Random thoughts on what I’m working on, why I wrote what I did, what I think about life, and maybe what I had for breakfast… if I’m in a chatty mood.
Love Valentine’s Day or hate it (I happen to like it), I’m planning on doing a few things around the romantic holiday, including a new, free story, cover reveal and giveaway of my next book, All In: Strip Poker Done Right, and some other (also free) promotions.
So mark your calendars and check back here around the 14th. Should be a good time.
At the end of 2013, Smashwords announced that it would support the direct upload of EPUB files through a service dubbed Smashwords Direct. This is huge–definitely worth my redundant blog post here. Smashwords has always been a champion of the self-publisher, but it required your…
Ask most guys and they’ll tell you: there’s just something about a sexy mom. This isn’t a new concept. Mrs. Robinson may have been a MILF before her time, but she was still a MILF. Hormonal teens have fantasized about their teachers and the mothers…
I love Christmas time. I won’t go so far as to say that it’s the most wonderful time of the year since I make it a habit not to compare the different times of year, but it’s up there. It also tends to lend itself to erotica and erotic romance plots–at least to me. I’ve already written one (Observing Christmas Traditions), and have a longer piece in the works (look for Midnight Clear one of these Decembers). I’ve got two more brewing in my head, although they’ll have to wait until 2013, most likely.
One of these days, I’ll do a compilation of my Christmas short stories. For now, you’ve got Naughty But Nice. It’s a shorty, but hopefully a goodie. Available over at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
Dan was resigned to a Christmas alone. He told himself it was fine, that experiencing the holidays through the smiles of others was enough. But on Christmas Eve, the prospect of life by himself without the magic of the season was crushing. And then she walked into Santa’s shop, one last present to unwrap before the holidays came to an end.
One of my favorite sex scenes from Leap has found its way into Scorching Book Review’s Naughty November Event. Read about just how dirty husband-and-wife duo Jack and Sarah can get during a late lunch in a (mostly) empty restaurant. Check it out now!
Don’t forget to rate the excerpt
Even if you’ve read the book, I’d appreciate your support. You can rate it by entering that first Rafflecopter contest. It’ll prompt you to rate it between 1 and 10… you know what to do. If you haven’t purchased Leap yet, you’ll also have a chance to win a free copy of the ebook.
About Naughty November
Nix writes at Scorching Book Reviews:
This November, we will be celebrating all things naughty as authors share with us their steamiest scenes for you to vote on. The premise is simple; vote the steaminess of the scene on a scale from 1-10 and be entered for their giveaway (if they have one) and the overall prize of a $20 GC for an online book shop of your choice. At the end of the month, the votes will be counted and the author with the highest average score shall be named the King or Queen of the event.
The premise is simple, the reasoning is too….we love steamy books!! We love to share our rec’s but sometimes we miss something that you’ll love.
Oh, and if you missed it, read Nix’s review of While She Watches.
Apparently, writing Halloween erotica is becoming a tradition for me. I’d completely forgotten I’d written one last year until I went to post my latest, Her Vampire Costume. I’m not much of a paranormal erotica writer, but in cases like Halloween, it just fits. Last year, I wrote about ghosts. This year, it’s vampires. Maybe next year, we’ll do werewolves? (Don’t hold your breath, Jacob fans.)
If you’re looking for something fun, short, and sexy to read tonight, check out one of these stories:
Max and Katie, from Something Forbidden, attend a party with a couple friends. Dressed as a harem girl, how seriously will Katie take her role to please?
Costume parties weren’t my thing, Halloween or not. I felt silly for those around me, and even worse for myself. Then I saw her. Pale blonde hair and haunting blue eyes, her only costume a pair of fangs and a cloak… or was it a costume after all?
Exhibitionists aren’t cut out for the ghost’s life, as Paul and Neve learned in the year after their death. Public sex loses something when the public can’t see you and there’s no chance of getting caught. Paul seeks larger and larger audiences, hoping someone — anyone — will see them. On the anniversary of their death, Neve agrees to another shot on a busy summertime beach. Is this their time? Just to be seen once would make all the difference…
Edited to add Forbidden Halloween to the list.
I’ve been a little delinquent in sharing my latest cover designs, but this isn’t to say that I don’t have any new ones. In addition to covers for my own stories, Leap and Rediscovering Danielle, I’ve done a couple for my friend Kirsten McCurran, and as hot as I think the covers are, the stories are even hotter.
Bound by Two
If 50 Shades of Grey has whet your appetite for a little light bondage and D/s, then check out Bound by Two. I’m not normally into that sort of thing, but I found myself captivated by this one. Definitely a scorcher. There’s a naughty wife aspect to it, too.
A day of painting by a married couple and their longtime friend turns into a night none of them will ever forget! Stacey is just as comfortable with their friend Alex as she is with her husband, Tim. She should be, she’s known him just as long, and even dated him first, if only briefly. But that was long in the past, and there has not been anything between Stacey and Alex since, not until too much alcohol and a hot summer day turn their usual flirting into something more. Throw in some teasing about Stacey reading Fifty Shades of Grey, and her husband, Tim, sees an opportunity to make a wild night happen. All he needs is a way to tie Stacey down, and she will be helpless before the two men.
The Coach’s Wife (A Wife Watching Tale)
I wrote a whole post on wife-watching, so you know this one’s to my taste. As always, Kirsten does a great job of taking a common fantasy and adding life to it. This story could have been all action and little emotion, but what Kirsten wrote was thoughtful, conflicted, and even emotional at times. And that sets it apart.
When Cara and Frank were a young married couple, he was a high school football coach and half the team used to hang out at the coach’s house, leading more than one player to crush on the coach’s pretty wife. Fast forward years later and one of Frank’s former players is a major football star. When Marcus is awarded for his charity work, he invites his old coach and Cara to the black tie banquet as a thank you. Frank and Cara make the most of the chance to dress up and go into the city, deciding that on their night on the town “anything goes.” The fun starts in the limo, but when they arrive at the banquet and Cara starts shamelessly flirting with Marcus, the couple must decide if they are ready to cross the line and make their fantasy a reality. And Marcus must decide if he’s ready to finally close the deal and enjoy his old crush.
Check out all my cover designs either on my site, or on my Facebook page.
“What I want is to be inside a woman’s head that knows what a man wants to read.”
I’ve seen this idea expressed a few times in the blog comments and in e-mails. There’s an audience of male readers looking for plots that appeal to them yet written from the woman’s perspective. I totally get this. It’s pretty sexy to read about a hot woman being naughty. It’s voyeurism at the most intimate level. It also gives us a different take on our old fantasies: a new perspective.
[quote align=”right” color=”#999999″]For me, the narrative is more important than the narrative voice.[/quote]
For me, a woman’s POV isn’t a necessary thing, but neither is a man’s. For me, the narrative is more important than the narrative voice. I want a well crafted plot and believable characters, told with the point-of-view that the story requires. Some stories just work better in third omni–or third limited, split between male and female characters–or male first person. Sometimes, I want to relate to the male character and the inner conflict that he’s going through.
But with the right story, it’s not just erotic to be “inside a woman’s head,” but it’s incredibly powerful. As guys who think about this stuff all the time, we know why wife watching is sexy (well, sort of), or why MFF is so hot. Turn it around, though, and write the female POV, and that story gets a new coat of paint.
If you’re looking for stories out there that would qualify as “erotica for men” and are written in a female voice, I’ve got a few recommendations. Kirsten McCurran’s “Eve’s Swinging Friends” series is a realistic take on neighborhood swinging, all told from Eve’s perspective. Also check out her longer book, Because He’s Watching, about how a woman handles her husband’s wife watching obsession. Interesting fact on that one: Because He’s Watching was a story written in parallel with me; I wrote the husband’s perspective, she wrote the wife’s. I wasn’t happy with how Ian’s story came out, so I locked it away. Maybe one day, I’ll dust it off and release it. Katie Cramer also writes “male-oriented” erotica from a female’s POV, but I’ve only read a couple of her books.
Oh, and here’s the thing: the majority of erotica out there is written (at least partially) from a woman’s perspective. The trick is to find one with the heat level that you want (i.e. a high one) and a theme that you’re drawn to. I’m always looking for a good read. If you’ve got some stories that fit here, please post your reqs.
My latest short, Rediscovering Danielle, is now available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble for only .99.
Golden blonde hair to match her golden skin. Rich blue eyes. Tiny black dress. Legs encased in black silk that went on and on. She sat alone at the bar, waiting.
Dean’s drinking buddies thought she was hot, and as Dean watched her cross her legs and bring the Cosmo to her lips, he couldn’t deny it.
She was also his wife… Danielle.
If you like stories about wives acting a little badly, then this is the story for you. For Danielle, this is the beginning. Read how it unfolds.
Want an excerpt? Head on over to the book page. Enjoy!
Back in January, I wrote up some resolutions I had for the new year. I came up with four (plus one in the comments). Here’s how I’m doing.
So there it is. Not counting #5, I’m at 50%, and we’re just past the 50% mark on the year. Not bad. Unfortunately for me, one of those resolutions is a doozy, and the other I’m not going to bother accomplishing. Oh well. Who ever sticks to their resolutions, anyway?
