Today is ravenousromance.com’s one year anniversary. And I honestly can’t believe the year has passed so quickly. Actually, I began writing for RR over a year ago, in August of 2008. Two of the owners of RR, Lori Perkins and Holly Schmidt, had contacted me about possibly writing a novel and I jumped at the chance. Although most of my published credits until then had been in print books, with traditional LGBT publishers, I wasn’t a complete stranger to digital publishing. I’d already had a few short story stand alones published by digital publishers and I was eager to learn more about digital publishing.

And RR seemed like a great way to start. First, I’d been a longtime fan of Lori Perkins’ agent blog, http://www.agentinthemiddle.blogspot.com/, and I’d always enjoyed her blog posts. I respected her reputation within the publishing industry and I soon found out that we had similar tastes and backgrounds. Lori and I also share a journalism background, so I know how to dig for information. I did some basic research about Holly Schmidt and was just as impressed with her credentials as I was with Lori’s. And, it turned out that Holly once worked for Rodale Press, which is not far from where I live in Bucks County, PA. Basically, it all felt good right from the start.

Everyone who is associated with RR has worked hard in the past year to put out the best books we can possibly deliver to readers. I enjoy this faster pace; I enjoy working on hard deadlines and having pressure. When I don’t have pressure, I’m bored to death.

But when I look back over this past year, even though all of my experiences with RR have been positive, I think the single most important reason why I’ve been so pleased with RR is the voice they gave me. I’ve been writing gay fiction for over seventeen years. Five years ago I wouldn’t have been able to write the LGBT books I’ve been writing this past year. The gay/lesbian market has always been very small. And publishers have always been cautious about what they acquire. But with RR the process was different, and refreshing. Lori and Holly have trusted me to take their basic concepts and turn them into actual m/m romance novels. And for a fiction writer, it doesn’t get any better than that. And every step of the process, from the initial concept to the final product, has been enjoyable.

I’ve also built friendships with other RR writers that become stronger each day. I’ve read their work and I’m always impressed by the quality of their writing. I only wish I had more time to read everyone’s work.

I could rave on and on about RR. But no one likes blog posts that are too long. So I’ll end this by saying Happy Anniversary to ravenousromance.com, and congratulations to Holly Schmidt, Lori Perkins, and Allan Penn (I still haven’t met Allan, but I hear he’s a great guy) for achieving this accomplishment. It wasn’t easy. There have been times I’ve wondered how Lori and Holly have done all that they’ve done in the past year. But everyone has worked hard, including all the writers and editors (Jen Safrey, the best copy editor on the planet). So here’s to the next exciting year to come, which will be filled with a few surprises and a lot more great books.

But more than that, as a thanks to all the ravenous customers who have been so supportive, RR is offering a one day only special on all e-books:

For TODAY ONLY, ALL e-books are just $.99, in celebration of Ravenous Romance’s one-year anniversary! It’s our way of saying thank you to all of our readers. Stock up and enjoy!