I’m over at Silken Sheets and Seduction today and I’m talking about kinks and fetishes. Rubber. Cuckolding. Feet. Spanking. Food play. Ooh! Exciting!

Come on over and let’s discuss what makes a kink a kink and a fetish a fetish.

It’s the third Wednesday of the month so you know the drill! I’m over at Silken Sheets and, today, I’m talking about using those tough times we experience to write richer, more emotional tales. Readers want to take a ride on an emotional roller coaster, especially when they pick up a romance novel, and it’s my job as a rider to give them the best damn ride I can manage. So hop on over and give me your thoughts.

Dianthus as Long and Short Reviews (LASR) reviewed Between Friends and gave it four stars. She called it one for the keeper pile! Woohoo! You can read more of the review here.

CozyReader at The Romance Reviews also read and reviewed Between Friends. “The sex scenes were so scorching hot that I am surprised that my e-reader did not go up in flames.” SCORE! You can read more of the review here.

You can find Between Friends at Amazon, B&N and Bookstrand.

I’m blogging at Silken Sheets and Seduction about clean slates, the New Year and how totally fabulous 2011 was for me. I’m so stoked about what 2012 has in store and hope to have some coming soon news in the next few weeks!

Come on over and say hi!

I’m blogging at Silken Sheets today about Eartha Kitt, naughty Christmas lists and bringing back that old bangin’ sex life after adding a baby to the mix. So hop on over and let me know what you think!

I went back to the original files and revamped them before editing and formatting. I did the covers for Spurs and Sparks myself using what I learned in one of the super fabulous Not Going to Conference Conference workshops on Romance Divas. I went with simple designs because I have a theme in mind for my short stories that I’ll be self-publishing. I want the covers to have a sort of uniform look, if that makes sense.

So anywho. Spurs and Sparks are available at All Romance eBooks (PDF, epub, prc, html, and lit formats,) B&N and Amazon. Once I work up the courage to tackle Smashwords, they’ll show up on Apple, Kobo, Sony, etc. They’re short stories (6000-11,000 words) so I’ve priced them at 99 cents. Anything else seems a bit too high, especially for previously published works.

Daphne never imagined the sound of spurs could make her so hot. She craves rough and tumble rancher Cord. The idea of burying her nose against his neck and inhaling that deliciously masculine scent of leather, sweat and cedar drives her wild.

No matter how badly he yearns to bring Daphne to his bed, Cord views her as strictly off-limits. She’s just the sort of woman he could fall in love with–and that simply wouldn’t do.

Daphne isn’t so easily discouraged. He’s exactly what she needs and she’ll prove it to him with one night of raw, unchained passion.

Reader Advisory: This book features steamy trysts with a cowboy, light BDSM, a rather creative use of a belt and graphic language.

*Note* This book was previously published but has been revised and expanded for your reading pleasure.

Available at Amazon, B&N, and All Romance eBooks.

Oh-so-sexy electrician Logan Weatherly is the only man art gallery owner Bibi Velez wants heating up her sheets. For months, they’ve danced around their mutual attraction with playful smiles and teasing banter, both of them terrified to risk their friendship on a steamy fling.

But the sparks fly when a busted shower forces a naked and dripping wet Bibi onto Logan’s porch in search of help. Their pent-up passion explodes in a night of wanton lust that leaves them wondering just what changes the morning will bring…

Reader Advisory: Contains a wicked hot tryst on a tile floor and one very inventive wake-up featuring super steamy anal play

*Note* This book was previously published but has been revised and lengthened.

Available at Amazon, B&N and All Romance eBooks.

Today I’m blogging at Silken Sheets and Seduction about grooming and erotica. Yeah. I know. Weird topic but I’m kind of odd like that. Hop on over and let me know what you think!

It’s weird. I always thought I’d have to get a book deal with one of the Big 6 publishers or write a breakout book for EC to make it onto the Erotica bestseller list at Amazon but that’s not how it happened. It happened with an 11,000 word short story about a kinky couple’s love of BDSM that I self-published myself in May.

For the month of November, that short story has been hopping on and off of the bestseller list. The sales are fan-fucking-tastic and I couldn’t be happier. This was a book I’d typically send to EC but I decided to take a chance in May and do it myself. This is my career, and I decided it was time to take charge and stop being so damn wishy-washy about everything. I think it’s probably the safest bet to try to reach as many readers as possible in as many formats as possible. I want readers to be able find me easily and quickly. I want to offer them lots of sexy, sinful and entertaining content at a great price.

Self-publishing was something of an experiment for me. Lots of author friends were taking the plunge. Some reported amazing numbers, some awful numbers and some were right in the middle. I tempered my expectations and decided to put the story up without any promo or any of the other usual business just to see what was possible.

At first, I made the huge-o mistake of pricing the book in no-man’s land:  $1.99. Seriously, no, no, no. That price point seems to make books invisible. I sold, like, 11 copies that first month. LOL. What a joke, right?

So I changed the price to 99 cents, played around with the blurb and added a subtitle in parenthesis (An Erotic BDSM Short.) Slowly, the story picked up steam and around late June it settled into the 14-20K range on Amazon. I was cool with that. It was doing better than most of my EC, Samhain, Liquid Silver, etc backlist books. I saw a little bump in sales any time I had a new release with EC or Siren. That proved to me that new releases are very important for maintaining sales and finding new readers.

And, then, in October, a lovely, random reader gave it a 5 Star review. I was over the moon, of course. I love knowing my stories resonate with readers. I mean, I wouldn’t write them if I didn’t want to entertain, right?

So that review showed up and interesting things started to happen. Pound of Flesh started to race down the rankings to the high 2000′s and 3000′s. I hit the bestseller list at 99 and then 81 and then 76. I was stunned. Had one review made all the difference? Or was it that Siren menage book that introduced me to a new pool of readers who seemed to connect with my work? I really don’t know. All I know is that something totally awesome happened.

Pound of Flesh will probably sell right around 600 copies for the month by the end of tonight. I’d been averaging 100-150 copies a month. That’s a pretty big jump. Do I think it will last forever? Nah. But–huge but–now I know what’s possible. After four years of writing for large epublishers, I finally hit the bestseller list–on my own. That was a huge moment of validation for me, especially coupled with the fact that I was recently offered a nifty new short story opportunity. (Hope to have more details on that one soon!)

Does this mean I’ll only self-publish from now on? Um, no. LOL. It’s a lot of work. You have to write, handle the editing, find a cover artist, do all the formatting, etc. I can’t imagine doing that with every book. Also, I really enjoy working with my editor at EC and I’m falling in love with the reader community at Siren. I’ve never had such amazing emails and messages!

I do, however, think I’m going to streamline in 2012. I’m going to write for Siren, EC, that short story opportunity, and myself. I have some pretty filthy bits that are similar to Pound of Flesh but longer. Those will probably go up next because that’s what readers seem to want (and what I enjoy writing, lol.)

So. Anywho. I guess the point of this post is to say that all kinds of totally cool shit is possible now. You don’t have to just go with a Big 6 or a big epublisher or a small press. You can do strike out on your own and make things happen. Or, you can do like me, and do them all. Why not, right?

Between Friends has popped up on Amazon so if that’s your preferred shopping spot (it’s totally mine because that 1-Click button on my Kindle is my crack!) hop on over here and snap up a copy of this deliciously dirty bit of MMF erotic romance.

Here’s an ADULT teaser excerpt if you’re on the fence!

ADULT EXCERPT

She was so unbelievably tight. He doubted he’d last long at all once he got inside that snug passage. As he worked her ass, she relaxed and pushed back against him. Her hips shimmied excitedly as the digits of his other hand strummed her clit.

“Oh, baby,” Mick said with a loud groan. “No more.” He sounded almost pained as he pulled out of that sweet mouth. “I don’t want to come yet.”

Eddie grinned, certain Mick was thinking the same thing as him. “Trade me spots, Mick?”

“Gladly,” Mick said and slid out from beneath her.

Whitney tossed a curious look over her shoulder as Eddie removed his fingers from her bottom. “Care to clue me in?”

“It’s time.” Eddie held her gaze. She gulped and nodded understandingly. “You’re going to control everything, okay?”

“Okay.”

Eddie climbed onto the bed and rearranged some pillows to give him support. He sat in the center of the bed and leaned back against them. A condom package was quickly ripped open, and he sheathed himself. He picked up the bottle of lube, squeezed a large dollop in his palm and covered his erection in the slippery stuff. Mick’s discarded shirt caught his eye. He wiped his hand on the green cotton.

“Thanks, dude,” Mick said sarcastically.

“Anytime,” Eddie replied with a laugh. With a gesture to his throbbing cock, Eddie urged Whitney to come closer. “Straddle my hips, but face Mick.”

She complied with his instruction and moved into position. He could tell it was a bit awkward and grasped her hips to help. “Is that better?”

“Yes,” she said with a little giggle.

“Take my cock in your hand and press it against your asshole.”

She shivered at his blunt words. The fine hairs on her arms stood right up, and goose bumps blossomed on her silky skin. Eddie loved that he could affect her that way.

Ever the good student, Whitney reached behind her and grabbed his pulsing cock by the base. He wished he could have watched her face as she maneuvered his erection into place. Judging by the expression on Mick’s, it was quite a tempting sight.

The head of his cock prodded her clenched entrance. He sat up a little straighter and grazed his lips over her back. “Relax, sugar.”

“Easy for you to say,” she groused. “No one’s trying to shove something the size of a baseball bat up your ass.”

Eddie snorted. “I’m flattered, really.”

She laughed. “You would be.”

“Just take it nice and slow,” Mick said as he knelt between Eddie’s legs and put his hands on her waist, a few inches above Eddie’s. Mick nuzzled her neck and took her mouth with those sensual, soothing kisses of his.

“Oh!” Whitney’s exclamation accompanied the first inch or so of Eddie’s cock sliding past the yielding ring of muscle. “Oh. Oh. Ow!”

Fear and guilt lancing his belly, Eddie started to pull out, but Whitney stopped him with a slap of her hand. “Wait,” she pleaded. “Just give me a few seconds.” She wiggled and breathed deep. “God, Eddie, you’re huge!”

Any other time, the compliment would have puffed out his chest, but right now he felt terrible. Maybe Mick should have gone first. Of course, he wasn’t all that much smaller than Eddie.

“Is it wet enough?” Mick nibbled her neck. “We can slather on more lube if you need that.”

“It’s just new and scary, and I think I’m just way too tense,” Whitney explained. “I know it can feel good, though.”

Eddie wondered if she was trying to convince herself or them. “We can stop and try again some other night, sugar.”

“No,” she answered quickly. “I want this. I want this so badly.” She pressed down tentatively. Eddie bit back a groan as his cock slid a few more inches inside her hot, tight ass. Christ, this was so much better than he’d ever imagined. He battled the urge to ram his cock hard in her ass. His penis wanted more friction, more movement, but Eddie’s head prevailed.

“You know what?” Mick caressed her face. “Shift your legs a little.” He clasped her calves and pulled gently on her legs until they were basically sitting atop Eddie’s. She whimpered as Eddie’s cock slid even farther into her back passage. Eddie didn’t have the heart to tell her there was still a good amount to go.

“Oh. My. God,” Whitney shouted to the heavens as Mick’s tongue probed her pink nether lips. Eddie grinned and did his best to hold perfectly still while Mick worked his magic on that yummy cunt. He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed and licked her shoulders and the side of her neck. His hands found her pert breasts. Not too big, not too small, just right. He rolled her stiff nipples between his fingertips as she panted and moaned.

Whatever Mick was doing was working perfectly. Whether she realized it or not, Whitney was rocking back and forth and swallowing more of Eddie’s rock-hard cock. The sensation of being accepted into her virgin ass made Eddie’s head spin. Knowing he was first awakened something primal within him.

“Oh, god. Oh, god.” Whitney practically growled. “I’m going to come.”

Mick made a hungry noise that drove her over the edge. Eddie saw stars as Whitney’s ass fluttered around his buried dick. He couldn’t hold back anymore and moved his hips. He thrust slow and shallow, moving only a few inches of his length back and forth as she came. It seemed to be exactly what Whitney needed. She let loose and howled as she came for the first time with a cock in her ass and Mick’s tongue flicking her clit.

She’d no sooner collapsed against Eddie’s chest than Mick was pushing up to his knees and lining his cock up with her pussy. He slid home in a forceful thrust that made Whitney snarl like a wild cat. She clutched at Mick’s shoulders as he thrust back and forth. Eddie held still, waiting for some indication that she was ready.

“Fuck me, Eddie,” she begged. Reaching back, she clawed at his forearm. “Take me. Make me yours.”

Groaning with need, Eddie planted his heels against the mattress for leverage and timed Mick’s strokes. Every time Mick pulled out, Eddie sunk deep and vice versa. Whitney accepted their dual loving like no woman he’d ever seen. She seemed crafted for this kind of mating. A new and wicked side of her bubbled to the surface. Like a golden belly dancer, she gyrated between them. Eddie had never seen anything like it. His lust skyrocketed.

“You like Eddie’s cock in your ass?” Mick’s gravelly voice made Eddie shudder.

“Yes! Oh! Yes.”

“And me in your pussy?”

“Oh, god, yes. Feels so good. So…good.” Her answer came in short, panted bursts.

“Love fucking this wet pussy. Can’t wait for a chance to get in your ass, too.”

“Mick!” She clasped his shoulders and hauled his face down for a kiss. Clearly Mick’s dirty talk made her hot.

Breathing hard, Eddie slammed his cock in and out of her tight ass. Mick showed no mercy up front either. The rougher it got, the more Whitney seemed to love it. She urged them on with her words and her hands, gripping and scratching and pleading for more, more, more.

Available at Amazon and Siren-Bookstrand.

It’s my day to blog at Silken Sheets and Seduction. Today I’m tackling the topic of safe sex in romance and erotica. If you’ve got an opinion (and I’m sure you do! ) come check it out and give me a yell!