Hi peeps! We have Aidee Ladnier visiting today with her upcoming re-release The Applicant, we have a brilliant guest post, a great excerpt and an awesome giveaway, so check out the post and click that giveaway link! <3 ~Pixie~
The Applicant
Aidee Ladnier
How can something so cuddly and adorable be so destructive? The teddy bear robot decimating his lab is only the first disaster of the day for roboticist Forbes Pohle. If he can figure out how to end its rampage, he still has to interview applicants for the position of research assistant and convince the time-traveler on his doorstop that they should be making their future right now. Oliver Lennox didn’t travel back in time to have a quickie in the blast chamber—but it certainly is fun. This younger Forbes is a sweeter, more innocent version of his lover. And it will be hard to leave him behind in the past.
If you like sexy nerds, humor, plenty of action, and a love story not even time can disrupt, this romantic adventure has the perfect credentials for the job.
First Edition published as The Applicant (or Virgins, Robot Bears, and Other Disasters) by Torquere Press, 2012.
Reinventing Oliver’s Future
by Aidee Ladnier!
Thank you so much for hosting me today on the MM Good Book Reviews Blog!
When I set out to write THE APPLICANT, I knew at its center was a time traveler who wanted to get a second chance to make the right choice the first time around. Luckily, Oliver Lennox had access to a device which could send him back in time. But Oliver’s need to reinvent himself is a common desire that many people have.
Often when people reinvent themselves, it is due to dissatisfaction. Human beings are hard-coded to take care of immediate concerns. That means even when we’re thinking about the future, we know bills have to be paid and dreams have to make way for practicality. Which can lead to a future you don’t want. Remaking yourself allows you to adjust your identity to become more in line with your hopes and dreams. For example, a businessman who wants to get back to nature might quit his corporate and become a backpacking guide. It’s a diametrically opposite career. And it came with a sacrifice. The businessman trades a steady, high paying, high stress job for one that instead feeds his soul and raises his quality of life.
Even if you don’t choose an all or nothing change, it can take hard work and steady application to get to where you want to be. Say you always wanted to be a pilot. To become that person you have to go to flying school and log tens of hours before you can earn a license. It takes resilience and goal setting to make a future instead of just letting it happen.
Of course, in my novella, THE APPLICANT, Oliver takes advantage of a shortcut to reinvent himself. He’s already well aware of the decisions he made that led to a life he wants to change. He cheats by using the time travel device to prime Forbes into helping Oliver’s younger self make the right decisions to change his future. The need to reinvent and restructure our lives to one we are most happy in is strong. Oliver demonstrates that.
And I’ve even reinvented myself once or twice. I was a shy person in high school but when I received a scholarship to go to college, I realized that my few friends and all my family would be hundreds of miles away from me. I decided that I would not be the quiet mouse, alone and friendless. I cut my long hair and had it styled in the current fashion (it was the 80s so—really big) and made a point of forcing myself to talk to one new person each day when I started classes on campus. Soon I had a lot of friends and I felt different myself. I conquered my fear of speaking to strangers, of making new friends, and of being alone. When I returned home on break, I even had high school friends remark how they almost didn’t recognize me. I’d changed my future. But not with a time travel device, just through stepping out of my comfort zone and into the world.
So tell me, have you ever reinvented yourself, changed yourself, to make your own future brighter?
Don’t forget to sign up for my Rafflecopter Giveaway (below). There are prizes and gift cards!
Excerpt
Forbes Pohle worked the needle-nose pliers carefully behind the eye sensors of his teddy bear. He needed to make one little adjustment—
The buzzer on the door sounded, nerve-jangling and insistent, from the speaker overhead.
Startled, Forbes jerked the wire he was fiddling with free from its connection, rendering the small robot blind. The head-plate spring snapped, and the access panel clipped his hand as it closed. Forbes swore and shook his stinging fingers as the front door buzzer blared again.
Frustrated, he threw down the pliers and ran both hands through his mop of brown hair. Reacting to the clatter, the tiny robot turned its head left and then right before running off the table.
Luckily the teddy bear caught itself with its face when it hit the floor.
Undaunted, the bear scrambled to its furry feet and darted toward the other side of the lab. Forbes sighed at the sound of another imperative buzz.
“You won’t get the job if you don’t stop with the doorbell.” He stood and shoved the ends of his wrinkled white dress shirt back into his khaki pants. He typed in the power-down sequence for the bear before shutting the lab door and walking toward the front of the house. His visitor had graduated to using the door buzzer as percussion, the drone now going off and on in a jaunty rhythm.
Forbes still wasn’t sold on hiring a research assistant, but he wanted a lab assistant and he needed an administrative assistant.
Most of all, he longed for a friend.
Hiring someone wasn’t the best way to go about finding one, but working with somebody was a good start, right?
Forbes checked his reflection in the foyer mirror. The dark brown of his eyes was almost invisible against the bloodshot whites. His stomach rumbled, and he promised himself he’d take a break and eat as soon as the interview concluded.
At the next buzz, he spun and yanked open the large front door. Holy crap.
He wished he’d gotten a little sleep last night instead of staying up to tinker with the bear.
A wiry man stood on Forbes’s doorstep. He was dressed in a T-shirt, tight black jeans, black nail polish, and red Chuck Taylors. His strawberry blond hair was spiked up in front. The corners of his eyes and his freckled nose wrinkled.
Forbes blinked back his surprise and opened his mouth, expecting words to come out. He cleared his throat and tried again. “Come in.” Forbes waved him inside the house. “I’m Forbes Pohle. I’m the one who posted the job listing.”
The man grinned and held out a hand. “Very pleased to meet you, Dr. Pohle. I’m Oliver Lennox. Please call me Oliver.”
Forbes blushed at the title as he clasped Oliver’s warm hand. Forbes was a PhD three times over, but he hadn’t put that in the advertisement.
“If you’ll come this way, we can talk in the lab.” He turned and walked back down the hallway to the adjacent laboratory, assuming the applicant would follow.
“Oh, I didn’t come about…,” Forbes heard him say before he ran into Forbes’s back. To be fair it wasn’t his fault. Forbes had stopped short in the lab doorway.
During the few minutes he’d stepped out to answer the door, the laboratory had been destroyed.
About Aidee
Aidee Ladnier, an award-winning author of speculative fiction, began writing at twelve years old but took a hiatus to be a magician’s assistant, ride in hot air balloons, produce independent movies, collect interesting shoes, fold origami, send ping pong balls into space, and amass a secret file with the CIA. A lover of genre fiction, it has been a lifelong dream of Aidee’s to write both romance and erotica with a little science fiction, fantasy, mystery, or the paranormal thrown in to add a zing.
You can find her on her blog at http://www.aideeladnier.com or on her favorite social media sites:
- Tumblr: http://aideemoi.tumblr.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aideelad
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/AideeLadnier
- Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6570769.Aidee_Ladnier
- Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/aideelad/
Giveaway!
Win The Applicant Prize Pack!
Aidee Ladnier Rafflecopter Giveaway!
Reinventing myself was more out of necessity than choice. Or a bit of both. I loved to work and work hard, but four years ago I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia after ignoring the signs for many year. Due to that diagnosis I had to slow down, I had to quit my job. Now I have to balance my ‘doing’ time with my ‘resting’ time. It is still a struggle. The mind wants to carry on, but my body puts a stop to it. I have to listen to my body otherwise I will bear the results for many days.
I can’t imagine living with that much pain everyday. You are a courageous and amazing person Tanja! I’m sending you good thoughts and vibes! And no malfunctioning teddy bears!
Thank you Aidee
I do not think I have reinvented myself, but life has changed me in so many ways I do not recognise my old self anymore. Although I think that’s something that happens naturally, and I expect to continue changing with time…
Congratulations on the release. It sounds really good.
I totally agree Susana. When I look back on myself just ten years ago, I’m world’s away from the person I was then. Thanks for the congrats! Forbes and Oliver are some of my favorite characters. And the teddy bear robot (while destructive) is one of the cutest adversaries I’ve ever written.
Thank you so much for hosting me today!! I’m so excited that MM Good Book Reviews is one of my stopis on the tour.
I changed my job and I’m was very shy but I knew I needed to make friends luckily on the first day I was partnered with a really out going colleague and she had many friends so it was easy for me to fit in but it still took a lot of effort and work. Months later I met someone from my old job they couldn’t believe the change in me.
Yay! That’s the best kind of change. Congrats!
My reinvention has been more of a progression. I grew up in a socially conservative, very religious family. As I went to university and out on my own in the world, I shed a lot of the ideas I grew up with and became a progressive person, advocating for diversity and equality.
Thanks for the post and congrats on the re-relase.
Sometimes change can be that way. You look back at your former life and realize you’ve been changing all along. And advocating for diversity and equality is important. Thanks for helping make the world a better place!
I’ve recently learned how to deal with my anxiety issues. I stay more focused on the now instead of the possibilities that are worrisome. It’s made me less stressed out and calmer in so many ways. I still have times were anxiety tries to take over, but I usually can slow or stop it now.
As someone who also suffers from anxiety, I’m so proud of you! Anxiety is horrible and you’ve found a great coping mechanism. That’s a positive change that will make so much of a difference in your future.
Well, I guess my ‘reinvention’ happened when I decided to go with my guts and took a job after I graduated from university that had nothing to do with my major. While I was okay in social situation before than, I was an introvert kid and I preferred to be alone and didn’t talk much. After taking the job, I gradually changed to someone who could talk and contribute to conversation a lot. Even my family noticed. I am still an introvert person, I still need my me-time a lot, but I guess I can be more “social” when I am among people.
Ami – this happened to me too!!!! Learning social skills was part of my “on the job training”. Congrats on coming out of your shell!
I reinvented myself for the first time in August 2010 when at the age of 47, I returned to college. I moved five hours away from home and even lived in the dorms for my first year. I reinvented myself again two years later when my dwindling finances forced me to drop out before completing my BS in Meteorology. Back home and feeling depressed, my daughter and youngest son encouraged me to find a publisher and submit the book that I’d written during summer break. And believe me I couldn’t have been more shocked when I received that first e-mail accepting my submission for publication!
That is so awesome, Bea! I’m glad your family was there to support you becoming your best self! Congrats!!
Thank you, Aldee!
After my son came out as trans & then a few years later as gay, I became more vocal about my support for equality. Then in November after the election, I started getting more involved in activism. My son even commented on how by becoming involved in radical politics, I had become his greatest ally. That made me cry because all I was trying to do was protect him.
Awww Lisa! You made me cry, too. That’s so beautiful. Love enables us to move moountains.
Thank you Aidee. Yesterday a former co-worker & longtime friend contacted me to tell me that we had inspired her to volunteer at her local LGBTQ teen center. She was the first person who extended a helping hand on our journey so she inspired me as well. 🙂
I’ve reinvented myself in more subtle ways over the years…I definitely feel more daring and less bound by what others think than when I was younger.
That is awesome, Trix! It’s so easy to let fear limit us. Be bold!! Congrats!
Thanks for the post and the excerpt!
I would like to be like Oliver and be able to go the past and make a lot of things differently… But as an impossible task, we have to find other ways. Something similar happened to me when I was in highschool but the other way around, I went out with friends as much as I could/wanted to but once I started college, I calmed down. I met new people, some real cool some not so much. Anyway, there are some things I don’t do anymore, I like to have time for myself and enjoy doing things I like. Nonetless, I meet with my close friends as often as we all are able to. I hope the giveaway is for International too. 😛 I look forwad to your new book!
Hi Serena! The giveaway is open to international readers, too. I’m so glad you found some peace and serenity! That’s a great change to make in your life!
I’ve gone from being a teacher, to a computer programmer / analyst, then to a sports administrator. Long story / stories
Wow! That is a change, Cee Mac! I hope it was a good change that made your life better. 🙂
I wouldn’t say I’ve reinvented myself as I still get anxious, am extremely introvert and socially inept. But over the last few years I feel as if I’ve gotten a bit better in social situations.
That is wonderful, H.B.! I’m sending you good thoughts that you continue to become more comfortable and take some chances. 🙂
Over the years I have become more extroverted and I care less and less about what other people think of me.
Me too, Natalie. It’s so freeing! And you get to meet lots of interesting people that way that surprisingly, really enjoy meeting you! Thanks for commenting!
I feel like just joining a new community online I reinvented myself. I mean, I don’t feel like I was a different person necessarily, but being able to talk about things with like-minded people made me feel reinvigorated, more myself. So glad to learn about The Applicant, Aidee, I love time travel stories, especially with romance.
Yay! That is the best part of reinventing yourself, Carolyn–allowing yourself to be free to be your best self.
Oh, man! Why didn’t I know this before? Subconscious: You used to not believe on these giveaways, right?
Me: You’re right. *shuts my mouth*
Moving on, I think the reinvention happened when I was in sixth grade. I used to be a carefree kid. Not caring too much ’bout grades (though, I was not failing any classes), not caring if I get high scores in our exams, not caring if I don’t join any extracurricular activities. Then, this selection process of school newspaper staffs happened. I was always fascinated of reading the Editorial page of the newspaper and I think that was what inspired me to join the selection process of the Editor-in-chief position. Cutting the story short, I achieved the unimaginable. I became the Editior-in-chief & I won in a lot of journalism competitions and that how I made a mark in our school which I never thought that could ever happen.
LOL! Giveaways are fun. I’m glad you came around to the dark…um, I mean FREE side.
Your reinvention story is awesome. Sometimes life is just like that. We’re in waiting to find the thing that inspires a passion in us. And when we find it, we change, often without realizing we meant to. Congrats!
It’s definitely the dark side! LOL!
“…we change, often without realizing we meant to.” Couldn’t be more true. =) Thank you.
I have had many stumbles along the way… but I feel my struggles have made me who I am now and who I strive to be in the future! I started a new career path almost 3 years ago and financially, it’s helping out my family tremendously!
Congratulations, Jenn!!! I’m so glad you took the chance on that new career path. It’s often scary to step out and be that different person, the one that takes a new career instead of staying with the old course, but it can be so rewarding. I’m so happy for you!
Congrats and thanks for the post. Back in high school I was so shy and resolved to improve. I joined the debate and drama teams, and it really helped. I was even elected class president.
Wow, Purple Reader, that’s a big change. It’s so awesome that you decided to make a change and then did it. Congrats on changing your life for the better!
I have reinvented myself for the better by doing more writing. I think I’ll one day complete something!
So excited for this book! I stepped out on a limb when I created my blog. I had no idea what I was doing. I just knew that if I was going to be reading and reviewing books that I wanted to reach as many readers as possible. It was really scary and I got lucky to find two amazing women to join me on this journey. I could have never made it as far as I have without them.