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It’s taken me a little while to get around to writing about my Romantic Novel Awards win. There are a number of reasons for that, not least that I was so completely overwhelmed.

Back in December, when I got an email from Katrina Power congratulating me on being shortlisted, I had to read it a few times before the reality sank in. Prior to that, I’d been so browbeaten by bad news that I wasn’t used to hearing good things.

I wrote about my experiences for The Pink Heart Society, so I won’t go into detail here but, in summary, my lovely husband died unexpectedly of a heart attack in September 2018 and six weeks later I was diagnosed with cancer.

I finally came down to earth and established that Katrina’s email was real. My Harlequin Romantic Suspense/Mills and Boon Heroes story, Secret Baby, Second Chance, was a finalist in the Libertà Shorter Romantic Novel Award.

From that moment on, I had a new focus. I was determined to be in London for the awards ceremony. It wasn’t going to be easy. With weekly chemotherapy sessions, other hospital visits,  and just the general “cancery-ness” of cancer, it felt like I was trying to climb a mountain (a suitable metaphor for Secret Baby, my mountain murder mystery).

With some trepidation, I approached the subject with my oncologist. I’ll call him Dr. E (although his real name is Douglas Errington). He immediately went into full-on planning mode and agreed to give me a break from treatment during the week of the awards. His letters to his colleagues from then on included the phrase “she has an important literary event to attend.”

As well as Dr. E, the other medical professionals who got me to London included Sam, my Macmillan nurse, Ram, my breast surgeon, and all the staff on the Delamere ward at the Clatterbridge Cancer Centre (because my mum, who accompanies me to chemo, told everyone about the award).

My lovely sister, Laura, came to London with me. We went to a show and had lunch with the lovely team from Mills and Boon. It was wonderful to meet Mills and Boon Historical author, Jenni Fletcher, whose books are now at the top of my “to be read” list and Liz Fielding, the oh-so-deserving recipient of an Outstanding Achievement Award and all-round amazing romance writer.

The awards ceremony was held in the Gladstone Library at One Whitehall Place. It was an impressive environment!

Laura and I were briefly displaced from the Mills and Boon table and adopted by the lovely team at Hodder and Stoughton, before returning to sit with our own group. I had been so focused on getting there, that winning genuinely hadn’t crossed my mind. Then this happened…

That was when I realised I would have to say something. I think I said “thank you” to the people who mattered. My editor and agent, the team at Harlequin/Mills and Boon, my family. And, most important of all, my lovely husband, who would have been so proud. I know I forgot Dr. E…

I don’t know if I will ever be able to express what that night meant to me. Winning the award was incredible. Alongside that, the warmth and generosity of the RNA members was simply overwhelming. The boost to my spirits from their kindness  and good wishes is still with me and will last for a long time.

What the awards confirmed is how amazing the romance community is. In a world where it’s easy to be cynical, it’s wonderful to know there are people who  care and a place where love will always matter.

Most of my books are available in print or as ebooks from all major retailers, but I am excited to be publishing a series of contemporary romances in serial form on the Radish fiction app.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What is Radish?
A. Radish is a mobile app for serial fiction, you read it on your phone or tablet.

Q. What is serial fiction?
A. Serial fiction is stories that are published one chapter at a time. It’s like a multi-part television mini-series, but for written fiction.

Q. How much is the Radish app?
A. It’s free!

Q. Are the stories on Radish free?
A. Lots of stories on the Radish app are free. Others are premium, which means that you must pay to read each chapter of a story (except for the first few chapters which are free to read). Some stories are freemium.

Q. What is a freemium story?
A. A freemium story is one which you don’t have to pay to read. Each week, one chapter becomes free. The chapters after that are “locked”, meaning you pay to read them. However, if you’re willing to wait for these chapters to “unlock” (i.e., become free) then you can read the whole story without paying anything. Readers pay for “locked” chapters if they don’t want to wait weeks to be able to read them.

Q. How do I pay for locked chapters/premium stories on Radish?
A. You can pay using Radish coins. You buy them, or you could win them in a giveaway (by Radish or any of their fabulous authors). To buy Radish coins, on the home screen of the app, look for your profile icon on the bottom right (it’s labelled “You”).

Q. What Jane Godman stories are available on Radish?
A. The very first episode of my contemporary romance, Out of her League, is now available! You can read it for free on the Radish app.

I suffer from chronic illness. Many of you reading this will also be battling your own physical disability, mental health issue, or other significant impairment.
We each find ways to work around our problems and continue to lead productive and creative lives.
My New Year’s Resolution for 2018 is to raise awareness of how life can get in the way of art (in my case writing) and provide some insights into the ways I’ve made it work. I’m not suggesting I have all the answers, but I’ve had to make adjustments and compromises.
I’m not sure it’s important why some of us are unable to get out of bed some days. Whether it’s chronic pain, fatigue, depression, or something else that’s specific to your condition, what matters is the strategies we have for dealing with it (if we do deal with it).
Having said that…a bit about me. I have a brain tumour. If you know anything about these things, you’ll know there are various kinds. Mine is low-grade and slow growing. It doesn’t really do much. Instead, my head finds other ways to make me suffer with unpredictable pain and dizziness. I also have a range of gynaecological conditions, but I’ll spare you the gory details.
I went from being driven and ambitious in the workplace, to barely coping and eventually I was forced to leave the job I loved. But, hey…more time for writing, right?
While it’s true that the creative spark doesn’t die out when you have a life-altering condition, you do have to find ways to nurture it.

It’s like being in survival mode 24/7. If you let go of that thread, there is always the fear that you will never be able to find it again.
Living with illness means living with the fear of stigma. If you are trying to sell your work, you are also selling yourself. If the package is less that perfect, will anyone want to buy it? When there are so many other products (books, paintings, films, songs) out there, are you going to take that chance?
No. So chances are, you do drag yourself out of bed and pin on a smile. You are harder on yourself than anyone else would ever be. You use up all your creative energy and drive on just getting through the next few hours and then you wonder why you feel even worse the next day.
I’m going to keep writing about this subject, but I have one simple thing I keep in mind when it comes to self-care.
When you travel on a plane, the air crew will tell you that, in the event you might need oxygen, you must put your own mask on before you help others. Even though the reasons are different, the underlying message applies to life as well as to a plane journey: If you don’t look after yourself first, you may not be able to look after anyone else.

#livewell

Love,
Jane

Like most authors, my search history makes interesting reading. I write romantic suspense, paranormal romance and erotic romance. I’m often trying to find unusual ways for my characters to kill or f**k each other.

But one of my most usual searches recently has been ‘what does the Arctic smell like?’. I’ve never been to the Arctic, but the heroes of my new six book series are Arctic werewolves, and scent is very important to a wolf.

The answers ranged from ‘nothing’ to a surprising variety of scents. People who have lived in the Arctic Circle and moved away remember an evocative range of smells from lichen and berries to Tiilaqait tea and Salmonberry ice cream.

So, in my books, that’s what the Arctic smells like. More importantly, that’s what my Arctic werewolves smell like to each other…

March 7 2017 will be a very special day for me. It’s the day on which I have three (yes, three) new books releasing! They are all werewolf stories…because there can never be too many werewolf stories, right? But, even though two of them are part of a series, they are all very different.

Ice Wolf and Shadow Wolf are the first books in a series of six from SMP Swerve.

They tell the story of the Arctic Brotherhood, an ancient order of werewolves who have sworn to protect the world from the forces of evil.

Arctics are unique. Where other werewolves are governed by the phases of the moon, the brotherhood shift by the light of the midnight sun.

I can’t wait for you to meet the brotherhood and discover more about their icy world and steamy antics!

The Unforgettable Wolf is my fifth Harlequin Nocturne. It tells the story of Nate Zilar, rock star by day, werewolf hunter by night.

When Nate rescues a beautiful, naked woman from the jaws of a feral werewolf, he is forced to rethink everything he once believed about werewolves.

Can the hunter fall for his prey? Where there’s a wolf, there’s a way…

Nate and Violet’s love story is one of my favorites! I loved writing it, It made me laugh and cry and I was so glad I could give them a happy ending. This book also introduces the band Beast, who have their own stories coming along in 2018…

Ice Wolf Purchase Links: Amazon US Amazon UK Macmillan Barnes & Noble Kobo iTunes Google Play

Shadow Wolf Purchase Links: Amazon US Amazon UK Macmillan Barnes & Noble Kobo iTunes Google Play

The Unforgettable Wolf Purchase Links: Amazon US Amazon UK Harlequin Barnes & Noble Kobo iTunes Google Play

There are many stories told about King Arthur, The Once and Future King, but the legend surrounding his birth is one of the most fascinating.

Arthur’s father was Uther Pendragon, King of the Britons,  and his mother was Igraine, Duchess of Cornwall. At the time of Arthur’s conception, Igraine was married to another man. Her husband, Gorlois, Duke of Cornwall, was one of Uther’s allies. Gorlois was a brave soldier, who was loyal to his king.

The two men clashed over Uther’s open desire for Igraine.  When Gorlois defied the king by taking Igraine away from London without Uther’s permission, it led to open hostility between the two men.

The story is that Merlin used his magic powers to disguise Uther as Gorlois. While Gorlois was away fighting Uther’s army, Uther entered the iconic Cornish castle of Tintagel and had sex with Igraine. Arthur was conceived and the legend of Camelot was born. Gorlois died that night and Uther and Igraine were free to marry.

My fascination with the Arthurian legends is well known, and I wanted to write an ‘up close’ and personal—okay, erotic—account of some of the characters. Giving them sex lives seemed like a way to get to know them better…and they have VERY exciting sex lives!

Igraine has always fascinated me, even though her character lacks depths in many of the legends. She is described as ‘beautiful’. So what? She must have had more than beauty to drive Uther, and Merlin, to such lengths.

In my story, Igraine is the most beautiful woman in the world. She is the daughter of a fae, and every man she meets desires her. I think this makes it easier to understand how the King of Britain and the Duke of Cornwall would go to war over her.

My writing was constrained by the legend itself, but calling this story as a romance was sometimes difficult. Uther and Igraine do get their happily-ever-after, but their love story begins when she is married to another man, and Uther’s actions are not always heroic.

I do call this a romance, however. Uther and Igraine are the ultimate ‘fated mates’. They are predestined to be together.  Their son, Arthur, was the long-awaited man who would be a great king and his birth required mystical intervention. Sadly, Gorlois (a misguided, but not evil, character in my story) had to die for them to be together.

Blurb

Igraine is the most beautiful woman in the world and her destiny is to become the mother of King Arthur. The daughter of a mysterious fae, every man she meets desires her. Married to a man who dominates her body, Igraine is in love with a man she has never met.

Uther Pendragon, the mighty King of Britain is said to be more god than man. When the great sorcerer, Merlin, promises Uther he will marry the beautiful woman who features in his erotic dreams, the consequences threaten to tear his kingdom apart.

Excerpt

Cheshire, Britain 463 AD
Gorlois, Duke of Cornwall, was a fine figure of a man. Tall, proud, and strong, he was broad-chested and powerfully built, with a square jaw beneath a black beard and eyes that were ever watchful for the sword of an enemy or the hand of a friend. Gorlois was a soldier. Brave in battle, loud of voice, hard muscled, and tough as a leopard about to spring. His men could count on him to lead them well, and in return, they gave him their undying devotion. The only other man in the country who inspired stronger feelings in his followers was the legendary Welsh king, Uther Pendragon.

Tender feelings did not come easily to a man like Gorlois. Women were to be used, enjoyed, and tossed aside. That was his view of the world. Until one day, while visiting the castle of his good friend Ragnor of Christleton, he took a walk in a rose-bower.

As he strolled along a grassy pathway banked with yews and hemmed with a rich tangle of pink and red blooms, a young woman came into view. She was tall and slender, with red-gold hair hanging loose in shining waves to below her waist. Her skin was like cream and her lips, when they parted in surprise at his unexpected approach, rivaled the surrounding roses in their perfection.

Gorlois had a powerful vision of sliding his cock into the waiting warmth of that perfect mouth. Whoever she was, he was going to have this woman. Silently he cursed the fact that her clothes denoted her status as a lady. If not, he’d have been tempted to throw her down on the grass and take her there and then. Anything to relieve the sudden throbbing ache inside his tight hose.

She dipped a slight curtsy and turned away.

“Lady, tarry awhile, if you will.” Although courtly speeches did not come easily to him, Gorlois spoke quickly, before she could leave. “I am recently returned from battle, and your dainty company will gladden my soldier’s heart.”

She appeared to debate the matter. Then, with a shy smile that struck him in both chest and groin with equal intensity, she came to walk beside him. “I know who you are, sir.” Her voice was low and husky. “My kind hosts have told me much of the bravery of the mighty Gorlois of Cornwall.”

Her eyes were a blue so dark they appeared violet. Their dark lashes swept down over her cheeks, tantalizing Gorlois as he imagined this was how she would look beneath him when he thrust into her. “And your name, lady?”

“I am Igraine.”

Igraine is priced at just $0.99 until February 15.

Avaiable from:

Tirgearr Publishing

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Smashwords

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