Keta Diablo

Today I'm welcoming my friend Keta Diablo who has 2 new releases. Check them out!

CARNAL CRAVINGS
By Keta Diablo

Buy From Dark Roast Press
http://www.darkroastpress.com/cravings.php
http://ketadiablo.blogspot.com/
http://ketaskeep.blogspot.com/
http://www.twitter.com/ketadiablo

BLURB:
Craven and Anthony find themselves in a cauldron of trouble while spying on Beresford Hall. A man in a black hood has routed them while they spied, and now he’s escorted them to the manor and secluded them in separate rooms.
One thing haunts Craven, the ice-blue eyes behind the hood and Anthony’s words, ‘Only one man possesses such eyes . . . Dominic Beresford, the most magnificent creature God ever breathed life into.’

CROSSROADS REVISITED
A Gay Fiction Erotica Novella
by Keta Diablo

ISBN 978-1-59426-778-9
The exciting sequel to Crossroads!
Frank McGuire is beginning to think the City has become a melting pot for serial killers. Another maniac is stalking the streets, only this time the deviant isn't tracking Goth girls, but gay college students. Rumors surface that put Frank's life in jeopardy, and somehow he must protect Rand from the carnage about to unfold. What he didn't count on was Rand becoming the killer's next victim.
Elements: scenes of intense sexuality

BUY FROM PHAZE PUBLISHING: http://www.phaze.com

http://ketadiablo.blogspot.com
http://ketaskeep.blogspot.com
http://www.twitter.com/ketadiablo

Kicking Ass

I have been so busy lately. Today I managed to get two new submissions out to my other two editors. I'm feeling good have three out at the same time. This will give me time to work on the other handful I have waiting!

My daughter was tripped during a basketball game at recess 2 weeks ago and she suffered a concussion. I've been taking her to various doctor's appts because she's still suffering from headaches. She had an MRI done yesterday and that came back negative - THANK GOD!!!! But we have to wait and watch. The concussion hasn't stopped her from going to the softball games, she just can't participate. She gets dressed in her uniform, sits on the bench and cheers for her team. She also sulks because she can't play.

Her team is in State tournaments right now. We won the first game last night and hopefully have another one tonight.

Me, I'm skipping the game tonight. I'm going to meet some writer friends for dinner. Tomorrow is all about reading. My TBR pile is toppling over. Hope the sun is shining where you are, because it isn't here!

Series...

There's been a few blogs about series today and I'm jumping on the bandwagon. A few weeks ago I proposed a three book series to one of my editors. She loved the idea, but needed me to write the first book and subsequent synopsis so she could present it to the publisher. Understandable...I've only written two books for them.

Well this morning I started book three. I know this is backwards, but the heroine has been haunting me day and night to get her story down on paper or into the computer. I had other projects I wanted to finish before starting this series, because I knew once I started I wouldn't want to stop until all three books were finished.

In Play with Me, Kim, my heroine is the co-owner of Lady Shea's. A mansion isolated on a cliff overlooking the ocean. David, the hero, is the other owner and best friend to Kim. One problem, he doesn't mix business and pleasure. Kim is determined to change his mind! This one will be full of humor.

At Lady Shea's, fantasies become reality as three women explore their deepest darkest desires.

So, ten pages later I had to stop writing. The day job was calling. Sometimes I hate having a day job, ur, except when the bills roll in! ;)

Anyway, that's my plan for the summer. To write this series. I love to read them, so I knew it was time for me to write one.

Feeling run down and run over!

This is the way I feel lately!

The countdown has begun. Only four days until my much needed vacation. We're not going anywhere special. Maybe a few day trips to the ocean, but it doesn't matter what we do, because I won't have to log into my work computer and perform any work tasks. Woo Hoo!

In preparation of taking a week off I've been tying up loose ends in my writing life too. Last Friday I finished and submitted a short for an anthology. Today I finished Cabin Fever. This one sat for too many months before editing, but I'm glad I did it. I added over 10k to the story and like it much better. Just have to write the synopsis and send it off to my editor. My goal is to have that baby gone by Friday.

Not only have I completed the two projects, I sent out 4 queries to a magazine I've written for the last three years. Something I've been slacking off from lately. With any luck I'll have some new assignments lined up when I return from vacation.

Yesterday my youngest graduated from elementary school. She'll begin junior high in the fall. Geez, it seems she just started kindergarten and suddenly she's a 7th grader. It's times like these I get the baby urge, but I usually cure that urge by inviting my daughter and granddaughter over for the day! LOL I love spending time with my precious angel, but it's not easy at my age. I realize I'm just too old for caring for a baby full time. Now I finally "get" what they mean by just borrow someone else's child to cure the baby desires.

Oh well, time to get back to the queries for Complete Woman. I've yet to crack this magazine, but shit I'm determined.

Rain, Rain Go Away

It has rained 6 of the last 7 days. I'm sick of rain. I seriously think I suffer from Seasonal Disorder Affect. My DH buys me tanning salon gift cards just to get me my sunshine, artificial or not. He can't deal with my mood swings. LOL

On a better note I finished Secret Rendezvous and sent it to my editor. Hoping she likes it. I get a kid/softball free weekend...what shall I ever do with myself? Check back Monday to find out. Wishing all my friends a wonderful weekend. Here's something to get you started!

Splashing Good Time - JERR review

KUDOS to my friend Regina for finding this review!

Title: Splashing Good Time
Author: Amber Skyze
Publisher: Ellora's Cave Publishing
Publisher URL: www.ellorascave. com
Reviewer: Ann Barber
Rating: 4 Stars
Heat level: H

Finally over her divorce, Reese is ready for more than just masturbating to her hot pool “boy”, Nathan. Well he’s been having a few fantasies himself. Unfortunately Nathan is ten years younger than her, and Reese refuses to be compared to her cradle robbing ex. Can he convince her that the only opinions that matter are their own?Splashing Good Time is a fun, light read that I found to be a perfect companion on a hot summer afternoon. Reese’s finding new love in an unexpected place drew me into the story, and although Nathan is younger, his maturity makes him an equal partner in their relationship, and he is delightfully alpha in the bedroom. The sex was scorching and made me extremely happy I was sitting near the A/C! Despite its short length, the story doesn’t seem rushed at all. Reese and Nathan’s relationship seems to develop at a natural pace, and though this story only shows the beginning of their romance, I think they have a great shot at a real love. I would love to see another book that shows their relationship at a later point. If you’re looking for a fun read with a handsome younger man to sweep you off your feet, Amber Skyze’s Splashing Good Time is a great treat for a steamy summer afternoon.
Ann Barber
Just Erotic Romance Reviews

Blogging at the Goddesses of Storytelling

Today I'm blogging about being a plotter or pantser and how one person's take really irked me. Drop by and leave a comment! http://goddessesofstorytelling.blogspot.com/

Out of Her Dreams - Fran Lee

Today is dedicated to my dear friend, Fran Lee. She has a new release from Ellora's Cave. This is a must-read! Here is the link to buy your copy today!
http://www.jasminejade.com/ps-7256-50-out-of-her-dreams.aspx

Blurb:
She’s a best-selling erotic romance writer. Her fans adore her. She’s making excellent money. All by writing about a man she dreamed up many years ago. Her hero is handsome, virile, sexy, strong, sensitive and a complete gentleman.
He’s a hot-headed, sex-on-the-hoof pro wrestler. He has a reputation for being the hottest, nastiest man on the mats. The fact that his face and body are plastered all over a bunch of mushy romance novels written by a woman with a death wish doesn’t sit well on those massive shoulders. His agent’s demanding monetary retribution from the woman who’s dared to use his image on her covers but he has another form of retribution in mind…and it has nothing to do with money.
She was his the moment he touched her. He came out of her dreams to claim her, and she wants every hot, throbbing inch of that delicious man.
He wants her, naked, at his mercy. One hot, orgasmic night wasn’t nearly enough. She ran…but he’ll find her.
Excerpt:
She walked slowly across the luxuriously thick carpet to the ready supper table set up before the fireplace and looked about the decadently fabulous room. Obviously he had planned on a very private dinner and drink. She touched the bottle of champagne and swallowed hard. Dear Lord. She didn’t know if she could manage being alone with him again. She didn’t realize she wasn’t alone until his voice made her turn with a little gasp.
“You have my book?” The sight of him standing in the doorway of the luxurious sitting room made her breath leave her in a startled whoosh.
Control yourself, Sam. It is not polite to stare and drool.
She nodded jerkily, opening the bag and taking out the hardback copy. “Of course. You paid for it.”
She held it out as he walked across the room to stop a couple of feet from her. He looked awe-inspiring in a beautifully tailored silk shirt that was open to show his corded neck and a pair of trim Armani slacks. The material sleekly covered but didn’t hide the massively muscled body beneath it and her mouth went dry again. God but that man had a walk—predatory and as sexy as hell.
She had no idea real live men could look so utterly marvelous and perfect. Dream men could but certainly not real ones. Heat pooled and swirled in the area somewhere below her navel, moving into the suddenly damp center of her body as the man moved toward her like some big cat on the prowl, those dark eyes moving down her body to her feet before returning slowly to her red face. A shot of something honeyed and hot surged through her at that look and she knew exactly what was on his mind because the exact same thing was running through hers.
He took the book from her hand slowly and opened it to the flyleaf, his dark eyes touching the page for a long moment before returning to her face again.
“You were serious about that dream bit?” His voice was quiet. A small smile curved his lips.
Oh. My. God. That mouth.
She swallowed and nodded jerkily. “Yes.”

The sight of her standing beside the intimate little table for two sent a jolt of lust knifing through him almost painfully. David could almost taste her delicate floral perfume, along with the warm, delicious scent of a woman who craved what she saw. She stood bravely erect in an incredible blue silk dress that hugged every lush curve she possessed. The warmth of her body and the need in those emerald eyes fired his blood and made his groin swell and come alive with a vengeance. He found himself staring like an idiot. A horny idiot.
It was suddenly hard to remember why he had asked her to come. Was it to discuss the books, or was it simply to see her again? To take her and slowly strip her and taste her soft skin with his lips and tongue until she begged him to bury his cock inside her and finish it up right? Okay. That sounded good. Damn good.
She handed him the book with nervous hands and he wondered what those hands would feel like moving over his naked body. What she would think if he just tossed the damn book and dragged her against him to let her feel how rock-hard he was and how much he craved her. And as he opened it to stare at the autograph she had scrawled over the flyleaf page, he knew that she was not leaving here tonight until he had tasted every inch of that creamy skin.
Want to learn more about this incredible author? Check out her most recent interviews:
http://monarisk/.blogspot.com and http://coloradovixe/ns.blogspot.com

Writing THE END

There’s been a lot of talk on different blogs lately about ending your story. Right now my heroine has her ass up in the air waiting for her husband to spank her. It’s the second to last scene. I know exactly where how this story is going to end. So why can’t I seat down and finish it? Some say that I might not want to let go of the characters. Not in this case. You see I’m editing this story after it sat for two months. While editing I decided it needed more story. So, 7k more words and I’m just about done.
Others might argue I don’t have the next project mapped out. Not so. I’m under deadline to finish a short story 7-10k words by the 18th. I currently have 1.5k. I know this story beginning to end. Still when I sit down and open the document I putter with a few hundred words.
I want to finish these two projects before I start my vacation on the 26th. Of course one HAS to be finished. I’ve been waiting six long months for this vacation. I’ve written nine novellas and one full length novel during these six months. I think I deserve this vacation. We’re not going anywhere. Well, probably the ocean, weather permitting. It’s only a forty minute drive. I love watching the waves. I always come back recharged and full of new ideas. It’s my inspiration. I’ve considered moving south where the weather is warm most of the year. DH and kids still fight me on this.
So instead of working on one of the projects, I’m updating my blog! LOL - Oh well. I guess it’s time to go back and do some writing. Hope everyone out there is having an easier time writing that final scene.

One Tasty Night - Trailer

Fellow author and great friend, Fran Lee has worked her magic once again. She created a book trailer for my latest release, One Tasty Night. Available now from Aspen Mountain Press - www.aspenmountainpress.com

Check out this H-O-T trailer!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQTNcFbRWg0

Sleepy Monday

Another softball weekend behind me. We’ve only had one weekend off since the last weekend in April and our next “free” weekend is July 4th, but we have states all week long leading to that weekend. It was a busy weekend to say the least. Saturday we voted in our new board members for my local writing chapter. I’m now the newsletter editor and looking forward to the task.
Sunday we spent over eight hours at the ball field and I’ve lost my voice! I haven’t screamed and cheered so much in a long time. It was totally worth it. My daughter’s team came back in the last inning from an 8-2 deficit to win 9-8. That was the first game. The second was intense, but not as much. In the championship game they were ahead 3-1 when the other team came back and scored 3 runs. My daughter hit a shot out to right field knocking in two runs to win the game! She was so happy. We, of course, were thrilled parents.
That’s it for me today. I’m busying polishing the last of my current WIP. I’m determined to submit it before the end of the week. They’re calling for rain all week, so that should be hard to do.

Week 1 progress

First off here's a little something to get the blood flowing!

So it's Sunday and I had a productive week. I wrote over 5k on my WIP. I’m almost finished editing another mss. I had to add to this, so editing wasn’t going as smoothly as I’d hoped. No biggie though.
No non-fiction writing – there’s a surprise! J I did read this week. It felt good to sit for an hour here and there and escape into someone else’s fantasy. Boy, have I missed reading. Even though I spent a lot of time with the grandbaby and work was busier than usual, I managed to get things accomplished.
I purposed a three book series to one of my editors. She liked the idea and asked that I write the first book in its entirety and synopses for the other two. Then she’ll present the package to the publisher. That was a positive for the week.
I may have some good news to report by the end of next week. Because the paperwork hasn’t arrived I can’t officially announce it, but things are looking sweet.
I’ve sent Noble Romance a proposal for another anthology. And I sent a status update to another publisher, whom I sent an M/M to six months ago. This story was my first foray into M/M and I’m curious to see what they think.
Overall, I’m pleased. Now it’s time for me to leave for the softball field. My home away from home. Hope everyone has a wonderful day!

You Gotta Read Reviews Spank Me Twice

After only being on sale two weeks, Spank Me Twice has its first review.

While the reviewer wasn't too fond of my story she did praise the other authors. Here's a snippet of my review:

Rein me in by Amber Skyze

Delia is happy being a stay at home wife, spending her husband's money. Only problem? Scott doesn't share her enthusiasm. Yes, he wants his wife to enjoy the finer things in life, but he wants her to stay within a budget.

While still good, this was my least favorite of the offerings. The female lead was just vamped and leaps to the worst possible conclusion (the end of their marriage) at the drop of a hat. Her husband, likewise, completely skips past sitting her down and having a rational conversation with her about why her spending is inappropriate. This leaves the characters feel flat and hard to relate to as people.

You can read the full review here:

http://yougottareadreviews.blogspot.com/2009/06/review-spank-me-twice-anthology-by.html

World Be Damned!

I feel like I’ve been running non-stop since March. Between the grandbaby being here three times a week, softball every night and all weekend long, I just need a break. Well after doing my fifth load of laundry today I had it. I attempted to lay down for a bit. Two of my three dogs took the hit and found a comfy spot on the floor. The other one, a big yellow lab, came right up to my face and whined.
I scooted him and his two brothers out the back door and into the yard. They needed some fresh air. (Even if it was drizzling out). I went back to my room, closed the door this time and fell asleep. I didn’t wake up any happier. In fact I was more miserable. So for the rest of the day I stayed locked in my bedroom. I don’t do this often, unless I have a migraine and that’s only until it’s gone.
But today, I was anti-social.
My daughter came home from school and asked if she could skip practice. “I never miss and I just want to hang with my friends.” She had a good point. How could I argue? So I called the coach. Made up some lame excuse and proceeded to head back to my bedroom.
DH tried to bring her to a friend’s house, but that friend made plans. So she called her older brother and asked him to come over. So, what do they do? Walk down to the local park where she practiced pitching! I’ll be damned. If you’re going to practice with your brother, you should’ve gone to practice. Thankfully they walked down to the park. Last week they practiced in the side yard and the softball landed on my husband’s windshield. $300 dollars later…
The DH was sweet enough to leave me alone. He cooked dinner for himself and the two kids. Eventually he’ll make his way in to give me a rash of shit for being “crabby” as he puts it. Frankly, I wish he’d just say, you’re a bitch! Snap out of it. But he’s too nice to say something like that. LOL Me on the other hand…not so nice.
I finally opened my current WIP. It’s just about finished. I’m hoping to send it to my editor this weekend. I’ve made progress. Best part? I’ve spent most of the day in my room with the peace and quiet I’ve craved.
Have you ever felt the need to shut out the world? And if so, how do you manage alone time?

The Glamorous Life of a Writer

Roll out of bed, whenever the mood strikes you. Drag your pink bunny slipper feet to the coffee maker. Wait until said coffee is done. Scuffle your way to your desk. Sip coffee while computer is booting up.
Tap. Tap. Tap. A few words on the keyboard. Check email. Tap. Tap. Tap. A few more brilliant words added to your bestseller. Ooops coffee mug is empty, drag your sorry ass back up to get another cup. Where did you leave off? It doesn’t matter, the book is practically writing itself. Chat with a few friends on various loops. Begin to feel guilty, so you go back to your writing.
Beep…beep…beep. That’s the sound of your alarm clock going off. You realize were dreaming. You rush out of bed hoping to finish at least one cup of coffee before you have to race out the door. Wake the kids for school, usher the dog out to the yard before he leaves you a surprise by the door. Shower, get dressed, drop the kids off at school and hurry to work – and hopefully you’ll be on time.
Spend the day working your boring job for eight long hours…Sit in rush hour traffic dreaming about squeezing some writing time in after the kids go to bed. Oh wait, the DH is feeling a little neglected. As you collapse into bed totally exhausted you realize you haven’t written a single word today. Oh well, there’s always tomorrow.
That’s the reality of most writers. Sadly we have to work a full time job to support our writing career. If our life was that glamorous everyone would be a writer! :-)

Feeling O-L-D

Okay, so last week I went to two different doctors for different reasons. But BOTH doctors made a comment to me that irked the shit out of me. They said, “Well you know once you hit 40 it all starts to go downhill.”
Yes, I’m 40, but I don’t feel like I’m falling apart. At least I didn’t until I got to the eye doctor. I wear glasses mainly for driving. Anyway, lately my husband has been squinting a lot when we watch television. I kept insisting he see an eye doctor and he kept insisting he didn’t need one. Well, guess what? We went together and sure enough he doesn’t need glasses. Maybe a low prescription for distance, but if he chose to do nothing it wouldn’t hurt him.
ME, on the other hand…I now need bifocals. You’ve got to be F#$%^&*&^^%%$%$ kidding me, right?

My husband just smiled sweetly and said, “I still love you, honey. Oh and I told you I didn’t need glasses.”
He might not need glasses, but he does need knee caps!