Let It #Burn

Hey Everyone!! :-)

My friend, Kate, has joined us again today and she's got some things to say about life, advice, and friendship.  I really think she hit the nail on the head here, but take a read and see what you think. ;-)

Kate:

When I first walked into the group home I'd spend nearly two years at, I had no idea what I was doing. I'd had barely any contact with the population that experienced cognitive delays, nor aside from babysitting, had I done much specific caretaking.
I sat down on the sofa to talk to the staff and one of the residents plopped down beside me. The staff immediately said "Be careful, he hits" and then when I went to move away "NO DON'T MOVE! He'll take that as rejection and get mad!" So I froze. And that resident sat next to me the entire time nodding his head, laughing and showing me his toys.
When I left that day and went home my husband asked me how it went and I said "I.. Don't know." I guess we were all equally confused during those first few days. I met the other resident the next day and endured a few days of dire warnings by the staff about how horribly wrong things would go if I did anything other than exactly what they did and then I was left to handle the shifts myself.
It went horribly. It was easily one of the worst days of my life. I did everything the staff had told me to do and it turned out precisely the opposite of how they assured me it would. I was standing outside on the porch after one of them had tried to strangle me with my own necklace (my bad for wearing one, I would never do that these days) and something snapped.
I thought "You know what? My whole life I have been helping people, caring for animals, teaching children and watching my parents do the same. This simply cannot be that hard! They're just people and I'm going to treat them the way I would anyone else I was taking care of!"
So I got up, walked in and went to the bedroom of the one who tried to strangle me and said "I'm sorry. Let me help you pick up your toys, Sir." I went to the other resident and said "You know, if you want an orange, have one. Hell, have six. It's an Orange and it's your house."
We had dinner that night, everyone awkwardly eyeing each other distrustfully and those two eventually became two of my favorite people in the world. That job was a marvelous success in that way. For all three of us.
It occurred to me in later days that these two had been mistreated, institutionalized, beaten, chained to walls, mocked, shamed and stigmatized. What they were asking, although they didn't have the words, was "My life has been hell. I need to know if I can trust you when you care for me. I need to know, will you stand in the fire with me?" And the only appropriate answer was "Yes. Let it burn."
There is one person who can know what you know, that's you. There is one person who can understand what you experience and that's you. There is one person who knows which road you need to walk and that's you. You will consistently run into people who try to assure you that they know you and your life situation better than you do. Don't listen, they don't. They don't live in your skin.
Take advice, consider others experience and then follow your own instincts in situations. Do what you know is right for you because you're the only one qualified to know what that is. As for friends, always make sure you keep the ones who would say "Let it burn" and consign all the others to a distant “I'll get to you if I have the time” place in your head.

#Author4Author #Group Has A #Feature In This #Month's #BTSeMag!! :-)

Hey Everyone!! :-)

Check out page 58 of this month's BTSeMag!! You may see a familiar face or two. ;-)

#Awesome #Dark #Dreams #Halloween #Giveaway!!! :-)

Hey Everyone!! :-)

Guess what?!?  I'm participating in an awesome Rafflecopter giveaway!! :-)  There are lots of amazing authors who are part of this giveaway, and you can find them through social media at the links provided in the Rafflecopter below! :-)  Each author is offering individual prizes, and there's also a $175 Paypal grand prize!!!!  So there are lots of chances to win, and you might just win big!!! :-)  The prizes I'm offering are Kindle copies of one of my stories (winners' choices) for three people!! Check out all the other cool loot being offered by the other authors by clicking through all of the pictures in the Rafflecopter, and then start liking and following for chances to win! :-)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

#CoverReveal For Karina Kantas

Hey Everyone!! :-)

Karina Kantas has joined us today to show off her new covers!! :-)  Karina, it's all yours! :-)


Karina:

Author Bio
With my love for rock music and S.E.Hinton's YA novels, it's no surprise my first novel was in the rebel teen fiction genre. My following novels are MC thrillers. But those that have read my short story collections Heads & Tales and UNDRESSED know I'm not just a "one genre" author.
Born in the midlands UK, I grew up in a poor, rough area of town and used my writing to escape an unsettling reality. Delving deep into my characters' minds and hearts, I give my readers thought provoking and sometimes dark and violent story-lines.
I have over thirty publications including book reviews, film reviews, poetry and articles.
Nominated top ten of female authors of biker fiction, my horror story Crossed, also won the first prize in an International Short Story contest.
With an International fan base, you can find me on popular network sites such as Twitter and Facebook where I'm only too happy to interact with my readers.
No matter what genre of fiction I write, you'll always hear loud rock music playing while I work, as it allows me to fade away and become one with my characters.
Don't except happy endings in my novels as I write about real life.
What you will get is exciting story-lines that will have you glued to the pages and desperate for more.
I live on the beautiful Island of Corfu with my Greek husband and two daughters.

Book Blurbs With Review Quotes

In Times of Violence

“It’s about love, respect and the feeling of belonging.”
Jade’s infatuation with Marcus, head of the Tyrants, leads to a dangerous situation.
‘I was able to see part of myself with the decisions they made.’
‘Excellent storyline, riveting read.’
‘It’s amazing. I love the rawness of it.’

Huntress
Sofi thinks she can walk into an outlaw MC and kill the president. But once she enters the wolves’ den there is no escape.
Love and revenge entwine in this raw emotional thriller.
‘Absolutely loved this book.’
‘A gritty story of revenge.’
‘Sad when it finished. It left me wanting more.’

Lawless Justice
Time for the boys to ride bitch.
These Kittnz have claws!
Six empowering women that own the night.
‘A story like you’ve never read before.’
‘This book goes to work kicking ass.’
‘Violent, sexy, moving.’

Road Rage
Gem learns too late that the sponsored racing club, RAGE are no different to the outlaw MC she escaped from.
‘A thrilling nerve tingling ride.”
‘This book doesn’t slow down. Detailed and colourfully twisted.
“Vivid and captivating. The sex and violence just adds depth.’

Author Links
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Karina-Kantas/31754864225
https://twitter.com/KarinaKantas
International Amazon link: Author.to/KarinaKantas

A #Little #HumpDay #Motivation! :-)

Hey Everyone!! :-)

In the mood for a little D/s slap and tickle? ;-)


Excerpt From My Untitled Work In Progress:
Taking the lubricant and the dildo, she moved in front of him and held them up. "Can you guess what I'm going to do with these?" she purred

Seeing what his Anamchara had selected, Ankou was delighted she had slipped into the spirit of the game so easily. "I can guess," he responded, a challenge in his eyes.

Nodding at his tacit consent, she smiled and moved behind him. The back of the cross was thin enough at the level of his ass to give her the access she needed. Dribbling the fiery lubricant over the dildo, she tried not to get any of it on her hands while still ensuring that it coated the toy completely. She added leather gloves to the list of clothing items she wanted to acquire. Once the ivory phallus was adequately lubricated, she slipped it between her lover's cheeks.

Tensing at the initial contact of the burning liquid, Ankou forced himself to relax. His mate was being gentle as she inserted the toy into his rectum, but he wanted to make it as easy for her as possible. As the feeling of the lubricant filled his senses, he thought that perhaps he should have shown Kate his collection of cock rings. If he wasn't careful, this game would end long before he was ready for it to.

Kate moved back around to the front of the cross but kept her hand on the end of the dildo, holding it in place. Pressing her body against Ankou, she looked up into his face. The expression of arousal and desire on his face reassured her, as did the pre-cum that had started to dribble from his cock. "I have some questions for you," she whispered.

Having difficulty focusing on her words, all Ankou could say was, "Huh?"

Pressing the dildo in further and twisting it, Kate ran her hand over the Winter king's well-muscled chest. She circled her fingers around his left nipple, and then squeezed it hard. "I said, I want to ask you some questions."


*Coming (no pun intended ;-) ) Soon!! :-)

Don't #Keep #Giving #Up

Hey Everyone!! :-)

One of my very good friends works with developmentally disabled individuals.  Specifically, she specializes at working with both children and adults whose developmental and intellectual disabilities make it difficult for them to control their more violent impulses (which, just for the record, is a fairly uncommon problem among the developmentally disabled population as a whole).  As a result, for the last ten years her work environment has been such that at any time she might be attacked by one of her clients.  These attacks might take the form of hitting, kicking, biting, scratching, head-butting, etc.  Some of her clients have been children, physically smaller than her, but some of them have also been teenagers or adults who were physically larger and stronger than her.  Below she describes the emotional toll working with such individuals has taken on her over the last decade, but she also explains her motivation.  Personally, I find this woman to be one of the most inspirational people I have ever met.  It's truly amazing how she finds the strength to "keep on keeping on," and I think just about everyone can benefit from her message of hope.  She's one of those "everyday heroes" that we so often take for granted, and I'm honored to welcome her on my blog today.  I hope you all will as well.  Take it away, Kate! :-)

Kate:

The last time I got hit on the head with a step stool while I was driving I pulled off into an empty parking lot, got out of the car and locked it after turning off the ignition and sat down on a curb next to the car. Then I cried. Not because of the pain, although my arms hurt from being grabbed and twisted to bruise me. I cried because I was so damn tired. I was weary in that bone deep, bleak emptiness kind of way that no amount of sleep or coffee will ever cure. In that instant, just for those minutes, I gave up. I quit. For nearly a decade I had lived under the gun every work day, every shift, every moment of my sometimes sixteen hour days. And in that parking lot on that Wednesday, I was done. And so I cried.

That giving up lasted about five minutes. Ultimately, there was still a child in the car that needed to go home and needed to be fed since he had just thrown his entire meal at my head while I was driving. He was going to need to be given a clean shirt since he couldn't stand wet clothing on him and he'd dumped out his apple juice and he was going to need to be restrained if he didn't stop coming at me when I got home. So I got up, brushed off my skirt and took a deep breathe before returning to the car and getting in to drive us home. We made it home and he didn't attack me, astonishingly, instead he simply retreated to his space in the living room and hung out for a while.

That child is now in a state run facility for children who experience both developmental delays and extreme behavioral issues and that facility has fifty staff per home that help do what I and one other person did for three and a half years by ourselves 90% of the time. He is doing well and I am extremely glad for it. I will likely go visit him soon after he's completed the process of settling in. I am a little less tired these days, the bruises have healed and inside when I wake up I can look at the sun without feeling as though there is nothing left inside of me.

This is my job. I chose this route and I love what I do with all my being but there are days when I give up. I have to. If there was no room in my head for failing or letting go; if there was no space I could just stop and cry, I would never make it through. Sometimes, we have to let ourselves give up for a moment or two so that we can find the strength to continue the climb upwards. You have to get used to the bruises, you have to get used to the fact that you, as a human being can do things wrong and sometimes, even when you do everything right, it still doesn't work.

You have to learn to give up and fail gracefully. You have to learn to not fear that moment when you can't go on for one more day, you can't give it one more shot you are so done that you can't even remember why you started. In those moments there is a certain peace and rest and it's okay to feel that way. Honor those feelings, experience them as a perfectly valid response to an extremely frustrating experience that requires super human effort. Sit on that curb and cry. Those moments are cathartic and if you allow yourself to experience them you are much more likely to get back up and try again.

People say things like “Never give up!”. Give up all you want, just don't keep giving up. Find that space in you where you know who you are and what you do, where you honor the essence of the journey that you voluntarily undertook by standing up and starting to walk down that road again. You are much, much stronger then you know and there is, after all, things that need doing which you are uniquely qualified to do. So after you are done giving up, make sure you go back to what you love and what drives you because those things are inherently you and without them you will be less than what you are now. Give up sometimes so that you can keep going.

#RRBC #President's Pick!! :-)

Hey Everyone!! :-)

As you can see, I've been honored this week by Nonnie Jules, the president of RRBC (Rave Reviews Book Club)!!  I'm absolutely thrilled, of course! :-)  In case any of you don't already know, Taken By The Huntsman is now available for free through Kindle Unlimited, and you can find it here: 

Taken By The Huntsman On Amazon

You can also see my books, and stories by many other amazing authors, in RRBC's book catalog here:

Book Catalog For RRBC

Please take a moment to check it out.  You might see something that looks interesting. ;-)  Also, if you're not a member, you might want to consider joining.  It's a great group of both authors and readers who support each other in numerous ways.  If you're an author who is looking to connect, RRBC would be a great resource for you.  If you're a reader always on the lookout for your next favorite story, RRBC has lots of books to choose from and will give you the opportunity to connect with authors. :-)  Either way, please think about it.

Thank you all for stopping by today, and don't forget to check back tomorrow for the next installment of Mistral Dawn's Musings!! :-)