Friday, June 20, 2014

Debauching The Virgin

My new book is live! It's part of the Den of Sin series.

BLURB:
The first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem.


Amelia Washington is a successful matchmaker to the rich with two failed engagements under her belt.


Amelia hasn’t had a man in her bed since she called a personal moratorium on relationships, and she’s been itching for a mattress tussle. She accepts an offer from The Den's kink orchestrator to pick a sexual companion for a week. Her temporary lover has a quick wit, lust for adventure and pure sexual magnetism. He’s perfect for a short, hot affair that leaves emotions out of the equation. He’s also willing to let her teach him how to please a woman. She’s bossy, high-handed and a bit uptight. How can she refuse?


Dwayne Blackstone is twenty-seven-year-old virgin.


He’s spent most of his adult life isolated, flying search and rescue missions as a bush pilot. When he has a brush with death, he’s determined to finally live his life to the fullest. The first step is definitely to lose his virginity. He wants Amelia to show him the art of seduction. She knows what she wants, and he’s a quick study. It’s not long before the student surpasses the teacher, and the simple but intimate experience turns into more than learning what makes Amelia moan.


The week they agreed to be lovers simply isn’t enough.

BUY LINKS:


Amazon US
Amazon UK
Barnes and Noble
Smashwords
Coupon Code for Smashwords:
Promotional price: $1.50
Coupon Code: HK35E
Expires: June 27, 2014

And if you haven't already picked up Forbidden Rendezvous, you can get it for $0.99. 


Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Words Are Meaningless Until You Give Them Context

I like to be upfront when I start off a post. That way you can decide now if you're staying or going. So, this post is about dialogue. I will try to be short and I hope I leave you with something you can think on.

Anyway...
“I'm tired.”
This is pretty straightforward. Whoever this is would like to go to sleep or take a serious power nap.
She shifted on the bed and could see her boyfriend's face transforming. Within the next five seconds the face she'd fallen in love with, the one that could still make her heart skip would morph into something unrecognizable. The contempt on that face always left greasy knots in her stomach. She sagged into her pillow. “I'm tired.”
The context has changed the meaning of the dialogue. Yeah, she still might want to roll over and just sleep, but it's also to avoid what's going on. You can guess it's also about the state of her relationship with her boyfriend.

Good dialogue can stand on its own but great dialogue is about the context. So don't be afraid to use the context mercilessly.
“Hey.”
“Hello.”
“What's up, sweet cheeks?”
“Oh, hi, ruin-er of all good moods.”
The context is a greeting, but each one of these can tell you a lot about the character. It can tell you how they feel about the person they are talking to.
“Hey,” Tara said to her old friend.
“Hello,” Tara squeaked.
“What's up, sweet cheeks?” Tara bent down and placed kisses on her niece's full, round face.
Amir stepped into her office and all the air in her lungs whooshed out. She didn't care it was irrational for hating the way he made her feel a giggle away from embarrassing herself. She stood from her chair and smiled. “Oh, hi, ruin-er of all good moods.”
Also, just a big general tip:

I really don't prescribe to the advice to write how people talk. It's problematic because:

People are incoherent when they talk. “Oh, um, er, you know the whachamacalit? You know what I'm saying.” (This is usually when you're talking to your friends and you know exactly what a whachamalit is.

Or, so verbose you can't parse the meaning.

Or, they are communicating some information, which is usually has some importance to the people who are talking to each other. But totally mundane to anyone else.

Dialogue is not talking. Dialogue is information you're imparting to a third party who isn't a part of the conversation.

So, make your dialogue interesting, entertaining, insightful and TRUE to your CHARACTER. And read it out loud for the rhythm, not to see if it sounds like “real people talking.”

Why?

“Got a sec?”
“Do you have a moment?”
“Dear sir, I need to impart some important information.”

Everyone would say the last is how no one in real life talks. Until you put that dialogue in the mouth of someone stuffy and who is probably someone's butler.

So...that's all I've got. Yes, a real post. But look out on Friday. There'll be promotion.

Saturday, June 07, 2014

O For Two: A New Season Of Sin Begins

I know some of y'all have been waiting for the second season of The Den of Sin and it's here. Holley Trent is first up with O For Two. Be sure to pick up all the titles the first week they are out to get the sale price of $1.49.

***

Olivia Patterson is a rolling stone…or maybe a flying one. As a flight attendant, she lives in the air. She’s never put down roots, and liked it that way…until now. When she touches down on the ground, she wants there to be someone waiting for her. For now, she’d settle for a bit of no-strings-attached company. She accepts an invitation to the Hotel Beaudelaire’s exclusive Den of Sin expecting to have her kinks indulged, not her heart battered.


Clint Morstad and Ken Brook have been in a committed, monogamous relationship for eleven years and are a mostly perfect match. However, after a decade together both admit their relationship needs a feminine influence. They visit the Den to search for their perfect woman, and believe easy-going Olivia could be their ideal match.


As much as she adores them, Olivia doesn’t want to get attached to men she can’t keep. When she slips away before they can invite her home, Clint and Ken left with a dilemma. Should they give chase to the only woman they’ve wanted to share, or let her fly?



(An mmf erotic romance - contains scenes of m/m intercourse.)

Amazon
Barnes and Noble
All Romance Ebooks
Smashwords
***
The line up:
Illicit Passions by Ambrielle Kirk (June 13th, 2014)
Debauching The Virgin by Mel Blue (June 20th, 2014)
You can read blurbs and excerpts by clicking on the links. In short, just visit The Den of Sin website.