Blog

Ravaged Blog Tour: Calix and Orestes

Hi everyone! As you know, Ravaged: Volume 2 is now available from Breathless Press, Amazon, All Romance, Smashwords, and Bookstrand. There is also 7 chances to win a copy by participating in the blog tour stops mentioned in this post. The widget is having issues with WordPress, so there is a text link to Rafflecopter at the end of the post for the giveaway. I am posting this in the wee hours, but when I wake up I will be answering questions in the comments. Now…let’s get to the real reason you wandered over: feisty satyrs!

RavagedVol2_453x680My first impression upon stepping into the lobby of The Aegean Inn is that I’m under the deep blue waters of the sea in which the hotel is named for. Blue hues deck out much of the interior decoration, and while it is at first overwhelming, it isn’t displeasing. I stop in my tracks when I come face to face with Prince Evander, who eyes me speculatively. He questions my motives of interviewing Calix and Orestes rather than Jacen or him, and I reply that while I love the four of them equally, Jacen is otherwise pre-occupied and the other two are a bit more carefree and willing to answer me openly. Vander simply remarks, “That’s what I’m worried about,” before turning on his heel and exiting the room. He pokes his head back through the doorway and grunts that I should follow him, and I feel almost as though I should curtsey or bow or something before obeying, him being royalty and all.

In the backroom there are cushy chairs and a couch, and a television is turned off as I enter. Calix sets the remote control down on the coffee table and stands. He takes my hand in his and kisses my knuckles. His long golden waves frame his face and he smiles at me warmly. Orestes enters from another doorway on the opposite side of the room and smiles widely. He rushes over to embrace me, like we’re long-term friends. Vander clears his throat and Orestes steps away, his grin wry as he brushes a short, dark lock of hair out of his eye. He’d cropped his hair short, but it is growing out again.

Calix and Orestes seat themselves on the couch and I take one of the armchairs. I sink into it and suppress a sigh. Vander crosses his arms and pins the other two with his narrowed gaze. He tells them not to act out, not to unclothe (and I feel my eyes widen that he thinks they would do so in my presence), and that while I know they are satyrs that doesn’t mean I need to see them as such. I am guessing he forbids them to show me their, er, horns.

When Vander finally leaves, reluctantly, the other two glance at each other and share a look of amusement, and then they fix their stares onto me and I can’t help but shiver at the intensity of it.

REBEKAH: Good morning, guys. I hope you had a pleasant night’s sleep.

CALIX: Define “sleep.”

—He grins widely. Orestes rolls his eyes. —

REBEKAH: Er… Anyway. I have a list of questions from readers, and I would like you to answer them as best you can.

ORESTES:  I will be perfectly willing to conduct personal interviews. One on one. With anyone who wishes.

CALIX: What a whore.

ORESTES: Why would you say that? I didn’t offer sex. I said interview.

CALIX: One on one interviews. I know you. You would end up naked two questions in.

REBEKAH: Um…

CALIX: Vander will kill him if he makes a move on you, Rebekah. No worries.

—I am not sure if I am relieved or annoyed by this.—

REBEKAH: Okay then, first question… from Pyxi Rose: When will we get Ariston’s book?

CALIX: You’re the author, not us. Why can’t you answer it?

ORESTES: Don’t push it off on us just because you took sooooo long to write it.

CALIX: Some of us are patiently waiting for our turns, you know.

REBEKAH: *sigh* Well, all I know is it is going to be edited starting this week. I would say March or April for release but even I don’t know.

ORESTES: Then how would we know? Sheesh. Go to Delphi if you want and oracle.

REBEKAH: From Decadent Kane: When is your favorite time to get naked and how do you say “lover” in satyr speak?

CALIX: When someone calls themselves “Decadent.”  Oh yeah, that’s just invitation to be naked. And we don’t have a special satyr language, so I wouldn’t say “lover,” so much as show you. If you ask nice.

ORESTES: Always. Always is the time to be naked.

REBEKAH: Leona Bushman asks, “So…Is it true what they say?”

ORESTES: About what?

CALIX: Yeah, what? Do you knoooooooooooooow how many ways we can go with this statement? Is it true that satyrs are the best lovers? Yes.

ORESTES: Is it true that satyrs can go all night? Yes.

CALIX: Is it true Calix is packing way more than Orestes? Hell yes.

ORESTES: That’s actually a lie.

REBEKAH: Hailey Edwards wants to know if you guys clean your own hooves or do the nymphs do it for you?

ORESTES: Say whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?

CALIX: Nymphs, if we could find them, have better things to do with their hands and…other parts.

ORESTES: I feel obligated to point out that we bathe regularly.

REBEKAH: Debbie Dalme asks if sex is better in human or satyr form?

CALIX: Human form is a glamour, so technically we are always in satyr form, but it is hidden.

ORESTES: What he said, though it is much easier to GET sex in human form.

REBEKAH: Jennifer Zeffer wants to know when Melancton will visit her.

ORESTES: Do we look like Melancton’s keeper?

—he shoots Calix a look—

CALIX: Haven’t seen Melancton in years. And by years I mean three thousand plus.

REBEKAH: Are you su—

CALIX & ORESTES: yes.

REBEKAH: Okay then…next question from Dawn Brower: If you didn’t have to hunt for a nymph, who would your perfect mate be? Furthermore, if there were only one nymph left, which one of you would she choose and why?

—Calix lets out a whistle. Orestes stares at me and merely blinks—

CALIX: Well, apparently, some of us have decided waiting on a nymph has gotten old. But if I wasn’t hoping to find a nymph I have a thing for blondes.

ORESTES: Because he doesn’t want prettier hair than his woman.

CALIX: Shut up. I like them fair and delicate and dainty and all around feminine.

ORESTES: I don’t have a preference like Mr. Picky Pants here. I’d want them strong, able to stand on their own. Capable of taking me down a peg or two, of putting me in my place, but also who craves me like the very breath they breathe.

­—Calix studies Orestes with a frown, but chooses not to make the comment I can tell is hovering on his tongue—

REBEKAH: And if there were one nymph left, who would she choose?

ORESTES: Obviously the most handsome, strongest, most sexually satisfying satyr left—me.

CALIX: That’s bull. Nymphs love me.

ORESTES: Which explains why you are attracting them like flies to honey.

CALIX: How would you know? We can’t see them. For all you know there is a swarm of them in here swooning over my every gesture.

­—The three of us look around the room, as if a nymph will appear out of thin air—

ORESTES: You’re full of shit.

CALIX: More like full of awesome. Get with it.

REBEKAH: Well, I think that is it. Those are the only questions I received.

ORESTES: That’s it? You mean people aren’t chomping at the bit to know about us? How much effort did you really put into this?

REBEKAH: I asked on Facebook multiple times. I even cornered friends and fellow authors!

CALIX: But you didn’t follow up on those friends, did you? Hmm? No, you didn’t. And now here we are, without questions during an interview.

REBEKAH: I, uh…

ORESTES: You. Yes, you.

CALIX: I suppose we will have to find other ways to occupy the rest of our time now.

ORESTES: Naked Twister?

REBEKAH: Do you always have to be naked?

ORESTES: Yes.

CALIX: No, no. Not that. I want to play…tickle the author until she reveals our fates.

REBEKAH: Oh God. Not that.

CALIX: Mwa ha ha.

REBEKAH: No.

ORESTES: Yesssss.

Luckily, Calix and Orestes did not get to follow through with their threats because Vander arrives in the nick of time (my hero!) and I am able to escape, sans tickles.

Anyway… You can meet Calix, Orestes, and Vander as the secondary characters in “Midnight at the Satyr Inn.” The short story is in the Ravaged Volume 2, anthology AVAILABLE NOW from Breathless Press and wherever eBooks are sold.

The characters in “Midnight at the Satyr Inn” will return in book 3 of The Cursed Satyroi series, Shadow of the Satyr.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck!

IT’S HERE!!!!!!!!

*Pops the champagne* It’s here! Jacen and London’s story is here! As well as stories from RavagedVol2_453x680six other phenomenal authors. It should be on Breathless Press, All Romance, and Bookstrand already. It will appear on Amazon and Smashwords soon. Barnes and Nobles will take longer since it goes through Smashwords and there is a delay. If you have a nook, BP, All Romance, and Smashwords should have the ePub format available which is compatible with your device. 😉

Stay tuned for the Ravaged Blog Tour for 7 chances to win a copy of Ravaged: Volume 2.

Today (Dec 3) – Leona Bushman

Dec 4 – Check my blog for an exclusive interview with Calix and Orestes!

Dec 5- Persephone Jones

Dec 6- Brantwijn Serrah

Dec 7- Jenn Myers

Dec 8- Ella Grey

Dec 9- Lucien Didier

Who wants blurbage?

UndertheSatyrMoon_453x680Under the Satyr Moon a curse was wrought, and under the same moon shall it be reversed…

…if the Fates allow.

A freelance photography job goes downhill fast when Lily Anders’ boyfriend dumps her and disappears from the campsite, leaving her stranded in the middle of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Feeling lost, heartbroken, and afraid, Lily follows a mysterious melody through the wilderness. She never would have guessed the source of the music would reveal that legendary figures of Greek mythology really existed, and she could be one of them.

Ever since he was cursed, Ariston has only wanted one thing—to be human again. He has searched the globe for a nymph to free him, but over three thousand years of failure has pushed him into a life of solitude. Ariston believes he’s finally found the salvation he’s longed for when he finds Lily spying on him in the forest. Unfortunately, he has to convince her to like him first.

What seems to be the Fates bringing them together in time for the Satyr Moon proves to be an elaborate scheme with macabre intentions. Dionysus has sent Ariston’s estranged brother, Adonis, to ensure the curse cannot be broken, and nothing tosses cold water over the flame of seduction like a twin seeking vengeance.

COMING SPRING 2014!!!

Cover Art: Under the Satyr Moon

I always said that if horns looked cheesy on the cover that I wouldn’t have them on the cover, and Ariston continued it streak of stubborness and refused to work with me. Good thing he can take human form 😉

Lots of elements of UtSM did appaear on the cover. The lunar eclipse, a subtle outline of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the background, and the rain. OMG the rain. (lots of rain in the book.) Since Lily is a water nymph, there had to be some water on her behalf. Also…it is fun soaking Ariston down because…yeah.  lol

Without further ado…the cover art for Under the Satyr Moon.

UndertheSatyrMoon_453x680

WSN Has Been Re-edited and Partially Revised

WickedSatyrNights 140x210Even though it was something I didn’t want to do, because I know it seriously irks me when books get changed after publication, Wicked Satyr Nights has been re-edited since it is going to print. The eBook version will be updated sometime in January as well to reflect the changes.

Let me begin by stating that I am in no way out to bad mouth anyone that worked with me on the first edition of the Wicked Satyr Nights. However, to those of you who did go out and purchase the book, you know without me pointing it out what the technical issues were. I am not going to dwell upon it, as it no longer matters because, for all intents and purposes, the issues are fixed.

Unless of course you didn’t like the story or the plot or characters because none of is changing. All the revisions have been technical or enhancing of the narration as a whole. In short, when WSN got the go ahead for print, I spoke with my new editor about the unfortunate errors that had made it to publication. Because it hadn’t been edited as well as it should have been, I knew I needed to improve it however I could in order to justify the higher print pricing. (which is set by the manufacturer and not the author or the publisher.)

I am much happier with the state WSN is in now. I turned in the last looks this weekend to my new editor, Leona Bushman, whom I adore, and she has promised to make UtSM bleed if necessary and prevent putting my books or my readers through the craziness of a revision after publication twice. I have absolute faith in her, and my only regret is that the new version wasn’t what was put out a year ago. It also jumped about 5,000 words in length while I fixed vague spots and elaborated certain things. But there is nothing added that you would have really missed otherwise, though it may have been explained better. I didn’t change anything about the plot.

It no longer matters because the new, improved, WSN is going into paperback and digital in January 2014. I know BP has an option to send update copies to buyers, and I am not sure how the ones purchased elsewhere will be handled but we will find a way. I would recommend if anyone does buy it before the reissue is out, to do it from the publisher’s website. I will let you know when the ebook re-issue is available. The print edition is slated for January 24, 2014.

Revisions, Sale Dates, and What Lies Ahead

tumblr_kxoa6j8Pca1qzj487o1_1280For those not following me on facebook or twitter, I just wanted to say Under the Satyr Moon is completed! Well, the first draft anyway. It needs some TLC before it is ready to go to my editor and then to all of you. But the longest part of the wait is over! Ariston can’t wait to hop on to your ereaders and tell you his story. He has the habit of going about things the wrong way (like not telling me what was going on in that horned head of his for MONTHS at a time! ugh!) so that should lead for some amusement. LOL

Second bit of news: Ravaged, Volume 2 goes on sale at Breathless Press on January 3, 2014. Mark your calendars and be prepared for a short but sexy romp with Jacen!

What’s next, you ask? Well, I will tell you. I will be working on getting Ariston’s book polished for submission and I am anticipating that happening in the first half of November if all goes well. My day job is insane in December, so I probably won’t get a whole lot done writing wise until January, but I will try to get Hermes’s novella underway. You are probably wondering why he’s getting a novella and not a novel?

Hermes likes to stick his nose into everyone’s business. He likes to stir the pot and spew out information others would prefer kept secret to see how people react to the news. He’s a messenger, but he doesn’t always delivered messages that were meant to be delivered. And he also is a Grade-A scene thief, so I wanted to give him some room to play without giving him a POV in the novels which have several different ones already. (WSN had 3. UtSM has 4). A novella gives me a chance to go into his POV and let him go crazy as the center of attention. There is going to be a little bit of overlap in the upcoming novella with Melancton’s book, which I will begin once I get the novella ready. I can’t tell you why, but Hermes is going to play a major role in making Melancton’s plot set itself into motion.

Hermes is getting 3 novellas total through the course of the series, the final one will take place after the series ends, as a kind of coda to the series. I am not anticipating more than 7 novellas, but if one of the other satyrs (there are a lot of them) speak up and demand some time in the spotlight I may cave and do another. We will see how it plays out.

After I get through the Christmas season I will begin Melancton’s novel, In the Shadow of the Satyr. I know several readers are anxiously waiting for that one 😛  *teases*

Updates!

WickedSatyrNights 453x680First bit of exciting news…. Wicked Satyr Nights is going to be in PRINT. Yes! You will be able to get a physical copy! I am not sure what the release date on that will be yet, but I will let you know when I know.

I am on the third set of edits for “Midnight at the Satyr Inn” which will be in the Ravaged volume 2 anthology. Through the grape vineRavagedVol2_453x680 it looks like they are aiming for a January release, but that could change and nothing is set in stone. The wallpaper for it is up on the extras page.

And thirdly, Under the Satyr Moon is still trucking along. It will get finished before the end of this year if it kills me. I am so sorry for the wait on it. Melancton promises he won’t be quite so difficult to work with as Ariston. But hey, at least you will have Jacen to look forward to, even if his story is a short one. 😉 (it’s not the size that matters, guys. Sheesh!)

Update: “Midnight at the Satyr Inn”

RavagedVol2_453x680Lookie, lookie what I have! Cover art for Ravaged vol. 2!  In this book you will find the short story, “Midnight at the Satyr Inn.” You will meet several characters you haven’t met yet, and it focuses on Jacen, one of the Arcadian satyrs and formerly a guard for Prince Evander. He, Vander, Calix, and Orestes have been running a bed and breakfast in Savannah, Georgia. And when London decides to visit for the weekend hoping to encounter the paranormal at a supposedly haunted inn, she finds a little more than she’s bargained for.

“Midnight at the Satyr Inn” is currently undergoing edits, and I do not yet have a release date for the anthology. But I will let you know as soon as I know!

In other news, Under the Satyr Moon is 2/3 of the way done. I am working hard to get it finished and submitted by Halloween. Bare in mind that writing is one of 4 jobs I hold, so I work at it as often as I can, but sometimes I get overwhelmed with work. It is getting close to finished though!

Melancton Teaser & Satyroi News!

bestselleraug82013Well, well, well…’twould seem the magic word is “Melancton.”  Last week Wicked Satyr Nights went on sale for $0.50 at Breathless Press. I promised a teaser from the one scene in Under the Satyr Moon that was in Melancton’s POV if you guys could get WSN on the Breathless Press Bestseller list and keep it there till the end of the sale.

YOU DELIVERED!!!! OMG! Thank you so SO much! It was so exciting. WSN made it to number 5! And as of last night was still holding the spot 🙂

Before I get to the teaser, if you didn’t see the post on facebook or twitter yesterday, the short story I wrote about Jacen, one of the Arcadian satyrs, is going to appear in BP’s Ravaged volume 2 anthology this fall. Will post dates and all that when I have them. The story is called “Midnight at the Satyr Inn” and you will also meet Prince Evander who will be getting a book in the series later on.

But the reason you are all reading this post for anyway: Melancton!

Unedited from Under the Satyr Moon:

The ground was soft and squishy from where the rain had soaked into it. Melancton dropped to his knees and felt the wet chill of earth embracing his legs, pulling him closer. It offered a comfort and peace he could not find in immortality.  He remained there, staring at the ground and not really seeing it. A numbness spread over him, helping him not to think, not to feel. He craved the freedom it brought to him, but he knew the apathy wouldn not last. When the first glow of the rising sun turned the mud from ebony to chestnut, he felt the presence looming behind him and the cold, piercing dread in the pit of his stomach returned. It knotted his guts and stabbed him in the heart until he almost collapsed from the assault.

“Kneeling already? Maybe you do know your place after all.”

“Apollo.” There was no point in sparing insults. There was nothing left to fight for, yet the bitterness on his tongue made it impossible to hold his words. “Come to kick me while I am down?”

“Me? Why would I do something so…trivial. Besides, I might get satyr scum on my sandal.”

“Ever so glorious, great one.”

“I like it better when you just stand there in silence and let me tell you how things are going to be. Sarcasm does not suit you.”

He glared up at the god, whose hair was so blond it seemed to glow in the morning light. For a man formed so beautifully, he had such a cruel smile. Melancton had always thought so. In his nightmares, Apollo wore that smile while torturing her. The twisting of his heart cut off his train of thought. Melancton could not even think of her name without it hurting.

I failed. I am so sorry I failed you.

Guest Blog and WSN is 91% off this week!

VBT Breathless Press BannerStop by It’s Raining Books today for a chance to win a BP gift card. I did a guest blog over there talking about the Cursed Satyroi series (*I might have been in a rush and called it the Curse of the Satyroi in that post. Which is what happens when you don’t double check yourself and that was the original name of the series. LMAO oops!)

Also! On the BP website, Wicked Satyr Nights is on sale for 91% off until August 15, 2013.WickedSatyrNights 140x210 It is only $0.50 and there are several formats to download from so it doesn’t matter if you read from your PC or an ereader, they have the format you need. Please pick up a copy if you haven’t because this is the best price it has ever been! Spread the word 😀 (the more copies that get sold the more of an argument I have to convince the publisher to release it in print, for those who don’t want to read a digital copy) Get it here