Blog Tour, Giveaway, and Reviews ~ Loud and Clear by Aidan Wayne

The best writing advice I could ever give:

There are days where I don’t want to write. I know, I know, this comes as a total shock. But yes, it is a truth! Some days I don’t feel like writing one bit.

Sometimes it’s because I need a break, I feel burnt out, or I just had a long day and my brain is very tired. Those are all good reasons to step away from the keyboard for a little while. And usually I do, and I feel better for it. You sometimes need to refresh yourself, and that includes taking a writing rest.

Other times though, I’m just feeling lazy. I’m procrastinating. The plot has done something wiggly or my characters have decided to change things up on me  and I don’t know how to deal. And that’s the kind of thing that, if you put off the writing, you’ll keep putting off the writing. And then, and this is the worst part of all, nothing will get written so you’ll never get to see how the story ends.

I’m sure many of us would do quite a lot to prevent that.

The thing about writing, at least for me, is that the hardest thing to do is to get started. But once I do start, away I’m able to go. So my goal has, for a long time, been to write ten words. That’s all. Just ten words. No three-thousand word count minimum, no “have to finish this chapter” requirement. Ten words, and you’re done.

The trick is that chances are once you’re done writing those ten words, you’ll want to keep going. The story has started to flow again, and the plot is coming unstuck, the characters are listening to you, and that ten words becomes “maybe I’ll just try to break this next thousand” or “I’m pretty sure I’ve got the rest of this chapter in me.”

Sometimes it doesn’t work. Sometimes you write those ten words and you are done. And that’s okay too.

But start with ten. Ten more written words to exist in the world. And if you do get stuck again, try another ten. There’s not much that can go wrong with making your goal just ten more words.

And who knows how much you’ll end with!

About Loud and Clear

Jaxon is getting by fine, severe dyslexia or not. Being a cab driver means he doesn’t need to read much, and the job has its perks. The pay isn’t bad, the people can be interesting, and having memorized the city streets keeps him from feeling too stupid.

When he picks up Caleb, a quiet fare in a nice suit, Jaxon doesn't think anything of it. Then he ends up driving Caleb home the next week too, and the next, and the next. Eventually Caleb tries to communicate—by writing things down. Turns out that Caleb has such a bad stutter he spends most of his time mute.

If only Jaxon had an easier time reading what Caleb had to say. But he’s interested in trying, and Caleb seems interested back. They discover that, with a little bit of effort, it isn’t so hard to make themselves understood. Especially when what’s growing between them is definitely worth talking about.

Stephanie GooglyEyes

When I read the blurb I knew I just HAD to read this book. One man with dyslexia and the other with a speech and stutter problem, I needed to know how that would work out.  Both men are so different, yet similar enough that they understand what the other needs, patience.  Jaxon is so sweet. He also seems resigned to the fact that he's "dumb" and takes it in stride. Caleb sees him though, and sees how smart he really is. He also shows Jaxon the other ways that makes a person smart. Jaxon gives Caleb the attention and "ear" he deserves. He doesn't judge Caleb for his stuttering and even goes so far to learn ASL for him, which blows Caleb away.  With new technology, things like speech-to-text and an ASL translating phone, these 2 guys have no problem physically communicating. They now just need to learn to get past their nerves an emotionally communicate.  My only complaint, this book isn't long enough. I would love to read more about Caleb and Jaxon.  I give this a 4* E.Lo the Book Ho

This book is short and sweet, and so will my review be. 

This is one of those books that just kinda touches your heart. Two guys with disabilities that they have learned to overcome in their day to day lives. But when it comes to overcoming them together as a couple, there could be a problem. Jaxon can’t read due to being severely dyslexic, and Caleb not comfortable talking due to a severe stutter the odds seem stacked against them. Thanks to modern technology, with text-to-speech, ASL videos online, and a lot of patience, they make it work.  

And like my partner in crime...I need more Caleb and Jaxon!!!!

I have to say for a debut novel, Aidan Wayne knocks it out of the park. I can’t wait to read more from them.

4 Sweet Stars from me!

About Aidan Wayne

Aidan Wayne is a big believer in character-driven stories with happy endings. This is not to say that stories can’t contain a little (or a lot) of grief, just that at the end of it all expect there to be bandages and hugs. They particularly like to write about minority characters because damn it, they deserve happy endings too.

When not writing, Aidan enjoys practicing aerial, martial arts, and ASL, and watching reality cooking shows. They are probably in the middle of twelve projects as you read this.

Tumblr: justsayins.tumblr.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/justsayins

Giveaway

To celebrate the release of Loud and Clear, Aidan is giving away $15 in Riptide credit. Leave a comment to enter the contest. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on May 28, 2016. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries. Thanks for following the tour, and don’t forget to leave your contact info!