Sara Brookes's Blog, page 14

Today, debut author Dana Lorraine is stopping by to talk about the positive and negatives about rejections. She’s got some great advice!

~*~

Hey everyone! Glad you stopped by. Thanks Sara for hosting me on your blog today and giving me a chance to introduce myself to your fans. I’m Dana Lorraine, an erotic romance author celebrating the birthday of my first published book EVER (I think that deserves all caps, don’t you?). Published by Ellora’s Cave, Dying to Love Her is a short, paranormal erotic M/F/M ménage.

When Melanie Woodson joins Empriva Fitness she expects to lose weight, not gain two sexy vampire personal trainers. With an exercise regimen that includes horizontal workouts, fat-burning orgasmic bites and lusty words of encouragement, she’s in serious danger of forgetting their relationship is based on a business agreement and not mutual attraction.

Alec Kosta and Rook Abernathy, best friends and owners of Empriva, have waited over a century for the right lifemate to come along. Now that they’ve found Melanie with her endless curves and quick wit, they’re ready to give up countless lifetimes to spend just one with her.

But time isn’t on their side—they’ve tasted her blood and now mere days is all they have to convince her their love is real or risk losing her forever.

Ellora’s Cave || Amazon

****

Seriously, don’t you wish you could lose weight that way? LOL! Me too.

It’s funny how an idea first takes shape and then becomes something else at the end. Originally, I envisioned my heroine going to a fitness center and getting caught up in a Biggest Loser competition between some kind of paranormal trainers. I let the idea sit for about a year but always came back to it…bouncing it off of friends and my critique partner, developing it more and more.

Then I found out Ellora’s Cave was looking for stories with curvy heroines. I knew I had an idea ready to go but only two months to get it done before the deadline. So I wrote and I wrote getting it in just in time. The great thing about a publisher actively looking for certain storylines is they get read before the slush pile so you don’t go months waiting for an answer.

Six weeks after submitting I got a very thoughtful rejection.

Didn’t think that’s where I was going…right?

I had really thought I had a good shot and was disappointed so much so I have to admit a few tears (okay bucketfuls) were shed. After taking a few deep breaths and reading the email at least a dozen times I realized the editor had way more positive things to say about the book than negative. That gave me the confidence to ask in my “thank you for taking the time to reject me” email (LOL!) if she would consider rereading it if I made the changes.

She responded with a resounding yes and even offered more advice. I gave myself about a month, any longer and I was afraid she’d forget about me, and then resubmitted. Suffice it to say this part of the process was even bumpier. The editor resigned before she could give me an answer, the manuscript bounced around for almost two months before someone else had the opportunity to look at it but the wait was worth it because I finally got that wonderful first yes.

So if you’re a writer striving to be published—don’t give up. Don’t be afraid to ask for a second chance. The worst thing they will say is no thanks again and sometimes a no is just what you need to hear to make your story better.

Thanks for sticking around until the end of my post. If you like heat, heart and happily-ever-afters, check out Dying to Love Her. An excerpt is available on the Ellora’s Cave website. Also in celebration I’m running a Rafflecopter contest so be sure to enter that too. My website has links to all the blogs I will be on for the next two months and there will be more chances for prizes. Connect with me on Facebook or Twitter…I love to chat!

Happy Reading!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Today’s Techie bit is author centric. Though I think most things I’ve posted about here are that way, mostly in an effort to help my fellow authors who may not be as tech or craft-savvy.

Promotion is a tricky thing for most authors. Too much? Too little? None at all? The preference is really your own, but lean too far toward the too much side and you risk annoying potential readers.

One easy thing to do is make sure you have an author page with Amazon. Why particularly Amazon? Well, they offer the service for free, so why not take advantage of it. Plus, the fact of the matter is, a large portion of sales derive from the monster that is Amazon. All the more reason to sign up.

It’s easy to get to. Just enter https://authorcentral.amazon.com in your search bar and away you go. If you don’t have an Author Account with Amazon, you’ll need to sign up for one here. Once you do, you’ll arrive at the home landing page, which looks like this:

From here you can see charts of your sales, add a feed for your blog, Twitter, add/update your bio.add events you’re attending/speaking at, etc. You can also edit any of your book blurbs here and even add review snippets. When you’re finished adding/tweeking all those things, you’ll end up with something that looks like this:

As you can see, I’ve got my Twitter feed, a blog feed for latest posts, my bio at the top and then there’s the list of my books Amazon offers. There’s even the Stay Up To Date sign up link I talked about last week for getting notified when your favorite authors have a new release.

There are certainly other retailers with offer similar services. All Romance eBooks also allows authors to have a customized profile. Theirs isn’t as self-service as Amazon’s is, but does help your page have an appealing look in their webstore.

Updating this page takes an email to their staff with the information you want added. However, if you self-publish, I believe you may be able to control this page yourself. Can anyone verify?

These are just the ones I’m aware of myself (excluding sites like Goodreads, which aren’t booksellers), if there any of you know that you’d like to share – leave a comment!

The Lab is welcome Lisa Fox back and she is in desperate need of your help!

~*~

I’m not really a proper geek girl. I’m not all that into computers, I couldn’t write code to save my life, someone else does most of the maintenance on my website for me, basic html makes my eyes cross and my mind go numb, and I’ve read a total of maybe three comic books in my life. I don’t collect figurines. I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between Star Trek Next Generation and Star Trek Voyager if they came on my TV right now. I’ve never seen a single episode of Dr. Who. I haven’t read the Sandman series. I don’t wear glasses. I don’t own any ironic T-shirts. I’ve never dressed as Princess Leia.

Wait, that’s actually not true. I have dressed as Princess Leia. Kinda. When I was eight, I had hair so long I could sit on it. My mother (under extreme duress) twisted it up for me and gave me that cinnabun hairstyle. It was very awesome.

But, I digress. I am not a very good geek girl. Mostly, what love is video games. I owned an Atari when I young and I have been a loyal PlayStation fangirl since 1998.

The thing I like most about gaming is smiting my enemies with lasers and swords and guns and metal pipes and axes and shanks and rockets. I really like smiting.

I also like saving the world. I’ve saved it from zombies, crazed dictators, evil gods, power hungry sycophants, immoral empires, serial killers, cruel immortal beings, greedy rich folk, dragons, homicidal machines, warped cults.

I’m a hero every time I press the on button on my PS3, armed to the teeth and ready to do some damage for the greater good or maybe just for my own good. It depends on the game and how I feel that day. I tend to play the goody-goody role, I find that I enjoy the direction that storyline takes more than the “evil” choices, but there are times when being good is boring. I may not be 100% geek, but I try not to be boring.

I’ve tried to be a better geek. I really have. But I fail. I like comic book movies, but not actual comic books. I prefer Wolverine to be Hugh Jackman and not a short Canadian. I know that’s blasphemy. I can’t help it. I’m not hugely fond of Felicia Day, but I do like Warren Ellis. That counts for something, right?

Any advice on how I can be a better geek? Is there any hope for me?

The great thing about our technological age right now is the information flow. Want to know breaking news as it unfolds? You got it. Want to watch a movie, but don’t own it? Thanks to a few digital movie rental places, you got it. Want to know when an author’s newest book is released? You got that too–thanks to Amazon.

It’s really easy to find too, just type in the author’s name in the search box and click on their author page (it’s usually the first or second entry in their list of books). That will take you to the author’s page (Amazon sets up one already, but an author can go it and add more things if they like — I’ll cover that next Tuesday). But see that link right above the author’s picture on the right side? The Stay Up To Date? Just click there and you’ll receive an email when Amazon loads a new book of theirs.

Some e-press publisher sites even offer this service, so make sure to surf around to some of your favorites to look into it.

Up for grabs for the entire month of November is everything you see here in the picture below. Entering your name in the draw is easy. Just comment on any post I make during the month of November. That’s it! Easy peasy. And every comment you make is an entry into the drawing – so you can have multiple chances to win.

Authors, want to get your swag in my hands? Email me for details on how.

No purchase necessary to enter. Void where prohibited. Contest open 11/1 – 11/30.

Kacey’s Stress Relievers…

As many know, I’m a Mom of three, help run the family cattle farm with my brother, am on a couple committees at my kids’ school, am an author, and all-around Jane-of-all-Trades most days. For me, quiet time is something that is very seldom (even though I’m blessed to be a stay-at-home Mom) since the phone rings daily with other cattle farmer calls, etc., and the like. So when I can nab a space in the chaos for some reading and relieving the tension of the day(s)—and it’s usually in a bubble bath—I have my go-to “stress relieving authors” who sweep me away into someone else’s lives and adventure.

Here’s just a few of the authors/characters who never let me down…

JD Robb – I mean, come on, Eve Dallas would scare anyone. She’d kick all our asses any day of the week. And Roarke’s brogue and gentleness just make me sigh deeper into the bubbles.

Jaci Burton – her Play-by-Play series is a perfect stress free zone. Hell, when Liz Darnell is around it is always a great time. And who can resist jocks? No one? Didn’t think so! *g*

Sara Brookes – Have you read the “Body Masters” series? Met Dalton? Ya, enough said right? Yes, I love Cade too, but oh-my-good-golly, Dalton just revs my engine at full throttle all the time. He’s a seductive beast that makes the end of any day worthwhile. I’ve read this series over and over and over again…

(and she’s a fantastic host too!! *g*)

I swear I didn’t pay her to say and of that, y’all! ~ Sara

Karen Robards – love her suspense stories that make me shiver, gasp and pull me into a deep, dark place that is sometimes needed. Sure I like to escape to light and sunny places, romances, but sometimes a gal just wants to get gritty in murder and mayhem. *g*

Perhaps my latest release will be the stress reliever just for you…

Sweetest Splendor

Book 2: Club Splendor (sequel to Sweetest Salvation)

A Romance on the Go Short Story (30 pgs)

Publisher: Evernight Publishing

Contemporary Erotic Romance

Content Warning: Contains Voyeurism, Anal Sex, Toys

ISBN# 9781771306119

Bridget Guthrie and Zander Hudson have worked at Club Splendor together for years, sharing smoldering glances, flirting, and building a friendship. Thanks to the club’s strict policy of no staff fraternization, they’ve resisted how much they truly want each another.

With Bridget leaving to explore her dreams, they no longer have to hide their passions. After hours, in one of the pleasure rooms at Club Splendor, they finally give in to the burning desire they’ve held at bay for too long.  She’s taken care of other people’s love lives for so long while at the club, can she find the courage to take care of her own needs and fantasies?

Excerpt:

© Kacey Hammell, 2013

Bridget gasped and inched away from him. Turning, her eyes locked with his. Her bottom came up against the table behind, her heart racing, realizing there was little room to move. She was trapped between Zander and the wooden object. Nerves skated down her spine. The hunger and need in the darkness of his eyes emboldened her, filled her with a confidence she never experienced before.

No time to think about that. Not when desperate need coursed through her. His first kiss against her skin changed things. There was no way she’d accept just friendship with him now.

Anxious, wanting to hold onto this moment with him, and share her innermost desires, she grabbed the remote from the table and hit a button. The curtains behind her opened. She watched Zander’s eyes shift upward and go wide. They returned to hers and he grinned.

Bridget hit another button and the room filled with moans and sounds of flesh slapping against flesh. She trembled hearing the couple’s rough but no-doubt-exhilarating sex behind the glass. Always hard on each other while at the same time as gentle as their love, both enjoyed vigorous and no-holds barred sex and gave no apologies.

Zander stepped toward her, and skimmed his palms across her stomach, creating heat and butterflies circling inside her. So hot, his skin warmed her.

But when he lowered his head to hers, his lips gliding against hers, all thoughts fled and she pulled him closer, need and anticipation filling her.

Empowered, she slipped her tongue inside of his mouth. He moaned and opened wider for her, allowing her to discover the delicious taste of him. Cupping his ass cheeks, she held him close as they explored, and his palms drifted over the globes of her bottom.

Her heart thrummed as he fisted the soft cotton of her skirt then tugged her even closer. She didn’t think it was possible to be so absorbed in this man. She craved crawling all over him for endless hours.

Zander pressed his forehead against hers. “Bridget,” he muttered, “I want you. So much.”

“I want you too.” She brushed her lips against his.

Lifting his hands, he made quick work of the buttons of her blouse. He pulled open the sides, and groaned. “This is what you wear to work?”

He smoothed his fingers along the valley between her breasts and skimmed over the sheer see-through material of her bra. She loved lingerie and spent as much money as possible at Victoria’s Secret. Her one indulgence, she treated to herself whenever she socked her school money away from her allotted bi-weekly checks or any extra income from working more hours at the club.

His wide and hungry eyes made her feel sexy and she smirked at him. “You don’t like it?”

“If I liked it any better I’d have a heart attack right now. Jesus, gorgeous…your tits are so hot behind that lacy stuff.”

Available at:

Evernight Publishing / Amazon.com / Amazon.ca  / Amazon UK / aRe / Bookstrand / Smashwords

  Avid Reader. Romance Author. Redhead…

Canadian-born author, Kacey Hammell is definitely a book-a-holic, who began reading romances at a young age and became easily addicted.  These days, as a multi-published erotic romance author, she enjoys adding a lot of heat, sass and emotion to the Contemporary Romances she writes.

A mom of three, Kacey has made certain each of her children know the value of the written word and the adventures they could escape on by becoming book-a-holics in their own right. She lives her own happily ever after with her perfect hero in Ontario, Canada, and is a true romantic at heart.

Connect with Kacey…

Website / Newsletter / Facebook / Facebook Author Page / Twitter / Amazon / Goodreads / Pinterest / Instagram / Triberr

Want to get your hands on the paperback of Taking Over Me (Geek Kink #1) before it releases officially in January? Here’s your chance! Head on over to Goodreads and enter to win a copy in November.

https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/69383-taking-over-me

Thanks to Sara for having me here for the release of the second book, Valia’s Villain, in my Sempire Seductions series! I’m super excited!

Valia’s Villain was a blast to write. Valia is fun, confident–she knows what she wants and goes for it. Rydin is serious, vengeful and super freaking hot. I had a really difficult time keeping them out of each other’s pants. I mean, hot sex in a story is great, but that’s all they wanted to do. I finally convinced them to have conversations in addition to sexing each other up.

I hope people have as much fun reading Valia’s Villain as I had writing it.

Title: Valia’s Villain

Series: Sempire Seductions, Book 2

Author: Jocelyn Dex

Publisher: Ellora’s Cave

Cover Artist: Syneca Featherstone

Genre: Erotic Paranormal Romance

Length: 36,000 words

ISBN: 9781419948275

When Valia approaches the Ferox demon, hoping for scorching sex and a feed, she doesn’t expect to be handcuffed, transported to the demon realm, accused of dirty deeds she has no memory of committing and held captive for three days. Even though she believes her captor to be crazy, she feels a connection to him she’s felt with no one else.

When Rydin senses the Sempire who locked him up, fed on him and used him as a sex slave many years ago, he knows his wait for revenge is finally over. Burning with the need to punish her, he imprisons her in the demon realm, where she is at his mercy, but as much as he tries to ignore it, a connection sparks between them every time they touch.

Valia’s Villain Quickie Excerpt

Valia couldn’t remember ever wanting another being so desperately. Her body hummed as his tongue worked her into a frenzy. Bossy son of a bitch, he was, but she expected no less from a Ferox.

She shuddered and moaned as he rolled his tongue around her clit, the pressure building in her lower abdomen. With her free hand, she wrapped her thumb around one of his horns as her fingers dug into his scalp, urging him to send her over the edge.

He growled and bit the inside of her thigh.

“Stop,” Rydin commanded.

“Stop what?” Valia asked.

“Don’t touch my horns.”

“But they’re so sexy.” She gave him her best pouty face.

He blinked at her, a look of surprise crossing his face, quickly replaced with a scowl. “Are you teasing me, female?”

“I told ya, my name is Valia, male. And no, not teasing. Your horns are super sexy and I wanna touch them.”

He looked at her for another long moment as if searching for something. He dipped his head and bit the inside of her other thigh. God, he was going to drive her crazy. He looked back at her and said, “They are sensitive and I am already too stimulated. I want to fuck you. I’m going to fuck you. If you do as I say, I may give you permission to touch them later.”

Oh wow. She hadn’t known his horns were an erogenous zone. Now she really wanted to touch them. His tongue lapped at her clit furiously. She avoided his horns but couldn’t stop herself from grabbing a fistful of his hair. Her hips ground against his tongue, his lips. Intense pleasure knotted deep inside. Little sparks began erupting inside her but just as she was about to fall over the edge, he stopped.

She groaned and still with a fistful of his hair, tried to force him to continue.

His eyes dark and his lips glistening with her pleasure, he said, “You were about to come. I did not give you permission.”

She choked out her words. “If you don’t want me to come, you shouldn’t lick me like that.”

His lips quirked into a cocky smile. “My tongue pleases you?”

“It’d please me if you’d put it to better use than asking me stupid questions,” she grouched.

Author Bio

Jocelyn was born in Iowa and currently resides in hot-as-hell Texas. She shares her home with her very own 6’4″ alpha male and varying numbers of spoiled cats and dogs. Teaching one of her dogs to file his nails is one of her all-time favorite accomplishments.

She thinks dragonflies are awesome, spiders are creepy and it’s rumored that she sleeps with a machete by her bed in case zombies attack in the middle of the night. Jocelyn loves to paint, loves to read, and loves to write sizzling erotic romance about yummy demons that would make your momma blush.

Here’s where you can find Jocelyn on the web

Website * Facebook * Twitter * Blog  * Goodreads

Here’s where you can buy Valia’s Villain

Ellora’s Cave

Giveaway – Runs from 10/23 to 10/31:

1 Ebook Copy of Araya’s Addiction, Book 1 of the Sempire Seductions Series

1 Swag Pack – Various Stuff

1 $15 Bitch Face Cosmetics Gift Card

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I’m going to be starting a new feature as a trial run. Every time I go to a convention, I always grab swag if it catches my eye. Knowing readers can’t always get to conventions, I thought I’d offer some up for you. So, for the month of November, any time you comment on one of my posts – even if it’s a giveaway already – you’ll earn an entry in my swag giveaway. That’s right, you can earn multiple entries to have a better shot at winning the pack for that month.

Want to see what’s up for grabs for November? (Don’t worry, I’ll repost this again on the 1st).

Authors, want to get your swag in my hands? Email me for details on how.

It’s been sometime since I last did one of these. I’ve been uberbusy lately because of the desk job, writing projects and prep for a convention. Things got changed up at the desk job (Yey!) so life has certainly gotten calmer (and WAY less stressful, not to mention less time consuming).

I did take a week off writing after I turned in Break Me In (Geek Kink #3) and played the crap out of Dishonored. Since I bought it for myself last Christmas, it seemed the time to finally hunker down and give it some attention. Now my daughter is trying to get her way through it after watching me. There’s been a lot of grrrrs coming from the Ye Olde game room. And “Mom! How do I [insert appropriate action here].”

Convention-wise, I’m heading off this week to attend Romanticon in Canton, Ohio. I’m going to swing by and pick up the lovely Lisa Fox on my way and we’re going to break into a package of Tim Tams I’ve been hoarding since April. On Thursday, the Java Karma gang has a basket up for grabs during karaoke. There’s some awesome swag in there, not to mention two bags of custom blended coffee. On Friday, I’ll be joining some of my fellow On The Hunt authors for the Bounty-ful Fun panel. We’ve got games, prizes and we’ll, of course, be talking about what makes bounty hunters sexy! Then, on Sunday, during the book signing, I’ll have print copies of Taking Over Me hot off the press. This will be the first time I’ve even seen the paperback! The book doesn’t actually release until January, so, if you’re in town, it’s a great place to get it now.

Also on the convention front, I’ve registered to attend the Romantic Times Convention in New Orleans in May 2014. I’m going low key for the convention and have decided not to sign at the book fair this year. But I will certainly be around, looks like a great signing and some awesome workshops on tap. This is also going to be a mini-vacation for myself and a few author friends as we’re meeting up the week before the convention to celebrate our awesomeness and get some major decompression time in. It’s a girls weekend of epicness!

On the writing front, I finished my fast draft of Glad You Came (Geek Kink #4). That just simply means I brain dumped everything for the story out as fast as I could. Since I’ve had the story in my head for a while now, it’s was quite the dump (nearly 30K words worth!). I’ll let it sit for a few weeks to cook while I focus on something else. Even with the story in my head, the characters offered up a few surprises. Love this.

I’m working on something right now that doesn’t have a title and I’m not even 100% clear on the story yet. It’s just flowing out and I’m letting everyone do as they will as I find out what’s going on. This is the beauty (and frustration) of pantsing.

Edits for Break Me In and the 3rd book of the Body Masters series are pending. Because of some shuffling with schedules, my editor and I decided to get Break Me In finished first and then focus on the next Body Masters book (yes, it has a title, I just haven’t announced it yet ). Doing some calculating, by the time the Body Masters book finishes edits, I’ll be just about ready to turn in Glad You Came.

I will be participating in NaNoWriMo again this year. If you’re over there and want a buddy, I’m flogtheauthor. I haven’t decided on what I’m going to work on yet. It really depends on when those edits I was just talking about hit my inbox.