I’m out the door this morning—early. O-dark-thirty early. And since I’m yawning over the keyboard, I’ll keep this short.

What is one vacation destination that many people think is fabulous, but which you personally have no desire to ever visit (or revisit)?

Remember, there are two contests prizes you can work on winning today. See yesterday’s post for details. I’ll check in later today to read your answers and start a list of vacation destinations I never want to visit! 🙂

In case we forget what today is all about.

I never got why folks would say “Happy” Memorial Day. Seems strange given it’s a day we honor our dead warriors. So instead, I’ll just say, enjoy your day. Play with the kids. Grill some burgers and hot dogs. Swim in the pool. That’s what my plans are.

For those of you who won things in recent weeks, be watching the mail! The red-headed spent Thursday packaging for me, and I went to the Post Office on Friday. So your booty should be arriving soon!

So, now I’m ready for another round of fun! I have two new contests I’m kicking off today. Both contests end June 13th!

1) The Promo Ho Contest

What can you win?
Depending on the number of entries, I will give away two $50.00 Amazon.com gift certificates.

What do you have to do to enter?
See the row of covers below? These books are in sore need of online reviews by happy readers. So I’m offering a tempting bribe. You know there won’t be as many entries for this contest as for the next one, but wouldn’t you like to have some cash to spend on new books? And who knows? Maybe you already have these stories sitting on your TBR pile. Time to move them to the top!

Give a review for one of these stories on one of the online bookstores. Send me the link. It can be the same review on three different sites, but send me three messages with the different links. Doesn’t matter if the review is on the Ellora’s Cave website, Smashwords, Amazon, Nook—send me the link to the review. Easy as that.

2) The Red Ribbon Fairy Contest

What can you win?
What you see in the picture below. This red-ribboned beauty is a four-inch tall Strangeling Fairy trinket box. Be warned before you enter! This will be the start of a new obsession.

What do you have to do?
Post comments. Here on my blog and on my Facebook. Every comment you make over the next two weeks will count as one entry. How easy is that?

Recently I read an awesome little contemporary erotic romance by the wicked talent, Delilah Devlin. Saddled has been in my nook for a few weeks and I’ve been waiting for a free minute to dig in. Now, I bet you thought this post would be my on-my-knees-kissing-DD’s-toes post, but I think I’ll surprise you. I’d rather talk about pushing the boundaries.

Without giving too much away, there was a scene in this book that had me shoving my nook across my pillow and calling my hubs in for some clarification (as if he’s the expert on ménage) (lmao) on the capability of a scene. Of course the “I don’t know, want to try it?” didn’t shock me—that’s a man for you—but the part that really got me was the boundary that had been broken. This is the first time I’ve read this in any book. (I can’t tell you what it is; you’ll have to buy the book) Then I started thinking about other novels of DD’s that I’ve read. Darkness Captured was another one of those that shocked me. There is a scene in that book with some foliage that made me a truly devoted fan. (Letting in on some of my deviant nature, lol)

Okay, so here’s what I’ve learned from my studying the fab Delilah Devlin’s writing:

1. If you are going to break a boundary, it has to work. It has to work in the world and it has to work in the flow of the book. Yes, Saddled threw me for a loop, but I was right back to reading it to find out what those two hot cowboys would do next.

2. If you are going to tease your writers with a boundary you plan on crossing, you better cross it in a big way and then deliver on the goods. Don’t give it to us, then cut it off. I want details, flavor, smells, and emotions. I want it all.

3. Know that not every book has to cross a boundary, but if you do it once, you’re fans/readers will expect it again at some point. This is what builds your loyal reader base. This is what keeps me coming back as a reader.

So, I’m sure that there are a million other lessons I could have learned about boundaries, but these were the three that stuck out. I hope you are now ready to dig into your own writing with new purpose and hint of the forbidden. Have a great weekend and a very safe Memorial Day!

When empath Piper Anast meets sexy, tormented vampire Bennett Slade, she stumbles headlong into a telepathic connection with his missing daughter—and lust.

As they close in on the evil creature holding his daughter—and each other—Piper’s powers turn deadly. She must face down demons she never knew she had if any of them are to survive her fury.

For more information about this book and to read an excerpt go here.

Buy here

Rachel’s writing career began at the impressionable age of twelve with a poem dedicated to the soldiers of Desert Storm. A dark macabre affair that earned her a publication in an anthology and many raised eyebrows from family and friends, she hid her poetry and artistic style for years…

Tucked away in the heart of Central Texas, with the loving support of her husband and three children, she dusted the cobwebs from her craft. Returning to those twisted regions of her mind, she creates dark urban fantasies and soul-searching paranormal romance.

To learn where love twists the soul and lights the shadows, visit Rachel at http://www.rachelfirasek.com/

The winner of the Mermaid Journal is….Melissa P! Melissa, send an email to me at del…@delilahdevlin.com with your snail mail address. Congrats!

For the rest of you, be sure to check back tomorrow. I’ll start TWO new contests that will run while I’m away.

I’m blogging in two places today. Be sure to check out the Samhain Blog where I’m talking about Cowboys, but be sure to comment here first to be entered in the Mermaid Journal contest (details in Tuesday’s post)! The winner will be announced tomorrow! ~DD

What can be hotter than Hell? In Darkness Captured, I tortured my characters, sending them to The Land of the Dead, forcing them to submit to untold indignities and dark pleasures. It was a completely decadent, utter joy to write. Here’s a snippet. Hope you enjoy!

“Delilah Devlin delivers an erotic tale of good and evil elevated to a higher level… The erotic scenes in this book are hotter than Hades and ten times more tempting. I dare you to resist!” 5 Cups, Coffee Time Romance

“Darkness Captured is…another steamy sensation!… Delilah Devlin is definitely the mistress of erotic romance!” Reader to Reader Reviews

“Another hot read of dark sensuality, riveting situations and jaw-dropping desire.” Fresh Pick!, Fresh Fiction

“Devlin creates memorable characters with exceptional emotional depth. Her magical worldbuilding sets as atmospheric scene for a fast-paced story. The sexual tension runs high and the encounters are smokin’ hot.” 4 Stars, RT Book Reviews

Driven by insatiable desire, a werewolf will enter hell to rescue a princess captured by the Master of Demons…

Headstrong and proud—a royal creature of sinuous grace, all primal instinct and lethal beauty—the shapeshifter Gabriella has agreed to serve as emissary to the vampires who rule in the shadows of the New Orleans night. But she cannot resist the pull of the demon she glimpses on the other side of a mirror, and she is drawn to him hungrily, through a magical portal into the Land of the Dead. Now an eternal nightmare awaits Gabriella at the hands of a mesmerizing dark lord who satisfies her every erotic need…while slowly devouring her soul.

The powerful warrior wolf Guntram Brandt is responsible for the safety of the vanished princess he swore allegiance to years before. Yet it is more than a soldier’s loyalty that pulls Guntram down into the depths of nightmare—for Gabriella ignites within him a burning animal passion that must be satisfied.

But when offered an escape, will she follow her rescuer to safety—torn between her lustful obsession with the dark lord who has enslaved her and her fierce sensual attraction to the only wolf who could ever master her?

Bright light streamed into The Master’s chamber, softened only by the mesh curtains closed against the morning sunlight.

Gabriella cracked open her eyes and listened, but heard no footsteps, no breaths or faint heartbeats. She inhaled through her nose, but found only the stale aroma of sex and Marduk’s fading musk.

She was alone.

Gingerly, she sat up, grimacing at the small intimate aches. Her mind spun with the images that flitted through her mind of all the nasty things she’d done. Her hand smoothed over her skin, touching on raised welts, still hot to the touch. A glance downward assured her they weren’t all that visible, were no longer red, just shallow stripes of raised flesh. She pinched one and groaned, loving the way the pain induced a heady arousal that rushed beneath her skin, flushing her, heating her sex.
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An Inspiring Man at 20″

There was a time when I drove an hour and a half each way to spend time with a man. Many know of his extraordinary strength, courage, ingenuity, and sexual prowess. He was always naked and prepared to conquer me, which is why I can tell you he is beyond gorgeous and a true hero. However, one day I turned around, and lost myself to another.

HA! A bit flowery, but oddly true. Way back when for almost three months I went once a week to visit and study a 76″ sculpture called The Lansdowne Herakles. That’s right, he was originally known as Herakles until the Romans decided to call him Hercules, but enough about that. It was no hardship to study this particular sculpture and yet, no matter how wonderful he is, Herakles was not who inspired me to write Tied Up For Love, that honor belong to a lesser character who was broken.

When the work I needed to do was finished, I would leave the courtyard where Herakles stood and spend time with Marsyas. The sculpture is small at less than 20″ and has lost some bits, but he still packs a powerful punch. While his pose, arms stretched above his head, is seductive the story behind it isn’t so much. I won’t go into details as it plays a part in Tied Up For Love, although I will tell you he pissed off the wrong Olympian, and paid a big price for being the best.

The sculpture has been with me in photos I’ve taken over the years. That’s right, I continue to visit him, although he’s currently not on show – shame. Anyway, this is such a memorable piece that when I was sat down to write another installment in my Mythological Messes Redux series, I chose Marsyas. Not only was he cut off at his prime, but later artisans and mythologists messed up his origins, and his importance was lost.

The picture above [from the Getty Museum website] hung on the wall above my monitor and I wrote this man a seriously hot and somewhat kinky second chance.

Thank you, Delilah, for allowing me to share how a sculpture fed my need to write Tied Up For Love.

Filla is a nymph used to the raucous ways of a Dionysian festival and allows a handsome newcomer, Marsyas, to strip her down for a passionate interlude while tied to a tree. After time spent alone, together, she knows little about him beyond the physical. However, her feelings for him are growing until he brings her back for the next festival, and suddenly she’s not sure of anything.

Love is found in the most unlikely places, but will it last?

eBook now available at All Romance.

Tilly Greene
WARNING! Red hot romances ahead!
www.tillygreene.com

ARe Cafe│Hot Thoughts Blog│Facebook│Twitter

I am slammed this morning—the six-year old is getting Citizen of the Month at her school and there’s going to be a special breakfast. Funny, considering she was kicked out of pre-school for misbehavior and spent three weekends in the high school detention center as a kindergartener for fighting. I’m not missing the breakfast!

So there will be no winner announced in the Mermaid contest this AM. I want to have the next prize ready to go and I have to look through a ton of entries here and Facebook. What I’m taking a helluva long way around saying is that you have one more shot at winning!

Post a comment here, or on Access Romance where I had to dash out another blog! So TWO more chances to win.

And as a side note, Her Soul to Keep is now ready for you to order! Be sure that if you do buy it, that you take a moment to tag, like and review it! I’d be forever grateful!

You can buy it at the following sites:
Buy at Amazon.com
Buy at Barnes & Noble
Buy at All Romance eBooks
Buy at Smashwords

Turn Around, I Forgot The Pig: Superstitions, Charms,
and How We Trick Ourselves Into Writing

by Michelle Moore and S. Reesa Herberth

Michelle

While I doubt that any of us are as bad as professional sports players (I, for one, have never worn the same underwear for a week!), we writers have our quirks. Quirks, idiosyncrasies, traditions… superstitions. Okay, we don’t really like to call them superstitions. That makes us sound so, well, superstitious. But I suspect everyone has some sort of a process they go through to get ready to write.

Like me, for an example. Before I settle in for an evening of productivity, I slip into a gold lame tuxedo jacket, braid some chameleon tails (naturally lost, of course) in my hair, and peddle a unicycle around the dining room table. Okay, not really. But there was a time when I couldn’t write a word without a bowl of Crunchy M&Ms at my side. Imagine my dismay and horror when Mars discontinued them. It wasn’t pretty.

Now that I have two novels under my belt, what’s my course of action? Am I as shortsighted in my choices? Well, as long as Starbucks stays solvent, I should be okay. Five days a week, I pack up my purple Dell mini, my purple thumb drive, my “Working Writer’s Daily Planner” and my little stuffed guinea pig and head to the neighborhood Starbucks. I do not leave without the pig. Let me repeat. Do. Not. Forget. The. Pig.

There are two acceptable tables, the preferred one is next to the mug display. The computer goes in the middle of the table, the planner goes on the window ledge, and the pig goes on the right hand side of the computer, sitting on top of my phone. Centered on top of my phone. I order the same drink, grande Java Chip Frappacino with four pumps peppermint and six scoops chips, and that goes on the left hand side of the computer on a napkin. Then and only then am I ready to write.

I’m insecure and I need some validation. Surely I’m not the only person out there with so many, err, issues. Help Michelle feel better about herself. Share some craziness. (Talking about yourself in the third person is not a requirement.)

—

Reesa

It only stands to reason that since Michelle and I write the same stories, and work at the same time, we’d have similar writing jinxes. I don’t -need- a grande skim caramel macchiato to write, but I’m not saying I’d ever turn one down. As outlined above, I clearly have to jockey for space on the table, but I’ve been known to bring my own little touchstones with me, namely a squishy pineapple stress toy that feels nice and bumpy in my hand when I need a moment of clarity.
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