Welcome to the brand new website!

I’ll be your host, Nicole.

Glad to see you.

This website has been in the works for literal years, but with one thing and another, I prioritized other projects—like writing books and raising babies—and she got neglected. Poor thing. But here she is, finally. Designed by my eldest—who’s been on my ass to write this blog post for about a month so I could launch her in style.

(Eldest here - she hounded ME for YEARS to make her a website, and after I spent twenty hours on this thing she put off finalizing it for another month.)

So… let’s just jump in. It’s been a long time since I’ve written a blog post. Did you know that I used to have a blog in my pre-Aces days? Yep. I wrote about life and the cute shit my kids were doing, funny stories, that kind of thing. It’s been about fifteen years, so I’m a little rusty.

But I like talking to you, so this should be okay. It’s fine. Everything is fine. I am a writer.

To set the scene: Lord Huron is playing in my ears, I’m wearing a pair of baggy gray sweatpants, fuzzy socks and no bra—which is my preferred uniform on writing days. Life’s too short to wear real pants and a bra while I write. Ah, the song has now switched to Noah Kahan, but no matter. Vibe is the same.

As you’ve probably already noticed, this blog post is also a cover reveal for Craving Harper.

I love this cover. My designer—heyyyy Letitia!—really knocked it out of the park, but she always does so I wasn’t surprised. Working with her is pretty great. She says I always surprise her with the models I choose, which is saying something since we’ve been working together for years.

Now, here’s the thing—my characters as they appear in my mind have no human equivalent. They’re an amalgamation (good word, no?) of various characters already there—in this case, Leo and Lily who are Harper’s parents, plus a sprinkle of vibe, and a little twist of something that is just Harper. So, finding a model that looks like her is hard, because she doesn’t actually exist—but I think this model is a pretty close representation.

Harper is a good mix of her parents. She’s got Lily’s sweetness and Leo’s steel. She shies away from confrontation but can also sling shit with the rest of her cousins like it’s her job. From the outside looking in, you’d see someone who you couldn’t imagine saying a mean word but once you’re in the circle? Harper takes no shit. She’s a force all her own and I love that about her. She’s also highly intelligent. Kind. Funny. Dorky as hell.

So fun to write.

The entire book was a complete joy to work on. The words flowed like water—and that doesn’t always happen. Sometimes writing feels like trying to walk through ankle-deep sand. I still get to the destination in the end, but by the time I get there I’m exhausted. In Harper and Bas’s story, I just happily fell right back into it every day, like traveling home for the holidays. The Aces are old friends that I get to watch fall right back into familiar antics.

Oh, yeah, Bas is Harper’s hero. I bet you didn’t see that coming. Hell, I didn’t even see it coming until it slapped me in the face.

Hold on. Hold on. Don’t be pissed at me yet.

I know you were picturing him with someone else. I get it. But, Harper is his match and by the end of this book, you’ll agree with me. I promise.

At the moment my lovebirds are with the editor. As soon as I get them back, I’ll be able to give you a solid release date. I’m really hoping *before* Christmas, so you guys have something to read in the quiet moments after you’ve wrapped all your presents (or unwrapped them).

I’m so excited for you guys to read this book. It’s steamy. It’s tender. It’s infuriating. I just love the two of these characters together.

Watch this space for any news and updates you’re watching for! I’ll be back to blog some more soon—hopefully with release date news—and other random tidbits.

Love you guys!