Monthly Archive for June, 2011

Summer Days

Published on June 29, 2011 in Life and Writing. 0 Comments

I have to say, I’m very happy that summer is here. This past spring was incredibly busy for me on many fronts. But with June almost done and July around the corner, I’m looking forward to taking some much needed time off.

My edits for most of my fall releases are done. No Master will be out in seven days (OMG!) and I’ve decided to take it easy on the writing front for a few weeks.

My master plan is to play video games and hang out with my children. World domination will soon follow.

I also want to take the opportunity to get caught up on my reading. I’ve been able to get through a number of novellas and short novels that have been sitting on my e-reader for a while in recent days. I’ve posted some reviews over on Goodreads, but I’d recomment getting the following if you are looking for something new.

Do Over by Mari Carr. If you have been married for any length of time, you will appreciate this beautifully written novel. It’s about a couple who have a special weekend getaway to get reacquainted with each other. I cried more than once.

Sweet As Sin by Inez Kelley. This is another book that had me crying. The struggles of the hero and heroine in this book prove that sometimes love isn’t enough. The resolution was immensley satisfying.

Outcast Mine by Jamie Craig. A well written m/m sci-fi romance that had be flipping the pages at a rapid rate. Great action and hot sex.

I’m traveling for work this week, but when I get back I’ll officially slide into summer mode. How about you? Any special plans for the summer?

What do you mean no coffee???

Published on June 24, 2011 in Life. 4 Comments

Everyone here knows how much I love coffee, right? RIGHT?!?! I love coffee so much I’ve based my upcoming series around a coffee shop.

I’ve been drinking the wonderful black gold since I was 12 (someone told me it would stunt my growth. I was 5′ 10″ by that time), so I would have a cup a day.

But two weeks ago, I was told by my doctor I had to give it up for a while (stupid stomach issues). I wanted to cry. You see coffee is more than the taste for me. The ritual of getting up in the morning, making a perfect cup which I then take and enjoy it while reading (or writing).

I miss that warm fuzzy feeling I get in my chest (not a caffeine rush!) that I’d get when enjoying a cup. The way my whole body seemed to relax when I was enjoying a mug. *sigh*

And for the record, I’m just as hyper off coffee as I ever was ON coffee.

Am I nuts? I know not everyone drinks coffee, but there must be some of you out there that have a favorite beverage that you’d give up your left arm, rather than have to stop drinking it?

Release Dates, Moves and OMG Edits!

Published on June 20, 2011 in Agony/Ecstasy, Bound Lust, Bounty, Bruised Ego, Carina Press, Cleis Press, Girls Who Bite, Life, Long Shots, No Master, Promotion and Steamlust. 0 Comments

Wow, it’s been a while since I’ve been on the old blog. Very busy few weeks for me. Good news for you if you’re looking for some new releases from me. :D

I’ve just found out that No Master, book three in the Bounty series, will be released on July 6th from Ellora’s Cave. This story focuses on Korbin, the Admiral of the Black and his second in command Zain Strand. Here’s the blurb!

No man in the galaxy inspires more fear than Korbin, the Admiral of the Black. His life as leader of the pirates leaves little room for trust, so when Korbin’s second in command disappears without a trace he suspects the worst.

Zain Strand has left his life as a sex slave behind and risen within the pirates’ ranks, but he’ll abandon it all to rescue an old friend from recapture by the slavers–even if that means a suicidal confrontation with his old master. He doesn’t expect Korbin’s arrival, doesn’t want Korbin’s help…but Korbin gives Zain no choice.

Posing as Master and slave to infiltrate a slave auction, Korbin and Zain embark on a journey of lust that rapidly reveals their deeper feelings. When Zain’s old master discovers their ruse, Zorbin must do everything in his power to save both their lives and their new-found love.

I’ve also been diligently working on edits for a number of my fall releases. The first two books in the Long Shots series are done and off, and I’m nearly done the edits for book three. While I always love the books I write, I’m finding myself particularly excited about this series. Not only because it will be my first with Carina Press, but also the characters really jumped to life for me. I can’t wait to share them with everyone.

My release schedule for the year is currently the following:

No Master – July 6th, Ellora’s Cave
Girls Who Bite – September 13th, Cleis Press
Double Shot – October 3, Carina Press
Steamlust: Steampunk Erotic Romance – October 11, Cleis Press
A Shot In the Dark – November 7th, Carina Press
Agony/Ecstasy – December 6th, Berkley Heat
Pulled Long – December 12th, Carina Press

I’ve also been moving this week. It was an insane weekend of packing and lugging, but we are 99% done. One room left to finish and some cleaning. Then the unpacking fun begins. My kids are settling down and the dogs are slowly adjusting. The only one who doesn’t seem thrown off by the whole affair is my cat. She’s a trooper!

And don’t forget my new blog! I post every Tuesday over at gee/k/ink, a place where we discuss all things geeky and kinky…and trust me when I say the conversations have been very interesting! Stop by and say hello. :D

So how is everyone doing? Let me know!

Steamlust Lineup and Fright Night

Published on June 8, 2011 in Movies, Steamlust and The Undeciphered Heart. 1 Comment

I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m still bouncing from the Carina Press anniversary yesterday. I hope a few of you visitors have decided to stick around and say hello.

Two things came across my plate today that got me silly excited. The first is the official story lineup for the Steamlust: Steampunk Erotic Romance anthology I’m a part of. Check this out!

Foreword Meljean Brook
Introduction: A Passion for Steampunk
Iron Hard Sylvia Day
Heart of the Daedalus Saskia Walker
Fog, Flight and Moonlight Sacchi Green
The Undeciphered Heart Christine d’Abo
Mr. Hartley’s Infernal Device Charlotte Stein
A Demonstration of Affection Elizabeth Coldwell
Undergrounded Vida Bailey
Sparks Anna Meadows
Green Cheese Lisabet Sarai
Lost Souls Andrea Dale
Golden Moment Lynn Townsend
Liberated Mary Borsellino
Make Your Own Miracles Nikki Magennis
Rescue My Heart Anya Richards

*does a snoopy dance*

I’ll be pre-ordering extra copies of this bad boy and I hope you will too!

The other thing today that got my crank going was this trailer for the remake of Fright Night. The original version of this movie kicked all kinds of ass and was one of my favorites when I was younger. This version as David Tennant playing Peter Vincent, the part originally made famous by Roddy McDowall!

I have a feeling the new version is going to be darker than the original, but I hope it’s as funny! You can check out the trailer showing a SHIRTLESS DAVID TENNANT right here.

Happy Birthday Carina Press!

Published on June 7, 2011 in Carina Press and Interview. 57 Comments

Hello everyone! I am thrilled to be a part of the first anniversary celebration for Carina Press. Though my books have yet to be released, I have been so impressed with every aspect of working with Carina. Congratulations Angela and all of the writers, editors and staff who have worked so very this past year to make Carina Press the success its become.

I’m thrilled to be hosting Angela and Alissa today on my blog. Don’t forget to check out the details on the free book giveaway at the bottom of this post.

*does a snoopy dance*

—

In celebration of our one year anniversary, I asked as many of our Harlequin team members and Carina Press freelance editors as possible to write a short blog post, talking about what the past year or so has been like for them, working on Carina Press. I deliberately didn’t provide any direction other than that, because I wanted to see what people came up with, in the spirit of Carina’s 1st anniversary. I was so pleased when I saw what they’d all come up with, and had to say (and some of these posts made me just a little teary)! I hope you enjoy the post, and look for your opportunity to win a Carina Press book at the bottom of this post. ~Angela James

Alissa Davis is a freelance editor for Carina Press. You can follow her on Twitter.

Bring on the Good Books

I enjoy attending conferences—meeting authors and colleagues, going to parties and workshops. I especially like sitting on editor panels—talking about books, trends, new technology, the submission process and my personal pet peeves. But then, inevitably, someone asks the editors, “What are you looking for?” And some of us squirm in our chairs. Editors get asked this all the time and we don’t always know exactly what we want—beyond a gripping plot, tight pacing, detailed world-building, realistic dialogue, good conflict, well-developed characters and a memorable voice—until we see it.

Every year I tried to come up with a few specific things I wanted to acquire, but I usually also told the authors, “I just want good books.” It was an easy answer, a stock answer. And not entirely true. I did want good books. Really, no editor wants a pile of lousy submissions! But some good books, no matter how much I believed in them, weren’t a good fit for my publisher.

It’s usually a huge thrill to find a good submission. But until I began working for Carina last year it was lousy if, for whatever reason, my house wasn’t the right publisher for that book. Sometimes the sex was too edgy, sometimes the genre hadn’t sold well for us, and sometimes the lovers were both male or both female. And then there wasn’t any getting around it. Yes, I loved the book. Yes, it was worthy of publication. And yes, I wrote the author a really nice rejection letter encouraging her to keep submitting her story until she found the right home for it. Months later when I went on Amazon and purchased the book I’d fallen in love with, I was happy for the author—and sad that I’d missed out.

But now I’m here, celebrating both Carina’s one-year anniversary and the anniversary of my ability to recommend for acquisition any good book that hits Carina’s inbox and falls within our much broader submission guidelines. And oh, does it feel great to have so much more leeway! Some of the fabulous Carina books I probably wouldn’t have been able to acquire before include Tia Nevitt’s The Sevenfold Spell, Hunter Raines’s Paradise Found,  Julie Moffett’s No One Lives Twice, and Robert Appleton’s The Mysterious Lady Law.

If you’ve got a good piece of genre fiction, send it my way! It can meet one of my specific requests for this year—epic fantasy romance, foodie romance, and an m/m romance featuring heroes who are pitted against each other professionally—or it can just be the best damn book you’ve ever written. Either way, I’d love to take a look.

Carina publishes some incredibly talented authors, and I’m proud of every book I acquire and edit. But as I look over my list of titles, the ones that make me smile the widest are the books that I loved and, finally, didn’t have to reject.

To celebrate Carina’s one year anniversary of publishing books, we’re giving away some prizes. Today, on each of the nineteen blogs our team members are featured on, we’re giving away a download of a Carina Press book to one random winner (that’s nineteen total winners!) All you need to do to be entered to win is comment on this post. You can enter to win on all nineteen posts. In addition, on the Carina Press blog, we’re giving away a grand prize of a Kobo ereader and 12 Carina Press books of the winner’s choice. Visit the Carina Press blog to enter to win, and to see links to all 19 of today’s blog posts.

And a sincere thank you from all of us, to our readers and authors, for making Carina Press’s first year a success!

Author Interview – Leah Braemel

Published on June 6, 2011 in Interview. 1 Comment

Hello blog! Yes, I know I’ve been absent for a bit, but I have had good reasons. I’m starting edits on my last novella for Carina Press, due out this fall. I’ve done a first round for No Master, and I’m hoping that will be finalized shortly.

But enough about me. That’s not why we’re here today. :D

I’ve had the great pleasure of knowing Leah Braemel for a few years now. Her books are passionate, sexy and wonderful reads. Leah has been generous enough to let me interview her today.

Thanks for coming, Leah!

What or who inspired you to first start writing?

When I was about six or seven, my sister wrote her own Star Trek episode (she was ten and had a huge crush on William Shatner – this was during the original run of the original series in the 60s, and back then we had no idea this was known as fan-fic) That’s when I realized that all the books I’d been reading had been written by someone, and that I could write down the stories that played out in my head while I was supposed to be trying to get to sleep at night. So I wrote my own story and showed it to her. That’s when I learned the concept of Critique Partners – emphasis on critique.  I kept writing those stories, but didn’t dare show it to anyone for forty years.

If you could go back in time and lay claim to any book written, which one would you want and why?

Oh that would have to be Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. I LOVE the world Tolkien created, the characters, the quest, the whole idea that he’s taken myths from our world and created his own.

When you are writing and hit a stumbling block, what do you do to try and get over the hurdle?

For some reason I have solved a lot of plot problems soaking in a bath. If that doesn’t work, I start writing an email to one of my CPs outlining the stumbling block. Usually as I’m writing out the issue, something clicks and I can solve it myself. If that doesn’t work, then I’ll IM them and we hash it out in a brainstorming session.

If you could have supper with any of your characters, which one would you choose and where would you take them?

Sam Watson from Personal Protection (and also Private Property)  He is such a larger than life character, with a natural charisma and a great sense of humor.  Where would I take him is more of an issue. I think I’d ask him to cook for me in his apartment so he could be as uninhibited as he wanted. ;)

Is there a type of story you would like to write, but are terrified you wouldn’t do a proper job? What is it and why?

I have an idea for a story set in Kingston during the 1838-39 rebellion that I started to write a few years back then stuttered to a stop because the task of getting all the details down pat was  daunting. There are so many history buffs who knows so much more than I do, I’m afraid I’d be sunk by some of the simplest details. But one day I’ll tackle it.

If someone gave you a minion tomorrow, what would be the first task you’d ask them to complete?

Clean my house!

E-books vs print books? E-readers vs. paper? Can’t we all just get along? What’s your preference?

I like them both. I’ve had a Sony Reader 505 whose battery recently died, and currently own both a Kobo and a Kindle 3; I also have bookshelves filled with print books. If there’s a book I particularly like that I bought as an ebook and it’s also available in print, I’ll buy a print copy too. And if there’s a print book I particularly like I buy an ecopy so I can take it with me when I travel for re-reads. My husband recently suggested that publishers need to start giving away an ecopy of a book with the purchase of a print copy the way some movies come with a digital copy of the movie to download onto your tablet/phone/computer. ;)

What project are you working on next?

I’m working on a series of related novellas following a bridal party. The last two manuscripts I’ve written are fairly heavy, so I’m enjoying working on something with a lot less angst.

How can readers find out more about you?

Readers can visit my website at http://LeahBraemel.com and can follow my blog there, or they can follow me on Twitter http://twitter.com/LeahBraemel or on my author page on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Leah-Braemel/95697551732 My blog also feeds to Goodreads and to my Amazon page as well.