Out of all the books I’ve written, this one remains my favourite. I put so much of myself in it. My job, the area I lived, and Manchester City centre, a place I know well.
It’s a lovely romance with heartfelt moments. But no one wanted to read it. There could only be one reason: my blurb was off.
So this is the new one and I really hope it serves me better. What do you think?
Stella hates her job, and the strain of keeping dark family secrets under wraps increases.
Fleeing to a hotel for safety, she meets Kelly. His warmth brings light to her shadowed world and is a distraction from all her problems. That’s until her colleagues uncover the truth about him. Stella feels betrayed again. Worse, she’s burdened with her own dark secret, and must decide whether their fragile bond can survive.
The past has a way of chasing the present until it can’t be ignored. Stella has to keep her new man and her father apart. Every day, it becomes more difficult, until a traumatic event reveals the shame she has been hiding,
A timeless story of love and sacrifice. Can Stella find the courage to reclaim her life and be the person Kelly wants her to be?
A sweet story of enduring love through life’s complications.
If you do get a copy please consider leaving me a review, even a short review counts. It will help boost the visibility of Play the Game and hopefully it will find new readers.
World of Stories 
Oh, and I just heard the term “laboratory” last year from Becca Syme who has some good YouTube videos and books geared for writers. It just means the authors write in different genres. There is the “sandbox author” who writes stories where other authors participate. (This would be an author who built a world where other authors can write their own stuff that’s connected to it.) Another term is “superstar author”. That’s an author who is like a celebrity. They are the main attraction, so for them social media is especially effective. They sell because of who they are, not because of the books, per se. An example is Jenna Moreci. She has a popular YouTube channel, and people invest more in her. The last type of author is the “spawn and respawn author”. This one is the hardest one for me to understand, but it’s like when you play a video game. These authors focus more on just one thing at a time.
I’m going to link to her YouTube channel in case you want to check it out. I really think you fall in laboratory. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcLkZhpAYAs I should specify that these writers groups are really about growth engines. Not specifically “how” an author writes but in where it’s best to spend our focus. (Like, what would be a waste of time for a certain author based on their growth engine VS where it what we should focus on). I am listening to Becca Syme right now, and I have to go back over these videos because I’m not sure I’m understanding this stuff exactly 🙂 I’m in the laboratory category for sure.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Fascinating, I will take a look. Thanks.
LikeLiked by 1 person
What is the genre you’re trying to sell this in?
The cover looks great. I love how she is facing forward and he looking at her. The title is catchy. I
t made me think thriller when I first saw it, but “Love Story” makes me wonder if it’s a romance. Maybe a romantic suspense? Is this a happy ending for the couple?
LikeLiked by 1 person
It is a romance. I like the cover, but you’ve made me question it now. Does it shout romance? Hmm. That’s something I will think about. 😊 Thanks.
Yes, it does have a happy ending, but not a straight forward one. 😄
LikeLike
Well, I was primarily looking at it through the lens of the other books you’ve written that I’ve now read, and my first thought was thriller because of the Cassidy books. It looks like you are a laboratory writer. I just learned the term last year, and I fall into that category, too. Basically, we like to write a variety of fiction, not just one genre all the time. That makes it harder to promote to a certain group of readers, but it also keeps our writing fresh since we don’t stagnate.
I’ll read this book next. Give me a week or two to get through it. I am using Alexa, but I have to do it in spurts because I get a headache after a while. I am grateful for it, though. I’ve started to get bored of the traditionally published audiobooks. The library only has the big name authors, and after a while, the content starts to sound the same. Indie books have more flexibility in how a story goes, probably because publishers are looking at what they believe will market the best to the largest group.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve not heart that term before. I describe myself as a multi genre author with a twist of romance, lol. Yes I noticed for the first time your contemporary books. I shall be looking at them more in-depth soon. 😄
You had me thinking about the cover of Play the Game, and how it doesn’t typically depict romance, so I’ll be changing it at some point.
Fancy that, you are the only other person I know who listens to books through Alexa. I even wrote a blog about that some time ago. And, yes I agree. Sometimes, my eyes are tired and I want to read, so I get her to read to me. And also, again I agree, not many Indie books are on audio and they are the ones I want to read. So it’s perfect – well, it’s not, lol. Alexa has her issues, but overall I’m used to it and overall it works well.
LikeLike
Thanks to you, I found out you can use Alexa to listen to ebooks. It’s so great because now I don’t have to limit myself to authors who only have audiobooks out. I’m getting more used to the robotic voice, so it’s gotten easier to listen to it for longer periods of time.
I am getting close the finishing this book. I love that your characters are actually talking to each other instead of the “something is wrong but I’m not saying” back-and-forth I typically see in romances. I’m at the point where Stella is at the party with Kelly with the women who are with other football players. She just overheard one of the women making fun of her outfit.
Anyway, at this point in the story, I’m wondering if it might fit under the sports romance category. I don’t know if sports romances need an actual “sports” scene in it, though, so maybe not. I haven’t read any sports romances. I’ve just been around a couple of writers who did them. It seems like a good angle on for a book description would be how Stella’s world seems incapable with Kelly’s. I mean, he has fame and money, and she doesn’t. As a romance reader, I really enjoy the angle of this story. Like, how can she fit in with his world when his is so drastically different?
As a side note, your characters have blond hair instead of dark hair. It’s a minor issue. You can either change their hair color in the book or when you update the cover, have blond models. Though some contemporary romances do well without a person on the cover. You have several options open.
I’m looking forward to how Stella will feel like she fits into Kelly’s world!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh, I now realise you meant you listen to Audible on Alexa. Yes, you soon get use to her voice amd when she stumbles over her words like “W-when did you…” and she says the letter instead!
So glad you are enjoying Play the Game and interesting you should say that – how they talk and try and solve it together, rather than stringing it out. It’s not something I consciously did, but I’m doing it in the book I’m working on now. So maybe that’s a thing either way me, lol.
I did consider sports romance, but you’ll see there’s not any sport in it, or I could have.
They have fair hair, and the cover has black. Erm, how the hell did I overlook that? lol! Thank you for pointing that out, of course they do! (Slaps myself on the forehead!) oh dear! Yes, I will certainly put that right!
LikeLike
I finished it and reviewed it on Amazon. Yes, I can see that this would not fit in sports romance. I labeled it “sweet” in the review instead. I did make a mention that there is a very slight “spicy” angle just in case some reader thinks there’s nothing more than a kiss. I have gotten 1-star reviews for having “clean” covers when the characters do more than kiss. And there is a debate on whether or not “sweet” can mean sex or not. I swear, romance readers vary widely in what they like and don’t. That’s why I started using a disclaimer on my books in the description.
I didn’t give away any of the secrets in my review. I did mention that I appreciate that these two can actually sit down and talk things through. One reason I don’t read more romances is the lack of maturity between the two. How hard is it to say, “I’m wondering about something?” and for the other person to say, “Okay, let’s worth through it.”? I really enjoy that about your books.
You know, I did the same thing when it came to one of a character’s hair. I had to get a cover artist to adjust the color for me because I had already written the series where the character with their hair shows up in other scenes. That is a very easy mistake to make.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, very easy. Thank Ruth, I really appreciate your review and will share it.
LikeLike