GAY FOR YOU

by Jessica E. Subject

Gay for you is a popular trope in romance today, characters having a same-sex relationship after finding the “right” person. In all of my stories in The Underground series, one or two characters decide to take a chance, and have sex with someone of the same gender. Not because they are experimenting, but because they are looking for love.

In the third book in the series, Never Gonna Say Goodbye, Will and Tim are in an already established relationship, but before each other, they’d never been with another man before. After an explosion at a mall that killed hundreds, Tim found Will at the brink of death. Being a medic, he was obligated to do his best to save him, but he never expected Will to live.

By the hands of a skilled man, and with a strong determination to survive, Will survived and went on to become leader of the rebellion. And along the way, he feel in love with the man who saved him. Now, many years later, Will is fighting again. Not to live, but for the freedom to love whoever he chooses. And that person is Tim.

Never Gonna Say Goodbye

The Underground #3

By Jessica E. Subject

Erotic Gay Sci-Fi/Dystopian Romance

ISBN: 978-1613335857

Rebels, former Planet Core employees, have banded together in The Underground. They fight against the policies of the corporation that owns the lease on their lives. They will have their freedom or they will die trying.

The rebellion is stirring…
Will Garrison leads the fight against the control of the corporation—he wants his people to have their rights to live and love back. Reunited with his lover, former Planet Core medic Tim Harris, the men disagree on how to take down the corporation.

And the desire for freedom…
Tim’s plan requires that he provide a distraction while Will leads The Underground’s forces in a lightning raid, but who can Will trust when he’s already been betrayed once?

May cost these men everything…
Timing is everything, because if either fails The Underground may be crushed under the weight of Planet Core once and for all.

Available From:

Decadent Publishing and other ebook retailers

Get the first book in the series, Never Gonna Let You Go for only 99 CENTS

at Amazon and All Romance until September 26th!!!

Excerpt:

   “Let’s do this.” Gun aimed to shoot, Will took a deep breath and stepped inside the portal. The mass pulled his skin in every direction. His stomach churned. And then the sensations ended.

   He’d made it. Resting his hand on the closest structure, he inhaled sharply, trying to gain his bearings.

   The rest of the team gathered beside him, Brook and Melina the only two not affected by the trip.

   “Shit.” He needed to focus, regain control. He blinked hard then glanced around the transporter room. Empty. No one had come to meet them.

   “Something’s wrong,” Melina whispered, ready to fire her own weapon. “There is always at least one guard in here.”

   “I guess we got lucky.” Dale sauntered to the center of the space, raised his arms and spun in a circle. “We are all alone in here. Time to find the fucker and take him down.”

   A sudden hiss silenced him. Red light burned his clothing and left a clean, cauterized hole through his chest. His eyes rolled back in his head, and he fell to the ground.

   Will rushed in front of the others, shoving them behind the portal.

   So much for being alone. How many waited to take them down? He peeked around the structure, weapon at the ready. No one. The guards had to be hiding, waiting for him and his crew to come out.

   And come out they would, fighting all the way.

Bio:

Jessica Subject is the author of contemporary and science fiction romance, ranging from sweet to erotica. In her stories, you could meet clones, or a sexy alien or two. You may even be transported to another planet for a romantic rendezvous. 

When Jessica isn't reading, writing, or doing dreaded housework, she likes to get out and walk. Fast. But she just may slow down if there is a waterfall nearby.

Jessica lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband and two energetic children. And she loves to hear from her readers. You can find her at jessicasubject.com and on twitter @jsubject.

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My First Time...

** Please follow the instructions at the end of my blog to enter to win the giveaways. You have a little homework to do but it will be worth it! **

Buy First Comes Marriage HERE

by Christian Ramos

I’ve never been in love.

I’ve been engaged twice. And been stranded at the altar both times. But it wasn’t until after I’d tucked my tail between my legs, drank an assload of Jack, and sorted through the BS once my binge-soaked brain functioned normally again that I admitted both women had done me a favor. Who thought getting married ‘til death do you part was a good idea anyway?

My big, fat, Latin family did. My father wanted grandsons to carry on the Ramos family name. My mother wanted grandchildren to spoil rotten. And hell, I'd tried my best. But after two humiliating trips up the church aisle and right back down it again, marriage, kids and love weren’t on my radar anymore.

Not until I was staring 40 in the face. Then those things were back on my radar.  Big time. Suddenly, having kids and a woman to share my life (and bed) with had moved from dead last on the Chris Ramos bucket list, to the top. But holy hell, the thought of trying to find the future Mrs. Christian Ramos made me break out in a cold sweat and shrivel my balls.

When my college roommate, Jackson Castillo, asked me to be his best man at his wedding, I rented the tux and flew out to Vegas, although I had every intention…no, I had an obligation, to talk him out of the marriage. He’d met his bride through some online dating service, 1Night Stand. The whack job owner, Madame Evangeline, had coerced him into going on a date with a woman who wanted someone who looked like her dead boyfriend. Or something. Who cares, it was crazy and I had zero intention of letting Jackson ruin his life. Friends don’t let friends marry crazy bitches.

Leah was anything but crazy and Jackson, the stoic, uptight, career-driven bastard that he is, had fallen for her in a big, hard way. It was painful and more than a little nauseating to watch them together. 

So, naturally I contacted the whack job owner, Madame Eve. What the hell, I had no real hope to have what Jackson and Leah do, but if all I got out of it was a one-night stand, I didn’t care.

A few weeks later, I got the email I’d been waiting for from Madame Eve. But she hadn’t found me a date. She’d found me a wife. Queue my best WTF expression as I stared at the screen. I groped for my cell phone in an incredulous panic (if there is such a thing).

Me: “Dude, I got a response from your whack job friend, Eve.”

Jackson: “Oh yeah? Who’s the lucky date?”

Me: “You mean, who’s the lucky wife?”

Long Pause from Jackson, then: “Bwahahaha!”

I thought I was going to have to send the asshole a case of Depends because I’m pretty sure he pissed himself laughing so hard.

Long story short. I agreed to marriage. I don’t know why. It seemed like a good idea? I wanted to have children before I was old enough to be their grandfather? I was tired of my parents pushing me to settle down? I was tired of being alone? All of the above….

I flew out to Las Vegas with the asinine hope that my future wife, Beth, and I would be, if nothing else, compatible. But when we met, I didn’t like her….

I fell in love.

**Tell me about your first love, or your second-and-even-better love, or something you love, even if it's not human. I love to hear a good how-we-met story, so please share yours. One lucky commenter will win a $10 Amazon gift card from me and a copy of Jackson and Leah Castillo's story, To Feel Again**

Valerie Mann is the superwoman every woman tries to be…mother of five attractive, successful children, vixen in and out of the bedroom, runway model fashionista, extreme gardener, and just recently crashed on bestseller lists as a romance author.

In real life, Valerie is the mother of five lovely, but ordinary children. Sure, she’s a vixen in and out of the bedroom, which explains the herd of kids. The closest she gets to a runway is an airport, and while she thinks gardens of all sorts are wonderful, she figures that hobby can wait until retirement, if her knees last that long. And that crashing you heard was Valerie collapsing on the couch at the end of a very long day. As for romance, she writes and likes to think she can tell an amazing tale of love or two. Her husband of nearly thirty years won’t read her stories because they make him blush but is content in the knowledge he’s the inspiration for every one of them.

Valerie currently works as a managing editor for an electronic publisher and is the co-owner of a company that provides editing services for writers.

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Mistletoe Madness Blog Hop!

You're in the Right Place!

Welcome to my little corner of  Mistletoe Madness! Whether you've been naughty or nice, you still have a chance to have Santa and his reindeer bring you something special!

What you could win from me:

An Amazon gift card and an electronic copy of my latest release, First Comes Marriage in the format of your choice.

What do you need to do? Read the blurb and excerpt below and tell me if you had to have an arranged marriage, what kind of man (or woman) you would like to spend the rest of your life with. If you already ARE spending the rest of your life with your dream partner, tell me about how you met!

Blurb:

Who agrees to an arranged marriage in the 21^st century? Beth Malone can’t believe a date request with the 1Night Stand service morphed into an arranged marriage offer. But after a heartbreaking divorce and no knight in shining armor coming to sweep her off her feet, her desire to find that knight and have a family is looking more like a dream than a reality.

After filling out a 1Night Stand questionnaire worthy of the CIA, Christian Ramos is stunned when Madame Eve offers to arrange more than a date for one night: she suggests a wife! What the hell? After his best friend Jackson Castillo stops laughing, he advises him to consider the offer. Between the fortieth birthday looming on the horizon and his Latino upbringing, Chris is forced to take a hard look at his life. Reality check—time is running out for what he wants—a family and a woman to share his life.

First comes love, then comes marriage isn’t part of their matrimonial situation, but neither Beth nor Christian anticipated the immediate attraction and contentment that comes with saying, “I do.”

Excerpt:

“We need to get this over with.”

Her eyes widened in shock. “Get what over with?” But she knew.

He dropped his hand and gave her a rueful smile. “We’re married. I want to make love to my wife.” He waited for her to respond again and when she didn’t, he added, “Now.”

Beth blinked. Her heart started beating again. She liked a man who knew what he wanted. Especially when he wanted her. Stretching up, she gave him a light kiss. He clasped her waist with both hands and pulled her against him, fusing his mouth to hers, nothing like he had during their wedding. He invaded her, tasting and exploring with his tongue, forcing her to open for him.

She wound her arms around his neck and gave in, letting the invasion happen. Every fear disappeared and the only trembling happening was from desire. Her breasts swelled, aching to be touched. She wanted him. How wonderful he was hers.

Chris eased away but didn’t let go, wearing the same dazed look she must have had after their wedding kiss. He stepped back a few paces, bringing her with him, until he reached the bed.

“Turn around.”

Beth narrowed her eyes but obeyed. The zipper on the back of her dress descended and the silky garment puddled at her feet as he turned her back to face him. His hungry gaze swept over her, and she shivered with anticipation. Leaning in, he kissed the space between her breasts, his face tight with desire. No man had ever looked at her body that way…so appreciative.

Reaching behind her, he unhooked her bra, and tossed it on the floor to join the dress. Her nipples stood at attention, swollen and needy. She shivered again.

He tilted his head back. “Am I going too fast?”

She cupped his face and gave him a hard kiss. “Hurry,” she whispered.

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Click HERE to visit the other blogs on the Mistletoe Madness Blog Hop 

Arranged Marriage? Really?

Maybe you wouldn't want your own marriage arranged, but everyone loves reading about other poor suckers and their arranged marriages! There's just something intriguing about the idea of forging a bond with someone you've never met. Beth and Christian have their own doubts about the success of a marriage arrangement, but the clock is ticking and they're ready to take the plunge and get on with it!

Check out my latest release, First Comes Marriage. If you leave a nice comment, I may send you a free e-copy! 

Who agrees to an arranged marriage in the 21^st century? Beth Malone can’t believe a date request with the 1Night Stand service morphed into an arranged marriage offer. But after a heartbreaking divorce and no knight in shining armor coming to sweep her off her feet, her desire to find that knight and have a family is looking more like a dream than a reality.  

After filling out a 1Night Stand questionnaire worthy of the CIA, Christian Ramos is stunned when Madame Eve offers to arrange more than a date for one night: she suggests a wife! What the hell? After his best friend Jackson Castillo stops laughing, he advises him to consider the offer. Between the fortieth birthday looming on the horizon and his Latino upbringing, Chris is forced to take a hard look at his life. Reality check—time is running out for what he wants—a family and a woman to share his life 

First comes love, then comes marriage isn’t part of their matrimonial situation, but neither Beth nor Christian anticipated the immediate attraction and contentment that comes with saying, “I do.”  

 BUY First Comes Marriage HERE: 

Decadent Publishing | Amazon | All Romance | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords

1Night Stand BLOG HOP! July 5th - 8th!

 Who is this Madame Eve, Anyway?

Since Kate Richards, Olivia Starke and I came up with the 1Night Stand concept two years ago this month, Madame Eve, the proprietor of the fictional 1Nightstand.com has been busy! To date, she has a documented list of over 125 love matches that you can read from Decadent Publishing!

View the complete list HERE

The first 1Night Stand book, To Feel Again (by yours truly, natch) was released in early April 2011. That’s just over a year ago! Kate and Olivia’s books soon followed and the rest was history. This series has been amazingly popular. Evidently, readers love the idea of a match between strangers (typically) who find that instant connection. The matching services on TV don’t have anything on this dating service!

But who is Madame Eve?

Nobody really knows, except for Jackson and Jagger Castillo, the owners of the Castillo Hotel & Resort chain where many of the 1NS stories take place. They’ve both spoken to her, but as far as we know, they’re the only ones on the planet to have done so. She did blog one time and revealed enough about herself that we know enough to be even more curious:


READ HER BLOG HERE

Here’s what we do know about Madame Eve:

1.   She’s French. And she’s a pure romantic at heart.

2.   She’s mysterious. We don’t know how old she is, or how she does what she does. But man, can that lady figure out who needs who (or is that whom?). She knows what most lovers need before they know it themselves.

3.   She’s a one-woman show. She runs the 1Night Stand dating service with a velvet-covered iron glove. You know how those French women can be. Don’t mess with her, she’s got a job to do.

4.   She does a great job.

Here’s what we don’t know about her:

1.   Where she lives.

2.   What she looks like.

3.   How old she is.

4.   Where she learned to do what she does so well.

It drives authors crazy not to know very much about her. They constantly and sneakily try to insert the answers to their own questions into their manuscripts. Kate Richards and I are the editors for 1NS and like Eve, we rule the series with a velvet-covered iron glove. Don’t mess with Eve. Don’t make her something she’s not. She’s mysterious for a reason, we like it that way, and so does she.

What may seem odd to others but not so much to us is that through the many authors who have written 1NS stories, they’ve brought Madame Eve to life! She’s real to Kate and I! Maybe that's weird. But it’s pretty obvious by the sheer volume of stories, as well as huge author and reader fan base, she’s pretty real to most everyone else, too!

What do you think? Who and what do you picture when you read about Madame Eve? Leave a comment of your vision of Madame Eve and I’ll pick a random comment for a chance to win the first 1Night Stand ebook, To Feel Again, plus another 1NS of your choice. Hurry, I’m picking the winner on July 9^th!

What else can you win, you ask? A Kindle Touch, an Amazon Gift card, a bag of goodies from Coffee Time Romance...plus more at each stop! But you have to follow the hop to win!

Sexy Aliens

by Jessica Subject 

Although not always, many science fiction romance stories deal with a relationship between an alien and a human or an alien and another alien. When it comes to the intimate scenes, can you suspend disbelief and find the aliens sexy as the characters do? How about these aliens, do you find them sexy?

Sure, these aliens look very humanoid, but what if the alien looked like this? Would you still find them sexy?

What if you meet someone who looks very human, in fact, like your dream date? You get to know them, are ready to become intimate with them, and they tell you they’re an alien. You see their true form which look something like this:

Would you run away screaming? Faint? Would you be curious? Or would you say, “Let’s get it on?”

That’s exactly what happens to Carrie Cooper. Find out how she reacts in Celestial Seduction.

Celestial Seduction Book Trailer

Excerpt

“Remember how I said I needed an open-minded partner?”

She nodded, her eyes catching a quick glance from his before returning to her stomach.

Just a couple more minutes and he’d be finished. He prepared to hold her down should she freak out when he told her he came from space. “I’m not exactly like you and most of the people on Earth. I’m….different.”

“Like a demon or a guardian angel?”

He laughed. It sounded forced, but he needed to stay focused on healing Carrie rather than mating with her. “No, you’re thinking paranormal. Try science fiction.”

She began to squirm under him, but he didn’t need to restrain her. “A….clone? Artificial intelligence?”

He finished healing her and lay down beside her. His thumb ran across her lips, wanting to taste them again, but knowing he probably wouldn’t. “Try alien.”

Buy Links:

http://www.markofthestars.com/wp/?page_id=6661

Bio:

Jessica Subject started writing to encourage her daughter to read. Now she writes to keep herself grounded. Although she reads many genres, she enjoys writing Science Fiction Romance the most and believes everyone in the universe deserves a happily ever after. She lives Southwestern Ontario, Canada with her husband and two kids and loves to hear from anyone who has enjoyed her stories.

Website/Blog: http://www.markofthestars.com

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/jsubject

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jessica-E-Subject-author/205759796126370

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4959083.Jessica_E_Subject

Google +: https://plus.google.com/100079570422204018357/posts

Find your Soul Mate!

with Jane Rochester

Thanks, Val, for letting me crash your blog today. I really appreciate it!

Writing isn’t an easy job. Anyone who tells you differently only wishes they were writing a novel. First, you actually have to make time to do it. (I dream of a day where I can quit the day job and spend all day writing in my pajamas.) Then there’s what to write. Anyone who’s tried (I think) can tell you about getting everything together and sitting down at the computer, hands poised over the keyboard…and then nothing happens. Words do not fall from fingertips like rain. You sit and stare at that very scary white screen.

The key is to write. Anything. Even if it’s just “the cat sat on the mat” over and over again. Sometimes just breaking into that white space helps. It makes it less intimidating. Don’t worry about what you’re writing. That’s what editing is for. Get the words out. Shudder over your grammatical errors and comma splices later. For now, let it flow.

Somewhere along the way, you’ll discover that your characters will do things you hadn’t intended. They’ll throw something into your plot you never intended to be there. And you’ll sit back, scratch your head, and then shrug and go with it. Some of the best ideas are accidents.

But it’s worth it. There is nothing like the thrill of receiving an offer from a publisher. The only thing that tops it is receiving a great review, or better, a comment from a reader about how much they love the story. That is a rush I’ve yet to find anywhere else.

So I’m pleased to be able to announce that my novella, Soul Mate, has been released as part of the 1 Night Stand Series from DecadentPublishing. I’ve included the cover (isn’t it GORGEOUS?!) and the blurb. I hope you’ll check it out!

Soul Mate:

When her friend buys her a date from Madame Evangeline’s 1Night Stand service, Nora isn’t sure she can go through with it. Especially when she sees her date walk in. He’s way out of her league in more ways than just looks.


Angus MacInnes knows his time as Enforcer of his vampire clan is slowly driving him mad. When his brother sent him on a date, he assumed it would be a bust from the beginning. He didn’t expect to find the one woman he’s been hoping would appear for the last few centuries.


But can a vampire Enforcer smooth his rough edges enough to convince Nora that they’re Soul Mates?


Buy Link

Popping the Man Love Cherry

Welcome guest blogger, Liz Crowe!

When I wrote Turkish Delights, the first of my 1NS trilogy of stories, I created a secondary character I really loved.  Caleb Blessing is personal assistant to ElleKensington, the heroine of Turkish Delights, her long time friend as well.  He's a California boy, tall, blond, beautiful.  And gay.  And he literally sprang from my head fully formed that way.  Matthew Morrison will play him in the movie....

I never intended to jump into the very busy, very sexy and sometimes annoyingly trite "m/m" romance world ... not just yet.  

But when I think about how I create characters, I can honestly say nearly 90% of the time, they just create themselves and I translate them to paper..um...screen.  Turkish Delights was one of those stories that did the same thing.  I swear on a stack of malt sacks I woke up one morning and had the whole damn thing in my head, in a big knot of hot cougar action, ready to be shared.  So when Elle, a just-named CEO of a major pharmaceutical company, turned to talk to her PA--there he was in all his hunky, man-love glory: Caleb.

He is based on a real human.  My best bud in college and beyond is a gay man. He owns his own biz in a different state now, but he is my touchstone on so many things. He was my spouse's fraternity brother, we shared an apartment for 2 summers while in college, he planned and implemented my wedding, and were I to EVER require a personal assistant, it would be he.  

It's Caleb who convinces Elle to get off her ass and over to her 1Night Stand date...with Emre, the young man who is ready to confess his love over a veeeery steamy massage.  "Naughty massage boy" is a favorite theme of mine....but I digress.

If you are a fan already, you know I love to interweave my characters' stories.  So it seemed fairly natural the Caleb would be in love with Emre's twin brother Tarkan.  Their story is hot, but I'll tell you now...do NOT get too attached.  Without spoiling anything since today is my Big Release Day, I'll warn you:  bring the tissues.

Blue Cruise is my first m/m love story.  I plan to write more.  It's fun to research, via some of the better m/m authors out there.  I'm sure we all have our favs, but can I say right here and now you gotta get your hands on some of Lee Brazil's stories if you haven't already.  

I hope you enjoy it!  

Cheers, 

Liz 

Blue Cruise excerpt:

And, if you are comfy, I LOVE LOVE LOVE this excerpt, but it's a hot one:

The boat trip had only been the two of them, to his pleasant surprise. In the powerful fancy speedboat, Tarkan had torn away from the shore, one hand on the wheel, the other in the air waving to the dockworkers. Caleb sat and watched the man’s body, covered only in khaki shorts and a tee shirt, and tried to will his cock down from its compromising position of extreme hard, bordering on agonizing. They cruised down the shoreline slowly. Tarkan pointed out various historical views and regaled Caleb with stories of growing up with a proud Turkish father and stubborn American mother. By the time they reached a spot about an hour down the coast and had pulled into a dock that looked to be an historical relic on its own, Caleb was drunk with lust.

Tarkan lead him up a steep grassy hill, dotted with the odd remnant of ancient temple or church or whatever, Caleb had no idea. History was not his thing. The man in front of him was though. He guided Caleb into what looked like a small, elegant restaurant on the outside but was obviously a private home. One table was set, in front of a blazing fire, for two. A few people appeared, poured wine, put some food down and disappeared. Caleb was nervous again. He wanted Tarkan so badly at that moment he didn’t think he could control himself. And he knew damn good and well Tarkan felt the same way.

“Afiyet olsun.” Tarkan gestured to the food, which was a delicious simple meal of lamb, rice and fresh vegetables. Caleb stared at him, not sitting, not moving any closer. The room hummed with chemistry, electricity, and primal need.

“Are we alone?” he ground out. “Because if we aren’t we should be, and soon.”

He was thrilled to see Tarkan finally appear unsettled. The guy was one cool customer for certain. Calmer than anyone had a right to be. He glanced around, motioned with one hand, and the lights were dimmed, leaving the room lit by a single candle and the flickering flames in the grate. He took a step toward Caleb, ran a finger down his face, palmed his cheek. Caleb’s entire body broke out in a chill and if it were physiologically possible, his cock got even harder. “We should eat.”

“I’m not hungry,” Caleb growled and reached for him, yanking his face close, covering his lips with his own, hungry beyond imagining for the Turkish treat in his arms. They melded together, nearly identical in their six-foot-two-inch bodies, arms wound around each other, tongues colliding with passion. Caleb groaned into Tarkan’s mouth as the other man’s hands slid down his arms, around to his ass, and pressed their bulging groins together, grinding into him so hard Caleb nearly came in his shorts. He yanked his face away and stared into the dark-skinned man’s eyes.

“I am one pent-up guy, I have to warn you. I...oh, shit....”

Tarkan dropped to his knees and tugged Caleb’s zipper down in one fluid motion, releasing his throbbing cock to the air. “Lovely,” he murmured, before dipping his tongue into the weeping slit, licking his way around the edge of the head and finally swallowing Caleb’s shaft all the way down, pressing his nose into the curls at the base.

“Jesus, I...oh....” Caleb bit it back, cocked his hips and held onto Tarkan’s hair, fucking his lovely mouth like an animal, making noises he didn’t know he had in him. The man moaned, clutched his ass and deep-throated him, again and again, sucking and tugging until Caleb saw stars at the edge of his vision, felt the orgasm gathering at the base of his spine. “Baby, I’m gonna blow.” His voice was a whisper in the nearly dark room. “I can’t hold back.”

In response, Tarkan pulled his mouth off with a final bit of suction, stood, and yanked his own shorts down. He possessed Caleb’s mouth, sweeping his talented tongue in and through, owning him with his lips. Their erections pressed together, the hot, hard sex between them beautiful and urgent.

Liz Crowe

www.lizcrowe.com (currently under construction)

www.brewingpassion.com

www.facebook.com/lizcroweauthor
www.twitter.com/beerwencha2

Thanks, Liz! So glad to have you spice up my blog! 

Leave a comment to win a free copy of Blue Cruise! And if you're really nice, I'll include a copy of Turkish Delights cuz Val loves it so much and wants to share!

And coming soon, Emre and Tarkan's sister, Lale's story ~ Tulip Princess

Vampire Dream Come True

By JoAnne Kenrick

Thanks, Valerie, for allowing me to take over a guest post on your blog! [Curtsies] It's a real honor to be here, oh 1NS master.

Yes. I'm being series.

Believing vamps to be a hard to sell to any editor even though the genre is still very much so loved by vampire romance fans, the paranormal callout for 1NS books was a dream come true for me. I threw caution to the wind and pitched the vampire tale that was in my heart. Needless to say I was full of excitement when it was given the go-ahead.

Using the cheesy yet classic vampire movies I love so much from the 80s as my inspiration, such as Embrace of the Vampire, I let my goth self loose on a .doc. Thus, Dracula's Kiss was born. I didn't think much about characters or emotions etc... before writing this story. It was a truly organic experience for me. Setting was the only thing I did decide before typing the opening sentence, and the blurb I used to pitch to Decadent Publishing. I wanted something dark and spooky, something fitting for my classic vampire tale. Once I had decided on some key locations in Scotland that are connected to Bram Stoker, there was nothing else to do but to write. Catherine Ela's , aka Cathela, name just came to me. And as it was set in Scotland, so I just had to have a Scottish vampire as her love interest. His name didn't come as easily, and I had a little bit of help from my friends.

I thought I would struggle to meet the paranormal call-out deadline, but in just three weeks, I had a story. A story I loved! I was a crazy three weeks of solid writing; normally, I'm not that focused. Life distracts me, as does my attention starved (yeah right, but to see him nudge for loves, you'd think so) cat, and my motherly duties and love. But I kinda lost myself in this story, and in Cathela. Infact, I did actually have a few dreams that I was Cathela. They were surreal, but gave me plenty of material to work with. You might find it odd, or not, when I say I'm a lucid dreamer. If I realize I'm dreaming, I can change the events as they happen. So dreaming, for me, is just another opportunity to make up stories.

Dreams and Scottish vampires brings me to another book...

I have other kind of dreams, though. Nightmares, actually. And usually when I'm stressing about something and feel out of control of a situation. I'm helpless in those dreams, a slave to the horror of...zombies. EEP

Slow in their chase, they still always catch up to me and just as they reach out to get me, I wake up. I've been unable to watch a zombie movie, not a serious one, because of this. They scare the bejeezus out of me.

Enter Literal-Addiction-Paranormal-Book-Club and a freebie zombie book I wrote for them.

It all started with a fun-packed author chat there in September, to celebrate the release of Sweet Irish Kiss. Upon mention of Dracula's Kiss, and my fear of zombies, somehow, we were plotting and planning a hilarious sounding vampire verses zombie romance spoof type story about a Scottish vampire wearing nothing but a kilt, battling zombies with a leaf blower. And it was decided, to help me over come my fear, that I would write this story in time for their Samhain Spectacular.

And guess what? The story is now out there...for free...and I think you agree with me when I say Literal Addiction arranged a fantastic cover! Syd Gill, the cover artist, did an amazing job! She even added in zombie parts. WOOT.

It's spoofy, be warned...

Be Stihl My Unbeating Heart

Leaf blower in tow, and his secret weapon at the ready, Archie focuses on getting back to his damsel in distress at all costs. But zombies, while slow, are tenacious, and it just might cost him an arm and a leg.

Can Archie battle his way through zombieland and save his lady love before the sun comes out to play again? Will Aquanet sufficiently hold his hair in place so he can maintain his hero good looks til the end of our tale? Will we ever discover if he’s a true Scotsman?...erm, will he sufficiently use his head for something other than zombie food?

Available to read online via Scribd, or as a PDF download. If you hit the 'mobile' selection in Scribd, and you have your reader plugged in, it will also send the story to your reader:   http://www.scribd.com/doc/70718704/Be-Stihl-My-Unbeating-Heart

Book details.

Dracula's Kiss  – “ JoAnne Kenrick writes with passion and excitement. She brings her characters to life through lavish attention to emotions and character. She weaved a tale that entranced my imagination leaving me wanting more.” – Night Owl Romance TOP PICK

Decadent Publishing | Kindle US | Kindle UK | ARe | BookStrand | SmashWords

Blurb:

Cathela's Office Halloween Ball is a complete bust. She spills out her Dracula's Bride costume, and her vamp fetish chases away her boyfriend. Only redeeming feature to the night? Necking multiple shots of Dracula's Kiss—a lush Black Cherry Vodka cocktail—and an interlude with a gorgeous man dressed Gary Oldman style.

No one comes close to satisfying Alec Murray's needs until he meets Cathela during some lame-ass party for bankers. One taste of her blood, sweet yet darkly dangerous, he knows she's perfect for him.

A night of goth bondage is planned for one. For the other, a night of sexual control is a must. A perfect fit. Alec is compelled to reveal his true nature, but can their relationship survive his dark secret?

JoAnne Kenrick, an ex-Ghost Tour Guide turned Romance Author, is a Welsh lass who has lived in various countries around the world. She now calls North Carolina her home, where she lives with her husband, two children and a lazy cat. When they aren't demanding her attention, she can most likely be found watching a vampire movie, reading or baking up a British favorite in her N.C. kitchen. That is, when she isn't writing or chatting up a storm on social networking sites. www.joannekenrick.com

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