The Month Everything Changed

 Hey Besties,

Well… June didn't quite go the way I expected!

After finishing Tea Leaves, Pages and Starlight, I fully intended to jump straight into my next fantasy novel featuring a dragon prince. Instead, burnout hit, life got busy, and I found myself taking an unexpected break from writing.

Away from my keyboard, there were plenty of personal challenges too, from more PMDD and coil appointment chaos to my mum undergoing bowel cancer surgery. Thankfully, she's recovering brilliantly, and I also made the difficult—but ultimately right—decision to skip the Birmingham Writers' Conference and focus on looking after myself and my family.

As the month went on, something interesting happened. Once I gave myself permission to slow down, I realised I might have been chasing the wrong kind of story all along. Instead of forcing myself to write darker fantasy because I felt I should, I rediscovered what I truly love writing: cosy, low-stakes stories about belonging and outsiders finding their place in the world.

That revelation has led me to my newest project, The Arcanium, and even prompted me to rethink some of my long-term publishing goals.

If you'd like to read more about everything that's happened this month—including my writing updates, family life, new project, and why I'm stepping away from self-publishing for now—you can read the full blog post over on my website.

👉 Read the full post here: https://claredugmore.com/blog/the-month-everything-changed

Until next time...

Take care and stay creative.

T.T.F.N.

Kiss Me After The Kill Update: 🩸LUCIA’S LIFE IS ABOUT TO CHANGE FOREVER.

 

Happy Friday!

We're still in the midst of a heatwave in the UK, so I currently feel like I am melting.

But thankfully, Kiss Me After the Kill continues, and Lucia's life is about to change forever.

Read chapters twenty and twenty-one here: https://www.inkitt.com/stories/1685437

And if you want to know the moment a new chapter drops AND get sneak peeks of the upcoming chapters, please consider joining Azrael's Inner Sanctum — where you’ll get:

🩸 Weekly chapter links (so you never miss an update)
🖤 Sneak peeks of what’s coming next
✨ Early news (including the Amazon release once the serial is complete)

JOIN AZRAEL'S INNER SANCTUM HERE

Until next week, have a fabulous weekend, and take care of yourself.

T.T.F.N

Kiss Me After The Kill Update: 💔After Azrael rejects her, Lucia demands the truth.

 

Hey Besties!

Happy weekend!

In the UK, it's a holiday weekend, with lots of people having an extra day off this Monday.

So, I have the perfect weekend reading for you.

💔After Azrael rejects her, Lucia demands the truth.

Read chapters eighteen and nineteen here: https://www.inkitt.com/stories/1685437

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Join Azrael’s Inner Sanctum

Want the next chapter the moment it drops?

Join the KMATK update list and step inside Azrael’s Inner Sanctum — where you’ll get:

🩸 Weekly chapter links (so you never miss an update)

🖤 Sneak peeks of what’s coming next

✨ Early news (including the Amazon release once the serial is complete)

👉 Join the Inner Sanctum

The Month Everything Began Flowing

 

This May has been one of momentum, creativity, confidence, and movement.

Earlier this month, I completed Tea Leaves, Pages & Starlight at 78k words — officially writing “The End” on a project that has meant a great deal to me. The novel will now rest for a few weeks before revisions and the querying process begin.

Of course, finishing one story means my brain immediately latched onto another… and what started as a dark fae prince enemies-to-lovers idea has somehow evolved into a dragon prince romantasy. As one does. ;)

Over on Inkitt, both The Starlight Prince and Kiss Me After the Kill continue to update regularly, and I’ve entered all three of my current stories into Inkitt’s Summer of Love Writing Contest.

I also share a few real-life updates, including thoughts on mid-life, family health struggles, PMDD, and the importance of supportive communities during difficult times.

And finally… there may or may not be discussion of creating an island full of hot vampires in the new Tomodachi Life game.

You can read the full post here: https://claredugmore.com/blog/update-19052026

Kiss Me After The Kill Update: Lucia wants to go with Azrael when he goes hunting 👀

 

Happy Friday, Besties!

I hope you've had a wonderful week!

Kiss Me After the Kill is ramping up to the mid-point, and in the latest chapter, Lucia wants to go with Azrael when he goes hunting 👀

Read chapters sixteen and seventeen here: https://www.inkitt.com/stories/1685437

If you're enjoying Kiss Me After the Kill, I'd love to hear from you!

What's been your favourite chapter so far?

Any predictions on what might happen next?

Until next week, have a fabulous weekend, and take care of yourself.

T.T.F.N

Kiss Me After The Kill Update: Lucia makes plans to get Vaughn out of her life… permanently. 💀

 

Hey Besties!

Happy Friday!

 

I hope you've all had a wonderful week. If you're looking for some spice and intrigue to occupy your weekend, check out this week's Kiss Me After The Kill chapters — Lucia has self-defence lessons from Azrael, and forms a plan to get Vaughn out of her life… permanently. 💀

 

➡️You can read both chapters here: https://www.inkitt.com/stories/1685437

KMATK just hit a turning point and I’m not okay 👀

 

Hey Besties!

It’s story central on Inkitt for me this week!

First, two new chapters of Kiss Me After The Kill have been added. 

After hearing Azrael’s truth, Lucia makes some important decisions about her own future…👀

➡️You can read chapter 12 & 13 here: https://www.inkitt.com/stories/1685437

I also added my space romantasy, The Starbound Lovers collection to Inkitt. The novella Starlight and Stolen Secrets is fully complete with all chapters added. It can be found here: https://www.inkitt.com/stories/1719899

And the novel, The Starlight Prince will have daily updates for the next month. You can read it here: https://www.inkitt.com/stories/1719916

As always, if you want the next chapter the moment it drops, all you have to do is join the KMATK update list and step inside Azrael’s Inner Sanctum — where you’ll get:

🩸 Weekly chapter links (so you never miss an update)

🖤 Sneak peeks of what’s coming next

✨ Early news (including the Amazon release once the serial is complete)

Join Azrael’s Inner Sanctum here: https://2e2f8d.share-eu1.hsforms.com/2q6pua8QzTFeB1bLU-gSbRA

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend.

I’ll be back in a week with another KMATK update.

T.T.F.N

Clare

The April I Started Finding My Way Back

 

April has been a month of finding my way back—focusing on health, rebuilding energy, and getting things moving again.

I’ve continued posting Kiss Me After the Kill, celebrated new releases of The Starlight Prince and Starlight and Stolen Secrets, and started planning future romantasy projects.

 Read them here: https://www.inkitt.com/ClareDugmore

I also celebrated 16 years of marriage, enjoyed special family time, and may have found a new hobby in loom knitting.

Sometimes progress looks quiet—but it still counts.

Want More?

Read the full April update here:
👉 https://claredugmore.com/blog/the-april-i-started-finding-my-way-back

What’s more dangerous to a centuries-old vampire than sunlight? 🖤

 

Hey Besties!

I hope your week has been wonderful.

It’s certainly been an eventful one for KISS ME AFTER THE KILL, with chapters ten and eleven going live—with Lucia turning up at Azrael’s penthouse apartment demanding answers!  👀

➡️You can read both chapters here: https://www.inkitt.com/stories/1685437

I also launched a 10-chapter ebook sample of Kiss Me After The Kill, if you’d prefer to binge it that way this weekend.

You can get it from BookFunnel here: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/uen6bk3d54

And don’t forget, if you want the next chapter the moment it drops, all you have to do is join the KMATK update list and step inside Azrael’s Inner Sanctum — where you’ll get:

🩸 Weekly chapter links (so you never miss an update)

🖤 Sneak peeks of what’s coming next

✨ Early news (including the Amazon release once the serial is complete)

Join Azrael’s Inner Sanctum here: https://2e2f8d.share-eu1.hsforms.com/2q6pua8QzTFeB1bLU-gSbRA

Until next week, have a fabulous weekend, and take care of yourself.

T.T.F.N

Clare 🖤

KMATK - Two new chapters… and things escalated fast 👀

 

Hi besties,

This week in Kiss Me After the Kill… things escalated. A lot.

Lucia finally gets a moment to breathe — to feel like herself again — and it lasts exactly as long as you’d expect before everything goes horribly wrong.

Knife to throat wrong.

But… Azrael.

And if you thought the rescue was the moment that changed everything?

It wasn’t.

Because instead of disappearing back into the shadows like he’s supposed to…

He takes her for coffee and cake.

(Yes. Really.)

And somehow, that moment might be even more dangerous than everything that came before it.

🖤 Chapters 8 & 9 are now live:

https://www.inkitt.com/stories/1685437

If you’ve been thinking about starting, this is a really good point to jump in — there’s enough there now to properly sink into the story, and things are only getting more intense from here.

As always, thank you so much for reading, sharing, and being here with me. It genuinely means the world.

Clare 🖤

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P.S. You’re also invited to Azrael’s Inner Sanctum — my weekly KMATK update emails with new chapters and sneak peeks: 

https://2e2f8d.share-eu1.hsforms.com/2q6pua8QzTFeB1bLU-gSbRA