Queer Ghost Stories Volume Six

Queer Ghost Stories Volume Six
3 Tales of the Paranormal
By Foxglove Lee

Who needs sleep? Not you! You’re up all night to get spooky with three unforgettable ghost stories.

In these hair-raising tales of the paranormal, queer characters encounter the supernatural… with life-changing results. Get ready for a fright with three haunting tales from Foxglove Lee’s Queer Ghost Stories series!

In Ghost Cat, Jonathan was never a fan of his boyfriend's pet. The feeling was more than mutual. When the old girl dies, Jonathan and Ben can’t pay for her ashes to be returned in a brushed pewter urn. Is that why Bella returns to haunt Jonathan's apartment? Can the guys lay Bella's spirit to rest before the ghost cat brings someone to an early grave?

When newly-separated Marie moves in with her parents in our second story, Death Bed, her childhood room becomes the scene of strange occurrences. As a child, her sister warned her not to let her arm hang over the side of the bed as she slept. A monster would drag her down to hell. Who knew her sister might be right?

Our final story, Ghost Road, finds Margo and her girlfriend in a broken-down car on a deserted gravel road. When she marches into the forest to find a cell signal, the last thing she expects to come upon is a her ruggedly handsome ex-boyfriend setting up camp. But a shadow figure haunts the woods, and it’s got its sights set on the pair. Will Margo make it out alive?

Delve into three tales of the paranormal by Foxglove Lee… if you dare!

Available pretty much anywhere books are found, including Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BG6G9TD6

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/queer-ghost-stories-volume-six-3-tales-of-the-paranormal
Apple Books: https://books.apple.com/ca/book/queer-ghost-stories-volume-six-3-tales-of-the-paranormal/id6443504243
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/queer-ghost-stories-volume-six-foxglove-lee/1142322404

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1167059?ref=RainbowCrush
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=AJmLEAAAQBAJ
DriveThruFiction: https://www.drivethrufiction.com/product/411284/Queer-Ghost-Stories-Volume-Six

Now Available in Audio: Tiffany and Tiger's Eye by Foxglove Lee

I'm delighted to announce that my novel Tiffany and Tiger's Eye is now available as an audiobook!

This audio version was created using Google's digital auto-narration technology rather than a human narrator, and I love how it turned out. It's seven hours long and I enjoyed every minute of it.

If you love consuming content in audio format, be sure to grab a copy of Tiffany and Tiger's Eye from Google Play!

How many secrets can one family keep?

If there’s one thing Rebecca knows, it’s how to keep her problems under wraps. It’s easy to keep your mouth shut when you’ve got no friends, but with a rock-and-roll dad who drinks too much and a mom who works day and night, Rebecca needs a sympathetic ear. That’s why she tells her troubles to Yvette, an antique doll that once belonged to her grandmother.

In the summer of 1986, after her father’s strange disappearance, Rebecca and her little brother are sent to stay at the cottage, where she meets Tiffany: a water-skiing blonde who dresses like Madonna, makes her own jewellery, and claims to see auras.

But strange things happen when Rebecca spends time with Tiffany. Her aunt and uncle are convinced she’s acting out—and she’d have good reason to, considering they won’t tell her where her father is—but she can’t seem to convince them she isn’t the one trashing her bedroom and setting fires. Unlikely as it seems, Yvette must be the culprit. There’s nothing more dangerous than a jealous doll who knows all your secrets…

A digitally narrated paranormal 80s nostalgia lesbian audiobook

Get Tiffany and Tiger's Eye in audio format from Google Play today!

13 Queer Ghost Stories: Tales of the Paranormal

Who needs sleep? Not you! You’d rather stay up late reading these spine-tingling ghost stories!

In these thirteen tales of the paranormal, queer characters encounter the supernatural… with blood-curdling results! Get ready for a fright with the following stories from Foxglove Lee’s Queer Ghost Stories series: Witch of the Winter Woods, The Future is Deadly, Ghost Gallery, Ghost Radio, The Moths, Underground Spirit, Ghost Phone, Nightmare Heights, Spooky Little Girl Like You, Off With the Fairies, Devil at the Door, Ghost Family Christmas, and Ghosts of the Living.

Delve into thirteen supernatural stories by Foxglove Lee… if you dare!

13 Queer Ghost Stories
Tales of the Paranormal
By Foxglove Lee

Buy Now from Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/13-queer-ghost-stories
Apple Books: https://books.apple.com/us/book/id1570504132
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/13-queer-ghost-stories-foxglove-lee/1139623536

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=vHwxEAAAQBAJ
Scribd: https://www.scribd.com/book/510490174/13-Queer-Ghost-Stories-Tales-of-the-Paranormal

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1087585?ref=RainbowCrush
DriveThruFic: https://www.drivethrufiction.com/product/359705/13-Queer-Ghost-Stories

Hardcover Edition Available from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B096LTQWS4

Mystic Ridge: A Lesbian Paranormal Novel by Foxglove Lee

At long last, my new novel has hit the market!

Mystic Ridge is a book that features all your favourite ghost story themes and a queer cast of characters. If you love a supernatural tale that begins with one character inheriting a haunted house from an unknown relative, I'll do you one better: the girlfriends in my novel inherit an entire haunted summer resort!

It's October as I write this--the perfect month to read something spooky. So be sure to get your hands on Mystic Ridge. It's the perfect accompaniment to a grey, rainy day or a long, dark night.

Mystic Ridge: A Novel
By Foxglove Lee
Ebook ISBN: 9781005901394
PRINT ISBN-13: 9798697357880

When Beverly Landry inherits Mystic Ridge, a glorious yet neglected summer resort, she and her girlfriend begin a new life in the small town of Lament. As soon as Bev’s girlfriend, Cate, arrives on the ridge, she’s plagued by terrifying nightmares involving the death of a beautiful young woman. Everywhere Cate goes, she’s followed by black mist and glowing red eyes. When she sleeps, a demonic force guides her toward the ridge. Every day brings a new vision of death. 

If they stay in Lament, someone is sure to die.

Will Mystic Ridge tear Cate and Bev apart for good, or will a league of unlikely friends help the couple defeat the evil living on their land?

There are many places to buy Mystic Ridge. The following list is nowhere near exhaustive. Look for it at your favourite book retailer!

Universal Link: https://books2read.com/b/bwdede

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08KWLTCH7?tag=foxglovelee-20
Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B08KWLTCH7
UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08KWLTCH7
Australia: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B08KWLTCH7
Germany: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B08KWLTCH7

Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/Search/Query?fcmedia=Book&query=9781005901394 
Apple: https://books.apple.com/us/book/x/id1535689766 

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1048373?ref=RainbowCrush
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=wm0CEAAAQBAJ

Read it at Radish: https://radish.app.link/yG1jXdsgDab

DriveThru Fiction: https://www.drivethrufiction.com/product/332021/Mystic-Ridge 

Angus & Robertson: https://www.angusrobertson.com.au/ebooks/mystic-ridge-foxglove-lee/p/9781005901394

Vivlio: https://www.vivlio.fr/ebooks/mystic-ridge-9781005901394_9781005901394_10020.html
Thalia: https://www.thalia.de/shop/home/artikeldetails/ID149846352.html

Queer Ghost Stories Volume One: 4 Tales of the Paranormal

Who needs sleep? Not you! You’d rather stay up late reading these spine-chilling ghost stories!

Throughout four tales of the paranormal, queer characters meet with fates beyond their wildest imaginings as they are confronted by spirits from all walks of life… with shocking results.

In THE WITCH OF THE WINTER WOODS, Nicole couldn’t be more nervous about meeting her girlfriend’s parents this Christmas. On her way to their house in rural Maryland, she nearly collides with a barefoot old woman standing in the road. Strange things happen: a chase through the snow, a stone cottage in the woods, a raging fire. Will Nicole make it out alive?

Tucker and his boyfriend are the best in their field in THE FUTURE IS DEADLY. They organize estate sales, using their keen eyes and marketing know-how to earn big bucks for their clients. But when they’re hired to clear out a mysterious gothic manor house, Tucker discovers a set of vintage sunglasses. Through their shaded lenses, he sees a murder that has yet to take place. What lengths will he go to in order to keep the victim safe?

What could follow in our series of supernatural stories? Why, it’s GHOST RADIO, the tale of a transgender teen spending the summer with her cousin. When the pair finds a mysterious radio in a dilapidated shack in the woods, Emily can’t get enough of the music it plays. There are tales, in town, of a ghostly DJ who draws teens to their deaths. Could Emily be next on his list?

In GHOST GALLERY, Xan has just landed his dream job at a prestigious art gallery. There’s only one problem: the place is haunted. When Xan stays late to meet his favourite transgender artist, will he come face to face with an apparition from another time? And, if he does, can he finally solve the mystery of the gallery ghost?

Dive into four tales of the paranormal in Queer Ghost Stories Volume One by Foxglove Lee.

Get the ebook from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PSLR3JC
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/929346?ref=RainbowCrush
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=p2mNDwAAQBAJ
Or one of many other ebook retailers: https://books2read.com/u/bpjweE

Find the audio version at Audible: https://www.audible.com/pd/B07QDNRVCB/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189MWT-BK-ACX0-147633&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_147633_rh_us
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/audiobooks/details/Foxglove_Lee_Queer_Ghost_Stories_Volume_One?id=AQAAAEBM03uTJM&hl=en
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/audiobook/queer-ghost-stories-volume-one
Scribd: https://www.scribd.com/audiobook/396769514/Queer-Ghost-Stories-Volume-One-4-Tales-of-the-Paranormal
Playster: https://play.playster.com/audiobooks/1001800000001001448/queer-ghost-stories-volume-one-foxglove-lee

And keep an eye out for the paperback--coming soon!

A Teacup for Trilby: A Heartwarming Holiday Story

We all have different needs, when it comes to the kinds of stories we want to hear around the holiday season. 

Some readers love escaping into a land of sugar and spice that in no way resembles real life. Other readers feel isolated by sappy-happy stories because they don't see themselves and their lives reflected. 

There's a place for the sappy stuff. There's a please for stark realism. Both are valid forms of entertainment.

Growing up as a queer kid in a situation of domestic violence, I hated the feel-good Christmas movies my mother loved. All the happy smiling people just reminded me how rotten my little life was. I wanted representation. I looked for fiction that was darker, fiction that reflected the fear I was experiencing in my own life.

As an adult, I appreciate the need for escapism more and more. As I write this post, I'm watching some kind of musical family Christmas special on TV. Little me would be rolling her eyes, big-time. But the world is just so awful sometimes. It helps to absorb other families' joy, even if it's fictional.

Having said all that, I would like to introduce the story I've written for you this Christmas.

A Teacup for Trilby sits somewhere between those two extremes of happy-sappy and stark realism. It's about a little girl spending Christmas at a shelter for women and children escaping domestic violence. 

You might think a story about being homeless for the holidays would be a total bummer, but I'm hoping that's not the case here. My main character, Amelia, befriends Trilby, a lovely older trans woman, and they pretty much adopt each other as grandmother and granddaughter. When Trilby is wronged, Amelia is the first one who wants to stick up for her. But what good can she do? She's only a child.

These characters experience great challenges, but, in the end, they are rewarded with love and acceptance. And I think that's something we're all looking for, especially this time of year.

Start a new tradition today by reading A Teacup for Trilby, a heartwarming holiday story from me, Foxglove Lee, for you, with love and affection.

A Teacup for Trilby
A Heartwarming Holiday Story
By Foxglove Lee

Amelia and her family are homeless this Christmas. How can their days be merry after they’ve lost everything?

When Trilby arrives at the shelter just in time for the holidays, Amelia’s family takes the older trans woman eagerly into their hearts. Trilby reminds the young girl of her late grandmother, who was always so loving and supportive. Everyone is over the moon when a wealthy benefactor arranges a festive shopping trip for the shelter’s residents, but the evening goes sour when a cold-hearted shop assistant denies Trilby the only gift she really wants. Can anyone set things right? And can they do it in time for Christmas?

You can purchase the ebook at many retailers, including:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07L7L62G5?tag=foxglovelee-20
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/911689?ref=RainbowCrush
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=wxN-DwAAQBAJ
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/a-teacup-for-trilby-a-heartwarming-holiday-story
Universal Link: https://www.books2read.com/b/3yDA1n

You can also find it at the following and other subscription sites:
Scribd: https://www.scribd.com/book/395417647/A-Teacup-for-Trilby-A-Heartwarming-Holiday-Story
Playster: https://play.playster.com/books/10009781370260881/a-teacup-for-trilby-a-heartwarming-holiday-story-foxglove-lee

And at Radish: https://radish.app.link/yrljelwZzS

We're Here! We're Queer! We're Ghost Stories!

There's nothing I love more than a spooky story. 

I grew up watching Twilight Zone re-runs. When my younger brother watched Goosebumps and Are You Afraid of the Dark? on TV, I found some excuse to be in the room. I was too old for kid shows, so I couldn't admit I wanted to watch them. Now I'm the total opposite: I'm not too old for anything, and I'm not ashamed to tell you I watched every episode of Are You Afraid of the Dark? that I could find on Netflix, and I'm working my way through Goosebumps as we speak.

Ghost stories are the greatest.  That's why I've started a new series called Queer Ghost Stories, paranormal tales featuring LGBTQ characters. These stories are perfect for those of us who grew up loving Goosebumps, The Twilight Zone, The Outer Limits, The X-Files, Tales from the Crypt, all that.  

If you like spooky stuff, this series is for YOU!

To be totally honest, I started writing my Queer Ghost Stories just to entertain myself. It was a totally selfish venture. But I think that's when an author's writing is at its best.

You can expect one new queer ghost story every month, and you'll find a listing of my ebooks at this special page: https://foxglovelee.blogspot.ca/p/queer-ghost-stories.html

As with episodes of The Twilight Zone and Goosebumps, you can enter this series at any point.  The stories all work independently of one another, so read them in any order.

If you love ghost stories as much as I do, I invite you to enter the world of Queer Ghost Stories today!

Nostalgia, Nirvana, the Nineties: Top Ten Ways to Die

When I hear myself saying my latest release is close to my heart, I have to laugh a little. Because I say that about ALL my books, don't I? But when I described my new novelette Top Ten Ways to Die to my sister, she said, "Wow, you really put a lot of yourself into this one."

It's lesbian fiction. It deals with the death of a parent. It incorporates plenty of arguments with Mom--about Nirvana, about clothing, about whether that goth girl Tara is a bad influence. It reverberates with the shock a whole class feels (teacher included) when one student tries to commit suicide.

There's a lot packed into this piece. And did I mention it's set in 1994? What else is new, right? In case you haven't memorized my back list, it just so happens my book Sylvie and the Christmas Ghost is also set in 1994, as is Gayboy (also known as And Plaid All Over).

Why 1994?

Well, here's the thing: I tried really hard to set this story in any other year. Any year but 1994! But when I got into research mode, I soon discovered one of the essential elements of Top Ten Ways to Die (Kurt Cobain's suicide) occurred in... you guessed it... 1994. Turns out I can't get away from this year.

As much as Top Ten Ways to Die is fiction about teenagers, I can't help but wonder if I didn't write it more as nostalgic fiction for my own generation--for people who want to stroll down memory lane, relive the 90s from a teenage perspective. I find that whenever I write young adult books set in the 80s or 90s, the readers who really eat them up are the adults who came of age during those decades.

When Jess’s dad dies unexpectedly, her world is turned upside-down. The only good things left in life are her girlfriend Tara and Kurt Cobain’s tortured grunge sound. But when a classmate attempts suicide, Jess goes into a downward spiral. Her mom is afraid she’s obsessed with death, and doesn’t want her hanging out with Tara or listening to Nirvana. What’s left for Jess in Hicksville if everything she loves is taken away?

I invite you to grab a copy of Top Ten Ways to Die right now from one of the following retailers:

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/top-ten-ways-to-die-1
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=vKp3DgAAQBAJ
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1219652964

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/top-ten-ways-to-die-foxglove-lee/1126005406
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/713853

Instafreebie: https://www.instafreebie.com/free/SO4le

Tell your friends!

You can also purchase Top Ten Ways to Die in print from Amazon. I highly recommend it, but, then, I would, wouldn't I?

While I'm sharing links, here's where you can buy the ebook from Amazon:

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XRZTWFQ?tag=foxglovelee-20
Amazon Canada: http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B06XRZTWFQ
Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B06XRZTWFQ

Behind the Curtain with Gayboy

I'm bringing you behind the scenes with this post. Strap in, tie those shoelaces (made ya look!) and grab a warm mug of cocoa. Here we go!

In August I published a sweet, lovely bisexual teen novelette called And Plaid All Over. More recently I published a gritty, honest bisexual teen chapbook called Gayboy.

And, actually, they're both the same book. Different name, different cover, different branding, but the story inside is exactly the same.

The plan from the very beginning was to a/b test this story. What's a/b testing? It's when you present different versions of something to see what will have better results. In the case of Plaid/Gayboy I wanted to see whether a softer or harder title and cover design would sell more copies.

Of course, I'm being totally unscientific about this by actually telling you what I'm up to. I published the Plaid version first and kept it exclusive to Amazon for 90 days, then I unpublished it. My plan was to do the same with Gayboy, but I gave up pretty fast because Kindle Unlimited never works out for me. The bulk of my sales come from other ebook stores, so I've uploaded Gayboy pretty much everywhere.

The only thing I didn't change was print version. Chalk that up to laziness. But that also meant I was able to include in the Gayboy blurb: Paperback version available as "And Plaid All Over." Because, of course, I changed the title and cover art to test design concepts, not to trick anyone into buying the same book twice--yet another reason I'm letting you in my evil plan to take over the world. I mean to a/b test this book. Sorry, I glanced at the wrong notebook for a sec.

Now I know what you're thinking: which one's the winner--a or b? Plaid or Gayboy?

Well, the wheels fell off when I changed so many testing parameters, so I can't really say. What I can say is that you are more than welcome to scoop up a copy of Gayboy anywhere you like. 

Oh, and if you want to know what the actual story is about... well, you could read it. Or you could check out this post I wrote: http://foxglovelee.blogspot.ca/2016/08/new-teen-fiction-bi-guy-his-best-friend.html

There are plenty of places to find Gayboy, including:

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/gayboy-foxglove-lee/1125245376
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1179950968
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/gayboy

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N1I8V9V?tag=foxglovelee-20
Amazon Canada: http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B01N1I8V9V
Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01N1I8V9V
Scribd: https://www.scribd.com/book/332231797/Gayboy
24Symbols: https://www.24symbols.com/book/x/x/x?id=1808057

They're Humiliating! They're Hilarious! They're... Embarrassing Period Stories!

Embarrassing Period Stories
Twenty Totally Awkward Tales of Preteens and Periods
Edited by Foxglove Lee

We get them at school. We get them on vacation. We get them at dance recitals and piano lessons, at theme parks and on tennis courts, during pool parties and volleyball games and math tests. We get our periods at the worst possible moments, but at least we’ve got funny stories to tell!

In this inclusive book, you’ll find twenty embarrassing period stories as hilarious as they are mortifying. If you’ve ever felt humiliated by leaks and layers and secrets and stains, feel free to laugh along!

What a fun read!

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N59J3VP
Amazon Canada: http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B01N59J3VP
Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01N59J3VP

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/707375
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=lew7DgAAQBAJ

...but we're not exclusive...

One of the publishers I work with only contracts short stories for a period of one year. Makes sense, actually. Sales of short fiction tends to drop off pretty soon after release. If you ever feel like there's a deluge of short fiction out there, that's probably why.

When my rights came back to me, I figured I'd self-publish those shorts. I only had an account with Amazon at that time, so I only uploaded them to Amazon. For a long while, we were exclusive.

But not anymore!

It no longer seems beneficial to put all my eggs in Amazon's basket, so I've started the slow process of teasing them out and making them available at other retailers.

The stories we're talking about, here, are the ones that comprise my short fiction anthology Rainbow Crush. So if you own Rainbow Crush, you own these stories. And thanks!

If you prefer to pick and choose, buying your shorts as individual ebooks, then I've got good news for you. Actually, I've got links where you can purchase some shorts. I've also got links to short fiction at subscription places like Oyster and Scribd. So if you have accounts there, give my shorts a read! Doesn't cost you anything.

Here are some ebooks that are no longer exclusive to Amazon:

Happy Birthday, Klutzface!
https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1025661806
https://www.scribd.com/book/273358998/Happy-Birthday-Klutzface-A-Lesbian-Comedy-for-Teens
https://www.oysterbooks.com/book/pfYRB8FBZmxy8ucQpELmsm/happy-birthday-klutzface-a-lesbian-comedy-for-teens
https://store.kobobooks.com/ebook/happy-birthday-klutzface-a-lesbian-comedy-for-teens
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/happy-birthday-klutzface-a-lesbian-comedy-for-teens-foxglove-lee/1122450027

I Know What Gay Is
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/i-know-what-gay-is-foxglove-lee/1122492289
https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1028873945
https://www.oysterbooks.com/book/uk5sZuYRDAhXtq4sgEiY4/i-know-what-gay-is-short-fiction-for-teens
https://store.kobobooks.com/en-CA/ebook/i-know-what-gay-is-short-fiction-for-teens
https://www.scribd.com/book/273933865/I-Know-What-Gay-Is-Short-Fiction-for-Teens

Dress Like a Dude
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dress-like-a-dude-foxglove-lee/1122402798
https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1023252837
https://www.oysterbooks.com/book/BvDMvwVGd5FDR6UnQZegWb/dress-like-a-dude
https://www.scribd.com/book/272683986/Dress-Like-A-Dude
https://store.kobobooks.com/en-CA/ebook/dress-like-a-dude

What do Seinfeld, Show Boat and That 70s Show all have in common?

Big news! I've written my third full-length book just in time for the holidays.  It's called Sylvie and the Christmas Ghost and it's now available as an ebook and in print.

If you've read the blurb, the first thing you probably noticed was that Sylvie and the Christmas Ghost is set in 1994.  Why 1994, you ask?  Well, I think I got that idea when I was watching an episode of Seinfeld. Maybe you've had this experience too.  You look at the date the episode came out and go: "1994, oh yeah, that was 5 years ago... 10 years ago... wait, that was 20 years ago?"  And then you wonder what you've been doing for the past 20 years.

Around the same time, I was helping my mother clean her basement (a never-ending task) and I came across a hatbox containing all the programs I'd kept from the musicals I saw in the late 80s and early 90s.  I flipped through the one from Show Boat (which I wanted to show you, but seem to have temporarily misplaced) and nearly did a back flip when I spotted Cloris Leachman listed among the cast.  Apparently, in the mid-90s, I didn't know who she was because it didn't make a dent on my memory. Anyway, you'll notice, when you read the book, that Show Boat is woven into one scene.

Aside from all that, 1994 is kind of the year of my existence I'm always writing for.  When I wrote Tiffany and Tiger's Eye, I was writing it for ME at that age, but I set Tiff/Tiger in 1986.  The 90s just didn't seem distant enough. But now, considering 1994 was 20 years ago, I figured maybe it had reached retro status. A fourteen-year old reading Sylvie and the Christmas Ghost wouldn't have been born in 1994.  Heck, an

18-year-old wouldn't have been. It's like my experience with That 70s Show.  If memory serves, the first season was set in 1978? (yeah, that's a question because I'm not going to bother looking it up right now). I wasn't alive in 1978, so when I watched that show some things felt familiar and close-at-hand (I grew up wearing clothes like that) and other things felt retro and recent-history-ish. Hopefully younger people will have that experience with Sylvie.

Though my main character in this book is 14, I enjoyed reading it as an adult.  And you're probably thinking, "I HOPE you enjoyed it--you wrote the book, after all," but let me tell you: by the final proofing stage you've read your own book so many times you usually want to burn the manuscript (which is hard to do when it's a computer file). With Sylvie, I LOVED the book the whole way through. My editor enjoyed it too, and that's a compliment I really appreciated.  Editors don't always express a level of like or dislike for any given manuscript.

So now it's your turn.  If you're in the Christmas spirit, grab a copy of Sylvie and the Christmas Ghost from one of the retailers below:


Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00QJLBFUS
Amazon Canada: http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00QJLBFUS
Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00QJLBFUS
B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sylvie-and-the-christmas-ghost-foxglove-lee/1120851731
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id947735485
Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/sylvie-and-the-christmas-ghost
Scribd: https://www.scribd.com/book/249006634/Sylvie-and-the-Christmas-Ghost
Inktera: http://www.inktera.com/store/title/c380355f-ad0b-41be-9ee4-b81896a4b523

IN PRINT from Createspace: https://www.createspace.com/5147425

UPDATE: The print version has popped up on Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/Sylvie-Christmas-Ghost-Foxglove-Lee/dp/1505351774/ref=foxglovelee-20 but it doesn't seem to be hooked up with the e-book yet. They're both there, but in different places.

Dress Like A Dude

If you've read my short story collection Rainbow Crush, then you've already encountered Dress Like A Dude. It was first published in that book, and now it's available on its own as an ebook, exclusively from Amazon. If you'd like to read Dress Like A Dude, it's available FREE from Amazon November 1-5, 2014.

 Dress Like A Dude

A short story by Foxglove Lee

What's going on in front of the school? 

 
When Mila and Laura get back from lunch, there's a big student protest going on. Signs and placards say "Guys Shouldn't Wear Girl Clothes" and "Dress Like A Dude." Turns out a new student doesn't believe in gender-conformity. He’s a Goth guy who wears whatever he wants, including skirts. This ninth grader's got guts!

 

Mila and Laura have been dating since last school year and they haven't even kissed in public. Will this young student who isn't afraid of anyone inspire them to come out, or will other kids' reactions drive them deeper into the closet?

 

LGBTQ fiction from the author of Tiffany and Tiger’s Eye & Truth and Other Lies!

***
Foxglove Lee is a former aspiring Broadway Baby who now writes queer fiction for teens and young adults. She tries not to be too theatrical, but her characters often take over. When you’re done with her short story collection Rainbow Crush, grab her novel Tiffany and Tiger’s Eye—it’s set in the 80s and there’s an evil doll! What more could a reader ask for? Follow Foxglove on Twitter @foxglovelee or stay tuned to her blog foxglovelee.blogspot.com for more!

Dress Like A Dude is FREE at Amazon from November 1st through 5th. Grab a copy on me!

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OZDHIIA
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00OZDHIIA
http://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00OZDHIIA

The Robber

I've got a lot of explaining to do.

Not in a bad way. I just want to tell you a little about the new short story I have on the market.  It's called The Robber and, leading up to the release of Chicken Soup for the Soul: Find Your Inner Strength (which includes an intense little story from my life), The Robber is available as a FREE download at Amazon.

So where does the explaining come in? Well, here's the thing: I wouldn't exactly classify The Robber as Young Adult fiction, like the rest of my books.  Although the protagonist is ten years old (it's her birthday in the story), I feel the story is better classified as literary fiction for adults.  It's not that there's anything specifically "adult" or offensive in terms of the content (aside from harsh language and distressing situations), but I still wanted to put a bit of a content warning out into the world.

Why the tie-in with this new Chicken Soup for the Soul book? (which you can pre-order here, by the way: http://www.amazon.com/Chicken-Soup-Soul-Empowering-Resilience-ebook/dp/B00IWTWFYK/ref=foxglovelee-20 )

Because while The Robber is a fictionalized version of events from my young life, my story It Takes A Village in CSS Find Your Inner Strength is a true story from roughly the same era. They both deal with substance abuse and family violence.

The Robber will be free at all Amazon sites starting today and ending on the release day of Chicken Soup for the Soul: Find Your Inner Strength, which is October 28th.

You can find The Robber at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ODBV4AM
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00ODBV4AM
http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00ODBV4AM

Literary short fiction from the author of Tiffany and Tiger's Eye:

Samantha’s celebrating her tenth birthday, but turning “double digits” isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Her special day is dampened not only by her mom burning the chicken fingers and making her go to Girl Guides, but also by the fact that she knows "the robber" will be coming later that night. After all, birthday cards mean birthday money, and birthday money is sure to attract him.

Sam and her younger sister Tory have tried for years to find the perfect hiding spot, but the robber always finds any bits of cash tucked away in their underwear drawers, or in the pyjama doll, or the hollow base of the ugly ceramic unicorn from Grandma Macintyre. It's only a matter of time before the robber arrives at Samantha’s bedroom door.

Not every horror story is supernatural…

You can find The Robber at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ODBV4AM
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00ODBV4AM
http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00ODBV4AM

Rainbow Crush and so much more...

I almost feel bad for trying to cram so much news into one post. I'll try to keep it brief.

Big News #1:

My first single-author short story collection is OUT! Rainbow Crush: Light-Hearted LGBT Fiction for Teens is available as an ebook and in print!

Five fun fictions from the author of Tiffany and Tiger’s Eye & Truth and Other Lies! In Rainbow Crush, revisit five favourite short stories featuring gay and lesbian characters:

In “I Hate Love,” Mila melts Laura-the-Ice-Queen’s heart as Jaden learns that dating an older man could have repercussions he hadn’t anticipated. Mila and Laura are back with impossibly high expectations in the side-splittingly funny housesitting comedy “Happy Birthday, Klutzface.” In “I Know What Gay Is,” Jay the teenaged manny and his young charge Sarah, who insists on being called Frank, find an unexpected ally on the soccer field.

School is back in session and tempers flare when Mila, Laura and Jaden stumble into a protest where classmates insist a gender-nonconforming new student “Dress Like A Dude.” In our final story, aspiring teen chef Noah comes out of the closet in a most surprising way during his first television appearance in “The Secret to a Perfect Latke.”

The ebook's available at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NPOJA7C
and Amazon UK: www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00NPOJA7C
Get the paperback from CreateSpace: https://www.createspace.com/5002133
or Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Rainbow-Crush-Light-Hearted-Fiction-Teens/dp/1502393891

Big News #2:

Hope you kept reading, because I don't want you buying Rainbow Crush just yet! Well, you can if you want to, but Amazon's allowing me to give it away FREE for 5 days. That'll happen from September 21-25th, just in time for Word on the Street and ending on the day I'll be...

Big News #3:

...taking over Twitter!  Okay, not all of twitter.  I'll be taking over Torquere Press's @torquere twitter feed from 2-4 p.m. EST on Thursday September 25th. If you don't know Torquere, they are the "parent" publisher of the Prizm Books imprint that brought you my debut novel Tiffany and Tiger's Eye! Be there or be square.

Big News #4:

Thanks to Brad @JazzFM91 for the shout-out on the radio today! Sometimes it's nice to be shouted at... or out...

Big News #5:

I realized that visitors arriving at my blog for the first time might have trouble figuring out that I'm a professional writer and that I've got books on the market and all that. To that end, I created a store you can visit just by clicking on "Foxglove's Fiction" at the top of the page. Here's the direct link: http://foxglovelee.blogspot.com/p/foxgloves-fiction.html Okay, full disclosure: I saw other authors doing this and I thought it was a good idea. I'm a big copycat!

I think that's all the news you can use for now. Remember to grab a copy of Rainbow Crush on Sunday September 21st. The ebook will be free from then until Thursday of next week!

If you're playing Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon and you're trying to get from Fran Drescher to Foxglove Lee...

...then you're obviously living in a make-believe world where I have more than 300 twitter followers and my books fly off the shelves of every bookstore in town, but let's pretend for a moment that this is really happening.  You're playing Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon and you need to find some random connection between myself and the resilient Fran Drescher.

I know, I know, but bear with me. This is going somewhere, I promise.

In October, Fran Drescher and Foxglove Lee (haaa... talking about myself in the third person. George likes spicy food) will share the pages of a new edition of Chicken Soup for the Soul:

I saw Fran Drescher on a talk show a couple years ago (which is weird because I never watch talk shows) and I was astounded by some of the horrific stuff she's lived through. That woman has gone to hell and back, and I can't wait to read the foreword she's written for Chicken Soup for the Soul: Find Your Inner Strength.

As for me, when I first sat down to write something for this collection I really thought I had nothing to share. I couldn't think of an instance where I felt I'd been particularly strong, inside or out. But an event from my life came to mind and I typed it out, not thinking much of it.  It wasn't until I read the anecdote that I came to fully appreciate the harrowing nature of my life story. 

Sometimes you don't see how serious your situation is/was until you take a step back and examine it as though it were somebody else's experience.

I'll have more to say closer to the book's release date, but I wanted to tell you all how excited I am to have my story included in Chicken Soup for the Soul: Find Your Inner Strength.

Who'd have thought I'd end up between the covers with the likes of Fran Drescher?

"I Know What Gay Is" is back and it's FREE until Friday!

I kind of said it all in the subject line, so... hmm... what's left to tell you?  

Not much! 

Here's the blurb for my queer YA short "I Know What Gay Is":

Isn't babysitting a job for twelve-year-old girls?

When the couple next door asks Jay to babysit, he can't help wondering… why him? Did they hire Jay as some kind of queer role model because they suspect little Sarah is gay?

At the park, when Sarah and Jay run across the guy he's been pseudo-stalking, Sarah insists she’s a boy. Darien’s sheer sexiness makes Jay pretty brain-dead, and he can't think what to talk about except how Sarah wants everyone to call her Frank. The funny kid reminds Darien of his transgender cousin. Could Sarah be trans, too? Should Jay talk to her parents? What if they say it's none of his business? What if they fire him?

Well, then he'll just have to spend his summer watching Darien work in the park, sweaty and shirtless...

Second Edition. First published by Prizm Books. 4,500 words.

It's free at Amazon now through Friday (that would be the 15th of August, I do believe) so pick up a copy today!

In America: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MN13PYW
In the UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00MN13PYW?*Version*=1&*entries*=0
In Canada: http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00MN13PYW?*Version*=1&*entries*=0
In Australia: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B00MN13PYW

If you're somewhere else I'm pretty sure you can just replace the "com" with your country's Amazon suffix and you'll get to the book page? Maybe? I could be totally wrong about that. Try it and see if your computer explodes.

Asking Difficult Questions (and never answering them)

I like writing about moral quandaries.  I like writing about grey areas and loyalties and tough decisions.  In a literary atmosphere that seems to prefer a black-and-white good-versus-evil approach, this isn't always a popular choice.

But I do it anyway.  Why?  Because when I read a book that asks a difficult question and then promptly answers it, I always feel a little like I'm being preached to, no matter what the "issue" is.  As a writer, I like having the space to not always answer questions for my readers.  If it's left open-ended, that question sticks with me for years.

That goes for books I've written, as well.

The best example would be my Laura and Mila story "I Hate Love."  On the surface, this is a Valentine's Day lesbian romance for teens, but there's a vein running through this story that deals with a difficult decision the girls have to make.  Actually, you could argue the story is about the decision and the love story is incidental.  (I'm not sure if you'd be right, but you could argue it.)

Here's what happens: Mila and Laura are in the hall at school and they're making fun of their friend Jaden for dating an "old dude" he works with at the movie theatre.  One of their teachers overhears this conversation and calls the girls over for a serious talk.  See, as a professional working with minors, he's bound by law to report what he's heard.  Technically, since Jaden is underage, his relationship with an older man would be considered abuse.

Now the girls have to decide: do they lie to their teacher for loyalty's sake? They don't want Jaden to get in trouble. Anyway, he's a teenager, not a little kid.  He can make his own choices. Right? Even if it is kinda gross that he's dating some weird old guy.  Or maybe he's not.  Laura and Mila don't know the ins and outs of Jaden's personal life.  Maybe he made all that stuff up...

Laura and Mila obviously want to do the right thing, but sometimes it's hard to know what's right.

So, am I taking the easy way out by not quite answering this question?  I hope not, because it was (and always is, for me) a very deliberate measure.

Here's the thing: I write for a young adult audience basically the same way would for an adult audience, prosaically. After all, adults enjoy YA and I expect my reading audience to consist of a lot of adults. The difference is that, when we're dealing with issues that are in some way "moral" there can be an assumption that I'm trying to teach teens how to act and react.  I'm not.  I'm asking questions in hopes of getting teens (and adults) to wonder, "What would I do if it was me in that situation?"

Taking an open-ended approach is my way of circumventing the question of whether a narrative is descriptive (showing the reader what the characters are doing) or prescriptive (suggesting appropriate action). The longer we ruminate over a tough question, the more time we give ourselves to understand all possible perspectives.

If at some later date we happen to find ourselves in the kind of quandary we've reflected on because we encountered it in a piece of fiction, we'll be better equipped to act.

That's my take, at least.  I don't have all the answers...

About I HATE LOVE by Foxglove Lee
Where's a girl to go when every direction is the wrong direction?
Half the school calls Laura "The Ice Queen." Even her closest friends have never seen her cry... until she's assigned to debate a Pro-Valentine's Day position in class. As far as Laura and Mila are concerned, V-Day's just an excuse to sell chocolate. Their friend Jaden says they're against Valentine's Day because they hate love. Maybe he’s right. Laura's never wanted the things teens are supposed to want most. Why is she so different?
On the eve of Valentine's Day, warmth creeps into Laura's life from unexpected sources. By midnight, life might not feel quite so icy.
A short story for teens. 

Amazon| http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IQK6S52?tag=foxglovelee-20

Amazon UK| https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00IQK6S52
Barnes and Noble| http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/i-hate-love-foxglove-lee/1122573377
iTunes| https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1033563685
Kobo| https://store.kobobooks.com/en-ca/ebook/i-hate-love-a-lesbian-romance-for-teens

Sesame Street Made Me Cry (or, an amazing resource for kids with incarcerated parents)

Stumbling upon these new resources from Sesame Street was a little serendipitous, for me.  I happen to have just caught a documentary called "Herman's House" on PBS (Independent Lens), so incarceration was already on my mind.

It also happens that, as a young person (not quite Sesame Street young, but younger than I am now), I had a parent who spent time in prison.  It ALSO also happens that my upcoming YA novel (the working title is TIFFANY AND TIGER'S EYE, currently in edits, contracted by Prizm Books) is about a teen who faces many of the challenges I did.

My character Rebecca is very near to my heart because she's so much like me.  I had to write this book, in solidarity with every child or adult whose parent was absent for any duration due to incarceration.  As the people at Sesame Street write in their introduction to their Little Children, Big Challenges: Incarceration initiative:

Unfortunately, few resources exist to support young children and families coping with this life-changing circumstance. These children have to deal with the confusion, shame, and anger that accompany the sudden absence of a parent. 

I never told ANYONE my father was in jail until after his death, and I was in my late twenties by then.  There's a stigma that follows you your whole life if you don't have the resources to deal with feelings of isolation and shame. That was a huge contributing factor, when I wrote TIFFANY AND TIGER'S EYE: on a personal level, I needed to write about the experiences that shaped me; on a larger level, I wanted to show other young people (and adult readers, too) that they're not alone.  Other people have experienced and are experiencing situations similar to yours.

Nobody wants to feel alone.

That's why this new resource from Sesame Street struck me to the core and, yes, made me cry.  There's a sweet little ebook picture book called In My Family, which I would recommend for ANY child.  I certainly wish there had been books like this available to me when I was younger.


This Sesame Street site: http://www.sesamestreet.org/parents/topicsandactivities/toolkits/incarceration has links to the ebook, video clips dealing with the topic of incarceration, and many resources for grown-ups and children, including a printable activity sheet called "How Am I Feeling?"

The launch site with an introduction is here: http://www.sesameworkshop.org/incarceration/

Please share widely.  You never know who might need a resource like this one.

Peace.
Lee

How To Make An Author Love You

Well, okay, there are probably lots of ways to get an author to love you, but I'm just going to focus on one:

LIBRARIES

When it comes to small-potato authors like me, libraries aren't likely to pick up our books without a bit of a poke.  As an author, I can always be the... uhmmm... poker?  But the request has much greater impact coming from YOU, the reader. You're a much better poker than I am.

Wait... do libraries stock ebooks?

They sure do!  There are lots of services (Overdrive, for instance) that provide ebooks to library users.  If you visit your local library's website, you'll probably find a place where you can download ebooks.

Say you want to read the Untreed Reads horror anthology Year's End (one of my stories appears in that collection, btw).  You could visit your library's website and search the Digital Media/ eBook database for Year's End: 14 Tales of Holiday Horror.  If the anthology is there and available, perfect!  Check it out!

But what if you search for Year's End and it's not there?  Well, you could always buy a copy from the publisher or any other retailer, but you do have alternatives.

Every library's system is different, but if you peruse the site you should be able to find a category that says "Suggest an Item."  It might be under "Contact Us."  In some cases, you need to enter your library card information before you can make a suggestion, but not always.  Sometimes it's a form, sometimes you might be asked to email a librarian.  In either case, include all the information you know about the book.  Especially pertinent are:

• Title
• Author
• Publisher
• ISBN

Using Year's End as an example, here's the info I would include:

• Title: Year's End: 14 Tales of Holiday Horror
• Author: J. Alan Hartman (editor)
• Publisher: Untreed Reads
• ISBN: 9781611874822

You can suggest items of any media--not just ebooks (and not just mine, obviously, though I'd love it if you did!).  If there's a paperback you want to read or a CD you want to listen to, you can suggest those too.  There's no guarantee your library will buy it, but in my dealings with librarians, I've found them to be very kind and helpful.

Smaller authors published by indie presses don't have the same backing or distribution as the big guys.  We rely on YOU, our readers, more than you know.

I want to be in your library, but I might need your help getting there.

If you can spare a minute, request my work, or the books of any other author you love.
All the best,
Lee