I just have to share this story with ya’ll. My hubby was gone for a week, visiting family in OK. On the flight back he tried to upgrade to first class but it was already full. His assigned seat was at the very back of the plane. He made himself comfortable, sat back and waited for the plane to take off.

After a while he saw the stewardess walking his way with a younger man following her. They stopped when they came to my hubby and the stewardess explained that the man wanted to give up his first class seat to him, and thanked him for serving our country. You see, hubby was wearing this hat.

Hubby lied about his age and was only sixteen when he went into the service. There aren’t too many folks left in the world that can say they served in WWII. Hubby politely refused, and thanked the younger man. However, the younger man insisted and the stewardess helped hubby re-locate to a first class seat.

Nice story, isn’t it?

There are all kinds of heroes out there. They’re bigger than life in our books. The fire fighter, navy seal, mercenary. You hardly read about the shoe salesman who raised two step-daughters as if they were his own, or the single mother who paid for her child’s college tuition by working a second job as a night janitor somewhere. Yes, women are heroes, too! In fact, we’re all heroes in the eyes of someone.

No one really wants to read about a hero who sells shoes for a living, or owns a fish market. Nothing exciting about that. I know when I pick up a romance book I want a hunky man who lives by his own rules and takes what he wants. Someone who always seems to know what to do. And has an exciting history that sparks the imagination. I want the fire fighter, navy seal and mercenary! When I read a romance novel I want to lose myself in a fantasy, if only for a short while.

My latest hero is a modern day cowboy in The Cowboy Way. A torrid romance published with Whiskey Creek Press Torrid. It’s received rave reviews from Coffee Time (5 cups), Romance Studio (5 hearts), Romance Junkies (blue ribbon rating of 5), Night Owl Romance (4.5 hearts) and Whipped Cream Reviews (best book rating). You can read them all here.

Blurb - Arson and murder. An escaped convict driven by revenge complicates the lives of a sexy cowboy and the rancher’s daughter he’s determined to protect.

Excerpt -

“I want to talk to you.”

“Really? And here I thought you stopped to kiss me.” What was she saying? Baiting a man like Chase was dangerous.

There was a long pause. Something flickered in Chase’s eyes. His expression gave nothing away, though. Lacey began to feel nervous again, though for a different reason than the one back at the house.

“The cowboy way, ma’am?” His tone was soft, dangerous, carrying the subtle threat of an unspoken promise.

Lacey swallowed nervously. The cowboy way? That was twice he’d used that expression. She wondered what it meant. An explosion of heat uncurled inside her belly, as her imagination ran rampant. Of the two of them locked in a hot, passionate embrace. No longer was Chase’s mouth firm and unyielding, but soft and sensuous. His eyes darkened with smoldering intent. Yet instincts warned Lacey that Chase was just as dangerous now as he had been a moment ago, in anger. She tried to jerk the reins from his hands, suddenly afraid she was about to find out what the cowboy way was.

“Let go.” Misty moved nervously beneath her, obviously sensing her growing panic.

In the blink of an eye his expression changed. “Not until you listen to what I have to say.”

“You can’t bully me, Chase.” The wind blew at her loose hair, and she reached up impatiently to wipe it out of her eyes. “I won’t let you.”

He reared back his head and laughed at her comment. “And how do you propose to stop me? I could do anything I want to you right now and you wouldn’t be able to stop me.”

Lacey tightened her lips in frustration, even while the thought of what that something could be caused a tingle of excitement to zing through her. As his hard mouth curved upwards in a crooked smile that was sexy as sin, she wished she could wipe that arrogant expression off his rugged face. He was so sure of himself. The look in his eyes told her to go ahead and try. Well, she’d taken self defense lessons a few years back and wasn’t as helpless as he thought.

“Then maybe you should have warned me about you, this morning!” She jerked on the reins again, harder this time. When he wouldn’t release them Lacey reached out and slapped him across the cheek. She caught her breath, realizing a man like Chase might strike back. He didn’t look the type to turn the other cheek, or ignore a challenge. Their eyes clashed in silent battle.

Then without warning he reached forward and pulled her from her horse and into his arms. His gaze dropped to her mouth before returning to her eyes. “I think you need to be taught a lesson.”

“No!”

“Yes!” He hissed. He crushed her to him and slammed his mouth down on hers, locking any protest deep in her throat. Lacey struggled but it didn’t seem to matter to Chase. He over powered her easily, while managing to control his stallion’s nervous movements with ease and expertise. Lacey brought her hands up and pushed against his massive, rock hard chest. But it was like trying to move a mountain. She whimpered beneath his attack, becoming aware of things she didn’t want to notice.

She began to slip towards the ground and ceased her movements, bringing her arms up to cling to Chase’s neck. It brought Lacey closer to him. He growled, forcing her mouth open until he could slip his tongue inside. Unwillingly, she began to melt under his rough kiss, returning the thrust of his tongue against hers. A sharp need of desire uncurled inside her belly, turning her blood hot. She was afraid of not being strong enough to deny him if he should seek more than a kiss.

Lacey had never been handled so ruthlessly by any man before, no one had dared. And while she balked at his arrogance, she couldn’t deny the feelings he roused. The thrill of his mouth on hers, the feel of his whiskers against her tender skin and the taste of something sweet on his breath heightened her arousal. Her nostrils flared, greedily taking in the masculine scent of sweat, leather and horse.

Most of all his arousal.

Three (3) readers will randomly be chosen to receive a free download of this book. All you have to do is leave a comment on this post. I’ll announce the winners a week from today (Friday 11/6) on my Romance with an Attitude Blog so be sure to check it.

I know it’s early but I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season this year. It will be here before you know it! Please check out my website at: www.toryrichards.com and join my monthly newsletter. The join my yahoo group icon is on my blog and website.

Tootles!

One of the great things about writing while listening to Heavy Metal is the wide range of lyrics that come across my speakers from the various bands I’m jamming. Being a male romance writer, the supposed joke is that I’m not emotionally expressive enough, so in my writing life I can show the love I have to give.  For the record, I’m not talking about spandex bullshit metal like Stryper or Warrant.  Those guys aren’t metal.

Obviously this is just a bunch of crap but I’m not here to set the record straight on the Male romance writer.  Being a paranormal/Urban Fantasy/Kinky writer, I have to decide with my characters what their issues are and how they’re going to resolve them.  Listening to music helps keep me in that world until my writing is done for the day.  Writing dark stories with themes of trusting the self and our mates, having to get over old issues, learning to love and live again, those are heavy things.

Much of the Metal that I listen to deals with these themes, as well as jolted lovers and that helps me to build stories with worlds that are vast, images that appeal to all a reader’s senses and characters who are REAL.

What?  YOU don’t want real?  Shame on you!  Readers aren’t looking for characters that have their EXACT same problems, but rather I believe that readers want to see how characters deal with similar situations and get out of it to get that coveted HEA.  The fact that no one I personally know can relate to Echo from Echo’s Odyssey is probably a joyous thing since he’s an assassin for Feary.  Slipknot  helped create those feelings of loneliness and self betrayal. So did Sevendust.  Lyrically those two bands are some of the darkest out there because they deal with the scariest thing of all:  Self.

The theme of Echo’s Odyssey is that true love can conquer everything (sounds like any romance novel huh?) if the parties would just let it.

In Echo’s Odyssey, the wars of Faery are over, but for the assassin Echo and his lover Alexandrya, a new war is just beginning. They return to Faery expecting to be reunited with the third member of their triad, the princess Serenissa, only to find she and Faery itself are threatened by even greater peril.

Heavenly Bodies out now in Print!  BUY!

Dream Theater has been a new inspiration despite the fact that I jammed them when I was younger.  I lost touch with a them after the 4th album because it wasn’t heavy or dark enough for me.  But my brother sent me some newer cds of theirs and now I’ve got them in MP3 rotation as I plan out a new novel and work the followup to “I Will Submit to You, Master” while dealing with the typical trust issues in a BDSM novel along with her growth issues at being forced to look at her own reality.  Particularly just the flow of the album  Train of Thought because of ambience created by the band.

That’s what writers, do, we create ambiance using the flow of our words to create worlds readers escape to.  If I’ve done my job well, then I’ve taken you out of this reality and shown you another one.

Sascha Illyvich
Sascha’s Secrets…stories so hot they must be whispered
Listen to the UnNamed Romance Show - Mondays at 1 PM PST on Radio Dentata - where we talk with the hottest in romance today!

These last few month’s I’ve been busy working on some projects. It’s fun delving into world and new characters. Getting to know all about them and bring them to life. When I write that first word I get a thrill.

As the words unfold I get even more excited. Writing a book is like a painting to me. First I study the page. Decide how to lay my colors for the best picture. Each piece has to work with each other to create something great.

Lately I’ve had this story I’m working on. It is a story that came out of the blue so I didn’t sit down and plan anything. Just sat down and wrote. As I wrote the plot became more and more intricate. I like when it get intricate and complicated it keep me on my toes. So this story is flowing so well that I get up each day and can’t wait until I have a moment to write it. Usually I don’t go back and read a story over until I am done but I needed to make sure a thread I had written was correct so I went back and re-read the part. Before I knew it I was caught up in the story. LOL. I realized the story so far was real good.

Hmmm…this is a back to basics way for me. Let the thoughts flow and go as they will. My writing process has changed as I write each story and I love moving with it.

Next up there is a dream that keeps bugging me. I think it is calling out for a story.

Have a great weekend.

McKenna Jeffries
http://www.mckennajeffries.com
…. sensual, edgy, unexpected

Blog: http://www.mckennajeffries.com/blog
Chat Group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/McKennaJeffriesList
Free Reads Site: http:/ /www.satinnotes.com/

Conquering Jazz - What’s a woman to do when she unwittingly makes a tantalizing proposition to her best friend?

Be brazen, bold and set some ground rules.Her offer. One night of carnal bliss. No emotion
allowed.

His counter offer. A continued affair to fulfill all their sexual cravings.

His hidden agenda. Conquer to make sure their affair never ends.

Buy here at Liquid Silver Book.

eBay has engendered itself into our workplace.  As an overview, this phenomenon has taken our culture by Perfect Storm.  There it is, so common, that governor Sarah Palin used it to sell a state owned jet.  And its stock is considered by money people like Michael Nesmith as indicators as to the direction of our market.  We have five computers, of which, one seems to be a virtual eBay satellite.  As we have written previously, Zi buys!  He finds beauty to behold in treasures that unfold on his screen.   Yes, Zi got a few more shirts, today, didn’t need them.  The day ended up being quite interesting.  We’d be in the middle of discussing dialogue between characters, obviously he multi-tasking, and suddenly he’d yelp, “Gotcha!”  He won what he thought was beauty.  What’s thought to be one man’s discard is another man’s treasure. 

Margaret Hungerford wrote, “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” She was an Irish novelist in the 19th century who wrote light romantic fiction.  However, this saying first appeared in the 3rd century BC in Greek. I find it ironic and inspiring that a romance writer would be attributed to that quote.  Every day we explore and sexplore beauty and its play in love and romance.   It is so dag-nabbit-snap-dragon easy to write about traditional beauty.  Easy to love a gorgeous woman.  It’s equally simplistic to adore a hunky man but give that dude a goiter and he ain’t dating.  We believe that love is goiter-blind, and will try to discover a deeper purpose in love. 

A movie from 1945 called The Enchanted Cottage played out this concept when what was considered a homely housekeeper falls in love with a scarred soldier.  He saw her as beautiful, and she simply could not see his scars.  In our new manuscript, LOVE LETTERS, our hero Rich Longar has a burn scar that is predominate on his face.  Our heroine Lauren Pike maybe a bit fleshy, hippy, zaftig, voluptuous, much of the Mae West character.  We found great pleasure in building their love-ship.  And aptly felt a certain requiting when it unfolded before us.   

You have to adore Mae West.  She once said, “A dame that knows the ropes isn’t likely to get tied up.”  Additionally, she stated, “A hard man is good to find.”  She is attributed with, “A man in the house is worth two on the street.” and “A man’s kiss is his signature.”  We simply adore M. West.  She said, “Anything worth doing is worth doing slowly”, “Cultivate your curves they may be dangerous but they won’t be avoided”, and “He who hesitates is a damned fool”.  Our last two are these, “I didn’t discover curves; I only uncovered them” and “I believe it is better to be looked over than it is to be overlooked”. Lauren Pike is Mae Westian in her sexually overt and vivacious personality as well as her curvaceous appearance.   

The question is would every man find her beautiful?  And the answer is simply, no.  The question is would every woman find Rich Longar attractive?  And the answer is simply, no.  There is a beauty that each holds that has to find synergy with the other.  As writers and especially as romance writers we have to seek that potential interconnect and grow its viability so the reader can feel their raw lust and love.   So every day the beauty is in the eye of the beholder and we are its agents.  

In KILLER DOLLS our heroine purports herself as a tad dowdy and our hero has deep emotional scars that hold him in abeyance to accepting love.  Neither perfect but perfectly matched.  We hope you enjoy the following excerpt.

EXCERPT

They got a room, asked to use the phone, storm had the lines down, asked about a cell phone and the clerk, a man of advanced age, looked at Taut as if he were an alien, paid in cash, parked out of view, and entered a nice but tacky cabin room.

“I see that shabby-chic is nouveau. The guest towels say… well used. Look, a bottle of shampoo. I used this stuff when I was a kid. It bubbles.” Letti was rambling and gently ranting to cover her fear. She now understood the gravity of the situation; it was real, though she did not know why two very evil men were chasing them. Nor why they had her dolls. Why? The dual whys came out in unattractive rumbling, its blasphemy a cruel sacrilege.

“I am sleeping where?” asked Taut. The room had one bed.

“Between me and the door… and that window.”   

 ABOUT AUTHORS

Their combined accomplishments include book publications in print and/or electronic versions of twenty-four titles, fifteen romance specific, ten manuscripts pending, EPPIE finalist for three books, Cecil Whig award, Hob-Nob Reader’s Choice Award, written over 500 shorts with numerous published in both nationwide and small press magazines, articles published in various local, city and statewide newspapers, including four as a Guest Columnist in addition to trade articles. Both are members of various writing groups. 

KILLER DOLLS IS AVAILABLE:  Unaware that bio-terrorists are using her handcrafted dolls to attack the innocent, Letti Noel finds herself falling for Taut Johnson, an undercover FBI agent.  Even as deceit is a growing barrier to their love, it’s the stalking terrorists that are a threat to their lives.  

We’d love to hear from anyone interested in what we do.  Anyone who writes us at angelicahartandzi@yahoo.com and leaves an s-mail address, we will send you a GIFT and add you to any future mailings. 

CONTEST ~ Anyone who leaves a comment will be entered into a drawing for a free e-book.

Angelica Hart and Zi

KILLER DOLLS ~ September 2009         SNAKE DANCE ~ February 2010         CHASING GRAVITAS ~ July 2010

angelicahartandzi.com     ~     angelicahartandzi@yahoo.com

KILLER DOLLS can be purchased at Champagne Books ~ www.champagnebooks.com