C. L. Ingro

Better really late than never.

July 17th, 2026

Almost exactly one year ago, I posted that I was going to publish my last old pen name story “within the next few weeks.” Time flies when you’re procrastinating.

Freeroll: a no-lose situation.

Daniel’s addiction to, or rather, enthusiasm for gambling has finally caught up with him.

After showing up uninvited to a not so secret (or legal) poker tournament and holding his own for longer than anyone expected, he finds himself indebted to an alleged crime lord who doesn’t accept payment plans. But instead of having to sacrifice his body parts to pay what he owes, he’s tasked with driving the alleged crime lord’s nephew, Javier, to Florida and back to Pennsylvania for… reasons. Simple enough, right?

Although it sounds entirely too easy to be legit, the idea of a road trip with an extremely attractive stranger is distracting enough to stop worrying so much about what might be hiding in the metal briefcase that Javier is bringing along for the ride. Mostly.

Over the next five days, Daniel will manage to avoid facing certain truths about himself and his gambling “hobby.” However, his assumptions about Javier will be shattered, again and again, in the best possible way.

Ebook now available. Print version coming soon.
Ja.

July 12th, 2026

Daily writing prompt
Are you a lifelong learner?
View all responses

Absolutely. To be otherwise is to be stagnant.

Picture it. Florida. Mid-1990s. My brother had just left the Army and moved back to the States from Germany, where my nephew was born and raised up until then. I remember the look on his three-year-old face when he realized that I could speak German. The realization that this “auntie” he had just met knew how to speak to him in a language he recognized was absolutely precious. I’d like to think that it made him feel a little bit more comfortable in such a new and strange place. And he grew up to be a wonderful human being, so I’m going to take a pinch of credit for that.

I didn’t originally decide to learn German because of that; I started learning it before my brother even met his future wife. Even so, it ended up coming in clutch. I will treasure that memory for the rest of my life.
Smashwords Summer/Winter Sale

July 5th, 2026

Over the years, I have found many a literary gem over at Smashwords, including some of my forever favorite stories. I highly recommend checking out their Summer/Winter sale!

And oops, I tripped and dropped a little flagrant self-promotion all over myself. How clumsy of me. 🙂

Happy reading!
Two Princes Excerpt

April 19th, 2026

I wanted to share the opening scene of Two Princes featuring my favorite vampire twins. Their conversations are entirely too much fun to write.

See my Published Works page for info about the two preceding stories, Family Matters and The Rising Son.

Enjoy!

*~*~*~*
(more…)
Morning is evil.

November 30th, 2025

Daily writing prompt
Are you more of a night or morning person?
View all responses

“I am most definitely a night person,” she said as she typed her reply at 5:30am, having not even considered going to bed yet.

… Maybe this is why I write about vampires?
Petty little vampires.

November 30th, 2025

In my last, so very long ago post, I mentioned that I was about to (re)publish Freeroll so I could be done with my old pen name. Well, apparently my vampires became jealous that I dared to pay attention to another story for even a moment and decided to bombard me with all the inspiration. As a result, Two Princes is pretty much finished, and now I will start editing it and pretend that I haven’t been doing that all along while writing it.

But first, I will get Freeroll published. I’m giving myself a deadline of my birthday to do it, which is coming up soon. So no more moving the goalposts, damn it.

Anywho, I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Mine was lovely, even though I’m pretty sure I ate enough turkey to last me until next year. 🙂 Happy writing!
Place Your Bets

July 29th, 2025

I was just remembering that time when I said I wanted to have Two Princes finished last month. Heh, that was funny. Deadlines are adorable.

But alas, I am actually publishing a story within the next few weeks. Just not a vampire story. Freeroll is the last of the stories I originally published under my old pen name, and I decided I wanted to go ahead and deal with that so I can properly lay Emma Peterson to rest once and for all.

Story summary:
Daniel’s addiction to, or rather, enthusiasm for gambling has finally caught up with him. He finds himself indebted to an alleged crime lord who doesn’t accept payment plans. But instead of having to sacrifice his body parts to pay what he owes, he must drive the alleged crime lord’s extremely attractive nephew, Javier, to Florida and back to Pennsylvania for… reasons. Simple enough, right?

Freeroll is part one of a three-part series.
An Unexpected Excerpt

June 17th, 2025

Some belated Fathers’ Day love for my two favorite vampire daddies. Vaddies?

From An Unexpected Addition, a short story included in Family Matters as bonus content.

~*~*~*~

For a couple of vampires who had learned, sometimes begrudgingly, to make use of all the modern conveniences that the world now had to offer, Dominic and Jacob were quickly discovering that diapers were one of the most frustrating modern conveniences of all.
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My Character Vinny

May 12th, 2025

When it comes to creating stories, I think I spend more time coming up with character names than any other step in the process. I even remember having one of those baby name books back in the day for the sole purpose of having ideas for character names. And while I’m hardly naïve enough to think that every single one of my characters’ names are original, sometimes I do think I might be a little bit in the clear with some of them. Except apparently not.

I loved the movie Mulholland Drive. It was mysterious and creepy and lovely, the kind of movie that was stuck in my head for days after I first watched it 20+ years ago. A few weeks ago, I decided to read the TV Tropes pages for it (something I’ll occasionally do for movies as opposed to rewatching them), and it was there that I realized that a fictional Vincenzo Castigliane existed well before I named my Vincenzo Castigliane.

I totally remember Dan Hedaya’s character, and I remember that scene. But if you had asked me his character’s name before I read that TV Tropes entry, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you. And yet, deep in the pit of my subconscious, I must have decided that Vincenzo Castigliane was an awesome name. And, I mean, it really is. Also, this Vincenzo probably hasn’t done half the terrible things that my Vincenzo has done… maybe.

Anyway, hi there. Two Princes is coming along nicely. In a perfect world, I’d have it done by the end of this month. Realistically, I’m aiming to have it done by the end of next month, though that might depend on whether or not I decide to pause writing it to work on a short story for Father’s Day. I want to write all the things. I just wish I had all the time.

Until next time.
Scars

February 3rd, 2025

“The world was a different place when I was turned. For all I knew, it was never going to change. I would have rather died than spend the rest of existence as someone’s property.” ~ Jacob, Family Matters

“Did you know they all cheered with every single lash? My punishment was very entertaining, apparently. I guess it’s a good thing they didn’t hang me. The show would’ve been over much quicker.” ~ Jacob, Scars from the Past (a Family Matters bonus story)

Today I was thinking about my fictional character, who was partially inspired by a very real person.

While his past as a slave isn’t a primary focus of the series, it is something that I wanted to acknowledge. And while he is, perhaps oddly enough, one of the most well-adjusted characters overall, he is still occasionally affected by his past trauma, as evidenced by the fact that after two centuries, he still cringes whenever his partner touches his scarred back.

I was thinking about this because there are those who would say that slaves didn’t have it all that bad. There are also those who would rather erase that time in our history altogether. And that, friends, is all the bullshit.

Anyway, I have to be up in six hours. Have a great day, and a fantastic Black History Month. And always remember what they want you to forget.