Hello all of my beatiful people of the world!!!

It's your girl, LaQuette and I'm coming to you via my brand new blog, Novels by LaQuette. Tell me if you like it. Me myself, I LOVE it!

I'm coming to you today with some very special news. Today, Power Privilege & Pleasure: Queens of Kings: Book 4 is live on Amazon (yes baby, click that link if your haven't already purchased your copy). I am beyond thrilled that this book is finally here. You all don't know it, but A.J. and Alan were not very cooperative during my writing process. Once you get to know A.J., you'll understand why. That girl is such a control freak.

Aside from the new book's release, there are all sorts of good things that have happened over the last few weeks, and I really wanted to share it with my people, so here goes.

Heart of the Matter: QKB1, was nominated for a Swirl Award in Romantice Suspense. I cannot tell you all how thrilled I am about this. As I write this, I'm patiently--okay, let me stop lying right now, I'm sick with nervousness--waiting for the news about whether my book baby won or not. The Swirl Awards was created to acknowledge books that celebrate the depiction of interracial love. There simply aren't enough words in my vocabulary to express how humbled and astonished I am to be included in such an honorable and prestigious contest.

Another bit of exciting news about Heart of the Matter, it became a finalist in the Georgia Romance Writers 2015 Maggie Award for Excellence in the Erotic Romance category. If you're tripped out by that, just imagine me. Yes, it was very exciting to be selected along with three other finalists among what must have been an impressive amount of books. I did my little happy dance and ran around the room with my arms flailing, and after I caught my breath, the enormity of it all just hit me.

Being nominated for such a prestigious award looks very nice on my author bio, but the fact that my book, this book in particular was selected among the best means something else entirely. Heart of the Matter is an interracial romance about an African-American female police lieutenant from East New York, Brooklyn who trips into a love affair with Mr. Old White Money himself, Kenneth Searlington. The fact that the judges were able to look beyond the race and origin of the female lead and just see the story, that meant more to me than my name being attached to the nomination. I wrote something that industry professionals saw as something impressive, and not just other. I'm hoping that instances like this experience become more of the norm and we begin to look at romance novels not by their subgenres, but as really great stories that need to be told.

And the accolaids just keep pouring in. Less than a week ago the Yellow Rose Romance Writers of America selected the cover for Protected Heart: QKB3 as the Erotic Romance winner of the Cover The Words contest. This cover was created by the exceptionally talented Taria A. Reed who after a fifteen minute Facebook chat was able to take my words and create this delicious cover featuring models Tayo Oredein & Nathaniel Cinelli as Heart & Kenneth Searlington. Doesn't it look tasty? You know it does!

You'd think that the aforementioned would be enough excitement to talk about, but no, there's still more. As of today, in one calendar year (minus two days for all you folks that like to be so annoyingly precise :) lol), I have published four full novels and one teaser for an anthology.

Yes...clap with me now...yes, I did that!

When this year began and I sat down to write the second book in the Queens of Kings series, I had this crazy idea that I would challenge myself and attempt to release four books in one year. I didn't think I could do it. Hell, I barely survived writing and publishing Divided Heart four months after Heart of the Matter was released on October 18, 2014. But for some reason, I wanted to push myself, and I did. I pushed myself, I pushed my husband, I pushed everyone that spent any time in contact with me. Just in case you're wondering, those times weren't all sunshine and roses either. They were hard, they were heartbreaking, they were filled with personal and professional challenges, and honestly, I didn't think I would make it.

Fortunately, I am married to an incredible man that always tells me why I can whenever I utter the words, "I can't." He soothes me, and when I start acting like a brat, he checks me and sets me on my merry way. He doesn't accept my bullshit, and more importantly, he doesn't allow me to accept it either.

Today, I celebrate accomplishing a professional goal I'm very proud of. But even now as I sit here typing this, smiling because I'm so proud of myself, he's sitting next me saying, "Don't you think you've played enough? Isn't it time for you to get back to work.

He's such a slave driver. Can't get mad at him though, he keeps me honest.

Before he can give me anymore side-eye, I wanted to thank all of my readers and supporters for being so loyal, and taking this journey with me. I'm so blessed to have you guys. And don't worry, the fun in this series isn't over, True is going to close it out sometime early next year, and Jussy and Bryan will have their stand-alone book probably toward the middle of 2016.

All right, let me go get some work done before he comes back in here.

Deuces!

#LaQuette #EroticRomance #InterracialRomance #PowerPrivilegePleasureQueensofKingsBook