My Sexy Saturday's Anniversary Bash!

Welcome to the My Sexy Saturday's Anniversary Bash weekend!

Where else can you easily find excerpts to some of the sexiest writing on the Internet than on the weekly My Sexy Saturday blog hop? So, come on in, relax and enjoy the excerpts.

Clan Drakul: The Kindred Vampires

By Celine Chatillon

available in print from eXtasy Books at Amazon

 

Two tall, dark and handsome vampires looking for someone to share eternity with—while dealing with a maniacal vampire hunter—provides the focus for Clan Drakul.  

In The Vampire Next Door, Val Drakul thinks the sexy girl upstairs could fulfill his every fantasy, but will Melynda’s career plans take a backseat to things that go bump in the night? When a deadly foe ensnares Mel in his plot to rid the world of the Kindred Vampire race, can Val save the mortal woman he loves without transforming her into the lonely being he’s become?

Kinsman Vlad Drakul has found the love of his existence in the beautiful businesswoman Sofia, but is the sex-loving vixen all she appears to be? Leo Van Helsing cherishes his family’s calling a bit too much. He’ll see the bloodsuckers dead, and he’s not above using others to obtain his goals—even if it kills them. One fatal night in Istanbul will change Vlad’s afterlife forever. Can Vlad abide a Blood Betrayal?

Now, take a bite from my novella, Blood Betrayal:

Sofia frowned and pulled the sheets up to cover her voluptuous curves. The thin covering didn’t stop Vlad from wanting to take her then and there, the old-fashioned way, the way God and nature intended lovers to be. Fortunately, Sofia was a very modern woman and enjoyed experimentation.

“I can’t say when I’ll be back—it’s not up to me. My bosses say they want
to reward me for my excellent sales record. That could mean they’ll take me
out of the Eastern European division and position me somewhere else where I can improve the company’s sales record.” She gently caressed his cheek, then wound her fingers through his shoulder-length black hair. “I don’t want to go. I must go. I hope you understand.”

“I understand.”

The words came easily to him, but the emotions behind them did not. He wanted her to stay. For the first time in a millennium Vladimir Drakul felt close to a woman—to this woman. He felt more than just the hunger to satisfy his physical needs and . . . nutritional requirements. His brain had been engaged by Sofia’s sophistication and depth of knowledge, his heart engaged by her unselfish giving and receiving in matters of love. Yes, even loners like the Kindred desired intimacy with others at times. The object of affection did not have to be of their kind—in fact sometimes it was better when it came to expressing their sexuality fully. Many of his kind had simply forgotten they possessed genitalia and the soul-stirring sensations that could be engendered there. Vlad was glad he was not one of them.

“We’ll still have this weekend together, won’t we?” he said, raising an eyebrow.

She looked him straight in the eyes, slowly lowering the sheet to reveal her glorious form to him. “Yes, we do. Let’s make the most of it, shall we?”

Spreading her legs wide, she once more welcomed his jutting cock. No pretense, no playing shy or hard-to-get, Sofia Martinelli enjoyed a good, hard fuck as she called it.

Read more of Blood Betrayal  in Clan Drakul, now available in trade paperback at Amazon.

Enjoy the Anniversary Bash Blog Hop!

 http://mysexysaturday.blogspot.com

Why I Don't Care for Amazon--Home of Death Threats and Fake Reviews

It seems morality and fair play are dead and gone in the publishing world. Here are some articles and blog postings that have come to my attention lately to show you why I'm feeling blue. I've included my comments as well.

Anne Rice signs petition to protest bullying of authors on Amazon

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/mar/04/anne-rice-protests-bullying-amazon-petition

I'm glad that no one pays attention to my books on Amazon now! Death threats aren't funny, and Amazon has a lot to answer for allowing posters anonymity which only protects the bullies and the fake book reviewers.

I haz a sad... Writers are gaming Amazon 
 

Here's a comment I made after reading The Lover of Books blog posting called "I haz a sad..." (link since taken down/blocked) about how an unnamed but well-known author sends out emails saying that (s)he'll give out free books to readers in exchange for 5 star reviews on Amazon. If you want to give her/his book anything less than 5 stars, please don't post it there but email the review to the author directly instead so (s)he can "discuss it" (and not post it) with you the reader. Here's what I had to say about this blog:

This is why you can't trust Amazon's "5 star" book reviews. A lot of them are fakes. Some authors buy them from so-called "beta readers" with free books/giveaways and others just outright pay cash for the reviews. (There's a web site link I won't post since I don't want other buying 5 star reviews). If you see a book on Amazon with lots of 5 stars alongside poorly written reviews, just assume these are paid reviews and not the real deal. The "reviewer" may not have even read the book. It's cheating and it makes all authors look bad. (At least I can honestly say that I have never paid for reviews--and I currently have zero at Amazon. Go figure!)

In reply to the latest way to "pay your way to reviews on Amazon":

http://bestsellerlabs.com/how-to-get-more-amazon-reviews/#comment-37877

I can’t say I agree with this method at all. This is coming from the viewpoint of a book reviewer, editor, and author. To give away free books or to pay cash for reviews up front is basically the same thing. How can you be sure you’re receiving an “objective” review when you’re essentially encouraging the reader to give you a good review or none at all? Are they going to say anything “bad” about their “new friend’s book” and especially to your face via Skype, etc. as you write up "their" review for them? I think not. The review is worthless and is essentially a “fake”.

That’s why I tell people to not depend on their friends and family members to give their writing an honest critique. Those who care about you don’t want to hurt your feelings. And just like those poor tone-deaf people who get on American Idol and then get laughed at and ridiculed by millions because they carry a tune in a bucket (and they don’t know they can’t sing), you’ll have millions of “authors” who need to take a decent writing course and join a critique group before trying to publish their books and they won’t do so because their “new reviewer friends” tell them their work is perfect as is. There’s no room to improve on perfection, is there? More “not-ready-for-primetime” stuff to clutter up the ‘net! (And why would Amazon care as long as they’re making money off it?)

If you want to gain some useful writing tips I formulated after working over a decade and a half in the publishing industry, try my funny how-to guide Defeating the Slushpile Monster now at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1452834946

After my public commentary, I expect a load of hate email and bullying on Amazon any day now. Please leave a comment below on how you see this present crisis of confidence playing out at the online book-selling monopoly's web site and share this blog link with others who may be feeling similarly down about Amazon. Perhaps they'll clean up their act one day? We can only hope!

The All New, All Dancing, Singing, Performing Blog

It's time to throw beads! Happy Mardi Gras! Opps, that was last month, wasn't it?

Happy April Fools’ Day! The blog title is no joke. I’m attempting a new format with my blog(s) and this seems as good a time as any to implement it.

I’ll admit it right here and now: I was born sometime B.C. (before computers). I’m not so keen on the daily blog thing. Sure, many people blog daily, but having worked as a columnist in the time B. B (before blogs), when words were actually printed on paper, monthly postings worked best for me. I’d come up with one good idea (or even one not so good), write it and post it on the blog. I’d write several hundred or a thousand words on a topic and hope to get some sort of feedback from readers. Most of the time I heard only crickets chirping in the distance.

Times change. People don’t have time to read long blog postings. Short blog postings are perceived as being more entertaining than one longer, in-depth rant. Short blogs also more conducive to promoting one’s other writings I’m told. Being unemployed, I need to promote and sell more books in order to survive, so it’s time for me to bite the bullet of blogdom and attract more readers to both my blogs and books.

On our way to Sesame Street, Mardi Gras style!

A lot of what I use to send out in my monthly e-newsletter for many years now, I’m going to post here whenever it happens. I enjoy sending out the e-newsletter, but I understand how much email you read everyday for work, play and other groups. From now on, the newsletter will be very brief and direct you to where the information can be found online. That way, you can pick and choose what interests you most and skip the rest if you’re rushed for time. If you’re not already one of my general e-newsletter members, sign up for it at http://groups.yahoo.com/cindyappelnewsletter If you just want to know what’s going on with my erotic-romance persona Celine Chatillon, you can join that newsletter at http://groups.yahoo.com/celinesdreams

Since I possess “multiple personalities” (I write in multiple genres), I host separate blogs for them. But time and health issues have kept me from making them all that different lately. That will change over the next few months. This blog will continue to feature news, excerpts and other ramblings about the erotic-romance writings of Celine Chatillon. My more mainstream (G to PG rated) book news will be found exclusively at Confessions of a Blonde Writer: http://momsday.blogspot.com . The Brandi Whyne series has a blog site of its own, too. As the series relaunches Brandi will be having more fun and games there as well: http://brandi-whyne.blogspot.com . Please become a “follower” of any and all of my blogs by clicking on the “follow this blog” button on the right hand side. Thank you.

What is it? Whatever it was--it works!

I used to share lots of fun and fascinating articles and web sites I came across on the ‘net in my e-newsletter, but in this day and age of Twitter, I tend to “tweet” them instead. If you’d like to follow my infrequent tweets, I invite you to become one of my followers. http://www.twitter.com/cynthianna3

I enjoy interacting with my readers, my friends, family members and other denizens of the electronic age at my author page at Facebook, too. You can “like” my author page at http://www.facebook.com/cynthianna.celinechatillon This past month, I sponsored a contest for new members of my Facebook page. (You can read about it there.) A free e-book prize has been awarded to Linda for joining my Facebook page and leaving a comment. I plan on doing some more giveaways and contest promos again in the future, so keep checking back here for details.

Slowly I’m becoming more in tune with the digital world around me… And I am publishing on a more regular basis again. Many of my books are now available in Kindle format (especially Celine’s titles), so if you got a Kindle for Christmas or your birthday, can I entice you to give them a try? You can find direct links to my Kindle books at my Amazon author pages:
Celine Chatillon: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B002CQY3BM
Cynthianna: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B002CQZYGK
Book reviews and “tagging” and “liking” of my books at Amazon is appreciated.

Mardi Gras tip #6: If you're nice to the parade marshals and the cops, you get more beads!

I’m still updating my author pages at Goodreads. I should get there in the end, but if you’re tech-savvy and can walk me through it, feel free to drop me a line and share your sage advice. Thanks! So far, I think I’ve discovered Celine’s author page and updated it at http://www.goodreads.com/celinechatillon_cynthianna
If you’re a Goodreads junkie, please feel free to become my “fan” and rate/review my books.

Okay, now’s the time to actually blog a little about my upcoming releases…

Faster than a speeding tortoise… More powerful than a praying mantis… Able to leap tall buildings if such things as a gargantuan trampoline and a circus trapeze catch net were available to all… Look up at your computer monitor! It’s not a bird, it’s not a plane, it’s

Brandi Whyne and Her Incredibly Erotic Adventures!

Check out the new cover art--Brandi is hot! (And I love her boots.)

The long awaited, desperately longed for, long absent sixth chapter, Kidnapped by Time Bandits, is about to make its debut at eXtasy Books. No release date has been given yet, but let’s say I do keep reminding my editor that I literally left Brandi hanging up in the air in the fifth installment. If you want to see what I mean, check out Brandi’s blog at http://brandi-whyne.blogspot.com for a recap of the… action… and what’s coming in the next story besides Brandi and several dozen horny Time Bandits.

Brandi hopes to make her blog a place where fans of the series can hang out, find out about upcoming stories, and leave her questions in the comments section. She fancies herself as a sort of “Lonely Hearts” advice columnist I think, so ask her something and see how she responds. ;-)

Excerpts, review blurbs and more about Brandi Whyne: http://www.cynthianna.com/brandi.html

Direct links to the Brandi Whyne series available for the Kindle:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B002CQY3BM

Here’s something different I’ve written lately—I’m writing sketch comedy and I’ve seen it produced onstage at a local night club. My husband, fellow erotic romance author A. J. Matthews, and I know Brendan Allen, an up and coming actor. We thought we’d like create some new material for him and his fellow cast members. Our sketch “2011: A Fridge Oddity” was performed this past week by The Non-Prophets Theater group during their “Non-Prophet Militant Propaganda Bingo Machine” sketch night at Lemmon’s in St. Louis. We really enjoyed seeing our work performed and thought the cast did a great job. They might even do another sketch we wrote next month.

So just in case you’ve always wondered where Brandi got her comedic timing… Now you know! ;-)

Both my romantic fiction persons are working together on another science fiction book series along with several other writers. We’re still in the preliminary planning stages and we don’t want to spill the beans just yet—sorry. Keep it tuned here for updates… particularly if you’re a fan of vampires, steampunk, action-adventure and romantic-suspense.

This new blog post has gone on long enough! If you want to see what my other romantic person Cynthianna is up to bookwise, head on over to her “Confessions of a Blonde Writer” blog—now. And be sure you leave a comment here about what all you'd like to see in upcoming blogs.