Today I am so pleased to welcome Morgan Brice to Joyfully Jay. Morgan has come to talk to us about her latest release, Haven. She has also brought along a copy to give away. Please join me in giving her a big welcome!

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The Fun of Shared World Series

In a shared World Series, a group of authors agree to share a key plot element, the setting, key characters or even the whole fictional world. They’re fun to read and fun to write, which is why I keep signing on! Here’s what goes into making a shared world happen.

My upcoming urban fantasy MM paranormal romance, Haven, is part of the Magic Emporium series. Meghan Maslow put together the rules for this world, which centers on a very strange shop that shows up once and provides the item the main character will have a dire need for—even if the character doesn’t know it yet. Everything else is up to the individual author, and we were able to set the book in our own series if we wanted to (mine is set in Fox Hollow), and use recurring characters from our other books. The fun part is how everyone takes the same key element and weaves it into very different stories!

fables retold badgeI’m also part of Fables Retold, which is a retelling of classic fairy tales as MM romance. That’s six authors, six book-length stories, in one limited-time ebook collection (over 1200 pages). In this case, the common thread was very simple—re-imagine a fairy tale and make it a MM romance with a HEA. Mine is The Three Billy Goats Gruff—with goat shifters! It’s also set in Fox Hollow, and I had a lot of fun with main characters whose shifter sides are a badass fainting goat and a studly Boer goat!

Last year, I was part of the Beyond the Realms multi-author series, with Imaginary Lover (also set in Fox Hollow). In this series, we all had to include an incident where someone comes up behind the main character, taps him on the shoulder, and imparts a warning to ‘remember (book title)’ and then vanishes!

I’ve been writing holiday MM romance in the Caynham Castle shared world, and that’s a bit more involved. While we can use our own characters and tie back to our own series, the entire castle, English town, and a number of characters are all shared, as is the central holiday event. That takes a lot of coordination! We end up constantly connecting to ask about the placement of decorations, timing for events and other details.

Writing in a shared world can be a lot of fun. It’s a challenge to create a story that works with the prompt, and to use the shared elements in a way that still lets your own voice/style shine through. It’s a great way to get to know your fellow authors, since close and frequent communication is essential! As a reader, if I fall in love with the premise/location of a shared world, I’m likely to binge every book because the concept presses all the right buttons for me. Since I love to read series with shared worlds, it makes me happy to be part of bringing a new series like that to life.

Of course, writing in a shared world is more complicated than a regular book, too. It requires good author-author communication so that the continuity is strong throughout the series. We have to coordinate with each other so that if we want to add or change something that might affect everyone else, we can work it out in advance. Schedules can get complex since everyone has other obligations. There’s a level of trust required in the organizer and each other to follow through and deliver what’s promised. But for me, that’s part of what I love.

Sharing a world with other authors creates books that are fun for readers to explore and an exciting challenge for me to write—which is why I keep saying ‘yes’!


Blurb

haven coverOld secrets, hidden psychics, secret shifters, ghosts, scandals—and true love.

A series of long-ago disappearances leads cold case private detective Austin Williams to investigate a troubled sanitarium. Jamie Miller is new in town, temporarily running the local historical association, and he willingly signs on to help solve Austin’s mystery. Sparks fly between them as they dig into the hospital’s troubled past. But someone wants the past to stay buried—and is willing to bury Austin and Jamie to keep it that way.

Haven is part of the Magic Emporium series. Each book stands alone, but each one features an appearance by Marden’s Magic Emporium, a shop that can appear anywhere, but only once and only when someone’s in dire need. This book contains explicit scenes, action, mystery, hurt/comfort, geeks in love, supernatural secrets, a brave historian and a lovelorn private detective, plus a guaranteed HEA. It is loosely connected to my Fox Hollow series.


Bio

Morgan Brice is the romance pen name of bestselling author Gail Z. Martin. Morgan writes urban fantasy male/male paranormal romance, with plenty of action, adventure and supernatural thrills to go with the happily ever after. Gail writes epic fantasy and urban fantasy, and together with co-author hubby Larry N. Martin, steampunk and comedic horror, all of which have less romance, more explosions. Characters from her Gail books make frequent appearances in secondary roles in her Morgan books, and vice versa.

On the rare occasions Morgan isn’t writing, she’s either reading, cooking, or spoiling two very pampered dogs.

Series include Witchbane, Badlands, Treasure Trail, Kings of the Mountain and Fox Hollow. Watch for more in these series, plus new series coming soon!


Giveaway

Morgan has brought a copy of Haven to give away to one lucky reader. Just leave a comment at the end of the post to enter. The contest ends on Thursday, April 1st at 11:59 pm ET.


  • By entering the giveaway, you’re confirming that you are at least 18 years old.
  • Winners will be selected by random number. No purchase necessary to win. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning.
  • If you win, you must respond to my email within 48 hours or another winner may be chosen. Please make sure that your spam filter allows email from Joyfully Jay.
  • Winners may be announced on the blog following the contest. By entering the contest you are agreeing to allow your name to be posted and promoted as the contest winner by Joyfully Jay.
  • Prizes will be distributed following the giveaway either by Joyfully Jay or the person/organization donating the prize.
  • All book prizes are in electronic format unless otherwise specified.
  • By entering you are agreeing to hold Joyfully Jay harmless if the prize or giveaway in some way negatively impacts the winner.
  • Readers may only enter once for each contest.  Duplicate entries for the same giveaway will be ignored. In the event of technical problems with the blog during the contest, every effort will be made to extend the contest deadline to allow for additional entries.
  • Void where prohibited by law.
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