Posting from LA! I skipped the Fairy Ball last night. Allergies were driving me nuts (sneezing, wheezing), so I went to bed early. 🙁 Had a good day though. Met with my agent. Sat on a panel with the awesome, L.A. Banks, Kim Kaye Terry, Glenda Wood from Harlequin and J.D. Mason. The panel went very well! I attended the EC luncheon, popped in briefly to the late afternoon Samhain party, but again, I was tired and coughing, so I ducked out and hung with Vivi Anna and Kim (she injured her knee dancing, so needed the company!). That’s the best about conferences—cementing friendships. ~DD

Cougars…really?

Thanks to Delilah for having me here today!

My topic today is one I’ve done before but still fascinates me. Cougars. Why is a woman of a certain age (and that age is getting younger and younger—I’m thirty-five and I’d bet in some circles I would qualify) who’s interested in a younger man worthy of a derogatory title? Do older men get named for dating younger women? No, because that’s considered the usual way of things.

Women who take charge of their lives and their sexuality and go after what they want—whether it’s a younger man or a career or staying home with their kids—have earned my respect. I have a good friend who’s engaged to someone younger and she’s a beautiful, sweet woman. He’s lucky to have her! I think to insinuate that women dating younger guys is all about sex isn’t true. Just like people can have friends of any age, love blooms between all different age groups. And that’s the way it should be.

Even if it’s not about love, who cares? I say have fun. Go for it. What’s been good for the guys since the beginning of time is definitely good for us ladies.

I’m writing two very different so-called “cougar” stories right now and I’ve written one before, Full Disclosure. One of the reasons I love writing them is that I like an age range in my heroines and unfortunately, unless you’re writing women’s fiction, heroines above 35 don’t seem prevalent unless they’re with a younger guy.

I like writing about older women. They’ve usually got a better handle on what they want in their careers and sexually too. But they have a whole new set of vulnerabilities to explore.

What about you? Do you dislike the term “cougar”? Do you enjoy books featuring older heroines?

Visit Cari Quinn at www.cariquinn.com or at her blog: Cari’s Blog

Or join her fabulous multi-author loop: Three Wicked Writers Plus Two

I’m in LA! If you are at the Romantic Times convention, please look me up. However, I won’t be spending ALL my time hanging out at the bar. I have a book to edit and get back into my editor’s hands. What can I say? Time got away from me before I left. So much for a vacation. 😥 In the meantime, welcome my guest, Adele Dubois! Oh, and remember, the MOONSTRUCK contest is still running! See details in Tuesday’s blog! ~DD

What’s Your Fantasy

by Adele Dubois

All my life I’ve been fascinated by motorcycles and convertibles. The sensations of wind and speed thrills like nothing else. When the weather’s warm, I love to ride in my convertible with the top down, as do the heroines in almost all of my books. Though I don’t own a motorcycle, my law-enforcement heroes do, and they ride hard and fast when they need to solve a crime or sport the heroine away from danger.

I live vicariously through my strong, sexy characters in the novella REV ME TWICE and it’s stand-alone novel REV ME UP. These e-books will be combined in trade paperback as REV ME this fall.

Though I’m not fearless enough to ride a motorcycle in real life, I can live out the fantasy with my story characters. Isn’t that the best thing about fiction? We can go where we want to go and do whatever we please, including having the most amazing sex imaginable with a hot guy who looks good on a Harley.

What’s your favorite fictional fantasy?

Visit Adele Dubois at www.adeledubois.com/.

I’m on my way to LA for the RT convention. I won’t be back until Sunday. In the meantime, I have some fun guests lined up to keep you entertained. Don’t be shy about commenting! ~DD

I’ve blogged about Cowboys before and had so much fun with the Cowboy conversation starters, I thought I’d do it again on Delilah’s Blog.

First, what’s not to love about cowboys? Having lived in Texas, on a small 100-acre ranch outside of San Antonio, I know a little about cows—they’re dumber than dirt. I know a little about horses—just waving at them doesn’t stop them from running over you. I know a little about building fences—100 acres takes 9 months of weekends to completely fence, almost as painful as having a baby. We had the fortune of raising some exotic animals for a while in the form of ratites—I know, what’s a ratite? Think Ostrich, Emu and Rheas, those really big, flightless birds that are almost as dumb as cows. I learned a lot from the big birds. Ostriches can kick the crap out of you, Emus have a six-feet vertical jump and it hurts when they land on your head, and a Rhea male sits the eggs and doesn’t like it when you rob his nest.

I no longer live on that ranch—it was killing me to re-fence after every rain storm. After 14 years working it, we decided to try our hands as business owners in Arkansas. I miss the Texas hill country and the cowboys that came along with it. I always wanted my daughters to marry cowboys, but so far that hasn’t happened. And since I was already married when we moved to the Texas hill country, I didn’t get the opportunity to marry a cowboy myself, not that I mind having married the computer geek husband I have. He’s tough when it comes to trying his hand at ranching and he doesn’t give up.

However, IF I was single, here a few conversation starters I came up with for an encounter with a cowboy. Maybe one of you can use them since I’m already taken. Tell me what you think and if you have a few of your own, I’d love to hear them. Leave a conversation starter for a chance to win a download of FIT TO BE TIED or HONOR BOUND.

10. Bull riding or team roping?
9. Felt or straw cowboy hat?
8. Ever tipped a cow?
7. Skinny-dip or suit?
6. Saddle or bareback?
5. Where did you get your first kiss?
4. Candles or stars?
3. Ride much?
2. Do you sleep in the nude or with your boots on?
1. Do you own a pair of chaps?

I love to write about contemporary cowboys and cowboys of the old west. Check out SEX ED on Amazon. He’s a cowboy caught between a promise and a request he can’t ignore.

About Myla Jackson

Myla Jackson, aka Elle James, aka Delilah Devlin’s little sister. Woot!
Twenty years of livin’ and lovin’ on a South Texas ranch raising horses, cattle, goats, ostriches and emus left an indelible impression on Myla Jackson, one she likes to instill in her red-hot stories. Myla pens wildly sexy, fun adventures of all genres including historical westerns, medieval tales, romantic suspense, contemporary romance and paranormal beasties of all shapes and sexy sizes. or spending time with her family. She lives in the tree-covered hills of Northwest Arkansas with her husband of 20+ years and her muses— the human-wanna-be canines—Chewy and Sweetpea. To learn more about Myla Jackson and her stories visit her website at https://www.mylajackson.com.

Meg’s blog is below, but I have an important message to share first! Operation Auction, in support of Fatin and her family, is still ongoing, but the chance to win my offerings ends later today. I have two things you might be interested in bidding for! ~DD

For Readers: A tote back with the reader’s choice of three signed print books, an Amazon gift card for $25.00, and various promo gifts from Delilah Devlin. Delilah does ship internationally! Bid Here

For Writers: Co-founder of RosesColoredGlasses.com and multi-published author, Delilah Devlin offers a one-on-one plotting bootcamp, with critique of the partial, when written, plus a second critique after revisions. The writer may work at his or her own pace. Bid Here

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Next month I’m traveling to Los Angeles to attend my first Romantic Times convention. This is, frankly, a Very Big Deal. RT draws both writers and readers, unlike some other writing conferences that are mainly devoted to writers. At RT you can expect to meet and talk to people who might actually buy your books instead of trying to find out how to meet your editor or your agent. And because I’m going to be meeting readers, I needed to pick up some promotional materials, “promo” for short.

This was a hot topic among the Nine Naughty Novelists, seven of whom are attending the convention. What would we bring? The possibilities were endless: pens, magnets, Post-its, keychains, bubble blowers, chocolates, etc., etc., etc. At first I didn’t even want to think about it, but one morning I came across the only piece of promo I’d ever hung onto for any length of time: a bar of sandalwood-scented soap.

Soap became my first promo item. I found a site online where I could buy small bars for not a whole lot of money. I found another site that sold organza bags for ditto. I chose a scent (cherry almond) that seemed unlikely to make people think it was edible (as opposed to, say, chocolate mint). I printed up cards to go in each bag with my name, Web site, and last two book titles. And I spent a couple of evenings in front of the television stuffing soap into bags (at least my hands smelled great).

Okay, all well and good. And then somebody on one of my discussion loops mentioned book thongs. Book thongs? When I Googled them, I found directions for making what amounted to a beaded bookmark using waxed linen thread. Seemed easy enough, so I hied myself off to Michaels and bought a few supplies. Little did I know. It turns out I have a great affinity for bright shiny things (sort of like a magpie) and a hitherto unknown fascination with stringing beads. The book thongs took over my life. I bought a large jar of miscellaneous beads at an antique mall. I started checking the Sunday ads for bead specials at Michaels and Hobby Lobby. I bought a stamp with my name so that I could attach a label to each thong to identify me. To date I’ve made about a hundred of these suckers, and I may reach over a hundred by the time I head to LA. If nobody wants them, I’m going to have enough stocking stuffers for the rest of my life.

If you’re a good businesswoman, you’re supposed to keep careful track of how much you spend on promo each year so that you don’t exceed a particular percentage of your profits. One of these days, I’ll probably sit down and add everything up. But to tell you the truth, I’m a little afraid of doing that—I have a sneaking suspicion that the total is going to be really depressing. Still, I found a new hobby and my house will probably smell like cherry almond for a while.

In the meantime, anybody want a book thong?

Yum! Of course, the title caught me, and then that hint of nipple. What can I say? I’m so easy! Had to invite Lucy here. She appears in this volume! ~DD

Our readers asked for it, and now we’re pleased to present Volume II of first-time lesbian encounters inspired by Katy Perry’s hit song! Seven returning authors continue to arouse, plus six new authors will not disappoint.

This diverse collection travels the globe and the ages. No two settings or circumstances are alike, proving that women from every walk of life and culture are curious and eager to explore their full sexuality…with each other.

Buy links:
Ravenous Romance
All Romance Books

Info about Lucy:
Lucy is a graduate of the University of Derby, where she studied Creative Writing. During her first year, she was dared to write an erotic story – so she did. It went down a storm and she’s never looked back. Lucy has had stories published by Cleis Press, Noble Romance, Ravenous Romance and Xcite Books. She is also the editor of Uniform Behaviour – Steamy Stories About Men and Women in Uniform. Find out more at https://www.lucyfelthouse.co.uk.

[Psst! Find details about a contest running today at the bottom of this blog!]

Faking It

By Kathy Kulig

Don’t be fooled by the title. This post isn’t exactly what you might think it is. I recently took a class titled: Act Like a Writer given by NY Times bestselling author Jonathan Maberry and actor, author and teacher Keith Strunk. This course teaches acting techniques to help writers learn to create a strong public persona to give better pitches, workshops, readings and just improve communication with publishing professionals. I knew I was going to hate parts of this class, and I was right, but I’m so glad I took it. Most writers are introverts (aka hermits) who feel most comfortable hidden away in their writing caves. Stick them in a room full of publishing professionals and they’re usually eyeing the nearest exit. So how do introverts give the appearance of being intelligent, articulate writing professionals? Partly by faking it before we make it. And also by pushing the limits of our comfort zones.

The first day of class was a nightmare. I had to do a mock pitch of my book. I’ve done tons of pitches before. Even though I rewrote mine the night before, I’d printed it up on a nice card for reference. I felt pretty confident I’d do the pitch okay. Then Jonathan said we were going to be videotaped. Ugh! Then he said , “No notes.” Ack! In seven years of pitching, I’ve never done one without a note card for reference. I said two lines, looked at the camera and went blank. Gawd. Awful. Worse than that, the clip was uploaded on our loop for the other nine students to review and critique, reliving the embarrassment. The final day of class I had to do a long pitch standing in front of the awful camera. I was better than before, but I see where I can improve. And I have since thought of where I can improve the content of my pitch. I will be going to a conference this month and pitching. I will not be using notes. I’ll let you know how I do.

You’ll never see me get on stage to act, and you probably won’t see me walk into a ball room at a conference saying, “Ta Da, I’m here!” But I do feel more confident about presenting myself as a professional. When it comes to my work, work I’m proud of, work I’m representing, I can show my passion, commitment and enthusiasm because I’m the best advocate for my books.

A note to readers: I’ve talked to readers at conferences who said they were nervous and shy about talking to their favorite authors. Believe me I understand about being shy. But authors love, love to have readers come up to them and say they enjoy their books. Trust me it’ll make their day. If you’re still nervous, find me and I’ll introduce you. I’m attending the RWA National Conference in NY City June 28-July 2. And Romanticon in Akron, Ohio September 29-October 2.

*Has anyone ever gone to one of the big conferences like Romantic Times and felt over whelmed? Or lost in the crowd? What do you do?

Emerald Dungeon my new book with Ellora’s Cave was released today March 23rd. Yay! It’s part of the 1-800-DOM-help author series. I’d love to share the cover and blurb. Buy Link

I have a cool trailer if you’d like to check it out: Book Trailer

Dana’s summer job as a musician in an Irish castle takes an adventurous turn after she witnesses a BDSM scene in the dungeon, and her submissive side is aroused.

Jack is a sexy Dominant who recognizes the sub smoldering beneath the demure exterior. His skillful commands take Dana beyond her darkest erotic fantasies.

Whips, restraints and increasing levels of pain heighten her passion, but complete surrender and ecstasy is out of her reach. Will a summer affair be enough to find what they both need? The appearance of a mysterious 1-800-DOM-help business card offers to guide them. Secrets and strange events around the castle only add to their troubles. If Dana can accept Jack with complete trust and surrender, then ultimate pleasure and true love is possible.

Thanks so much for having me as a guest Delilah. It’s always fun to check out your blog. ~KK

Surprise contest! Head to Wild and Wicked Cowboys to enter! We’re giving away 6 erotic romance books today! Stop by for details, and good luck!

Psst! Yesterday’s winner is named at the end of this post! ~DD

Using Romance Clichés for Fun and Profit

by Anitra Lynn McLeod

You’ll never believe what inspired my erotic Onic Empire series . . .

wait for it . . .

a romance cliché.

Yep.

You know the one where the woman is almost always a virgin and the man is a total slut? Yeah, that always bothered me because all the guys must be banging one very tired (and IMHO one very lucky) woman.

Now, this cliché has really gone by the wayside, but when I started reading, this was practically a standard part of romance novels.

So, I was thinking about virginity, and why it’s so sacred for a woman but not a man, and then I got to thinking about what if everyone lost their virginity in the same manner at roughly the same age, and what if the act of taking virginity was a religious rite?

And so the Onic Empire was born.

It’ll take more than one man’s love to tame her wild heart.

Bithia, newly crowned empress of Diola, indulges herself with as many men as it takes to satisfy her voracious passion. Now that it’s time to continue the family line, though, her advisors expect the unthinkable: for her to submit to one man from a sexually primitive planet.

Drahka disobeyed his tribe’s strict sexual rules once. The shame still haunts him. He longs for a fresh start, but breaking one cardinal rule—a man gives, a woman takes—is not an option. His struggle to learn local customs is complicated by a mentor whose eyes hunger for the empress…and for him.

Viltori is exhausted. He’s tried to teach Drakha that there are many ways to find pleasure, only to be met with anger, even violence. Touching the handsome primitive only sharpens his unbearable lust for Bithia, making him wonder if execution for failure wouldn’t be a blessing.

When Bithia witnesses the results of Viltori’s training, she realizes only these two men can fill her empty heart, inspiring her to take command of the throne at last. Except those who’ve held the reins thus far have a sinister reason for keeping Bithia—and her new consorts—in their place.

Warning: This erotic romance contains a lusty empress, a primitive alpha male, a dedicated acolyte with domineering tendencies, copious amounts of hot m/m and m/f/m sex, secret torments, burning desires clashing with duty, and a little bit of meddling by future gods.

Read an Excerpt

Yesterday’s winner is…Dawn Jackson! Dawn, congrats, and email me about your prize!