Cover reveal!

At long last I'm able to reveal the cover for my Clandestine Classic "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall".

Into the quiet village of Lindenhope comes Helen Graham, an attractive young widow and mother. Living alone with her son at Wildfell Hall, her seclusion attracts curiosity from the local people, in particular Gilbert Markham, whose interest in her is soon edged with desire—and Helen, despite herself, begins to reciprocate his love for her.

But when scandalous rumours begin to circulate about Helen’s behaviour, Gilbert is filled with anger and jealousy. Helen attempts to clear her name by offering Gilbert her diary, which reveals the dark, passionate story of her former marriage to debauched rake Arthur Huntingdon, whose sexual and sensual desires fill her with excitement and pleasure but precipitate a gradual descent into hell.

Gilbert believes he could forgive her anything, but the lies continue to spread, threatening Helen’s peace of mind and, above all, her physical safety. Will the secrets of Helen’s past get in the way of their future?

"Wildfell Hall" will be released on 6 September from this link: http://www.total-e-bound.com/product.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=306&P_ID=2297 and I can't wait!

Smut By The Sea!

Last Saturday I made a trip over to Scarborough to attend Smut By The Sea, an event organised by the wonderful Victoria Blisse to promote the SBTS anthologies. 

Most of the writers present had agreed to do readings, something I decided not to do on this occasion due to a combination of stage fright and a highly unsexy accent.

Aside from Victoria Blisse, Lucy Felthouse and Jennifer Denys, all of whom I had met before and was very happy to see again, I met Janine Ashbless, Rachel Kincaid, K.D. Grace, Lexie Bay, Tilly Hunter, Tabitha Rayne and Gemma Parkes, as well as Kevin Mitnik Blisse who does a great job of running my website. For anyone I didn’t shake hands with, sorry I missed you, I was the one with the green hair.

First task of the day was checking out the Erotic Tombola and the stalls set up by sponsors, selling erotic novels and bespoke toys. Crowned Jewels (they of the toys, which were so remarkably stunning that some had been mounted in frames) handed out goody bags and discounts, along with a gold-dusted chocolate cake which was my own guilty pleasure. I came away from the tombola with an erotic anthology and a pack of Ellora’s Cave cover cards – always welcome.

Unfortunately an emergency called me away halfway through the day, so I didn’t see the Slave Nano event or the erotica writers’ panel. However, I was treated to several readings by some very accomplished writers, all of whom managed to hold the attention of the audience regardless of any nerves they may have felt. Particular kudos has to go to Ashley Lister, who read three comic poems; Jennifer Denys, who had everyone in hysterics with some comedy-romance dialogue; and Rachel Kincaid, who managed to make a piece about premature ejaculation so intense that I heard someone behind me whisper “Wow!”

So maybe next time I will have the nerve to read something of my own – who knows?

Major thanks to Victoria Blisse and all concerned for a fantastic event – I hope the second SBTS anthology does as well as the first.

New cover!

My new short "Ready for Him" has been accepted for the "Tied to the Billionaire" anthology and will be available for pre-order on July 5th from Total-e-Bound.

And here's the cover!

In the bar at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, Jade Bleecker celebrates with her three best friends, all of whom are there to get married - Jade is their bridesmaid, and beginning to believe that three times a bridesmaid really does mean never a bride. Tattooed, pierced and a martial artist, Jade is used to inspiring fear rather than desire in men, and even if she did find one who could handle her - well, no man is worth trusting with her body.

But, as she is leaving the bar, she comes upon a mugging in progress and, with a few swift moves, makes short work of the mugger. Invited up to the victim's room for a nightcap, she is stunned to discover he is Will Vandenmeer - billionaire poster child of the Vandenmeer hotel and casino chain, and owner of The Sanctuary, one of the best known BDSM clubs in New York City.

Jade finds herself hopelessly attractive to the sensual, dominant Will, and when he offers to induct her into the world of BDSM, she accepts... but can she truly give herself to him, and is Will ready for what Jade has to offer?

Z is for Zoology

We’ve now reached the final day of the A-Z Blog Hop! It’s been a great month, and I’m finishing off with a topic that fascinates me – cryptozoology.

Yes, that’s technically a C, but it’s the best I could do with a Z.

Though I’ve never actually seen anything monstrous or out of place, I’ve been intrigued by cryptozoology ever since I visited Loch Ness. I love the idea of a displaced plesiosaur in the loch, or spotting the Beast of Bodmin Moor. I’ve always wished we were back in the days of mysterious sea monsters like the Kraken (or even belief in the Maelstrom). And I’ve seen many Bigfoot or yeti videoes, sadly most of which being debunked by Destination Truth or Fact or Faked: Paranormal Files.

So I couldn’t finish without a nod to one of my favourite blogs, which directed me to this blog hop in the first place. Please pop over to Jolie du Pre’s Precious Monsters.

And thanks for reading!

Y is for Youth

I don’t generally specify the age of my characters, unless it’s necessary (such as a college character needing to be of drinking age). But so far, they’ve all been at the younger end of the range.

I’m not entirely sure why I do that. Part of it has been because they were campus stories, but otherwise it’s just how I see them in my head. I’ve heard from other writers that older heroines, in particular, are outlawed by a lot of publishers – that young heroes and heroines are more attractive, in the romance field at least. Maybe they are. I admit I tend to associate older heroines more with dramas, sagas and historicals than with romance, erotic or otherwise.

Or maybe it’s because there are expectations attached to certain stages of life. Marriage. Children. Divorces. If you don’t want to tackle them in a romance, it’s easier to just put the character in their mid-twenties, when they could reasonably still be living free with all that to come.

I think at some point I will tackle an older heroine. How much older, I don’t know. But since I’m now in my thirties, I don’t think I can make any more excuses.

And they do say women reach their sexual peak in their thirties, don’t they? Roll on the erotica!

X is for Xu

One of the first things I researched for my debut novel was the Greek system.

Being British, I knew very little of sororities and fraternities – we simply don’t have them over here, although they sounded like a great idea for university students to have a tailor-made social life. That said, we had plenty of societies at the one I attended, so maybe we don’t need them. Nevertheless, they provide good fodder for erotica.

It’s all those frat parties and images of girls floating around in baby doll nighties. However unrealistic they might be, it’s very easy to take a cliché and build on it – threesomes at a kegger, hot girl-on-girl sex between roommates, sneaking frat boys into your bedroom or having some maybe-we’ll-be-caught sex in the garden. My debut novel involved some menage sex in a sorority house and almost included a scene where they got caught in the lounge, except it was ultimately excised when the plot took over.

I also stuck with it for the Campus Sexploits 3 anthology, where I had two drunken roomies having sex in various yoga positions. Well, all that ashtanga I did had to be good for something, right?

I’ll always love the idea of the Greek system and college-based erotica. And I’m not the only one – Louisa Bacio’s “Sex University” was released around the same time as my debut.

Maybe I should have gone and studied in the US – experienced it first-hand!

W is for Writing and Wine

It’s almost a cliché that writing and wine go together. I hear many writers talk about how they sit in front of their PC, glass of wine in hand; I feel very chick-lit when I do it myself. But you know, it does actually work. For me, anyway.

Admittedly wine isn’t always my drink of choice. You’ll often find me with a can of cider or a homemade Mojito. But yes, I find wine a great aid to writing. Specifically, it aids the flow. We all wrestle with our inner censor (no good if you’re an erotica writer) or inner editor; we all have the temptation to sit and fiddle with a sentence rather than just get on with it.

And wine helps.

I’m not a connoisseur, but I know what I like. I love a good Sauvignon Blanc, Torrontes or Vinho Verde. Occasionally I’ll be in the mood for a light red or a Pinot Grigio blush. And let’s not forget the plum wine I get from my local Chinese supermarket.

To the writers out there, what do you like to drink to get you into the flow?

And to the non-writers, what do you like to drink?