Friday, April 4, 2025 - See Previous Newsletters

One of the hardest things I find about being an author is producing enough good content to keep up with demand. It takes months to write a decent novel, but readers gobble them down in a matter of hours and, understandably, are hungry for the next.

A few household name authors, most notably James Patterson, build a kind of "factory" of writers to try to accommodate this need. They create an outline, and the underlings execute, much like an artist who creates a sketch and then apprentices paint in the details.

That approach is nothing new, and I don't want to knock it. Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel that way, and those ceiling frescoes are considered one of the greatest works of art in history. Nevertheless, I don't believe the end result is as good as if the star author personally does all the work.

A different approach is to co-author books. Find another established author and write a book together to spread the workload over two people and—theoretically—cut the time in half.

I tried this approach, and the result was Forbidden: A Novel of Love & Betrayal.

The first step was to find another author interested in trying this approach. I posted a public message on Facebook to put out feelers.

Devika Fernando, a romance author who lives in Sri Lanka, immediately responded to my message and suggested that we write a romantic suspense novel together. I wasn't familiar with her work, but after checking it out, it was clear that she was a strong writer who knew what she was doing.

I asked her if she had any ideas. She came right back to me with three. I liked them all, but one of them really hit my hot button. With some tweaking back and forth between us, that idea was fleshed out into Forbidden.

Without giving away too much, the story is about an ordinary girl from Kansas, Jayne Clark (Plain Jane, I often joked), who is tracked down by her biological mother, an uber-rich, upper-crust American now living in France, Lady Eleanor Sotheby.

Jayne is stunned, of course. She's even more surprised when Eleanor tells her she has not only a sister but a twin sister, one that Eleanor also tracked down and took back not long after giving them both up for adoption.

Now she's finally found Jayne, and the family can be reunited. She invites Jayne to visit their mansion in Paris, all expenses paid.

Although Jayne has mixed feelings about it all, she accepts the invitation, and it turns out that "Lady" Eleanor Sotheby has a checkered past. Both she and Jayne's twin sister have gotten themselves into quite a jam, which is the real reason they've reached out to Jayne.

Things get messy.

I had a blast writing this book with Devika, with her focusing on the romance element and me on the suspense. The results were fantastic and exceeded both our expectations.

One reason I know it's a great read is that in the past few days, when I was putting together a video teaser for it, I went back to the manuscript to check certain details. Each time, I couldn't help being sucked into the story, and I read a lot of pages before I remembered that I was supposed to be creating a video for it.

Of course, I also know it's a great book from objective feedback, especially the stellar reviews. Readers love it. After the first trilogy was released, demand was so strong that we ended up writing three more sequels. Now it's a six-book series.

Books 1, 2 & 3 are free on Kindle this weekend. If you haven't read the set, snag it while you can.  But beware: you better not start reading unless you have a large block of time to finish.

Here's the video teaser for it:

More Blob Chapters Posted

Today I posted two more chapters of Blob (#5 and #6), the sci-fi thriller/romance book I'm writing right now. If you're not signed up to receive/browse all the chapters I write each week free, you can do so here on Substack.

Special Deal on Renata's Revenge in Audio

Audiobooks.com is running a half-price special on Renata's Revenge.:

If you prever Audible, the audiobook is there, too, not at a discount but for the usual member credits.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Mike

P.S. Have you read all my books?

Catch Up on the Lust, Money & Murder Series With

These Discounted Trilogy Boxed Sets

More 'Unputdownable' Books by Mike Wells
(Click on the photos for full synopses)

International Crime Thriller - Lust, Money & Murder (Series)
The deeper she goes, the more she risks becoming a criminal herself.

International Crime Thriller - Outback Diamonds
In the Outback, trust is the most valuable gem of all.

International Crime Thriller - Marilyn's Secret Lipstick
The past never stays buried.

Crime/Psychological Thriller
If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Crime Thriller - The Drive-By Wife
Takes "home invasion" to an entirely new level.

Crime Thriller - Renata's Revenge
They. Picked. The. Wrong. Girl.

Crime Thriller/Serial Murders - With Mother's Approval
A mother's love is eternal. For some, it's lethal.

Romantic Suspense - Forbidden (Series)
Temptation has its price.

New Adult Sci-Fi Adventure - Wild Child (Series)
You don't choose the green water...the green water chooses you.

Horror/Black Comedy
Babies always know...and they don't forget.

Technothriller - The Tesla Secret
Unlocking Tesla’s free energy secret could power the world...or end their lives.

Technothriller - Blind Scorpion
He could walk away a hero...but for which country?

YA Sci-Fi Romance - The Mysterious Disappearance of Kurt Kramer 
Lost in between worlds, will his heart lead him home?

Romantic Comedy - Secrets of the Elusive Lover
He plays the field, but she changes the game.

Coming of Age Suspense - The Wrong Side of the Tracks
First love in the teenage hell known as high school.

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