This week, I feature a very special Guest Blogger, author Erastes!  Erastes provides wonderful insight into the gay historical genre…

I’M ERASTES, AND I’D LIKE TO thank Jon for letting me blog here.  I write gay historical fiction, in the main, although I do sometimes do short contemporaries.

I’d like to tell you a little about gay historical fictions and why I - and many others, and more each day - like it so much.

Gay fiction in general is a large and rapidly expanding genre, despite small and sometimes larger crucial presses having crashed and burned in recent years, but gay historical fiction’s roots are a little muddied between what was actually written at the time, and what has been written subsequently about times past.

The Historical Novel Society defines Historical Fiction as: “a novel must have been written at least fifty years after the events described, or have been written by someone who was not alive at the time of those events (who therefore approaches them only by research).”

That would mean neither Maurice (E.M Foster) nor The Charioteer (Mary Renault) could be included within this definition, and many more besides, which would be a great shame.  My personal (and probably erroneous) view of gay historical fiction is any book which deals with gay themes in the past, whether they were contemporarily written in that time or not.

With the changes in the acceptance of homosexuality on the world stage, (looking specifically at Stonewall and the Wolfenden Report,) it seems difficult to say that gay historical fiction can only qualify if it starts in the 1950’s. In my opinion at least, events of the 50’s and 60’s are just as interesting and relevant from a historical perspective as was gay society in 1900 or 1800. <IMG title=”" height=240 src=”http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41OQ1dJcNCL._SL500_AA240_.jpg” align=right>
When it comes to textbooks on the subject of gay history there are literally hundreds of tomes, some much drier than others. Possibly unsurprising, there is only one major work, that even explores the genre of gay historical fiction. (<A href=”http://www.palgrave.com/products/title.aspx?PID=279643″>Gay and Lesbian Historical Fiction by Norman W Jones.

I find it odd that so few people have explored the many stories of gay men in the past, whether in fictionalized biography for famously gay men such as Byron or Michelangelo, or for purely fictional inventions, when there is such a huge catalogue of heterosexual historical romance.

Historical Merit and Rationalisation <IMG title=”" height=240 src=”http://a1.vox.com/6a00c2252570aaf21900d4144147816a47-500pi” align=left>But some have explored those stories, and more are now doing so than ever before. There’s some argument as to what the first actual gay historical novel was, going by the Historical Novel Society’s rules, and I would have to say that it was probably Mary Renault with her classical tales of Ancient Greece. Of Alexander the Great. Fire from Heaven, The Persian Boy, Funeral Games, Her wonderful, The Charioteer, was written in the 1950’s but only dealt with an era a few years back, the early part of the 2nd World War and as I said - it wouldn’t qualify under the HNS rules. There were others which shone brightly when they first appeared (but were published and considered as pulp by some, rather than as classics) such as Richard Amory’s strange and possibly substance-fuelled American Frontier stories, Willow Song and others.

Renault was a solid and respected historian. Her work was read very widely outside the gay community. It was easy, perhaps (especially as any sexual content had to be almost completely coded and hidden away) for people to read these books and pat themselves on the back for reading such perfectly rendered and exquisitely researched books by a professor of the classics. It was educational. It was easy, perhaps, to ignore the obvious love affairs of Alexander. And anyway – it’s Classical! They all did that sort of thing, didn’t they?

The Birth of Gay Gothic

<EM><IMG title=”" src=”http://images.alibris.com/isbn/9781555835842.gif” align=right>Gaywyck</EM> by Vincent Virga (1980); probably takes the accolade of the first modern gay historical romance. With its obvious nod to the traditional Gothic novel, in Gaywyck we find mad relations, hidden rooms, an innocent driven to the point of madness and danger lurking behind every door. Purple it certainly is (and its less popular sequel Vadriel Vail is even more so) but it broke the ice.&nbsp; Here was a story of gay men in the style of the Romance Novel that had been bought and devoured by millions of women worldwide.&nbsp; It should have opened the floodgates, but possibly even in 1980 it was a little ahead of its time.

The genre didn’t die completely, but it disguised itself yet again, this time as literature and romance. Respected authors wrote books in the genre - such as Beryl Bainbridgem Master Georgie, Tom Spanbauer, The Man Who fell in love with the Moon and mainstream popular authors such as Philippa Gregory (famous for her traditional historicals such as, The Other Boleyn Girl, wrote Earthly Joys, about the decadent Duke of Buckingham. Historical readers and Romance readers bought them, literature lovers bought them, and so did people <IMG title=”" height=240 src=”http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/images/n13/n68146.jpg” align=left>looking for gay fiction.

But still the floodgates didn’t break. More titles began to emerge, and more notably they were adventures and romances. Regency gentlemen, English sailors and pirates. However, for the main part all of these books were (and still are) published by small presses such as Linden Bay Romance, Torquere Books or Cleis Press.

When Brokeback Mountain arrived I, for one, thought that things would change and the publishers (who were still declaring that lesbian historicals were hot (Sarah Waters) but there wasn’t any market for gay historicals would see the light.  But it still hasn’t really happened.  However, the future looks bright. There are more and more people writing it, and more and more people reading it.

Who are these people?

Surprisingly, just about anyone. Straight men, gay men, straight women, lesbians, transsexuals. Anyone with a passion for history and the need to tell<IMG title=”" height=240 src=”http://www.lindenbayromance.com/dbimages/92.jpg” align=right> (or to read) a good story.&nbsp; I believe that the majority of people reading gay romance are women right now, but there are (evidenced by my post bag) gay men in growing numbers who are not afraid to admit that they really enjoy what is generally termed now as a breeches, or a waistcoat ripper.

With the advent and popularity of e-books, (which turn what might be an embarrassing (for some) purchase in a bookstore into an anonymous and instant gratification, the gay historical novel seems to be pulling itself away from its Gothic and classical beginnings and is exploring other eras.&nbsp; From Saxon or Arthurian warriors (Mel Keegan) to the dangerous 19th Century, the Age of Sail with its <A href=”http://www.hms.org.uk/nelsonsnavyarticles.htm”>infamous Article 29</A> (Lee Rowan, Alex Beecroft) through the Regency and into the Victorian era. Writers are researching and producing stories.

What fascinates, some say, is the difference between a male/female relationship and the male/male.&nbsp; The fact that gay love has always existed as long as love has – and how men dealt with that in each era, and each country. The fact that men look good in period dress (and out of it) and that carriages and pistols and swords are sexy. The fact that they don’t have to have a submissive female character at all, but both can be dominant and masculine. The challenge of creating a “Happy Ever After” or at least a happy for now.

The Future

<IMG title=”" style=”HEIGHT: 196px” height=240 src=”http://www.lindenbayromance.com/dbimages/7265.jpg” width=131 align=left>More. I am convinced that we are about to see an explosion of gay historical fiction over the next few years.&nbsp; New e-books are appearing almost daily, most epublishers that accept GLBTQ accept the genre as a matter of course. Recently, STARbooks, one of the larger gay print publishers, has put a specialist call out specifically for gay historical novels and anthologies and Running Press are actively seeking gay historical fiction prior to 1900.

It can only get better. It will make me busy as I attempt to keep track of it all, but it will make me happy.

I hope you enjoyed the article, and it encourages you to try the genre, if you haven’t yet done so. I maintain a list of every gay historical title that I can find <A href=”http://www.speakitsname.wordpress.com/the-list” target=_blank>HERE</A>, so there’s plenty of eras to explore.&nbsp; Many thanks again&nbsp; to Jon for having me.

Erastes
<A href=”http://www.erastes.com/”>www.erastes.com</A>

Erastes is the penname of a female author of gay historical fiction who lives in the UK. Her first novel Standish was published in 2006 (Gay Regency), and her second novel, Transgressions will be published in 2009. She’s the Director of the <A href=”http://www.eroticauthorsassociation.com/” target=_blank>Erotic Authors Association</A> and the owner of <A href=”http://www.speakitsname.wordpress.com/” target=_blank>Speak Its Name,</A> the only blog dedicated purely to reviews of gay historical fiction. Her third novella, Frost Fair, (Gay Regency) is released today by Linden Bay Romance.

Featured this week is another author of the recently released GREMLINS print anthology, released Halloween day from loveyoudivine.com.  Please join me in welcoming erotic romance author, Cerise Amour.

WHEN YOU HEAR THE WORD GREMLIN, I bet sexy isn’t the first thing that comes to mind, right?  Well, not to me either.  Though, after I thought about the criteria for our Gremlins stories, I knew what I wanted to do, with some help from other media and influences.  I had a snippet of a story involving a princess having a psychic connection to a murderer and that’s as far as it went.  My gremlins came from the idea that people have companions, but not like your typical cat or dog.  I thought, what about a soul bound companion?  Something connected deep to you that they could read your thoughts and you theirs.  What if they felt what you felt?   Then, I saw the movie The Golden Compass.  I’d read the book and well, my gremlins were born. They are called “soul beings.”   

I know, you’re still wondering what makes that sensual or sexy.  Well, that in itself doesn’t.  The fact that the princess is in trouble from this killer who is connected to her and that the captain of the guard has been ordered by her father to find the killer, brings them and their gremlins together.  The gremlins are attracted to one another.  Their feelings, in turn, flow to the captain and the princess.  Adventure ensues and the passion grows. 

Check out the reviews for Fire For Ice:

http://coffeetimeromance.com/BookReviews/Fireforice.html

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/justeroticromancereviewsnewsletter/message/381

Ebook ISBN 978-1-60054-231-2
Length: 15,250 words

Genre: Erotic

Category: Dark Fantasy

Rating: Shooting Star

Price: $3.00

Available at www.loveyoudivine.com

Though Fire For Ice is my first published work, I’m looking forward to publishing more.  I have a vampire tale in the works.  Hopefully it will be part of a vampire anthology at loveyoudivine.  It’s not the only story I’ve been working on.  I have a contemporary tale about a female bodyguard and her boss that I hope to have polished and submitted by the first of the year. 

Other things I’m working on include a two-book story about dragon shifters.  I’m also trying my hand at two different westerns tales.  One set in modern day and that other back in the late 1800’s, sometime after the civil war.  Many others I’ve started and working on in spurts. 

And, thanks to one of my lovely reviewers, I am working on a new tale with Callista, Tamir, Torch and Glaze. 

Thank you for reading and thank you, Jon, for having me here this week!

Blessings,

Cerise Amour

Continuing with my Halloween guests dropping in the to sit a spell, please welcome author, S.D. Grady - whose current release, The Silver Scream, also appears in the dark fantasy - print anthology Gremlins - from loveyoudivine. 

Looking for Gremlins with S.D. Grady
 
Most of the time I’m a pretty romantic creature.  I love a good fairy tale.  My stories are often filled with silk gowns, glittering chandeliers and true love found.
 
So then, where did such a tale as “The Silver Scream” come from?
 
Well, one of my favorite TV shows as a kid was Alfred Hitchcock.  You never knew what kind of tale might come from the darkness.  It might be funny, frightening and even contain a bit of a fairy tale.  But I knew each week I would be watching and experiencing that familiar flutter of the stomach…the bit of suspense…the need to see beyond the black corner and face the monster.       

The Silver Scream

I am fortunate in that I live in New England.  Halloween is decorated by Mother Nature each and every year.  The yards and streets are carpeting in a blanket of dead leaves.  They crunch under your feet, sending that crisp, unmistakable scent into the air.  The historic graveyards enjoy the autumn sun, only to descend into creepy shadows once the moon rises.  If you ever needed inspiration for a setting for a scary story, New England is the place to come.
 
Every town center is graced by a white, steepled church several hundred years old…perhaps, the pointed steeples mean to chase those things that linger on the edge of our imaginations back to where they belong.
 
And then there are the business sections of town.  Often they are the direct descendents of the Industrial Revolution.  Brick buildings line the street, empty shop windows next to newer ones.  You look up and see the love and care the artisans of the 19th Century took in placing each brick.  Arched windows, granite lintels over each portal, elaborate decorations…often crumbling with neglect.  You add the bitter wind of late autumn, the sound of leaves scurrying in the alley after dark and a desire to see your town come alive in a different time and…
 
The Gremlin in The Silver Scream came to life.
 
I admit to being one of the last ones to rake my leaves in the fall.  Every day when I walk out to my car, I stop and stomp through the thick blanket of russet, flaming orange, bright yellow and dessicated brown leaves.  Often I hear something rustling…out of sight.  Probably a squirrel.  But honestly, isn’t it much more fun when you think it might be a creature from another place?
 
I dare you!  Explore the darkness!  Read “Gremlins: An Anthology” today…and find that wide-eyed horror of youth all over again.
 
Visit my website!  http://sonyadgrady.com
Be my friend!  http://www.myspace.com/sdgrady_author
 
“The Silver Scream” by S.D. Grady 
Once of seven tales within “Gremlins”
 
Film school student, Gilda Albright, has taken a job in the newly refurbished Orpheum Theatre as a movie projectionist. The gem from another era prompts her imagination to take flight, and she invites her boyfriend Seth to a private screening. Looking like a movie star from the 50’s, she strips in the spotlight, ensnaring Seth’s lust and drawing the eager eyes of another to her buxom figure. The building takes on a life of its own—fear invades Gilda’s workdays. Will the unseen gremlin let her go or fulfill its erotic obsession with a vision from the past?
 
Buy your copy of “Gremlins: An Anthology” today!  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1600542301

Love, Sonya

Want to know more about author S. D. Grady? She’s featured author of the month at The Romance Studio:

http://theromancestudio.com/who8.php

http://sonyadgrady.com

I have a very special Halloween treat for you, starting this week with multi-published, author, graphic design artist, editor, Anastasia Rabiyah…

Gremlins in my Laptop

Thanks for having me on your blog, Jon! Hi to all the readers out there. I’m Anastasia Rabiyah and I write dark fantasy and erotic romance in many cross genres. I’m going to focus on the big October release for all my gremlin authors and me. Most everyone knows what a gremlin is. That nasty little bugger that sneaks into our laptops, our emails, our car engines, and anything else we don’t want to take the blame for, and chews up the wiring and the magic things that make our mechanical doodads work. Some people think of them as cute and fuzzy, or maybe green with sharp teeth and fangs. No matter what, they cause trouble!

Gremlins are all trapped inside this new print anthology cleverly titled: Gremlins An Anthology which comes out this Halloween from www.loveyoudivine.com. Seven stories by seven talented authors of dark fantasy that will change the way you envision these nasty little critters—or maybe not. There are some cute ones, some that need to be shot, and some that will lure you into a dark place to have their way with you—okay, that would be mine. She’s quite the seductress.

When author S.D. Grady first suggested this rather unusual idea to write erotic romance themed with gremlins, I was intrigued. I love paranormal baddies and anything mythical or fantastic in nature, so I jumped on the project. Being a recovering gamer—yes, it’s an addiction—I used my fascination with golems to weave a tale of coming of age and dark secrets for my gremlin tale, Hiram’s Secret. What gremlin wouldn’t want to tear apart a mechanical golem and destroy it? In my story, Hiram, an ambitious young man, runs away from his village, hoping to start a new life, find a beautiful bride, and make something of himself other than a poor pig farmer. Hiram crosses the forbidden boundary into another plane where everything is not all it seems to be. Soon enslaved by the grim Lord Beorolf, Hiram finds his hopes dashed…until he sees a mysterious pair of eyes watching him from the cell across the way.  

Several authors stepped up to the plate to add to the gremlin magic. Dawné Dominique’s tale, Bonamy & Clyde, takes a cold, strong willed woman and turns her world upside down with a little help from a gremlin all in the name of love. Bret Jordan spins some medieval magic when a forest witch weaves a seductive spell over a hunter, luring him away from his beloved bride. When he resists, the witch enlists the aid of vile, little gremlin. Cerise Amour’s gremlins are companions to their humans, but their mischief brings hero and heroine close together in a heated moment of passion which gets them both into trouble. Dahlia Rose’s gremlins are a large scale infestation that needs to be eradicated by a New York cop and a band of paranormal hunters. Crymsyn Hart’s gremlin is a cursed creature with many faces in need of a woman who can free him. And S.D. Grady weaves a tale of horror and glamour in her seductive theatre show gone wrong.

I’ve always had a fascination with fantasy. As a child I brought home critters of all kinds from toads to lizards. I guess the way I see it, the gnarly looking creatures are just misunderstood. They need love too. Readers will find a new twist in every gremlin included in this beautiful book. It is my hope too that Gremlins An Anthology will be a cherished keepsake with its unique interior flourishes and decorations. Adult fantasy lovers will fall hard for this creative work packed with darkness, whimsy, and sexual tension enough to make a laptop overheat.

If you can’t wait to get your hands on our gremlins, the book is available for pre-order at 20% off the publisher’s retail price. Click over to www.loveyoudivine.com to reserve yours now. Gremlins is also available from Amazon.com and any major bookstore. If you’d like to taste-test it before you buy, check out the free mini read available at the publisher’s website and see if you’re brave enough to step into the darkness.

Readers who want to find out more about me can stop by my website at www.RabiyahBooks.com where I have lots of pages of interesting goodies, from e-books to free online jigsaw puzzles.

Much love to all,

Anastasia Rabiyah

Please welcome multi-published author and friend, J.M. Snyder as “guest blogger” for the week!

I’m J.M. Snyder, author of gay erotic and romantic fiction. I began in self-publishing, but am now working with e-publishers Amber Allure, Aspen Mountain, and Torquere Presses. My short stories have appeared online at Ruthie’s Club, Tit-Elation, and Amazon Shorts, and in anthologies by Alyson Books, Aspen Mountain Press, and Cleis Press.

 This month, I have four paranormal releases just in time for Halloween.  They are: 

A More Perfect Union

 * A More Perfect Union, published 10/12/08 by Amber Allure Press

http://jmsnyder.net/books/bstates/union.html

 

 Book 3 in Between States a historical paranormal series set during the American Civil War. This is novella is the last story in the series, and all three will be released in a paperback collection in January 2009.

  Once a Yankee soldier, Brance Brenneman has left behind the War Between the States and gone into hiding with his lover, former Confederate Caleb Chilson. Deserters intent on keeping to themselves, they find a nice, sparse acre of land where they can finally settle down. Life falls into domesticated routine for both the brooding Yank and the excitable Rebel. Together they struggle to create a more perfect union forged of love and their shared shapeshifting secret. 

 

But the discovery of another bobcat encroaching on their territory brings out the possessive alley cat in Caleb, eager to defend his home and his mate. Will the newcomer destroy what they’ve worked so hard to attain? Or is there room enough for the three of them deep in the wilderness of Pennsylvania? 

The Arc Position * The Positions of Love Book 11: The Arc Position, published 10/19/08 by Amber Allure Presshttp://vic-and-matt.com/positions/pol-11.html

Book 11 in The Positions of Love, a contemporary series about lovers Vic Braunson and Matt diLorenzo. Every time they make love, Matt inadvertently gives Vic superhuman powers. There are a total of 12 stories in this series, which will be released in a paperback collection in December 2008. *** It’s Halloween, and Matt’s coworker Roxie has invited him to a costume party on that spookiest of nights. He’s afraid he’ll have an uphill battle convincing Vic to tag along, but to his surprise, his lover jumps at the idea. Matt chooses a pair of police uniforms for them to wear, and looks forward to a little sexual role-playing once the party is over. Nothing like a pair of handcuffs and a game of good cop/bad cop to get the blood pumping. A Haunted Love But Roxie calls with a pool emergency an hour before the party starts. Because Vic isn’t in costume yet, Matt goes on ahead alone. When his lover shows up for the party, Matt’s surprised to find he’s not dressed as a cop. Instead, Vic’s latest superhuman power has created a costume of its own, with comic results.

* A Haunted Love, published 10/31/08 by Aspen Mountain Presshttp://jmsnyder.net/books/haunted.html

A Haunted Love

This novelette originally appeared in the e-book anthology, Cupid’s Arrow, also published by Aspen Mountain Press. Nick works as a re-enactor at a Colonial America site. One foggy night he meets David Henry, just about the sexiest man in colonial garb Nick has ever seen. Because Nick’s missed the last bus into town, David invites him to stay the night with him at the colony’s inn. Though there’s definitely a spark between them, David is gone when Nick wakes. When David’s claim of working as an apprentice at the glass shop doesn’t pan out, Nick begins to wonder about the guy he’s met and the ghost stories circulating around the colony, stories he always believed untrue …

* One of Use, published 10/31/08 by Torquere Presshttp://jmsnyder.net/stories/st_oneofus.html

The Sip...

This short story appears in my self-published collection, Shorts, and was also published online at Ruthie’s Club.

 Connor Allen is a young man who sports a nasty bite that seems to grow worse during the full moon. A former classmate, Rand, tells him it’s a werewolf bite. At first Connor thinks he’s joking, but as the moon rises, he finds himself undergoing a painful transformation. Rand knows just how bad it can be the first time a man changes, so he distracts Connor in a way that pleases them both.

For more information on these releases, please visit my website at http://jmsnyder.net or click on the links above.  I host monthly contests to five away free copies of all new releases (http://jmsnyder.net/contest.html), and I give away additional freebies through my Yahoo! group (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jmsnyder/)

Thank you, Jon, for hosting me today!

Any time, J.M!  Keep keep us informed as the holidays approach…  Thank you for sharing your latest releases with the readers of my blog. 

If you have a question for J.M Snyder, current or past releases, please post then here for response…

 [][][][]

Nex week, I have a very special “treat” for you - or is that a “trick”??

Gremlins are coming…check back next week as Gremlin’s author/graphic cover artist Anastasia Rabiyah chats about her new release, appearing in the print anthology, Gremlins - from loveyoudivine.com

Men, the first print anthology by loveyoudivine His & His Kisses imprint, hits #2 seller at the largest GLBTQ bookstore in Atlanta, Georgia following a joint reading/book signing by Alex Morgan and moi, Jon Michaelsen!  Please join us in our celebration!!!

http://www.outwritebooks.com/

www.outwritebooks.com

Porn and erotica are by definition sometimes uncomfortable bed fellows.

For my money, they are poles apart, but there’s good gay porn which has all the elements of good erotica and then there’s bad gay porn, just as there is bad erotica.

The world of gay porn is quickly evolving into whole different world that shows me that it’s veering more toward erotica than away from it.

 Gay porn star Steve Cruz recently announced on his blog at www.stevecruzxxx.com that he was taking a break from performing to direct his first feature. He ran a poll, asking his readers what they want to see in their porn. This very engaging star of some pretty raunchy movies, just wrapped his directorial debut, Blue Movie.

 The results of his poll may surprise you:

68 per cent of his audience wants to see passionate, connected sex and good chemistry!

This, as a gay male who writes gay erotic romances made my heart zing. It didn’t thrill me personally to see that an interesting plot rated a mere 12%, but I digress.

The results didn’t apparently shock the canny Mr. Cruz. He’s probably already combing through his assorted friends and hot co-stars trying to figure out how to deliver such goods.

In an industry rife with some pretty heavy stuff (fisting, water sports, etc.) what I find intriguing is that the stars themselves are turning the tables, taking control, delivering hot, passionate, connected sex in their own movies.

Youtube has been the breeding ground for this new, hot-on-the-net trend. One of the innovators of the movement is gay porn superstar Francesco D’Macho who continues to get countless hits each week for even the oldest vids of him kissing his former lovers and co-stars in movie outtakes.

With this apparently in mind, Francesco and his fiancé, the other hotter than hell gay porn star Damien Crosse formed their own company www.staghomme.com which launched a few days ago.

Porn’s hot new power couple describes it as The Next Generation of Porn.

On October 1, they announced their new company and posted a thirty second clip, blowing out Google’s links they got so many hits.

They fixed that problem and the site opened. Their first signature film is a stunning blue-hued movie of their own, While the City Watches. It stars Damien and hot newcomer Adriano Toledo on a moonlit rooftop in just about the most sensuous action you’ll ever see from two men…directed and shot at very close range by Francesco. 

This movie is so intimate you feel like you stumbled on a private moment and feel a little guilty to be enjoying it so much. I have no idea how these two men in love share themselves so willingly with other people, but God bless ‘em. They are sweethearts.

Their off guard moments captured on camera are endearing and sweet. Recently, they performed a live sex show in Torremolinos together and the behind the scenes footage is also available on the site. What is especially revealing is the sweet private life Damien and Francesco share.

In one memorable scene, they visit with gay porn star Orlando Toro for dinner at his family home on the outskirts of the city. His father is setting the table cracking jokes about being the waiter of the house as in the background, Mama Toro can clearly be seen cooking in the kitchen.

Is this porn? No, dammit! It’s flippin’ erotic!

They’re people like us – believe it or not. Orlando [who is performing on the same show with Francesco and Damien later that evening] confides to Damien on camera, “My mom can’t find out you’re doing a sex show!”

There is a warm, loving vibe to everything…even when the couple is getting ready for their show backstage. 

“I’m nervous,” Francesco confides. “Are you nervous, Damien? I’m fucking freaking out!”

The couple swaps anxious, reassuring kisses and the ensuing show, shot before an apparently hetero, but appreciative crowd, comes with subtitles at the bottom of the screen with the two stars’ actual thoughts.

“Love you, big slut,” Francesco says.

“Love you more, bigger slut.”

Their ensuing banter is hilarious and makes you realize that these guys might be the hottest porn stars alive, but passion is their fashion and at the end of the day, it’s that connection, that intimacy that fuels their careers and their new lives together.

 Ain’t love grand – and erotic?

Aloha oe,

A.J.

It’s always with some trepidation that I open an e-mail from a cover artist with a subject line that indicates a JPEG of a brand-new cover is within. It’s a suspenseful moment, wrought with tension, and one in which you get to see if your baby is going to have the beautiful face it deserves…of if it’s gonna be ugly as sin, dooming it to a life of shunning and ridicule, much like my own life.

I think my baby has a beautiful face…and boy, am I relieved. Check out the cover design below for my October release, Dead End Street, my first young adult horror novel. Cover artist Trace Edward Zaber did a great job making a cover that’s simple, evocative, and creepy…all at once.

But mothers always think their babies are beautiful. What do you think?

Here’s a little “elevator speech” about Dead End Street, which will be released in October, just in time for Halloween (or the holidays, which is a heavy handed way of saying that it would make a great gift for son, daughter, niece, nephew, grandkid, or your own inner teen).

They were five misfit kids who had banded together in their small Ohio River town. Over the years, they had organized various clubs and now they had formed the Halloween Horror Club. The premise was simple: each week, each teen would spin a horrifying tale and at the end of five weeks, the scariest story won a prize. The twist: the stories had to be told in the infamous and abandoned Tuttle house, where, fifteen years earlier, an entire family had been murdered in their beds. The idea seems like a good one, until the kids begin to realize they may not be alone in the Tuttle house, which backed up against the woods. There seems to be someone—or something—watching them. Is it Paul Tuttle, the teenage son who disappeared fifteen years ago, the night his parents and sister were killed? Or is it someone even more sinister? 

With each story (each a completed short, original horror tale that stands on its own), the tension mounts…and so does the anger of this mysterious inhabitant of the house. He is enraged at having his space violated. And his rage could mean a real dead end for those who dare to invade his home…

Read the first chapter of Dead End Street here:

http://www.rickrreed.com/upcomingbooks.htm

 This week I welcome multi-published author and editor, Faith Bricknell Brown….welcome, Faith!

  Writing Companions 

            If you read the title and thought that writing companions are various handbooks and reference books you are correct. However, in this case you’re also wrong. How many writers need something to step into the writing mode besides paper, pencils, pens, electronic writing gadgets, typewriters, how-to books, and all the related implements? Are you scratching your head and wondering where this is going?

            A cup of coffee or something to drink is a necessity for some of us to write. Why does it seem that where there is coffee (or tea) there is also a writer? A writer’s comfort food, perhaps? Is it the caffeine? Maybe the aroma of the brew in our workspace stimulates thoughts and ideas? Do we need the sensation of warm ceramic in our hands between typing sprees in order to gather our thoughts into something coherent?

            Some writers smoke while they type and drink coffee. I once had a writer friend tell me that when she quit smoking it took her weeks to learn how to return to her writing mode. Imagine not being able to write due to the fact that you have quit smoking! Lighting a cigarette and placing it in a nearby ashtray set the mood for this writer. She soon learned to keep a jar full of Dum-Dum Lollipops on her desktop, and whenever the urge to smoke hit, she unwrapped a sucker. The Surgeon General warns that smoking is hazardous to our health, but has he ever once considered what it does to the publishing industry?

            Another writer told me that he has to have music blasting while he works. One day it may be country music, another pop, and yet another day the taste for classical may set the mood. Some of us find household confusion a reliable companion. One writer complained he couldn’t get any work done with the kids yelling and the TV blaring. Once his wife took the kids to the mall he discovered that the silence seemed louder than the chaos!

Typewriter noises are a comfort to some writers who have worked for years using that method. Converting to a computer had one friend asking advice on where to obtain typewriter .wav files so that she could adapt it to her MS Word program! Still, silence is a best friend to many writers who can’t produce material unless there is total quiet.

The Internet is a comrade, too. This may strike some writers as odd, but I know many novelists and freelancers who get into the mood to work by checking and writing email, visiting favorite websites, or participating on bulletin boards. For many, it’s simply a matter of reading online newspapers and magazines. Yes, I am guilty of a morning Net feast. After reading and responding to email, I check my web groups, and then I’m off to my online journal or my print journal where I get ready to write by composing a daily entry.

What about writing chums who breathe? Mine is a Chocolate labrador who takes up residence behind my desk chair or sprawls out across the camper floor (the camper is my private work space) while I work on my laptop. This is a comfort to me, (unless she suddenly distracts me by barking at a car that pulls in the drive and scaring the hell out of me), and stroking my pet’s ears when my fingers take a break from the keyboard keeps my hands busy as I ponder new aspects for a story or article.

My office window serves as another needed companion. A rolling field covered in round bales of hay and surrounded by trees is special to me. It’s a visual stimulator that I find enjoyable and entertaining when I need an intermission from the computer. I never know when a big buck will wander out to eat grass or a flock of turkeys will emerge, and it’s not uncommon to see a big cat or a coyote. Oddly enough, I find that I produce some of my best material on rainy days, reaching high word counts. For some reason I find the compulsion to write overwhelming on such gloomy days. If interruptions prevent me from creating prose, I turn into a grouch and suffer creative withdrawal.

Writers have a menagerie of indispensable companions. Whether they’re living or inanimate they’re a necessity for us to crank out words. There are no real answers for why writers develop particular habits and strange writing tools, but maybe these peculiarities serve as our security blankets or simply prove to be a useful routine.

What is your writing companion?

Visit my How to Avoid Writers’ Hell books for writers in the how-to section at www.wildchildpublishing.comor stop by www.freyasbower.com and look for my pen names of Zinnia Hope and J. Emberglass.

 bicknellbrown@sbcglobal.net

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Title: Author/Editor Faith Bricknell-Brown
Location: Blog
Description: Guest Blogger
Start Date: 2008-09-28
End Date: 2008-10-04