| I Love Lacy! |
The ever-fabulous Lillian Feisty has a a smokin' hot book out today! And if you know anything about Feisty, you know 'smokin' is an understatement!
And just by chance, Feisty is currently away visiting our friend Lacy Danes. Hmmm...coincidence? Or part of a wicked plot for erotica authors to take over the world? The world would certainly be a happier place...something to think about...
Meanwhile, check out Feisty's latest luscious literary offering, I LOVE LACY.
As a private investigator in Reno, Nevada, Mason O’Malley thinks he’s seen it all. But nothing could prepare him for the kooky phone call about a stolen tiara—or the weird, irresistible woman who places it.
Lacy Kane is a fiery redhead with a love for vintage and a superhuman sense of smell. Her scent energy is grounded in the amethyst that decorates her prized tiara, so she’s desperate to get the stolen item back. When she hires a private detective, though, Lacy gets more than she bargained for in Mason, a gorgeous, dominant tough guy with a hypnotic scent. BUY IT TODAY!! |
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| A first peek at my current wip |
So-I'm writing this book right now and it's a huge challenge, but I'm loving it. It's about a very high class call girl, and it's written in first person, so this is new material for me on a lot of levels. I have to be very careful to make my heroine, Valentine, redeemable in the reader's eyes-they have to feel she's a sympathetic character. Not easy! That's one reason why I felt so strongly about writing in first person-I think the reader needs to be right inside her head and have that sense of immediacy.
But the book is flowing so easily that I'm suspicious. When I sit down to write, everything just happens, and I actually like what I'm producing. Sometimes I even love what I'm producing. My process on this book has been very different, and I think that may be helping the flow. I'm normally a hard-core pantser, but because of the delicate nature of this story, I'm sitting down and really thinking about each scene before I write it. What do I need to accomplish? How does the scene drive the story forward? What do I want to reveal about the heroine?
It seems that the longer I write, the more advance plotting I do. I'm still resistant, but I'm doing it. I still like to think of myself as a pantser. A rebel. *G*
I'm also being very careful with the hero in this story. His name is Joshua Spencer and I'm totally in love with him. He's successful, sophisticated, yet he has a tattoo and is on a hockey league, so he's definitely got a bit of bad boy in him-my favorite kind of guy. Since all scenes are from her POV, I need to make him the kind of man who says what's on his mind-he's a good communicator. But still very masculine and commanding.
The biggest challenge is that I'm including sex scenes with her clients. I have to make the scenes hot, but not as hot as the sex scenes with the hero, of course, and the main focus will be on the emotional content. So far, so good. I think I'm going to shock a few people, but I don't let that stop me-lol! I can't wait to see where these characters take me.
So-how many of you really plot out each scene before you write? How many of you do an overall outline and then go with the flow? How many sit down and write in total stream of consciousness style? And does anyone really do scene cards and charts and all of that, or is it just an urban myth?
Meanwhile, just for my blog followers, here's a peek at the opening:
I learned about something in one of my English Lit classes called ‘suspension of disbelief’. This is when a writer must make their reader suspend their disbelief in the unusual long enough to be drawn in and believe in the world the writer has created. It’s something like that with my line of work. My clients must suspend their disbelief long enough to believe the girl likes it. My particular ‘talent’, if you want to call it that-my particular perversion, really-is that they don’t have to do that with me. The truth is, I love it. This is my dirty little secret. Because this is supposed to be taboo among the professionals of my world. Call girls. Prostitutes. Hookers. It doesn’t matter what you call us. The fact is, I get paid for sex. And it’s the only kind of sex I can get off on. Labels: character development, Eden Bradley, erotic fiction, erotica, sympathetic character, writing |
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| Oscar Sunday E-book Sale! |
| For today only, Sunday, February 24th until midnight EST, in celebration of the Oscars, all of Phaze ebook and print titles will be an amazing 30% off! You can download my Phaze ebooks, BREAKING SKYE, a short BDSM novella, and HEATWAVE, a short contemporary erotic novella and my first published work, as well as the PHAZE IN VERSE poetry anthology, for a big discount-making them practically free! And there's a great selection of other titles at Phaze-all discounted today! |
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| You say vagina, I say... |
...almost anything else.
One of my books, EXOTICA: SEVEN DAYS OF KAMA SUTRA, NINE DAYS OF ARABIAN NIGHTS, was reviewed recently on a blog which states they do book reviews from a feminist viewpoint. The reviewer complimented my writing and seemed to like my book in general, but had a few issues, one of which was that I failed to use the term 'vagina' in describing female genitalia. The message I got was that I was letting down feminists, and women in general, because I did not 'reclaim' this word.
Yaknow, I write erotica, It's supposed to be hot, sexy, titillating. The word 'vagina' is none of these things to me. It's clinical. It's like saying 'he stroked her epidermis' instead of 'he stroked her skin'. Or 'he kissed her cervical vertebrae' rather than 'he kissed the back of her neck'. A perfectly acceptable word, but it is just not sexy.
This reviewer said she understood why I had refrained, for the most part, from using words like 'pussy' very often, because they are a bit vulgar (actually, I like that word but my editor at Bantam prefers I limit my use of it), but she didn't like that the term I used most often was 'her sex'. Well, there are only so many words available, frankly, unless you want to revert to purple prose, but in contemporary erotic fiction, I'm not going to call it her 'tunnel o' love' or her 'blushing rosebud' or even her 'cunny'.
And it's not my job to reclaim anything for women. I don't have a political agenda. I don't claim to be a feminist author. I have my private views, sure, and some of those views are reflected in my writing in that I believe women are sexual beings and that it's a beautiful thing, something to be celebrated. But that's as far is it goes. That's why I write smut rather than The Vagina Monologues.
The other complaint this reviewer had was that the men in my book are both of Eastern decent (one is from India, one from Jordan). She said I was perpetuating the myth about exotic, Middle Eastern men sweeping white women off their feet, taking them to adventures overseas, never to return. Uh, the book is called 'Exotica'. The two stories are set in a pair of exotic fantasy environments, one of which is the Kama Sutra suite, and the other is the Arabian Nights suite. Should the heroes have been Vikings, instead? Some Joe normal American guy? (not that there is anything wrong with Joe America and you'll see him in some of my other books. His name won't be Joe, necessarily, but you get my drift...). I write fantasy. And I happen to think men of Eastern decent are hot. That's just my thing, so I found a way to live out that personal fantasy in one of my books.
Another reviewer was upset that I didn't make my heroines women of color. You just cannot please everyone. Nor do I try to please anyone but myself (and my editor, of course-this is a business, after all, and she's the boss). If readers like it, that's icing on the cake. I write my stories. If you want to write about blond men and women of color and use the word 'vagina', you can write your own book, thank you very much.
So-what do you think? Do you think the word 'vagina' is sexy? Do you think as fiction writers we have any sort of social responsibility, or are we just here to entertain? |
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| Who Wants to Date a Superhero? |
If you could have a superhero, what sort of super powers would you want him to have? I can think of a few not fit for mixed company...lol! Super tongue? Super fingers? Super uh...organ? How about super ability to know what you're upset about without you having to say anything? Super ability to remember all anniversaries, birthdays, and the names of all your family, your friends, and your hairdresser?
But I digress...
My dear friend R.G. Alexander has a fabulous book coming out this Friday called WHO WANTS TO DATE A SUPERHERO? It's part of Ellora's Cave Amethyst Jewels of the Nile series, and it's hot, it's funny, and wonderfully written! You can buy it at Ellora's Cave-and you should! Gaia City.
A place where technology is advanced, superheroes commonplace, and the masses are addicted to Who Wants to Date a Superhero? A show that lets women compete for the chance to win a date with one of Gaia’s Guardians.
Cassie Tidwell never thought she’d be humiliating herself on live vid for dinner with a man in spandex. But the secret she’s keeping will have her jumping through hoops for a chance to have this season’s hunky bachelor, Theta Wave, all to herself.
Will her choice ensure that Graham, the man she’s lusted after for months, never wants to see her again?
When her friend gives her an amethyst anklet engraved with strange symbols, telling her it has the ability to shield her thoughts from the probing powers of Theta Wave, she’s dubious. But she needs all the luck she can get if she’s to fight for one man’s help…and another’s heart.
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| This Weekend! Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About (Writing) Sex But Were Afraid to Ask |
Join me, Lillian Feisty and Alessia Brio this weekend for a steamy and informative online workshop at Passionate Ink, RWA's erotic romance chapter! We will be talking about everything-and I mean everything! It's bound to be a wild time-don't miss it!
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About (Writing) Sex But Were Afraid to Ask
Date : Feb 9-10 2008
Presented by : Eden Bradley, Lillian Feisty, Alessia Brio
Cost : $15 (PI Members) and $20 (Non-PI Members) Be one of the first 20 PI Members to email karen.e.erickson@gmail.com to be added to the free members list.
Workshop Description:
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About (Writing) Sex But Were Afraid to Ask
An in depth and totally uninhibited discussion about any and every subject, with three authors who’ve been there, done that, and written about it!
presented by Eden Bradley, Lillian Feisty & Alessia Brio
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In this two-part workshop, we’ll cover every subject imaginable! This will be done in an open discussion format, where we will interact with our audience, introducing various topics and answering questions. In Part One, we’ll discuss the basics of writing sex, and our experience in the erotica and erotic romance market. In Part Two, we talk about edgier subjects.
BIOS :
Eden Bradley writes dark, edgy erotica. She’s published with Bantam, Berkley, Harlequin Spice, Phaze and Magic Carpet Books. Her first Bantam novel, THE DARK GARDEN, was a Romantic Times Top Pick in June 2007 and is a Reviewer’s Choice nominee, and has been praised as “the most beautifully written BDSM novel…ever…” by Love Romances & More. Erotica author Maria Isabel Pita has called Eden’s work “elegant, intelligent and sensual”. She has a number of erotic novels, novellas and short stories coming out from her various publishers in 2008 and into 2009.
Eden, the 2008 president of her local Romance Writers of America chapter, Los Angeles Romance Authors, has also published a number of articles on writing sex, and has presented her workshop, An Exercise in Sensuality, at several Romance Writer’s of America chapters. News and updates can be found on her website: www.EdenBradley.com .
You can also visit her at her blog: www.edenbradley.blogspot.com .
Lillian Feisty writes fresh erotic fiction for Ellora’s Cave and Harlequin Spice Briefs. Her first novella, Dance of the Plain Jane, was called a “stand out” story by Romantic Times and a “particular favorite” by Just Erotic Romance Reviews. Feisty, as her friends call her, writes in many genres of romantic fiction including contemporary, urban fantasy, and light paranormal. I Love Lacy and The Sting of Desire will be released in 2008.
Ms. Feisty owned an art gallery for several years, holds a degree in Creative Arts and was just a few units short of her MA when she decided to drop out of school to write smut. She currently serves as president of Passionate Ink, the special interest chapter of Romance Writers of America for erotic romance authors. She loves to ramble about the strangest things at lillianfeisty.com.
Alessia Brio: Take one part Appalachian redneck, one part insatiable sex goddess, and one part filthy-minded wordsmith. Mix well and serve with chocolate-covered cherries. There you have the one and only Alessia Brio. Alessia writes all colors and flavors of erotica, from heterosexual to ménage to same sex, and from twisted to humorous to deeply touching. (Sometimes, usually by accident, it even qualifies as romance.) Her work has earned her critical acclaim in the form of an EPPIE for Best Erotica ( fine flickering hungers) and a Romantic Times Top Pick (Coming Together: For the Cure) in addition to a plethora of glowing online reviews. Readers can find her online at alessiabrio.com
To Pay Online :
Using PayPal (http://www.paypal.com), send payment to renewals@passionateink.org with “WORKSHOP - Everything You Wanted to Know” as the subject. In the “message” section, include Your Name and Email Address.
Cost: $15 for Passionate Ink Members, $20 for non-members
To pay by check, print this page and send with a check to
Passionate Ink Workshops
c/o Karen Steele
1304 Forest Marsh Dr
Neptune Beach, FL 32266 |
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