What's happening in September on
Romance – Sweet to Heat
26 – SPOTLIGHT – Cheryl Holloway – Love’s Promise
27 – Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday
28 – SPOTLIGHT – Brenda Christie - 222 Poetry XOXO
29 – SPOTLIGHT – Joe Giampaolo - Hampshire Stories
30 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
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You loved What Happens in Bangkok and want to know what happens next….
It's complicated is not only her relationship status, but the definition of Erika Bailey's life. She loves managing her drag queen club in Bangkok, Thailand, but her rock star boyfriend resides in North Carolina. And to top it off, her father threatens she must stay away from Darien or lose the Pink Flamingo. Does she protect her club or her love?
Darien Scott, Grammy award winning international superstar, wants nothing more than to wake up in the arms of Erika, the woman he loves, but contractual obligations force him to exotic video shoots and an isolated movie set with one of Hollywood's sexiest stars.
With the feeding frenzy of social media trending every aspect of Darien's life—real or not—it's hard for Erika to know the truth. Will she be able to see through the lies and trust Darien? Or will evidence from damaging Internet rumors condemn their relationship?
Buy Links
Excerpt – HOT
Erika slid her hands over her head, down her breasts to her belly button.
Darien didn't respond. His gaze followed her hands, then lingered on her breasts.
"Hey." She tapped his chest. "My eyes are up here."
She bounced as his belly shook from his laughter.
He reached up to caress her breasts. She lightly slapped his hands away. "No touchy."
"How you gonna stop me?"
He does have a point. She touched the tip of her tongue to her top lip. "Light bulb." Reaching over, Erika pulled the belt off her robe.
Darien held out his hands.
"No questions asked?"
He placed his left wrist on top of his right.
Excitement skittered through Erika as she loosely bound his wrists. He raised his arms and tucked them under his head. "I'm all yours."
Erika flinched at the boom of thunder. "Sounds like it's getting close."
She loosened the towel that circled Darien's hips and flung the sides open. Her prize waited, erect and at full attention. She stretched out, resting her body along the length of his, his firm chest and belly against her soft curves.
Propped up on her elbows, she placed her mouth on his. He responded. Using the tip of her tongue, she brushed it against his lips. He opened his mouth. She slid her tongue inside and intertwined with his. His body tensed. Her pulse quickened.
Rain pattered on the thatched roof of the pavilion. She pulled back with a gasp, lowered her head and worked tiny kisses down his throat, his chest and along his stomach. As she backed up, the tip of his swollen cock bumped her bottom. She wiggled it. A groan erupted from his throat.
She lifted her hips and pressed her groin against his shaft. Flexing and tilting her hips, she positioned herself so her clit slid along his hot flesh. He bucked and moaned. A sweet internal tingle turned to an intense burn. Her body tensed as her focus centered on her need.
As quick as she could, she shifted and settled herself over his erection and eased down. He arched his hips. His chest rose and fell in rapid shallow breaths. She massaged her breasts as she rocked her hips.
"Pretend these are your hands. Feel what they're feeling." She teased and pulled at her nipples, making them swollen and pink. "Imagine your lips sucking on these. When I think about you doing that to me, it makes me so hot." She kept her rocking motion steady. "Like this?"
"Oh gawd, babe. Yes. You're so incredible."
She slid one hand down her belly to her clit and the other around, reaching for his balls. With gentle movements, she rubbed.
The rain increased. The wind howled through the trees.
He raised and dropped his hips, moans matching his movements. She dragged her fingers around his balls. His hips jerked as he deepened his thrust.
The sensation grew and spread through her.
What's happening in September on
Romance – Sweet to Heat
25 – Fridays in Space
26 – SPOTLIGHT – Cheryl Holloway – Love’s Promise
27 – Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday
28 – SPOTLIGHT – Brenda Christie - 222 Poetry XOXO
29 – SPOTLIGHT – Joe Giampaolo - Hampshire Stories
30 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
Sign up for my Bi-Monthly Newsletter
Embrace What You Fear – Hard Words to Live By For A Writer
I read the words – Embrace what You Fear – somewhere recently and I do apologize to whomever it was that wrote them; I wish I could give you credit. The idea of this post didn’t pop up right away. My mind tossed the sentence into the back and chewed on it for a while.
Embrace What You Fear – that can mean a lot of different things to different people. My neighbour – after several beers – will tell his story about being at a professional development training day where a person brought out a large boa constrictor and asked, “Who wants to hold it?” My neighbour is terrified of snakes and wanted to bolt out of the room, but for some reason he stayed and yes, he, eventually, held the snake. I’ve seen the photo. You can easily see the terror on his face. But, he did it.
As this is a writer’s blog – how does this embracing of fear relate to an author? I could say – we live in fear. Not from war or disease, but from words.
Words are our life and sometimes they don’t flow freely. We can stare at a blank screen for days. In the end, we have very clean houses, but still blank pages.
When the words do come, then there is the terror of – is this crap? How crappy is this? This is beyond crap! Delete! Delete! Delete! Trying to make a simple sentence like – the cat is black – not sound crappy can send a writer into a tail spin.
A lot of authors have a built-in editor who peers over their shoulder and moans at every word/sentence written. As if there is no word good enough to put on paper. I had an author friend like that. She wrote fabulous stories, but agonized over every word. Note – she wrote – past tense. She is a writer – no more.
Then there is the fear of public judgement. The book has been through the trials of pre-publishing and that magical day happens – published. There is a moment of a joy then – what if no one reads it! Likes it! What if they hate it? What if I’m a total failure!!!!!
Yea, there is a lot – A LOT – of fear to embrace being a writer. What if we don’t embrace it?
Then books don’t get written. Stories are kept in the back of our minds and not shared. That is a sad notion.
Writers must embrace their fears and dig deep and write their stories – deep life altering stories to happy fun filled ones.
But there is one step more. We must also accept bad reviews. Not everyone will like our work. Getting a bad review hurts and it is embarrassing. Yes, I have had bad reviews. I share one in a writing class I teach. I love watching the faces of the people as they hear my book get ripped apart.
Did that bad review hurt? Hell, yes! It was my first book and my first bad review. Now, I laugh at it. When I get a bad review, I calm myself mumbling to myself a bunch of snide comments about the reviewer’s intellect then mollified, I move on.
Is the fear of another bad review going to stop me from writing another book? No. My muse may leave me. The words may dry up. But it won’t be fear that keeps me from writing.
What's happening in September on Romance – Sweet to Heat
23 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
24 – My Blog. My Post. My Books.
25 – Fridays in Space
26 – SPOTLIGHT – Cheryl Holloway – Love’s Promise
27 – Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday
28 – SPOTLIGHT –
29 – SPOTLIGHT –
30 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
Blurb and Buy Links
To save Darien's life his brother asks, "Can you walk in high heels?"
Erika Bailey, owner/manager of a drag queen club in Bangkok, Thailand has happily settled into all aspects of her new life, except for her lack of a love life. When a new diva auditions, Erika is bewildered over her instant attraction to the blond God, Apollo.
Darien Scott is on vacation after a world tour and mistakenly figures the safest place to be is at The Black Dragon with the head of a Triad. When the club is hit, Darien is the only person to get out alive. Now he's running from the police and a Triad. Mistake number 1.
Disguised as a drag queen, he's hired by Erika, but falls hard for his new boss, then struggles with not coming clean with her. Mistake number 2.
Can he fix his mistakes and find a life filled with love or is he headed straight for mistake number 3?
Excerpt
The waitress returned, wrote down their orders, and asked if they wanted more salsa or drinks before disappearing into the kitchen.
Erika smiled as she swallowed a mouthful of monkey wing. So far the date was going wonderfully. She was with a sexy guy and had a plate of delicious food in front of her. Hmph, guess it doesn’t take much to please me. Gotta get out more often.
She nibbled on three more wings, hoping she could think of some stimulating conversation. She always hated first dates. She never knew what to say or ask. And when she did, often it came out sounding lame or worse–creepy.
"I'll start." Apollo placed his glass on the table.
Erika hunched her shoulders and wiped her fingers on her paper napkin.
"To avoid the embarrassing silent moments on first dates, I did a little research." He grinned. "I checked out fifteen things to talk to a girl about, and it said I should tell a funny story about myself. Something that's happened in the past few days. Since you pretty much know my life since Friday, I'm going to skip down the list."
Erika pursed her lips. "What about going from number one to number two? You know, logical order."
"Well, the second suggestion was, how'd you end up living in this city. And since we've put that discussion in the save-until-later box, I need to shoot down the list."
"Do you have the whole thing memorized?"
He nodded. "Ah, here's one. What kinds of things make you laugh?"
She picked up a wing. "The visual of you standing on the table screaming about the snake."
"Okay, let's try what makes you laugh that doesn't involve me humiliating myself."
"Hmm." She nibbled on the wing. "The Three Stooges. Road Runner cartoons. Oh, knock knock jokes."
"Knock. Knock."
She giggled. "Who's there?"
"I'va."
"I'va who."
"I'va sore hand from knocking."
She tossed back her head and let her laughter ring. It wasn't the joke that made her laugh so hard. It was the delight on his face telling her and the thrill that rippled through her. "Another one."
"Another question or another knock knock? 'Cause I got a ton of them. If I can dig 'em out of the cobwebs of my memory."
She swallowed her mouthful of food and sipped her Orange Mirinda. "Another question. If we get going on knock knocks, we'll be knock knocking all night." Although knocking boots with you might be a night to remember.
Apollo frowned in concentration while scooping up more salsa. "Number three was what's your favorite place in the whole world? But I know that one. Sidewalk café, sipping wine, eating cheese, looking at the Eiffel Tower."
Erika bit back a squeal. He remembered! Oh, that's just too fantastic. Can I take this guy home and keep him?
He picked up the last monkey wing. "Did you have a nickname as a kid?"
The waitress paused beside them and placed their orders on the table. Erika's two tacos were a visual delight. The vivid colors of the taco shell, the savory scent of the meat, the cilantro and melted cheese delighted her eyes and nose. The spicy aroma from the sautéed onions teased her taste buds. She looked across the table at Apollo, who was examining his meal with equal delight. "Should I say one, two, three go?"
He picked up a taco, opened his mouth wide and bit. "Mmm."
"Not such a bad idea after all, huh? Mexican food in Thailand."
"You're forgiven for being crazy."
Both spent the next few minutes focused on consuming their mouthwatering meals. As her hunger diminished, Erika looked up from her plate and blurted, "Cuddle Bunny."
What's happening in September on
Romance – Sweet to Heat
19 – SPOTLIGHT –Teralyn Mitchell – Falling for the Unexpected Series
20 – Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday
21 – SPOTLIGHT – Taps on Screen – Anybody there?
22 – SPOTLIGHT –
23 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
24 – My Blog. My Post. My Books.
25 – Fridays in Space
26 – SPOTLIGHT – Cheryl Holloway – Love’s Promise
27 – Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday
28 – SPOTLIGHT – Brenda Christie - 222 Poetry XOXO
29 – SPOTLIGHT – Joe Giampaolo - Hampshire Stories
30 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
Have you piece of cake - by whatever definition of piece you choose.
What's happening in September on
Romance – Sweet to Heat
17 – Thursday #Yoga
18 – My Blog. My Post. My Books.
19 – SPOTLIGHT –Teralyn Mitchell – Falling for the Unexpected Series
20 – Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday
21 – SPOTLIGHT – Taps on Screen – Anybody there?
22 – SPOTLIGHT –
23 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
24 – My Blog. My Post. My Books.
25 – Fridays in Space
26 – SPOTLIGHT – Cheryl Holloway – Love’s Promise
27 – Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday
28 – SPOTLIGHT – Brenda Christie - 222 Poetry XOXO
29 – SPOTLIGHT – Joe Giampaolo - Hampshire Stories
30 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
An online critique group that I am in have decided to try writing short flashes based on prompts. There is no minimum word count. A maximum of 1,000 words is appreciated. And at least 1 prompt should be used.
These are the prompts for Sept.
Word - park plumber police
Photo -
“Do you believe in werewolves?” Sady blew on the dandelion head, scattering the seeds to the breeze.
“Werewolves?” Jordan cocked an eyebrow. “It’s a beautiful summer day. We’re sitting here by a little creek. Had a delicious picnic and you come up with werewolves.”
“Just look at the moon.” Sady pointed skyward. “Watch the clouds float across it. It’s just like at nighttime. Only a lot less scary.”
With an amused look on his face, Jordan waited for more of her explanation. He knew… he hoped there was more.
“Good werewolves,” Sady pronounced.
Jordan blinked.
“Yes.” She shifted and sat taller. Her gazed focused on something far off in the distance. “When the daytime moon is full, it’s time for the good werewolves to howl.” She tilted her neck back. “Ow-ooh!”
“But.” Jordan held up his index finger. “I think you have the wrong fairy tale.” He waved his hand around. “Creek. Water. Rock. Frog on rock. Aren’t you supposed to kiss the frog and find your Prince Charming?”
The frog shot out its tongue, snagged a fly and gulped it down.
Sady grimaced. “Not kissing him until he’s cleaned his teeth.”
Jordan leaned back and settled onto the blue and white checked picnic blanket. “So, what does a good werewolf do?”
“Well, they certainly don’t bite.”
“And?”
“And they run through the forest, keeping the little creatures safe.”
Jordan chuckled. “I know it’s only been a bit over three weeks…”
“Twenty-seven and a half days.”
“I stand corrected. I know it’s been almost a month since we started dating, but do you know what I love about you?”
“My chocolate supreme cheesecake?”
“Besides that.” He smiled at the delicious memory. “Your joy of life and caring for people and little forest creatures.” He closed his eyes as the sun’s rays warmed his face. “What brought on this whole werewolf thing?”
Something soft and furry brushed his cheek.
What's happening in September on
Romance – Sweet to Heat
12 – SPOTLIGHT – Larry Paris – The Darkened Land
13 – Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday
14 – SPOTLIGHT –Jaye Peaches – Pursuing her Pirate
15 – SPOTLIGHT
– Kerri Merriam-Buckton- Where the Trees Know You
16 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
17 – Thursday #Yoga
18 – My Blog. My Post. My Books.
19 – SPOTLIGHT –Teralyn Mitchell – Falling for the Unexpected Series
20 – Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday
21 – SPOTLIGHT – Taps on Screen – Anybody there?
22 – SPOTLIGHT – Brian Csati - Sheipwreck'd
23 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
24 – My Blog. My Post. My Books.
25 – Fridays in Space
26 – SPOTLIGHT – Cheryl Holloway – Love’s Promise
27 – Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday
28 – SPOTLIGHT – Brenda Christie - 222 Poetry XOXO
29 – SPOTLIGHT – Joe Giampaolo - Hampshire Stories
30 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
What is - Taps on Screen – Anybody there? It is my feeble attempt to discuss the world of writing from my POV (point of view). I do not profess to be a professor emeritus about writing. Go the beach. Pick up a grain of sand. That’s what I know. But I am willing to share.
Once a month – or more if my muse gets an idea – I will write about something – maybe thoughts on editing – thoughts on picking a title – thoughts on writers’ block – who knows. I don’t even know.
I have this month’s post written. Up until I wrote it, I didn’t know I was even writing a blog post or starting a new blog section. I am not the most disciplined author out there.
Oh, the first actual - Taps on Screen – Anybody there? post will be live on Sept 21. It might be a repost from the Rom-Critters blog. I like to share things around.
Now if you are here and are reading this PULLLLLEASE leave a comment. Even if it is just – Hi.
It is exhausting yelling into the void.
There will no book promo – unless it is important to the post. It could be a post on book marketing.
But my monthly calendar will be there and my books will be on the side.
But – and I know that’s the second sentence to start with the same word – but, I won’t be writing – buy my book posts. That I promise.
What's happening in September on
Romance – Sweet to Heat
8 – SPOTLIGHT –Jenna Jaxon – Only Pleasure Will Do
9 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
10 – My Blog. My Post. My Books.
11 – Fridays in Space
12 – SPOTLIGHT – Larry Paris – The Darkened Land
13 – Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday
14 – SPOTLIGHT –Jaye Peaches – Pursuing her Pirate
15 – SPOTLIGHT –
16 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
17 – Thursday #Yoga
18 – My Blog. My Post. My Books.
19 – SPOTLIGHT –Teralyn Mitchell – Falling for the Unexpected Series
20 – Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday
21 – SPOTLIGHT – Taps on Screen – Anybody there?
22 – SPOTLIGHT –
23 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
24 – My Blog. My Post. My Books.
25 – Fridays in Space
26 – SPOTLIGHT – Cheryl Holloway – Love’s Promise
27 – Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday
28 – SPOTLIGHT –
29 – SPOTLIGHT –
30 – Book Hooks #MFRWhooks #MFRWAuthor
