Book Release Tomorrow! (With Live Excerpt)

Posted on February 27, 2026 by Michelle Garren-Flye

It’s almost time! My Greek Gods meet Regency England romantasy that was SIX YEARS in the making lol. Actually, probably more like three because I kind of got sidetracked from writing novels for a while, especially of the romantic sort.

I tried to figure out a great way to spend this last day before the book release and what I came up with was inspired by how I used to do live poetry writing on my blog. (I plan to revisit that this April, btw!)

I’m going to do live excerpts. That’s right. I have a copy of the book here and I’m going to open it up, find something of interest and transcribe it here. I’m so confident in my writing, I’m certain I can find something to tempt you to buy my book on any page I open to! So get ready…here goes.

Excerpt 1:

“I was born mortal.” Callie wondered if it was true. She barely remembered her parents.

“There are no guarantees as far as that is concerned.” Aphrodite swirled the golden liquid in the glass. “Maybe your mortal mother thought she was never taken by a god, but the things I’ve seen…” She shook her head. “One could have come to her in her sleep, or disguised as your father. Or in a really good bath…” She widened her eyes.

Excerpt 2:

Hades sighed and reached forward as if to touch her face, then stopped, his fingers curling back into his hand. “Very well. But please, join me for a drink.”

Callie looked at the bottle on the table then back at him. His lips curved. “You won’t be trapped here. That was a little fiction my wife and mother-in-law cooked up. I just go along with it. For domestic peace.”

Excerpt 3:

With no other choice, Callie picked up the teapot and went over to the table. She noticed Dionysus’s little frown, Lord St. Clair’s quizzical look. But she focused only on the lady who’d summoned her. “Did you need more tea, My Lady?”

“No, I did not. I wish you to join us.”

Callie’s immediate reaction was dismay. Join the family breakfast table? She had been horrified when Samir proposed she accompany him to dinner, but to sit down with the family for a meal when Samir wasn’t even there? She shook her head. “No, ma’am. I would not presume.”

“You’re not presuming if I ask. There are plenty of servers and we have an empty spot at the table.” Lady Clarissa nodded to one of the footmen. “Please bring another teacup for Callie.”

And that’s all you’re getting out of me. I had so much fun adding my own spin to the gods of Greek Mythology that I fell in love with a long time ago. I don’t exactly remember the first time I picked up a book of Greek mythology, but so much of it has stuck with me. I remember devouring book after book. I thrilled to the adventures of Jason and Heracles, was horrified by the fate of Daphne, and I was always dubious about Persephone lol. (She’s not actually in this one, though, so maybe I’m just taking Hades’s word for it.)

Anyway, tomorrow we’ll open a Pandora’s pithos of our own when I let this book loose on the world of romantasy readers. If you’re intrigued, it will be available on Amazon and at my store, The Next Chapter Books & Art.

I made another something: Laws of Lightning will be out soon!

Posted on January 21, 2026 by Michelle Garren-Flye

My last original romance novel was published in 2020. I believe it was at the height of Covid, when we all thought the world was going to end. I remember people caught on cruise ships and getting stuck because of Covid cases being detected onboard. And I bravely published a romance that took place on board a cruise ship.

Ah, those were the days.

No fear this time, though. Covid has been interwoven into our society (along with some other unpleasant things). So for my comeback, my first novel in nearly SIX YEARS, I chose to write a total escape romantasy set in 1700s England and featuring Greek gods. Yep. It’s like if Jane Austen met the crazy-ass gods of mythology.

Here’s the summary:

In a world where magic and religion are outlawed, the fates of a natural mage and a wandering god collide.

Callie has hidden her powers all her life while working as a kitchen maid for the St. Clair family—until one night when she is discovered in the woods by Samir, a servant of the Muses. Drawn to the beauty of her magic, Samir recruits his friend Dionysus to help him discover more about the young woman with extraordinary power.

Together, they embark on a search for the lost pithos of Pandora. The journey tests their love, expands their beliefs, and leads them on a wild ride from the excesses of London’s “season” to the mysterious depths of the Oracle of Delphi.

Can the new love Samir and Callie have discovered survive the demands of London society and the quirks of the gods of Olympus?

And here’s the final cover:

Laws of Lightning will be released on February 28, 2026. I’ll be posting more about it between now and then. I’ve ordered my preview copy of it, just to make sure it really is going to look as good as I think it will when it comes out. Just FYI, although it’s a romantasy, I doubt this one would get even 3 spicy peppers on today’s spicy scale. Still, I’m old-fashioned and recommending it for 18+ readers. So approach with caution.

Surprise: New Poetry Book!

Posted on August 2, 2025 by Michelle Garren-Flye

Has it really been almost a month since my last post?? Horrifying.

Well, not really, because I think that was about the time I realized I needed to get my next poetry book together. I’ve been working on it for the past year, and I knew it was done, just needed to be put together.

So…with that said, here it is!

Presenting:

Here’s the description: “Author and poet Michelle Garren-Flye has always been fascinated by poetic forms. In Thick & Thin, Michelle explores the relationship between two of her favorites, haiku and sonnets, using the one to inspire the other. Two forms from very different cultures, yet somehow very similar. Is it possible William Shakespeare might have befriended Matsuo Basho if he’d been given the opportunity?”

Thick & Thin is currently available on Amazon. It’ll take a few weeks to get them printed for the store, but then you’ll definitely be able to get a copy there!

Celebrating 50,000 words

Posted on March 7, 2025 by Michelle Garren-Flye

I just wrote the 50,000th word of my latest work-in-progress. This is significant to me because I haven’t gotten that far on a novel since 2020. I’ve written plenty of poems and actually published several poetry books, but a novel? Ha! My muse wasn’t talking.

But all that changed with this idea. I’ve started and restarted it at least three times. I’ve tried different settings, different time periods, different characters…and it finally seems to be working out. Never being one to do things in order, I made myself a working cover to help keep myself on task. And, in a fairly weird reversal of never judge a book by its cover, I love the cover so much the book has to be written!

So, as a celebration, here’s the preview of the cover (still may change a bit…or a lot) and a brief summary of what it’s all about.

I’m excited!

Cover design by Michelle Garren-Flye Copyright 2025

Set in 18^th century England, in an alternate universe where magic and religion are both equated and outlawed, Callie, a natural mage, has hidden her powers all her life while working as a kitchen maid. Callie is discovered in the woods one night by Samir, a servant of the Muses who is traveling England as Lord Wildingham. After witnessing Callie’s magic, Samir recruits his friend Dionysus to accompany him to the manor where Callie works.

Samir remembers nothing but servitude to the Muses, Callie knows nothing but concealing her magic. Yet together, the two realize they are much more. Their mutual discoveries lead them on a search for the lost pithos of Pandora. The journey tests their love and their beliefs, as they hunt down the sins released from Pandora’s pithos.

Ranging from the countryside of England to London to the mountains of Greece and beyond, Laws of Lightning imagines a world where magic and mythology intertwine with the conventions of Georgian England.

Happy National Poets’ Day!

Posted on August 21, 2024 by Michelle Garren-Flye

I still remember the first day I actually identified as a poet. September 11, 2020. I had entered a local poetry contest and there was a reading. Still wearing a mask to keep the dreaded COVID-19 at bay, I attended with my then husband. The poem I read that night was prophetic, but the sticker the organization gave me to wear with my name badge was even more so.

It said, quite simply: “Poet”.

And when I put it on, I didn’t feel like an impostor.

I’ve read a lot of my poems in public since then. I’ve read other people’s poems in public, too. No matter what I do, I know I am a poet. Maybe we are all poets at heart, so maybe I’m not that special, but I have fully embraced being a poet.

Today is National Poets’ Day. It seems an appropriate day to share the news of my latest poetry book, Unwelcome Souvenirs. I’m very proud of this book. It has more than ninety poems in it, including many of the fortune cookie poems I wrote last April for National Poetry Month.

As a very important aside, my daughter also published her first poetry book this week. This was not planned. We finished them close to the same time, and when she told me hers was ready, I thought about how we used to get hiccups at the same time when she was a baby.

Just so you know I am not an impostor poet, I will share the last poem from the “Broken Things” portion of my book:

Just the Heart
By Michelle Garren-Flye

just the heart
that's all that's left
after all the acid rain
and all the cleansing pain
washed everything else away

just the heart left
on a simple pedestal
i let the rest of it go
(not without a fight though.)
I'll plant it now, see what grows.

Copies of my daughter’s book next to mine on the shelf at my store.
Photo and poem copyright 2024 Michelle Garren-Flye

It is done.

Posted on July 23, 2023 by Michelle Garren-Flye

Yep. I had my live this morning at 11 a.m. I had a couple of people on it. I read a few poems. I mostly embarrassed myself. And to make it all better, I have preserved said live as a reel on Instagram. You can view it here: https://www.instagram.com/p/CvC2kWGuEQY/

Enjoy.

Where the Sidewalk Begins is also still free for one more day. So go get a copy if you want one. You can find a copy here: https://www.amazon.com/Where-Sidewalk-Begins-Love-Poems-ebook/dp/B0C8DP1N12/

And that’s it from me. I’m going to go work on my novel. Or submit a poem or two somewhere. I don’t know.

Let’s just see.

Photo by Michelle Garren-Flye Copyright 2023

It’s…scary.

Posted on July 20, 2023 by Michelle Garren-Flye

I won’t lie. Instagram Lives are not my thing. It’s disquieting thinking strangers could be listening to me. It’s even more nerve-wracking thinking one of my friends could be on there. In fact, if I’m looking at the screen, I’ll see who’s watching.

It’s very different from recording myself reading poetry and putting it up. That live feedback is sort of shocking.

Why is it different from a live audience? I mean, I’m terrified of those, too, but somehow the online lives are worse. I guess it’s the faceless aspect of it. I have no idea if you’re laughing or crying or bored or even sleeping. Whatever’s going on on the other end of the Instagram line is a mystery to me.

All I can do is present the poetry I wrote as best I can and hope you like it.

At 11 a.m. Sunday.

Today I’m drawing yellow. Is it love or just spring?
From “Today I’m Drawing Yellow” by Michelle Garren-Flye

It’s Free!

Posted on July 19, 2023 by Michelle Garren-Flye

Forget my complicated relationship with Amazon for a bit. Right now, as we speak, my new book of love poetry, Where the Sidewalk Begins, is totally free for your Kindle. It’ll be that way until Sunday, and on Sunday at 11 a.m. I’m going to go live on Instagram and read parts of my book.

Which means if you want to read the book and request a poem to be read, you can do it.

Or you can read the book and ask me questions about it.

So you got some homework to do, and actually, so do I. Because I have a mind like a steel…tablespoon. It fills up quickly and stuff sloshes out. So the poetry I wrote and carefully selected and formatted and made into a book might have been forgotten by now, lol. And definitely any inspiration behind it. l

Tomorrow I’ll talk a little about why I’m a bit scared of the idea of going live. And why I’m going to do it anyway.

Dare I take that first step, feel heel strike hard stone, face the rest of my life…alone?
From “Where the Sidewalk Begins” by Michelle Garren-Flye

Spoiler 3: Where the Sidewalk Begins update

Posted on June 16, 2023 by Michelle Garren-Flye

I’ve been super busy working on Where the Sidewalk Begins. This book is a new start for me in a lot of ways, so I’m taking my time and making sure it’s exactly what I want it to be. I’m really loving the way each block is coming together in the bookbuilding process.

Here’s a tiny large spoiler for you. The illustration is my favorite from the book. The quote is from one of my favorite poems in the book. Of course, I’m trying to only include my favorite poems in this book, but you get it.

Promoting Learning Curve

Posted on December 2, 2022 by Michelle Garren-Flye

I’ve been making up some graphics to help me promote Learning Curve, which will have its official release day next week. If you can’t wait, you can order it on Amazon now, of course, but if you’d like a signed copy, my bookstore is the place to come, specifically next Friday from 5-8 p.m. (although any other of my open times works as well).

Here’s a bite-size tidbit to help you decide if you want to join me on the learning curve of life…