Tag: ya lit

Baseball?

Baseball?

by fnmanning ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Starting pitcher Luke has a lot on his mind lately now that the formerly straight athlete has found himself in a relationship with another guy, and really enjoying that relationship. A lot of people are wondering what this means for Luke. Is he gay or straight? Are there other options? Fortunately, he can take his mind off all that during a baseball game. Until, like a good boyfriend, his boyfriend shows up to cheer him on.

This scene is from One Little Lie, where a clueless jock learns the world is more than just gay or straight in this coming of age love story about secret relationships, friendship, and bisexuality.

~

Luke

I LOVE BASEBALL. ESPECIALLY DURING GAME TIME. Worried thoughts about my personal life weren’t important when playing ball. On the mound with all eyes on me, I felt great. People watched me because I excelled at this, not because of who I was dating.

The game started and I was in the zone. My whole focus was on the game.

Until Ryan. My stupidly distracting boyfriend.

As a likable athlete, I had few embarrassing moments until Ryan walked into my life. Still, what was lacking in quantity was now made up in quality.

Due to the nice day, Ryan wore a tank top and shorts. He looked innocent enough, plus so freaking tall. Grab a ruler and check if I lied, there were miles and miles of his long legs on display. So much skin, how were his legs so shapely and toned? Running, he claimed, even though I’d only seen him run his mouth.

Ryan sat on the bleachers, not being embarrassing for once. I embarrassed myself, unable to keep my gaze away. Dammit! I ogled my boyfriend instead of pitching. He saw me looking and waved. I waved back before remembering I should pay attention to the game. The runner at first advanced to second and I heard distant yelling from my coach.

Shit. Taking a moment, I refocused my attention. Time to strike this batter out. I lined up the pitch, got ready, and…

My eyes drifted back to Ryan.

–Grab the book here as part of the One Crazy Love Story box set, which features the first four books in the One More Thing series of contemporary YA novels.

Worst Superpowers Ever

Worst Superpowers Ever

by fnmanning ♥ 1 Comment

I love those superpowers that are barely superpowers or that are so mediocre it’s like, come on, universe, why even waste time bestowing that gift? Surely there’s more important tasks you could spend time on. What springs to mind for examples are:

  • Moist from Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, who slightly wettens things
  • The main character from Treasured who can look a few seconds into the future, even though waiting a few seconds achieves the same thing. (You can check out my review for this book here!)
  • The Invisible Boy who can only turn invisible if people aren’t watching him from Mystery Men. (sorry because this reference is practically ancient by now.)

In general, invisibility seems like one of the worst, least wished for superpowers ever. And when John Hyde stops feeling overlooked and becomes literally overlooked while turning invisible, he’s stumbled onto one of those ‘meh’ superpowers in my Vella novel Invisi-bi-lity.

Mostly, invisibility is good for spying on people. Which is extreme nosiness, bordering on creepy voyeurism. If you wanted to rob banks or commit crimes, your face wouldn’t show up on cameras. But then we’re entering criminal territory and I’d imagine you’d still need skill at criming to get very far.

Questionable superpowers are only the start of John’s problems in the novel. He’s also having trouble coming out as bisexual because some of his friends think being bi doesn’t really exist. He’s talking to his sympathetic friend Sky in this scene.

~

“When people wanna overrule who another person is, I’m a little sensitive to it. Who has the right to dictate someone else’s truth?”

Somewhat comforting words. Except why didn’t she speak up in there?

“Look, I should be a braver person.” She sighs. “But I don’t wanna rock the boat. It’s a lonely thing, isn’t it?”

“What?”

“To be among your own people and still not understood.” From her knowing stare and the sad little smile on her face, I almost wish she couldn’t see me.

Our fair spaz

Our fair spaz

by fnmanning ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Best friendships are often tested as people age. This is doubly true when one person is a confused, possibly bisexual athlete and the other is a self-involved diva who hates serious discussions. Even worse, they both liked the same guy.

In this scene, Luke tries to clear the air with his best friend while Zach tries to avoid the conversation as always. This is from One Little Lie, where a clueless athlete learns the world is more than just gay or straight in this coming of age love story about secret relationships, friendship, and bisexuality.

~

Luke

 I rarely understood the way his brain worked. There was only one thing I needed to be sure about.

“You and Ryan seem friendly again,” I commented casually.

“Yep.” He kept his eyes on the road. Okay, he should keep doing that as he was driving.

“Cool. Great.” They should definitely get along. As long as it was only friendship. “You’re over Ryan, right?”

“No, Luke,” he replied dryly. “Let us commence a fight to the death to win the hand of our fair spaz.”

“Okay, you were joking for most of that, but you said no, so it’s no, right?”

“If I really wanted him, you wouldn’t stand a chance—”

“Not sure that’s true since—” I already had Ryan. He picked me.

“Which must mean I don’t want him.”

“Awesome.”

-Grab this book as part of the One Crazy Love Story Box set, which features the first four books in the One More Thing Series.

Vitality

Vitality

by fnmanning ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Hello, I wish to talk about my Kindle Vella novel, Invisi-bi-lity, but I’m not sure what to say. I had one image quote and post to make without having a plan for the content. This is always a dangerous situation, so let’s start with the easy stuff.

Description: John Hyde often feels overlooked. Even his best friend Cody doesn’t truly see him or that his feelings have changed from friendly to romantic. So he’s wondered before if anyone would notice if he disappeared, but he never thought he’d find out until he literally turns invisible. Is this the world’s worst superpower, a hex from a vengeful witch, or has bisexual erasure taken on new meaning? Whatever’s going on, if John can’t make himself seen soon he’ll vanish forever.

Hooray, I have now thought of either a terrible or perfect segue for the scene I’m sharing: in my novel, Cody and John go together like five ‘i’s in ‘invisibility.’ It’s vital! Yes, I admit this metaphor isn’t very catchy. (If you’re wondering what I’m talking about, check out this post about my titling woes for Invisi-bi-lity.)

In this scene, Cody tells John about his vitalness to Cody’s life. John is freaking out because he’s invisible for some reason?

~

I’d give anything to throw open the door and reassure Cody, but what will he find waiting on the other side? I’m afraid to look in the mirror again. There’s no way I’m invisible and yet… Whatever’s happening, I’m starting to believe the impossible. It’s terrifying.

 “What’s going on?” Cody asks quietly.

“Do you ever feel like you don’t exist? Do you worry nobody would notice if you were gone?”

“I’d notice,” he answers fiercely and immediately. “I would notice and I’m so glad you’re here. Don’t ever think of going anywhere.”

“I won’t,” I prom—say, because unfortunately, that might not be a promise I can keep right now.

“Besides,” Cody says. “How can I be myself without you in my life?”

Rising up with shaky legs, my head peeks over the bathroom counter—oh thank god. There I am.

After opening the door, I’m not sure who moves into who, but we wrap our arms around each other and don’t move for a long time. Things seem normal again. Normal enough. Feeling his burgundy wool sweater between my fingers makes me hold on tighter. In Cody’s arms, everything will be okay.

-Read more here!

Invisi-bi-lity: New YA M/M Romance!

Invisi-bi-lity: New YA M/M Romance!

by fnmanning ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

My newest novel is up on Kindle Vella right now!

When a teen’s attempts to come out of the closet are influenced by a vengeful witch’s hex, bisexual erasure takes on a whole new meaning in Invisi-bi-lity.

Vella is a new way for authors to post stories on Amazon, and it works in episodic format. An author I follow had this plan, probably much more thought out than my own, to have five stories published by the new year. Pretty ambitious, considering they possibly wanted the novels to be complete too. For some reason I thought I could do the same thing, so I guess I’ll look on the bright side and praise my confidence.

I have three works currently on Vella and one soon to be published. Of these four, two are finished. So I actually didn’t do too bad and am going to give myself an A for effort. I tried and I tell myself that’s the important part.

Here is a scene from the beginning of the book. The main character John has some trouble pinning down his sexuality because a certain boy always gets in the way.

~

Figuring out my sexuality is difficult enough without Cody O’Keefe screwing everything up.

The high school halls are filled with attractive people. From the cute girl with amazing legs in my English class to the washboard abs of the football quarterback. Then Cody smiles at me, his eyes crinkling at the corners, and I only see him.

Intelligent, funny, and gorgeous, Cody O’Keefe has it all. My favorite thing about him? When people talk, he listens. He makes people feel important. It’s basically a superpower in a boring city where nothing ever happens like Buffalo, New York… though his warm brown eyes are also nice.

Cody’s gay. And he always knew. Back in kindergarten, he told his parents he’d rather marry me than Ella Hopkins and no amount of her sharing Rice Krispy treats would change that. Girls? Not gonna happen.

Me? I’ve sometimes been pretty sure I may not be straight. Occasionally. Much less definitive.

Sometimes I think I’m not bisexual, I’m just a little in love with my best friend. Or am I bi but only fixating on the nearest and best queer guy and not really in love with him? These questions swirl in my brain constantly these days. How do I gain clarity? The answers won’t just slap me in the face with the truth.

“Ah!”

Tuning back into the world around me, I stand on the sidewalk, staring incredulously at the guy who just slapped me in the face.

“Sorry, did I hit too hard?” Cody pats my cheek this time, an affectionate sort of slap. “My bad, but you were pretty far away.”

About a head taller, he stands there with an easy smile, all up in my business without the slightest hesitation. Comfortable in our friendship and totally unaware of the thirsty thoughts in my brain.

Cody O’Keefe has amazingly soft chocolate-brown hair that gets mussed if you so much as look at it wrong. With peach skin and the most enticing slightly chubby cheeks, his beautifully open face is nearly as expressive as the song lyrics, affirmations, and notes he always writes on his arms in black or blue pen.

-check out the rest of the novel here on Vella!

Shameless Flirting

Shameless Flirting

by fnmanning ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

In One Little Lie, a clueless athlete learns the world is more than just gay or straight in this coming of age love story about secret relationships, friendship, and bisexuality. This scene involves two boyfriends snarking at each other before they go out for the night. I don’t believe more context is necessary, this is mostly shameless flirting.

Oh, expect some helpful information to know is that One Little Lie is on sale. Get a discount now by grabbing the book for 99 cents while you still can! This is the second sweet and snarky M/M romance in the One More Thing series of contemporary YA novels.

~

Luke

“Wait, your parents weren’t home?” Ryan asked. “Shoulda mentioned that earlier, Chambers.”

I had no idea. Also, I blamed him. “You’re supposed to be the smart one, Miller.”

Ryan squawked in outrage. “Sorry, I was distracted by someone trying to pick out the right nail polish and dress to wear.”

“Are you implying I wear a dress because I’m gay?” I managed not to add an ‘or something’ on the end and ruin the joke. I continued with, “That’s homophobic and I’m offended.”

Ryan rolled his eyes. “Don’t even try that with me.”

“I’ll do what I want with you,” I muttered darkly, moving into his personal space.

He batted his lashes at me. “Promises, promises.”

–You can also grab the book here as part of the One Crazy Love Story Boxset, which features the first four books in the One More Thing Series.

Art

Art

by fnmanning ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Art.

Such a tiny word for a huge subject. At its core, art is a form of expression. A way to show a piece of your heart or soul when words fail.

As the shy kid hiding behind his mother’s Anne Taylor pant leg, skipping words altogether appealed to me. Putting pretty colors on a blank page and creating a picture, creating a statement without the awkwardness and anxiety, it was everything.

I love painting. I love everything from color theory to the first brush stroke. I love art.

Art is beautiful, transformative, passionate… and limited.

–The Boy Next Door

Glitter and sales

Glitter and sales

by fnmanning ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

What you always wanted for Christmas, One Little Lie is on sale. Or maybe what you didn’t know you always wanted for Christmas. Yeah, that works. And because in my mind it’s appropriate, I picked part of the book to share where they talk about glitter because glitter is a vital part of Christmas. Not as celebrated as Santa but totally there in every shiny present and tacky decoration.

The book is about Luke, a popular athlete at his small town high school who just did the unthinkable by falling for another guy. His journey to figure out his sexuality will test everything he knows about his relationships and himself. In this scene, Luke and friends are going out to a gay bar and he’s trying not to freak out.

I wrote this book so long ago I barely remember writing it, but I do know this part was really fun. Luke and his boyfriend were both panicking for different reasons, and there is glitter, moody drunk girls, snark, and cuteness, which is apparently everything I adore.

~

Glitter!

Luke

As Ryan’s really good at being a spaz, I should leave that to him. Me? I’m awesome. I had to remember that. So what if I was going to a gay bar for the first time and couldn’t even get drunk? Without alcohol to help, I was a terrible dancer.

Did I belong at a gay bar? As a couple, yeah, I guess. But me? No idea. What if everyone looked at me and knew I didn’t belong? What if they didn’t? Did that mean I did belong?

I went simple with my clothes, a red shirt that hugged my muscles and tight jeans. Ryan… did the opposite. He looked good, a little ridiculous with all the glitter, but also like himself. Also super gay.

 “What do you think?” Ryan asked coyly while preening, batting his eyes in a way he thought was flirtatious but was actually excessive.

Dragging my eyes away from their current focus, I managed to reply nonchalantly. “Are you sure that’s the most obnoxious glitter you could find? Because I can barely even see it when I close my eyes.”

-This is from One Little Lie, the second sweet and snarky M/M romance in the One More Thing series of contemporary YA novels. Grab this gay romance for 99 cents right now! The deal lasts from the 26th-31, for those in the US and UK.

If you miss the sale, you can still get a great deal! Grab the book here as part of the One Crazy Love Story Boxset, which features the first four books in the One More Thing Series.

by fnmanning ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

What seemed closer to a vast ocean as a child is actually a tiny oasis of blue and green serenity where water plants thrive. The greenish dark water and picturesque lily pads on top spark a rush of nostalgia. I remember the satisfying splash of chucking a bottle in there.

As kids, we were creative since we lacked glass bottles. Instead, we used old prescription bottles from our parents to deliver our notes. The little orange capsules stuck out, orange buoys signaling a secret message from friends.

–The Boy Next Door