Things I'd do differently!!!

Things I’d do differently if I were just beginning to write and hoped to be published.

1. I’d have my website up and running before I submitted my work to a publisher. I’d make the website bold and catchy, and reference it in my letter of submission. I would NOT wait until I was pubbed and needed it.

2. I’d have at least two friends ready to critique your masterpiece before I sent it to a publisher. Friends already authors are the best. Nobody, but nobody, can catch all your glaring errors by themselves.

3. I’d be sure I understand POV and be especially careful to stick to one point of view per scene. I didn’t at first, and still tend to blithely head-hop, not even knowing I’m doing the big no-no. My current editor, the wonderful April Chapman, is deadly on catching my errors. Yes, I know some of the most successful authors blithely ignore POV and head-hop all over the place. None of us are Nora Roberts, at least not yet.

4. This is tied to three. Check and recheck the rules of submission at the publishing house you plan to submit to.

Ellora’s Cave, where I’m lucky enough to have a new series going, will not permit the slightest change of POV. I’m just lucky I have a patient editor. A newcomer can’t afford to twist the rules in the slightest. But it’s also important to be sure your book is submitted in the right format, and right type, the right everything. 

5. Spend a lot of time perfecting your submission letter. Again, give them exactly what they want, plus a smidgeon of originality and humor. But don’t come off like a smart aleck.

Stormy Pursuit, the second book in the Passionate Pursuit series, will be out quite soon. It’s undergoing it’s last edits, catching all the nasty POV changes which I’m still bad at. Forbidden Pursuit has been accepted and I’ve sent in the cover art request. Dangerous Pursuit is in the hands of my beta editor. Haven’t named the next one yet but it takes up the story of the Erricksen family with the first grandchildren. Elves all, I’m sure they will have passionate and lives that make their elfish peaked ears show enough to enchant you all. 

Guest Blog: Rowena Cherry: Copyright Infringement is No Laughing Matter, But a Sense of Humor Certainly Helps

For instance, the silver lining for romance authors and their supportive friends --at least on one site that I will call "pirate"-- is that novels are not the most attractive fodder.

All authors should have Google Alerts set up for their own author name, and for the titles of all their books. You should also have an Alert for a statistically improbable phrase that you use in your book, but that only a plagiarist would also have. I check for "By all the lechers of antiquity."

Authors probably have heard that some pirates are not only snagging unauthorized copies of copyrighted ebooks, but are stripping the title and author name, and publishing the work under their own names on Amazon. It's not easy to discover instances of this, and if you do discover it, your only remedy (as with all piracy) is that the infringement stops with no compensation to you, once you send a DMCA.

Google does not provide Alerts for everything.

Search this way. Substitute your own author name for mine, obviously. Try various site names. MegaUpload.com and Demonoid.com are "down" now, so give those hosting sites lower priority.

site: 4shared.com "Rowena Cherry"

Continue through the gamut of piracy sites, ignoring the "sponsored links" which are usually run by foreign crooks who want your credit card information, and will promise you that they have every book ever written, also every book never written.

If in doubt whether or not a site claiming a breathtaking number of downloads really is responsible for "sharing" tens of thousands of copies of my titles, I amuse myself by typing in highly improbable spellings of my own name. For instance, a site promises Mating Net by Rowena Beaumont Cherry. Once at the site, I search for Mattting Nerd by Rowennne Bumfondler Cheeesey. If they claim to have that, I know that they are not for real.

Searching that way brought me to the kat.ph site. It appears that in 2 years, 10 people have downloaded this /romance-novels-r-t4136076.html (includes 3 of my books), and I strongly suspect that two of them are Brits who have resold their "findings" on EBay.

What happens on EBay is far more serious than this particular torrent. In my opinion, more authors should pay more attention to EBay's auctions of tens of thousands of ebooks sold on DVDs. Every author ought to join EBay's VeRO (Verified Rights Owner) program, even though it is absolutely useless. However, if an author is not already a member of EBay's VeRO program, EBay ignores DMCAs unless and until the author joins, by which time, the copyright infringer's auction has successfully ended.

If the VeRO program is worse than useless, why bother with EBay? Because the same auction of 14,000 Romance Novels has been going and going for the last three years. That is fourteen thousand titles, being sold day after day, week after week, usually with the assertion (which Buyers believe) that our books are "in the public domain" or "GNU licensed". The ebook collections may be described differently.... for mobi/for Kindle/for ipad ... and they may be broken out into smaller collections by genre. There could be up to 400,000 ebooks in the collection. Genuine "Classics" may be mixed in with the Twilights and the Harry Potters and the vampires and zombies.

For those who don't dare visit a pirate site or two, look at this study from 2011.
http://piracy.ssrc.org/the-copy-culture-survey-infringement-and-enforcement-in-the-us/

It is a survey, so --presumably-- one relies on copyright infringers to tell the truth.

For bedside reading, you might try this Senate report on the Impact of Intellectual Property Theft on the Economy.
http://www.jec.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?a=Files.Serve&File_id=aa0183d4-8ad9-488f-9e38-7150a3bb62be

Apparently, copyright infringement is highly profitable for those who facilitate copyright infringement. The "search engine" ebookee that specialized in "helping" would be readers find "free" ebooks online, recently sold for $2 million dollars. It claimed to make $60,000 on average every month from advertising and commissions.

Authors received absolutely nothing, of course.

As a general rule, do not publish live links to alleged pirate sites. You will hurt your friends and help your enemies. In this case, in the interests of science, go ahead. There are no links to pirated books on this page. http://www.freebiemaster.net/preview9.html  It's is one of many teasers put up by a determined (alleged) pirate who has been making an income by helping others to rip off authors, musicians, magazines, and movie makers for three years. Members pay this "Max" $49 a year for passwords and links to where illegal files are hosted. He claims not to have uploaded anything, but any copyright owner who plans to send a DMCA to the host will have to either pay "Max" for the url to the pirated file, or search Filepost.... if that is still his host. I believe the actual host site is currently FILE ROSE.

As previously mentioned, search this way site: filerose.com "Rowena Cherry"

What I find particularly egregious is that he will "share" individual authors' entire series, not just one book so new fans are encouraged to purchase the rest. He gives it all away in one "Mix".

If you see your own work, or a colleague's works, on this page of "freebies", tell the copyright owner and have them tell Google, tell Picasa (because this profiteer from copyright infringement uploads cover art to Picasa to advertise his websites), tell PayPal because PayPal facilitates donations and subscriptions, send a DMCA to googlegroups and to yahoogroups and to SocialGo, because these sites/groups support his promo groups. And...  tell your Senators and Representatives.

There are Congressmen, such as Rand Paul, Ron Wyden, Darrell Issa who believe that copyright owners do not need the help of laws (such as COICA or ACTA) because copyright owners have the right to sue. What these lawmakers miss is that most romance authors cannot afford to spend a couple of years and a few hundred thousand dollars taking every American-domiciled pirate to court every time someone infringes our copyrights.

If this all seems like too much work, go here http://ereads.com/tag/book-piracy and take up the Muso.com special offer available through the ereads site. For $15 a month per author name, Muso will find pirated works (you must verify that it is the book, and not a review) and automate takedowns.

If you have a publisher, work with them. Many publishers have either in-house copyright enforcement agents or they work with Attributor which is very good. Pass on the information.

On the other hand, if you are outraged and wish to get active, you could join the One Voice (free) arm of the http://www.copyrightalliance.org/
or
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AuthorsAgainstE-BookTheft/  or join Stephen L Wilson http://stephenlwilson.blogspot.com/2012/07/warning-authors-your-craft-is-at-risk.html or at http://nopirates.blogspot.com/2012/08/consolidated-posts-weeks-worth-of.html
In closing, I should like to make a very serious point. Some pirates are very nasty people. Not all, but some. If you stand up for your rights in public forums, you must be prepared for malicious reviews wherever your books are sold; also for personal threats and insults; Denial of Service attacks on your websites; spam bombings; specious complaints to Amazon about your spelling or grammar, and other attempts to destroy your writing career....and of course, repeated uploads of your works to every pirate site possible.

Take care

Rowena Cherry

Report piracy: tips@disneyantipiracy.com  reportpiracy@rwa.org http://www.iprcenter.gov/referral ,  http://www.copynot.com/ staff@authorsguild.org

BLURB:
Helispeta wanted to marry well, but not THIS well.
Buy Link: http://store.newconceptspublishing.com/Mating%20Net%20by%20Rowena%20Beaumont%20Cherry

BIO:
Rowena writes about a race of alien Djinn from outer space. She is also a talk show host for Passionate World Radio, and an outspoken copyright advocate.

I finally did it! I self-pubbed a short story!

Just One Wish

And it wasn't difficult to do, either!

I really do love my wonderful publisher, Ellora's Cave, so I was a bit reticent about going off on my own to publish something erotic. However, I ran this one by my editors twice in over a year, and was nixed because the story "didn't "fit" with them.  

So this was my first test run for the Amazon self-pub tool.

I decided that rather than subbing to a different publisher in cases such as this, I would prefer to just self-pub. Of course, even after running through it with a fine-tooth comb, checking for spelling, grammar, and other errors ten times, once this one got onto the kindle lists, there was still one glaring error.  Um..glaring to me, at least.  My spell check and so-called error-fixer fixed something that wasn't wrong to begin with...and now I'm sorta stuck with it. Not sure if anyone else will notice it. If you buy this and find it, send me an e-mail from my website contact page with the subject "I FOUND it!" You tell me where the error is, and I'll send you a prize. I will send a prize to every person who finds it and e-mails me.

No, I am not fishing for sales.  Besides...it's only a buck and a half. When it first came on the Kindle list, it was ranked 141,790 in sales. That made me terribly excited...NOT. But after a couple of days, it went to 25,865.  That means that at least TEN of my pals went over and bought it. LOL!

Anyway, keep an eye on my blog for the next pre-release contest.  Come, My Love is to be released August 29, 2012. It is already on pre-order status at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. I will start the contest on Friday August 17th.

Thanks for joining me today...

Fran Lee

http://www.franleeromance.com

Summer Fun

So what have you done on your summer vacation? For me, now that the kids are out of school, that term doesn't mean much, but I still like to get out and DO something once in a while as long as the weather is nice. This summer has been a weird one, but we've gotten a little bit done in the home-improvement category and taken a few nice day trips to keep life interesting. In the process, I've discovered some great antique shops not far from home and even seen Full Metal Jousting in action, artifacts from the RMS Titanic, and lots of bad pirate costumes.

No, this hasn't been all in one place. Titanic, the Artifact Exhibition, is running through September at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn. It wasn't, I'll admit, everything I hoped it would be, but it was a nice exhibit of some of the artifacts that have been recovered and mock-ups of a handful of rooms from the ship. If you're in the Detroit area, it's worth the $10. (Plus museum admission, if you're not a geek like me with an annual membership. But really, the other exhibits, especially the cars and trains are worth the price.)

We also spent a couple of horribly hot Saturdays in July at the Black Rock Medieval Summerfest outside of Kalamazoo. This brand-new festival was a deal for $10. a person, though the dust is pretty bad. I did really like seeing the actual competitive jousting rather than the scripted stuff you usually see at the bigger faires. We went on both the Celtic and pirate themed weekends and had a ball. Likewise, in June there's the Mid-Michigan Renaissance Festival in Frankemuth, Michigan, with a German theme, that was also a lot of fun for a low price. My favorite thing about this one? TONS of shade. It was about ten degrees cooler inside than out. I love the shopping and live music, and yeah, I have a ton of fun dressing up in the cool costumes. Next weekend the big Michigan Renaissance Festival starts up in Holly, MI, and though it's more expensive, it's on a much bigger scale. Not a better experience, but a different one, and I'm looking forward to a couple different weekends of that as well.

Of course, to make summer the best it can be, you need reading material, for at the beach, or pool or just curled up in the air-conditioning. To help you out with that, I have TWO brand new print books out in the last week that I want to crow about. (Both are erotic romance with paranormal elements, and from Ellora's Cave.) I'm also in a new non-fiction book with 24 other romance authors, talking about how we found the real-life romance of our dreams. Check it out below, because that one is a FREE download for your summer enjoyment.

Stay cool!

 Holiday Hearts
by Cindy Spencer Pape

Click here for more information

Includes: Yuletide Enchantment, Like Bunnies, Valentine's Heart, and All Hallow's Evie

Born with the magic of the seasons running through their veins, the five Holiday siblings don’t believe in the family legends, until one by one, the magic happens to them. Look for year-round romance and passion

* * * * *

Texas Passions
by Cindy Spencer Pape, Regina Carlysle, and Desiree Holt

Click here for more information

Includes: Eagle's Run, Eagle's Redemption, and Eagle's Refuge

Three unexpected half-siblings meet for the first time after their father’s death. Together, they learn to deal with life, love and each other.

       * * * * *

How I Met my Husband 

The real-life love stories of 25 romance authors. Now you can download it FREE at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Smashwords.

 * * * * *

And Now for the Contest:

Add a comment below about your summer, and I'll draw one random winner for a copy of their choice of the print books above. I'll even ship internationally!

Don't Blow Your WCL

In retrospect, the last 2 weeks of frantic Olympic games (including the kind played at the athlete's village) have really spurred me to re-dedicate myself to my own physical appearance. I mean, I have been staring at the amazing bodily perfection (you know, for research) that emerges from the pool/kicks the winning goal/wins the race/spikes the volleyball so long I forget that I don't look like that!

I'm proud to say I've been in the hot yoga room for 4 days straight and am hungry at regular intervals--a good sign for me. If I remember to let myself "get hungry" I'm usually not doing my usual mindless eating while staring at a writing or editing project.

Those incredibly toned and fit athletes don't get that way overnight. And it also has me thinking about how we, as writers, have to continuously exercise our creative muscle in order to hone it properly.  I'm in the 3rd year of my own publishing journey and only just now feel like I have hit a nice striding pace.  You may or may not know that I am a Marathoner. Oh no...no...not the crazy kind that RUNS for 26 miles at one time. oh heavens no.

I am a writing marathoner.  I get an idea, lately for continuations of my various existing series or novels, do a little head writing (usually in the Bikram yoga room to distract me from the agony), then sit and write. And write. And write. Typically pushing through with one story until the damn thing is done.

For example, the 4th novel of the best selling Stewart Realty series, Essence of Time is a near 100k word, 4-part book that I began sitting on the verandah of the Hotel Galvez in Galveston, Texas on a short-notice, mental health spring break trip that I took on a total spur of the moment whim for reasons some of you know. I knew I had to write Rob and Blake's story. I also knew how it would end (no spoilers). I began it on the plane, got nearly 45k into after the end of the week, and finished it the following weekend.  The words truly do clang around in my head and have to get OUT otherwise I go insane.

Now, I'm not necessarily advocating this method. My family dreads it when I go into this mode. It translates to cereal dinners, unwalked dogs and many more chores for them.  But it's my way, and I don't know that I will ever change it.  It's my "boot camp"ultra P90X super duper form of exercise for my personal writing muscle. And that puppy is nice and strong right now---I keep it that way, so I don't blow it out, like an overworked, undertrained runner, left to writhe on the track, with a knee blown all to hell.

Exercise that muscle! Don't Blow your Writer Crucial Ligament!

So speaking of writing....My latest release, a first for me from Ellora's Cave, is Lust on Tap!  Check it out!
Blurb: 
When brewery owner Dustin Prufrock meets sexy saleswoman Helena Turner, sparks fly—angry sparks. They seem destined to clash, until a hot hookup in a cold beer cooler changes everything.

For Dustin, it’s a life-changing moment that sets him on a path away from his birthright, while Helena faces her fears about committing to a man considered the playboy of the microbrewing world. The power of preconceived notions nearly tears them apart—until they meet up with Dustin’s friend Erik, who provides an erotic and emotional connection that completes them all.

But fate has different plans. When Dustin is forced to honor his responsibilities as heir to a large business, Helena and Erik are thrown together in an attempt to run Dustin’s brewery. Now the strength and trust of their once-balanced threesome has been shattered…and mutual lust might not be enough to keep them all together.

Buy it here (and read the excerpt)! http://www.jasminejade.com/p-10265-lust-on-tap.aspx

AND.....check my fun and oh so very very HAWT "deleted scene" over at Jayne Kingston's blog today! WARNING! MAN LOVE THAT WILL MELT YOUR FILLINGS! 

http://www.jaynekingston.com/2012/08/guest-author-liz-crowe.html

So that's me, late, but here, on my assigned blog date!

cheers

Liz

me and couple of ...fans....some lovely young men I met at a beer festival...last year. Ah Beer Wench thou art naughty. 

Guest Blog: B.C. Brown: Me Likey Talky-Talky

There's a common misconception that writers, since we're so verbose and even know what words like 'verbose' are (and if you're reading this blog and don't know what verbose means, maybe you shouldn't be following this particular blog, eh? Or buy a dictionary and actually use it - ha.), that we also must be great speakers.  In a lot of instances, writers are great communicators; in others, we fail - um, miserably.

I, myself, LOVE to speak.  Ask anyone who knows me, anyone who has ever known me, or anyone who has ever met me - briefly, in passing, for any reason.  I'm what my great-grandmother used to call a "chatty Cathy."  I will talk to anyone, anytime, for probably any reason; and I might let them get a word in edgewise, too - at some point, maybe.  Face it, I have, I have a big mouth and absolutely love to hear the sound of my own voice.  I've never been the writer who was considered shy or introverted (look at me in the spotlight, baby!!); personally, I don't understand people who are that way.  Probably because it isn't my nature.  But I do know quite a few who are.

Today, in one of my classes (I'm working toward my degree in funeral services - yes, I want to play dress-up Barbie with dead people for a living), I came across another writer (short stories in varies anthologies) that could have been my polar opposite - shy, introverted, uneasy speaking in public situations.  Watching this woman as she gave her speech (and I thought it was an easy one because it was about ourselves, and who knows us better than, well, us?) was a bit painful difficult to watch.

I watched this girl with visible nerves clutch the podium she hid stood behind, her hands clenching and unclenching, as she spoke rambled in a trembling voice about her family, her hobbies, and what she liked and didn't like.  While certainly not the worst speech of the class (we won't discuss the guy who had a story about his 3rd cousin who was also his 5th great-aunt, or something like that), the girl scatter-brained leapfrogged from unrelated subject to unrelated subject, her thoughts spinning spewing out in no order.  Afterward I felt dirty disgusted less than interested in this person's life or this person - period.

While I don't expect people to be the most profound speakers, I do expect those who, when given time to prepare and a step-by-step set of directions idiot's guide by the instructor on how to go about talking about one's self comfortably, to be able to organize a topic as well known as one's self.  But maybe I expect more out of people than I should?  The gods know I've been chastised criticized for how much patience I have with some people because I see something in them and expect to, eventually, get wring it out of them.  With so much input from the teacher and the addition of a topic that is so easy for everyone, I had high hopes.  I shouldn't have.  Bane of the optimist, I suppose.

I spend most of my time around writers.  Some are published, some are pursuing publication, and others just write for the enjoyment of writing, but they are all writers.  I think I have, like, 4 friends who I spend time with on a semi-regular basis that aren't writers; conclusions: A) I need more friends, or B) these other people aren't as cool they suck because they aren't writers. *blink, blink*  Moving on....  Out of these friends, maybe two of them could be considered shy or introverted; they are the ones most likely out of us to sit back and watch a conversation happening rather than join it.  This in no way, however, makes them poorly spoken in any way.  As a matter of fact, when they do choose to participate in conversation, they are two of the best spoken individuals I've ever had the pleasure of listening to.  They simply aren't outspoken have big mouths like me.  But, while they are introverted, they can perform acts of public speaking - especially when given lead-in time to prepare and have a topic they are knowledgeable in.  So watching this other awkward writer, I realized that maybe all writers aren't like those I know and love.

So my choices at this point are: A) diversify the types of writers I spend time around, maybe I need to find a few of the quintessential writers that stutter when they have to speak, etc?, and/or B) grin and nod and blow my brains out clap politely but be utterly let down after all, and/or C) become a miserable, grumpy elitist and disdain from the company of anyone except for those I deem fit.  Hmmmm....sort of like option C. *blink, blink*

If you're wondering what was the absolutely magnificent speech I gave, I can paraphrase it quickly as follows: I sat on the edge of the table at the front of the room; I did not hide behind the podium.  My words were as follows because we all know you come here for my words, don't you? *wink*:
"A connoisseur of fine words, melodramatic thespian, karaoke fiend, and gun-toting, tree-hugging, dirt-worshipper (careful, the hippy is armed!),  I'm a non-smoking Gemini...oh, wait, that's my eHarmony profile...

"My name is Billie Brown, a.k.a. BB, a.k.a. B.C. Brown, a.k.a. the weirdo who writes, I'm the youngest of three girls.  I can tell you my parents were shocked when I showed up.  I mean, I came home in a cowboy outfit, in a blue blanket, to a blue room with bears playing baseball.  Should I also mention the fact that I'm an avid Cubs fan? Hmm....bears playing baseball nursery....Might be a connection?  I began writing when I was eight years old.  A good thing I took up that hobby rather than, say, singing since we're pretty sure I started losing my hearing in my pre-teen years.

"I wear hearing aids but, if I were to take them out, I could hear about one-quarter of you about half the time.  Imagine your life underwater, and you have an idea of what it's like to hear like me.

"My life after high school was typical.  I married my high school sweetheart and moved as far away from here [Vincennes] as possible as fast as I could.  After about ten years of marriage, I realized (had it shoved in my face actually) that my husband was a jerk, got a divorce and moved home.  But two great things happened during my marriage and time away.  A) I was introduced to karaoke.  The great thing about this is that I can sing as badly as I want/do and it doesn't matter because people think the deaf girl rocks! haha And, B) I became a published author.  I have three novels to date and a short story in a collective anthology.  I write epic fantasy (think kings, queens, wizards, and war) and paranormal mystery (extraordinary abilities meets COPS), and my short story published is transgressive fiction.  If you don't know what that is, it is basically protagonists who are, pretty much, the worst people you can imagine; or it deals with controversial topics like rape, incest, abuse, etc.

"As you can probably tell, I'm not shy or introverted.  I'm active in community theater in Lawrenceville and enjoy my time on stage.  However, I can appreciate solitude (because, let's face it, writers are the least social creatures on the face of the planet; even when we are being social, we are sitting in a group, hunched over our own laptops/notebooks etc.), and I can appreciate the importance of the non-spoken word as much as those said.

"That's me in a nutshell.  Thanks for listening; you've been a great audience.  Good night!"  And I walked back to my seat.

There were several instances when, since I am not a person who specializes in public speaking, I was so nervous that I had to remember to slow down my speech and not sound so much like a chipmunk on speed.  I also had to keep my hands from fluttering around like hummingbirds, but those were things that I knew I had to do.  Now, I've never had a speaking class before; I didn't take speech in high school but, I know, that there are things I find painful when I watch someone talking in public.  So, therefore, I try to eliminate those items when I speak to people.  Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.  But maybe there are many people who aren't quite as observant as I am when it comes to their perceived/despised/repeated actions?

Regardless, the point of this article today is just to point out the differences between being able to write and people who can speak.  Sometimes those writers and speakers are the same; other times, they are individuals who can write but choose to speak only infrequently; and lastly, there may be the stuttering, painful speakers who are brilliant writers but can't make the connection of words that flow out of their fingertips to those that flow out of their mouths.  However, while there are many fantastic speakers out there, they do not, all of them, know how to write.  The awesome relationship between the two is, while there will always be speakers who can't write, there will always be writers who can't speak.  I, personally, don't know what it's like to be one of those writers, but now I do realize they are out there, whereas I thought they were the stereotype that didn't actually exist.  Guess some do exist.

BIO:
B.C. Brown was born with six fingers on each hand endowing her with super powers, thus enabling her to fight crime.  When a freak Cuisinart accident severed the additional digits and her powers, B.C. was forced to fall back on her secondary talent -writing.  Now she lives between the pages of a book - whether she has written it or not.  Since she has not found the surgeon to restore her fingers and powers, she has published three novels to date and contributed to one anthology.  She enjoys writing mystery, paranormal romance, science fiction and fantasy but is always in the mood for a challenge to branch out.  You can follow her crime fighting or writing at her blog www.bcbrownbooks.blogspot.com – Facebook.com/BCBrownWrites – Twitter @BCBrownBooks.

BLURB:

Abigail St. Michael, a former cop, has joined the recently growing ranks of metaphysicals, individuals with abilities outside that of normal human nature. When a murderer stalks her town killing children, Abbey uses her ability of touch clairvoyance to hunt him down. Her only roadblock is that her murderer seems to have his own unique talent, the ability to 'wipe' his victims and their surroundings of any metaphysical energy. With little physical evidence and no supernatural evidence, Abbey is forced to rely on instinct and luck to solve the case. However both Abbey's luck and instinct seem to have taken a permanent vacation as the victims keep piling up with the killer's escalating blood lust.

IT’S DIFFERENT IN SICILY
The Old Mafia

 

On August 28, Breathless Press will release the second books in my Tour Director Extraordinaire romantic suspense series titled ALL FOR A FIST FULL OF ASHES. This spy intrigue takes place in Italy where the hero, Will Talbot (Europol spy and special cover operative for the US government) and heroine, Harriet Ruby (tour director extraordinaire) have a brush with a Mafia family in Sicily. So I thought I’d talk a little about the Sicilian Mafia.

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

First, the Mafia in the US and the Mafia in Sicily are related and have common elements, but they are different. That is, in part, because the American Mafia doesn’t have the direct ties to the history that caused the organization to develop in the first place and change over centuries. It came to the US pretty much a crime organization.

Second, the Old Sicilian Mafia until WWII was quite a different organization than the one we hear about today. That organization rules related to honor and respect…just enough killing to cast fear in the hearts of the people.

Sicily gave birth to what we know as The Mafia, the Black Hand. When and how, exactly, no one quite knows for sure, but there are lots of theories.

Some believe it was a secret society created in medieval times to protect the Sicilians from the Catalan marauders of the fifteenth century. Others assert that it was formed at the end of Feudalism when the feudal lords left their lands under the charge of local managers (Gabelloti) who mistreated and intimidated the workers on the estates. They employed local intermediaries who are likened to the later the Mafia bosses.

    Location Map of Sicily

The most accepted theory is that because, over the centuries, Sicily was conquered by everyone (the Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Normans, Spanish, bandits), this system came into being as a way of life, a way to protect one's family and loved ones from the injustice of the foreign governments who provided little projection or justice to the native Sicilians. Personally, I believe the theories aren’t mutually exclusive.

There is nothing mysterious about the spirit of the old Mafia. “A man who wanted to preserve his self-respect had to personally defend his dignity and honor without turning to the authorities and the law, especially when the affront to be punished is an open challenge or an unacceptable insult to his family.” (Luigi Barzini) To turn to the law (which was the conquers’ form of justice) was considered dishonorable. It was even worse to inform the authorities, hence the imperative of omertà (silence) as a sacred duty. This sense of duty was fueled by the knowledge that anyone who tattled would inevitably end up full of bullet holes behind a prickly pear hedge.

It is also generally accepted by historians who specialize in the culture of Sicily, that the Mafia, the crime organization, was the result of the backwardness and isolation of Sicilians and the bad governments which ruled the island for many centuries.

I can personally attest to the backwardness. My husband, whom I met and married in Rome, is Sicilian. We’ve visited his family in Sicily many times over the years. When I first went to his home town of Messina (a traditionally non-Mafia area) in 1963, the attitudes and life style were a good fifty years behind life in Rome. Look at the pictures below. After 12 years, the fish market in Torre Faro has the same umbrella and the same woman working there. Not much change.

          

Fish market in Torre Faro 1972               The same fish market in 1984

In my opinion, the real progress toward a modern western-world life style wasn’t evident until the mid-eighties. Now, it pretty well caught up in the cities. The countryside may be less so, but there are satellite dishes and cell phone everywhere, even in the remote areas.

WHERE DID THE NAME MAFIA COME FROM?

The cultural phenomenon existed on the island long before the word Mafia was attached to it.

According to Luigi Barzini, the Mafia is notoriously two things. First, common to all Sicily, is the subtle art of promoting one’s interests without killing anybody. That kind should be written with a lower case m. Second, the other—the Mafia with a capital M—is the fluid organization, the secret, far-reaching elite which governs everything legal and illegal, visible and invisible. And that organization is found exclusively in the Western and central provinces of the island, not on the eastern side. That has puzzled experts for a long time.

For centuries, the conditions that are described as the reasons the Mafia took root were the same on the western side of the island as the eastern. Yet, the Mafia never took hold eastern coast of Sicily until recent post-WWII history.

The greatest authority on Sicilian folklore, Giuseppe Pitrê believed the word mafioso came from the dialect spoken in the Palermo district of Il Borgo and means beauty or excellence, but also fiery and impatient. It’s a word that is used to admire the sort of beauty that is flaunted by a challenge. You could call a high-spirited stallion mafioso.

Others claim the word is of Arabic origin. Both could be true since the Arabs conquered and inhabited Sicily from 826 AD until the Norman Conquest in the 11^th century. No doubt Arabic has influence on the dialects spoken by the Sicilians. Leonardo Sciascia believes the word mafia evolved from the Arab word from Ma afir (place of refuge).

The two mafie are related in an indirect way. Someone can be mafioso, but not Mafioso, meaning part of the crime organization. However a real Mafioso can’t acquire prestige and rise in the organization without being mafioso.

The word Mafioso was first used in relation to crime, with a capital M, in the play The Mafiusi of the Vicaria (which is Palermo’s jail) by Giuseppe Rizzotto circa 1863.

While other people may call men in the organization Mafiosi, it’s not generally used by the organization. They call themselves friends or friends of friends. The organization itself is The Honored Society.

ORGANIZATION

A loose coalition of families is called a cosca, which means the heart of an artichoke. The activities of these families must never clash with the interests of other cosche, or armed conflict will take place. A Consorteria is the alliance of various cosche (coalitions of families). Ultimately, Consorteria form a fine network that encompasses every activity is Sicily. It has survived, in part, because each member knows only the authority immediately above and ten people within their group.

WHO PUT THE MAFIA BACK IN POWER?

The Mafia has always aided every successful revolution (including the Bourbons, Garibaldi in 1860, and Mussolini) because the organization can't afford to be on the losing side.

Even though the Mafia helped the Fascists gain power, under Mussolini the organization was repressed and nearly wiped out. The society lost prestige and power, their fundamental assets. But the big bosses didn't panic. They waited as they had waited at other points in history. Their day came again in 1943 when "the newly landed Americans named most of the Mafia leaders mayor of their towns and villages: they were all officially classified as political victims of the Fascist tyranny." (Luigi Barzini)

After that, the old Mafia began to disappear, replaced by urban, well-dressed, well-traveled, educated and slick operators who are ruthless and money hungry…the Mafia we know today.
□

References

From Caesar to the Mafia by Luigi Barzini NY Press, 1971
Leonardo Sciascia Il Giorno Della Civetta , A Ciascuno il Suo,
Michele Pantaleone The Mafia and Politics
Danilo Dolci Report from Palermo, Outlaws, Waste

http://www.history.com/topics/origins-of-the-mafia
Origins of the Mafia - http://the-mafia.weebly.com/mafia-origins.html
History of Sicily and the Origins of the Mafia-http://www.umich.edu/%7Ethemafia/RevisedHistory.htm
Mafia Word Origins http://www.sicilianculture.com/mafia/mafiawords.htm

Best of Sicily Magazine (2010) - Origins of the Sicilian Mafia by Filippo Spadafora
http://www.bestofsicily.com/mag/art345.htm

When the Eyes Rule the Heart

I’m a romantic at heart. I believe in soul mates and happy-ever-afters; true hearts and forever love. But why wouldn’t I? I grew up in a blessed home, one of five children, surrounded by love. I started dating my best friend’s older brother when I was a freshman in high school and married him eight years later. We’ll be celebrating our 28th wedding anniversary this fall.

So yeah, I believe in everything romance novels promise the reader.

But how about love at first sight? It seems this is one area even regular readers of romance seem to have a hard time swallowing. I’m not sure why. There have been countless true life stories of couples seeing each other across a crowded room and the “magic” happens and they just know. It’s their family that’s left to play catch-up with the whirlwind romance and an engagement a month later. But forty years later when their children and grandchildren are dancing at their anniversary celebration, no one can argue that sometimes the heart is so much smarter than the head.

In my sexy romantic suspense novel, BLIND HER WITH BLISS, Julie Tilling’s parents have this kind of true love. She's not sure she'll ever find that kind of love. But one night with Damon Corey and her heart knows he’s her soul mate. Of course it takes awhile for her logical brain to acknowledge the truth.

So I’m wondering what you think of love at first sight? As a reader is it something you have a hard time with or are you okay with it? Do you know anyone who fell in love when they saw their true love? Because I’m always curious about that sort of thing.

EXCERPT:
“You ever ride a motorcycle, Julie?”

She pulled off the helmet and fluffed her hair. The corkscrew curls of copper fit her cute features much better than the black wig that had overpowered them.

“Not one this fast,”

He bit back a smile. “No, I meant any motorcycle.”

“Was it that obvious?” Color rose from her chest and deepened her already flushed cheeks.
“I like to be a woman’s first.” Shit. Even clean shaven and wearing his glasses, Demon’s persona had a bad habit of popping up at inopportune moments.

Julie stopped contemplating her toes and stared straight at him. Emotions moved over her face and clouded her eyes, but he didn’t know her well enough to read between the lines. He’d just met this wonderful woman. He hadn’t intended to scare her off.

“Julie, I—”

“No, Damon. You don’t have to apologize. I get it.”

He hadn’t thought her cheeks could become redder, but he was wrong.

“You have a lot of women available to you,” she said, quietly. “I’m sure they’re much more experienced than me.” She shrugged and fiddled with the strap of the helmet. “I’m sure you realize I don’t usually let go the way I did last night. And I know you weren’t really expecting the person you found at the family homestead?” She emphasized the last two words as if they were obscenities. “The Jewel of last night was more your speed. I get that.”

Oh, hell no. “No, Julie, I—”

Her hand flew up between them. “No, Damon, seriously, you don’t owe me anything. Obviously my father dragged you into an uncomfortable situation. Well, you’ve done your social obligation. I’m home safe and sound. I didn’t mean to disappoint, but I have a hard time living up to everyone’s expectations of who I should be. So, thanks. I get it. Good night.” The helmet landed in his lap.

“No, Julie, really, you don’t understand.” He yelled at her retreating back. “Julie, wait.” Damon attempted to jump from the bike, but the stand wasn’t down, and he had to juggle the extra helmet. “Damn it all to hell. Julie…” He finally managed to extricate himself from the bike and the helmets and caught her just as she pushed open the front door. “Please. I think you’ve misunderstood. Just give me a minute to explain. Then I’ll leave.”

Her arms knotted across her chest for protection. A wounded heart? He’d have to tread carefully. The emerald eyes shimmering in the waning light telegraphed her pain and embarrassment, but her lips were pursed thin with determination. The woman was a walking enigma. Damon suspected she had no idea how damn sexy she looked standing there, inviting him to explain himself—daring him to breach her defenses.

“Look, Julie. I’m not going to lie to you. Demon Jones is very popular with the ladies. Damon Corey…not so much. If you’re looking for the person I was last night, well, you’re in for a big surprise. He’s as fake as Santa Claus.”

The tip of her tongue darted out to wet her full lips. “I still believe in Santa Claus.”

She would. “The Easter bunny, then.”

“But he doesn’t try to pass himself off as anything but the chocolate peddler that he is. I don’t think any hearts have ever been broken by the Easter bunny.”

“Julie…” Damon’s hand found its way to her cheek, his fingers tangling in her hair. She smelled earthy and fresh, and he gulped in great breaths of heaven, not sure he could ever completely fill his lungs. He gauged her reaction as he leaned in, his gaze sweeping her rounded cheeks and pouty mouth. When he brushed his lips against Julie’s satin warmth, her eyes fluttered closed and he nibbled on her full bottom lip. A sweet moan of surrender escaped a moment before she opened for him. Their tongues tasted and explored, and he walked her backward into the living room to shut out any neighbor’s prying eyes.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I'm pleased to let you know this book is available FREE at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Guest Blog: Sue Swift: The Plusses, Perils, and Pitfallls of Pseudonyms

A lot of writers use pseudonyms. But everyone knows that—everyone is pretty sure that Rhiannon St. Cyril is not someone’s birth name.

When I started publishing books, I didn’t use a pseudonym. My first book, Hopelessly Compromised, bore “Susan Swift” on the cover. Why? Well, that’s my name, and as one of my writer compadres put it, I don’t see the point of writing a book if people don’t know I did!” (Sweetie, the point is the royalties. And the joy of creation.)

I got that—we want folks to know that WE DID IT. We climbed the mountaintop—i.e. wrote the book, which was pretty dang hard. Then we had the onerous work of finding an agent or a publisher. Also difficult. Damn straight we want people to know!

However, my first book signing prompted a change in my pen name. “Susan Swift” is really long to write out a hundred times. At least it seemed like a hundred. Okay, maybe twenty. Okay, a couple members of my family and some friends showed up. Whatever.

In any event, my next books were published as “Sue Swift,” which is fine. They were light, sweet Silhouette Romances, and though “Sue Swift” is not a really romancey name—certainly not like, say, Adriana Featherington—it worked fine. Sue Swift fits nicely on book covers. It’s easy to remember and fast to write at a signing.

Then I started to write erotic romance. And not just any kind of erotic romance. My erotica tends to be dark, the heroines explorative and the heroes more than a bit wicked—but in a very hot way.

My sweet romance readers needed a pseudonym. Or so I was told by my writer buddies. That way fans can tell which books are gentle romance and which are over the top, and make their purchasing choices accordingly.

But what did I want to be called?

I’ve always been a busy, energetic, somewhat anxious person, and my name, Swift, reflects that. But it’s healthier to be relaxed.

So Suz deMello was born. Sue the mellow—just the person I wanted to become.

But a pen name is not all sweetness and light. Sure, it’s good for the reader, but what about me? I have to have two sites, which are linked by a common portal page to allow cross-pollination—you know, so readers who might want to read both styles can find all my books. But when it comes to promotional efforts like, say, a Goodreads presence or a Twitter feed—what do I do? Have TWO Twitter feeds? I can hardly keep up with one! Two blogs? No thanks, one’s enough.

So with every promo effort, I have to decide who I want to be: Sue or Suz. That’s hard since I am Sue and Suz, and I don’t like living with a divided self.

Suz has been very successful. Her most recent book is Temptation in Tartan, which reached #1 on the All Romance Ebooks list and hung out in the top five for a week. If you like eighteenth century vampires in kilts, this is the book for you. But be warned! This novel is not for the fainthearted. If your fantasies are a little rough-and-tumble and your fantasy lovers to be true men, then maybe, just maybe, you can handle Temptation in Tartan.

BLURB:

She had to marry a monster…

Rumors had followed the chieftains of Clan Kilborn for centuries. Said to be descended from the Viking Berserkers, they were ferocious in battle, known for tearing off the heads of their enemies and drinking their blood.

But English noblewoman Lydia Swann Williston would marry Kieran, Laird Kilborn, to bring peace to the Kilborn lands after the horror of Culloden and the brutal pacification. A widow, she also brought needed wealth to Clan Kilborn. For her part, eighteen-year-old Lydia wanted children. With her husband killed at Culloden, she would make a new life in the Highlands.

The old chieftain of Clan Kilborn also died in battle, and she hoped that the new young Laird would lack his ancestors' ferocity.

She was wrong.

BIO:
And here’s a little bit about me.
Best-selling, award-winning author Sue Swift, a.k.a Suz deMello, has written over fifteen novels, plus several short stories and non-fiction articles. She writes in numerous genres including romance, mystery, paranormal, historical, contemporary comedy and erotica. She’s a freelance editor who’s worked for Total-E-Bound, Ai Press, Liquid Silver Books and Etopia Press. She also takes on private clients.

Her books have been favorably reviewed in PW, Kirkus and Booklist, attained the finals of the RITA and hit several bestseller lists.

A former trial attorney, she resides in northern California. Her passion is world travel, and she’s left the US over a dozen times, including stints working overseas for many months. Right now, she's working on her next manuscript and planning her next trip.

Her blog is at http://www.fearlessfastpacedfiction.com
Find her reading picks @ReadThis4fun on Twitter, and befriend her on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/SueSwift).
Her sites are at http://www.sue-swift.com and http://www.suzdemello.com

Interview of Author Brannan Black

Today I'm pleased to present an interview of romance author Brannan Black.

Latest Book: Island Wolfman: Paradise
Buy Link:http://changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1770
ARe: http://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-islandwolfmanparadise-779960-140.html
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Island-Wolfman-Paradise-ebook/dp/B0088PM5MU/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1339121990&sr=1-1
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/island-wolfman-brannan-black/1111904911?ean=2940014521901

BIO:
In a nutshell, I write erotic romance novels with a whole lot of action. I’m an action/adventure fan so it’s natural that spills over into the books I write. Having a realistic feel to the plot and action is important to me. Action, even violence needs to balance the romance and personal growth of my characters. The saying it’s always the darkest before the dawn I find to be particularly true, you can’t have growth without the pain to get you there. So my stories tend to be a little on the darker side, but I find it is important not to downplay what my characters are feeling, and how the changes they are going through affects them. In the end, they always find their happily ever after.

For me writing is not just a hobby, it’s my life. Currently, I'm mostly writing M/M but have a few M/F and M/M/F out. I live on a small ranch in Colorado with an assortment of dogs, cats, horses and one loving husband.


Q: What’s the first thing you did when you received word you’d sold a book?
A: Squealed and danced around. Then had to call my hubby and daughter to share the joy.

Q: What part of the book is the easiest for you to write? Why?
A: The easiest part is always the scene that starts the whole thing. Sometimes it the beginning, sometimes something in the middle but always there is that seed that gets the muse hot and bothered. Often, I get other sections or scenes that pop up like that. Those are easy too but it varies as to what part of the book it’s in.

Q: What part of the book is the hardest for you? Why?
A: The end. Life doesn’t end. I need a happily ever after but being realistic, life just doesn’t work that way. There’s always something I can see happening to them in the future or issues that while seeming resolved are likely to crop up again. So wrapping things up with a neat little bow is hard for me.

Q: Who is your favorite character in your book and why?
A: Ari. He’s such a nut. I put a lot of my “dark side” into him. That nagging voice in his head? Yeah, got one of those although not quite as realistic as Ari’s. And panic attacks? Been there done that.

Q: Do all your heroes and all heroines look the same in your mind as you “head write”?
A: No, not at all. The heroes usually come with their own “voice” as well as a feel that becomes a look as I write. Some I have very clear images of right from the start; Ari was one of those. Others, like Daniel from wolfman, never do. Not sure why. Certain characters their appearance in my mind determines their personality and the plot of the book.

Now, the heroines I write tend to look alike so I have to work on that when I’m writing them. But at least I know what my ideal woman looks like.

Q: What hobby do you enjoy when not writing?
A: I do stained glass windows. Yes, real windows not art pieces. My hubby has renovated a few old houses and I did at least one window for each. The last one was a huge art deco piece to replace the glass in the front door. The original sidelights were still there to give me inspiration.

I also quilt and travel. I love walking or hiking in the woods, any woods!

Tell us where to find you!
Website: http://www.epicromances.com
Publisher’s page: http://changelingpress.com/author.php?uid=142
Blog: http://brannansfantasies.blogspot.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Brannan-Black-Author/209004205859328
https://www.facebook.com/brannan.black
Twitter: @BrannanBlack

BLURB:
Marooned. Alone with only the voices in my head -- and an island full of sex crazed wolfmen... They call this Paradise? Really?

What started out as a romantic cruise -- a last ditch effort to save our fading marriage -- turned ugly when my wife, Cecily, dumps me off me on an island in the middle of the Caribbean. To be fair, the virus was turning the men into monsters. All the men got left behind, to keep the women safe. But did she have to look so happy to get rid of me?

Immune to the virus that's ripped our world apart, I'm the only human left on this damnable island. I'm a slightly neurotic forty-year-old college professor playing Robinson Crusoe on the Island of Dr. Moreau.

"Oh please, Ari. You're far from Robinson Crusoe. He was a real man."

Oh, and my wife? She's still nagging me, if only in my mind. And now there's a certain wolfman after me who just doesn't understand I'm not looking to switch teams. Then there's the heat and humidity, wild wolfmen ready to attack, and a hurricane looming on the horizon.
Island life is far from paradise.

EXCERPT:
I fled through the trees, ducking and squeezing between trunks and bushes. I could have run faster out in the open but I had no chance of outrunning the monsters chasing me in a straight race. I slammed through the brush, squeezing through thickets too dense for their larger bodies to pass. They'd have to tear through the vegetation or go around, hopefully slowing them down enough to allow me to escape. Or convince them I wasn't worth the trouble.

A slim hope, but all I had. Never before had they come to this side of the island. Not in all the years we'd been marooned here by an insidious pandemic that provoked a worldwide panic. A panic way too late to stop the spread, I might add. That virus turned men into monsters. Werewolves, the talking heads crowed. These man-beasts don't shift back and forth. They're wolf/human hybrids all the time. But that wasn't sensational enough for the media. Stupid media; I hate when they mislabeled things just for the thrill factor.

"Focus, Ari! Run!"

Why the hell don't they give up? My lungs burned with the exertion. Fleeing for my life fueled my legs, but that energy was burning out fast. I enjoy the outdoors, but this? This was way beyond any extreme sport I'd ever heard of. Certainly not the kind of thing a tenured professor like myself indulged. Not to mention I'd just celebrated my fortieth birthday, I think. I dodged a tree and jumped the roots. And slipped in the constant mud.

"Ahhhh!"

I shot down the slick game trail, headed straight for the cliff. I scrambled for purchase, snatching at vegetation only to have it tear loose. A second hasty handful sliced open my palm. I slipped over the lip and, by some miracle, grabbed a vine that held. Mulch sprayed off the cliff side, rocks jarred loose and rattled against the sides.

I flew out just a bit before my grip slammed me against the side of the cliff. A jutting rock kicked my chest hard enough to knock a grunt loose. Only instinct kept me holding on. I struggled to breathe, dimly aware of the hundred-foot drop to the small stream in its rocky bed below.

"My, my, that was impressive. Planning a career as a stuntman next?"

I squeezed my eyes shut. "Not now, Cecily, hanging on for dear life here." I knew she wasn't really here. She was on the cruise ship with the rest of the women, staying safe from us virus-twisted men.

The real irony? She was the one who insisted we come on this cruise -- to "save our marriage and reignite our passion." Every time I thought about it I wanted to laugh. Except right now, while swinging from a vine, hanging on for dear life.

My hands cramped; the sliced right one screamed for me to let go. My arms burned and my whole being narrowed to my hold on those vines. I twisted slightly, coming face to face with the cliff. My feet scrambled for purchase, sending cascades of rocks and dirt pinging down the rocky wall.

Blood slicked my cut hand, which kept sliding on the vine. My left hand, arm, and shoulder, had most of my weight. They ached. I was going to fall! Panic raced through me, shooting adrenaline through my veins. My heart pounded so hard I thought a heart attack was imminent.

"Breathe, Ari, just breathe." Years of solitude, and I talked to myself as well as my long gone wife.

"Sure, blame it on the solitude, Ari."

I really wished she'd shut up.

From above, a strong grip circled my wrist. Saved! I didn't pause to think. I twisted my hand to grab that muscled arm... At the same moment as a strong yank pulled me up, nearly ripping my arm from the socket. I might add, I noted the claws on those fingers.

Damn it all! Wolfmen. Out of the frying pan, into the fire. Guess they preferred their meat alive and kicking rather than splattered all over the rocks.

He yanked me over the edge and face down in the muddy trail. Would I have been better off falling? At least the cliff wouldn't rape me and eat my alive. A little luck and I'd have been unconscious before it hurt too much. Uh huh, wishful thinking, Ari.

He let go and I scrambled for the brush. A clawed foot dug into my back, pressing me down and tearing into skin and flesh. I screamed like a bimbo in a slasher movie, surprised I still had the breath, but a kick knocked the scream right out of me. I gasped, got a knee under me and heaved, twisting as I did. Unbalanced him enough he stumbled off, leaving a trail of gouges behind.

Big mistake. The rest pounced on me like starving dogs on road kill. Claws bit into tender flesh as a fight broke out over possession of my bleeding soon-to-be corpse. Instinct kept me fighting, blocking blows and curling to protect vulnerable soft spots. Fangs raked across my throat, but the owner of those fangs was tossed aside before they could close around my windpipe.

Snarling, a trio of beasts ringed me, fighting off the others. Most backed off, heads down, shoulders slumped in submission. One of the trio, a buff blond, pulled me out of the way and shoved me down, keeping a vice-like grip on my shoulder.

Blood flew, with snarls and mud churned from the ground as the other two fought off four attackers. Clawed toes bit into to the mud for traction right in front of me. The two defenders looked like the fight wasn't going their way, being outnumbered two to one. The one holding me leaped in to save his buddy from getting his throat torn out.

One of the attackers darted around, reaching for me. They move inhumanly fast, but he must have expected me to run or it wouldn't have worked. I came up inside his reach, twisted, and used his momentum to toss his very heavy ass to the ground, followed by a kick that sent him sliding through the mud to knock others down. They pounced on him.

I dove for the brush but didn't make it. The yank on my hip twisted me into a tree, slamming my head against a low branch. Stunned, I crumpled to the ground, easy prey for the winners. Claws pricked at the skin on my neck as a hand closed over the back of it and shoved me hard into the ground.

I gasped out a breath, more sob than anything. I didn't have the strength to keep fighting. I was done.

Claws sliced through the bloody tatters of my last shirt. I closed my eyes, tried to focus on happy memories, determined to spend my last moments at peace. Prayed my kids were safe somewhere.

But instead of claws or teeth digging into me, soft dabs wiped mud from the furrows in my back. I sucked in a breath at the sudden pain. A hand gently stroked uninjured skin. I shivered, more than a bit freaked out by the contact. It'd been years since anyone had touched me at all, much less so sensually.

Hell, my wife barely even touched me like that during sex. Touched me like I was precious.


Thanks everyone for dropping by and chatting with me!
Brannan Black.
Epic Romances, Dark Dreams, What if...
M/F, M/M, M/M/F
Paranormal, futuristic and fantasy adventures.