NaNo Day 10:
Viking-2—1671 words
TW—462 words

A Reader’s Top Ten Guide for A Great Romance

by Marie Harte

Thanks, Delilah, for letting me blog here today. I wanted to write something different, so I switched hats from writer to reader. And I was off and running…

As a writer, I like to know what readers want. I’m not so much into trends. I don’t like jumping on the vampire bandwagon just because those books might be popular. If I have an actual vampire story in mind, that’s something else. I’m talking about common threads that appeal to readers. Strong heroines, alpha males, sexual tension, that kind of thing.

Then I had a thought. Hey, I’m a reader. Why not list what I’m looking for in a story? I can read a three to four hundred page book in one sitting in a few hours, easy. I can’t say how many books I read in a month or year, but during my crazy (book-obsessed) days that fluctuate from month to month in between deadlines, I can easily read two or three in a day, especially if the stories are shorter. Of course, a lot of that depends on time, too, because I do have a family and a day job writing.

From what I’ve read and seen over the years, I have a lot in common with the average Sally Reader. So here’s my top ten list of what constitutes a great romance, in no particular order.

1. Likeable characters. The hero and heroine (or hero and hero, whatever floats your boat) don’t have to be the nicest people on the planet, but at some point they have to be likeable, and not ten pages from the end. There’s nothing worse than trying to read a book about people that are either whiny, annoying, or TSTL (too stupid to live) for 350 pages.

2. Sexual tension. I write erotic romance, and I like to read it. But when the characters hop into bed on page 3, it kind of takes away my enjoyment to see them struggle for it. Now a few authors have made this work by throwing in the requisite plot problems and angst, but by and large the easy hookup doesn’t appeal to me.

3. Gratuitous sex. Yes, I feel awful for saying this. Especially since for so many years I read stories where the characters could barely hold hands before the author cut to a new scene. Erotic romance has “erotic” in the title for a reason. It involves sex. But sex for sex’s sake shows. When the physical builds the emotional, it works. You can tell when it doesn’t.

4. The right angst. I am drawn to tortured heroes and heroines. I think we all are. It’s normal to want to see people build themselves back up after being thrown down a peg or two. But when the characters suffer page after page after page, it takes away from the joy to be had in the story. And real or not, rape scenes do nothing for me. I don’t like reading about it, and I don’t even like references to it with the main characters. Then again, that’s a personal pet peeve, but we are talking fiction, a place where anything normally goes. And hey, this is my list.

5. Character growth. I find it common anymore to read a book where one of the two characters grows but the other remains stagnant. It’s like the author puts so much into making the heroine a strong woman, she forgets that the hero is more than a foil for the heroine, but an actual part of the story. Let him grow too, damn it!

6. Humor. Just because a book is dark doesn’t mean it can’t have funny moments. Fiction mirrors reality, right? Well, people do laugh at funerals. Life isn’t all one shade, but a rainbow of emotion. Throw it all in there, I say.

7. Believable conflict. There’s nothing worse than reading a story where the hero and heroine don’t get along because of a simple misunderstanding. One short conversation between the pair would eliminate all problems and make the whole story crumble. That’s not believable conflict. Layer stuff in there, make us, the readers, want to see how they solve their problems. A phone call where the heroine admits she threw out his favorite shirt, and she’s sorry, and why can’t they all just get along, doesn’t cut it.

8. Chemistry. The main characters have to have it, or the story won’t work. Just because an author creates the pair or threesome or group involved doesn’t mean they fit. And yeah, I’ve read romances where the hero seems better suited to a secondary character and the heroine should be lesbian. It’s like the author doesn’t know her characters.

9. If everyone’s special, no one’s special. One author I used to love and now can’t read anymore gives all her characters god powers. Yeah, all of them. They’re all immortal, so where’s the scare factor? Why should the characters worry when they can snap their fingers and have an HEA whenever they want? And seriously, is every character really that handsome, pretty, white, skinny-with-boobs or tall?

10. Don’t break the rules. Authors create worlds and a set of rules that go with them. So when I read about a hero who can’t do X, then thirty pages in does X, it annoys me, especially if there’s no explanation as to why he can do X. It’s like the author has forgotten her own rules. Sure there are exceptions to the rules, but if there are too many, why have the rules in the first place?

I love to read and always will. But as my budget gets tighter, my choices in what I read narrow. I might chance a new author when all my favorites have nothing out, but burn me once, and I probably won’t be back to read more. Even my favorites have only so much leeway before I’m moving on to someone new. And with the sheer breadth of choices out there, thanks to epublishing and our friend, the Internet, I don’t have to search far and wide for a new and temping read anymore.

Happy reading!

Marie
www.marieharte.com

NaNo Day 3:
Viking-2—2035 words
GWB-Me—591 words

Shades of the Forbidden

by Eliza Gayle

“Subspace is my perfect paradise vacation from busy-mind… blessed be to the Dominant who can stamp my ticket there.” ~ Unknown

I find that writing stories that might fall in the realm of the taboo to be an exciting trip into the darker side of life. Reading them is even more fun. From the light and kinky spanking stories to the gritty and emotional dramas that make us stay up half the night to find out what happens between the hero and the heroine in the end. BDSM romance and erotica comes in so many flavors it’s impossible to define it in a simple box. I’ve seen more than once a book is poked at for “not” being a BDSM book. Probably what they really mean is that it’s not their BDSM.

Whether I write dark or light I often find myself questioning whether I went deep enough into the psychological aspect of a scene, but sometimes that’s not what it’s about. In a lighter story the focus is on the kink and the characters willingness to explore their sexuality with their partner. Those can sure be fun. The emotional drama of an in depth D/s relationship is an entirely different animal.

Both have their place and their fans.

Generally my contemporary stories are character driven. I only go as far to get to know my characters a little before I sit down to write. I know who they are, what they want and where they need to be. The rest is a journey of discovery as the story unfolds. My latest release, Bottoms Up, is a little more on the lighter side with some interesting forays into domestic discipline in a relationship. Versus the next release, Midnight Playground, which surprised both me and my editor with it’s intensity.

Of course after angsting for a few stories about the emotional complexities of D/s, I am sooo ready to write something different and I do the genre bounce. That’s me right now. I’m participating in nano this month (even though my daily word count is generally higher than what is needed for nano) and I’ve switched gears and headed back into the realm of my paranormals. Witches to be specific. Although I’ve managed to find a way to work in a little, okay maybe a lot, of D/s there too. *g*

Snooping is risky business…sometimes it pays off in unexpected ways.

Jenn has been in love with her best friend since college and despite their years apart she is determined to at least find out if he has any interest in her. When the opportunity opens up in the form of a job interview in his hometown, she jumps on a plane with a plan to see what happens.

Riley walked away from Jenn after college to explore and understand the dark side of him that harbored needs he knew she was too young to understand. They kept in touch and after years of exploration into his kinks, he’s decided the time for hiding the truth from the woman he loved has come to an end.

When Jenn finds a BDSM book and a flyer for a local sex club in his condo, she is both shocked and intrigued. Riley catches her red-handed snooping through his things and dares her to give him and his lifestyle a chance. Two days to explore her potential submissive side and see where it leads.

With no hesitation and barely a thought to how far he might go, she jumps at the chance to prove she’s the woman for him, even if it’s just for the weekend.

Read An Excerpt

My Website

NaNo Day 2:
Viking-2—1905 words
GWB-Me—518 Words

Unfairness
By Lex Valentine

Unfairness abounds in the world we live in. Despite writing romances where there is always a Happily Ever After (HEA), I sometimes let the unfairness and cruelties of the world seep into my work. In my current release, Sunstroked, one of my heroes was closeted for most of his life because his cousin, the pack Alpha, was homophobic. In my November and December releases, unfairness has a role in each story.

Rock My World, coming November 12 from Ellora’s Cave, has a stalker in it who’s filled the heroine with so much fear that she lies and pushes the hero away in order to ensure he’s not a target too. Afterburner, in the Honorable Silence anthology due out in November from MLR Press, is about two Air Force pilots who fall in love and must contend with the military’s Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy. In December, there’s Unbreak Me about a magic wielding warrior who was imprisoned unfairly, suffering rapes and torture, all because someone coveted the position her father held. Also coming in December is Christmas Wishes, another short story in my annual Christmas Cowboys series. The hero has it bad for the heroine but she’s older than him, a widow with a broken heart whose husband died in Afghanistan. Someone with a past that tragic isn’t the kind of woman you just hit on.

Another story I recently finished (whose release date I’m unsure of) is In the Light. This is a dark tale, a short story of some 6500 words, written for my friend author Patric Michael. It will be in his anthology Wishing on a Blue Star from Dreamspinner Press. In the Light features one of my signature characters, a werewolf named Weylyn Randall. The story is about bullying and doing the right thing and the sometimes high cost of both. It’s also about everlasting friendship and love. But it’s not a love story nor does it have full-blown sex in it.

For those of you who know me, you’ll know that no sex is a bit of an aberration. To date, the only other story I’ve ever written without sex is Ain’t Nuthin’ But a Hellhound, a dark tale in the Weirdly anthology at Wild Child Publishing. But In the Light has overtones from conversations Patric and I had and it’s with a sense of profound joy that I give it to him.

As unfair as life often is, my character Weylyn brings a sense of buoyancy and fun to everything I’ve ever put him in. He first debuted in a serial story where I wrote prior to being published. Then I wrote him into my Pink Chair Diaries trilogy (also before I was published.) Next, he showed up in Common Ground, Tales of the Darkworld Book 5. He pops up everywhere and he’s great fun for readers. For a taste of Weylyn, you can go to my website and click on the freebies page. There are links to the PCD stories which are free to read. Common Ground isn’t free but I hear that the Dreamspinner anthology may be a freebie.

I combat the unfairness in life the only way I know how…with laughter. Weylyn usually brings that so he’s a great read when you’re feeling down. I don’t have a link yet to Patric’s anthology, but below are links to the other works where you can read Weylyn. A few laughs won’t make unfairness in the world go away, but it makes it easier to live with. And Weylyn is a lot of hot, sexy werewolf fun!

Here’s a snippet from In the Light:

Sipping his ale, Grant shot Weylyn a wry look. “You’re trying to get me laid?”

Blinking in mock innocence, Weylyn said, “But of course! What else would a friend do?”

“Fuck the only guy in the bar I’m interested in.”

Grant made a face and Weylyn could barely contain a laugh. He loved bantering with Grant.

“You have to bring that up again? Geez, man. You are never going to let me live that down, are you?”

“No.” Grant popped a few peanuts in his mouth. “You are the only guy I know who can get laid without even trying…without even wanting to! A guy tells me he’s a power bottom and asks me if I’m interested. Before I can even reply ‘Hell yeah!’ you’ve got him topping you!”

“That only happened once,” Weylyn protested. “I didn’t know you’d already been talking to him when I met him in the men’s room.”

Weylyn felt the sting of guilt. It was true that he’d ended up with more than one guy whom Grant had had his eye on. Not that he’d meant to. Every time it had happened, he hadn’t known Grant was interested in the guy. His friend tended to be really low key about his sexuality and wasn’t a blatant prowler like Weylyn. Grant never broadcasted his sexual preferences but Weylyn knew that he gave it away fairly easily because his gaze never followed women, only men.

“I can’t believe there are Fallen Angels you haven’t fucked,” Grant grumbled and finished his drink. The bartender brought him another one instantly.

“Dude, I swear to you, I haven’t been with that many.” Weylyn tried to edge the peanuts closer to him as he watched his friend.

Grant eyed him in mock disbelief. “Still don’t believe you, but I’ll find out later. I’m not yet in the mood to go chatting up the men in here only to find they’re one in a long list of your conquests.”

“You make me sound like some kind of sexual predator.”

“You are a predator. In everything you do. It’s inherent in your nature as a shifter,” Grant conceded. “Believe me, I understand that. Add that to the whole rock star thing you have going and you get laid without even trying.”

Whew! Weylyn can certainly be a handful! If you’d like to read more Weylyn you can and some of it is free! You’ll find Weylyn here:

The Were & The Chair
I’d Fuck You

If you’re interested in reading more In the Light, I will post on my blog Sunlight Sucks and on my official website when and where you can get Wishing on a Blue Star (which contains work by several well-known M/M romance authors), just as soon as I have the information.

Many thanks to Delilah for letting me and Weylyn take over her blog today!

Lex Valentine
Lexvalentine.com ~ sunlightsucks.com ~ fivedarkrealms.com

My guest, Sloan, is on a blog tour. Be sure to check out her blog to find out where she’s going next! ~DD

So today is my busy day. Pumpkin picking, haunted hayrides and haunted houses, oh my. Me and my daughter and three of her friends are spending the day and night doing spooky things. Then, if memory serves, something was said about burrito night and major chocolate milk shakes. Guess who will be cooking and doing that….LOL

Q: What is your favorite part of Halloween?

A: I’m not really sure I have a favorite part. I like dressing up, spooky places, all the
kids dressed up who come to my door for treats. Caramel apples, bonfires, hayrides.
There are just too many things to pick just one.

Do you have a favorite part of Halloween? Please share.

Remember, to enter to win the prize for today you must leave a comment.

TODAY’S PRIZE: A DOWNLOAD OF MY DEBUT NOVEL, HIGHLAND STONE.

SLOAN MCBRIDE
~~Love Spans All Time~~
www.sloanmcbride.com

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

From the Heavens comes a hero who will take your breath away.

Reese Whittaker dreams of falling for a man who shares her love of archeology and ancient civilizations. But being attacked by a horde of demons and rescued by a Sumerian God—a well-armed, gorgeous Sumerian God—opens up a whole new world she never knew existed. And awakens a mysterious power within her that attracts all kinds of supernatural attention.

Dagan, son of the Air-God Enlil and a Time Walker, is sworn to protect the human race in general, and one young woman in particular—Reese. He’s not the only one mysteriously attracted to her powerful life force. Underworld leader Kur craves it for the untold power it will give him to strike a blow at the deities of Dilmun.

Dagan is forbidden by law from interacting with Reese, but from the moment he sees her, the fury—an intense sexual need for bonding—blinds him to all the rules. Should the pantheon discover he has fallen for a human, the punishment could mean suffering beyond imagining for him…and death for her.

Warning: Contains language, lots of action, Sumerian Gods, gorgeous men, tough, stubborn women and some creatures from the Underworld that make life hell.

Hi Sis! Thanks for having me on your awesome blog. Congratulations on all your releases this year. You are on fire!

I must admit I wasn’t sure I could pull off a good ménage story when I started writing HONOR BOUND, especially since I started with a little man-lovin’. But I knew how tantalizing it was with just the thought of having two men making love to one woman at the same time. As it happened, the writing came easy, fast and hard…Oh wait, the fast and hard part was what the men were doing to Honor!

I had so much fun writing the male, female, male ménage that I decided to give Jake a female, male, female ménage to make up for leaving him without a woman at the end of HONOR BOUND. That will be DUTY BOUND in January. And that was soooooo much fun, I’m continuing the BOUND and TIED series with ménage stories.

And what’s so fun about a ménage? The thought of getting all those sensitive spots attended to at once? The idea that more is really better and why settle for less? No longer leaving the odd man (or woman) out? Sharing in the sexual pleasure?

I’d love to hear from all of you on why a ménage could be fun. I’m giving away a download of my Fit to Be Tied to one lucky commenter.

Also visit my website for more chances to win books at http://www.mylajackson.com/

For a hot and sexy historical western and ménage, check it out!

Two lonely miners in the Colorado Gold Rush and one tempting widow-turned-thief get tied in knots over each other.

When what feels right could get a man killed…

Zach Braun struggles to resist his unnatural desire for his claim partner, Jake. The two rugged miners have been alone in the mountains for months, with no women to relieve them. Exhilarated by the discovery of gold, they give in to their lust and discover sexual delights in each other.

A witness to seduction…

Widow, Honor Whitaker, is on the run from her Indian captor, when she stumbles upon two men whose sexual activities intrigue her and make her want to join. Determined to retain her independence she takes what she needs from a cabin and runs.

When a thief attempts to steal their gold, Zach and Jake aren’t quite sure what to do with her, so they tie her up. They are shocked to discover their thief witnessed their sexual antics and that she was aroused by what she saw.
Together the three learn to let go of social mores and to accept what feels good as right, not the devil’s work. But their newfound delight in each other might come to an end when a savage comes to claim what is his.

Buy Link

Praise You
By Dita Parker

I’m on Delilah’s blog, I’m on Delilah’s blog… *chants* What? I think she’s a pretty fabulous author with the track record to match. What is a rookie like me to do but flaunt a little?

Speaking of which, I need to ask you all a favor. I’d like to play a game today. A really simple one and everyone’s eligible to enter. You see, I picked up a beauty magazine at the hairdresser’s the other day and instantly remembered why I gave those up sometime during the last century: they make you feel ugly. Conveniently, they also offer the remedy to all the insecurities and inferiorities of their own making on the very next page because that’s what they’re selling, both the disease and the cure.

Screw them. I think there’s nothing more beautiful than someone who is comfortable in their own skin, and it has nothing to do with what we’re being sold or told. So what I want to do today is hear you flaunt your fannies off. I don’t want to know what you’d change about yourself if you could, I want to know what you wouldn’t trade for the world. I don’t want you to compare yourself to anyone, living or dead, and say you wish you looked like so-and-so, I want you to tell me what you like about yourself. When we’re done, keep telling yourself that, with conviction, with a vengeance, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Okay? Okay.

To get you going, I’ll go first. I like my eyes, golden brown stars spreading on olive green. My nails are strong and healthy, so is my hair. Wavy, wash and go, always a plus when you don’t have the time or the inclination to spend gargantuan portions of time in front of the bathroom mirror each morning. You know what else is naturally curvy? My figure. I got hips and shoulders and I’ve got a butt, but I’ve also got a waist, a proportional hourglass I think looks pretty nice.

That wasn’t so hard. It actually felt quite good, and that’s saying a lot when you’re originally from Europe where they teach you self-aggrandizement is the eighth deadly sin. Luckily, I grew up elsewhere.

Before I forget, thank you, Delilah, for the spotlight! Now let’s turn it on you. Don’t be shy and do not be modest. Show me the pretty, the beautiful, what you love about yourselves, and shine on!

Yours truly madly deeply,
Dita Parker
http://ditaparker.blogspot.com

Two prizes will be awarded today!
See Taige’s prize below and be sure to post a comment here.
Then head to Access Romance for another contest and another chance to win!

Because I love it
By Taige Crenshaw

A conversation that I’ve had a few times in the past and more recently got me to thinking. A lot of blood, sweat, time, sleepless nights and tears go into anything that you love. Whether it is sewing that fabulous outfit, painting a picture, crocheting a throw or any other number of things you do. With each it takes all of what I mentioned above on my your to get to that finished point. It is the same with being a writer. Let me break it down.

Blood – I’ve typed so hard that I’ve left blood on the keyboard or gotten paper cuts while reading through pages of my manuscript. Hey paper cuts hurt something awful. (grin). I put my figurative blood into each book I write. My heart and soul are on each page.

Sweat – I’ve broken into lots of sweat as I pounded away at the keyboard trying to get a scene just right. Talked with a reader which I love to do. Since I am shy this is the hardest for me. Hush those who know me that are laughing. I am shy, just not with those I know and am comfortable with. But I digress. I’ve sweated about a variety of things. Waiting anxiously to hear back on a submission. Edits for my book. Opened a review of my book.

Time – The amount of time spent with writing the book, doing self editing, then again self editing, crit partner editing, your editing again and then off to publisher who you will have to wait for a response. And if you get that all lovely response of “yes” then even more waiting to get to the process. When in the process even more waiting to get through the process. Then after process even more waiting to actual release. Then release then more waiting to see what people think. Whew I am tired of even imagining the time. Yet each moment is worth it. So worth it all.

Sleepless night – The idea in your brain that will not understand that you are sleeping that forces you out of bed in search of paper to write it down. The book you are writing that will not let you rest until that last scene is just so or that last word is complete. The excitement of a new project. The wait for the submission that you sent. Or waiting for a note/call from your editor on something.

Tears – Oh the tears I have cried as I write a scene in a book or read a letter from a reader who actually got the story as intended. The awesome review that said that one phrase that made you smile that the story did as you intended it to do. The bad review that even though they didn’t like the story there was something constructive in it that you took away for future reference. The tears of completion that you finished the story and it was written to the best you could get it. The tears of relief for the contract that you went after or publisher you wanted that story to be with. The tears of making hard choices that will be best for your career.

I could go on and on with a list of what all the things above mean in correlation to writing. I’ve been asked many times why do I write. My quick response is “it’s in my blood, soul and heart”. The more complex one is “because the blood, sweat, time, sleepless nights and tears go into it because I love it.” I get lots of confused looks when I give the complex one so I usually give the simple explanation. With the complex response I’ve never tried to articulate what I meant until now. There are so many layers to it all. So much to say. If you think about it all those points cover many things you do in your life. I have many creative outlets that I pursue. I draw, love to sew, do crafts and cook. Each are things I love and that I want to be my best at.

No matter what you are pursuing. The things that you put your heart into – that you bleed for – figuratively and in reality. The things that bring you closer to people you would never have expected to have anything in common with. Things that may, take time away from family and friends. What you sweat over because you want it to be you upmost best and create a reaction – good or bad. The nights you cannot sleep because your thoughts are consumed with whatever project you are working on. Or the wonder when it is seen by the world and how will they react. The tears you shed to get there, between going there and as you get there. Each tear has a purpose to make you go forward. They each make you learn and grow.

In each thing you do that involves blood, sweat, time, sleepless nights and tears none of it matters because it all boils down to one thing. You do it because you love it.

CONTEST: One commenter will win a chance to choose one pdf download of any one book from my available e-book backlist.

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Taige Crenshaw is a multi-published author with books available at Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Liquid Silver Books, Loose Id, and Total-E-Bound. Taige has been enthralled with the written word from time she picked up her first book. It wasn’t long before she started to make up her own tales of romance. With novels set in today, in alternate dimensions, or in the future she writes with adventure, fun sassy heroine’s, and sexy hero’s. Always hard at work creating new and exciting places Taige can be found curled up with a hot novel with exciting characters when she is not creating her own. Join her in the fun, frolic, interesting people and far reaches of the world in her novels. You can find out more about Taige at her website: http://www.taigecrenshaw.com or blog: http://www.taigecrenshaw.com/blog.

Wilde Seduction – What happens when a woman who doesn’t know how to relax meets a man whose lust for life will change her and make all her deepest desires come to life?

Buy here at Total-E-Bound