Speed forward through getting my Master’s, getting married, buying a home, adopting a dog, and finally having what was supposed to be one child, but instead, the universe had other plans and gave me two wild children. It was my partner, who has been watching me write and read all the versions of my stories, who decided that I needed to finish and publish my book. When he said it, I thought he was joking. My story was nowhere close to being finished. Yeah, he said it's been ten years, and it was time. So, he made me book a hotel for my ‘writing retreat’ and told me I needed to finish my book. With a lot of struggles and a lot of forced focus, I finished my book and sent it off to a developmental editor.
When I sent it off to the editor, I had no clue what I was getting myself into… I mean literally. I had no clue what it meant to publish a book, like at all. Once I sent it off, I did my research and made the big decision of whether to go traditional or self-published. I chose self-published because I wanted to have control over my story, and I didn’t want to limit myself to one genre. I also wanted to go at my own pace. What I didn’t take into consideration at the time was how I was going to do everything else that went along with publishing a book like marketing and still be a mom and a full-time employee.
After having released my first book almost a year ago, I have to say there would be no way I could do any of this without my partner. He has given me the freedom and the push I needed to pursue my dream. Even when I get frustrated at the fact that I feel like I am not spending enough time with my kids, he assures me I am. I try to plan out my time but sometimes not that easy for me. Writing, editing, and marketing is a full-timejob. I think the worst part for me is that I want to write all the time, but I am limited to evenings, nights, and weekends to write. One thing that has helped is being able to schedule my posts ahead of time and also once my book is off to the editor I stop writing… which I know sounds crazy but the break helps mentally and it gives me time to spend with everyone. I know it is hard on the kids when I disappear into my office for days, especially after not seeing me all day, but thankful my partner is very good at distracting them. I am also lucky that my job isn’t too demanding and gives me a lot of flexibility.
I think the key for me is knowing that I write because I enjoy creating these worlds where anything could happen and creating these awesome characters that get to go on these crazy adventures. It is fun for me, and it is my hobby. I am still trying to figure out the balance of everything. I try something new every day to find what works and even when I figure out or think that I have it something crazy always upends it so I have learned to be flexible and try not to worry so much.
Entwined Within the Darkness Within the Darkness Trilogy
Book One
Charley Black
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Fantasy
Publisher: Charley Black
Date of Publication: September 4, 2022
ISBN: 979-8986887708
ASIN:B0BD577QKC
Number of pages: 310
Word Count: 95, 963
Cover Artist: MiblArt
Book Description:
A wild evening goes demonically wrong…
Patience craves answers. Half a century after appearing on the steps of the witch academy, she was still no closer to recovering her lost memories and identity. Tormented nightly by visions of red eyes and burdened by dreams that, although connected, remain unclear. Patience, to distract herself, decides to defy the rules and enter the vampire club, Moarte, an act strictly forbidden for witches. Never expecting her best friend, Michael, to begin his transition into a full demon, Patience, desperate to save him, binds him to his vampiric lover.
To make matters worse, Lucius, the domineering brother of the vampire, whom Michael is now bound to, harbors a deep resentment for witches and especially for Patience. Even so, they must now work together to find a soul gem that will untether the bond before her best friend completely consumes his brother’s soul. As their unlikely alliance takes form and their attraction grows, Lucius’ presence draws out long-forgotten memories deep from within Patience. He may just be the key to unlocking her past—but will she be able to convince him that he needs her far more than he needs to kill her? Rediscovering her past and how it binds her to Lucius may just prove to be far more dangerous than either of them imagined.
Entwined, the first book in the Within the Darkness Trilogy, will leave readers in suspense. This enemies-to-lovers story will be filled with plenty of action, humor, and steam. So, prepare yourself, as the end of this novel leaves us with a cliffhanger, but not for long! Intended for 18+ readers, stay tuned to find out what lies ahead in this captivating trilogy.
Excerpt
1:
A tremendous
gust of wind came out of nowhere, blowing the umbrella out of her hands. She
debated whether she should run the rest of the way home or chase after it when
there was a sudden pull at her core in the direction her umbrella went. The
sensation was strange, but her legs strode of their own accord toward the
umbrella. She would usually fight this kind of enchantment, but her curiosity
got the best of her. She wanted to know where it was leading her. It had to be
an Allure of Soul’s charm, similar to the one found on the website, except this
felt different. The pull was stronger than any charm she had experienced before.
She let the
compelling force at her core lead her to the front of the double doors of an
old industrial building. It looked like it was a nightclub. Picking up her
umbrella, she saw a sign above the doors that read: Moarte.
Interesting. So
this is Moarte. Club Death. Typical of vampires to name their club “Death.”
Strange
creatures.
Realizing it had
stopped raining, she folded up the umbrella. She must have become swept up in
the enchantment because of the storm. Magic had a mind of its own sometimes.
The weather constantly messed with enchantments, especially with lure charms.
Turning to walk
away since the allure had done its job and got her here, she found her feet
wouldn’t leave.
“What the hell?”
She struggled to leave, thinking it was a fluke. She tried moving toward the
door instead of away, and it worked. Then she tried to turn away again. Her
feet wouldn’t move forward.
Fighting the
enchantment became harder the longer she stood, so she gave in. Stepping up to
the doors, she touched the handle. An image flashed through her mind.
It was too quick
for her to see. A warm, familiar sensation washed over her, pulling at her
memory. It ran through her body, brushing against her soul, then vanished as
quickly as it came. She pulled on the door. It wouldn’t budge. She could unlock
it, but there was a magical ward, and she didn’t want to risk drawing attention
to herself by blasting off the door to a vampire club.
Vampires and
witches were still mortal enemies. Even with the law outlawing the killing of
witches in place, vampires were to be avoided.
This time, when
she turned to leave, nothing stopped her. Her feet moved forward without
incident.
Her thoughts
traveled in a million different directions.
The first being,
what the hell kind of enchantment was that if it wasn’t a lure charm? There
were other enchantments that vampires used specifically to lure their victims
into their clubs. It shouldn’t have affected her, at least not this strongly.
She could blame it on the rain. Another possibility was something else was
leading her there.
Following clues
to her past wasn’t always easy. She went into many of her leads blind and
knowing she would come out with disappointment. She always told herself she had
at least had to try. Her instincts were telling her there was a clue in the
club.
Walking up the
stairs to her apartment, she knew they would go to Moarte tonight.
No… I couldn’t
let that happen. She had followed too many clues already. Tonight was going to
be about fun and doing something different. Remember: new energy in the air.
Though this
differed from her dreams and nightmares, she had never seen a glimpse of memory
before or that warm sensation. It never happened when she was awake before.
No, she wouldn’t
think about it. Tomorrow was another day. She would chase it tomorrow.
She did this to
herself all the time. All it did was add to her stress.
She promised herself she wouldn’t go anywhere
near the club tonight
About the Author:
Charley Black is an up-and-coming writer and author who has been creating stories since she was twelve years old. Her early short stories dabbled in different genres, but her passion for romance novels — paranormal romance in particular — always shone through. Charley currently resides in Rhode Island, with her family and works at a local university. Debuting in September, Entwined will be the first of three novels set in the Within the Darkness universe.
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