As one of the heroes of Touch of a Ghost, and the ghost in question, Benji is probably the favourite of my published characters to date.
I am interviewing him over at Gale Stanley's blog today, so please check it out if you have a minute.
Interview with Benji Richards
The interview takes place part way through Touch of a Ghost, and does contain a few spoilers, but I promise that there are still some twists to the tale if you choose to check out the book later.
It is my first character interview, so I hope you enjoy it.
Wednesday, 30 March 2011
Silver Flash - Out of this World - Chapter 3
Out of this World by L.M. Brown
A male/male romance
The next morning Rick found himself wandering around the ship once more. It didn’t seem that large, but was surprisingly difficult to navigate. One grey corridor looked pretty much like the other and there was no one around to tell him where to go. He wondered how many people were on board the vessel, or whether he had in fact been deserted by the crew, doomed to live out the rest of his days on a ship that could take him home, if only he knew how.
Of course he hadn’t been deserted, which he found out when he finally made his way back to the room he had first arrived in.
“You’re awake,” Hottie said as he entered the room. “Here, let me get you a drink.”
Rick lingered near the doorway, watching Slim as he sat at one of the consoles. He was studying one of the screens intently, stopping every now and then to mark something with a device that appeared to work like a highlighter, but didn’t mark the monitor when the screen changed.
“Here.” Rick turned back to Hottie and the coffee mug he held out to him.
“What is it?” He wondered if he was about to be drugged or poisoned.
“I believe you humans call it coffee,” Hottie replied with a smirk.
Rick took the mug and raised it to his lips. Strong with just the right amount of sugar. How long had his stalker been watching him?
“So what are you then?” he asked curiously.
“I guess you could call me an acquisitions man.”
“I meant what species.”
“I know what you meant. It’s considered rude to ask a person’s species.”
Rick’s face heated up at the softly spoken rebuke. Suddenly he couldn’t meet his kidnapper’s eyes and he shifted his gaze elsewhere, finally focusing on the gold earring hanging from Hottie’s left ear. It appeared to be an hourglass, the top bulb almost full as the minute grains, so small Rick couldn’t even see them falling, dropped down.
Hottie cleared his throat. “Sorry, you weren’t to know. Now, I believe you wanted some answers.”
Rick nodded though most of the important questions had flown from his head entirely. One remained and he blurted it out. “What’s your name?”
“Xenon.” Xenon smiled. “I’m Captain of what will be your home for the next month.”
“A month!” Rick shook his head and placed down the mug before he was tempted to throw it at the man. “I have to be at work on Monday morning. You have to take me home.”
“I have to take you to my prince. He awaits you most eagerly.”
“What?”
Suddenly Slim, who was apparently listening to the conversation, interrupted. “You should be careful what you tell him. You can’t trust humans.”
Xenon rolled his eyes. “You’ll soon realise that Nikias is rather paranoid.”
“Paranoia has kept me alive many a time.”
“Nevertheless, Rick needs to know who and what he is, or he’ll spend the next month causing disruption and making our lives miserable with his demands to be returned to Earth.”
“Just tell him how great the planet we’re going to is compared to the cesspit he’s from and that should shut him up.”
Rick scowled at the insult to Earth, but couldn’t think of a decent comeback. He guessed it wasn’t important what they thought of Earth, not so long as they returned him there.
“Why me?” Rick asked. “Of all the people on Earth, why kidnap me?”
“You’re our guest, not our prisoner.”
“I feel like a prisoner and you’re avoiding the question.”
Xenon smiled and nodded. “You’re a prophet, a very rare sort of human, and my prince needs your help. You’ll want for nothing during your stay and afterwards, if you still want it, I’ll take you home.”
“I’ve heard of prophets and I think you’ve got the wrong man. I can’t even predict the weather.”
“You could see me even when I was shielded from the sight of humans. No one on Earth could see me while I was there, except for you. That makes you a prophet.”
Rick doubted very much that this was the case, but it seemed Xenon had made up his mind. Perhaps they could reach a compromise.
“How about you return me to Earth, I check in with my family, make some arrangements for my home and job, and then we go to see this prince of yours.”
“Don’t trust him,” Nikias hissed. “He’s trying to trick you.”
Xenon ignored the warning, but shook his head at Rick. “We’re on a rather tight timescale. It’s why I brought you up here without warning. If there’d been time for planning I’d have waited.”
“You said it’ll take a month to get there. What difference does one day make?”
“The difference between arriving in time and arriving too late.”
“Too late for what?”
Rick couldn’t tell if Xenon intended to respond to his question or not. Suddenly a female voice echoed through the room.
“Captain, we’ve got company.”
Xenon strode quickly to the console and hit one of the many buttons. “Friend or foe?”
“Not in range yet.”
“Okay. Send out the standard greeting and report immediately you receive a response.”
“Yes Captain.”
“What do you mean by foe?” Rick asked. “We’re not going to be attacked are we?”
“I bloody well hope not. We’re down to four crew members as it is. If it’s an enemy we’ll end up slaves.”
Nikias was hitting buttons on the console at a rapid pace. Xenon joined him at the neighbouring seat and they began to talk in their strange language.
Rick remained in his place, watching the screen, and wondering what he’d do if they were captured.
Would the enemy agree to take him home? Somehow he doubted it.
To be continued
Julie Hayes (m/m)
http://julielynnhayes.
http://julielynnhayes.
Victoria Blisse (m/f)
http://www.victoriablisse.co.
http://www.victoriablisse.co.
Sui Lynn (m/m)
http://suidlynn.blogspot.com/
http://suidlynn.blogspot.com/
Pender Mackie (m/m)
http://pendermackie.blogspot.
http://pendermackie.blogspot.
Ryssa Edwards (m/m)
Monday, 28 March 2011
Interviewed by Raine Delight
I have recently been interviewed by Raine Delight and my answers to her questions are over at her blog for you to check out.
Link
I do hope you will stop by and say hello.
Link
I do hope you will stop by and say hello.
Friday, 25 March 2011
Guest Blogger - Raine Delight
Please welcome today's Guest Blogger, Raine Delight, who is answering interview questions and letting us know about her new book Fantasies Unbound.
LMB: You have a lot of different books in the works. How do you manage your time to work on them all and how do you keep track of the various projects?
Raine Answers: I try to work on one thing at a time or I start mixing up things. I once had a character in book named for a character in another manuscript. Needless to say, now I work on one thing at a time. *grins* I normally switch manuscripts if I get stuck one.
I have various files and notes all over my computer desk and flash drive.
LMB: What do you find easiest and most challenging about writing a series as opposed to a stand alone novel?
Raine answers: I love the aspect of creating something that expands with each book. The downside? Trying to keep it fresh and unique.
LMB: Is there any genre of book you would like to write but have not had the opportunity to do so yet?
Raine answers: I am hoping to work on an mm story that has been teasing my muse. Hunky cowboys and forbidden love. *grins* Just have to wait till I am done with my committed projects first. :-)
LMB: What do you look for in a good erotic romance when reading? And what do you try to deliver to your readers when writing them?
Raine answers: A good engaging story with intriguing characters. I love imperfect characters as I feel they have more depth than so called perfect ones.
I hope readers get a sense that love can happen to anyone, young and old, paranormal and non-paranormal.
LMB: Who do you think has been your biggest inspiration in your writing career?
Raine answers: I think JK Rowling is my biggest inspiration. She started with notes and created one of the biggest selling series in the world. I so want to be her when I grow up. :-)
LMB: As a huge J K Rowling fan myself, she is also one of my inspirations.
Thanks for answering my questions and for blogging me with me. Now for the teaser for your book.
Fantasies Unbound
Raine Delight
An Easter Egg Story
Paranormal/Fantasy Sensual Romance
Released March 3rd, 2011
Shadowfire Press
Author's Note: This was a previously released book titled Fairy Kisses and Magical Dreams and has been re-edited/expanded for Shadowfire Press.
Can destiny lead a Fae Prince to the one woman who can complete him mind, body and soul?
Prince Aryan has looked all over the fairy court for his destined mate. Time is running out before his mother, the queen of the Fae folk, will be forced to arrange a suitable marriage for him. Finally hearing the call of his mate, he is stunned to find her in the human world. Can Aryan find a way to make Skye his for all time even as he breaks the law for loving a human?
Skye Andrews has had it with bad dates and unsuitable men. As a last resort, she turns to her aunt who brews a love potion for her to find her destined mate. What she finds is that magic can happen….even with a little help of a love potion and a well meaning but meddling fairy queen. Can Skye find a way to live happily ever after with the one man who is the other half of her soul?
Excerpt:
Skye sat with her hands fisted in her shirttails so she wouldn’t throttle her well-meaning yet clueless Aunt Mary. The smoking cauldron on the stove erupted into another hiss, and the smell was making her stomach curdle.
Aunt Mary muttered to herself as she gathered the necessary ingredients for the love spell from various places in the ancient farmhouse.
Skye tried not to cringe when her aunt walked too close to a knife sitting on the edge of the table. Clearing her throat, Skye mustered enough courage to ask, “Is this thing supposed to be turning black and smelling like rotten eggs?”
”Oh my, yes dearie.” Aunt Mary said as she bustled around the kitchen.
Skye blew out a deep breath and tried to keep calm as she watched her aunt stir something that looked suspiciously like toad legs in the cauldron. Yuck. I swear, some days it’s almost too much to bear, with Mary’s new found interest in new age-isms and spells that do everything but what they’re supposed to. Skye looked at the clock and sighed, knowing she wasn’t going to get on the road back to Dayton any sooner than when her aunt deemed it worthy.
Skye tried not to sound dejected but after her disastrous Valentine date where her date just talked and talked about his life and career. She felt lost on the planes of life. With each day going by, it was almost too much to bear as she watched friends and family fall in love with their true loves. This was the extreme to her thinking but her aunt was determined to get the sparkle back in her eyes, or so she said the first night she was here. It was enough to make Skye cringe in horror but she couldn’t say anything mean to the one person who loved her more than anything. Flipping her hair off her face, she breathed a sigh of relief as she watched her aunt finish whatever she was doing to the brew until Mary turned around with a bottle of the foul smelling stuff.
"Here you go dear. All finished and ready to be imbibed by you! All you need to do is say three times: “I wish for my true love to find me” and then within 7 days, according to the spell book I got from a used book store, your true love will find you and steal your heart away.” Aunt Mary said as she gazed fondly at Skye, who was trying to look happy but failing to hide the sadness in her eyes.
Skye took the bottle and peered at it grimacing. It was blackish-blue in color, with something that looked like lightening bugs shining in it, winking here and there. For a moment it was like watching a kaleidoscope of colors, it was enough to make her eyes become cross eyed. Uncorking the bottle, Skye tried to shield her expression from Mary but a shudder ran thru her as she again thought of the men who got away or chose someone else and firmed her resolve to find a love of her own. A pleasant licorice scent wafted from the brew and though Skye was skeptical, she had to admit it smelled better than it looked. Muttering, “Lets hope it tastes as pleasant as it smells or I am going to throw up chunks,” Skye leaned back and gulped the liquid. As she finished the last drop, she put down the bottle and recited the words her aunt told her to say:
Skye turned to the window and prayed this drink didn’t make her sick when she caught a glimpse of a face looking at her. It was enough to cause her to gasp quietly and take a step back. Those moss green eyes seemed to call to her, longing for something and it was enough for Skye to wonder if she was loosing her mind. She looked away thinking it was a figment of her imagination but the face still stared at her; those chiseled cheeks, full, round lips that made her long to feel them over her own and those cheekbones would give a model envy. Skye felt her body sit up and take notice and her panties got moist with her racing desire. Soon the face faded, though it felt like time stopped and only Skye could see what was there. Shaking her head, she said, “It was nothing. Just a figment of your imagination or a trick with the light; he isn’t real at all.” But, why does my heart and mind tell me otherwise? Is he “The One” I been searching for? Skye wondered as she got ready to leave for home.
Buy Link
Bio
Raine Delight is a pseudonym of a self professed book lover and after one too many TSTL characters, decided to see if she could write something a little better. Well many drafts later, Devon Falls series came to together. Check out my book pages to see what is going on with me. My muse is a male nut who likes to leave me to go sip mai tais on the beach and leave me foundering for words; though eventually he takes pity on me and gets my words flowing and characters start settling down.
Personal notes: I live with my own boytoy and two kids. I love Johnny Depp movies and enjoy hiking, reading and watching movies with my family.
Links:
Website
Raine’s Book Nook Blog
Twitter
Author/Reader Loop
Email me: rainedelight@yahoo.com
Facebook
LMB: You have a lot of different books in the works. How do you manage your time to work on them all and how do you keep track of the various projects?
Raine Answers: I try to work on one thing at a time or I start mixing up things. I once had a character in book named for a character in another manuscript. Needless to say, now I work on one thing at a time. *grins* I normally switch manuscripts if I get stuck one.
I have various files and notes all over my computer desk and flash drive.
LMB: What do you find easiest and most challenging about writing a series as opposed to a stand alone novel?
Raine answers: I love the aspect of creating something that expands with each book. The downside? Trying to keep it fresh and unique.
LMB: Is there any genre of book you would like to write but have not had the opportunity to do so yet?
Raine answers: I am hoping to work on an mm story that has been teasing my muse. Hunky cowboys and forbidden love. *grins* Just have to wait till I am done with my committed projects first. :-)
LMB: What do you look for in a good erotic romance when reading? And what do you try to deliver to your readers when writing them?
Raine answers: A good engaging story with intriguing characters. I love imperfect characters as I feel they have more depth than so called perfect ones.
I hope readers get a sense that love can happen to anyone, young and old, paranormal and non-paranormal.
LMB: Who do you think has been your biggest inspiration in your writing career?
Raine answers: I think JK Rowling is my biggest inspiration. She started with notes and created one of the biggest selling series in the world. I so want to be her when I grow up. :-)
LMB: As a huge J K Rowling fan myself, she is also one of my inspirations.
Thanks for answering my questions and for blogging me with me. Now for the teaser for your book.
Fantasies Unbound
Raine Delight
An Easter Egg Story
Paranormal/Fantasy Sensual Romance
Released March 3rd, 2011
Shadowfire Press
Author's Note: This was a previously released book titled Fairy Kisses and Magical Dreams and has been re-edited/expanded for Shadowfire Press.
Can destiny lead a Fae Prince to the one woman who can complete him mind, body and soul?
Prince Aryan has looked all over the fairy court for his destined mate. Time is running out before his mother, the queen of the Fae folk, will be forced to arrange a suitable marriage for him. Finally hearing the call of his mate, he is stunned to find her in the human world. Can Aryan find a way to make Skye his for all time even as he breaks the law for loving a human?
Skye Andrews has had it with bad dates and unsuitable men. As a last resort, she turns to her aunt who brews a love potion for her to find her destined mate. What she finds is that magic can happen….even with a little help of a love potion and a well meaning but meddling fairy queen. Can Skye find a way to live happily ever after with the one man who is the other half of her soul?
Excerpt:
Skye sat with her hands fisted in her shirttails so she wouldn’t throttle her well-meaning yet clueless Aunt Mary. The smoking cauldron on the stove erupted into another hiss, and the smell was making her stomach curdle.
Aunt Mary muttered to herself as she gathered the necessary ingredients for the love spell from various places in the ancient farmhouse.
Skye tried not to cringe when her aunt walked too close to a knife sitting on the edge of the table. Clearing her throat, Skye mustered enough courage to ask, “Is this thing supposed to be turning black and smelling like rotten eggs?”
”Oh my, yes dearie.” Aunt Mary said as she bustled around the kitchen.
Skye blew out a deep breath and tried to keep calm as she watched her aunt stir something that looked suspiciously like toad legs in the cauldron. Yuck. I swear, some days it’s almost too much to bear, with Mary’s new found interest in new age-isms and spells that do everything but what they’re supposed to. Skye looked at the clock and sighed, knowing she wasn’t going to get on the road back to Dayton any sooner than when her aunt deemed it worthy.
Skye tried not to sound dejected but after her disastrous Valentine date where her date just talked and talked about his life and career. She felt lost on the planes of life. With each day going by, it was almost too much to bear as she watched friends and family fall in love with their true loves. This was the extreme to her thinking but her aunt was determined to get the sparkle back in her eyes, or so she said the first night she was here. It was enough to make Skye cringe in horror but she couldn’t say anything mean to the one person who loved her more than anything. Flipping her hair off her face, she breathed a sigh of relief as she watched her aunt finish whatever she was doing to the brew until Mary turned around with a bottle of the foul smelling stuff.
"Here you go dear. All finished and ready to be imbibed by you! All you need to do is say three times: “I wish for my true love to find me” and then within 7 days, according to the spell book I got from a used book store, your true love will find you and steal your heart away.” Aunt Mary said as she gazed fondly at Skye, who was trying to look happy but failing to hide the sadness in her eyes.
Skye took the bottle and peered at it grimacing. It was blackish-blue in color, with something that looked like lightening bugs shining in it, winking here and there. For a moment it was like watching a kaleidoscope of colors, it was enough to make her eyes become cross eyed. Uncorking the bottle, Skye tried to shield her expression from Mary but a shudder ran thru her as she again thought of the men who got away or chose someone else and firmed her resolve to find a love of her own. A pleasant licorice scent wafted from the brew and though Skye was skeptical, she had to admit it smelled better than it looked. Muttering, “Lets hope it tastes as pleasant as it smells or I am going to throw up chunks,” Skye leaned back and gulped the liquid. As she finished the last drop, she put down the bottle and recited the words her aunt told her to say:
“I wish for my true love.”
“I wish for my true love.”
“I wish for my true love.”
“I wish for my true love.”
“I wish for my true love.”
Skye turned to the window and prayed this drink didn’t make her sick when she caught a glimpse of a face looking at her. It was enough to cause her to gasp quietly and take a step back. Those moss green eyes seemed to call to her, longing for something and it was enough for Skye to wonder if she was loosing her mind. She looked away thinking it was a figment of her imagination but the face still stared at her; those chiseled cheeks, full, round lips that made her long to feel them over her own and those cheekbones would give a model envy. Skye felt her body sit up and take notice and her panties got moist with her racing desire. Soon the face faded, though it felt like time stopped and only Skye could see what was there. Shaking her head, she said, “It was nothing. Just a figment of your imagination or a trick with the light; he isn’t real at all.” But, why does my heart and mind tell me otherwise? Is he “The One” I been searching for? Skye wondered as she got ready to leave for home.
Buy Link
Bio
Raine Delight is a pseudonym of a self professed book lover and after one too many TSTL characters, decided to see if she could write something a little better. Well many drafts later, Devon Falls series came to together. Check out my book pages to see what is going on with me. My muse is a male nut who likes to leave me to go sip mai tais on the beach and leave me foundering for words; though eventually he takes pity on me and gets my words flowing and characters start settling down.
Personal notes: I live with my own boytoy and two kids. I love Johnny Depp movies and enjoy hiking, reading and watching movies with my family.
Links:
Website
Raine’s Book Nook Blog
Author/Reader Loop
Email me: rainedelight@yahoo.com
Wednesday, 23 March 2011
Silver Flash - Out of this World - Chapter 2
Out of this World by L.M. Brown
A male/male romance
“Take a couple of deep breaths.” The stranger released his grip on his hand and Rick immediately backed away. “It’s always disconcerting the first time.”
Rick shook his head. “Where the fuck am I? How did I get here? Who the hell are you?”
“Are you sure he’s the one?” a voice questioned from behind him. “He seems a bit thick as they say down there. Even a child can see we’re in orbit around Earth.”
Rick looked out the large viewing window and felt his stomach flip over.
“He could see me when out of phase,” his abductor replied. “Only prophets can do that.”
Rick heard the second man’s reply but didn’t understand a word. It seemed that these men –aliens – had their own language, and it blocked the continuing conversation from him. Rick turned to see his kidnapper shaking his head and talking rapidly. He caught the word human but everything else was nonsense.
Why had he been abducted from his life and what did they mean by ‘prophet’?
Rick listened to the two of them talking – arguing – and could tell from the gestures and frequent glances in his direction that he was the topic of conversation. He got the distinct impression that alien number two who he mentally named Slim wasn’t too happy at his presence on board the space craft. Alien number one – Hottie – didn’t seem particularly pleased either, but his jaw was set and he didn’t seem to be backing down.
Rick guessed if he wanted to get back down to Earth then siding with Slim was probably his best course of action. Then again, going back would mean he never got to see Hottie again. Bloody hell, what was he thinking? He couldn’t just take off gallivanting across the galaxy.
Suddenly the arguing stopped and Hottie turned to him. “We have a lot to talk about, but it’ll have to wait until we’re underway. Why don’t you go and explore the craft?”
“Underway?” Rick echoed. “I’m not going anywhere with you unless it’s right back to Earth.”
“You’ll return one day I’m sure, but not yet.”
“You have to return me right now. My friends and family will be wondering where I am.”
“We’ll ensure they believe something suitable to explain your absence. A new job opportunity abroad perhaps.”
“And my real job? I’ll lose it if I’m not there on Monday morning.”
“You hate that job.”
“That’s not the point. It paid the bills on my flat. I’ll lose my home!”
“You’ll have a new home when we reach our destination, one that’s far more luxurious than your flat.”
“What do you know about my flat?”
“This’ll have to wait until later,” Slim interrupted. “If we don’t leave now we’ll miss the rendezvous.”
Slim approached him and grabbed his arm roughly, clamping a metal band round this wrist.
“It’ll allow you to open the doors around the craft,” Slim explained, holding up his own wrist to show he wore one too. “Just wave it across the panel and if you have access to that area it’ll open.”
“You don’t have full access for your own safety,” Hottie added. “We wouldn’t want you getting hurt or killed.”
“Killed?” Rick squeaked.
“You’re our guest,” Hottie replied.
“Guests can leave when they want to,” Rick pointed out testily. “They aren’t abducted from their lives like this.”
“I know this is a shock for you, one that I suspect hasn’t even sunk in yet, but it’s for the best. We’ll talk later.”
Rick wanted to argue. He wanted to demand to be taken back to Earth, but his earlier panic-induced courage had fled and he retreated once again to the shy, mild-mannered man he normally was.
“Go explore,” Hottie advised, pointing him towards the door.
Rick was steered swiftly from the room by Slim, who deposited him in the corridor before returning to the room, closing the door behind him. Rick looked at the panel by the door and waved his wristband in front of it. The panel glowed red for a moment, but the door remained closed. He resisted the temptation to kick it and instead reached into his pocket for his phone. Unsurprisingly the signal was non-existent.
He was going to disappear from his life and no one would be any the wiser. Surely someone back home would be missing him soon? Maggie would be calling to find out what happened on his date. His parents would be expecting him for Sunday dinner. He’d be missed at work on Monday morning.
He wondered what his date had thought at seeing him vanish from right under his nose. Surely there would be an investigation of some sort?
Hottie and Slim didn’t seem too concerned at what had happened, so perhaps they had it covered. He’d have to ask later, if he remembered it amongst the hundred other questions he wanted answers to.
He didn’t go far when exploring, only so far as the next room with a view of the Earth. If he wasn’t going to see his home again for a long time he intended to at least watch it disappear into the distance for as long as he could.
It took longer for the Earth to vanish from his sight than he thought it would. There was no hyper-space or warp speed, just a slow receding of the blue and green planet until it disappeared entirely.
Rick yawned and stretched. He was stiff from sitting in the same position for so long. A soft footfall behind him made him jump.
“It’s time we talked,” Hottie said.
Rick looked at his watch. “It’s 4am and I’m bloody tired. If you really aren’t going to take me home, then just show me where I can sleep and in the morning I want answers.”
To be continued
Lindsay Klug (m/f)
Pia Valeno (m/m)
Rj Scott (m/m)
Victoria Blisse (m/f)
Linda S (Lily Sawyer) (m/m)
Julie Hayes (m/m)
Pender Mackie (m/m)
Sui Lynn (m/m)
Ryssa Edwards (m/m)
Friday, 18 March 2011
Guest Blogger - Lynn Crain
Please welcome my latest guest blogger, Lynn Crain.
Thanks for blogging with me, Lynn.
LM
--
Creating The Perfect Series
Once I was published, I had a ‘what now’ moment. In that moment of OMG, I wondered where do I go from this very spot and how do I get there. So now, I’m contemplating my next work and decide I want something where I can take the them beyond book one. I had always loved series when I read science fiction and fantasy. I had loved how Janet Dailey tied all her romance novels together in the eighties.
So, just what was I going to do?
I sat down and knew I wanted to write something specific to Christmas. I love Christmas. Here in the desert, we have been blessed only a few times with snow which had me jazzed to no end. Now it doesn’t stay long but it is certainly an inspiration when it happens. But the months before Christmas were pretty boring, so I attempted to bring Christmas a little closer by coming up with a plot which involved a place with a lot of snow.
And since I wrote romance, I had to make it sexy and cool and wonderful. So, I sat down and thought hard. Just how was I going to get this going? And how was I going to get Santa involved? Then moving on, I thought what does Santa do? Why bring presents of course! Then going a step further, now why would Santa want to bring home a girl? Then suddenly, it all came together like a puzzle in my head.
The first book would be about a sad elf who was lonely and the present Santa brings home for him. And it had to have a great back story I could draw from and the Locklin family of elves were born. So I’d just have to wait for the book to come out to see what would happen.
Well, I got some of the coolest reviews...the best being... ‘This was definitely one of the sweetest erotic romances I've read.’ This one actually blew me away as I had thought I was pushing some boundaries here. Nope, turns out it was just good writing and a timely subject.
And the year I was planning the rest of this series was one of those rare times. I could see the snowflakes falling down from my office window and I wondered just what would be next in this wonderful world I had created. Well, there were six siblings, a cousin and some other friends, both elf and humans, who would add to the overall mix.
Originally, I had been set to just do a book at Christmas, then one summer an idea came to me that I just couldn’t get rid of...and that was for the little elf called Eggther. That was last year and I thought what better way than to follow it up with another summer book. And I did.
The next summer, Giselle’s Elf, the sixth book in the series came out. This is the culmination of all those thoughts and classes and experience I have ever had as a writer. That December, book seven, called An Elf’s Love came out and this book along with the last one took a completely different turn than I could have ever imagined.
And of course, that will spawn many, many more books in the wonderful world I created.
Lynn
Lynn Crain
Experience the Magic
www.lynncrain.com
Coming up soon from Lynn Crain
Merrick and Jenna, book 2 in the Captive Illusions series.
You can read an extract here.
You can find Lynn at the following locations.
www.lynncrain.com
www.myspace.com/lynncrain
www.lynncrain.blogspot.com
www.themanyshades.blogspot.com ( I blog here on Wednesdays.)
http://lynncrain.livejournal.com/
www.myspace.com/lynncrain
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/XtraOrdinaryRomance/
www.twitter.com/oddlynn3
www.facebook.com/oddlynn3
http://www.youtube.com/lynncrain
Thanks for blogging with me, Lynn.
LM
--
Creating The Perfect Series
Once I was published, I had a ‘what now’ moment. In that moment of OMG, I wondered where do I go from this very spot and how do I get there. So now, I’m contemplating my next work and decide I want something where I can take the them beyond book one. I had always loved series when I read science fiction and fantasy. I had loved how Janet Dailey tied all her romance novels together in the eighties.
So, just what was I going to do?
I sat down and knew I wanted to write something specific to Christmas. I love Christmas. Here in the desert, we have been blessed only a few times with snow which had me jazzed to no end. Now it doesn’t stay long but it is certainly an inspiration when it happens. But the months before Christmas were pretty boring, so I attempted to bring Christmas a little closer by coming up with a plot which involved a place with a lot of snow.
And since I wrote romance, I had to make it sexy and cool and wonderful. So, I sat down and thought hard. Just how was I going to get this going? And how was I going to get Santa involved? Then moving on, I thought what does Santa do? Why bring presents of course! Then going a step further, now why would Santa want to bring home a girl? Then suddenly, it all came together like a puzzle in my head.
The first book would be about a sad elf who was lonely and the present Santa brings home for him. And it had to have a great back story I could draw from and the Locklin family of elves were born. So I’d just have to wait for the book to come out to see what would happen.
Well, I got some of the coolest reviews...the best being... ‘This was definitely one of the sweetest erotic romances I've read.’ This one actually blew me away as I had thought I was pushing some boundaries here. Nope, turns out it was just good writing and a timely subject.
And the year I was planning the rest of this series was one of those rare times. I could see the snowflakes falling down from my office window and I wondered just what would be next in this wonderful world I had created. Well, there were six siblings, a cousin and some other friends, both elf and humans, who would add to the overall mix.
Originally, I had been set to just do a book at Christmas, then one summer an idea came to me that I just couldn’t get rid of...and that was for the little elf called Eggther. That was last year and I thought what better way than to follow it up with another summer book. And I did.
The next summer, Giselle’s Elf, the sixth book in the series came out. This is the culmination of all those thoughts and classes and experience I have ever had as a writer. That December, book seven, called An Elf’s Love came out and this book along with the last one took a completely different turn than I could have ever imagined.
And of course, that will spawn many, many more books in the wonderful world I created.
Lynn
Lynn Crain
Experience the Magic
www.lynncrain.com
Coming up soon from Lynn Crain
Merrick and Jenna, book 2 in the Captive Illusions series.
You can read an extract here.
The Haunting of Maggie Grey
You can read an extract here.
You can find Lynn at the following locations.
www.lynncrain.com
www.myspace.com/lynncrain
www.lynncrain.blogspot.com
www.themanyshades.blogspot.com ( I blog here on Wednesdays.)
http://lynncrain.livejournal.com/
www.myspace.com/lynncrain
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/XtraOrdinaryRomance/
www.twitter.com/oddlynn3
www.facebook.com/oddlynn3
http://www.youtube.com/lynncrain
Wednesday, 16 March 2011
Silver Flash - Out of this World - Chapter 1
Out of this World by L.M. Brown
A male/male romance
He was staring at him again. Rick could feel the man’s eyes on him from right across the other side of the room.
He wondered whether he might come over and talk to him today, or whether he was just going to watch him like he had every day this week.
Anyone else would just go over and talk to the man, but not Rick. Rick had never found it easy to talk to anyone, and certainly not men he was attracted to. To get up and walk over to a stranger and strike up a conversation just wasn’t in his nature.
“Rick!” A manicured hand waved in front of his face.
“Hi Maggie.” Rick turned away from the blond haired man and focused on the petite blonde sitting across from him.
“What’s so interesting over there?” Maggie asked as she twisted in her seat to look across the room.
“Nothing.” Rick pointedly looked away from the man. It wouldn’t do for Maggie to realise he had his eye on someone. It would be just like her to drag him over there and push them together, whether the other man was interested in him or not.
Maggie shrugged and turned back to him. “So, I heard back from Dan and he told me his room mate’s older brother is gay and he’s single.”
“I don’t need setting up on another blind date.”
“How about if I get you a picture of him first?”
“No.”
“But you need to start dating again. One bad experience shouldn’t turn you into a hermit like this.”
“I’m not a hermit. I go out and meet people.”
“You go to work and you hang out with me and your brother. You haven’t dated since –”
“Don’t say his name,” Rick interrupted.
“You need to get over him.”
“I am over him.”
“If that were true you wouldn’t have a problem with me saying his name.”
Rick sighed and turned back to his half eaten salad. “Fine, one date with this guy and that’s it. No more set ups.”
Maggie bounced in her seat as she pulled out her mobile phone. “He said yes. Saturday night is perfect.”
Rick shook his head. It seemed like he was now cancelling his plans for Saturday.
* * * *
Self-centred, boring egotist. Rick knew he shouldn’t be surprised that this latest blind date was just as disastrous as the rest of them.
“And it was only my stepping in that sorted out the whole mess.”
Rick smiled absently as his eyes swept the room distractedly. He spied the clock on the wall and realised he’d only been here fifteen minutes. Was that too soon to end the date?
He was turning his head to stifle a yawn when he spotted the man from the café again.
He was sitting at the next table, his own dinner companion apparently forgotten. He had twisted around in his seat to stare at Rick again.
He was closer than he had been any day in the café, close enough for Rick to see the hazel eyes and the edge of a tattoo peeking out from the edge of his collar.
The stranger continued to watch him and Rick squirmed in his seat at the scrutiny.
Rick’s date was busy ordering around the waiter so he took a chance and hissed across at his stalker. “Don't look at me like that.”
He wasn’t sure what reaction he was expecting, but it certainly wasn’t for the man to fall off his seat in shock.
Rick stared at him as he scrambled up off the floor. The man’s date hadn’t moved from her place and no one else seemed to have batted an eye.
“You can see me?” the stranger asked in a hushed whisper.
“Of course I can see you.” Rick looked around the room, and for the first time he noticed that while no one had noticed the man across from him falling from his chair, he was getting a few strange looks himself.
“I knew it!”
“Rick, who are you talking to?”
Rick turned back to his date. “Sorry, you were saying?”
It seemed that the light haired stranger wasn’t going to be ignored quite so easily. “I’m sorry, I don’t have time to explain, but you have to come with me right now.”
Rick shivered at the man’s tone. There was an urgency about it and even with his date staring at him as though he had lost his mind, he couldn’t stop himself from turning to the other man once again.
“Now,” the man repeated, holding out his hand and waiting for Rick to take it.
“But—”
The stranger took his hand impatiently and pulled him from his seat. “Hold on tight,” he ordered even as Rick protested.
Then a flash of light blinded him momentarily. He struggled to release himself from the vice-like grip. “I said hold on!”
When Rick’s vision cleared he almost wished he hadn’t. His date was nowhere in sight, the restaurant had vanished, and the world as he knew it was altered forever.
To be continued...
Other Silver Flashers This Week
Ryssa Edwards (m/m)
R.J. Scott (m/m)
Pender Mackie (m/m)
Julie Hayes (m/m)
Diane Adams (m/m)
Lily Sawyer (m/m)
Victoria Blisse (m/f)
Sui Lynn (m/m)
Lindsay Klug (m/f)
Heather Lin (m/f)
For the full list of Silver Flashers
(including those not participating this week)
please see the foot of this blog.
Ryssa Edwards (m/m)
R.J. Scott (m/m)
Pender Mackie (m/m)
Julie Hayes (m/m)
Diane Adams (m/m)
Lily Sawyer (m/m)
Victoria Blisse (m/f)
Sui Lynn (m/m)
Lindsay Klug (m/f)
Heather Lin (m/f)
For the full list of Silver Flashers
(including those not participating this week)
please see the foot of this blog.
Sunday, 13 March 2011
Six Sentence Sunday
Since I appear to have jinxed myself by posting six sentences from a WIP that I was hoping would be accepted for publication I now find myself scratting around for six sentences from my two published works.
Sorry, I suddenly don't like the idea of tantalising people with sentences from something that is never going to be available to read in full. I just wish I had been my usual pessimistic self when I started this feature two weeks ago.
Since my two published stories are very short I am going to be struggling to post six sentences every week. So I am probably going to do something like make this a monthly post, or perhaps just put it on hold until I have more of a backlist to pick those sentences from.
But for this week here are five sentences - sorry skimping on the number as well this week - from Touch of a Ghost.
Sorry, I suddenly don't like the idea of tantalising people with sentences from something that is never going to be available to read in full. I just wish I had been my usual pessimistic self when I started this feature two weeks ago.
Since my two published stories are very short I am going to be struggling to post six sentences every week. So I am probably going to do something like make this a monthly post, or perhaps just put it on hold until I have more of a backlist to pick those sentences from.
But for this week here are five sentences - sorry skimping on the number as well this week - from Touch of a Ghost.
Despite his best intentions, Andy found himself starting to get a little curious about his ghostly guest. He didn't even know his name. From the sneaky looks out of the corner of his eye, he managed to get a good look at his handsome uninvited visitor. With dark hair, blue eyes and a strong jaw line, he certainly had the right features for the brooding look, but when he smiled, as he did each time their team scored, his face lit up, and Andy's breath caught in his throat.
If he hadn't been so busy drooling, Andy might have taken a moment to be worried about his reaction to the presence of the undeniably sexy spook.
Friday, 11 March 2011
Guest Blogger - Angel Martinez
I hope everyone will give a warm welcome to this week's guest blogger, Angel Martinez. She is here to talk about cats and her upcoming release, Boots. As a cat lover myself I am really looking forward to this particular release. Thanks for blogging with me Angel.
LM
--
It’s a rare cat owner who doesn’t talk to his or her cats. Cats have a way of looking at you, an expectant air of “Yes? You were saying?” that invites conversation. My tortoiseshell, Isis, whose mother was an Oriental White, answers back with vocalizations ranging from a demure mew to a full-fledged “will you hush and feed me now” howl.
But even my Isis doesn’t answer in English. Imagine being the cat owner who not only discovers that his cat speaks fluent human, but that said cat thinks he’s something of an idiot sometimes.
Boots, coming April 17, 2011 from Amber Allure, is the story of just such a young man. Poor Willem. He doesn’t know the half of it.
The Blurb:
In Honeybole, jobs are scarce and so are faithful boyfriends. But when Willem’s father leaves him the family cat, his luck begins to change. It might not seem like much, but at least the talking cat listens and understands him better than anyone else.Kasha was once a powerful demon, a guide of dead souls, until his arrogance led to his banishment. Forced to live with, and sometimes serve humans, he lives a lonely, humiliating existence. In Willem, though, he finds a man he serves gladly. He’ll stop at nothing to secure Willem’s happiness, even if it means losing him.
And for my gentle readers, an Excerpt as well:
Poor, unhappy boy, what are we to do with you? Kasha sat by the glowing embers, watching Willem sleep. Trouble was, the boy was no boy any longer. He had grown tall and strong, with deliciously long legs and shoulders broad enough to sleep on. The face that had been elfin in childhood had transformed into even-featured angelic beauty, full, soft lips and all.
The kasha had wondered, twenty years ago, why the spirits had directed him to Horst’s household. The man didn’t seem to need help, nor would he have accepted any. His wife had died after the birth of their third son, but he had coped well enough. The boys grew up flawed, but not too much more than other humans. Gunther lacked imagination, content with a small, provincial life. Kurt grew up cool and distant, not an evil man, but insular and self-absorbed. Then there was Willem, the dreamer, the wool-gatherer, though he had seemed settled as a welder, stable and secure.
When Willem’s life had disintegrated around his ears, that’s when the kasha understood. Not for Horst, this little jaunt so far from home, not for the oldest son, as it had been so often in the past, but for the youngest.
He was here to help Willem. As he blinked luminous green eyes at the lovely creature sleeping on the hearth, he realized he might enjoy the task for once.
#
Rain fell, regiments of water soldiers drumming double-time on the roof. Willem thought the downpour had woken him until he felt the soft breath against his throat. Oh, damn…
Someone lay in his arms. Had he been drinking again? He didn’t think so, but things were fuzzy. He couldn’t recall where he was until he blinked the fireplace into focus, the flames burned down to embers. He pulled back in confusion and his breath hitched hard.
His arms were wrapped around the most beautiful young man he had ever seen. Thick, black hair tumbled to his shoulders. Almond-shaped emerald eyes gazed out of a heart-shaped face with high cheekbones and a slender, elegant nose. Willem moved his hand along the young man’s back, feeling only the silken slide of naked skin. He must have been drinking, to forget this gorgeous boy.
“Who are you?” he whispered.
“Hush, Willem,” the lovely vision murmured in a throaty baritone. “Go back to sleep.” He leaned in and brushed his lips over Willem’s. “Sleep.”
The command seemed reasonable and impossible to disobey, in any case. Willem’s eyelids drooped as if weighted with stones. His last bit of awareness was of the stranger snuggling closer, resting his head on Willem’s shoulder. For some reason, he found it comforting rather than odd. His last waking thought was that Kasha had been right about the rain.
Angel Martinez writes M/M erotic fiction, heavy on the fiction. She lives in northern Delaware with one husband, one college age son, two cats, and a tribe of feral dust bunnies. For more information on Angel and her work, please visit:
Angel Martinez: Erotic Fiction for the Hungry Mind
A slightly tilted fairy tale for the modern reader
Coming April 17, 2011 from Amber Allure
Thursday, 10 March 2011
Guess I need to be more virtuous
Or one particular virtue at least... patience.
Heard back regarding The Heart of Eden and the decision is not going to be made on whether it is accepted until closer the deadline.
Since I know several other people who have already had their submissions for the call accepted I guess that means this one is unlikely to be unless they are really desperate to make up the numbers - something which is highly unlikely considering how much the publisher has grown since I last submitted something to them.
I guess I'm not giving up the day job just yet ;-) Though considering how that has been going this week, unemployment is looking attractive right now.
Oh well, I guess a rejection is long overdue and two stories published is more than I ever believed I would have.
Heard back regarding The Heart of Eden and the decision is not going to be made on whether it is accepted until closer the deadline.
Since I know several other people who have already had their submissions for the call accepted I guess that means this one is unlikely to be unless they are really desperate to make up the numbers - something which is highly unlikely considering how much the publisher has grown since I last submitted something to them.
I guess I'm not giving up the day job just yet ;-) Though considering how that has been going this week, unemployment is looking attractive right now.
Oh well, I guess a rejection is long overdue and two stories published is more than I ever believed I would have.
Monday, 7 March 2011
The Heart of Eden Submitted
I think I have done as much as I can with this story before the professionals get to see it and finally submitted it to Silver Publishing yesterday evening.
Now it is the nail-biting time of waiting to see if they want it.
I really hope it is accepted and I do feel it is in a better state than the first two stories I submitted to them. The pre-edit tips from Silver were a lot of work, but I hope I did everything okay and that they feel it is worthy of them.
I just wish that the nauseating wait got better, but if anything I think this time is even worse than before.
The first time I submitted (Touch of a Ghost) I was sure that it would be rejected and wasn't expecting to hear anything other than "not for us". The second time I submitted I was so busy with offline stuff I didn't have much time to be worried.
Now I just hope that Silver still want me in their author stable. They have grown so much in the last few months and have a lot of very well-known and amazing authors with them. I guess I am keeping my fingers crossed that they still have room for a relative newbie with them.
Now it is the nail-biting time of waiting to see if they want it.
I really hope it is accepted and I do feel it is in a better state than the first two stories I submitted to them. The pre-edit tips from Silver were a lot of work, but I hope I did everything okay and that they feel it is worthy of them.
I just wish that the nauseating wait got better, but if anything I think this time is even worse than before.
The first time I submitted (Touch of a Ghost) I was sure that it would be rejected and wasn't expecting to hear anything other than "not for us". The second time I submitted I was so busy with offline stuff I didn't have much time to be worried.
Now I just hope that Silver still want me in their author stable. They have grown so much in the last few months and have a lot of very well-known and amazing authors with them. I guess I am keeping my fingers crossed that they still have room for a relative newbie with them.
Sunday, 6 March 2011
Six Sentence Sunday
Here are another six sentences from The Heart of Eden to whet your appetite (I hope!)
Were they really going to do this? He’d never been adventurous with Michaela. Hell, they’d never even had sex outside of their bedroom. Was he seriously considering having sex with Hayden outside, on the grass, at the back of the garden centre?I hope you found the sentences tantalising and will excuse the bad grammer since this hasn't been professionally edited yet.
Hayden pushed his jeans and briefs down over his hips and the Luke’s blood headed south. Okay, he was seriously considering the possibility, though one particular part of his body appeared to have made up its mind already.
Saturday, 5 March 2011
Silver Publishing Promotion & Contest
Silver Publishing is offering a great promotion and contest to celebrate eBook week. Check it out!
Visit Silver Publishing
Make a purchase during eBook Week (March 6-12) and automatically stand a chance to win a Kindle eReader. You want more? Purchase a New or Coming Soon release and receive 30% off any of our backlist titles!
Visit Silver Publishing
Friday, 4 March 2011
Guest Blogger - Gale Stanley
It's Friday, which means it is time for another guest blogger to join me here. So please welcome Gale Stanley for an interview and to tell us about her upcoming release.
LMB: What do you think has been the highlight of your writing career so far?
GS: Every contract is a high point for me but the most exciting was the first. It was a short story, The Power of the Purr and it was published in A Cup of Comfort for Cat Lovers. My cats are the heroes in that short tail… er tale. Seeing my name in print for the first time… well it was just amazing.
LMB: If you were hosting a dinner party which of your characters would be top of the guest list and why?
GS: Right off the top of my head, I’d have to say my wolf-shifter, Malcolm, from Call of the Wilds. I based his character on Clive Owen, who I had a mad crush on. I have all his movies, but my favorite is Sin City. The unique coloring and the way the movie was shot made him look even more alpha male. Yum!
LMB: Who are your favourite authors to read for inspiration and/or relaxation?
GS: That’s a tough question. I read a lot and my choices are all over the place. I’ve always loved horror, science fiction and the paranormal. Psychological thrillers and mysteries are high on my list too. I’ve read everything by Jeffery Deaver, Mo Hayder, and Keith Ablow. I definitely lean to the dark side but if a story has romance, so much the better.
Stephen King was a big inspiration to me. His book “On Writing, part autobiography and part advice for aspiring novelists, is a classic. He says, “Writing is not life, but I think that sometimes it can be a way back to life” - so true. Writing brought him back after the devastating car accident that shattered his leg in 1999.
LMB: What can we expect to see from you by way of new books in the foreseeable future?
GS: Sleepless Knights will be released March 5 and I have several other books coming from Silver Publishing. Some Like it Rough, The Gentlemen’s Club: 2, will be released March 19. Hunter and the Hawk, Symbiotic Mates: 1 will be out in April. And I just signed a contract for One Night in Bangkok – no release date yet.
I’m also working on a three book arc that takes off from the Black Wolf Gorge series for Siren.
LMB: What do you find is the easiest thing about writing fiction, and what do you find the most difficult?
GS: I love everything about the writing process, even research and editing. And I don’t have a problem coming up with ideas for stories. I have so many characters and stories floating around in my head. The hard part is finding time to write because book promotion is so time consuming. As you know, getting a book published is not the end of the line. There’s a lot of hard work involved afterwards.
Thank you for having me LMB. You ask some great questions and I enjoyed my visit. And I’d like to thank the readers for all their support. I feel really fortunate to be able to do something I love so much. Books have always been a big part of my life and they helped me through some tough times. And if I can provide entertainment and escape for someone else that makes my day.
Thank you for agreeing to be a guest here and answer my nosy questions. I totally agree about the promo being much more time consuming than I ever imagined.
Can Andy and Paul save their rocky relationship by bringing another man into their bed, or will it drive them even further apart?
After falling passionately in love, Andy and Paul are totally committed to each other. But when the two-year itch infects their relationship, Paul becomes distant and refuses to talk about it. Paul is the love of Andy’s life and he’ll do anything to make him happy, even if it means bringing another man into their bed. But is it really the answer? Or will it drive them further apart?
Zach flees to Los Angeles to escape his abusive father. He plans to use his good looks to get into the film industry but catching that big break is harder than he thought. He decides to try his luck in San Francisco. He has no money but if he can find someone to put a roof over his head, he’ll trade sex for security. When two smokin’ hot guys pick him up on the Pacific Coast Highway, he thinks he hit pay dirt. He never expected to actually fall for them.
SLEEPLESS KNIGHTS is available at Silver Publishing:
http://silverpublishing.info/index/book_authors_id/48/typefilter/book_authors
EXCERPT
North Beach, San Francisco
Never go to sleep angry. His mother’s words resonated in Andy’s head. Cliché? Maybe. But it worked for his parents. They'd been happily married for twenty years before they died in a car accident.
Andy understood the concept only too well. His unresolved conflicts had been festering to the point he woke angrier every morning. It was only a matter of time until he or Paul exploded over some minor offense and destroyed their relationship completely.
He stood at the side of the bed and looked down at his lover feigning sleep. How do you fix something when your partner shuts you out? It had been like this for months, Paul claiming exhaustion, going to bed early and pretending to be asleep. They used to go to bed together. Now it seemed like Paul couldn't get away from him fast enough.
Andy never expected things to be easy. Relationships rarely were and he and Paul were polar opposites. He expected their personalities to clash once in awhile, and they did. But despite their totally different upbringings and outlooks they'd somehow made it work. Up until now.
They'd been together almost two years and Andy thanked his lucky stars they'd met at all. He'd been grieving his dead partner, hiding from the world in a hunting cabin in rural Pennsylvania. Paul had been visiting his estranged family after a bad breakup with his lover.
Fate stepped in and Paul, stranded in a major snowstorm, had been forced to wait it out in Andy's cabin. Just like that sparks flew. When Paul went back home to San Francisco, Andy followed, and the rest was history. They hadn't been apart since.
Too much togetherness could be part of the problem. Not wanting to come off as clingy, Andy tried giving Paul time and space for himself. After all they were a couple, not joined at the hip.
Now Andy feared he’d given him too much space. He needed to change his strategy before it was too late. Maybe he could use sex to bridge the gap between them. Their sex life had fizzled out into an occasional perfunctory fuck and he hated it. Making love had always made him feel closer to Paul. He missed the intimacy they had once shared.
Andy slipped into bed and curved his body around Paul's. Just his lover's musky male scent was enough to make his cock twitch with interest. He reached an arm around Paul and rolled a nipple between his fingers. Although it stiffened under his teasing, Paul gave no other sign he wanted more. Tonight Andy refused to turn a blind eye to Paul's icy indifference.
http://galestanley.net/
http://galestanley.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/gale.stanley.author
http://twitter.com/galestanley
LMB: What do you think has been the highlight of your writing career so far?
GS: Every contract is a high point for me but the most exciting was the first. It was a short story, The Power of the Purr and it was published in A Cup of Comfort for Cat Lovers. My cats are the heroes in that short tail… er tale. Seeing my name in print for the first time… well it was just amazing.
LMB: If you were hosting a dinner party which of your characters would be top of the guest list and why?
GS: Right off the top of my head, I’d have to say my wolf-shifter, Malcolm, from Call of the Wilds. I based his character on Clive Owen, who I had a mad crush on. I have all his movies, but my favorite is Sin City. The unique coloring and the way the movie was shot made him look even more alpha male. Yum!
LMB: Who are your favourite authors to read for inspiration and/or relaxation?
GS: That’s a tough question. I read a lot and my choices are all over the place. I’ve always loved horror, science fiction and the paranormal. Psychological thrillers and mysteries are high on my list too. I’ve read everything by Jeffery Deaver, Mo Hayder, and Keith Ablow. I definitely lean to the dark side but if a story has romance, so much the better.
Stephen King was a big inspiration to me. His book “On Writing, part autobiography and part advice for aspiring novelists, is a classic. He says, “Writing is not life, but I think that sometimes it can be a way back to life” - so true. Writing brought him back after the devastating car accident that shattered his leg in 1999.
LMB: What can we expect to see from you by way of new books in the foreseeable future?
GS: Sleepless Knights will be released March 5 and I have several other books coming from Silver Publishing. Some Like it Rough, The Gentlemen’s Club: 2, will be released March 19. Hunter and the Hawk, Symbiotic Mates: 1 will be out in April. And I just signed a contract for One Night in Bangkok – no release date yet.
I’m also working on a three book arc that takes off from the Black Wolf Gorge series for Siren.
LMB: What do you find is the easiest thing about writing fiction, and what do you find the most difficult?
GS: I love everything about the writing process, even research and editing. And I don’t have a problem coming up with ideas for stories. I have so many characters and stories floating around in my head. The hard part is finding time to write because book promotion is so time consuming. As you know, getting a book published is not the end of the line. There’s a lot of hard work involved afterwards.
Thank you for having me LMB. You ask some great questions and I enjoyed my visit. And I’d like to thank the readers for all their support. I feel really fortunate to be able to do something I love so much. Books have always been a big part of my life and they helped me through some tough times. And if I can provide entertainment and escape for someone else that makes my day.
Thank you for agreeing to be a guest here and answer my nosy questions. I totally agree about the promo being much more time consuming than I ever imagined.
SLEEPLESS KNIGHTS
A Contemporary M/M Romance R-excerpt
Can Andy and Paul save their rocky relationship by bringing another man into their bed, or will it drive them even further apart?
After falling passionately in love, Andy and Paul are totally committed to each other. But when the two-year itch infects their relationship, Paul becomes distant and refuses to talk about it. Paul is the love of Andy’s life and he’ll do anything to make him happy, even if it means bringing another man into their bed. But is it really the answer? Or will it drive them further apart?
Zach flees to Los Angeles to escape his abusive father. He plans to use his good looks to get into the film industry but catching that big break is harder than he thought. He decides to try his luck in San Francisco. He has no money but if he can find someone to put a roof over his head, he’ll trade sex for security. When two smokin’ hot guys pick him up on the Pacific Coast Highway, he thinks he hit pay dirt. He never expected to actually fall for them.
SLEEPLESS KNIGHTS is available at Silver Publishing:
http://silverpublishing.info/index/book_authors_id/48/typefilter/book_authors
EXCERPT
North Beach, San Francisco
Never go to sleep angry. His mother’s words resonated in Andy’s head. Cliché? Maybe. But it worked for his parents. They'd been happily married for twenty years before they died in a car accident.
Andy understood the concept only too well. His unresolved conflicts had been festering to the point he woke angrier every morning. It was only a matter of time until he or Paul exploded over some minor offense and destroyed their relationship completely.
He stood at the side of the bed and looked down at his lover feigning sleep. How do you fix something when your partner shuts you out? It had been like this for months, Paul claiming exhaustion, going to bed early and pretending to be asleep. They used to go to bed together. Now it seemed like Paul couldn't get away from him fast enough.
Andy never expected things to be easy. Relationships rarely were and he and Paul were polar opposites. He expected their personalities to clash once in awhile, and they did. But despite their totally different upbringings and outlooks they'd somehow made it work. Up until now.
They'd been together almost two years and Andy thanked his lucky stars they'd met at all. He'd been grieving his dead partner, hiding from the world in a hunting cabin in rural Pennsylvania. Paul had been visiting his estranged family after a bad breakup with his lover.
Fate stepped in and Paul, stranded in a major snowstorm, had been forced to wait it out in Andy's cabin. Just like that sparks flew. When Paul went back home to San Francisco, Andy followed, and the rest was history. They hadn't been apart since.
Too much togetherness could be part of the problem. Not wanting to come off as clingy, Andy tried giving Paul time and space for himself. After all they were a couple, not joined at the hip.
Now Andy feared he’d given him too much space. He needed to change his strategy before it was too late. Maybe he could use sex to bridge the gap between them. Their sex life had fizzled out into an occasional perfunctory fuck and he hated it. Making love had always made him feel closer to Paul. He missed the intimacy they had once shared.
Andy slipped into bed and curved his body around Paul's. Just his lover's musky male scent was enough to make his cock twitch with interest. He reached an arm around Paul and rolled a nipple between his fingers. Although it stiffened under his teasing, Paul gave no other sign he wanted more. Tonight Andy refused to turn a blind eye to Paul's icy indifference.
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Wednesday, 2 March 2011
Silver Flash - Another Way
Another Way by L.M. Brown
A male/male romance
Jody looked out the window as his best friend’s father inspected the damage to the car.
“They can’t even fuckin’ spell!” Dominic muttered.
Jody stifled a laugh. It wasn’t actually funny. Dominic’s parents had let him use the car for school today, only someone – and they both had a pretty good idea who – had spray painted the word fag on each side of the vehicle. The jerks had spelt it with two g’s.
“At least we’ve only got a few months left at school,” Jody pointed out. “Then we won’t have to put up with this nonsense.”
“I don’t think I can take even another week of it.”
“Who cares what they think anyway?”
“My dad probably does since it’s his car they’ve trashed.”
“Will the repairs be covered under the insurance?”
“Dunno.”
“I don’t know why you let them get to you so much. It’s not like we’re gay.”
Dominic made a non-committal grunt from his seat on the floor.
“You know, there’s only one way out of this.”
“Sneak into their houses and kill the bastards?”
Jody threw a wadded up ball of paper that might once have been his English assignment notes at Dominic. “No, we get ourselves a couple of really hot girls to date. Then voila! No more accusations about being fags.”
“You want a girlfriend?”
Jody looked down at Dominic, surprised by the astonishment in his friend’s voice. “Sure. Don’t you?”
Dominic didn’t reply for several minutes and when he finally did speak Jody wondered if he had forgotten about the question. “We’re mates, right?” Dominic asked quietly.
“Yeah, of course we are you dork. Why else would I have been hanging out with you for the last fifteen years?”
“Sixteen years.”
Jody threw another wad of paper at Dominic. “Dork. What’s all this about?”
Dominic picked up the missile and tossed it in the air a few times. “Is there a girl you fancy?”
“Not really. But I’m sure we can find a couple of girls without too much trouble if we tried.”
“What would you say if I told you I didn’t want a girl?”
“Is that your way of saying you’re saving yourself for a mature college woman?”
“No. It’s my way of telling you I think I’m gay.”
“Oh.” Jody picked up a pen from the desk and twirled it in his fingers. It certainly explained a few things, but he wasn’t quite sure how he was supposed to react.
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” Dominic asked.
“What do you want me to say?”
Dominic laughed out loud. “Well, that’s a loaded question if ever I heard one.”
“What do you mean?”
“For fuck’s sake, do I have to spell it out for you?”
“Apparently you do.”
“What I want you to say is that you’re okay with it because you fancy me as much I like you.”
Oh shit!
Dominic shook his head and threw the paper across the room with as much force as he could muster. “I should’ve kept my bloody gob shut.”
Jody moved from the window seat and sat down on the floor beside his best friend. “I’m glad you told me, really.”
“You don’t look it. You look bleedin’ horrified.”
“It’s just a surprise, that’s all.”
“Are you sure that’s all it is? Or are you going to be trashing my stuff next week?”
Jody reached out and grabbed Dominic’s arm, perhaps a little tighter than necessary. “You don’t really think I’d do that, do you?”
“No. I guess not. But I’ll understand if you don’t want to hang out with me any more.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Jody insisted. “Now quit your worrying and calm down.”
“I’m never calm when you’re this close to me.”
Jody drew in a sharp breath when he realised that his own heart was racing. It always raced when he was near to Dominic; why had he never noticed this before?
He loosened his grip on Dominic’s arm and moved so that he was sitting opposite him. “I think I was wrong,” he said.
“About what?”
“About the only way out of this. I think there’s another way.”
“Yeah, there is another way. We stop hanging around so much.”
“Or we could say bollocks to the lot of them and stick it out together.”
“You mean together together?”
“I guess so. I never really thought about it before.”
“And now?”
“And now…” Jody leaned forward and brushed his lip across Dominic’s. After all he’d said he should be the one to make the first move.
Dominic’s arm reached round his back and pulled him closer.
Jody gripped the edge of the bed as they continued to kiss. When he moved position he realised he was hard as a rock. He was more aroused than he’d ever been in his life, and all from a single kiss with his best friend.
How had the gits from school known they were hot for each other before he had?
Damn, he needed to get closer.
They jostled back and forth as they searched for a comfortable position, before eventually giving up and parting just long enough to climb up onto the bed.
Jody found himself flat on his back with Dominic above him. It wasn’t a place he had ever thought he would be, yet somehow it felt right.
Then Dominic moved his hips to rub against him and it went from feeling right to feeling amazing.
They hadn’t taken the time to so much as undo a single button or zip. Fully clothed they rocked desperately against each other.
“Fuck Jody,” Dominic groaned against his neck as he climaxed. “Too bloody quick.”
Jody gripped Dominic’s arse as he continued to thrust upwards, searching for his own release. “So close. So close. So—” Jody cried out as he felt the hot release within the confines of his jeans.
As they lay on the bed Jody contemplated there was always more than one way.
“They can’t even fuckin’ spell!” Dominic muttered.
Jody stifled a laugh. It wasn’t actually funny. Dominic’s parents had let him use the car for school today, only someone – and they both had a pretty good idea who – had spray painted the word fag on each side of the vehicle. The jerks had spelt it with two g’s.
“At least we’ve only got a few months left at school,” Jody pointed out. “Then we won’t have to put up with this nonsense.”
“I don’t think I can take even another week of it.”
“Who cares what they think anyway?”
“My dad probably does since it’s his car they’ve trashed.”
“Will the repairs be covered under the insurance?”
“Dunno.”
“I don’t know why you let them get to you so much. It’s not like we’re gay.”
Dominic made a non-committal grunt from his seat on the floor.
“You know, there’s only one way out of this.”
“Sneak into their houses and kill the bastards?”
Jody threw a wadded up ball of paper that might once have been his English assignment notes at Dominic. “No, we get ourselves a couple of really hot girls to date. Then voila! No more accusations about being fags.”
“You want a girlfriend?”
Jody looked down at Dominic, surprised by the astonishment in his friend’s voice. “Sure. Don’t you?”
Dominic didn’t reply for several minutes and when he finally did speak Jody wondered if he had forgotten about the question. “We’re mates, right?” Dominic asked quietly.
“Yeah, of course we are you dork. Why else would I have been hanging out with you for the last fifteen years?”
“Sixteen years.”
Jody threw another wad of paper at Dominic. “Dork. What’s all this about?”
Dominic picked up the missile and tossed it in the air a few times. “Is there a girl you fancy?”
“Not really. But I’m sure we can find a couple of girls without too much trouble if we tried.”
“What would you say if I told you I didn’t want a girl?”
“Is that your way of saying you’re saving yourself for a mature college woman?”
“No. It’s my way of telling you I think I’m gay.”
“Oh.” Jody picked up a pen from the desk and twirled it in his fingers. It certainly explained a few things, but he wasn’t quite sure how he was supposed to react.
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” Dominic asked.
“What do you want me to say?”
Dominic laughed out loud. “Well, that’s a loaded question if ever I heard one.”
“What do you mean?”
“For fuck’s sake, do I have to spell it out for you?”
“Apparently you do.”
“What I want you to say is that you’re okay with it because you fancy me as much I like you.”
Oh shit!
Dominic shook his head and threw the paper across the room with as much force as he could muster. “I should’ve kept my bloody gob shut.”
Jody moved from the window seat and sat down on the floor beside his best friend. “I’m glad you told me, really.”
“You don’t look it. You look bleedin’ horrified.”
“It’s just a surprise, that’s all.”
“Are you sure that’s all it is? Or are you going to be trashing my stuff next week?”
Jody reached out and grabbed Dominic’s arm, perhaps a little tighter than necessary. “You don’t really think I’d do that, do you?”
“No. I guess not. But I’ll understand if you don’t want to hang out with me any more.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Jody insisted. “Now quit your worrying and calm down.”
“I’m never calm when you’re this close to me.”
Jody drew in a sharp breath when he realised that his own heart was racing. It always raced when he was near to Dominic; why had he never noticed this before?
He loosened his grip on Dominic’s arm and moved so that he was sitting opposite him. “I think I was wrong,” he said.
“About what?”
“About the only way out of this. I think there’s another way.”
“Yeah, there is another way. We stop hanging around so much.”
“Or we could say bollocks to the lot of them and stick it out together.”
“You mean together together?”
“I guess so. I never really thought about it before.”
“And now?”
“And now…” Jody leaned forward and brushed his lip across Dominic’s. After all he’d said he should be the one to make the first move.
Dominic’s arm reached round his back and pulled him closer.
Jody gripped the edge of the bed as they continued to kiss. When he moved position he realised he was hard as a rock. He was more aroused than he’d ever been in his life, and all from a single kiss with his best friend.
How had the gits from school known they were hot for each other before he had?
Damn, he needed to get closer.
They jostled back and forth as they searched for a comfortable position, before eventually giving up and parting just long enough to climb up onto the bed.
Jody found himself flat on his back with Dominic above him. It wasn’t a place he had ever thought he would be, yet somehow it felt right.
Then Dominic moved his hips to rub against him and it went from feeling right to feeling amazing.
They hadn’t taken the time to so much as undo a single button or zip. Fully clothed they rocked desperately against each other.
“Fuck Jody,” Dominic groaned against his neck as he climaxed. “Too bloody quick.”
Jody gripped Dominic’s arse as he continued to thrust upwards, searching for his own release. “So close. So close. So—” Jody cried out as he felt the hot release within the confines of his jeans.
As they lay on the bed Jody contemplated there was always more than one way.
The End
Other Silver Flashers This Week
Ryssa Edwards (m/m)
R.J. Scott (m/m)
Pender Mackie (m/m)
Julie Hayes (m/m)
Diane Adams (m/m)
Lily Sawyer (m/m)
Victoria Blisse (m/f)
Sui Lynn (m/m)
For the full list of Silver Flashers
(including those not participating this week)
please see the foot of this blog.
Other Silver Flashers This Week
Ryssa Edwards (m/m)
R.J. Scott (m/m)
Pender Mackie (m/m)
Julie Hayes (m/m)
Diane Adams (m/m)
Lily Sawyer (m/m)
Victoria Blisse (m/f)
Sui Lynn (m/m)
For the full list of Silver Flashers
(including those not participating this week)
please see the foot of this blog.
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