Autism awareness month – blog hop!
I’m excited to be taking part on R.J. Scott’s Autism Awareness month blog hop!
“Autistic, talks too much, makes friends easily.”
A few months ago, somebody who I am now privileged to call a friend introduced themselves to me with these words. How could I not grin instantly at them? After all, I can talk too much as well, and there was a lot of chatting that afternoon. Sadly, though, it’s not always been easy for autistic individuals to be open and happy about who they are, as just a brief look into the history of autism taught me. I was shocked to discover that, only a few decades ago, mothers of autistic children were blamed for their children’s “failure” to build “normal” relationships, often accused of being too cold toward them—so many ugly prejudices rolled into one horrible package.
“Autism Fact: Autism is a lifelong, developmental disability that affects how a person communicates with and relates to other people, and how they experience the world around them.”
When we write, we tend to focus a lot on individual hopes and dreams, either those of our characters or our ambitions as a writer. But these are really not the most important ones. For individuals to be able to celebrate who they are, through writing or otherwise, we need to have collective hopes and dreams, so we can travel together towards a more understanding and loving world. So yay for RJ and Autism Awareness month! I, for one, need to find out and learn so much more about autism, and intend to take this opportunity to do so.
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Giveaway: As part of the Austism Awareness blog hop, I am going to be giving away winner’s choice of any ebook from the Landlocked Heart series, my m/m merman romance. To enter, please leave a comment below with your email (comments will be screened e.g. not be published, so you don’t have to fear for your email being shared. I will also not be storing emails or using them for any other purpose.)
Giveaway ends midnight BST on 8th April 2018. Winners will be notified by email.
The Lonely Merman (Landlocked Heart book 1): It’s Friday afternoon, and the last thing Ben wants to be doing is trudging through a wet forest in search of a public hazard. But duty calls, and turns out more exciting than Ben imagined when he encounters a magical ruin, an enchanted pool, and Lyle—a merman who’s cursed to be landlocked many miles from the sea.
Lyle is flamboyant and exciting—he’s got tentacles, for goodness sake!—and Ben falls hard. But Lyle’s been hurt before and finds trust difficult, refusing even to reveal how to break the curse that imprisons him. Ben’s just an ordinary guy, and can’t help wondering if he can ever be the hero Lyle needs.
Landlocked Heart #4 out March 13th
Landlocked Heart Book 4 – The Isle of Eternal Happiness is out soon. You can pre-order at a special price now from Less Than Three Press.
Blurb: After several months of wedded life, Ben is feeling the pressure. Not only has he a job and marriage to worry about, he has to sustain Lyle’s waning magical powers and see through the destiny of the Dragon Rider and save Lyle’s merfolk family in their hour of need.
Lyle’s concerned that Ben is changing for the worse, acting secretively and strangely. With Ben rapidly developing powers of his own, Lyle suspects Ben is being corrupted by the sinister legacy of Prince Clewell, whose magic sword Ben has inherited. If not, their marriage is failing.
Ben tries to pacify Lyle by whisking him off on a belated honeymoon. But Ben’s true purpose is to seek a hidden fairy sanctuary, “The Isle of Eternal Happiness,” and to fulfil the Dragon Rider prophecy. He’s even invited Lyle’s dragon-shifting sister, Cully, to help him in Lyle’s stead. Lyle finally snaps. Ben’s mission might be a noble one, but magic is turning him into a monster. And Lyle is still a force to be reckoned, even with his health and powers deteriorating.
The Landlocked Heart series is available from Less Than Three Press, Amazon, Amazon.co.uk, Kobo, Smashwords, and Siren Bookstrand.
Kay Berrisford 