Z.A. Maxfield

Happily. Ever. After.

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HAPPY NEW YEAR!

December 28, 2020 by Z.A. Maxfield

So much haas happened this year. We’ve all had a lot of challenges. My family had to learn how to live together in a whole new way, with five adults sharing a fairly small space. I had to accept that one of my kids is in a different bubble, which meant not seeing him (and his wonderful girlfriend) as often as we’d have liked. I’m wearing the extra pounds gained from my failure to exercise. I miss having lunch with friends. I miss traveling to conferences and seeing my colleagues.

What I gained is a new appreciation for the people I love. An obsession with pretty fabric face masks. A willingness to find new ways to communicate with the folks I know. An opportunity to support those in the “gig” economy by truly valuing their service and making sure they’re paid accordingly. Gratitude for my family’s current virus-free status.

Wherever you are, and whatever you’re up to, I wish you a Happy New Year full of joy, health, wealth, luck, mystery, and the good kind of madness.

May all your wishes be fulfilled and your dreams come true.

I know I’m looking forward to a great year, I hope you’re part of it!

ZAM<3

Filed Under: about me, Blog, real life Tagged With: holidays

A Writer’s Life, Explained.

October 24, 2020 by Z.A. Maxfield

You know what a writer like me used to do? She poured herself a cup of tea and wrote. She starved in a little garret and feverishly sweated over hand written manuscripts and when she was finished, she wrapped her work in brown paper, tied it with a string, and hoped to hear back in her lifetime whether she was successful or not. Then of course she poured herself a cup of tea and did it again and again and again.

These day, a writer–especially an indie published writer like me–has to put on her writerly hat in the morning and her publisher hat in the afternoon. She has to hire an editorial team and a cover artist and be a marketing wunderkind. She has to keep a visible online presence. She has to sell herself as well as her books, and make it all look easy.

Case in point: the cover for Winter Solstice in St. Nacho’s . The original title of the story was Christmas in St. Nacho’s. It was supposed to be a thirty thousand word novella that would make Hallmark proud. But you know me. As soon as I started to write, I ended up outlining a totally different book featuring the character Tug from A Much Younger Man, and his is a redemption arc as grim as my cover is sweet.

PLUS my cover had a typo.

Two typos if you count the missing apostrophe in Nacho’s. I honestly never even noticed, because deep down, I’m that lady writer drinking tea and staring out to sea and concentrating on story, not marketing or publishing and for that, I apologize.

After that wake up call, I showed the cover to the crit group I belong to, my Shenanigangsters: Sue Brown, Morticia Knight, LE Franks, and Belinda McBride. (We try to meet daily to cheer each other on, and I would not be able to do any of this without their support.) In thumbnail size, you can barely tell anything’s wrong with the cover. But you know what? I shared the full size and nobody noticed. (We’ll laugh about this later.) I had that cover fixed. I moved on.

Then I posed this question, “Does that happy, sappy cover still even fit the longer, grimmer book I’m writing?”

We all agreed,,.NOPE! OOPS!

Now, Garrett Leigh at Black Jazz Design will be creating an entirely new cover that more clearly represents the story set out in the blurb. One that will fit in well with the other St. Nacho’s books, so stay tuned for a new cover release on that later.

In the meantime, I’m keeping this first cover (corrected back to Christmas in St. Nacho’s) for something else, later. Maybe a sweet thirty thousand word novella for next year.

Filed Under: Blog

A Much Younger Man

August 19, 2020 by Z.A. Maxfield

One man is older and not quite wiser. The other is young and steady. Can they ignore the critics and let their hearts decide?

Veterinarian Linden Davies gets on better with animals than men. After a lifetime of always putting work first, he’s resigned himself to one-night stands and shallow blind dates. But years of heartache evaporate when he offers a handsome young busker a free health check for his companion Labrador.

Christopher “Beck” Beckett vowed to care for his late brother’s loyal dog. After falling out with his parents and ending up on the streets playing music for tips, he longs for a warm embrace and a compassionate kiss. Linden is perfect, and he takes Beck under his wing, but his hangups over a relationship with someone half his age have Beck’s head spinning.

As Linden lets the sweet wayward guitarist into his world and gives him renewed purpose, he battles disapproval from his friends and family. And when Beck realizes the kindhearted vet could well be his true soulmate, he fears that their love is probably doomed.

Will this perfect match transcend the judgment of others?

A Much Younger Man is the first book in the tender The Men of St. Nacho’s gay romance series. If you like heartfelt chemistry, unequal partners, and emotional rollercoasters, then you’ll adore Z.A. Maxfield’s poignant tale.

Buy A Much Younger Man to throw societal expectations out the door today!

Get Yours!

Filed Under: Blog

Welcome to St. Nacho’s

July 27, 2020 by Z.A. Maxfield

St. Nacho’s is getting a facelift!

They’re the very same books you love with a little upgrade: new covers from Garret Leigh of Black Jazz Design. Stay tuned for a new look, beginning in August of 2020. Why am I doing this? Well…

Look for brand new St. Nacho’s books!

The new series debuts with A Much Younger Man, the first book in the upcoming “Men of St. Nacho’s” series–exclusively at Amazon Kindle Unlimited for a limited time–starting August 31, 2020.

Filed Under: Blog

I’m doing a thing:

June 26, 2020 by Z.A. Maxfield

Join me and all the authors from the FOOTSTEPS IN THE DARK M/M MYSTERY-ROMANCE ANTHOLOGY this Saturday for:

“Footsteps in the Bar.”

We’ll be reading from our stories, drinking, and chatting books and publishing with whoever shows up. Will you?

**Time: Jun 27, 2020 01:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88431097465

Meeting ID: 884 3109 7465

Featuring:
Josh Lanyon, LB Gregg, SC Wynne, Dal Maclean, CS Poe, Meg Perry, Nicole Kimberling, and me!

Filed Under: Blog

About the newsletter…

March 9, 2020 by Z.A. Maxfield

  • Family Unit
    Family Unit

Lately, I’ve been using my newsletters to share the books I’m reading, along with the possibility of winning a book at the end of each month. So if you’re not yet a subscriber to my newsletter, what are you waiting for? Come read along with me!

I promise not to spam, I keep your information completely confidential, and I’ll give you a copy of Family Unit FREE, for signing up.

Do it now! HERE

Filed Under: Blog

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What she said…

  • HAPPY NEW YEAR!
  • St. Nacho’s Newest Residents
  • A Writer’s Life, Explained.

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