Malia Mallory Interviews the Lovely and Talented Shoshanna Evers!

I’m welcoming to the blog today Shoshanna Evers! Shoshanna is a multi-published, bestselling author. She is an expert when it comes to self-publishing, book covers and more!

Thank you for joining me today!

What was the first thing you had published? How did it come about?

Shoshanna Evers:

The first thing I had published was Punishing the Art Thief, with Ellora’s Cave. That came out September 16th, 2010, and that led to another six books with EC before I began branching out. I was reading a ton of Ellora’s Cave books at the time, so they seemed like a natural place to submit my manuscript to.

Since then, I’ve self-published as well as published with Simon & Schuster/Pocket Star, Cleis Press, Wild Rose Press, and Penguin/Berkley Heat. I love having my toes in as many publishing waters as I can!

What genres do you consider your work to be? Do you foresee branching out into other genres?

Shoshanna Evers:

In general, I write erotic romance. And more specifically, I write BDSM erotic romance (like the Enslaved Trilogy). But I also have some vanilla erotic romance (like Bedhead), and some “steamy contemporary romance,” such as Snowed in With the Tycoon, and the upcoming Entangled Publishing book The Tycoon’s Convenient Bride…and Baby.

But I really went over to another genre, in my opinion, with my upcoming Pulse Trilogy from Simon & Schuster’s Pocket Star imprint. Those books are dystopian post-apocalyptic erotic romance, and because they’re the longest books I’ve written (that’s not saying much, since I tend to write short), they have a ton of secondary plots and characters all interweaved.

Tell us about your most recent release.

Shoshanna Evers:

Enslaved, Book 1 in the Enslaved Trilogy, just came out!

Blurb for Enslaved, Book One in the Enslaved Trilogy

from Simon & Schuster’s Pocket Star:

From a red-hot erotica writer comes an original eBook—a sensual romp across the playgrounds of the unbelievably rich and extremely sexy.

Elisabeth Anderson has seen Trevor and his friends at the infamous Manhattan BDSM club WhipperSnapper, where everyone calls them the BAD Boys, for “Billionaire Arrogant Doms.” The BAD Boys—Trevor Brooks, Marc Wilde, and Roman Chase—are aptly named; they’ve made money hand over fist due to their aggressive investing at the Brooks Wilde Chase Fund. These guys are so rich they can get away with anything, or so the rumors go.

Trevor gives Elisabeth full reign of his estate in Westchester, letting her do as she pleases. He has only two rules. Rule One: she must obey and submit to him while she is living in his house. Rule Two: always answer the blue cell phone. She’s happy to oblige, because being with Trevor makes her want to obey, to love him the way he seems to be falling for her. But Elisabeth’s never been good at being the quiet sub; she’s feisty and gets off on the punishments more than she does by pleasing Trevor.

Elizabeth can’t submit to Trevor the way he needs her to, so his friend and business partner (and fellow BAD Boy) Roman takes her in hand. But love triangles can have sharp edges…and somebody’s bound to get hurt.

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iTunes

And here’s an adults-only excerpt that you won’t find in the sample pages.

An excerpt from Enslaved, Book One in the Enslaved Trilogy

Copyright 2012 Shoshanna Evers

Simon & Schuster Pocket Star, All Rights Reserved

Elisabeth unlocked the door and went to the bed, kneeling. She remained as motionless as possible, her eyes shut, to give Trevor the chance to see her before she saw him.

What was going to happen? To spend one evening getting flogged in public was one thing, but to be alone in a bedroom with a Dom she’d met once before was another.

The door didn’t squeak on its hinges as it opened, but she heard it quietly latch shut. And a click as the lock turned in place.

She trusted Gregory, and Gregory said to trust Trevor. Which is why she shouldn’t be so frightened suddenly. Weren’t they just bantering on the blue cell phone not a moment before?

Yes. She could trust Trevor.

She must—at this point, there was no going back. Or was there?

Breathe.

So now she was alone now with him. With Trevor.

Elisabeth could sense he was quite close to her, despite being unable to see him, her eyes still shut. A whiff of expensive cologne that reminded her of something—someone?—and then the heat of his hand on her chilled face.

She whimpered, scared now.

She didn’t know this man. What he was into. What he’d do to her, or make her do to him. Men had some kinky tastes, that she did know.

“Are you okay doing this?” he asked. “Do I have your consent?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Open your eyes, Elisabeth. Look at me.”

She obeyed, and saw he’d dimmed the lighting, casting the guest bedroom in shadow, though still softly lit. Sconces on the walls threw golden highlights across the mahogany furniture.

“You look frightened,” Trevor whispered. “Were you scared I was going to slap you?”

Why would such a gorgeous man want her, when he could have anyone? His dark hair, neatly trimmed, contrasted sharply with green eyes the color of the emerald ring her mother had given her before she passed. Of course, that emerald was of poor quality, cloudy with flecks of—

“You need to answer me when I ask you a direct question,” Trevor prompted.

Well, then. Let the games begin.

“I forgot the question,” she lied, and gave him what Gregory always called her “brat face,” but that she preferred to think of as a cheeky grin.

“Then I imagine you’re not too frightened to continue.”

Elisabeth laughed. Trevor was totally different from Gregory. From the flogging he’d given her at the club it was clear he knew what he was doing. So what did he need her for? Certainly not to practice on.

“Keep laughing, princess.”

She promptly shut her mouth, her gaze flickering involuntarily over to the large duffel bag on the low dresser across the room. He’d brought it in with him.

“I don’t like to slap faces, but I will make it difficult for you to sleep comfortably tonight.”

“Sorry, sir,” she replied, as nonchalantly as possible, hoping to make it clear she wasn’t sorry. Her nerves continued their skitter jangle, but now she was in her element. She knew how to force a man to earn her respect.

Technically she was supposed to submit to and respect him automatically because Gregory had ordered her to, but that’s not how it worked for her. Never had.

“No you’re not,” he said.

“I’m not,” she agreed. “I’m a fucking masochist. A pain-slut, remember? Do your worst.”

Trevor reached out casually and grabbed her by her hair, twisting the black strands in his fingers until she felt the sting on her scalp. “As you wish.”

Nice.

***

Enslaved, Book One in the Enslaved Trilogy, from Simon & Schuster’s Pocket Star imprint, is available now at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iTunes

CONTEST!!

Also…. I have a contest going on! Just go to
http://shoshannaevers.com/contests/
for a chance to win an autographed paperback edition of The Man Who Holds the Whip, a sexy BDSM erotic romance like Enslaved!

About Shoshanna Evers:

Critically-acclaimed author Shoshanna Evers has written dozens of sexy stories including Amazon Erotica Bestseller Overheated. Her work has been featured in Best Bondage Erotica 2012 and Best Bondage Erotica 2013, the Penguin/Berkley Heat anthology Agony/Ecstasy, and numerous erotic BDSM novellas including Chastity Belt and Punishing the Art Thief from Ellora’s Cave Publishing.

The non-fiction anthology Shoshanna Evers edited and contributed to, How To Write Hot Sex: Tips from Multi-Published Erotic Romance Authors, is a #1 Bestseller in the Authorship, Erotica Writing Reference, and Romance Writing categories.

Her BDSM erotic romance The Enslaved Trilogy releases April 8th, 2013 from Simon & Schuster’s Pocket Star imprint.

Shoshanna is a New York native who now lives with her family and two big dogs in Los Angeles, California. She welcomes emails from readers and writers, and loves to interact on Twitter and Facebook.

Sign up for her mailing list to get an email when new books release!
http://shoshannaevers.com/blog/

Sexily *Evers* After… www.ShoshannaEvers.com

Email: shoshanna.evers @ yahoo. com (no spaces)
Blog for writers: www.TheWritersChallenge.com

Twitter:
http://twitter.com/ShoshannaEvers

Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/shoshanna.evers

The Insatiable Reads Book Tour – Where is Malia Mallory?

Hi all! More information on the Insatiable Reads Book Tour! I have a full schedule this month. I’m hoping you’ll check out some of my appearances below.

March 11 – Reading Between the Lines

March 12 – Belle’s Book Bag

March 15 – One Handed Writers

March 15 to 18 – Lucky In Love Blog Hop

March 17 to 24 – Big Cocks and Shamrocks Giveaway Hop

March 18 – Deep in the Heart of Romance

March 19 – Louisa Bacio

March 20 to 23 – Rights of Spring Blog Hop

March 20 – Liv Rancourt

March 25 – Morticia Knight

March 26 – Book Whore

March 29 – One Handed Writers

*****

I’m currently on virtual tour with 15 other awesome romance authors as part of the Insatiable Reads Book Tour. From March 4-31st, readers will be invited to enter for a chance to win a Kindle Paperwhite, free books, and other fun goodies. Readers will also be able to participate in author chats, get insights into writing and publishing romance, and collect story swag.

To enter giveaways and meet the other writers, follow us at:
Website:
http://www.insatiablereads.com/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/insatiable.books
Twitter: www.twitter.com/insatiablereads/
Google+:
https://plus.google.com/u/0/100902224798608127488/posts

Pinterest:

Ella Jade Joins Malia Mallory to Talk About “Experience or Imagination?”

Experience or Imagination?

Hi! My name is Ella Jade and I’m thrilled to be here today.  Thanks for having me.

When I tell friends, family or people who ask what I do for a living that I’m an author of erotic fiction they often seem surprised. They’re always like, “Really? You write what?” The biggest question I’m asked about my chosen profession is…

Do I write from personal experience?

I’d love to say YES! My sex life is just as hot as the pages in my books. Lol I’m not saying I’m a prude or my husband is lacking anything. But I will say, I just don’t have that much time in my life for that much research.

I’m a stay-at-home mom most days, a full-time writer, V.P. of the PTO and I substitute teach a few times a month. I’m a busy girl, so when it comes time to write those steamy scenes I rely heavily on my imagination. Several of my books contain BDSM themes but I don’t participate in that lifestyle so I have no firsthand knowledge. I do as much research as I can but when it comes time for me to develop characters and set up the plot I just write what I define as sexy or appropriate for that particular scene. I want to stimulate the reader and have them get lost in my words. When I’m writing, I want to forget about reality for a few hours and indulge in fantasy.

Obviously, romance plays a huge part in all of my books. I like to create strapping, sexy and dominant heroes but they also have to be flawed. Character growth and redemption are always present in my novels. A good friend once told me, “Not everyone is all good, or all bad.” I use those words to develop strong characters that can grow, accept change and be emotionally invested in their partners. Once I develop my characters and establish their emotional connection the rest is easy and steamy and sexy and erotic…

At the end of the day, I guess I can say I write from personal experience. Maybe not in the way most think an erotic author should, but experience none the less. I observe life, people, emotions, relationships and love. And maybe on occasion I might say to my husband, “Wanna try chapter three tonight?”

A Love Stolen is book one in the Steeple Town Series. This is a three book series that introduces the reader to a trio of best friends who all find love. Each book will focus on one of the women and the other two will play prominent roles throughout the story. The novellas can stand alone and can be read in any order the reader chooses.

A Love Stolen features estranged lovers Lila and Trevor.

Blurb

Lila Crofton flees the town of Steeple when she learns of her boyfriend Trevor Matheson’s betrayal.  Trevor’s one night stand proves to be too much for the young lovers. Lila won’t stick around and watch the only man she’s ever loved move on with another. She heads to the city and starts over.

Six years later, recently divorced Sheriff Trevor Matheson is picking up the pieces of his life. When his high school sweetheart Lila returns to Steeple to bury her father, Trevor sees it as a sign. He’s getting over a failed marriage and she’s grieving the loss of her dad. They need one another. The timing couldn’t be more perfect.

Can the two overcome the ghosts of their past and rekindle a love lost. Is there a second chance in their future or is their stolen love gone forever?

https://www.nobleromance.com/Books/427/A-Love-Stolen

Thanks so much for joining me today!

Stop by my blog if you’d like to check out my upcoming releases…

http://ellajadeauthor.blogspot.com

Malia Mallory Welcomes Adriana Kraft – Interview & Excerpt from Pushing the Limits

Adriana Kraft is the pen name for a married couple writing erotic romance together. Published at Extasy Books, Whiskey Creek Press Torrid, Love You Divine, Logical Lust and Torquere, our novels and short stories garner top reviews and are available in e-book and print. Genres include straight m/f, lesbian, bisexual, ménage and polyamory, with both contemporary and paranormal settings. Our motto? Erotic Romance for two, three or more.

——

1. What influenced you to get published? How long did it take? Can you tell us the name of your first published work? We’re both academics with PhD’s in the social sciences and have written together professionally much of our careers. Since childhood each of us harbored dreams of writing fiction, so we decided in 2000 to pour energy into making that dream come true. Both of us have been lifelong avid romance readers and thought it would be fun to try – turns out it’s a lot harder than we thought, and we had a lot to learn, even though one of us is a grammar perfectionist and has free lanced as an editor for some indie pubs. We took workshops, submitted to contests, critiqued, revised and edited, and five years later we had a sale. That first book was Colors of the Night, released to a five star review at TwoLips, which was thrilling. Not so thrilling was that its original publisher folded not long after, but we were pleased to have Extasy Books re-release it in the summer of 2009 after our rights were returned to us.

2. What do you like most about writing? What are the challenges? It’s a really heady feeling when a new story is taking shape and it’s all we can do to keep the words flowing onto the page in an effort to keep pace with where the characters lead us. Both of us are continually amazed by the process so many writers describe – that the characters have lives of their own that we’re privileged to tap into. There are two kinds of challenges we struggle with. Some would call the first challenge “writer’s block” – that sinking feeling when nothing seems right and words won’t come. Nearly always, that’s a signal the characters have something important to work out, and we have to face our fears and plunge in to work with them. The other is more mundane – editing, editing, editing. We want our stories to shine, to be exquisitely written, to satisfy with exactly the right words. I’m not sure we’ve ever kept count of how many times each of us must go through an entire completed manuscript to get it just right – and even then, it seems there’s always a typo or two lurking somewhere.

3. What genre would you like to try that you haven’t yet? In real life, we’re both history buffs and love good historical fiction. We’d love to try our hand at some historical erotic romance and have started outlining a series set in Wales in Celtic times.

4.  Most people envision an author’s life as being really glamorous. What’s your take on this? Can you tell us something unglamorous you did within the last week or so? Definitely not glamorous. I suspect even the top-selling NYT authors don’t have time for a lot of glamour in their lives – writing is difficult, tedious work. Something unglamorous? Well, today I did the laundry and the grocery shopping. Hubs vacuumed the house. For supper I thawed and re-heated a wonderful chicken and white-bean chili that he made over a month ago in the crock pot.

5. Plotter or pantzer? Most of our stories are character driven, so we don’t start writing until we know who’s who, what they care about, what their flaws are. We then develop a plan for the obstacle they’ll struggle with and sketch out the broad arc of the story. While we’re writing, we read each day’s output out loud and talk through next steps before proceeding.

6.  What would you like to share with new writers? Any suggestions or advice? Never ever give up. Judith Viorst kept on writing and submitting for years before she was finally published. If it’s your dream, give it the energy it deserves – and, polish your craft. Take workshops, read voraciously, pay attention to how others pull you into their stories and scenes, ask for feedback and pay attention when editors tell you something about your work.

7. If you could be a character in any of your books who would it be and why? I identify with so many of our heroines it’s hard to choose just one, but Merry Delaney in The Merry Widow wins out, I think. I admire her spunk and determination and I love how she embraces all the new experiences that open for her as she transitions from a depressed new widow to an expansive, free-spirited open hearted woman. Plus, she inspired my first ever tattoo (not telling what or where)!

8. Do you have a favorite object that is pertinent to your writing? Actually, we do – it’s a large print copy of an amazing painting by the Impressionist painter Gustave Caillebotte, Reclining Nude (1880). Our writing office is in an alcove with a slanted ceiling, so the painting literally hangs over our desk, always ready to titillate us, inspire us, and remind us that we are working with universal themes that have a long and wonderful history. We’ve written a novel based on the painting but haven’t shopped it around yet.

9. What do you enjoy doing with your spare time, your non-writing time? At the top of our list of hobbies is staying fit – working out year round, hiking and biking in the summer, cross country skiing in the winter, and enjoying Dance Central on our new Xbox 360 Kinect.  Writing fiction actually started out as a hobby, and of course reading, always. We love to travel, especially when we can put together enough vacation time for a long motor home adventure.

10.  When you wake up in the morning, what celebrity do you most resemble? I wish I could remember which Oscars it was – there was a moment when Cameron Diaz showed up with crazy spiky hair and a critic wrote she looked like she’d just gotten out of bed. She confessed she’d liked how her hair looked when she woke up so she just sprayed it and went with it. I don’t think I look like Cameron Diaz, but I keep a short spunky cut and some mornings it looks like hers did.

11. What kind of comfort food do you like best? It turns out that staying healthy is far more comforting to each of us than anything we used to grab for comfort food. We’re Baby Boomers and want to keep ourselves healthy and vibrant as long as we’re able. Apple pie was high on our old list – here’s a quick recipe for a healthy replacement (for two): Core two apples and place in individual ramekins. Fill core with chopped pecans, 1/4 tsp. of butter and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Bake at 325 for one hour. Just as yummy, very comforting, and heart healthy!

12. Are you in love? Have you ever been? Absolutely. Three decades and counting, sharing the love and the fun (and the hot sex!) with our readers, one book at a time. I don’t think either of us could have envisioned what we’re doing now when we married, and I’m sure we wouldn’t have made time for it when kids were little and our first careers were so absorbing. Staying open to surprise, eager for adventure and open to keep on learning have helped us keep growing together and weather the tough spots. I can’t imagine better. We both want such a love for all our heroes and heroines.

13.  What do you hope to achieve in life and when will you know that you have been a success? For me success isn’t something in the long distant future – it’s living into every day with energy, focus, love and integrity. Do I manage that at 100% every day? Of course not, but the journey feeds me. Actually I’m going to close with a line from a favorite poem that expresses it best – The Waking, by Ted Roethke: “I learn by going where I have to go.” I hope the same for all our readers.

14.Tell us about your recent release. Pushing the Limits, Book Eight in our Swinging Games series, was just released at Extasy. We started writing the series about three years ago because we were fascinated by the Swing Lifestyle and thought it would be a fun device to deliver a wide range of ménage and other hot sex scenes for our readers. We created our lead characters – a Baby Boomer couple whose kids are grown. Brett and Jen Andrews have decided to try swinging to spice up their sex life, and because Jen has newly realized she’s bisexual. Here’s the blurb for their latest adventure:

Swinging Games: Pushing the Limits

Their new Unicorn Sarah Creston may be out of town, but that doesn’t stop Jen and Brett Andrews from burning up the wires with some scorching three-way phone sex. While they’re waiting for Sarah, Ryan eagerly pursues Brett for some hot male action, followed by a house party that challenges Jen and Brett’s stereotypes. Sarah finally arrives, exhausted and drained from weeks spent helping her aging parents. Jen and Brett provide total tender care for three days – but when Jen invites Sarah to move in for the whole summer, Brett asks himself, what’s the limit?

EXCERPT

Lying on her back, Jen felt the warmth of morning sunrays pouring through the east window caressing her nude form before she opened her eyes. Someone had been up and opened the curtains. Her nostrils twitched at the aroma of freshly brewed coffee. That answered that question. Brett was awake.

She stretched languidly, not quite wanting to begin the day. And then she remembered. That other scent. The scent of a woman. The scent of Sarah Creston. In their bed. Lying next to her.

Where to find Adriana:

Adriana Kraft
Website:
http://www.adrianakraft.com/

Blog:
http://www.adrianakraft.com/blog

FaceBook
http://www.facebook.com/people/Adriana-Kraft/100001944980679

Twitter
http://twitter.com/AdrianaKraft

GoodReads
http://www.goodreads.com/author/list/1578571.Adriana_Kraft

Midnight Seductions
http://midnightseductionsauthors.blogspot.com/

Sapphic Planet:
http://www.sapphicplanet.com

Adriana’s Author Pages at Amazon.com and All Romance Ebooks

W. Lynn Chantale Interviews Erotica Author Malia Mallory

The book tour continues! The wonderful W. Lynn Chantale is hosting me on her blog today. We’ll be discussing a few personal things and alot about The ABCs of Erotica.  Please stop by!

http://wlynnchantale-decadentdecisions.blogspot.com/2012/01/abcs-of-erotica.html

Malia Mallory Author Interview at Woody’s Writings

Hi all!

As part of my ongoing blog tour, I have an author interview up at Woody’s Writings. Please take a look!

http://woodyswritings.blogspot.com/2012/01/woody-probesmalia-mallory.html