Days Gone By:2011

"...for auld lang syne,

we'll take a cup of kindness yet,

for auld lang syne."

Authors Promoting Authors' New Year is technically sometime in July or August where we, without a lot of fanfare celebrate the anniversary of this blog. 

Think of this as more a mid-year review. 

So far, it has been a great year for APA but as I write this New Year's greeting, I am feeling a bit sentimental for days gone by. Back when, APA was one of the only blogs who were featuring authors and their books. Back when what APA had to offer, was new and ahead of its time, when we were the first to serve for all intense purposes as a place to host authors' virtual book tours (back when that description wasn't even thought of, that's how groundbreaking what we did was). When, our Facebook Group was more useful than another place for authors to post their book links. Where authors wrote in and asked for advice and "Have you heard of this publisher, this editor, this agent?" (authors still do, on a less frequent basis). It was also back when, I feel, there was a tighter community of indie authors and big time authors, willing to share their knowledge. 

Of course, my life has changed since I started this blog and the demands and growing busyness of life has left me with less time to stay ahead of the curve or give attention to this blog. In many ways, I have turned into a bad blogger. I don't comment on the blogs I follow, nearly as often as I like. I don't comment on APA posts by our contributors each and every time.  I don't reply to each and every email because the demands of real life keep me more and more away from the screen. Some weeks, I don't even post regular blog features. 

Knowing this was going to be a hugely busy year for me on many levels, I asked for help. I asked for new contributors and features and new content. And thankfully, I got it and our readers got it. I can't thank Sascha, Liz and Shiela or Margaret nearly enough for all they have given APA this year. 

 Its been a lot of fun to read what these talented writers have posted weekly and I look forward to more great writing, thought-sharing and surprises from them. 

As 2011 comes to a close, I want to ask you: blog readers, authors, followers, what would you like to see from APA? Is there a feature you think we could add to our bag of tricks? Is there a way we can help promote authors more? 

My wish for APA in 2012 is more readers, a greater exchange of ideas, more creativity and an increase of audience and maybe, if its the right fit, another contributor to join the fray. 

Wishing you all the very best in 2012 and beyond. 

If you celebrated the New Year in October, Happy Calendar Changing Day and Happy New Year to the rest of you. 

~Tina-Sue 

apasuggestions@gmail.com 

Whimsical Friday: Yay! A New release!

Guess what? I have a new release. The second book in my demons series, Offer the Demon, is available today. I am so excited, which, well you're probably saying, Duh. LOL

So because it's release day I thought I would share a bit from the book with all of you.

Here is a look at Offer the Demon: Bk 2 of the Demon series.

Twenty-one years ago a bargain was made for her existence. Twenty-one years ago was the beginning of the end.

Born to serve Satan, Aurora Starr wishes she could lead a normal life. Being a demon, that’s not so easy to do. By night she takes the lives of those Satan chooses. Despite her hatred for her job, she knows she must continue, but all she wants is to live like a normal human.

Enter Scott Monroe.

Tall, blond, and gorgeous, he is more than Aurora can resist. Although mating with a human is taboo, Aurora throws caution to the wind and begins seeing Scott. But when Satan makes her choose between her family or the man she loves, Aurora has had enough.

Will love win in the end, or will Satan damn them all?


~Excerpt~

About to approach them with his card and the usual speech, he spotted her. He wasn’t sure how he’d known it was her when she didn’t look anything like herself. Maybe it was the hair. Not many women wore it so long, long enough to graze her backside. It certainly wasn’t the clothes she wore, or lack thereof. The skirt should probably be illegal. The top—he didn’t want to even go there. It was her, there was no doubt. It was Aurora, and the way she moved to the beat of the music looked damn good.

Her body floated, rolling in such erotic moves it had him swallowing a hard lump in his throat. And apparently, he wasn’t the only one affected. As she swayed on the dance floor seductively, men crowded around her.

It was time he put a stop to this.

He stepped into the crowd surrounding her and before he could take control of the situation, she leaned against his chest, wound her arms around his neck, and began gyrating.

He probably should put an end to this, his mind was all but screaming it, but his body refused to listen. Putting his hands on her hips, he swayed to the beat with her.

Slowly, seductively, she turned, and her eyes widened with surprise. “Scott? Well, you certainly know how to move.”

Gathering his thoughts, Scott grabbed her by the arm, and dragged her away.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

He didn’t answer until they were outside the club and far enough away from the crowds. “Getting you out of there.”

She jerked her arm free. “I wasn’t ready to leave.”

“Well, now you are.” When she turned back to the noisy club, he grabbed her arm. Before she could protest, he slung her over his shoulder, getting a perfect view of those gorgeous, shapely legs. Sucking in his lust, he carried her to his car.

“Put me down!” She wiggled, kicking her legs, which he held down for his own safety. “I said put me down!”

He did, but not before he’d unlocked his car. Setting her in the passenger seat, he shut the door and engaged the locks with his key fob. He unlocked his door, climbed into the driver’s seat, and was instantly bombarded by her attitude.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

To Purcahse: www.decadentpublishing.com
http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-offerthedemon-666379-140.html

He slammed the car into drive and sped off. “Taking you home.”

The Year in Erotica Reivew from an Editor!

2011 has seen some great books come out by a lot of new talent at Sizzler Editions. I'm going to showcase a few of the books here and dig into a little bit about the eroticism and why I liked the book. Of course all books can be picked up at Amazon.com though we'd prefer you support small business by shopping at Sizzler Editions

One of my first finds was Tied to Passion by Amber Rose Thompson. I HATED the hero, finding him droll and intellectual. But the writing was pretty clean, the synopsis sold the story and once I read Celene's character on paper I had to keep reading. I won't reveal the ending but I was satisfied to see how it ended up. Amber Rose is a bright new voice in erotica with a definite future. There is a lesson I'll discuss next year in this blog about his work and reviews.

My very first anthology Riding the Rocket, our first m/m anthology of sci fi erotic romance. Featuring established talent like Kiernan Kelly, M. Christian and Cecilia Tan, we also have a range of new authors who debut in this collection. Michael Mandrake's story "Vertigo" appears in this collection as the starter for his upcoming Sizzler release by the same name. The thing I enjoyed about this collection was the pure simplicity of discovering new talent and mingling it with old to create something I think any science fiction m/m reader will enjoy, all while getting their rocks off.

As far as anthologies go, I couldn't be happier with My Sexy Valentine! This four author collection started off the Intoxication line collection of erotic romance anthologies with quite a bang.

You see, I started the Intoxication line at Sizzler after talking to the publisher and realizing two things. A: She had long term goals with the company that could be met in Erotica but would take a little longer, or we could expand our focus and add the erotic elements to Romance. Romance is still the largest growing and selling fiction genre, outselling everything else COMBINED. Being a romance author at heart, I had to also help start stacking the deck in my favor. So the Intoxication line serves several purposes. My Sexy Valentine features four authors who really brought erotic romance to the table. Daisy Harris and Em Petrova are new talent to erotic romance but are also up and coming authors to watch. The anthology features four stories, two m/m and one multi partner and one m/f fantasy romance. All in all, a solid collection.

Oh, and it marks a definite change in our cover art design. That's Jimmy Thomas on the cover, noted romance cover model and awesome promoter extraordinaire!

One of my favorite new talents came in the form of paranormal romance. Emma Paul gave us Soulmate's Touch, Demon and human love. Well, gargoyle actually. Gargoyle and Human exploration in the face of danger while falling in bed to have more than their share of heart pumping action. This was and is pretty much what I'm looking for as the base of mixing romance and lust in stories. It read a little quick but that's due to my guidelines for first time authors. We'll talk more of my editing tricks and ticks in another post.

I've roughly been responsible for 16 books out this year from Sizzler, most under my line. From Bonni Sansom's Jack's Christmas Wish, a BDSM romance tale that keeps winning stellar reviews to Margie Church's The 18th Floor, (another BDSM book with sizzling romance that keeps gaining media attention) we keep rocking out a whole lot of books for readers to enjoy. And as long as they keep selling, they keep reinforcing that erotica is not a genre that will go away.

Oh Crap I Gotta Set Goals??!!

Oh all right.  Here are Liz's Top Ten Won'ts for 2012:

I won't obsess over "silver stars" or other fleeting indicators of success.

I won't stress over lack of comments on the zillions of blog posts I do or when comments are unnecessarily snarky or those cool spammer ones that pretend to be real because they've figured out how to circumnavigate the Captcha Codes

I won't freak when I get rejections and hide in the corner with my thumb in my mouth until coaxed out with beer.

I won't procrastinate on blog posts (right...)

I won't let Hans the hot muse in lederhosen distract me--wait, what's that you say, beloved? Another hot soccer story? A m/m one?  yummy....let me ponder *will you STOP it already?*

I won't turn on facebook or twitter until all blog posts and editing jobs are done...what do you think about the names "Kyle" and "Eli" for the players?  *whoops sorry*

I won't let anything come between me and That One Contract. That is to say, I won't give up so easily this year.

I won't be intimidated by how much better and more successful other writers are at getting acceptances and writing great books.

I won't throw things when I get yet another revision order from an editor.  Ooo ooo ooo I have a title:  "Overtime Play".... oh poor Kyle, he loves Eli, has since they started playing on their MLS team. But in their world it can never be known.  *oh crap there I go again*

and the Number thing I won't do in 2012

I won't ever forget to bring YOU what you need in terms of my Oh So Important and Very Useful Advice, Commentary and Ultra Professional Opinions each week, right here on Authors Promoting Authors!

happy new year kids.
make it a good one.
Liz

Six of A Story: David Knight, I AM I: The In-Dweller of Your Heart

I am thrilled to host another VBT book on the Authors Promoting Authors blog.
Today, author David Knight visits us with his recently released book, I AM I: The In-Dweller of Your Heart. Please feel free to leave comments and ask further questions.
As always, I like to ask authors appearing in the Six of A Story feature to start us off with a quirky fact and this was David's reply:

Quirky spiritual fact: In whatever way one senses, feels or receives 'spiritual guidance' ...its does no harm to question that what you are receiving is actually in the name of truth and love. It will both qualify and quantify the 'source' from where it came!

I gather the 52 lessons in your book are relative to the number of weeks throughout the year. Would it be a good idea for anyone reading this book to apply one lesson per week to their lives?

Absolutely! This can help sometimes because it can give a structure to someone's development and understanding. By reading one per week it continually lets that lesson 'sink in',...so you can feel, live and share it. That said, because we are all very emotional beings there will surely be times when a particular event occurs in your life and are wondering what God would say to help you on the matter.. If you are unable to turn within your own heart and 'self' for whatever reason...pick up the book and randomly choose a lesson....as truth and love always seems to find a way to give you what you need when you need it.

When you are speaking from the first person, who is it that is speaking through you?

God is! One could also say that it is the God 'within' me..my own Divine essence or that 'LOVE' is talking too! ( A great question- thanks for this one!)

What do you consider to be the simplest definition of 'truth'?

Love.

Where do you believe that someone could find the spiritual guidance and education that will resonate and create a strong and positive connection within them?

Everywhere and anywhere...as love is the strongest force in all Creation. I think we are all guilty of actually trying to 'seek' the truth with our objective senses like our sight. The problem with this is that we are often 'unfocused' and we don't see the real / bigger picture. When we focus and use the lens of our hearts ..(with body, mind and soul in unison) then truth is revealed more easily. When you place all the pieces of the jigsaw together the real picture of love emerges...and when something feels right inside you, it probably is.

The idea that energy is never lost and simply converted to a new form of energy is not a new one. Understandably, that would cover any beings physical body. Where does one's energy or spirit dwell when not anchored to the physical body?

Brilliant question! Indeed, just like an apple core left to rot, it will seemingly (eventually) disappear , fading into earth and it's energy becomes whole again. That's the true meaning. Take for example these simple analogy's ...a tadpole wishes to transform into a frog. The chrysalis wants to emerge in to a butterfly and a human being, (deep within the soul), may falsely desire to become 'whole'. But why should we? It is all an illusion from our 'monkey' minds which causes confusion.Truth is simple and life / love is a simple truth. Lets ask ourselves...can a wave be really separate from the ocean?

We are infact already 'free' and all energy vibrates at different rates. The body is dense and therefore on a lower rate of resonance which we could call the earth 'plane' However, energy/ spirit / souls may be in, through and from different dimensions and upon different paths but are all on the same journey of self realization to bliss and peace. All are as close as they are wished to be. As love is in all things, how could it not be so?

Looking at the cover to "I AM I: The In-Dweller of Your Heart" I see a paper boat with a candle in it. Is their a significance to a paper boat sailing in water with a burning candle as it's mast? The paper used to make the boat has text upon it. Was that a certain passage or page of a book, and does it have some relevance?

A friend designed this for me. I described to her that I had been receiving and writing by inner dictation and together the picture emerged from our hearts. As you can see, the light of the sun connects with the candle flame so there is no division / separation from illumination and guidance. The candle is our own 'inner flame' and Divine essence, and as a mast guides and directs....so too, deep within us is the only guide we all /each need...the In-Dweller of our Hearts...I am I.

The paper boat is is a vessel...so to is our bodies (mainly made of water of course)and we are all sailing upon the ocean called love. The boat needs no physical oars or engine as faith, trust and truth replace these to guide and empower us through the trials and tribulations of so-called 'life', enabling us to arrive at calmer waters and towards the safety and shore of peace. The text on the boat isn't actually from the book but represents the 'written' word of all faiths of the world as one. In fact, all the answers that we need are written deep within us and yet they can be displayed through our many different characters and personalities. As we are all 'one', one day I hope that all souls may understand and remember that there is only one true religion, and that is the religion of Love.

We wish David much success with, I AM I: The In-Dweller of Your Heart. Here is more about the author and where to find his book and where you can visit him:

Bio:

DAVID KNIGHT was born into his current physical embodiment in 1964. He is married to Caroline and they live with their adopted cats Toby, Treacle, Spiky and Missy in the UK. In growing up he describes himself as a Mr. Average or like a 'Joe Bloggs'. Whilst earning a living in various types of work, (this ranged from HM Forces, Financial Services, a Care Assistant and also self-employment) his search for fulfilment changed from the exterior and without to the interior and within.

Spiritual education gained a greater momentum and at the age of 21 a more urgent sense of dedication as well as a new realization had set in. New evidence of and from God, were soon revealed through his life experiences. With the aid of Spirit guides and beings from the ethereal planes, the foundations were laid for all who wished to develop and experience their Hearts flame of love and light and to embark upon a unique opportunity for all soul's in this lifetime.

Visit author David Knight's website to learn more: http://www.ascensionforyou.co.uk
Buy I AM I The In-Dweller of Your Heart from Amazon

Whimsical Friday: Merry Christmas one and all!

Since its the eve of Christmas Eve I thought instead of another post, I would share a really cool Christmas light display. Mine are no where near this good. I simply have my house lit up and a nine foot infladable Snowman, Globe and Penguin along with a lit up reighdeer on my lawn. I envy the work these people put into it.

Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and may the new year bring you all you want and more. Enjoy good food, the love of your family and may Santa bring you everything you wanted. :)

Time for Some Holiday Love--or at least laughs

I'll admit it. I am sort of a scrooge in the weeks leading up to Christmas.  Weird since I am a bona fide PK and a former ballet chick who spent more time dancing in the Nutcracker than I care to recall.

But as my life increases complicating exponentially (happens when you own a brewery whose sales grew by over 500% in one year and are gaining ground as an author with 3 publishers, i.e. I made money this quarter at it) I find myself, sort of...well...annoyed by this whole Holiday Thing.

It's in my way, if you must know, with all the shopping and menu planning and decorating not to mention the kids home and underfoot, and the DH flopping around needing to be entertained.  Gone are my quiet days of writing/marketing planning on the very few days I'm not out selling beer.

Sigh.

But, this year has a bit of a different feel to it thanks to some news I got in the last twenty four hours.
I received my first official R&R and those in the know tell me that I got a lot more encouragement than is the "norm" from this publisher so I'm feeling good but also feeling the pressure to get it done, get it done RIGHT (nay: perfectly), and get it done by December 30.

In the immortal words of my bartender we like to call "Shaggy"

I've done my head writing, blogging, facebooking, twittering, and whatnot post the Big Birthday Weekend.  Now it's time to make this happen.

This leads me to the whole point of this rather rambling post (which I can't wait to hear about from you fabulous followers):  Don't send out any submission to any publisher (big or small) without a very serious 3 step review process.  Don't take your sister's, or secretary's or BFF's "OMG! This is so great! You are going to be famous" comments to heart.  They are supposed to say that.  Take that, then tuck it away along with your ego and turn the thing over to a good critique partner.  Then, after you have taken their comments under advisement and changed/revised/rewritten as necessary give it to a Beta Reader.  Then, after you've done that and if you can dig up any more semi professional advice, give it a hard line edit. Check for everything from pacing problems, dangling participles, over used words (there are some websites that will check these for you), purple prose/cliches, to messy punctuation and sloppy formatting.

Then....read it one more time.

Then submit it.

I did that with this particular WIP.  Now I'm gonna start all over, take it apart, add about 15-25k more words to add some depth to a few characters and send it back per her request.  But not until I've actually paid an editor who has worked with me before to do all of the above for me.

It's not as expensive as you might think.  And worth it in the end.

Happy Holidays or Bah Humbug whatever your case may be.

Liz

Erotic Corner - Cassandra Carr brings the kinky romance

Cassandra Carr is a multi-published erotic romance writer who lives in Western New York with her husband, Inspiration, and her daughter, Too Cute for Words. When not writing she enjoys watching hockey and hanging out on Twitter. Her debut novel, Talk to Me, was released by Loose Id on March 22, 2011. Head Games, Buffalo Intimidators book 1, released on November 2, 2011 from Siren Bookstrand, Caught will release December 13, 2011 from Loose Id, and Impact is coming in early 2012 from Ellora's Cave. For more information about Cassandra, check out her website at http://www.booksbycassandracarr.com, "like" her Facebook fan page athttp://www.facebook.com/AuthorCassandraCarr or follow her on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/Cassandra_Carr.

1. Why do you write erotic romance?

I get asked this question a lot, and it's usually related to "Why don't you write non-erotic romance?". Frankly, I write erotic romance because I like it and because I'm good at it. Maybe that makes me sound cocky, but hey, a writer needs to know where her strengths lie!

2. Tell me about Talk to Me, what sort of “dirty talk” is involved in the story?

Drew likes to make Jamie blush, so when they're in bed (or, hell, out of bed) he tells her things like "I'm gonna make you come until you pass out." The title isn't really about talking dirty, though, it's about being seduced by a voice - a man's voice, in this instance. Drew could be reciting the phone book and Jamie would get hot.

3. Is that you on the cover?

*snort* Thankfully for all the people buying the book, no. Why? Does it look like me? *shifty eyes*

4. Judging by your backlist I’m seeing a love of men in uniform. How do they inspire erotic fantasies for you?

I do love men in uniform. Who doesn't? I think there's a different allure around a man in uniform, whether it's a soldier, a firefighter, or even (as in my short story in Uniform Behaviour), a cook in a kitchen.

5. Tell us about your upcoming LI release

Caught is an edgy BDSM holiday novella. I see you all raising your eyebrows. Yes, I managed to mesh edgy BDSM with tinsel and garland (and in quite an interesting way!). Caught is getting some great advanced reviews and will be available at http://www.loose-id.com/Caught.aspx on December 13th.

6. Let’s switch gears: How different is it writing for a heavily erotic publisher like EC or LI compared to any other publishers you’ve worked with in the past?

I have really only worked with publishers like EC and LI so far, so I can't really comment. However, I'm talking to a print publisher right now about writing a book for them that would be significantly less steamy than the books I've published so far. It would still have some steam, but wouldn't be as blatantly erotic as my current stories.

7. What from your perspective does it take for an author to really make a name for themselves in erotica/erotic romance?

Great stories, with great characters and something a little different. I try not to write the same stuff other people are writing and I think it's doing well for me so far.

8. How important is it for authors to do the research for something like BDSM?

Heh. You've hit on one of my hugest pet peeves! But you knew that, didn't you? I think it's very, very important for an author to do their research when writing a BDSM book. Like it or not, readers may think things that happen in BDSM books, even if they were only meant for pure fantasy, are possible to do in real life. If something you portray in one of your books is dangerous, a reader may still do it. I've heard authors say it's not our responsibility to make sure the things in our books are safe, but I respectfully disagree.

9. Tell me what sexy clothing are you wearing *snicker*

Heh. Fleece. It's important for a writer to be warm, you know.

10. Lastly, your URL and what you want readers to take away from your books?

http://www.booksbycassandracarr.com

I hope readers think my books are sexy and yet have humor. I want them to fall in love with my characters just like I do every time I write a book.

We do too! It's been a pleasure to interview you.

BUY her books:

http://booksbycassandracarr.com/TalktoMe.htm

http://booksbycassandracarr.com/HeadGames.htm