Happily Ever After Kicks Butt by Adele Dubois

It’s no secret that life has a way of kicking you behind the knees and dropping you face-first in the gravel when you least expect it. Getting blindsided is always a bitch. And so it happened that while working on the early chapters of my futuristic erotic romance novella DREAM TRAVELER my husband was diagnosed with a virulent form of a potentially fatal illness. Our lives imploded with the news and everything at our house changed in an instant.

I don’t remember how long it took for me to try to work again. I think my brain simply shut down to anything outside the immediacy of family needs between hospital visits. Eventually, though, I emerged from the fog of numbness and shock and picked up my laptop to revisit my WIP; not expecting to get any real work done. To my surprise, my DREAM TRAVELER characters pulled me into their story and immersed me in their world. My raw emotions channeled through their voices, animating them with hope and the amazing power of enduring love as they, in turn, lifted me. DREAM TRAVELER’S central theme became evident as the story posed the crucial questions: If technologically-restored youth were possible, would you choose it? What if you couldn’t take your lifelong partner with you? Would you choose it then?

I finished DREAM TRAVELER, submitted the manuscript to a writing competition, and to my absolute delight, won a prize. At the same time, Ellora's Cave offered me a contract on the book. My characters enjoyed their Happily Ever After while my husband and I celebrated his stunning full recovery. Life had pushed our faces in the dirt, but then dusted us off with silver-lined gloves and sent us on our way, closer than ever.

In the afterglow of my husband’s miraculous return to health I began my paranormal erotic romance novella INTIMATE ART. While writing this book I was filled with renewed vigor and bright-eyed optimism. My characters overcame the wrath of a powerful ghost determined to keep them apart. Love transcended death in the lives of my characters as it had in my own. The ghost fled. Ellora's Cave contracted INTIMATE ART, and gave it a heart-stopping cover. INTIMATE ART is my new release.

What creative lessons have I learned from these life-changing events? Deep emotions may wound and paralyze, but can also sharpen creativity as the artistic process heals the troubled soul.

I love DREAM TRAVELER and INTIMATE ART for entirely different reasons. One book gave me strength in the face of adversity while the other celebrated euphoric victory. The emotions I experienced while writing them were equally powerful opposites.

Our Happily Ever After kicked some major butt.

You can find both books at Ellora's Cave Publishing and you can learn more about Adele and her writing at her website.