tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61019375721285545492024-03-07T21:55:39.996-08:00Men In The SpotlightExtraordinary men, extraordinary lives.Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125truetag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6101937572128554549.post-38045274976522306212011-05-01T00:02:00.000-07:002011-05-03T14:25:25.785-07:00MISTER MAY: RUSS ALLEN<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nSTmLvOeZk4/TbHvGsLbpZI/AAAAAAAAB90/bGZrWdksVnU/s1600/RUSS.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nSTmLvOeZk4/TbHvGsLbpZI/AAAAAAAAB90/bGZrWdksVnU/s1600/RUSS.JPG" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b><br />
</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Meet Mr. Russ Allen, the most interesting man in the world! When I read Russ's bio that beer commercial came to mind. lol I met Russ when he contacted me about being a reviewer for<a href="http://thepaganandthepenbookreviews.blogspot.com/"> The Pagan & The Pen Book Reviews</a>. I've had occasion to chat a little with Russ from time to time and he always has a wonderful tale to tell, so I have invited him to be Mr. May. So please help me welcome him to Men In The Spotlight.</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>1-First off, Russ, tell me a little about yourself.</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I am a New England Yankee, retired after years as a religious professional in Connecticut, West Virginia, Michigan, Wisconsin, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania, and now live on Cape Cod. I am married and have two children and five grandchildren. My academic background includes a BA and two Master’s Degrees. I am currently involved in writing short stories and reviews, gardening, and volunteering in a program that rescues marine mammals.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>2-In order for people to understand how truly remarkable you are, do you mind revealing your age?</b> I am 67.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>3-That is amazing. And I think it's so great you work to save marine mammals. You are also a cross-country skier. How long have you been doing this? That is a very physical activity, I admire the fact you are still so active.</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">My wife and I began cross-country skiing in the mid-1970's while living near Lake Superior in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan as a way of surviving the long winters, and have continued off and on, depending on where we lived. Nowadays we usually take a week in mid-winter to ski in New Hampshire.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>4-What other activities do you enjoy?</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Walking on the beach, swimming, reading and researching, my part-time job, some traveling [we went to Alaska last September], and being with our kids and grandkids.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>5-How long have you and your wife been married?</b> Since June 1968, coming up on 43 years.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>6-Wow! That's a rarity these days. What is your secret to a long happy marriage?</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">First, love and a sense of friendship – long-term spouses are often best friends. Second, a commitment both to each other and to being married. Third, flexibility and adaptability, even more so once retired, coupled with the ability to respond to whatever life throws at you. Fourth, avoiding temptation and rejecting it when it comes along. Fifth, understanding, patience, a sense of humor, mutual-supportiveness, and a willingness not to take oneself too seriously. Finally, but perhaps first as well, always putting the other before oneself.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>7-Definitely wise words to live by. You have an extensive educational background. What would you say to a young person about the importance of college in today's world?</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">First, the obvious – better educated usually means better employed and more money, and the things money can buy. Second, an educated electorate is essential to a democracy; without it, stupidity rules. Third, God gave us brains so we can use them, rather than letting others decide what is true for us. But maybe most of all, at least for me, having the ability to explore, question, research, learn, and apply my knowledge is one of the real joys of my life.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>8-Great answer. I absolutely agree. You've been reviewing for P&P for quite a while now, and choose to review GLBT. You are obviously heterosexual, what is the draw to this particular genre?</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">My interest in sexuality is rooted in my interest in humanity. Sexuality is an essential component in the human condition, thus it is something I have and continue to explore, study, and experience. That is another value I see in marriage: It supplies a safe context within which two people can be intimate and grow closer physically, as well as emotionally and spiritually.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">However, sexuality is too big a topic to be considered in and of itself, so we artificially break it up into manageable quantities. “Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual, Transgender,” as well as Heterosexual and sub-groups like transsexuals, are categories within the larger entity of Sexuality. Actually, it is unfortunate that these have been grouped together, and then separated from Heterosexual or Straight, for such divisions are both unnecessary and prejudicial. Think of it this way: Gay and straight men both engage in similar sexual activities, yet one is often considered non-normal and the other normal.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">But back to the question you ask: My interest is in sexuality, has been in personal and professional contexts [e.g. pre-marital counseling], which in turn has required a categorization of the topic to make its consideration manageable. I have chosen to review GLBT stories and books for you in part because you asked me to, in part because others are not, and because at this moment it is a topic of interest to me. My goal is to explore how writers deal with these expressions of Sexuality; in time my focus will change and I will move on to another facet of this genre, or to another and very different topic.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>9-I recently read a short erotica piece you wrote and I have to tell you, I was disturbed by the subject matter, and that's unusual for me. I've always said nothing bothers me anymore. Ha! Your story did. Would you mind sharing what led you to write this? </b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">You are referring to a story I wrote for a web group about incest, exploring the development of a sexual relationship between a father and his teenage son. Incest is a taboo subject, as is gay or lesbian sex for some, bestiality for others. Yet few who condemn it, or are discomforted by it, have any real certainty as to whether a loving and healthy sexual relationship can and should exist within the members of a family, especially when the participants are otherwise considered sexually and emotionally mature. That is why I wrote that piece, not to promote or condone such a relationship, but to explore in the context of a fictional story the nature of such a physical connection.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Granted, the story is also about a young man’s struggle with his sexual orientation, and his father’s own latent homosexuality. Would it have been different had that not been a factor? What if the two were mother and son, father and daughter, or even mother and daughter? Would a story about incest have been more acceptable had the sex been hetero-, bi- or lesbian, and not gay?</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">To be clear, I do not believe that a physical sexual relationship should exist where there is no love, where its purpose is abuse or domination, or one partner is exploiting the other. Wherever a physical sexual relationship is emotionally, physically, mentally, or developmentally destructive, it should be avoided, and if necessary, socially and legally banned.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">However, reality and history clearly states that moral, social, and legal prohibitions and punishments have been inappropriately applied at times, as for instance to gay, lesbian, or bi-sexual activity, pre-marital or consensual sex, prostitution, adultery, and incest, while marital rape, virtual sexual slavery, child abuse, non-consensual intercourse, and other morally reprehensible forms of sexual activity are often ignored or even approved by society.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">My story was an effort to lift incest out of the taboo category, not to promote that form of sex, but in an effort to see if incest can fit the definition for an appropriate expression of human sexuality. If it does, then it is unjust to rule it illegal, unethical, or wrong, in cases where its participants are expressing their mature loving and committed relationship. Such sexual activity should have no onus attached to it, whether the partners are blood relatives, of different races, or of the same sexual orientation.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>10-Now a few fun questions:</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Red or black?</b> Red.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Day or night?</b> Day.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Leather or lace?</b> Leather.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Kissing or holding hands?</b> Holding Hands.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Coffee or tea?</b> Tea.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Chocolate bunnies or marshmallow Peeps?</b> Chocolate bunnies.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>Thank you for being Mister May, Russ. I appreciate your candor and the reviews you write for</b> <a href="http://thepaganandthepenbookreviews.blogspot.com/">The Pagan & The Pen Book Reviews.</a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div>Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6101937572128554549.post-39708480688133847862011-04-01T00:24:00.000-07:002011-04-01T00:24:00.490-07:00MISTER APRIL: LEILAND DALE<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-7I1m3SoLGmM/TYeehoDG9kI/AAAAAAAABw4/tNfy57AEfko/s1600/Leiland4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-7I1m3SoLGmM/TYeehoDG9kI/AAAAAAAABw4/tNfy57AEfko/s1600/Leiland4.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Leiland, thank you so much for agreeing to this interview. I've been reading about you on the web, so before I get to the questions, tell me a little about yourself.</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Initially, I began reading Harlequin Romance and Silhouette Desire but later transitioned to Silhouette Nocturne. But after reading the first M/M erotic romance, tons of M/M material soon followed. As an avid reader I decided one day to take a stab at writing a book. These days, when not writing something new, I can be found reading a steamy romance (shifters are a fave!), taking my pet dog for a walk or watching movies such as A Walk to Remember.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Most people who recognize your name associate it with male erotica. Why did you choose this genre?</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My interest in the genre stems from a fundamental fact that I am gay. But it goes beyond this. I have found m/m fiction offers a broader spectrum than other genres. One big factor that attracts me is the storylines. My original interest began with Harlequin romances. Although I enjoyed them, I found many of the storylines predictable. I was able to guess the plot of some books simply by reading the blurb. I find m/m fiction offers greater variety and piqued my interest much more than other genres.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>What is your favorite book? Why?</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Well, actually I have a favorite book and a favorite series – both for the same reasons. <i>Wes and Toren</i> by J.M. Colail and Andrew Grey’s <i>Love Means</i> series. Like everyone else, I enjoy an occasional vacation from reality and will pick up a story that allows me to get away from everyday life. But these two stories stand out the most for me because of their realism. The authors have kept the books so close to reality, they read like true stories. So I am able to completely engross myself in the story and feel and see everything as if I was a part of it far more intensely than a getaway fiction. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>You moved into the role of publisher a while back. Why did you want to make that leap?</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Several reasons. As an author, there were several areas where I felt there could be change. Researching, I found most publishers took a larger chunk of royalties than what they should. I also found most publishers take so long to give a reply – regardless of whether they accept or decline the submission. After reading other author’s comments about their experiences with some publishers, I realized there were few, if any, publishers out there who actually focused on the author and their needs. I wanted to change that – make a difference. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>You have some very talented people working for you. How long did it take to get the right staff, or was that by trial and error?</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Yes I do :)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoBodyText"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Since opening our doors, we’ve gone through several staff changes all in an effort to make improvements where needed. We’ve been lucky in some departments, while others have been through trial and error. We’re still making changes and are learning as we grow. We are always receptive to corrections and suggestions that improve the quality of the products and services we offer. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Now that Silver Publishing is coming up on its first birthday, how do you feel about your progress? Have you lived up to your own expectations?</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I’m proud to say we will be celebrating our first anniversary as a full service publisher on June 1, 2011 and that we have exceeded our expectations.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>When you began as a publisher, did you have certain goals for five, ten or fifteen years down the road?</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Our goal has always been to be recognized as <i>the publisher for the author</i>. I expect us to grow over the next few years. But ultimately, it’s not the growth that matters most to us, it’s the goal to ultimately be there for the author.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Do you envision reaching your five-year goal before/after that time, or do you feel you're on track?</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Based on the current performance in such a short period of time, we’ll meet our five-year goal much quicker than we expected. Not only will we meet our goal, I’m certain we will exceed it before this time.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>As a publisher, do you depend on your staff and go with their decisions, or do you have to have the final say on every book before it's published?</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I have a handful of staff that I respect to make good decisions. However, there are times when I’ve overridden their decisions because I may know additional information, which may ultimately affect the expected outcome.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>I noticed that one of your titles is in Spanish. Is this a trend?</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: #1f497d;">Silver Publishing publishes Spanish books as well. We have a handful of translators that do the translations for us.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #1f497d;"> </span></span><span style="color: #0070c0;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Are you still writing, or does publishing limit your writing time?</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I’m still writing but publishing does limit my time immensely. I’m currently working on making a few changes in staff and responsibilities to allow me to delegate some tasks to allow for more writing time.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Now, for everyone out there, when a book is submitted to Silver Publishing, do you personally read them, or do you have an acquisitions editor? And how does an author impress the acquisitions department enough to get a contract?</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Submissions are currently handled by our Editor-in-Chief, and she reviews all submissions. Honestly, an author impresses our EIC by providing a detailed synopsis, which provides a well-rounded picture of the manuscript and captures the author’s enthusiasm for the piece. If an author submits their work with only a two or three line summary, this shows a lack of interest in their submission. And if they aren’t interested in their own story, it’s a bit difficult to inspire any sort of excitement on our part. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Are you looking for any particular genre, or manuscript length at this time? Any submission calls for 4<sup>th</sup> of July or Halloween?</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #0070c0;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We currently have a call for submissions with a Father’s Day theme, as well as holiday submissions for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Thank you so much for joining me, Mr. Dale. Is there anything you would like to add?</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Yes, since this is publishing in April, I want my birthday wish to be granted. A large sexy man with a beautiful smile and nice a$$ who brings me sparkly gifts.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>LOL Well, there you have it. Any single guys out there that meet Mr. Dale's requirements, he's looking for a very special birthday surprise! (But he is a Taurus, guys so beware!) That's hilarious. Thank you so much for being Mister April, and I hope you have a great birthday. After all, turning 21 is a big deal! LOLOLOLOL</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Leiland's Links:</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><a href="http://authorleilanddale.info/">Author Site</a></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=223998188480&id=100000537625119">Face Book</a></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><a href="http://twitter.com/#!/leilanddale">Twitter</a></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://silverpublishing.info/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Silver Publishing</span></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><a href="http://silverpublishing.info/index/book_authors_id/8/typefilter/book_authors">Buy Link</a></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YniOlqo4Rb8/TYecNc8WMII/AAAAAAAABwo/4lQ5cawyB_M/s1600/leiland2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YniOlqo4Rb8/TYecNc8WMII/AAAAAAAABwo/4lQ5cawyB_M/s1600/leiland2.jpg" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Paul's D'Marco </b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span class="apple-style-span">Matt D'Marco has happily settled in his routine for years. Now with a pending divorce, recently promoted Matt's life is about to take an entirely new direction. Matt's first case as detective turns out to be a challenge. Desperation sets in when all leads in the child serial killer case leave the police department empty handed. Paul Whittington, psychic and medium, may be the only solution in finding a break in the case.</span><br />
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<span class="apple-style-span">Matt and Paul are forced to work together. But when a work relationship turns into something more, it challenges everything Matt's known about himself, his life, and desires. Then, a turn in the case could put everything at risk. In the end, can Paul win over Matt's resistance and claim him as his own?</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-2XyTBHCj49U/TYec4RPBWFI/AAAAAAAABws/_ligoPdmrqk/s1600/leiland1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-2XyTBHCj49U/TYec4RPBWFI/AAAAAAAABws/_ligoPdmrqk/s1600/leiland1.jpg" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>When The Bluebird Calls <o:p></o:p></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span class="apple-style-span">Devon Reid, veterinarian, had a partner of 2 years, a beautiful house, and a fantastic job. Then, life as he knew it, changed.</span><br />
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<span class="apple-style-span">Six months ago, he became his mother's sole caretaker when her cancer returned. With his constant absence from home, his relationship ends leaving him alone in one of the most emotionally draining points in his life. When his mother passes, he is lonely and loses his zest for life.</span><br />
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<span class="apple-style-span">With his emotions and life in turmoil, Devon decides it's time to make a change. Leaving the city life behind and taking a job in a small town in Montana, was just what the doctor ordered. Then, he meets the hunky ranch foreman, Greg Elliot.</span><br />
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<span class="apple-style-span">Greg has lived most of his life on a ranch. Living in a small town didn't offer many prospects for a relationship, until he meets the new veterinarian in town.</span><br />
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<span class="apple-style-span">While they try to resist the obvious mutual attraction, a fateful call during the night changes it all.</span><br />
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<span class="apple-style-span">What is a city boy to do when a small town cowboy ropes him in?</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-j3Z2BEZsMm0/TYedS4cJ-6I/AAAAAAAABww/-Zp5Xo16yMY/s1600/leilanddalespanish.jpg" /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Un Corazon Amante (Hart of the Mountain)</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span class="yiv428253680longtext"><span lang="ES">Durante siete a os, Jasper Elliot se sinti traicionado y solo, cuando su hermano se march de casa.Cuando un visitante inesperado se presenta y le descubre la verdadera razon por la que su hermano le dej, Jasper se enfrenta a una decisi n que cambiar el curso de su vida.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="ES"> </span></span><span class="yiv428253680longtext"><span lang="ES">Al llegar al Rancho Mountain Hart, no solo no van las cosas de la manera que l esperaba, sino que tambi n encuentra lo que cre a inalcanzable.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="ES"> </span></span></span><span lang="ES"><br />
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</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><span class="yiv428253680longtext"><span lang="ES">Seth Hart ten a un secreto que le hab a dejado profundas cicatrices. Para mantener su secreto a salvo, nunca sal a con nadie y siempre aseguraba no involucrar a su coraz n. Con la llegada de Jasper, las resoluciones de Seth vuelan por la ventana. La</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="ES"> </span></span><span class="yiv428253680longtext"><span lang="ES">atracci n instant nea que Seth siente por Jasper es excitante pero tambi n le da miedo.</span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span lang="ES"> </span></span><span class="yiv428253680longtext"><span lang="ES" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;">Justo cuando las cosas empiezan a ir mejor de lo que nunca pod a esperar Seth, su pasado les alcanza.</span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><b> BUY LEILAND'S BOOKS <a href="http://silverpublishing.info/index/book_authors_id/8/typefilter/book_authors">HERE</a></b></div>Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6101937572128554549.post-26757893384832047052011-03-01T00:08:00.000-08:002011-03-21T11:23:36.102-07:00MISTER MARCH: G.R. BRETZ<div class="MsoNormal"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-lbROhxMlPZs/TWrv6fbaGnI/AAAAAAAABr0/ghQ7FhHo17E/s1600/grbretz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-lbROhxMlPZs/TWrv6fbaGnI/AAAAAAAABr0/ghQ7FhHo17E/s320/grbretz.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Welcome to the Spotlight, Glenn. I'm thrilled you could join me today. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Hi Rie, Thanks for inviting me.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Before we get down to business here, I just want to say thank you for agreeing to this interview. I'd also like to mention that I had the real pleasure of sharing a spot in the anthology, <i>Cocked & Fully Loaded</i> (Noble Romance Publishing) with GR Bretz and I've been in love ever since!<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ah shucks, color me flattered.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">First, tell everyone what genre you write and why you decided to be a writer.</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My two novels and two short stories have all been in the erotic romance genre. I decided to write for the same reason I decided to drink and do drugs. I needed to escape from reality.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">LOL I'm glad your sense of humor hasn't suffered! Do you remember the first thing you ever wrote? What was it, have you recently reread it and what do you think of it?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I definitely remember the first thing I ever wrote. It was my epic spec-fic trilogy. It spanned fourteen centuries and fifteen hundred pages, single-spaced. Of course, it was un-publishable, as most first novels are.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My first serious attempt at publishing something was <i>Absinthe Eyes & Other Lies</i>, which was published by Noble Romance. It’s a dark and decadent look at alcoholism and insanity; an art eats artist sort of thing.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">What is a typical writing day like for you?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">There is no typical writing day for me. My days are as unique as snowflakes and frequently as insubstantial.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You recently told me you've gone into another genre or area of writing, what exactly is it you're doing and why the switch?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I’ve been writing short stories for the spec-fic market. I think a writer’s best chance at success, and personal satisfaction, is to write what they most love reading. For me, that’s spec-fic and especially short stories. I enjoy the challenge of telling a complete story in five or six thousand words. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Is writing your career or do you have a wicked day job that keeps you from your muse?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Sadly, I have a wicked day job. My muse is the love of my life, but she doesn’t pay the bills. I don’t mind supporting her. Hopefully, someday she’ll do the same for me.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Writing can be a pretty cushy job and done in your pj's. How cushy is it for you?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Physically, it’s very cushy. However, much of what I write is very dark and has to do with characters dealing with their worst fears and insecurities. So, it does leave me drained on an emotional level.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">If you suddenly could never write again, what would you do? Do you have a fall back job?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I suppose if I couldn’t write anymore, I’d read even more and listen to a lot of sad music.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You've written some pretty provocative pieces. What's your inspiration behind these stories?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">There’s a bit of me in every male lead I write. It tends to be that part of me that I keep hidden from the world. In life, you have to filter your thoughts and words for the sake of others. Fiction gives you the freedom to be spontaneous and carefree.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My favorite style of writing is first person, present tense. I want the reader to experience the story exactly as the character does. It can be very emotionally intense.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Is there any genre that makes you uncomfortable to write?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As a rule, I don’t like writing a lot of graphic sex scenes, although some stories do require it. Ideally, I’d like to be the final judge as to how much sex is in a story and how graphically that sex is portrayed. The reality is that I frequently wind up adding more sex scenes to please the publishers.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I've heard you say (quite often) that you drink Absinthe. I never have, so would you please share with us what it is and how you drink it?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Absinthe is a very potent alcoholic drink, which can cause hallucinations. It tastes like liquid licorice and kicks like a mule. It’s very effective at releasing inhibitions and putting me in the right frame of mind for writing. Absinthe is nectar for the imaginations.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I've heard you're not supposed to let it touch your lips. What else has never touched your lips?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I’ve heard that too, but I don’t believe it. The only thing I love more than the taste of absinthe lingering on my lips is the taste of absinthe lingering on the lips of a beautiful woman.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As to the second part of the question, there are a great many things that have never touched my lips.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You told me you moved to Florida for the sun, sex, and fun? How is it?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Lately it seems like there’s too much of the first one and not nearly enough of the other two.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Now that you're Mister March, do you think you'll be doing more centerfolds?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I think I’ll pass on that.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Thank you so much for chatting with me today, Glenn, it's been a real pleasure. Is there anything else you'd like people to know?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I suppose this is the part where I should be plugging my previous books. They’re all available at Noble Romance Publishing. I particularly recommend <i>Absinthe Eyes & Other Lies</i>. It’s very unique and received many great reviews.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I would like to leave you with a short, beautiful poem guaranteed to touch the heart of any romance reader or writer. I wish it were mine, but it was written 750 years ago, in ancient Persia.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Quatrain<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Jaleel al-Din Rumi<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The tender words we said to one another<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Are stored in a secret part of heaven<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">One day like rain they will fall and spread<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">And our mystery will grow green over the world.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Very sweet, Mr. March. And I have to agree with those reviews of <i>Absinthe Eyes & Other Lies. </i>It's a very compelling read, as is Mr. Bretz's contribution to Winter Kisses Anthology, </b><strong><i>A Schrödinger Christmas – Holly</i></strong><span class="apple-converted-space"><b>.<o:p></o:p></b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-ra19OwjHdgA/TWroh0ZK10I/AAAAAAAABrs/SV3GAr-3SHI/s1600/aebretz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-ra19OwjHdgA/TWroh0ZK10I/AAAAAAAABrs/SV3GAr-3SHI/s320/aebretz.jpg" width="205" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span class="apple-converted-space"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Absinthe Eyes</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When a legend lingers for centuries there’s usually a bit of truth to it. For two hundred years people have whispered about the green fairy that lives in bottles of absinthe. Drink up. If you’re lucky you may see her. If you’re very lucky you may catch her. No one should ever be that lucky. Ask David, Vincent and Richard; three men with a few things in common. They have found inspiration. They have met the Muse. They have taken Dahlia to their hearts and to their beds. It cost them their sanity and their lives. If Stephen isn’t very careful he’s going to be number four.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-NpmmSacyuBc/TWrrNKUECDI/AAAAAAAABrw/jiVMN7bJCPY/s1600/cocked.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-NpmmSacyuBc/TWrrNKUECDI/AAAAAAAABrw/jiVMN7bJCPY/s1600/cocked.jpg" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><strong>Gunmetal Blue </strong><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Meet Blue—an ex-Confederate cavalry officer living off his wits and his guns in Reconstruction era Texas—and Sally—a young woman stuck in a loveless marriage to a man who only married her for her family name. When Sally's stage is attacked by robbers, Blue comes to her rescue. Together, they make their way across the Lone Star state. But when they reach a crossroads, the direction they choose will change the course of their lives forever.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-AiWX2KIEwbc/TWroVa3ZTGI/AAAAAAAABro/ANjs-fsG8y4/s1600/trillbretz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-AiWX2KIEwbc/TWroVa3ZTGI/AAAAAAAABro/ANjs-fsG8y4/s320/trillbretz.jpg" width="205" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Trill Song</b><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Liwa is a young woman with a mission. She means to end the war that has drained her society of its best and brightest for centuries. When Liwa was seven, the Healer fled the village in fear of her life. She left her six year old son, Temo, in Liwa’s care.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Now Temo has come of age and Liwa is determined to keep him from being sent to war. Her efforts incur the wrath of the ruling Elders. Liwa must come to terms with her conflicted feelings for Temo, as the two of them fight their way north in search of the legendary Andrigorn valley and the one person who can help Liwa end the war: Temo’s mother.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-RlHhbOOtpkw/TWroPZqY2_I/AAAAAAAABrk/3l-WHaWc0wg/s1600/winterkissesbretz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-RlHhbOOtpkw/TWroPZqY2_I/AAAAAAAABrk/3l-WHaWc0wg/s320/winterkissesbretz.jpg" width="205" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>A Schrodinger Christmas - Holly</b><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">She’s the girl who lives in his dreams, but she’s so much more than that. She’s the girl he was supposed to meet, twice. She’s the path he didn’t take, twice. That was forty years ago and you just can’t go back, except in dreams.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">But it’s Christmas day. Miracles have been known to happen. Who knows? The third time just might be the charm.</span></div><br />
<a href="https://www.nobleromance.com/ItemDisplay.aspx?i=86">BUY LINK</a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"></div><div class="MsoNormal"></div><div style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';"></div>Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6101937572128554549.post-10201221516599835012011-02-01T01:21:00.000-08:002011-02-01T09:21:28.975-08:00MISTER FEBRUARY: WILLIAM MALTESE<div class="MsoNormal"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TSuf_upyIUI/AAAAAAAABlo/qlwW_PbRFps/s1600/William+Maltese+%2528Venice+photo%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TSuf_upyIUI/AAAAAAAABlo/qlwW_PbRFps/s320/William+Maltese+%2528Venice+photo%2529.jpg" width="270" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></b></div><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Welcome to the Spotlight, Mr. William Maltese. I'm thrilled you could join me today. <o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">As am I, Miss Rie McGaha, happy as all hell to be here.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Before we get to the questions, I want to thank you for agreeing to this interview.</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"> <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Well, hey: your wish is always my command. Well, most of the time. Then, again, well, maybe, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">some</i> of the time.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">I am such a fan and admire all the things you've done in your life.</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"> <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">You just might want to re-think that one, Hon, because even I admit to having done some things in my life that, well…<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">It's amazing how much one can squeeze out of life when one puts his or her mind to it!<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Squeeze what out of what, you say? Oh, right! Well, as a true believer that variety IS the spice of life, I’ve genuinely tried to do my share of squeezing, in my time, both of life and…<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">First of all, tell everyone a little about yourself…besides being an award-winning author, world traveler, wine </span></b><em><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-style: normal;">connoisseur, man-about-town, artist, and chocolateer? </span></b></em><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Hey, what else is there left to tell?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">In that, yes…<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">I am an award-winning author (although I’m trying my best to remember just what awards those might be).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">I have written at least enough books so that Wildside/Borgo Press just released its 303-page reference tome, DRAQUALIAN SILK: A COLLECTOR’S AND BIBLIOGRAPHICAL GUIDE TO THE BOOKS OF WILLIAM MALTESE 1969-2010, just so people can sort out the 180 books I’ve had published in the last four decades.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/m/william-maltese/draqualian-silk.htm"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TStTXgzgf7I/AAAAAAAABlg/AqMwtDpIXRE/s320/3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Certainly, I’ve literally (and literarily) circumnavigated the globe</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">on more than one occasion.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Since there is a whole WILLIAM MALTESE WINE TASTER’S GUIDE series being published by Wildside/Borgo Press, I’m definitely a wine connoisseur; if it says that on the cover of a book, it HAS to be Gospel, right?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">A man-about-town? Well, it has been said that I’ve been known to get around, up and down (sometimes upside-down), in and out, high and wide.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">As for my “being” an artist, I prefer to call myself “someone who appreciates art”, rather than someone who considers himself an artist, per se; although, I have done a few pieces (I refer to artwork, here) that I wouldn’t be embarrassed to have hanging around the house. Of course, if we’re talking my <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">literary </i>artistry, that’s undeniable and undeniably something else again.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Definitely, as a chocolateer (not to confuse me with Ben Hur who was a charioteer), I can rave on to you, or to anyone, about the benefits of chowing down on “healthy” Xocai® chocolate (having included it in the recipes of my two published cookbooks </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial;">[</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">THE GLUTEN FREE WAY</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">MY WAY (with Adrienne Milligan), and BACK OF THE BOAT COOKING (with Bonnie Clark)], and will include it within the recipes of both additional cookbooks for which I’m presently officially contracted (THE GOURMET DIET and THE GOURMET HUCKLEBERRY). Not to mention my mentioning it in several of my novels, even going so far as to having the vampire Gregory, in my mainstream WILLIAM MALTESE’S FLICKER: #1 BOOK OF ANSWERS, turn to it while weaning himself off blood. My Xocai® advocacy, though, isn’t so much because I’m an admitted bona-fide distributor of that “healthy” chocolate (although I am), as much as it is because it’s a means for me to access the chocolate at wholesale prices for my own greedy consumption.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><a href="http://www.mxi.myvoffice.com/williammaltese">http://www.mxi.myvoffice.com/williammaltese</a><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">I have a degree in Marketing/Advertising, but my skills at selling are really piss-poor. That’s probably why I’ve spent my whole life writing</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">not selling</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial;">…</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">eating Xocai® chocolate</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">not doing all that well marketing it, either.</span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">When did you first know you wanted to be a writer?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Well, certainly, I thought myself “a writer” from a very early age</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">possibly from as soon as I “could” write.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">I think typewriter and paper might well have popped out of the womb with me. Although, the earliest recollection of a story I actually wrote is “The Spider with the Human Mind” when I was in grammar school.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Later, I was as member of my high-school writing club, and garnered notoriety by writing about baby sacrifices and cannibalism on the island of Martinique before that island’s Mt. Pele blew it’s top and killed a lot of people; not to mention my decidedly high-brow <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">haiku,</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Irenē, in a bikini, looks like a wienie. Hot dog!”<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">After a bit of treasure hunting in South America (no treasure found, just a bad case of crotch-rot), between my junior and senior years in university, I published my “Ransom of the Inca” in “Argosy” magazine.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">While I was still serving my three-year enlistment in the U.S. Army, I got “National Geographic Magazine” interested in the possibility of my doing a piece and pictures for them on Korea-at-the-time (this AFTER the Korean War for those who keep insisting I look too young to have fought in that War-that-was-officially-a-Conflict).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">But, all of that wasn’t really me out to establish my credentials as a writer; it was merely me fiddling around while always assuming I’d eventually take on something other than writing books as a way of earning my living. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Any suspicion that I might actually write full-time, and end up supporting myself that way, didn’t “hit” me until really very late in the game…after university, after the military, after the summer I decided to spend relaxing before embarking upon what I always assumed and planned would be my career in advertising. I needed, at the very least, the viable fact of my first two published books from Greenleaf, and that publisher’s follow-up requests for more…more…more…yes, please, more books, and thank-you-very-much…to have me finally thinking that writing, professionally, yes, just might be the life for me.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Do you remember your first published piece?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">My first published piece was “Ransom of the Inca” for “Argosy” magazine. My first published book was ADONIS, for Greenleaf Press; although the first book I actually sold was FIVE ROADS TO TLEN, which Greenleaf published directly <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">after</i> ADONIS. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">What is a typical day like for you?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">A typical day is likely only typical until noon, beginning with my getting out of bed (yes, for all who want to know, I DO sleep in the nude, even in winter), shit, shower, shave (not necessarily in that order)…take my blood-glucose (not because I have diabetes, but because there’s a history of Type II in my family, and I want to make sure that Xocai® chocolate continues to keep me safe from sugar overdoses)…hang upside down for fifteen minutes to reverse at least some of the effects gravity has had on my spine, during the previous day (actually, I may just suffer vampire-syndrome)…take half an aspirin (have to keep the veins unclotted)…take a couple of salmon-oil pills (have to keep the cholesterol low)…eat a piece (or two, or three) of Xocai®…read my email and take care of answering that. After which, I tackle whomever…I mean “whatever” needs to be done on Twitter, FaceBook, MySpace, or wherever.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">After noon, anything can happen…including a drink (hey, I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">am</i> a wine connoisseur, remember!)…heading on out for lunch (hey, I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">am</i> a gourmand, remember!)…and, maybe, if I’m lucky, I may even get a bit of writing done (hey, I am a writer, remember!)…or, (zzzzzzzzz!) manage to plow through some proofing chores (God save me from proofing!).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">At around five p.m., or later, depending upon if I’m on a roll, as far as my writing goes, I usually call it a day. Hey, “it”, you’re a “day”! After which, it’s either have a quiet meal and a glass (or two or three or…) of wine at home, or go out for some gourmet dining and glass (or two or three or…) of wine (I’m lucky to know several other gourmands and wine connoisseurs, other than just me).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">If I’m back from the night out early enough, I’ll watch some television, during which I’ll likely drop off to sleep on the couch, waking up after midnight and dragging my sorry ass (after trying to remember to always brush my teeth), to bed.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">I know you've posed for paintings.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Hmmmmm. I wonder how you know that.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">How did that come about?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">My wondering how you know I posed for paintings, or you knowing I posed for paintings, or my having posed for paintings?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">More specifically, what made you decide to bare it all?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Way back when, at a time in my life when some people actually agreed that I didn’t look all that bad with my clothes dropped (you’ll find fewer and fewer of these people, if any, in this day and age, by the way), I was asked by a publisher if I would mind providing it with some nude shots of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">moi</i> to use by way of promoting several of my published books of erotica, everyone in the publisher’s advertising department figuring that male nudity, especially the male nudity of an author who didn’t look all that bad with his pants dropped, might actually sell some of that author’s (aka “my”) books. Albeit reluctantly, I agreed to some tentative black-and-white preliminary “test” shots, with all claim to the product and negatives, with no obligation to proceed onward to color photos if I didn’t like what I saw.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">To make a long story short, I got cold feet (maybe because I was stark naked, at the time, and a good many additional parts of my anatomy were, likewise, cold?), and I confiscated the initial B&W photos/negatives, and nixed any color shoot. So, the incriminatory B&W photos w/negatives ended up at the bottom of a very deep-dark trunk, tucked away in the far corner of a very dim and cluttered attic, never to see the light of day until years later when I came across them while searching out some old manuscripts a publisher was dying for me (suddenly famous) to dig out to be considered for publication.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">I took a look at the disinterred pictures, and, in retrospect, decided they didn’t look nearly as bad as I remembered them. At which point, my rampant narcissism checked in, where it somehow hadn’t the first time around, and I was convinced that the only reason I’d never been the male Dora Mar of the artwork, inspiring the likes of Picasso to paint masterpieces, was because the real Dora got to Picasso before I did, and/or I’d never been enamored enough by any artist, man or woman (or vice versa) to play his or her muse.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Without any artist spontaneously volunteering to immortalize me on canvas, I set out to build my own collection of self-aggrandizing artwork, ARTISTS “DO” author WILLIAM MALTESE, based entirely upon personal interpretations of various artists as regarded one picture from that original grouping of B&W prints resurrected from their attic burial. That why, today, you can ferret out, if you dig deep enough…<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…the naked me in two Diego Tolomelli stained-glass panels (as St. Bartholomew being flayed alive, and as The Vampyre Draqual “Becoming”).</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…a painting by Rick Chris with me as “St. Sebastian of the West”, tied to a stake and shot full of arrows.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">… two works by “mikesbliss” (a portrait of me against a strikingly blood-red backdrop, and me, as vampire.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">… two pieces (as angel; as devil) by Ismael Álvarez Vélez.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">… a tattooed punk me, with hard-on, and dangling tennis shoes tied to my balls, by “the artist Drub”.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…and a whole lot more. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">What genre(s) do you write? Did you pick them or did they pick you?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">There isn’t a genre I probably don’t write, or haven’t written…<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">… gay, straight, bi.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">… mystery (my Stud Draqual mystery </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"> A SLIP TO DIE FOR and THAI DIED</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">series).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…romance (three Harlequin SuperRomances and my DARE TO LOVE IN OZ, all by Willa Lambert).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…men’s adventures (THE GOMORRAH CONJURATIONS).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">...bondage and discipline (LOVE HURTS).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…crime and punishment (THE FAG IS NOT FOR BURNING).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…historical (ARDENNIAN BOY, with Wayne Gunn; GRIT with Jardonn Smith).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…horror (SUCKS! FIRST OF THE DRAQUAL VAMPYRE CHRONICLES).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…fantasy (WILLIAM MALTESE’S FLICKER: #1 BOOK OF ANSWERS).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/m/william-maltese/book-of-answers.htm"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TStTd8uLrzI/AAAAAAAABlk/lROgoshlTzU/s320/4.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…saga (Seven-Continent series for MLR Press).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…satire (CATALYTIC QUOTES: SOME HEARD THROUGH A TIME WARP).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…thriller (BLOOD-RED RESOLUTION).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…sci-fi (BOND-SHATTERING).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">… play (MURDER BY METEORITE).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">… movie script (THE MOONSTONE MURDERS).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">…even a children’s book (DOG ON A SURFBOARD AND THE REST OF THE ADVENTURE).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Most recently, as you very well know, you having teamed up with me to do WILLIAM MALTESE’S WINE TASTER’S GUIDE: OKLAHOMA, I’ve ventured into a series of wine books, beginning with the Spokane/Pullman WA wine region, and soon, written along with AB Gayle, one on the Pinot G wines of Australia’s Mornington Peninsula).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TStTTGiyLMI/AAAAAAAABlc/Mbu7q_u_p-c/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TStTTGiyLMI/AAAAAAAABlc/Mbu7q_u_p-c/s320/2.jpg" width="215" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">As well, I’ve launched those previously mentioned cookbooks. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">As for whom picked what, or vice versa, it has always been my desire to write all different genres, if just because continually writing just one can, and eventually does, every time, bore me to tears; so, I guess, I’ve just always been on the outlook for anything (or anyone) new to take on. So, whenever something (a genre, for instance) makes itself available, I jump at the chance.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">What do your family and friends think about your career?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">I always had super support from my parents (now, dead) who merely wanted to provide me with whatever the tools and wherewithal I needed to do whatever I wanted to do with my life. The only complaint I really ever heard from either of them was from my mother who, before I started writing Harlequin SuperRomances, and my children’s book, complained that she just wished I’d oblige her by writing <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">at least one book</i> she could, one day, pull out and show to her friends who would, after all, have been more than a little shocked by the story lines of my earliest efforts, like DOG-COLLAR BOYS and POP ‘N’ SWAP.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">As for friends, gay, straight, and bi, they’ve all been accepting. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">You and I often have some pretty interesting conversations, and the other day we got to talking about what is and isn't accepted material. We began talking about M/M vs. F/F genre, M/M/M vs. F/F/F and M/F/F stories. You had some very interesting insights. Could you tell everyone your thoughts on writing the GLBT genre?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Hmmmm. I probably should have jotted down those insights of mine, at the time I had them (my memory not what it used to be; not that it was ever the best).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">I do know that in my early days of writing all kinds of erotica, I had more than one publisher tell me that m/m sex was okay</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">for gay readers; f/f sex was okay</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">for straight male readers who always enjoyed a bit of gal-on-gal action, not threatened by it (women readers, by the way, weren’t even considered a viable demographic as far as being readers/buyers of erotica, at the time); even m/f/f was okay; BUT, please, please, please, NOT (they would say, every time I tried</span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">and I DID try) any sex between two men and a woman. The ongoing belief (one, also, concurrently prevalent in the U.S. military at the time </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"> as I can bear personal witness) was that there was no such “animal” as a bisexual; therefore, there was no one really interested in buying a book about any such weird and strange anomaly.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Thank God, publishers, in this day and age, have become a little more enlightened; even suddenly realizing women like man-on-man sex, just as much as men have always been turned on by woman-on-woman.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Then, again, I can’t tell you how many complaints I get from gay readers of my Stud Draqual Mystery Series who can’t entertain even the possibility that Stud is bisexual; they insist he’s a closeted gay who this author should, especially in this day and age, “out”, instead of continually letting him turn down, at least so far, every cock on the block, to climb into bed with…gasp!...pussy.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">In fact, Lambda Literary Awards, this year, allow any bisexual book to be nominated in two categories, not just one, for the entry price, just because there has been such a dearth of bisexual literature published.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">You are very candid about being bisexual. How much does this play into your writing, and do you think it has ever prevented you from accomplishing anything in your life because of other people's attitudes?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Knowing there were, indeed, men and women who went to bed not only the opposite sex, but with their same sex, even back when so few others seemed to believe it could, would, or did happen, I’ve tried to include bisexuality in my writing whenever I can. Sometimes, once I was “established”, bisexuality was allowed to sneak in through the cracks, since most of my early manuscripts often arrived at the publishers and, undergoing very little editing, if any, were soon off to the printer; shortly thereafter, on the book stands. Certainly, now that other people are catching up to me in realizing the existence of bisexuality, I’ve been more freely able to incorporate it in my books, like my THE GOMORRHA CONJURATIONS, BLOOD-RED RESOLUTION, THE FAG IS NOT FOR BURNING); mainly aimed at straight readers, since, for some reason, gay men readers still balk at the inclusion of cunt in their reading material.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">You would think, what with the large and every-expanding women readership of m/m books, these days, not to mention all of the women now writing m/m fiction, that gay men would be more accepting of male-male-female sexual liaisons than they used to be; but, I don’t see it happening.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">As far as my bisexuality having ever prevented me from accomplishing anything in my life, because of other people’s attitudes, I’ve actually found quite the opposite to be true. From the get-go, I found it genuinely advantageous for me to have had the experiences of my bisexuality that allowed me to write successful straight and gay erotica, not to mention straight mainstream, in that, having done so allows me entre and free movement within both straight and gay communities. Possibly because I know the difference between a toilet and finger bowl, between a regular knife and a fish knife, have a college degree, served honorably through my enlistment in the U.S. Army, and have never, I guess, really “looked” like a dirty old man (until recently), I’ve managed to fit into, and be accepted by, most of the straight world, without too much difficulty. What’s more, I feel that I would have missed out on a whole lot of enjoyable life experiences if I’d been excluded from it, or had excluded myself from intermingling with those members of that sexual orientation that’s still in the majority.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">While we were chatting, you had an opinion about the difference between men and women when it comes to dating. Would you mind sharing that with us?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Well, while two guys, dating, can certainly enjoy the same things as a guy and a gal, dating (a good meal, a night out on the town, attending symphony, opera, theater, or movie), it has been my personal observation and experience that sex is more easily accomplished between two guys than between a guy and gal.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">A woman seems to need a whole lot more lead-in just to get into bed for sex than does any gay or bi man. Females still seem to embrace the long held philosophy of, “Save yourself only for your husband.” Something about no guy ever wanting the “cow” if he has 24/7 free access to the “milk”.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Then, there’s this usual preference of women for long and lengthy foreplay, before (dinner, dates, candy, flowers), and once in bed (touchy-feely), even before sex. A guy is just more likely to begin any male-male relationship with fast-and-furious fucking (and prefer beginning any male-female relationship the same way), letting friendship and/or any deeper emotional bonding follow after. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Valentine's Day is coming up this month. You and I are dating, okay; we’re FWB and doing what on this day dedicated to lovers?<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Since you’re female, and I’ve verified with you that our mutual definition of FWB (Friends with Benefits includes being “Fuck Buddies”), we’ve obviously already progressed through the initial phases of heterosexual courtship and screwed…<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">So, we preface our special Valentine’s Day by boarding a plane for an international first-class flight that has us in Rome on Valentine’s Day eve and checked into the Hassler Suite with its 1730 square feet of spectacular from-the-terrace views of the city. Our room is filled to overflowing with flowers, including orchids of which I’m particularly fond. We test out the bed with some heated sex, then freshen up for a dinner of pheasant ravioli with truffles in the Hassler’s chic rooftop Imàgo restaurant, where we receive a personal stop-by from the chef who wants to be sure we’re enjoying our meal and the service. Back in our room, we’ll enjoy chilled Veuve Clicquot champagne from Baccarat flutes. After which, we’ll strip down, go to bed, where I’ll provide you with whatever your desired quota of foreplay before we screw ourselves into blissful exhaustion.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">We greet our official Valentine’s Day morning with vigorous Fuck-Buddy sex, with follow-up sex during our mutually shared shower. We have a breakfast of cappuccino and cornetto at Tazza d’Oro. Then, there’s a morning of sightseeing some of Rome’s most romantic spots: The Pincio Hill, The Aventine Hill, Villa Celimontana, Via Appia amid Roman ruins, Via Giulia, Piazza Navona.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">At the Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere, we lunch at Frontoni by indulging its do-it-yourself pizza sandwiches, choosing our favorite toppings from a selection of meats, vegetables, cheeses and sauces (my recommending to you the greasy coppa, smoked mozzarella and tomato), containing pizza breads folded and heated in the oven; all washed down with Trebbiana d’Abruzzo.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Then to Via Conciliazione, and into St. Peters, where, I’ve had a contact at the Vaticam Museum arrange for you and me to have private access…not to the Pope but…to the usually locked rooms, not accessed by the average tourist or layman, that houses the Vatican’s collection of still-frowned-upon superb antique Greek and Roman erotic statuary, depicting men and women, men and men, women and women, men and men and women, men and women and women, in one form of copulation or another.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Sexually aroused, we go back to our hotel suite for more sex, another shower w/sex, and some fine dining at Sapori del Lord Byron, including some of the finest Italian food Rome has to offer, while we’re surrounded by a décor that’s romantically white-lattice and bold Italian colors, accompanied by bushels of freshly cut flowers.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">By moonlight, we toss our traditional coins into the Trevi Fountain, return to our hotel, our bed, and sex.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">The day after, beginning with sex, showers and more sex, breakfast, and packing, we check out of the hotel to begin our extended road trip through all of Italy to research and write WILLIAM MALTESE’S WINE TASTER’S GUIDE: ITALY (with Rie McGaha), and WILLIAM MALTESE’S GOURMET ITALY (with Rie McGaha).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">WOW! How long does it take to get a passport? Even for a cynic like me who thinks Valentine's Day is just a ploy by the greeting card company to make money off people who think they only have to show "love" once a year, that just made my day! (BTW--I'm not much on the foreplay, I'm more of a just-get-to-it-give-me-mine kinda gal). Where were we? Oh yeah, the interview is over, darn it! </span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Thank you so much for chatting with me today, William, it's been a real pleasure. Is there anything else you'd like people to know?</span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Suddenly, as always, I’m hungry, horny, and hoping for…some fine wine.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/m/william-maltese/back-of-boat-gourmet-cooking.htm"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TStTPuRj_xI/AAAAAAAABlY/W9qbd0BDYYE/s1600/1.jpg" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Place to find Mister February:</b></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">WILLIAM MALTESE<br />
PROVIDING READERS WITH INTERNATIONAL BEST-SELLERS FOR OVER FOUR DECADES<br />
<a href="http://www.williammaltese.com/" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.williammaltese.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.myspace.com/williammaltese" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.myspace.com/<wbr></wbr>williammaltese</a><br />
<a href="http://www.myspace.com/draqual" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.myspace.com/draqual</a><br />
<a href="http://www.myspace.com/flickerwarriors" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.myspace.com/<wbr></wbr>flickerwarriors</a><br />
<a href="http://www.myspace.com/maltesecandlegallery" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.myspace.com/<wbr></wbr>maltesecandlegallery</a><br />
<a href="http://www.mxi.myvoffice.com/williammaltese" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.mxi.myvoffice.com/<wbr></wbr>williammaltese</a><br />
<a href="http://www.theglutenfreewaymyway.com/" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.<wbr></wbr>theglutenfreewaymyway.com</a><br />
<a href="http://www.mlrbooks.com/ShowAuthorBooks.php?list=_ABKLIST02&author=William!Maltese" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.mlrbooks.com/<wbr></wbr>ShowAuthorBooks.php?list=_<wbr></wbr>ABKLIST02&author=William!<wbr></wbr>Maltese</a><br />
<a href="http://www.savantbooksandpublications.com/daretoloveinoz.php" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">http://www.<wbr></wbr>savantbooksandpublications.<wbr></wbr>com/daretoloveinoz.php</a></span></span></div>Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6101937572128554549.post-86086910771740768522010-12-31T22:53:00.000-08:002010-12-31T23:43:42.872-08:00MISTER JANUARY: ED WILLIAMS<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TR7YGQjE44I/AAAAAAAABkI/mzTKEUmXXFQ/s1600/elw3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TR7YGQjE44I/AAAAAAAABkI/mzTKEUmXXFQ/s1600/elw3.jpg" /></a></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
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</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Rie: </b>First off, let me say thank you, thank you, thank you for being Mister January, Ed. If anyone can pull Mister January, it's you! Ed and I are old friends but we haven't spoken much lately. As with everyone, we get busy, we have our families and lives and then the holidays showed up again…whew! Anyway, Ed, as always, is the epitome of the southern gentleman and he always makes me laugh. <b><o:p></o:p></b></span></span></div><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"> </span><br />
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</span></div><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ed, I recently read that your book <i>Sex, Dead Dogs, and Me </i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">is being revived at Champagne Books. What's that all about?</span></span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: bold;"><br />
</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Ed: </b></span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie, first off, thanks for havin' me, it's always fun to play online with you! </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><i>Sex, Dead Dogs, and Me</i>, it's funny. It's my very first book and was published in hardback back in 1998. First thing I've ever written in my life, and it ended up being published through a series of fluke-type events that can only be described as Forrest Gump-like. After it was published, it actually starting selling. After initially appearing in three bookstores in Macon, Georgia, it ended up being stocked nationally in the Books A Million stores and all over the southeast in the Barnes and Nobles. It literally, and literarily, got me out there, all the speaking gigs and articles and subsequent books came from it.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TR7XSHf1ERI/AAAAAAAABkA/xpoZb0Hom_Q/s1600/thumbnail_SexDeadDogsMe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TR7XSHf1ERI/AAAAAAAABkA/xpoZb0Hom_Q/s1600/thumbnail_SexDeadDogsMe.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Fast forward to the present. SDDAM has been officially out of print for years as the small Texas publisher who initially put it out closed up shop. Even at that, copies still sell on Amazon and other outlets sometimes for fairly significant bucks. Seeing that, Ellen and I talked about potentially offering it again in the current digital formats, so that's what we've decided to do. I'm pleased to announce that <i>Sex, Dead Dogs, and Me </i>will be released by Champagne Books in January of 2011!</span></div></div></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Rie:</b> Last year you wrote a book called <i>ChristmaSin</i> and the reviews were varied. What do reviews mean to you?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TR7S2mdz2wI/AAAAAAAABjw/nSrGAnXPT2U/s1600/2Cover_ChristmaSin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TR7S2mdz2wI/AAAAAAAABjw/nSrGAnXPT2U/s320/2Cover_ChristmaSin.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Ed:</b> I think they express one person's opinion about your work, and that's fine. I knew <i>ChristmaSin'</i> was going to be interpreted differently by the people who've read it. It's written in the first person - I'm actually narrating it as a sixteen year old boy back in my hometown of Juliette, Georgia (its one claim to fame is it's where the movie <i>Fried Green Tomatoes </i>was filmed). I took actual events that happened there years ago and weaved them into a pretty real rural Southern Christmas story. Since the book was written using the dialect and slang of the time and featured some adult language and events like cockfights, I knew it wasn't the typical Christmas story. As a result, I expected the reviews to be mixed and I'm glad they were, I really don't want to be everyone's cup of homogenized tea.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Rie:</b> I read you have been the guest speaker at the Kiwanis International, Rotary International, and the American Advertising Federation. How did that come about?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Ed:</b> After SDDAM got popular, I was asked to appear on the Georgia Public Radio program <i>Cover to Cover</i>. I didn't realize it at the time, but that program is really popular, has been for years. My hour long stint on it garnered lots of call-in interest, I was told afterwards we drew more callers and listeners than they'd ever enjoyed before. A few days after the program aired I got a call from the Georgia Kiwanis Organization, and they invited me to speak to a luncheon meeting they were having at their upcoming statewide conference on Jekyll Island. I agreed to do it, thinking I'd get a night or two of free lodging on Jekyll in exchange for a talk in front of maybe forty or fifty people. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that I was going to be speaking to a group of almost five hundred people! I just about crapped in my pants when I learned that, but I somehow managed to survive it. After that, I began getting invites from other groups, and my speaking activities just kinda went from there.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Rie:</b> Is public speaking difficult for you, or do you imagine everyone in their underwear and just go for it?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Ed:</b> I always get a little nervous, but I have a bit that I do that sets the tone and is kinda in line with my wild literary persona. I always get up there and tell the audience that there's always one woman in every crowd that I wish I could do the mattress tango with, and that I'm looking at her right now! For some reason everyone laughs, and afterwards I usually get one or two questions from folks wanting to know who it is!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Rie:</b> You've been called the "literary Hank Williams, Jr." What a compliment! How do you feel about that title?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Ed:</b> I love it! Bocephus is an all-time favorite of mine, and to be compared in any way with him is a total honor. I could listen to him for hours, and I love how he separates his public persona from his personal life, there's an art to doing that.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Rie:</b> You refer to yourself as a Southern Outlaw. What does this mean? <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Ed:</b> I write kinda wild material, Southern humor but humor as it actually happened. I don't clean up the language and situations much, and I'm not trying to be everyone's favorite writer. I'm one of those types who'd rather stay true to the story than bland them down for more general consumption. I guess that pretty well sums up what I mean when I call myself a Southern Outlaw writer.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Rie:</b> You and your friends, Ray and Hugh are members of The Brotherhood. Can anyone join? Is there an application? Are there dues?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Ed:</b> Ray Pippin and Hugh Foskey are my two best friends. Ray and I literally grew up together, Hugh we met at Georgia College and State University back in 1976. Collectively we're known as "The Brotherhood." We've had some helluva good times and some wild fun together - believe me, I haven't written about half of it yet! Since Hugh was our last member and was inducted back in 1976, I guess you could say that we have a very tight membership, we joke about being the most exclusive social organization in the world!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Rie:</b> You are one of the biggest flirts I've ever known. How does your SO feel about that? (I personally love it!)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Ed:</b> I love women, appreciate women, and have always been that way. I guess I've never seen what was wrong with telling a pretty lady she's a pretty lady, and no one is pointing a gun telling anyone that they have to flirt back. So darlin', I am what I am, and those close to me recognize that. They also recognize that there's a difference in my public and private personas, too.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Rie:</b> Christmas 2010 is over (and 2011 will be here in a flash). How did your family celebrate the holidays? And what will you be doing for New Year's Eve?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Ed:</b> Just low keying it. Ray, Hugh, and met over at the IHOP (our lake home on Lake Sinclair in Milledgeville, we're only about four miles from Flannery O'Connor's <i>Andulusia</i>, imagine that) for our annual Christmas celebration, and I enjoyed the usual one with my family. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">New Year's Eve, I'm not sure what I'll be doing yet, but there are already a couple of wonderful possibilities! Ask me this question again in about a week!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Rie:</b> This will post on New Year's Day, are you hung over?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Ed:</b> Glisrae asada aeaagwrjhbkbwasd badklajrfea.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Rie: </b>Ha! Ha! Ed, thank you so much for being here. I look forward to interviewing you again when that new book comes out! Please, tell everyone where they can find you on the web.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>Ed:</b> Rie, you know I love ya to death, and anyone wanting to find out more about me can do so by clicking these links:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">www.ed-williams.com <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">www.christmasinthebook.com<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">www.twitter.com/ELW3</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"> </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Author Bio:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; line-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Ed was born June 19, 1956, to Ed and Barbara Williams in Forsyth, Georgia. He was raised in Juliette and is a proud product of the Monroe County public school system. He graduated from Mary Persons High School in 1974, obtained an Associate's degree from <nobr><a class="FAAdLink" href="http://www.ed-williams.com/bio.php#" id="FALINK_2_0_1" style="background-color: transparent !important; border-bottom-color: rgb(0, 102, 0) !important; border-bottom-style: solid !important; border-bottom-width: 1px !important; color: rgb(0, 102, 0) !important; display: inline !important; font-weight: normal !important; padding-bottom: 1px !important; text-decoration: underline !important;">Gordon College</a></nobr> in 1976, a BBA from Georgia College and State University in 1978, and an MBA in 1991 from the same university. Ed is married to Debbie, his wife of 29 years, and has two children, Alison (26) and Will (Ed IV - 23). He and his family currently reside in Macon, Georgia.</span></span></div>Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6101937572128554549.post-26834453881945476602010-12-01T00:46:00.000-08:002010-12-01T13:45:16.780-08:00MISTER DECEMBER: JIMMY THOMAS<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TPU1-YKUhyI/AAAAAAAABd8/jHx4q01XDzU/s1600/jimmythomas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TPU1-YKUhyI/AAAAAAAABd8/jHx4q01XDzU/s1600/jimmythomas.jpg" /></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: Welcome to the Spotlight, Jimmy. I'm thrilled you could join me today. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Before we get down to business here, I just want to say thank you for agreeing to this interview and also for being on the cover of two of my books. I have to say they are the best covers I've ever seen! </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">How did you become a model for romance novel covers? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: Well, first off, thank you for this opportunity Rie, as well as for you wanting me on the covers of your books </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"> I began my romance novel cover modeling career when I was invited to be a cover novel contestant at Romantic Times BOOKlovers Convention in 2002. I decided that I wanted to be on many novel covers as I had been doing romantic and sensual ‘couples’ photo shoots since I started modeling 4 years prior to that. So I took it upon myself to make it happen, and here I am </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: I know you have been on over seven hundred book covers now, do you remember the first cover you were on? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: Actually, as of right now I’m on more than 800 covers ;) And yes, my first cover I guess is like your first sex partner… one you’ll never forget ;) My first book cover was Susan Kearney’s “Solar Heat”. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TPbB1HkQu4I/AAAAAAAABek/errr7u8sqvg/s1600/SolarHeat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TPbB1HkQu4I/AAAAAAAABek/errr7u8sqvg/s1600/SolarHeat.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: Wow, it just seems like a month or so ago my book was your 500th! Tell me, what is a typical day at work like for you? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: LOL! Seriously? How many pages do I get? Let me save everyone from taking too early of a nap ;)… working on images, go to the gym, work on images, set-up/confirm upcoming photo shoots, work on images, filling out answers to interviews, work on images, reading and responding to numerous messages and photo comments on facebook, work on images… oh, and did I mention work on images? ;)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: LOL, okay, do you work on images every day? Just kidding! Seriously now, besides book covers, what other type of modeling do you do? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: I’m limited now with my hair being long, so more or less just music videos now, where they want a long hair, Mediterranean look.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: Hmmm, how do I make the jump from author to music videos? Oh, wait, okay, I'll fantasize later. Ummm, oh yeah, what made you decide modeling was the career for you?</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: When I started getting many of my images published in fitness magazines and commercial print ads quite a bit and was accepted by many modeling agencies and booked on a good amount of print work. Then through the romance novel industry I took my modeling to different heights </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: And you do that very well, I might add. Now, modeling depends entirely upon your looks and physique. If you were unable to model, what is your back up job? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: Many, many things. Besides owning a rapidly growing stock image website ;) I’ve been an Architectural Designer since 1994. I’ve been a Personal Trainer since 1998, a Self Defense and Kickboxing Instructor since 1992, a Chef, Head of Security at various nightclubs, a sports bar owner… the list goes on ;)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: Wow, a man of many talents! Could you just jump back into one of those jobs?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: I keep all my prior careers available for me to still do if ever needed, but I’m looking to eventually get into producing and directing movies.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: Really? I have a couple of books that would make excellent movies, by the way. You appear with some pretty sexy female models and often the clothing is minimal. Is it uncomfortable to pose with someone you hardly know in such seductive positions, or is it just another day at the office? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: Uncomfortable being with a next-to-naked/naked sexy women? Are you serious? (looking over my shoulder for whomever it is you are asking this of ;))… heck no! </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"> I wouldn’t say it’s just another day at the office because I respect women and appreciate each and every one of them, especially those that I shoot with. They trust me, my judgment on the poses and the end resulting images won't make them look bad in any way. It’s not like I’m some college kid or someone freshly out of prison. Having a naked sexy woman in my arms...it’s complete respect, but I’m a heterosexual male, single, and a hopeless romantic Pisces, so I enjoy it of course, but more for a beautiful face looking at me with desire, than just a naked female body.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: (Sighs, and looks around to see if little hearts are circling my head!) I read that you don't do nudes. What made you draw the line there? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: Anytime I see a guy implied nude or completely nude in an image, he’s usually holding a small towel over his crotch, laying face down on the beach naked, or just standing there letting it all hangout, they all look 100% homosexual to me, so I’m sure I’m not the only one viewing them that way. And I think I would be limited on settling down with a woman who would be ok with my junk hanging out in many images for the world to see ;)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: Aww, you really are a hopeless romantic. What does your family and friends think about your career? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: My brother is the most active of my family with my romance novel career. He’s proud and excited about it, he brings his kids into the bookstores to find covers I’m on, and he leaves comments here and there on my facebook pages. My friends love it! They are very proud of where I have taken myself, as they know how hard I’ve worked at it day in and day out.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: Sounds like you have an awesome support system. That's great. I'm sure there have been some amusing mishaps during shoots. Can you think of a quick story to share with us? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: Well, some girls have personal drama they reveal during a shoot, which is why I chat a while first with each model before shooting with them. I want to be sure I don’t get surprise attitudes during the shoot. The only real mishap would be when I fell asleep near the end of a shoot, lol. I was posing naked with a sexy female model, who was also naked, we were under the bed sheets, hands all over each other, and when Bruce, my photographer, had to change lights, I passed out! We had shot at the beach earlier, so I was exhausted, as well as from shooting back to back, day and night a few days earlier. Bruce kept shooting us anyway, with me just lying there. She was playing with my lips… those shots came out really cute actually ;)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: Lucky girl! Christmas is coming up this month. Do you have any special plans for the holidays? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: None yet. I may go to FL to spend it with my brother and his kids.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TPU550xgSbI/AAAAAAAABeA/SUTDcK3t69Y/s1600/JT+interview.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TPU550xgSbI/AAAAAAAABeA/SUTDcK3t69Y/s1600/JT+interview.jpg" /></a></div><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: It's Christmas Eve and Santa is checking his list, which one are you on—naughty or nice? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: BOTH! ;)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: Pumpkin pie with whipped cream or pecan pie? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: PUMPKIN!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE Pumpkin pie, bread, cookies, muffins, pancakes, ice cream, eggnog, spiced coffee, anything pumpkin flavor!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: A Christmas goose, or turkey with all the trimmings? </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">JT: Turkey with all the trimmings!!! It’s like Thanksgiving, which I love! </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">Rie: Thank you so much for chatting with me today, Jimmy, it's been a real pleasure. Is there anything else you'd like people to know? <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoBodyText"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">JT: You’re very welcome Rie! Thank you again for this opportunity.</span></span><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> And yes, I have something I’d like people to know.</span></span><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> I’ve launched my very first Jimmy Thomas – Romance Novel Cover Model - 2011 Calendar, which can be seen and bought here: </span></span><span style="color: black;"><a href="http://www.jimmythomas.com/calendar/2011-Calendar.htm" target="_blank"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">http://www.jimmythomas.com/calendar/2011-Calendar.htm</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> So don’t be shy, help keep RNC alive, active, and full of variety by contributing funds that keep RNC going</span> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Wingdings;"></span><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TPS6_qZN7JI/AAAAAAAABd0/zn2cnNNLqvc/s1600/5_May_Renaissance.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TPS6_qZN7JI/AAAAAAAABd0/zn2cnNNLqvc/s320/5_May_Renaissance.jpg" width="160" /></a> <br />
<div style="text-align: right;"> <a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TPS7HHvzMdI/AAAAAAAABd4/TenTh_h3d0k/s1600/2_February_Pirate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TPS7HHvzMdI/AAAAAAAABd4/TenTh_h3d0k/s320/2_February_Pirate.jpg" width="160" /></a></div></div><div class="MsoNormal">(<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Woo hoo! I asked Jimmy to provide a couple of pics and he sent the ones with my cover art! Sheesh, no wonder the women flock to him! *fans face*)</span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Want to find out more about Jimmy Thomas? Check out these websites.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue; font-family: Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-size: x-small;"><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b><a href="http://www.jimmythomas.com/" style="color: blue;" target="_blank">www.JimmyThomas.com</a></b></span></i></span></span></span></span></i></b></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue; font-family: Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-size: x-small;"><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b><a href="http://www.jimmythomas.com/" style="color: blue;" target="_blank"></a></b></span></i></span></span></span><i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://www.romancenovelcovers.com/" style="color: blue;" target="_blank">www.RomanceNovelCovers.com</a></span></span></b></span></i></span></i></b></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue; font-family: Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-size: x-small;"><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://www.romancenovelcovers.com/" style="color: blue;" target="_blank"></a></span></span></b></span></i><b><i><span style="color: blue; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><u><a href="http://www.modelmayhem.com/jimmythomas" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">www.modelmayhem.com/<wbr></wbr>jimmythomas</a></u></span></i></b><i><span style="font-size: x-small;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://www.romancenovelcovers.com/" style="color: blue;" target="_blank"><br />
</a></span></span></b></span></i><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"><i><b><a href="http://www.facebook.com/JimmyThomasDotCom" style="color: #0000cc;" target="_blank">www.facebook.com/<wbr></wbr>JimmyThomasDotCom</a> </b></i></span></span></i></b></span></span></div>Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6101937572128554549.post-73148880136550862512010-08-13T05:54:00.000-07:002010-08-13T05:54:08.716-07:00Heather Peters<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TGU_HUUqKPI/AAAAAAAABUQ/blB0HkyON_c/s1600/149.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TGU_HUUqKPI/AAAAAAAABUQ/blB0HkyON_c/s320/149.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TGVANcEXeKI/AAAAAAAABUY/izJlvgHyYP8/s1600/toywithmeweb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TGVANcEXeKI/AAAAAAAABUY/izJlvgHyYP8/s320/toywithmeweb.jpg" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 10.0pt;"><strong><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Title:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Surrender<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></strong></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 10.0pt;"><strong><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Release Date:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>July 12, 2010<o:p></o:p></span></strong></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 10.0pt;"><strong><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Author:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Heather Peters<o:p></o:p></span></strong></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 10.0pt;"><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Author website:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> http://</span>heatherpeters.org<o:p></o:p></span></strong></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 10.0pt;"><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Publisher: Noble Romance Publishing<o:p></o:p></span></strong></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 10.0pt;"><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Buy Link: http://freyasbower.com, www.eredsage.com, www.nobleromancepublishing.com<o:p></o:p></span></strong></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 10.0pt;"><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Genre:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Contemporary/Erotic/Romance<o:p></o:p></span></strong></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 14.4pt;"><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Blurb:</span></strong><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Florist Isabella Beaumont through no fault of her own is about to lose her business. She might as well lose her soul. With no other options she turns to Lyon Sauvage, a man she dismissed from her life five years earlier. But is she willing to pay the unexpected price of ultimate submission? <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 14.4pt;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Enigmatic millionaire Lyon Sauvage lost Isabella once. He has no intention of opening his heart and suffering that mistake again. When she appears on his doorstep desperate for help, Lyon presents her with a proposition she has no choice but to accept. But will his revenge get her out of his system? Or condemn him to greater heartbreak?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 10.0pt;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 10.0pt;"><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Welcome, Heather Peters. I’m thrilled to have you as my guest</span></strong><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-ansi-language: EN;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></strong><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Thanks so much, Rie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'm so thrilled to talk with you again.</span></strong></div><div class="MsoBodyText"><strong><span lang="EN">C<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">an you tell us the journey you embarked upon to your first publishing contract? </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></strong><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; font-weight: normal;">I'd been writing long-form contemporary romance for a very long time with no success submitting to the big print publishers. Then my dear friend and critique partner, Eden Elgabri, suggested we try e-books and tried our hand at erotic romance. We enjoyed writing together and knew we'd found our niche. We completed our first novella within weeks, and submitted<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Toy with Me. It was passed over twice, until it found a home at Freya's Bower.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They offered us a contract, and since then, we've written another novella together, called Oz (Red Sage release in Fall, 2010), but my first solo effort is Surrender, released in July 2010.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being offered a contract for Surrender by Noble Romance Publishing, is a dream come true. It's based on my favorite all time favorite fairy tale, Beauty and the Beast, and I couldn’t be happier. I'm a very fortunate woman.<o:p></o:p></span></strong></div><div class="MsoBodyText"><br />
</div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Which author(s) inspire you and why? </span></b><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Every author I read inspires me. All of them touch me in some way, whether its sensuality, romance or something else. All writers have something to offer, and I savor their gift.</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="style24"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">Do you have a favorite book that you’ve written, and if so,</span></b> <strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">what is your favorite scene</span></strong><strong><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></strong><strong><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Confrontation scenes are by far, my favorite to write because it brings out the<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>deep passion and emotion state of my characters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In Surrender, my current release, my hero, Lyon Sauvage,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>is trying to force the truth from my heroine, Isabella.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She says the only reason she's come back to him after five years have gone by because she needs money to save her father's life. He knows better. <o:p></o:p></span></strong></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none;"><strong><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>"B</span></strong><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">efore you go home, don’t you think it's time you gave me some answers?"<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">She threw back the hair from her shoulders and straightened. "Are we back to this again? I told you, I had no one else to turn to."<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">"Bullshit."<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">She stepped back at the sound of his roar, but found no escape, only the closed door at her back.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">"You have several wealthy relatives in Europe, and the trust fund your mother left you would have paid at least a portion of your father's debt. So I repeat my question. Why, Isabella? Why did you really come to me, and this time, tell me the truth."<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">Her hackles rose, despite the fact her heart bled at the sadness in his raspy tone. "How did you know about my relatives? Or my mother's trust fund? You intruded into my private life? You had no right!"<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">With long strides, he approached her; his hands tunneled through his hair and his nostrils flared. She found herself trapped against the door, face to face with Lyon so close, his puffs of breath fluttered errant strands of her hair. Primal heat sizzled through him, and he directed all that power at her.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">"When someone comes to me asking for a quarter of a million dollars, everything becomes my right. Don't insult me with your lies any longer. You came here to cleanse yourself once and for all from the past. Yes, or no?" <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">His chest heaved, his anger evident. "You came back to find out what you'd missed five years ago, admit it."<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";"><br />
</span></div><div class="style24"><strong><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Your favorite book by another author? </span></strong><strong><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">My favorite all time book is Night Magic by Charlotte Vale Allen. I've read it at least a dozen times. Love the physically and emotionally scarred, tortured hero. </span></strong><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p></o:p></span></strong></div><div class="style24"><strong><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
</span></strong></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 10.0pt;"><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-ansi-language: EN;">What book(s) are reading right now?<span style="color: red;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></strong><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Red Hot Reunion by Maya Banks. Her erotic romances are some of the best I've ever read.<o:p></o:p></span></strong></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 10.0pt;"><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-ansi-language: EN;">If you could choose one author to co-write a book with who would it be?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></strong><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN;">That’s easy. Eden Elgabri, who is my critique partner and co-author on my two previous e-books, Toy With Me, available now from Freyas Bower<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>and Oz, to be released by Red Sage in late Fall. We know each other's nuances, and can almost read each other's minds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We have a rare partnership and our stories are seamless. You can't really tell who wrote which scene.</span></strong><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">What do you think makes a good erotic romance story</span></b><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">? </span><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Why, the sex, of course.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I'm only half joking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Every story must contain a viable plot, conflict, and motivation of the characters. Their commitment to each other takes precedence over everything else. But I have to admit, physical love is what draws me when I read an erotic romance. And when it's written well, you've sold me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The physical exploration of a relationship, along with two characters that love each other in a monogamous bond between the H/H is, for me, the core of erotic romance. </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">What makes a scene sexy? </span></b><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">For me, it's the emotional connection between two people, and acting on it in a physical way. Making one another feel as though they would die without the other. On the other hand, I think suggestive dialogue and eye contact without the physical, is sexy and arousing. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="style24"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Who gets the best lines in your stories? Males or Females</span></b><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope it's both!</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="style24"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">What is one of your favorite lines said by one of your characters? </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">My hero, Lyon Sauvage, my 'Beast" in Surrender, tells my heroine, Isabella my 'Beauty'</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>"</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">Roses are like women, possessed of a powerful strength, despite their delicate petals and seductive fragrance."<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none;"><br />
</div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">If you could be a character in one of your books, which book and what would your character be? </span></b><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">I've always loved fairy tales and the HEA they promise. Surrender is an erotic Beauty and Beast tale, and I would love to be Isabella. Loving a scarred, sometimes dominant, emotionally tortured hero is so much more interesting than loving the idea of the perfect (is there such a thing?) man. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="style24"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Do you think a geeky, nerdy, dorky H/H would be as interesting or accepted as the beautiful Greek god/goddess ones we read about all the time? </span></b><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Who wants to be a god, when an all-around geeky, warm hearted, tender geeky hero can charm the loafers off the nerdy, yet passionate, shy, gentle heroine. When they get together behind closed doors, I just know this H/H will strip each other of those taped eyeglasses, pen protectors and white socks, and proceed to burn each other like flame to dry tinder!</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="style24"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">If you were a villain in a new book you were writing, what type of villain would you be and what’s the title of the book? </span></b><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">It's called No Way Out, and I'm the woman trying to steal the hero (my former lover) away from the heroine; When she kills to prove to the hero how much she still adores him, her ploy does not work; he's a cop, tracks her down and corners her – Too late, she realizes that he doesn’t love her anymore; there's no way out.</span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div><div class="style24"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">You are the super hero in the book <i>When Planets Collide, </i>what is your super hero name and do you wear a cape and tights? </span></b><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Skin tight black one-piece body suit that accentuates my perfect, sultry, curvaceous body! No cape though, it would tangle with my long ankle length steel gray hair that can trap villains in the thick strands and paralyze them into submission. My name: Mane Squeeze.</span><span style="color: white; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="style24"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><br />
</span></div><div class="style24"><b><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Trebuchet MS";">What was one of the most surprising thing you learned writing your books? </span></b><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">I was pleasantly surprised to experience the love and passion I have for telling stories. I'm an only child, and growing up, you could find me always playing pretend and talking to myself (I still do! What does that mean? Lol..) My make believe stories always had an element of danger and scary plots, but my ending were always happy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only time I lose track of time is when I'm writing. Kind of a neat feeling when I find myself lost in my stories.</span><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><o:p></o:p></span></strong></div><div class="style24"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 10.0pt;"><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Before we say goodbye, could you tell us about your latest release and maybe give us an excerpt?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></strong><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS"; font-weight: normal; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Thanks so much Rie, for having me. I hope that we can speak like this again in the near future!</span></strong></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: 10.0pt;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';">EXCERPT:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">Isabella gasped when she found herself gathered into his arms. The scents of spice and male surrounded her, and one of his large hands slid down to cup her ass, his erection pressed against her hip, hard and long. God, what he truly wanted was clear to her now.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">"This is just a preview. I can make all your woes go away, Isabella. You have five minutes to decide." He stared into her eyes as if daring her to refuse. "Don't waste my time."<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">When she could find her voice, she pushed off his chest, stepped away from him. "Please don't do this, Lyon. I-I need more time."<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">He looked at his watch, then back at her. "And I need to know what you intend to do. Four minutes,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>forty-five seconds, and counting."<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">She threw up her hands. "Have you lost your mind<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">?" No, maybe I've lost mine.</i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">"You're the one who came to me for help. What's your answer?"<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">She shook her head, swallowed the lump that formed in her throat. "I have no one else to turn to."<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">"I'll help you. But you won't walk away so fast this time."<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">She could see the tiny creases fanning out from the depths of those sapphire eyes as he continued to speak.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">"You left because you were afraid, not of me but of your own inhibitions." He cuffed her wrist within his grip.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">"No, I left because I lost David to another woman and I had nothing more to give anyone, including you." She tried to wrench free, but every effort proved futile. "Why can't you just lend me the money and I will pay you back another way."<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">"But this is what I want. Your body." He pressed his palm to her rear. "Your kiss." His lips were warm and a tiny tickle erupted in her stomach. "Your submission." He wrapped his arms tighter around her and crushed her mouth until a groan of arousal escaped her throat.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">"Isabella, don’t you understand? You don't know the limits of your own passion."<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">Her legs almost gave way when he released her. Why was he tormenting her? Why did she feel empty all of a sudden? She cleared her throat, but her voice sounded weak, even to her own ears. "So, all I have to do is play your whore for a weekend, perform as your sex slave. And when you're through with me, my life simply goes on?"<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">"I don't like the word 'whore', Isabella. Think of this as a business arrangement, for want of a better word. Now, to continue, you will come to my home with nothing but the clothes on your back and you will wear only what I give you to wear. I will bathe you and feed you, and in return, you will be at my disposal for the entire weekend. Surrender is the name of the game, Isabella. I want it all." Lyon cornered her like a predator about to pounce on its helpless prey. "Are you willing to give it?"<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";">"I'll never forgive you for this."</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination: none; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New";"><br />
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</span></div>Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6101937572128554549.post-6093593429963504662010-06-14T11:42:00.000-07:002010-06-14T11:42:58.268-07:00Wyntress Nyght's Supernatural Crack: Exes & Hexes by C.H. SCARLETT<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TBZ194lxM3I/AAAAAAAABLk/yL1bYVMJ--I/s1600/Noble+Wyntress+Nyght+500x776.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/TBZ194lxM3I/AAAAAAAABLk/yL1bYVMJ--I/s320/Noble+Wyntress+Nyght+500x776.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b>Title: Wyntress Nyght's Supernatural Crack: Exes & Hexes</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b>Release Date: June 14, 2010</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b>Author: C.H. SCARLETT</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b><a href="http://www.chscarlett.net/">Author Website</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Publisher: Noble Romance Publishing </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b><a href="https://www.nobleromance.com/ItemDisplay.aspx?i=137">Buy Link</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Genre: Paranormal/Fantasy/Humor/Erotic Romance</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Blurb:</b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"Good evening my delicious little darklings of darkness. Wyntress Nyght, here, serving up your forbidden dose of supernatural crack. So hook up your IVs, roll up the psychic and toke her, or offer up your shot glass for some ectoplasmic delight. For I have the phantasmal kick you have all been jonzing for. No DTs here, my darklings, only the monster of all dragons for you to chase . . . me! Now, for those readers who are new to my witch-board of communications, allow me to sinfully boast a little about the place I haunt. It’s the Other World, the Underworld, or a label I am rather fond of and prefer, Hell."</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">*Gasps* Did she say Hell?</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">That she did, so flip a page and you’ll realize what a hilarious but darkly adventurous thrill ride Hell can be. And who knew it would have all started with an ex-Fanger and the kidnapping of his new coffin screamer. Toss in a lusty Were, a mischievous Zombie, a Dominion of Chaos, some too-damn-sexy Demons, a mysteriously malicious and hidden plot, plus whatever other zany characters of Hell pop up, and we have the reasons why there’s never a boring moment in the death of Wyntress Nyght!</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Now, grab a dry pair of knickers just in case yours get moist from laughing, and open the book already. Wyntress hates to be left waiting by the grave!</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Welcome, C.H. Scarlett. I’m thrilled to have you as my guest.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Can you tell us the journey you embarked upon to your first publishing contract?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">Well it was a long and clueless road. I didn't have any idea as to where to begin, which is probably why it took me years to figure it out. Sooner or later, though, you get into the right circles, someone points you into the right directions, or you start figuring out what to Google.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Which author(s) inspire you and why?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">My inspirations don't really come from fiction. They come from non-fiction. I adore Normandi Ellis for showing me that simplicity can expose divinity. And I adore Barbara G. Walkers for showing me that no matter how sore the subject, how controversial or how protested, it's worth writing about.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Do you have a favorite book that you’ve written, and if so,</b></span><span style="color: #867681; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>what is your favorite scene?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">Well that would probably be the one I just released, all because of the mood I am currently in. My favorite scene would probably be all of them. It's hard to choose when it comes to Wyntress Nyght.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">But if you ask me tomorrow, it might be something else. lol</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Your favorite book by another author?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">The only fiction author that really comes to mind, that really rocked my world is VC Andrews. I remember reading Flowers in the Attic when I was a teen thinking how addictive is it to read about something more dysfunctional than what exists behind my own shut doors. And believe me, it was a bloody miracle that I could find anything more dysfunctional than my , lol. Still, I miss books like that. I think stories should be written under the notion that 'Anything can and will freakin' happen.' I get so stressed seeing debates on message boards concerning fiction movies and or books where someone says, 'that is not possible.' or 'a person would not do that.' To me, anything is possible . . . and while WE might not do that, or we assume we wouldn't because how do we know firsthand, that character would, and gods love em, they did!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>What book(s) are reading right now?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">Right now, I am reading a book called <i>Interdimensional Communication</i>. I'm afraid that I read more non-fiction and more reference books rather than anything else now days. Anything that deals with myths, lore, gods, goddesses, mystical or mystic, I am totally hooked on.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>If you could choose one author to co-write a book with who would it be?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">Probably no one. I hate to say that, but it's true. Other writers scare the hell out of me lol. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>What do you think makes a good Paranormal or Fantasy story?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">When someone can take an original subject or an old favorite and make something new happen. I can tell when someone has researched something because usually, it doesn't include a myth that was created by another author years, or even centuries ago. It takes a true writer to go out there and dig up origins or the actual legend, or to create a new origin or legend. What makes a good story is when a writer doesn't get hung up on what CAN happen, or what IS possible . . . and they just let their imagination fly. Those writers are out there, too, but they are usually with smaller pubs because the bigger ones are sometimes frightened to publish what is 'different.'</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>What makes a scene sexy?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">The surrounding circumstances, the moment, and the characters.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Who gets the best lines in your stories? Males or Females?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">Well, it depends. Wyntress Nyght rules but she has those who run a close second. (Don't tell her I said that, though.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>What is one of your favorite lines said by one of your characters?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">Geez, there are so many . . . but as of now, I guess it would be when Wyntress tells another character . . . "The best of you ran down the crack of your momma's ass and stained the bed sheet." I don't know why but I love that saying . . . maybe because it applies to so many lol. Joke.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>If you could be a character in one of your books, which book and what would your character be?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">Depends on what day you catch me. Some days I want to be Samanthŕa from Bound by Blood. Most days I am envious of Wyntress Nyght, though, and she knows it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Do you think a geeky, nerdy, dorky H/H would be as interesting or accepted as the beautiful Greek god/goddess ones we read about all the time?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">Yep, in fact more so. Because we are only geeky, nerdy, and dorky in the eyes of those who follow trends, and want to be the Barbie's of society. While media says this is what we want . . . we know damn well it isn't. All it takes is a good writer to emphasize what we already are . . . and that's where the true God and Goddess exists . . . through our worlds, in the birth of fiction. There, if you tell the geeky, nerdy, dorky H/H that they aren't all that, then they kick your butt with some cool super move, while catching the eye of the hottest hottie. Because sexy is sexy, no matter what.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>If you were a villain in a new book you were writing, what type of villain would you be and what’s the title of the book?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">Hmmm, again, it's all in the world of Wyntress Nyght. But that's anyone there . . . because they are all bad, and we love and envy them for it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>You are super hero in the hypothetical book, <i>When Planets Collide, </i>what is your super hero name and do you wear a cape and tights?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">Hmmm, well I don't know about that book but in my own version, I'd be Wonder-Bitch and would have a Wonder-Bitch cape. I don't think it matters what I am wearing since I have the Wonder-Bitch cape on. Who would argue with me? Who would tell me my fashion sucks?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>What was one of the most surprising things you learned writing your books?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">Wow, I can play god and it is really fun to muck with people (characters). </span><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b> </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Before we say goodbye, could you tell us about your latest release and maybe give us an excerpt?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">Well, first, thank you for the opportunity. The book is called Wyntress Nyght's Supernatural Crack: Exes & Hexes Book 1.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;">I think the blurb I posted above really says it all. And just so I don't destroy the space on the blog or anything, I'll link you to my publisher's website where they have an excerpt up, an <a href="https://www.nobleromance.com/ItemDisplay.aspx?i=137">entire chapter</a>, even.</span>Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6101937572128554549.post-4044626855195229422010-02-01T13:46:00.000-08:002010-01-31T13:48:25.450-08:00Cinsearae Santiago<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/S2X3CqdgdGI/AAAAAAAAAgw/qTG14X9TU0w/s1600-h/ABRAXAS+series+covers+small.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/S2X3CqdgdGI/AAAAAAAAAgw/qTG14X9TU0w/s320/ABRAXAS+series+covers+small.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b>Title: </b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b>ABRAXAS: Seeing Green (Book 4 in the ABRAXAS Series)</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b>Release Date: 2009</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b>Author: </b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b>Cinsearae Santiago</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b><a href="http://bloodtouch.webs.com/">Author Website</a></b></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: x-small;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Publisher: Lulu Press</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b><a href="http://www.lulu.com/content/paperback-book/abraxas-seeing-green--book-4/7232303">Buy Link</a></b></span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: x-small;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Genre: </b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Dark Paranormal, Romance, Horror</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Blurb: </b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b><i>Edward lies in a coma in the hospital, with Christine having a sneaking suspicion Ryan has something to do with Edward's current condition. Ryan continues to act strangely possessive of Christine to the point where it becomes too scary for her. Edward's spectral form constantly cries to Christine for help, leaving her with many sleepless nights... and to make matters more trying for her, Christine's best friend stops by for a visit, unknowing of her situation. </i>(This is part 4 in the continuation of The ABRAXAS Series at </b></span><a href="http://bloodtouch.webs.com/abraxas.htm" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: x-small;">http://BloodTouch.webs.com/<wbr></wbr>abraxas.htm</span></a><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: x-small;"> )</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Welcome Cinsearae and thanks so very much for agreeing to the interview.</b></span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Thank you so much for having me here, Rie! A pleasure to join you!</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Can you tell us the journey you embarked upon to your first publishing contract? </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b></b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>It hasn’t been an easy one, but when you love what you do, you keep plugging away! </b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: Wingdings; font-size: small;"><b>J</b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b> I’ve only been ‘out there’ for about six years or so, and I’m still learning the tricks of the trade, as they change so rapidly. My first publishing contract came with Forbidden Publications, which unfortunately folded. I had entered a couple of writing contests, which garnered two contracts from them. As of now I self-publish, which has been going well, but I still like the feel of being with a traditional publisher, so I never cease looking and hoping to land a contract again in the future. I recently had one of my short stories published in a horror comedy anthology from Damnation Books, titled “<i>The Zombie Cookbook</i>”, and two more short stories to appear in anthologies this year through Library of the Living Dead Press, so the opportunities are still out there! </b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: Wingdings; font-size: small;"><b>J</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Which author(s) inspire you and why?</b></span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Poe has been my first and favorite author. I’ve always enjoyed his dreary, dreadful writings, and the period style of his writing. I also enjoy King’s works, as his imagination is tireless!</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Do you have a favorite book that you’ve written, and if so,</b></span><span style="color: #7f7f7f; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>what is your favorite scene? </b></span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>I think it might be the very first book. In <i>ABRAXAS:The Beginning</i>, after Christine calms down a bit after realizing what she has become, she sets out to find her attacker. When she does, she tries breaking his neck. Not only does she twist his head to the point where it’s completely backwards--and yes, he’s still alive--she hurls him into the street, and his head gets run over by a taxicab. The cab also starts a chain accident, and Christine is in morbid shock knowing she started it!</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Your favorite book by another author?</b></span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>It think it would have to be <i>Pet Sematary</i>, by Stephen King. I read that when I was twelve, (and it was the first book of his I had ever gotten my hands on!) and boy, did my imagination fly off the handle with that book! Since then, I was hooked. Another one of his books that’s a favorite of mine is <i>Rose Madder</i>. (I’m not sure if the <i>Creepshow</i> comic book counts, but I love that one too.) </b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: Wingdings; font-size: small;"><b>J</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>What book(s) are reading right now?</b></span><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b> </b></span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b></b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Right now, I’m working on Gregory Macguire’s books (<i>Wicked, Son of a Witch</i>.) I’m enjoying his take on the whole Wizard of Oz story!</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>If you could choose one author to co-write a book with who would it be?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b></b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>King definitely. (But if Poe were alive, then it would be him.) </b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: Wingdings; font-size: small;"><b>J</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>What type of research do you do for your novels?</b></span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>I haven’t really done any research on any of my books until <i>The Show Must Go On</i> since that’s my first ‘period’ piece, and still a WIP, due out early this spring! Even so, I didn’t have to do <i>much </i>research, lol. Not a big fan of doing that! (History wasn’t my biggest subject in school, unless it was something I was <i>personally </i>interested in learning about--like ancient Egypt or the Elizabethan era.) </b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: Wingdings; font-size: small;"><b>J</b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b> So, since I write a lot of ‘modern’ paranormal/vampire/horror stories, I fall back on all the movies, documentaries, and non-fiction books I’ve read on the subjects. Also, current events play a part in helping develop my stories.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>What do you think makes a good horror story?</b></span><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b></b></span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>First, you don’t need a bunch of blood and gore. I think folks have become too desensitized to the violence, real-life <i>or</i> fictional, especially in gore-fest movies you see these days. Sure, it’s fun to put in, but ONLY when necessary. I prefer the tension that builds up to the climax. The subtle things that will make you look over your shoulder or makes your hair stand on end. Things that make you think twice about talking to a stranger, betraying someone’s trust, or coveting something you know isn’t yours. And most of all, what makes you terrified to walk alone in the dark.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>What is your work schedule like when you're writing? </b></span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>I don’t have a schedule. It would never work out well for me, lol! My writing is sporadic, so when the mood hits me to write, I write until I simply can’t anymore. On my ‘dry spells’ I’m always doing something else creative that’s not writing related, until my muse comes back for another visit. </b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: Wingdings; font-size: small;"><b>J</b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b> I like writing in the very early morning, when it’s nice and quiet and the busy energies of the world are at a low. Either then, or very late at night. </b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: Wingdings; font-size: small;"><b>J</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>What was one of the most surprising things you learned writing your books? </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b></b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>That I really <i>do </i>have lots of other people in my head with their own voices, stories, and plenty to say! I wonder where the heck these people came from? LOL!</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>How do you satisfy your muse when things get rough while writing a book?</b></span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Lots of walks in nature and cemeteries, plus taking lots of photographs in the process! This has become one of my favorite pastimes, and folks can see the fruits of my labor at my photo gallery, </b></span><a href="http://cinsearaesgalleries.webs.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">http://cinsearaesgalleries.<wbr></wbr>webs.com</span></a><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> <b>as well as my official websit</b><b>e </b></span><a href="http://bloodtouch.webs.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">http://bloodtouch.webs.com</span></a><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> ! </span><span style="color: purple; font-family: Wingdings;">J</span><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>How has your environment/upbringing colored your writing?</b></span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>I think being a lover of all things creepy, quirky, vampiric, paranormal, and Gothic is what got me started. It’s no surprise I love Halloween, and I love the old classic movies that starred Vincent Price--mostly Roger Corman’s movies based on a lot of Poe’s works. </b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: Wingdings; font-size: small;"><b>J</b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b> As a child, being overly-sheltered and bored as hell with everything ‘normal’ forced me to find ways to entertain myself, so writing and reading creepy books became some of my best escapes.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>What do you like to do when you're not writing?</b></span><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b></b></span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>I’m either jewelry crafting or tinkering around with Photoshop, creating digital art. Folks can find some of my art on my web gallery, too. </b></span><span style="color: purple; font-family: Wingdings; font-size: small;"><b>J</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Before we say goodbye, could you tell us about your latest release and maybe give us an excerpt?</b></span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b>Absolutely! <i>ABRAXAS: Seeing Green </i>picks up right where the last book leaves off. Christine and the Abraxas Clan have just finished dealing with a psycho woman who’s a necromancer to boot, <i>plus</i> happened to be a former flame of Ryan’s. She tried passing off a child (that she created through demonic means) as his son, hoping to worm her way back into his life and push Christine out of it, so the Clan squashes her crazy plans--but not before some negative, demonic energies get a hold of Ryan, and slowly start to possess <i>him</i>. The demon feeds off of Ryan’s weaknesses, his main one being Christine, turning Ryan’s petty jealousies into something much more dangerous…</b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS';"><b>EXCERPT:</b></span><br />
<div align="justify"><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">I got to the foyer and raced up the staircase. <i>Dumb move</i>!<i> </i>I should have ran <i>out</i> of the mansion! I felt as stupid as those girlie victims in horror movies who always ran <i>up </i>instead of <i>out</i> whenever they were trapped in a building or house, all the while being chased by some undead, crazy, serial killer. Common sense would have told anyone to <i>leave. </i>I guess it has a tendency to allude you when you’re in a panic.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"> From a short distance away, I heard Ryan growl again, making the hairs on my neck rise. I didn’t know what his problem was--aside from me smacking him with my energy--but I didn’t want to use my more forceful powers on him either. Who knew what would happen to him, or what affect it would have on <i>me</i>.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">He bounded up the stairs by twos, grabbed my ankle, and I fell on the steps with a <i>thump</i>. He clambered over me, and flipped me over so I would be facing him. He held my wrists down. That solid, gross, zombie-like color was gone from his eyes, but his irises remained bright green. He wore his usual suspicious look and smirked, raising an eyebrow at me, giving a slight sniff of arrogance.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">“Going somewhere…<i>my dear</i>?” We were nose to nose.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">“I--I--” I stammered. The hard edges of the steps were really biting hard into my back and arms.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">“Did you <i>honestly</i> think these little games you and Kiera were playing around the house would work? Did you <i>really</i> think you had me fooled?” His grin grew wider.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">How long did he <i>know</i>? “So…we were <i>both</i> trying to play each other for fools. Whoop-de-fucking-do,” I replied in a snide tone.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">“A sad and pathetic raggedy bunch of so-called vampires can’t stop <b><i>me</i></b>,” he hissed. “You, who’s too afraid to use the powers you’ve been given, and your ‘mate’ being just as bad, while being absolutely <i>sick</i> in love with you. You both couldn’t have been an easier target.”</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">“<i>Target</i>?” I echoed. “What the hell are you talking about?” </span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">Demon Ryan's eyes flickered an even brighter shade of green. Any more and they’d look <i>neon</i>.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">“That stupid witch had abilities I already possess. Hanging around her was starting to prove useless, until I found out she knew your mate, Ryan Price, who has powers I’ve always dreamed of possessing. The powers of <b><i>Abraxas</i></b>.” He took a deep breath, calming down. “Then I discovered <i>you </i>share the same power!” His grin widened. “One of man’s biggest sins is jealousy, and once I realized how much he covets you, it was all too easy to invade him.” He ran his cheek against mine, and I heard him inhale deeply. God, <i>nothing</i> could describe how badly this was freaking me the hell out. I wished I had something nearby to knock him unconscious with.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">But then he distracted himself. “I love the scent of your skin. Like cherries and blackberry wine…” He ran the tip of his tongue around the edge of my ear, making me shiver. But it wasn’t Ryan’s tongue; it was too slender, too <i>snakelike</i>. Good thing I couldn’t <i>see </i>it---I might have screamed.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">“I can see why he’s so passionate about you,” he continued, pulling back slowly. He looked into my eyes, then, very predator-like, he covered my throat with his hand. I gasped, the knot in my stomach tightening more. He tilted my head to the side slowly, exposing my neck.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">“I could kill you right now with a <i>flick </i>of my wrist,” he whispered. “But it would be <i>such</i> a waste…”</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">The look on Demon Ryan’s face was very calm and almost seductive. Now holding my shoulders down, he leaned forward, licking me from the base of my ear, then down my carotid artery, and around to the hollow of my throat. My heart was beating so fast, I thought it would explode.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">Slowly, his tongue slid up the middle of neck. I grimaced. He continued going under my chin, following the curve of it, then brushed my bottom lip. I closed my eyes, too afraid to---</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"><i>Don’t look Christine, don’t look!</i></span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">Sometimes I wished I listened to my inner-self.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">It took all the strength and will I had in my bones not to shriek, as I caught a glimpse of that forked, blood-red, snakelike tongue retracting itself back into Ryan’s mouth.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">“I want to <i>taste</i> you, Christine,” he whispered softly, his breathing quickening, the look in his eyes deadly as he tightened the grip he had on my shoulders.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">I panicked, fearing the worst. Snakes could smell with their tongues, and I half-wondered if he was smelling my blood under the surface of my skin.</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">I swallowed, then bravely gave a half-hearted laugh. “You’ve done that---quite a few times now.”</span></div><div align="justify"> <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;">“I want...to taste...a <b><i>different</i></b><i> </i>essence,” he replied, and before I realized it, he flashed a pair of fangs and dove for my jugular.</span> </div><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; font-size: small;"><b><i>(Additional excerpts and free downloads plus free short stories from the ABRAXAS Series can be found at </i></b></span><a href="http://bloodtouch.webs.com/abraxas.htm" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">http://bloodtouch.webs.com/<wbr></wbr>abraxas.htm</span></a><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> or </span><a href="http://bloodtouch.webs.com/sneakpeeksmorereads.htm" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';">http://bloodtouch.webs.com/<wbr></wbr>sneakpeeksmorereads.htm</span></a><span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman';">!)</span>Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6101937572128554549.post-2757873254585255892009-12-19T15:15:00.000-08:002009-12-19T15:15:32.018-08:00Spotlight Author: Dorien Grey<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/Sy1d8l6PlmI/AAAAAAAAAcA/12727XCARao/s1600-h/TSKCoverfront.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/Sy1d8l6PlmI/AAAAAAAAAcA/12727XCARao/s320/TSKCoverfront.jpg" /></a><br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Title: </span></i></b><b><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Secret Keeper</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Release Date:</span></i></b><b><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> 12-10-09</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Author:</span></i></b><b><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Dorien Grey</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">A<i>uthor website:</i> Dorien Grey's World (www.doriengrey.com)</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Publisher:</span></i></b><b><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Zumaya Boundless</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Buy Link:</span></i></b><b><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> http://www.amazon.com</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Genre</span></i></b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">: </span></i><b><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Mystery</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Blurb</span></i></b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">: </span></i><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">One aging millionaire, one dysfunctional family, lots of greed, a book of poetry, a possible murder, and a missing will, and a young man with a secret he doesn't know he's keeping provide the recipe for book #13 of the Dick Hardesty mystery series.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <b>Welcome back, Dorien, and thanks so very much for agreeing to this interview.</b></span></i><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The pleasure is mine. I'm delighted to have the chance to talk with your readers again.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Can you tell us the journey you embarked upon to your first publishing contract?</span></i></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I suspect my "journey" began the first time my mother took me to the library and allowed me to pick out a book by myself. It's been a slowly evolving process ever since.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Which author(s) inspire you and why?</span></i></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I think just about every writer who has written a book I read and enjoyed has inspired me in some way. Like many authors, I'm a sponge when it comes to soaking up the ideas of others.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Do you have a favorite book that you</span></i></b><b><i><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span></i></b><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ve written, and if so,</span></i></b><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <b><i>what is your favorite scene? </i></b></span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">To ask me to name my favorite book is rather like asking a mother which of her children she likes best. I wouldn't want to hurt the feelings of the other books by singling one out.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Your favorite book by another author?</span></i></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Hands down, Robert Lewis Taylor's "Adrift in a Boneyard."</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What books are reading right now?</span></i></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">At the moment, I'm reading Gregg Herron's "Murder in the Garden District."</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">If you could choose one author to co-write a book with who would it be?</span></i></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Robert Lewis Taylor. Or maybe Dostoyevski (now THAT would be a book!). Or Dickens. Or Ray Bradbury.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Did you have any research done for the erotic part in your novels?</span></i></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">No research is required in writing what one knows.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What do you think makes a good erotic romance story?</span></i></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Being able to effectively convey the characters' emotions. As for the "erotic" part, I go along with those who point out that the mind is the greatest erogenous zone, and I have great faith in the reader's ability to fill in the blanks without much "insert Tab A into Slot B" instructions from me. Too much explicit hump-and-moan takes the reader pretty much out of the equation.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What is your work schedule like when you're writing?</span></i></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I never sit down with a stopwatch. I write as often and as much as I can before life, always standing behind me tapping its foot impatiently, demands I get up and do something else.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><i><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?</span></i></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I'm often rather surprised to find I feel much more strongly about a subject than I'd previously been aware. And I've definitely learned that in a battle between whether the book will do what I want it to or whether I will do what the book tells me to, the book wins 9 times out of 10.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">How do you satisfy your muse when things get rough during writing a book?</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I give it a glass of milk and a cookie and, while it is otherwise distracted, I go back ten pages or so and start rereading. By the time I've reached the point where I ran into the problem, it usually resolves itself easily.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">How has your environment/upbringing colored your writing?</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">You mean like growing up homosexual in a blatantly heterosexual world? I guess you might say it's not only colored but saturated my writing. I'm far from an in-your-face activist, but I've spent most of my writing life trying to subtly show straights that gays are not an alien species, and what unites us far outweighs our differences.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What do you like to do when you're not writing?</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Since I'm usually always writing something....books, blogs, emails, etc....I don't have nearly the time I'd like to have to read. I watch a lot of TV at night after writing all day, and I do like to get out into the real world as often as I can: a movie, coffee with friends, an occasional cultural event. I am still circulating my petition for a 48 hour day.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Before we say goodbye, could you tell give us an excerpt from "The Secret Keeper"?</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I'd be happy to!</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">EXCERPT:</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">As soon as Jonathan left for practice and Joshua and I had cleaned up from dinner, I said, </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Let</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s go take a walk downstairs for a minute. I want to take a look at Uncle Jonathan</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s truck.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Joshua, who never passed up an opportunity to go somewhere</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">anywhere</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">waited impatiently by the front door while I rummaged through our top dresser drawer to find</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Jonathan</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s spare set of keys.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Since Jonathan always backed the truck in, the minute I unlocked and opened the door to the garage and switched on the light, I saw the hole, almost directly in the center of the</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">windshield, just to the left of the driver</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s seat as seen from the front. I moved up for a better look. Though it was warm in the garage, I felt a definite chill.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Where are we going?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Joshua asked.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Nowhere,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I said. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I just want to look for something.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Wanting to keep him from getting into any mischief or wandering into the alley while I was about it, I said, </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Tell you what</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">why don</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t you sit in the driver</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s seat while I look.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Can I drive?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> he asked excitedly.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">You can pretend-drive,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I said, </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">but don</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t touch any of</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">the buttons, okay?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Okay,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> he said, unconvincingly.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I let him in the driver</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s side and moved around to the passenger door, stepping partly into the truck to check for what I was afraid I was going to find. And I found it</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">a small round hole in the upholstery about a foot to the right of the driver and in line with but slightly lower than the hole in the windshield.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Luckily, the truck had a split seat, so I was able to pull the passenger</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s side forward without disturbing Joshua. He couldn</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t reach the brake or clutch pedals, or anything on the</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">dashboard, without leaning far forward, which of course he tried to do until my loud </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Ahem!</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> stopped him in mid-motion. He returned to moving the steering wheel rapidly back and forth and making </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">brrrmmmmmmm</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> sounds.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Returning my attention to the issue at hand, I saw a dent in the back wall of the cab and, searching the floor, spotted a flattened blob of metal</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">obviously, a bullet.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Leaving it where it was, I put the seat back, got out of the truck, closed the door and went back to the driver</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s door.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Okay,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I said. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Let</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s go.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">But we just got here!</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Joshua observed plaintively. Reluctantly, he turned to get out of the truck, and I lifted him down to the floor.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">You</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">re a good driver,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I said, tousling his head, and he beamed.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">We then left the garage, closing and locking the door behind us.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">When we returned to the apartment, Joshua ran off to his room, and I went right to the phone phone to call Marty Gresham</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s number at police headquarters. I knew he wouldn</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t be in, but left a message for him to call me the minute he arrived in the morning.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">* * *</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I had just come out of Joshua</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s room after Story Time when Jonathan came home.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">As was our usual routine, we sat on the couch watching a little TV before going to bed. During a commercial break, I broached the subject I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">d been thinking about since Joshua and I left the garage.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">You know, I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ve been thinking. Maybe now</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s a good time to make a trip back to Wisconsin to see your dad and your sisters.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">We</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">d talked several times about his desire to take Joshua back to visit family. He hadn</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t been back since he came to us, and while he spoke to his grandfather and/or aunts every month or so, Jonathan didn</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t want them to become just voices on the phone.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">You deserve a little time off,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I said. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">You said the other day that work was a little slow at Evergreen. Your boss would probably be willing to have you take some time off. You</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ve got some vacation time coming, and now would be a perfect time to go, while you don</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t have any freelance jobs.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">He was quiet for a few moments, thinking. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">It <i>would</i> be nice to go back home for a while,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> he said at last. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">d like you to meet my family.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I smiled. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">d like that, but I think I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">d better stay around and hold down the fort. Besides, this is a family thing.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">You</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">re family,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> he said.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I appreciate that,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I said, </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">but this will be your first trip home with Joshua, and I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">d just be a distraction. I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ll go with you next time.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">But it won</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t be a vacation without you,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> he objected.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">You</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ll have another week coming,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I said. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">We can all go somewhere together then.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Well, I don</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t know. I just don</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t like going anywhere without you.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I know, and I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ll miss you, too. But I definitely think you should go.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">He looked at me suspiciously. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Something else is going on here. Tell me.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">He deserved the truth. My trying to protect him with evasions and half-truths hadn</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t worked, and he was right to resent my trying.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">So, I told him.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Look,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I said, trying to appear as casual about it as I could, </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">if</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">and that</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s a big if</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">you</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">re right about Clarence Bement</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s not having committed suicide, that means somebody killed him. And if whoever did it knows you and Mr. Bement talked a lot, it</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s not impossible he may think Mr. Bement told you something he shouldn</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t have.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">But he didn</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t!</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">You and I may know that, but the guy who called you to come out to a deserted stretch of road doesn</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">So, it wasn</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t a stone that broke my windshield.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> It was more a statement than a question.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I shook my head. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Afraid not.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">And if I hadn</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t swerved to avoid that pothole</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">—”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I reached over to take his hand, entwining our fingers.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">But you did,</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I said, </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">and that</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s what matters.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I squeezed his hand. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Look, we can</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t be sure about any of this. The window could have been an accident and your being fol-</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">lowed a coincidence.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">But you don</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t think so.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Hey, I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">m a private investigator. I see bad guys lurking behind every tree whether they</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">re there or not. But just to be safe, I want to look into it further, and I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">ll be able to do that a</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">lot easier if I don</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t have to worry about you while I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">m doing it.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">You</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">re doing it again.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Doing what?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Trying to protect me. I do appreciate it, but I really can take care of myself.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I know you can, Babe, and that</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s not the issue. It</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s not even a question of just you and me. We have Joshua to think about now, too. Just in case there <i>is</i> a real problem here, we can</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t let him be involved. I can</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">t help but worry about you and try to protect you</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">that</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s what I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">m here for. So humor me. Look on it as my being selfish</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">by protecting you, I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">m protecting myself. You</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">d do the same for me.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">He smiled. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">“</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Of course I would. But I</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">d try not to be so obvious about it.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-ascii-font-family: sans-serif; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: sans-serif;">”</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</div>Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6101937572128554549.post-77065287482149303272009-11-13T10:11:00.000-08:002009-11-13T10:11:34.101-08:00Dangerous Liaisons by Blake Deveraux<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/Sv2fc-342wI/AAAAAAAAAUk/686OF7ZDXF4/s1600-h/bdcoversept.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/Sv2fc-342wI/AAAAAAAAAUk/686OF7ZDXF4/s320/bdcoversept.jpg" width="214" /></a><br />
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Title:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="yshortcuts">Dangerous Liaisons</span></span><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 9.0pt;">Release Date: 11/19/2009</span><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 9.0pt;">Author:Blake Deveraux</span><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 9.0pt;">Author Website:blakedeveraux/googlpages.com</span><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 9.0pt;">Publisher:Red Rose Publishing Co.</span><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 9.0pt;">Buy Link:<a href="http://redrosepublishing.com/bookstore/product_info.php?products_id=473" target="_blank"><span class="yshortcuts"><span style="color: #003399;">http://redrosepublishing.com/bookstore/product_info.php?products_id=473</span></span></a></span><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #333333; font-size: 9.0pt;">Genre: M/M, gblt, menage</span><br />
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<div style="line-height: 14.4pt; margin-bottom: 2.25pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-indent: 22.5pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10.0pt;"><b>Why would a happy couple risk everything when they have just begun to find happiness?</b><b><o:p></o:p></b></span><br />
</div><div style="line-height: 14.4pt; margin-bottom: 2.25pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-indent: 22.5pt;"><span class="yshortcuts"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10.0pt;"><b>Daniel</b></span></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10.0pt;"><b> </b></span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10.0pt;"><b>Deveraux and Brandon Matthews have just bought a new home. They have spent months working on their relationship. Things are finally going their way.</b><b><o:p></o:p></b></span><br />
</div><div style="line-height: 14.4pt; margin-bottom: 2.25pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-indent: 22.5pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10.0pt;"><b>After loosing a close friend, Brandon befriends a handsome young mover, Charles. Daniel and Brandon take the</b><span class="apple-converted-space"><b> </b></span><span class="yshortcuts"><b>handsome man</b></span><span class="apple-converted-space"><b> </b></span><b>into their home to help protect him from his abusive father.</b><b><o:p></o:p></b></span><br />
</div><div style="line-height: 14.4pt; margin-bottom: 2.25pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-indent: 22.5pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10.0pt;"><b>Charles, confused about his life and his sexuality finds himself wildly attracted to the two men. Unwilling to risk his friendship with Brandon, instead he finds himself in an endless cycle of failed relationships.</b><b><o:p></o:p></b></span><br />
</div><div style="line-height: 14.4pt; margin-bottom: 2.25pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-indent: 22.5pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10.0pt;"><b>Will Daniel and Brandon allow the handsome man that has already found his way into their hearts, into their bed?</b><b><o:p></o:p></b></span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><strong><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Welcome Blake and thank so very much for agreeing to the interview. </span></strong><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Thank you for the opportunity. To my friends, of course I’m just Blake, but for the benefit of the fortunate few that have avoided my company... The formal introduction is Blake Deveraux. I write books, primarily in the m/m erotic romance genre.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><strong><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Can you tell us the journey from concept of your Men of Danger series to getting published?</span></strong><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Well, As badly as I hate to admit it, It was kind of a bet. I was waiting for a flight, I was reading a friend of mine’s book over her shoulder. I laughed out loud at what I thought was the laughable storyline in the book. I commented that I could write a more interesting storyline than that insipid drivel. She said, I know you can, but you won’t. So.... My best friend as a child made the comment once, “Don’t dare Blake if you don’t want it done.” And so, Dangerous Obsessions was born. Of course when I began writing the book, it was a journey of self discovery and occasionally tears.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt;">Which author(s) inspire you and why? </span></b><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I</span></span><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">’ve always been intrigued by Edgar Allen Poe for one, His ablility to bring raw emotion to the page in a very simple way is truly legend. Of course being certifiably insane probably didn’t hurt…. (Did I hear someone call my name?). Margret Mitchell, because her ablility to transport you to another place and time, and so accurately describe the scene that you can smell the lilacs. Finally I adore Carol Lynne, a contemporary M/M erotic novelist. She has done a lot to dispel the myth that gay men are necessarily self involved, simplistic creatures with nothing but abs and asses. Ok, well… abs and asses are very nice, but there’s a lot more to life, at least that’s what I’m told ***winking***.</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt;">Do you have a favorite book and if so, <strong>what was your favorite scene?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></strong></span></b><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><span style="color: windowtext;"></span><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Gone With The Wind</i>. Hand’s down. Of course I kinda think Scarlette O’hara is a gay man, Margret just didn’t think It’d sell. For one, I think that obsession with the one man on EARTH that she COULDN’t have…. It’s SO very gay… I’m not sure why but guys tend to want the one person on earth that wouldn’t pee on them if they were on fire… (or is that just me LOL)? Anyhow, I love the scene where she’s out on the farm and she picks up a turnip, “As God as my witness, I’ll never be hungry again.” That’s a woman with a mission. I’ve been hungry. It’s not fun. Don’t intend to find myself there again if I can help it.</span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: red; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><strong><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">What book/s are reading right now?<span style="color: red;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></strong><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">I’m reading a wonderful book by Faith Ficknell Brown “Conspiracy of Angels.” I can hear the gasps now… I honestly rarely read books from my genre, for one, lack of time, and two, I don’t like to compare my writing to others since, honestly I’d probably quit writing. Self esteem isn’t necessarily high on my list of attributes.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><strong><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">If you could choose one author to co-write a book with who would it be?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></strong><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Hmmm. Edgar Allen Poe… Wait, he’s dead. Probably Carol Lynne, since as I’ve said, I think she’s an amazing author.</span></span><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt;">Did you have any research done for the erotic part in your novels?</span></b><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><span style="color: windowtext;"></span><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">****Blake looks around the room innocently****) Oh, you were asking me? I’m as innocent as a school girl… opps I’ve heard they aren’t too innocent either. All joking aside, I did ask some friends for advice on the whole S&M / BDSM aspect of the orignial novel Dangerous Obsessions, since for me that was a little outside my personal line of experience, but wanted to be as authentic as possible. Honestly my personal experiences with that sort of thing weren’t positive, so I didn’t want to be unfair basically. </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt;">What do you think makes a good erotic romance story?</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: red; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt;"> </span></b><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">A good book in general rises and falls with good character development. If you aren’t engaged with the characters, you won’t enjoy the story. </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt;">What is your work schedule like when you're writing?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: windowtext;"></span></span><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Writers are an odd bunch. What works for one person would drive another insane. I own a reastauraunt, so time is a precious commodity. My work day usually consists of about 12 to 14 hours. So, most of my writing is done in my head. My characters are always chatting, moving about, and yeah, having sex in my head. SO, I’m sure while I’m dealing with Susie Q. Public she’d be shocked to know there were guys humping like madmen in my head. Finally when I shower, get comfy and sit down at 1 or 2am, I’ll write until I get what is in my head down. I guess it’s one time when having ADD is a good thing… ****Ohhh, shiny object….*** did you say something? </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?<span style="color: red;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">That in an odd way, my characters have a mind of their own. They don’t always want to do what I direct them to do. Sometimes I have a clear plan, and they simply dig in their heels, and refuse to have sex or even talk, until I fix what the percieved slight is. Ohhh, I just heard my psychology professor discussing schitophrenia, Wait a second, hearing voices, that’s a sign… Maybe we should move on …..</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt;">How do you satisfy your muse when things get rough during writing a book?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: Calibri;"></span><span style="color: red; font-family: Calibri;">Honestly, I write exactly as it is in my head. Of course that makes for MARATHON editing sessions, but frankly, once my characters have cooperated and the storyline is done in my head, it’s a matter of getting it down for the world to read. So really for me, most of the writing process is done before the first word is typed. Having said that, If I’m stressed, I don’t write, period. For me it’s a dangerous thing to do so. If I write while feeling depressed or stressed, I find myself wanting to delete massive sections of the book so , at my editor’s request, I avoid that… LOL…<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt;">How has your environment/upbringing colored your writing?</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: red; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">First and foremost I am a southern gentleman. I think that is fairly evident in my writing. For me, formality is important, manners are important, and tradition is important. I’ve made it a part of my writing that even though a lot of people, including gay people don’t necessarily advocate gay marriage, I do. I feel like it’s an important part of being happy. Being committed to another person, and to God. That’d probably be the other thing, is that I’m a very spiritual guy. I have encountered many folks who thing that perhaps my stance on homosexuality and my christianity should be at odds with each other. I don’t, obviously. Without getting on a soapbox, much of what people presume is the “anit-gay” scriptures are simply ignorance of both the text and the spirit in which it was given. I’ll get off my soap box now, LOL… I do think that my strong spiritual beliefs influence my writing since there is an underlying optimism, even when there seems to be no rational reasonsing behind it. That’s kind of what I feel is the basis of our personal relationship with God, the ability to have faith, especially when things seem at their darkest.</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: windowtext; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11.0pt;">What do you like to do when you're not writing?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b><br />
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</div><div class="style24"><span style="color: windowtext;"></span><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Uhhhmmmm… that’s a loaded question. Well I’ll be good. I enjoy working on my house. I have a 100 year old victorian that’s perpetually in need of help. In addition, I enjoy the paino, and I sing locally. </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><strong><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Before we say goodbye, could you tell us about your upcoming release and maybe give us an excerpt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></strong><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">My new book is the follow up book to Dangerous Obsessions. It is called “Dangerous Liaisons” I’m very excited about the release. For one it has my FAVORITE eye candy on the cover, Julian Fantechi. Honestly he is on the cover because he is my character “Daniel” He exemplifies the intensity, beauty and mysterious testosterone driven lusty… (oooh is it getting hot in here?) What was I talking about?... oh yeah Daniel. I truly didn’t know Julian when I wrote the book, but he is the embodiment of the character. Now for a little teaser (Oh, and my editor would like EVERYONE to know it’s undedited, since I’m still in the editing process, hopefully we’ll get that done soon!)</span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Californian FB"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Californian FB"; mso-font-kerning: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Charles had slept late because it was Saturday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He hadn’t gotten anything accomplished today, and here it was afternoon, and he was still in his sleep clothes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It had been a few weeks since he'd moved into the house with the two men.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thanks to Brandon's careful attention to his wounds they'd healed. Other than the emotional ones the scars left by his father's rage were gone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Brandon and Daniel agreed to rent him the pool house in exchange for his helping out with the lawn maintenance and keeping the pool clean.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For Him it was a deal made in heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a beautiful apartment; he had a friend to talk to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Brandon had truly become his friend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He knew Daniel was a kind man, but the two had so little in common that their relationship hadn't progressed as his and Brandon's had.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Californian FB"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Californian FB"; mso-font-kerning: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was still mortified at the embarrassing scene he'd caused after watching Daniel and Brandon together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He wanted to know what it felt like to be in love, but for now he'd settle for knowing what it meant to have a good time with another man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He wanted to explore his sexuality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He'd kind of thought he was asexual.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Girls were a mystery to him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He'd never felt any chemistry with a girl.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He'd always found men's bodies exciting, but he wasn't sure if that meant he was gay, or what it meant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Californian FB"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Californian FB"; mso-font-kerning: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He daydreamed often of what it would be like to touch Brandon's body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He certainly wasn't in love with Brandon, he knew Brandon's heart belonged to Daniel, but Charles couldn't help but want his body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was so intense and sexual, he made Charles cock jump to attention daily.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Seeing Brandon and Daniel together though had cemented the realization for him that he wanted, no he needed to be true to his sexual identity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Californian FB"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Californian FB"; mso-font-kerning: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Daniel's body made Charles want to do things he'd never considered before, but fantasizing about Daniel really didn't work, since he knew the handsome marine was far too aloof, he'd never want someone like him, inexperienced and young.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Brandon was younger than Daniel, but he was sexy as hell, and the attraction was obvious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He didn't want to cause the two men problems so he tried hard to avoid Brandon or Daniel knowing that he longed for sexual favors from his new friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since he knew having Brandon sexually was out of the question, He was going to do the next best thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was going out and he was going to get lucky one way or the other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today was the day Charles decided.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was going to get lucky today if it hair-lipped the devil!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Californian FB"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Californian FB"; mso-font-kerning: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Charles heard a loud splash he looked out the window in time to see Brandon's exquisite body nude, swimming laps in the pool outside his window.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Charles dick sprung to life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>"Damn it!"<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He said to the empty room around him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He stood transfixed as Daniel walked to the poolside, wearing a tiny bikini swimsuit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His cock was nestled tightly in the white spandex fabric.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The suit was very low cut and the top of the suit lie precariously at the base of his penis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Charles watched as the two men swam together, pausing regularly to kiss.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Daniel picked up Brandon forcefully and tossed him head first into the deep water of the pool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Californian FB"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Californian FB"; mso-font-kerning: 14.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unconsciously Charles began rubbing his throbbing member through Brandon's silk lounging pants. He'd loaned Charles the pants shortly after coming to stay there. The fabric felt amazing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He watched the two men climb out of the pool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Brandon's cock still flaccid was still amazing all the same.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Daniel was obviously affected by the nude form now lying casually in the lounge chairs beside the pool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Daniel's cock strained the tiny white bikini.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since it was wet it clung to his manhood leaving very little to the imagination.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes today was the day; he <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">was</i> going to get some cock from someone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</div>Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6101937572128554549.post-5511931069219246262009-11-04T11:00:00.000-08:002009-11-04T11:10:11.727-08:00November's Spotlight Author: GA HAUSER<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/SvHN8WAJvtI/AAAAAAAAATQ/H9qk6sAg8O4/s1600-h/Unnecessary_Roughness_300%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/SvHN8WAJvtI/AAAAAAAAATQ/H9qk6sAg8O4/s320/Unnecessary_Roughness_300%5B1%5D.jpg" width="214" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Title:</span> <span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Unnecessary Roughnes</span><span style="font-weight: normal;">s</span></span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Release Date:</span> <span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">October 22, 2009</span></span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Author:</span> </b><span style="font-size: x-small;">GA Hauser</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Author website:</span> <a href="http://www.authorgahauser.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">www.authorgahauser.com</span></span></a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Publisher</span>: <span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The GA Hauser Collection</span></span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Buy Link<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">: </span></b><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-unnecessaryroughness-363643-144.html" target="_blank">www.allromanceebooks.</a></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-unnecessaryroughness-363643-144.html" target="_blank"><wbr></wbr>com/product-</a></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-unnecessaryroughness-363643-144.html" target="_blank"><wbr></wbr>unnecessaryroughness-363643-</a></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-unnecessaryroughness-363643-144.html" target="_blank"><wbr></wbr>144.html</a> </span></span></span></span></span></span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Genre:</span> </b><span style="font-size: x-small;">gay/erotic/contemporary</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Blurb:</span></b></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><b><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">A percentage of the royalties of this novel will be donated to the charity </span></span><a href="http://www.gayamericanheroes.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">www.GayAmericanHeroes.com</span></span></a><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> and </span></span><a href="http://www.rainbowmemorial.org/" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">www.RainbowMemorial.org</span></span></a></i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><b><i> <br />
</i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">Connor Worthington knew from an early age he was 'different'. But it wasn't until he met Kyle Baker at UCLA lacrosse practice that he knew he wasn't alone.<br />
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Fear regarding his sexuality was not new to Connor. Connor played the 'straight' act as long as he could. But it was taking its toll on him. Kyle recently transferred from the University of Oregon to UCLA. But what Kyle never expected was to fall head over heels for a long-haired athlete named Connor. The two men instantly grew inseparable, on and off the field. Lusting after his roommate distracted Kyle from his studies and practice. But Kyle had a hunch. A hunch that Connor may be in the closet as well.<br />
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And he was right.<br />
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Problem solved?<br />
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Their problems had just begun.</span></span> </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><b>Welcome GA and thank so very much for agreeing to the interview.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman';"><b>Can you tell us the journey from concept of your Unnecessary Roughness to getting published? </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;">Thank you for inviting me. The concept was born when an old high school chum sent me a photo of himself on the lacrosse team. I wanted to use the photo on the cover of the book, but he chickened out. (There’s still a lot of homophobia out there.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;"><b>Which author inspires you and why?</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;">Mary Renault. Loved her Alexander Trilogy. She’s my favorite all time writer.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;">Do you have a favorite book and if so, what was your favorite scene? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;">I loved the scene in the Persian Boy when Alexander takes possession of the eunuch slave, Bagoas, very sexy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b>What book are reading right now?</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;">I wish I had time to read. I’m not at the moment.</span><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b>If you could choose one author to co-write a book with who would it be?</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;">Probably Stephanie Vaughan. I love her M/M romances.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;"><b>Did you have any research done for the erotic part in your novels?</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;">Ha! No. I got that down.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;"><b>What do you think makes a good erotic romance story?</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;">Real men with real problems. Not dreamy Hollywood shadows. I like my men to have major flaws. I don’t know anyone who is perfect in real life.</span><span style="color: red; font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;"><b>What is your work schedule like when you're writing?</b> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;">All day, every day. I love it. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b>What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?</b></span><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;">That people enjoy reading them. You can’t please all the critics, but it’s nice to get emails from fans that want more and more of what you write. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;"><b>How do you satisfy your muse when things get rough during writing a book?</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;">I haven’t had a rough patch yet. Just not enough hours in the day to get it done.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;"><b>How has your environment/upbringing colored your writing?</b></span><span style="color: red; font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;"><b> </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;">I was raised by very liberal parents who made me open-minded and able to appreciate differences. I think being a cop also reminded me that everyone is there to help you, all colors, religions, sexual preferences, it doesn’t matter. Only the ignorant people were the ones you had to be wary of.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;"><b>What do you like to do when you're not writing</b></span><span style="color: red; font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;"><b> </b></span><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;"><b>?</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: small;">Making love! No, really…I like doing everything. Running is my passion so I’m running every morning.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b>Before we say goodbye, could you tell us about your upcoming release and maybe give us an excerpt.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;">Please check out the charities Gay American Heroes and Rainbow Memorial. Even if you don’t buy the book, support Scott Hall and his cause.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;">Here’s an excerpt of <i>Unnecessary Roughness</i>:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-small;">Two hours later, coated in sweat and black and blue from getting blocked with careless whacking of the lacrosse sticks, Kyle followed Connor into the locker. <br />
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Connor hadn’t said a word to him during the scrimmage. After a long solemn moment, Connor met Kyle’s eyes. They were filled with liquid as if Connor was about to cry. <br />
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Watching Connor carefully, trying to figure out what could be wrong, Kyle hurried after him. When he entered the dim echoing chamber of the changing room, he found Connor seated in front of his locker with his head in his hands. <br />
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Staring down at him, Kyle asked quietly, “Connor...what is it?”<br />
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“Nothing. Leave me alone.”<br />
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“I don’t get it. You were awesome out there.” Kyle began removing his gear.<br />
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“Awesome?” Connor snarled in rage.<br />
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The intensity of the anger startled Kyle. “What am I missing? You scored three goals? For Christ’s sake, you should be patting yourself on the back. Are you insane?”<br />
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As if he were enduring something painful, Connor covered his face again.<br />
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Completely confused by this show of emotion, Kyle knelt in front of him and rubbed his legs gently. “You have to tell me why you’re upset. I can’t help you if I don’t know.” <br />
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Very slowly Connor lowered his hands. His eyes were red and watery. In a low, hoarse voice he whispered, “Didn’t you see it?”<br />
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Taken aback by Connor’s pure fury, Kyle felt a wave of dizziness. “See what?”<br />
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Connor gazed around first, before he snarled, “Ross fucking body-checked me in the fucking groin.” Connor cupped his crotch. “And when I shoved him back, I got called out for fucking pushing and hit with the penalty.”<br />
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Kyle strained to think of when the attack occurred. “I didn’t even see you react from the hit.”<br />
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“Kyle, believe me. I was hit hard. And the douche-bag did it on purpose.” Connor gave the immediate area another quick scan.<br />
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“Jesus. You should have at least doubled over in pain to let the refs know. How did you stand it, Connor?”<br />
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Connor didn’t reply at first, then through clenched teeth, he snarled, “I’m the fucking ‘captain’ now. I gotta set an example, don’t I?”<br />
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“Not when ya get hit in the nuts with a lacrosse stick, ya don’t.” Kyle grew angry. “You should have told Coach Banks. And if you won’t I will.”<br />
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When Kyle went to stand, Connor gripped his arm and yanked him back down. “Don’t.”<br />
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“Why?”<br />
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“Because. I don’t need any shit, Kyle. Let me just recover a minute. Stay here.”<br />
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Judging by the look of apprehension on Connor’s face, Kyle knew he needed to just be there for Connor. He sat on the bench next to his friend and whispered, “When? I swear I didn’t see it.”<br />
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“Last five minutes.” Connor cringed as he tried to sit straight.<br />
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Suddenly remembering the referee calling the penalty on Connor, Kyle did think it was odd for Connor to push Ross from behind the way he did, but he didn’t give it a second thought. Connor was the captain and best player on the team. It certainly wasn’t up to Kyle to judge his actions. <br />
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Kyle glanced over his shoulder. Ross Cartman was standing at the end of the row of lockers, a towel around his waist, a sneer of contempt on his lips.<br />
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“What the fuck are you lookin’ at?” Kyle challenged.<br />
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Connor instantly spun around to Ross.<br />
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“Two faggots.” Ross’s top lip curled in revulsion.<br />
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“What?” Kyle felt his skin go icy at the terrifying accusation. He flew to his feet with revenge on his mind.<br />
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A hand on his arm held him back.<br />
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“Fuck off, Cartman,” Connor yelled. “Haven’t you done enough damage to me already?”<br />
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“Good, ya fucking cock-sucker.”<br />
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Kyle whipped his head back and forth between his roommate’s emotional and physical pain to the callus accusation and Ross vanishing behind the row of lockers.<br />
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“What the fuck?” Kyle began blowing out air like a bellows as his fury rose. <br />
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Reluctantly, Connor stood up, and began removing his uniform and pads.<br />
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Knowing an intentional illegal slash of the stick had nailed him right in the groin, Kyle cringed at seeing how uncomfortable his friend was. <br />
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When Connor got to the point where he removed his jockstrap and cup, they both seemed to hold their breath.<br />
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A reddish bruise had begun to emerge around the edges of where the plastic had protected Connor’s crotch. But Kyle knew how painful a powerful strike between the legs could be, even with the cup. <br />
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“How could no one see it?” Kyle moaned. “Coach would have chewed out his ass. It was obviously intentional.” He smoothed his hand over Connor’s back gently. <br />
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Connor flinched at Kyle’s affectionate caress and spun around as if checking they were not spied.<br />
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Then Kyle remembered the labeling. Fags? What on earth had they done to make Ross think they were gay? Jesus? He’d just arrived on campus two weeks ago, and other than his long hair, Connor was Mr. Macho. It didn’t make sense.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: small;"><b></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><b>Thank you, Rie, for giving me the opportunity to have this interview!</b></span>Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6101937572128554549.post-27465449273908245452009-08-05T07:29:00.000-07:002009-08-05T08:24:26.790-07:00Author Spotlight-Fiona McGier<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/SnmXx9B3IEI/AAAAAAAAAOU/SX7_5g4esrA/s1600-h/fmcgierrecforloveaug2009.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 289px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/SnmXx9B3IEI/AAAAAAAAAOU/SX7_5g4esrA/s320/fmcgierrecforloveaug2009.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366487315440410690" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/SnmXk-4JKsI/AAAAAAAAAOM/C-1UEBmxaa0/s1600-h/FMcGiernevertooold.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-88SXX-PMEQ/SnmXk-4JKsI/AAAAAAAAAOM/C-1UEBmxaa0/s320/FMcGiernevertooold.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366487092598221506" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:6;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 24px;">AUGUST</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:6;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 24px;">AUTHOR</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:6;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 24px;">SPOTLIGHT</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px; ">Fiona McGier</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; color:#333333;mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">fionamcgier@weebly.com</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;">Published by</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;">Wings E-Press</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">www.wingsepress.com</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;line-height: 12pt; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">The August spotlight goes to <b>Fiona McGier</b>, who just had her first book, </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Never Too Old For The Game of Love</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">, published in April. Her second book, </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Recipe For Love</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> was published this month. Both books are available from Wings E-Press (</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">www.wingsepress.com), and are available now.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;line-height: 12pt; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Rie: Thank you for joining me, Fiona. Tell me what your books are about and how you came to write them.</span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;line-height: 12pt; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;">Fiona: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; line-height: 24px; "><span class="apple-style-span"><i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">Never Too Old For The Game Of Love </span></span></span></i></span><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">is the first book in a series that I am working on, that I am calling </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">The Reyes Family Romances</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">It's about the struggles of two women approaching 40, both divorced and bringing up their </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">kids as single moms, who start a party-planning business to supplement their child-support. They think there </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">is no time or opportunity for romance until their children who are pre-teens, grow up and leave the house. One of the other women in their playgroup, a happily-married Hispanic woman, urges them to do a men-only </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">birthday party for her brother-in-law, Alejandro Reyes. He has been enjoying playing the field for years, and has no interest in settling down.The only problem is that right before the day of the party, he demands they hire a stripper as the entertainment. They have no idea how to find one…one suggests to the other that </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">she</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;"> do the dancing. After all, the only one there who might recognize her is Mr. Reyes, and he is the one demanding a dancer. It becomes the dance that changes their lives. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;line-height: 12pt; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; line-height: 24px; "><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">Recipe For Love</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;"> is about the trials and tribulations of opening a small cafe while raising your two children as a single mom, and planning to cater the upcoming wedding of your pregnant best friend, while also serving as her maid of honor. Patti has a trouble-making ex-husband, and her rapidly approaching 40th birthday does nothing to improve her already battered self-confidence. She has no plans to fall in love, but when a gypsy biker shows up to apply for the job of assistant cook, she feels the tingling all the way down to her toes! </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;line-height: 12pt; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;color:#339999;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: normal;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;line-height: 12pt; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: normal;">Rie: They sound like real women dealing with real problems. How did you come up with the ideas for them?</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;line-height: 12pt; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: normal;">Fiona:</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">In the first one, a close friend of mine suggested that I try writing about someone our age. I told her I would try to write a story that she might like to be part of, with a hero worthy of fantasizing about. She was pretty happy with the results, except now she wants to meet Alejandro! In the second book, I wanted to give Patti, the supportive friend in </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">Never Too Old For The Game Of Love</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">, her own romance. I wated her love story to be totally different, yet just what she was looking for, even if she didn't know it. And once again, I created a man that I fell in love with, as I hope my readers will too.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 24px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;"> </span></span></span></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;line-height: 12pt; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;color:#339999;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: 24px;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.1in;margin-left:0in; line-height:18.0pt"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:#333333"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.1in;margin-left:0in; line-height:18.0pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;">Rie: </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">So what do you have planned for your readers in the future, Fiona?</span></span></p><p style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.1in;margin-left:0in; line-height:18.0pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px;">Fiona: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">I am still writing about the romances of the children of the characters in the original two storie. I like </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">realistic</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;"> erotic romance stories, not ones that couldn’t possibly happen. I write about men and women, and try to make them believable people, such as women you might like to be friends with(or be), and men you fall in love with as you read about them. I certainly fall in love with each one of my heroes. And my romances may be erotic, but I believe the most exciting scenes are between two people who are realizing that they can’t possibly live without each other anymore.</span></span></span></span></p><p style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.1in;margin-left:0in; line-height:18.0pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: normal;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">I am still immersed in the world I have created, and the characters are not done </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">telling</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;"> me their romance stories. But I have another series bubbling in the back of my mind, and those characters are patiently waiting for their turn. </span></span></span></span></span></p><p style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.1in;margin-left:0in; line-height:18.0pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: normal;"><br /></span></span></p><p style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.1in;margin-left:0in; line-height:18.0pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: normal;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-size: 10.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS";mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black; mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes">Rie: Thank you for being with me today. Your books sound wonderful and I can't wait to read them. Is there anything else you'd like the readers to know?</span></span></span></span></span></p><p style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.1in;margin-left:0in; line-height:18.0pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: normal;"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-size: 10.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS";mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black; mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes">Fiona: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;">If you like realistic romances with some sexual spice in them, I hope you give my books a try. And thanks for giving me the opportunity to chat about my books.</span></span></span></span></span></span></p> <p style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.1in;margin-left:0in"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS'; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#339999;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.1in;margin-left:0in"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:13.5pt; font-family:"Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-size: 10.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS";mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black; mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA"><br /></span></span><p style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.1in;margin-left:0in; line-height:18.0pt"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-size:13.5pt; font-family:"Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black"><br /></span></span><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; color:#333333"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;line-height: 12pt; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: normal; "><i><br /></i></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;line-height: 12pt; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: normal;"><i><br /></i></span></span></p><p style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.1in;margin-left:0in; line-height:18.0pt"><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:#333333"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:.1in;margin-left:0in; line-height:18.0pt"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="font-size:14.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:18.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:black"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"><br /></span></span></span><span style="font-size:14.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";color:#333333"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;line-height: 12pt; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px; "> </span></span></p></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px; "><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:12.0pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span></span></span></p></span></span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:180%;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:12.0pt"><span style="font-size:9.0pt; font-family:"Trebuchet MS";color:#333333"> <o:p><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 16px; "> </span></span></span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:12.0pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Trebuchet MS';font-size:100%;color:#333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;"><br /></span></span></span></p></span></span></div>Marie McGahahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00390041604123726667noreply@blogger.com0