Guest Blogger - Lex Valentine

I'd like to welcome Lex and help her celebrate her birthday. But let's have Lex tell you about her favorite day of the year and her latest release in time for the Halloween holiday.

Lex:
It’s kinda weird when your birthday is on Halloween, you work at a cemetery, and you don’t believe in ghosts. I’ve always known I was a freak but to not believe in the creatures of the night when you’re born on Halloween is kinda sacrilegious. I can’t help myself. I’m a non-believer. I think I’d actually have to meet one and talk to him to believe. And even then, I’d prolly think I was being Punk’d.

The hero of my latest release thinks he’s being Punk’d when he meets a ghost. However, Jason has a problem with the ghost he meets. The man makes his dick hard. Yep. Totally turned on by a ghost. Sounds like a country song, doesn’t it?

In Rousing Caine, my novella in the MLR Press anthology Love Me Dead, you will meet a man with no belief in love, no trust, and who thinks everyone has an ulterior motive and is out to use everyone else in some way, shape, or form. Jason’s love life has sucked for years. People used him. As much as he loves kids, he’s resigned to not having any because he doesn’t trust people.
By contrast to my gloomy, disbelieving hero, Caine the ghost is a positive force with a Zen-like attitude. Everything happens for a reason, including his own demise. It’s just like me to do a ghost who’s not in the least scary. Caine is a famous surfer with an open attitude toward sex and a hot body. He just happens to be dead. Not that Caine lets that stop him.

The incongruous couple embark on an affair once Jason is sure he’s not being Punk’d. It’s a pretty steamy affair too! Caine’s completely in love with Jason and determined to turn his skeptical lover’s attitude around. He tries to get Jason to see that giving up on the idea of being happy is wrong. He makes Jason promise to fulfill a childhood dream of learning to surf and to see a surrogate agency about the possibility of having a child. Caine shines light into the darkness that had crept into Jason’s soul.

Of course, anger and betrayal rear their ugly heads within Jason when he finds out all the details of Caine’s death. He sends the ghost away and then has to face the truth within himself, knowing all the while that he will never again know a love as pure as Caine’s. It’s a bittersweet moment in the story and one I hope you all can embrace. Finding the truth when it’s too late is a horrible fate.

Since this is a love story, I will tell you there are twists to the ending. It’s not your usual ghost story for Halloween and the scariest thing in it is when Jason thinks there’s a burglar in his house! Or when you think he’s lost Caine forever. That one even gave me a few chills!

As you can see, I’m just not normal when it comes to Halloween. Whoever heard of a ghost story filled with M/M sex and a twisted happy ending? Ah, I think it’s just the freak in me that enjoys messing with you on this most un-hallowed of holidays. Chalk it all up to the fact that I arrived in this world at 12:41 am… on Halloween.

Many thanks to Jeanne for having me on her blog during my birthday week. Trick-or-Treat everyone!
Lex

Released just this week in time for Halloween! LOVE ME DEAD, a ghost anthology from MLR Press featuring stories by the venerable but naughty William Maltese, the awesome and erotic AM Riley, and me! My novella Rousing Caine is right in the center of the book.


Buy Link:
http://www.mlrbooks.com/ShowBook.php?book=ANTHLVDD

Anthology blurb:
Can ghosts influence the living? Can they make a man fall in love? Help him see things in different lights? William Maltese, AM Riley and Lex Valentine weave four tales that pose these questions and answer the question, LOVE ME DEAD?

Rousing Caine Blurb:
Jason Rockham has lost faith in others and himself. He no longer trusts and doesn’t believe in love. When he escapes to his cliffside home in Northern California, he meets a ghost who is the antithesis of everything he’s come to believe about people. Caine Carruthers fell in love with the laugh of a man he didn’t know. After his unexpected death, he sought out the man and found him bitter and disillusioned with life. With love in his heart, Caine sets out to show Jason that life is worthwhile and love is possible. Two incomparable heroes – a man who has lost hope and a ghost who believes love conquers all, including death. This story will make you laugh and cry and most of all... believe.

Excerpt:
They hadn’t had sex again, but the sexual tension between them rose to an almost unbearable level, and as soon as it grew dark, Jason decided he’d had enough of teetering on the edge of a hard-on for hours on end.

They sat in the media room, an old Alfred Hitchcock movie on, and Jason only knew what was happening onscreen because he’d seen the movie so often that he knew the dialog. His hand traced the swell of Caine’s thigh muscle, marveling at the texture of his smooth skin. With his fingers, he teased the hem of Caine’s shorts, brushing his fingers along the sensitive flesh of his inner thigh.

A hiss sounded and Jason smiled. Obviously, the movie no longer held Caine’s attention. Through narrowed eyes, Jason saw Caine’s cock swell beneath the khaki of his shorts.

“You aren’t watching the movie,” he murmured with a chuckle.

“Am t-too,” Caine stuttered as Jason’s fingers brushed his erection.

With a wide grin, Jason leaned over and licked the side of Caine’s jaw. “Are not.”

Caine went rigid in his chair. Jason grinned openly. The ghost’s cock now strained against the front of his shorts. Getting to his feet, Jason pushed Caine’s feet off the ottoman in front of him and sat on it, between Caine’s thighs. He leaned forward and unbuttoned his lover’s shorts.

“Still say you’re watching Rear Window?” he teased, knowing that Caine’s eyes were riveted on him and not the movie.

“Jason.” The name emerged from Caine’s mouth on a groan that made his lover chuckle.

“I thought not.”

Jason’s mouth enveloped Caine’s stiff cock. He licked and sucked the length, letting the salty taste roll over his tongue and fire his own arousal. He loved sucking Caine. The man made such loud, appreciative noises that it drove Jason into a frenzy of lust.

He lifted his head and stared into Caine’s dazed eyes. “Here or the bedroom?” he asked abruptly. Personally, Jason didn’t think he could make it two feet, let alone all the way to the bedroom without just knocking Caine to the floor and taking him.

Caine frowned as he tried to concentrate on the question. “I… I…”

“Aww, fuckit,” Jason muttered and grabbed Caine by the hands, yanking him to the floor. He sprawled atop the ghost, his mouth a hair’s breadth from Caine’s. “Here,” he decided. “Later, the bedroom.”

*****
Lex can be found on the Internet at:
http://www.lexvalentine.com/

Short to Long ~ Shannon Frost

I'd like to welcome Shannon Frost today to share her gambit of going from short to long works.
It’s such a pleasure to be here and to celebrate with everyone on this beautiful day of October 7th, because you see, it’s a very special date in my new novel, Conquest. It’s the birthday of main character, singer extraordinaire, Jesse Alexander! To be able to share this day makes it that much more wonderful. But I’m sure some are wondering, who is this Jesse Alexander? Well, as with many good stories, let me begin at the beginning.

I’ve been writing for years, ever since I penned down what I thought would be my greatest piece in the 4th grade, “Forest Fire, the Littlest Racehorse”. While it was a fun tale filled with action and excitement, I believe, and hope, I’ve surpassed that fine story, and let’s just say my work has taken on a more mature aspect. For the past few years, I’ve written mainly m/m erotic romance. I’ve had two m/f short pieces published, but I simply don’t hold the same passion when writing boy meets girl as I do when writing boy meets boy.

I first got rolling into writing m/m back in 2005 when I was still in college. Now, saying that makes me sound younger than I am, so I’ll admit it took me seven years to finish a BA. Hey, it wasn’t all my fault. I had to eat, so that meant working full-time. While I was in school studying writing, I was still trying to uncover my author’s voice and waiting for my muse to find me. Then an assignment came through for writing dialogue, which made me huff in agitation since it couldn’t be taken from any piece already worked on in class and I didn’t know what to write, but it was then my muse came to me. After pondering for less than five minutes on the assignment, Jesse Alexander burst into my mind larger than life. He had a compelling story to tell, and how could I deny him and his partner, Evan Arden, from taking the stage?

While I worked on Conquest, I came to the conclusion for the first time that I wanted to be a published writer, I wanted to share my work with readers with the hope of bringing entertainment and happiness. But to get a novel published with nothing in your portfolio can be a tricky task, so I started researching what I could do to get my name out there and present myself as a serious author. Some authors find themselves an agent, others may go to self-publishing. I took the route of writing short stories as a way of proving I could be marketable to a publisher.


I submitted my first short story in 2006 to the Cleis Press anthology, Best Gay Romance 2007 edition, and to my astonishment, it got accepted. The story, “No More Mirages”, was actually a spin-off of Conquest using one of the secondary characters, Brandon Alexander, Jesse’s older brother. Encouraged by this success, I wrote more short stories, though rather sporadically. I actually find it quite challenging to develop two or more characters and establish a relationship in 5,000 words or less. Though I certainly won’t complain, because I’ve had the good fortune of being featured in some wonderful anthologies, the most recent being Surfer Boys edited by Neil Plakcy and published by Cleis Press. I’ll also be in an upcoming anthology from Ravenous Romance titled Bedknobs and Beanstalks edited by E.M. Lynley, which is a collection of fairytales with a gay erotic spin.


So for me, I went from writing long works, to short, back to long, and now I do both. The short stories were a means to establish myself in the field with the hope of bringing recognition to Conquest, and it looks like it worked. Conquest will soon be joining the ranks of the many other outstanding titles at MLR Press, an honor beyond any dream I could’ve had for it. And so with that, Happy Birthday Jesse!


To keep up on the latest with my writing, please feel welcomed to visit me at www.sjfrost.com.

Conquest blurb:

As the vocally gifted lead singer of his band, Conquest, Jesse Alexander refuses to let anything hold him back from achieving his dream of becoming one of the greatest performers to ever hit a stage. Evan Arden was thought of as a musical genius when at the height of his career, he vanished from the spotlight. Together, their relationship is just as intense as their music careers, but with the pressures of success and fame pushing down on them, Jesse must decide what's more important to him, his life of music, or his life with Evan.

Thanks again for joining us, Shannon and Happy Birthday, Jesse!

Guest Blogger - Neil Plakcy

I am so pleased to have as my guest today, author, Neil Plakcy
Neil is the author of Mahu, Mahu Surfer, Mahu Fire and Mahu Vice, mystery novels set in Hawaii, as well as the romance novels Three Wrong Turns in the Desert and GayLife.com. He edited Paws & Reflect: A Special Bond Between Man and Dog and the gay erotic anthologies Hard Hats and Surfer Boys.

Plakcy is a journalist and book reviewer as well as an assistant professor of English at Broward College’s south campus in Pembroke Pines. He is vice president of the Florida chapter of Mystery Writers of America, and a frequent contributor to gay anthologies.

*****
My Places in the Sun

“There’s a place in the sun, and before my life is done
Gonna find me a place in the sun.”

When I tell people that my newest romance novel from Loose Id, Three Wrong Turns in the Desert, is set in Tunisia, the first response is usually, “Have you been there?” And I have to admit that sadly, though it’s on my life list of places to go, I have yet to set foot there—or even on the African continent.
So how can I write about it? Simple. I live in a hot place—south Florida—and find myself drawn in fiction to similar locations. With a little research and a little imagination, I use my knowledge of what it’s like to live where I do to create believable places with similar climates.
I have been drawn to places in the sun since I was fourteen, and stepped, bleary-eyed, off an Air France flight at the airport in Nice, France. My high school ran a summer study program in France, and our trip included a few days at the start on the Riviera. I remember being awed by the over-sized tropical plants lining the streets, by the towering palms and the ever-present sun.
Something in me responded viscerally to that place, and I fell in love. I went back again and again as I got older, spending two summers there. During my college and graduate school years I tried, without success, to figure out how I could move there and make a living.
Then I was lucky enough to be offered a job transfer to Miami, and I had that same sense of love at first sight when my airport cab pulled up in front of my new office, and there were palm trees by the sidewalk, and a view of the sparkling water of Biscayne Bay from the office conference room.
That’s when I knew I no longer had to think about moving to Nice; I had found my place in the sun on American soil.
I started writing about Miami almost immediately. There was so much I wanted to learn about my new home, and one of the ways I learn best is to write and research. It took years, though, before I sat down to write GayLife.com, my first M/M romance novel. I had to read a lot in the genre, and spend a few years in the web development business myself, before I was ready.
My inspiration came from a British romance, called an “Aga sagas,” named for a kind of stove, the Aga, that’s common in UK kitchens. A young woman fell in love with her boss, and didn’t realize he had fallen for her, too, until the end of the book. I wondered if I could take that basic plot and give it a gay spin. So I created a young guy, Brian, hired to be the office manager for a start up gay website in Miami Beach. He falls in love with his boss—and the book takes off from there.
Once I sent that book off to MLR Press, I started thinking about writing another romance. One day, as I was driving home from the college where I teach, I was feeling frustrated, by work and my own romance, and thought—what if I just ran away? What would I do? Where would I go? And what kind of hunky guy could I meet there?
That’s how Three Wrong Turns in the Desert began. I teach in an English department that includes a number of ESL instructors (English as a Second Language.) I thought that was a great job to give my new hero, Aidan, because when his boyfriend dumps him, he can go on line and search for a new job several times zones away.
That’s how he ends up in Tunisia, another place in the sun. I was also inspired by a photo I saw years ago, of a naked man showering outdoors. That image jump-started the book. It was lots of fun to research Tunisia, and to apply what I already knew about living in a land of relentless sunshine.
People who read my books often compliment me on the sense of place I’m able to achieve, and assume that I’ve lived in those places for a long time. With the exception of Miami, I have to say no, that I’m writing from my imagination. I think I can do that because I have taken so deeply to my own place in the sun.
* * * * *
I'd like to thank Neil for sharing the inspiration for his latest novel. I completely agree with him: I can't get that vision of that naked man showering outdoors out of my head now! But I think I've got some inspiration of my own with the handsome dude below! ;~D

Free-wheeling with AM Riley

FREE-WHEELING WITH AM RILEY

My guest today is AM Riley. Riley has been writing paranormals and murder mysteries with gay and lesbian characters for five years. She’s been published with Changeling Press, Torquere Press, Loose ID and will soon publish two contemporary gay murder mysteries with MLR Press.

She just released a ‘gay biker vice cop turns vampire’ m/m romance with Loose Id last month called “Immortality is the Suck”.
The blurb reads:
“Undercover Vice cop and former ATF agent, Adam Bertoni, has had a lot of bad nights, but this one takes the proverbial cake. First, a drug deal goes sour. Then, his ex-partner and sometimes fuck-buddy, Peter, gets to watch him bleed to death.
Adam doesn’t know which ticks him off more. That somebody set him up, or that he woke up undead.
Finding his death at the center of a sting that involves Outlaw Motorcycle gangs, the Mexican Mafia, and a lot of missing cash. Adam races to find the killer and clear his name. Because Peter may put up with a lot of Adam’s B.S., but he’ll never have relations with a suspect.
Former informants are dropping like flies. The gamut of Los Angeles lowlifes are sprouting fangs and super-human powers. And, Adam has to face a lot of things he’s been avoiding for a long time.
Immortality is just something he hadn’t planned on.”

With a blurb like that I was dying to know more about the author and the story behind the story so, here’s AM Riley free-wheeling about her writing and her life, which for Riley is really the same thing.
* * * * * *

RILEY:
The story behind the story:
How I came up with the vampire character for Immortality is the Suck is a good question.
I know a marine who became a cop, though not a vice cop. He retired and is now a writer. Anyway, he’s a vampire freak. So’m I and so is a co-worker. Short story long, my buddy came to visit when I was working graveyard on a show with my co-worker. A ghastly cable TV thing, as it happens, and we took frequent breaks to alleviate our despair. That night we started talking vampires. Then arguing vampires. It was a hysterical conversation and my friend the marine is always saying things are the suck. So, I said, “ Immortality is the suck.” And he said, ‘Yeah you should write that.’ And there you have it. It’s his fault.

The main character looks and sounds like my friend the ex-marine. I’ve always thought he’d make a great vampire.

The circumstances that led to the book opening actually happened, though, minus the vampire element. (At least, I don’t think there was a vampire element) The DEA and ATF busted over eighty Mongol’s last October here in Los Angeles, after a lengthy undercover operation involving several agents. My protagonist is my version of one of those agents.

The life:

I live in Los Angeles and I write paranormal as well as mysteries. Interestingly, I think, there are no characters in my books that aren’t people I know or have known. If they seem extreme or bizarre, that’s because most people are pretty danged strange if you bother to listen. Even my vampires are people I know (with fangs).

I write lesbian fiction as well, but most of the people who read my m/m books aren’t interested in lesbian romance or murder mysteries. I’ve been unsure about where to publicize my lesbian fiction, so I guess it will end up on my site, side by side with the other stuff I write.

Lets see... went to Art School, degree in Art History and Lit. That’s where I learned that there is no wrong way to make art. The only thing you can do wrong is copy someone else (there is a difference between copying and emulating. The key is authenticity.) I got into the film industry to pay the bills and sort of fell in love with an editing bay. All those lights and bopping needles and dials in a dark room! Four or more monitors humming away in digital harmony. It’s like the inside of a techno brain!

I’ve lived in Los Angeles for a long, long time. Before I worked in the film industry, (over ten years now. Gad.) I held the gamut of weird minimum wage jobs. I know people who have lived on the streets; I speak Calo -- it's a sort of slangy bastardized Spanish that you hear in Los Angeles. It's so common that you see it on the main broadcasting networks cop shows -- and a sort of bastardized Portuguese which I learned entirely hanging out in the dance clubs. ;~D

My best friend when I first moved here was a member of Avatar and I still have a soft spot for the old leathermen, even though they were sexist bastards sometimes. I wrote “The Elegant Corpse” because of him. I sent it to him to read and he sent it back with grammar corrections. : )

I think gender is the last frontier and that rape is a hate crime. I am first and foremost a feminist. I am currently writing a murder mystery featuring a transgendered PI, based on a truly inspiring individual who has been kind enough to talk to me about the political and personal aspects of being transgendered. I aspire to write anyone so that the reader can relate and root for him/her.

I am a single parent. My daughter rocks. I love pit bulls and so I am also in the midst of a murder mystery that features the horrific dog fighting industry that victimizes them. This one is paranormal.

Paranormal stories feel very much like Aesops fables to me. Or the Greek Myths. That larger than life, or just slightly surreal flavor makes them perfect vehicles for over-the-top moralizing. So I love writing them.

I have two books currently in edits at MLR Press -- “Death by Misfortune” which plays with a murder in the midst of a film production -- and “Son of a Gun” in which I kill off the fictionalized version of a few ex-relatives from Texas.

You can find AM on her website:
http://www.amriley.net/

I want to thank AM Riley for sharing with me today. It isn't only her daughter who rocks. I think she does, too!

Fall Guest Bloggers at the Sweet Flag!

Wow! Do I have a group of TWENTY authors of gay fiction for you! The variety of genres is incredible ranging from contemporary to historical to paranormal. The writers' productivity cover new authors and multi-published ones. The publishers include the top echelon in ebook presses and, I'm pleased to say, all of the publishers with whom I have work, are represented.
As the dates are set they will be announced on the left hand column of the blog.
Guests posts will begin in September and should cover each week until the end of the year.
We'll be starting a special NEW M/M AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT for those authors who have just published their first gay fiction. We're hoping that you'll give these folks a chance to woo you so that you'll put them on the top of your TBR pile!
UPDATE!!!
The number of guests has jumped to Over Twenty! AND we have two special themed weeks scheduled!
The September list will be going up this weekend.

Guest Blogger - Maura Anderson

Today our guest blogger from MLR Press is Maura Anderson, putting on her editor's hat to share some points about world building in one of her favorite genres: Science Fiction and Fantasy
Hi everyone! I'm thrilled to be guest blogging on The Sweet Flag. My name is Maura Anderson and I'm both an author and an editor and work in many different romance and fiction genres.

Today I wanted to give you all some insight into what I look for and at when I edit science fiction and fantasy, specifically m/m science fiction and fantasy. After a bit of thought, I figured I'd set out my list of the top seven things NOT to do instead of telling you what to do. Because science fiction and fantasy have such a huge arena to play in, the To Do list might be really huge!

Do NOT skimp on world building.

If you don't know your world well and have rules set out for how it works, it's far too easy to either cheat the reader on the richness they would expect from a fully developed world or create problems you later need to resolve or apologize for. Even if 90% of the details of your world and its history never made it into a book, you won't go wrong by knowing that information yourself.

Do NOT limit yourself to the societal rules and values of today.

If you are building a world for your science fiction or fantasy story, don't feel you have to take today's societal rules as the rules for your world. If gay relationships are the norm in your world, treat them as so. If gay relationships are forbidden, treat them as such too. Maybe things that are crimes to humans now are sanctioned in your world. You can add richness and interest by changing societal rules and values.

Do NOT lose consistency.

The rules of your world need to be consistent and kept so if the reader is to understand and believe them. If you are inconsistent, your readers will question every rule and it will pull them out of the story.

Do NOT use modern slang without good reason

Nothing pulls me out of a science fiction or fantasy story faster than hearing a modern slang phrase tossed in when it clearly does not fit in the world. If a society has no concept of the Judeo-Christian theory of Hell and someone says "go to Hell", I'm going to be pulled out of the story and the world.

Do NOT forget logic

When you build a world, it should be internally logical. That means that if red is the color of the Gods, you wouldn't later refer to a mark of adultery as a scarlet letter. If the reader can't follow the logic of the world, they will start to only see chaos and stop trying to follow it. Or complain about it.

Do NOT skimp on description

This is especially true in science fiction and fantasy where the author can't take advantage of the fact most people are familiar with the current world and can merely emphasize differences. A richness of description and setting up the world will draw the reader in and make them love stepping away from their real life.

Do NOT substitute a rich world for rich characters

With as much emphasis as there is on world building in science fiction and fantasy, don't ever forget your characters. You still have to have characters the reader will fall in love with and care about in order for them to stay interested in the story. Even the best world ever can be tossed aside if the characters aren't strong.

That's my current list of "do NOT" items. I hope it gives you some things to think about when writing or reading your next science fiction or fantasy story!

If you'd like to see some of my work, feel free to visit my website at http:\\http://www.realmsoftheraven.com/.

MLR Press opens online Bookstore

MLR Press has opened the first phase of their online bookstore starting with ebooks sales. Once they have an inventory and a shipping plan in place, print books will be added to the store.
They're just up and running so if you have any problems, please let them know. As Jay Hartman of Untreed Reads says: "For those who like to see publishers and authors get the full sale of titles instead of a middleman (Untreed Reads raises its hand), this is really terrific news".
The direct link to purchase Bend in the Road is here
The link to the store is:
http://www.mlrbooks.com/books.php

Guest Blogger - Jason Edding

Today's guest is MLR Press author, Jason Edding

First, congratulations on the release of Dark Robe Edges: Dark Robe Society 2 inThe Edge of Desperation your second dual anthology, this time with the prolific James Buchanan.

Hello and thank you Jeanne! I think, but I'm not sure yet, the second book caused more dancing on the ceiling for me, than the first. And being teamed up with James Buchanan, just wow. I was stunned with excitement from the moment I heard.
Did you and James collaborate on your stories? If not, was there a common theme? -

No, James and I didn't. The common theme was being on the edge... In my story, for instance, each chapter has my heroes on the edge of something.

Did you find writing this second story easier or more difficult than the first?

Oh boy, easier. I swear I had it written in my head for the most part within a month of book one's release. I just had to 'write' it down then and smooth it out.

The cover is totally wild. Did you have any input in it?

MLR Press is authorcentric! I love them. Yes, I had some input. I really wanted some blue in the cover and I wanted a spaceship of some sort. When I saw the one on the cover I just fell in love with it immediately. That ship is entirely what I had imagined. I couldn't have asked for a more awesome cover.
Do you envision any more stories in this world?

Yes, should I just be blunt and say eight more? Maybe twenty? No, kidding, possibly. It's a huge world in my head, so I can just dream and wait and see what the future holds for the Dark Robe Society.

What's next for you?

I'm currently working on two contemporary stories, which I'm very excited about. These two are on the front burner for me, so more DRS stories are shifted and at rest for a while. One, and probably the most exciting for me, I'm working on, is an anthology with William Maltese and Ethan Day. The book will be titled Melting the Slopes, but I've still not thought of a title for my story yet. Soon... The theme for each of the three stories is hot alcoholic drinks and skiing. It's so much fun already. I'm very excited!

What one thing would you like to share with your fans?

I hope they enjoy my stories. I really want the readers to imagine the world and get pulled into it. But that's just off the top of my head.

Thanks for visiting here again, Jason. You've really become an old hand at blogging now! :~D

The Edge of Desperation
Blurb
Over what can love and lust win? Can they win over betrayal? Espionage? Instability? Overthrowing a monarchy? James Buchanan and Jason Edding bring us two stories spanning the universe. Jason continues the Dark Robe Society's story; Jack and Edge return and bring each other and us to the edge again while Toren and Tees share more than a common goal. James introduces us to Alad and Hirah, both out searching for something when they meet, are they the end of searching for each other? All the heroes are on an edge, but is it The Edge of Desperation?
Excerpt
Toren didn’t hesitate, but agilely straddled Tees’ legs and positioned his ass over the obvious mound. He leaned forward, moving his ass over the hardness beneath, until the length of the hidden cock was ensconced between his cheeks. Then he kissed the waiting lips, sliding his tongue in as far as it would reach. Only then did he become aware of it. That swimming sensation in his head. A friend had told him about his own experience years ago. When he had first fallen in love. Toren had his eyes closed, but it was as if flashes of lightning were popping like miniature explosions within his closed lids. He pressed his lips firmly against his lover’s, and couldn’t help but moan.
Tees opened his mouth just long enough to accept the warmth, then closed his lips around it with a soft, passionate moan. He reached down, unzipped his trousers, and released his cock as Toren’s tongue explored him. He reached down and playfully pulled down on Toren’s sagging ball sac, and then the heat of his young ass cheeks embraced his cock fully.

Dark Robe Edges: Dark Robe Society 2 in THE EDGE OF DESPERATION

By Jason Edding and James Buchanan.

Dark Robe Heart: Dark Robe Society 1 in SPACE ESCAPES

By Jason Edding and Angela Fiddler

Available now from MLR Press.

http://www.mlrpress.com/books.php

My website - http://jasonedding.books.officelive.com/default.aspx

My Live Journal page - http://jasonedding.livejournal.com/

My Yahoo Group - http://groups.yahoo.com/group/JasonEddingGayErotica/

Guest Blogger ~ ZA Maxfield

I'd like to welcome Z.A. Maxfield today as my March MLR Press guest author. She has a new work coming that involves several of my favorite things: Vampires, alternate history and antiquities and Italy! We also shared participation in the I Do Anthology and that story involved one of my favorite spectator activities: the Tango!
Welcome, ZAM!

I want to thank Jeanne for the opportunity to be here today. I’m fairly new to the blogging world, in fact, I’m fairly new to the writing world! I’ve been published as Z.A. Maxfield since last July (Bastille Day) and it’s been a very exciting ride! I have three full-length novels out, Crossing Borders, The Long Way Home, and Drawn Together, one novella, St. Nacho’s, one stand alone short story, Burning Up, and I participated in two anthologies, Artistically Yours, and the I Do Anthology, (whose proceeds go directly to Lambda Legal Fund for marriage equality).

Everything I’ve done has been some sort of flight of fantasy for me, whether it’s contemporary, romantic suspense, historical romance, or paranormal. I don’t think I’ve found a niche or a voice yet; I’m still exploring and letting my writing take me wherever we can go. To that end, it’s been hard to categorize my work, except to say that you’ll probably find a relationship between two men who are going to fall in love, and there will be a positive ending. Maybe I don’t always write a ‘happily ever after’, but at the very least I can’t stop writing unless I’m hopeful.

One of the newest I’m working on is Notturno, my very own vampire novel, in which Adin Tredeger, an expert in antique documents, is lucky enough to find the well-preserved journal of an obscure Italian petty noble which details a long and passionate love affair between two men.

Tredeger is delighted. He’s gay, the document is beautiful, and having it for his University collection puts him on the top of the food chain personally and professionally. He’s handsome, young, arrogant, wealthy, and now, the envy of all his academic colleagues. The only problem is that the man who wrote it, Nicolo Pietro di Sciarello, now calling himself Donte Fedelta, wants it back.

Now that it’s resurfaced after an almost seventy year disappearance, he has the money to buy it. When he’s prevented by a computer glitch, he knows he can take it from the man who bought it. First he tries seduction and trickery, then reasoning with the man. Donte is certain that once Adin learns who is truly on top of the food chain he’ll get his book back. He doesn’t count on enjoying the process, or admiring the mortal, who at the very least doesn’t seem to be suitably impressed.

Then someone else enters the picture, taking the journal from both of them. Donte plans to find it, Adin is determined to fight for it, and in the meantime, their growing attraction for each other creates a whole new set of problems, including terrible danger that nearly destroys their fragile bond forever.

Here’s a little excerpt of Notturno, due out soon from MLR:

“Caro,” he heard a voice say behind him. He was looking at the light panel on the elevator, watching the floor buttons fire up in a chaotic, random way that made him think of science fiction movies from the ’50s. He jerked forward to step off the elevator again but was prevented by the hand holding his arm. He felt the whisper of Donte’s breath against his ear.
“I’ve called you and called you, yet you only just now come to me. Stubborn.”
“What do you want?” asked Adin, refusing to turn.
“Only that which belongs to me.”
“And what would that be?”
“What do you think, Adin? Of course I want my journal back. And yet…I wonder if you recall how completely you gave yourself to me.” Donte’s sigh lifted the hair on Adin’s nape. “Perhaps I would like that back as well.”
Adin watched the blinking elevator lights and concentrated on thinking clearly. He kept his voice even. “Does this kind of thing work for you?”
“What kind of thing?” Donte stiffened.
“This whole, I am Donte.” Adin affected the accent, giving it a little more Bela Lugosi than was really, strictly necessary. “Come to me, caro, and your blood will sing in the moonlight.”
“Now, I know I have never said that.” Donte put a hand on Adin’s shoulder.
“It’s only a matter of time, I’m sure.”
“I fear it loses a little of the oompah if you are not looking at my face.”
Adin snorted. “I gathered.”
“Turn around, caro,” Donte ordered.
“Nope. When I look you in the eye, things happen inside my head that I don’t necessarily like.”
“I promise I won’t use mind tricks on you right now.” Donte tugged at him. “I am a man of my word, if nothing else.”
“I can tell when it’s happening; it’s no use anyway.” Adin turned.
“You would be foolish to assume that in the future. Just because you can tell it’s happening doesn’t mean you can stop it.”
“What is it, anyway?” asked Adin. The lights on the panel had stopped blinking maniacally, but the elevator moved at an impossibly slow speed, giving the impression they were hovering, floating in the glass-enclosed space.
“What? Oh, I don’t know, a kind of hypnosis, maybe, a push of thought that takes root in someone’s mind because they are weaker.” Donte leaned against the steel railing that surrounded them like a skeleton inside the glass car.
“I see.”
“You don’t like to think of yourself as weaker. I understand, but Adin, you cannot hope to prevail against me as you are.”
“You can’t have the journal; I bought it with proper provenance, but you may try, if you like, to dispute it in a court of law.”
“Yes, well. That presents a problem, though, doesn’t it?”
“Do you really expect me to believe the impression you have been constructing? The biting, the mind control, the Vlad the Impaler accent.”
“Vlad— I’m Italian.”
“Do you expect me to believe that you are…? I can’t even say it.” Adin raised his brows. “The undead. A creature of the night. The prince of darkness.”
Donte pursed his lips. “I believe that was Satan.”
“Yes. Well. Do you?”
Donte’s eyes met his, and he was relieved to feel only an attraction, not a confused jumble of painful desire and fear. “I don’t care whether you believe it. Your belief doesn’t alter the facts. The journal is mine; I drew it. I illustrated it. I lived it. It belongs to me, and I want it back.”
“You will have a hard time proving that in court.”
Donte looked out over the city skyline. “Did you ever hear the story about the brothers who were camping in the woods when a bear crashed into their campsite, enraged, and began to chase them? The first brother says, ‘I must outrun the bear,’ and the second says, ‘I don’t have to outrun the bear. I just have to outrun you.’” He shook his head. “You know I cannot take this to a court of law, caro.”
Adin looked out at the city and the darkness beyond it. “Fair warning?”
“Yes.”
“I like you a lot better without the glamour, you know? Whatever causes it.”
Donte’s teeth shone even and white as he smiled, and Adin wondered about that, Age of Enlightenment dentistry being what it must have been. Looking at Donte, he wondered about a lot of things. His most immediate question, which he framed with a smile of his own, crowded out all those other thoughts.
“So, how long do we have the elevator for?”
Donte’s bark of laughter caught them both by surprise. “Caro, you imp. This is almost as unseemly as that airplane bathroom. There are cameras…”
“Then in the morning we can Google ‘gay elevator sex video’ and see if we get a hit on ourselves.” Adin approached Donte, which seemed to be the last thing he expected, and touched their lips together lightly. “I find I very much like tight spaces if they have you in them.”
“This is a glass elevator,” Donte countered, kissing him back hungrily. “I think you should know that whatever you have planned needs to be accomplished before we reach the tenth floor or everyone in the lobby court will be witness to our passion and subsequent arrest for indecent exposure and lewd conduct…”
Adin snorted. “I think you might be that quick off the mark, at your age, but—”
“Invite me to your room,” whispered Donte.
Adin froze. “Ah, yes, well.” He backed up, regret in his eyes. “Sorry. I can’t do that.”
“Superstitious? I could make you do it.”
“Actually, I don’t believe you could.” This seemed as good a time as any to test it. If Donte could get Adin to do anything he wanted, then the game was over before it began anyway. He felt a tremendous wave of emotion wash over him, deep fear, which crawled over his spine like a vine. It was an interesting sensation, but because he expected it, he found he could remain distant from it, acknowledging it and exploring it without letting it touch him. Adin searched the fear, probing it like a sore tooth. At its core, he felt a desire to reach out to Donte for protection.
Donte watched him curiously.
“Hey, nice,” said Adin. “If you could make people think they’d eaten you’d be a remarkable diet aid.”
“I am the very apex of the food chain on this planet, Adin. Try to have a little respect.” Donte’s mouth quirked, the beginnings of a smile forming on his luscious lips.
“Nevertheless, it isn’t going to work on me now that I can feel it coming.” Adin smoothed a hand over Donte’s jacket and tie. Adin’s own tie, which Donte took from him on the airplane. “The color suits you,” he remarked with asperity. “Trophy tie?”
“You spent on my tie, Adin. I’m having it cleaned.”
“Ah.” There didn’t seem to be much more to say. Adin looked back at the numbers.
“Well. This is awkward,” said Donte.
“Give me a minute. I’m warming up to asking you out for dinner.”
“Really?”
Adin looked up at Donte, “Yes.” Donte’s perfect mouth formed in a small O of surprise.
“If I go with you, does that qualify as takeout for me, I wonder.”
Adin laughed again.
“You seem remarkably calm in the face of what could be a very short, very frightening night on the town, do you realize this?”
“Yes, I realize. You could probably kill me, then rent my room, then get your manuscript back. But you haven’t, yet. Instead you’ve turned on your enormous personal charm and turned off your mojo, so I have to figure I stand a chance, at least, to greet the dawn alive.”
“You think my personal charm is enormous, do you, Adin?” asked Donte, leaning in.
“As if you didn’t know you are every month in my Undead Playmate Calendar.”
“I like you, Adin,” said Donte warmly, and the elevator moved again.

Notturno by Z.A. Maxfield, coming soon from MLR press. Thanks a bunch for inviting me I’m glad to be here! You can find my weblog, my books, and my links, as well as some free short stories at my website, here: http://zamaxfield.com/.

Guest Blogger - Dakota Flint

Our next guest blogger from MLR Press is Dakota Flint
Men in Uniform
Recently in one of the chat loops I belong to, there was a discussion of men in uniforms and how attractive they are. (I believe the words HOT and YUMMY may have been used...once or a hundred times *g*) And it got me thinking. Whether it's cowboy hats and boots, military dress, or scrubs...what is it about men at work and the uniforms they wear? Is it the uniform itself or more what the uniform represents? Personally, I think it's more about what the uniform represents, but I'll be the first to admit certain uniforms look really good.
In light of that, I thought I'd take a look at a few of my favorite men in uniform in M/M fiction--or any romantic fiction--and why I think they're sexy.
The Cowboy--It's no secret that a nice, cool drink of cowboy in fiction sure hits the spot for me. In fact, I have a novella, Seeing You, coming out soon from MLR Press in the Studs & Spurs anthology. (Shameless plugging, thy name is Dakota.) So what is it that makes them so...yummy? Aside from the wranglers that always seem to fit like a second skin and hug their--well, you get the picture. Hopefully. (If not, take a gander at the Studs & Spurs cover. Hoo-boy.) For me, though, it's more about the affinity they have for nature and the animals they make their living with. It's the sense of independence and quiet strength they have, a man and his horse holding onto a way of life evocative of years gone by and the romantic ideals associated with them. The cowboy lives a simple life, bound to the land, and I'm sure I'm not the only one who is taken by the idea of a solitary man finding companionship and love--and let's be honest, orgasms--out on the trail. Or the barn loft. Or the stables. Oh yeah.
The Doctor--Mmmm. Scrubs. Easy to remove and...Oh yeah. *clears throat* I think for me it's about the intelligence--always a very sexy thing--and the dedication it takes to become a doctor. The training takes years and is very rigorous, and there is something so attractive about a man who goes through that because he wants to heal and save lives. There's a certain nobility about it all. Doctors also work very hard, so it's nice to see them relax and *ahem* relieve tension when they get home to their honey.
The Military Man--Another one of my favorites, and although ACUs are pretty darn hot, it's definitely more about the men wearing them. Courage, strength, dedication, loyalty. The willingness to die defending their country. What's not admirable or attractive about that? Let's not forget the level of fitness required to perform their jobs, which brings to mind hot, hard, sweating...um, yeah. *fans face* Oh and let's definitely not forget how very, well, homoerotic military training and situations can be. Guys living together in high stress situations and only finding their best buddies around for some tension relief. *fans faster* But maybe that's just me. Either way, the military man is definitely one of the sexier men in uniform in m/m fiction.
Of course, these aren't the only men in uniform I find to be really attractive and sexy in fiction. Some others easily come to mind: The cop. The firefighter. The...postman. No? Heh. I'm just checking to make sure you're still paying attention. But I think it depends on the individual readers what kind of uniform and job they love the best for their men in romantic fiction.

So what man in uniform appeals to you the most?
You can find out more about Dakota Flint and her writing either at her blog,

http://dakotaflint.livejournal.com/ , or her website http://dakotaflint.com/

BEND IN THE ROAD, Guidepost Two ~ Purim

The Holiday of Purim and "In the Lion's Den"
Purim offers religious Jewish children an opportunity to dress up in funny clothes and as the people who are the main characters in the holiday in a manner similiar to Halloween, a holiday not celebrated by more orthodox Jews. After all, Haloween is associated with pagan themes, but Purim -- as joyous and free wheeling as Mardi Gras -- easily fills the need for fun. In fact, one is encouraged to drink until you can't tell the difference between Haman, the villain and Mordecai, the hero. The holiday also offers religious adults an unusual chance to indulge in atypical clothing choices as discussed below.
Here's a very brief description of the background of the holiday.

The Book of Esther or the Megilla of Esther, recounts how the Jews of Persia were saved from destruction. During the reign of the King Ahasuerus, one of his advisors, Haman, attempted to destroy the Jews in revenge for being ignored by Mordecai, a Jew who refused to bow down to him. Given the king's permission, Haman draws lots (purim) to determine the day when the king's soldiers will set upon the Jewish citizens. The date falls upon the 13th of the Hebrew month of Adar.
Mordecai finds out about the decree and approaches his cousin Esther, the king's new queen, to intercede with the king. Esther, who has kept her religion a secret, fasts for three days to gain courage to come before her husband. She speaks out against Haman at a banquet for the king and Haman. Haman is hanged and Mordecai assumes his position. Because a royal decree cannot be repealed, Mordecai sends another decree to all the provinces. This one empowers the Jews to protect themselves from their enemies. They do and overcome the soldiers. The days following this struggle with their enemies (the 14th and 15th of Adar) are declared days of feasting and festivity, and today are observed as Purim.

So, how does Purim relate to my story?
"In the Lion's Den", the first story in BEND IN THE ROAD, is set during the holiday of Purim. The story was submitted for MLR's cross-dressing anthology and the celebration of Purim has long been associated with cross-dressing and other unique issues. When I researched the holiday I found that parodies and entertainment that mocked established Judaism were a widespread component of Purim observances.
I learned that written records of the Purim shpiel (Yiddish for "Purim play") could be found in Europe from the 14th century on. Purim shpiels and entertainments at weddings (as in my second story, "From Stage to Stage") were the sole source of Jewish popular pursuits for centuries. The sarcastic content of Purim plays and the spoofing, cross-dressing, and drunken revelry surrounding them offered an opportunity to explore boundary-crossing matters of gender, sexuality, authority, and relations with the gentile world in a safe setting like the traveling Yiddish theater troupe where crossdressing was common during its early days.
Although there are laws that prohibit cross-dressing, these laws would most likely not prohibit cross-dressing in a private setting or for theatrical purposes. The cross-dressing that appears in "In the Lion's Den" then, would be acceptable. How Dani, the young hero in my story feels about feminine clothing...well...
So, did I surprise you about this holiday?

Bend in the Road ~ Cover Art!

Doing the Hora of joy! My cover is ready!!!

You see before you, Aryeh Nachman from In the Lion's Den. I had to make a decision which of my four lovely lads I would feature and Aryeh sprang to mind because, after all, he's had experience. In the story, Aryeh posed for the real life Simeon Solomon. Solomon was a well known Victorian painter. He was also admittedly gay and Jewish. Oscar Wilde quite admired his work.
I also have my very first front and spine art work! I can't wait to share Aryeh and the boys with the world.

Guest Blogger ~ Angela Fiddler

Writer's block -- dealing with problems in the beginning of a novel before they turn into huge problems at the end

I love writing. Writing rocks. Writing, when everything is going well, is about the best feeling in the world. I have a loving wife who supports me and who understands that 'Can't talk. Writing' is a perfectly good excuse when the hard questions, such as 'did you unload the dishwasher' or 'shall we go visit your folks this weekend' come up. In short, writing is the most awesomest awesome, awesome thing that a single person can do in public, private, or with pets in the room. Go writing!

Unless you can't write. The words don't come and the cursor seems to mock you with its empty, useless blinking. Or worse, you live on a ground floor, your windows are painted closed, or you've signed some sort of ridiculous rental or condominium by-law agreement that made you swear you weren't going to throw whatever you use to write out the window. Then what?

I know there are dozens and dozens of books and websites out there on how to deal with writer's block, but these are things that work for me. I'm not going to lie to you. Some of the treatments I talk about are worse than the cure. I've cut, and cut drastically the first/middle/last 20,000 words of something I was working on, and although I cut and pasted it into a new document, I knew, in my heart, that there was either nothing in those words to salvage, or that those words only fit in the piece one way, with the characters in only one mental state, and though I said I'd go through and pick apart cute turns of phrasing, I never have. Because amputation is amputation, and anything sewn back on after it's been cut off is bound to go evil, as any science fiction or horror writer will tell you. (Your mileage may vary on that last 'going evil' part.)

So here is what works for me when I'm either the one writing, or I'm critiquing for a friend whose story is going nowhere.

Did I begin at the beginning?

This is the petering out problem. A great, cracking story has begun, fantastic characters are introduced, and a great world is built up around them and…nothing. It may go a page, it may go twenty, but then there's the feeling of 'and now what' and you don't have a single clue as to what that what is supposed to be. From all the work I've critiqued, I can normally tell a great story that has petered out has failed because the story did not begin at the right spot. Especially for fantasy and science fiction, the desire is to start it either after a great battle has finished (for both science fiction and fantasy) or as the intrepid hero is off to the castle to meet Y about problem X (for most often fantasy, but substitute 'home base to get new orders,' for 'castle' and it works for science fiction, too). More to the point, as the reader of these failed beginnings, I get the sense time and time again it's either began far too early before the action has begun, or too late for the reader to either (A) care about the characters about to be thrown under a bus or (B) way after the epic whatever had happened.
I always ask myself, at what point do things change to the point where if nothing is done, the world ends, and what where my main characters doing immediately before that? (In erotic fiction, that answer should be fairly obvious, btw)

Am I loving the Bacon Guys?

There's a brilliant scene in Season 1 of Stargate Atlantis. It's just two guys, talking about how bacon is the food that makes other food worth eating. And you can't help but nod with the wisdom behind that, religious or vegetarian objections aside. Bacon *is* the food that makes other food worth eating! These two, nameless, uniformed men speak the truth! You love the bacon guys. Go bacon guys! Then Koyla comes through the gate and shoots them both. And seriously, you just met the bacon guys, and they're dead, but you *care*. It's an awesome scene. If the action starts before your reader loves your characters, even just a little, they're going to have a hard time connecting with them as horrible things are being thrown at them.

Am I too afraid something may not be explained?

Back story is important. It adds a dimension to the characters, a history that can be hinted at, and conflict between characters that can be eluded at or ignored with tragic consequences. And I'm all about the tragic consequences.

However, back story doesn't usually belong in the front of a story. As much as the author cries that the reader won't understand their prose if the reader doesn't understand that Bad Guy X did Action Y to main character Z in the very first scene, or that if it's not explained how the main character got to the action of the start of the book, then reader isn't going to understand.

The author shouldn't be afraid that their readers isn't going to trust them. I mean there is a limit of how much mysterious mystery you can cram in (I'm looking at you, Lost), but there's a fair bit of tension you can have. Most readers are more likely turn the page to find out why rather than give up in disgust because everything is not instantly explained. Critique groups are partly to blame for this, because the moment they get to something that isn't completely explained in a neat package, some people feel compelled to ask for more exposition. In commercial fiction there is a trust that the author will get to the dark looks between the dreaded Count and his beautiful Ward eventually. As long as you know you'll get to it, eventually, don't let a critique partner demand to know more information than they really ought to have. Don't interrupt the flow of what is happening now to talk about what happened last week/month/century.

The first chapter has to do three things. It has to introduce an interesting character, in an interesting world, with an interesting problem he or she has to either solve, or fail miserably at solving, by the end of the book. Everything else can wait.

Why am I using today as a starting point?

It should be clear, to you, if not immediately to the reader why you have started the novel the day, of all the days in the character's life. What causes the change that makes the character suddenly need to get involved outside their day to day lives to fight the greater good? It helps if there is a personal as well as global reason, and helps even more if their motivation doesn't come down to just 'money' 'family' or 'trying not to die'. Sadly, we all need money, we all should think family is important, and we're all, even crossing the street at the cross-walk, trying not to die. What makes your character more unique than that?

What happens if the character fails?

This may not have to be dealt with in the first chapter. But soon, the reader has to know what will happen if your character stops fighting. If he or she throws up their hands, says, "Bugger this, I'm going back home to my farm/my town/Alpha Centauri" there has to be dire consequences. How does the world end? This question may not work when dealing with a contemporary romance, but in science fiction and fantasy, it is of upmost importance.

And if they can quit and walk away, it's a huge failing of:

Where's my tension?

No, really, where is it? Tension is needed, even from page one. If you've ever seen pictures of slush piles, or hear editors talk about slush burning parties, there is no hope for a story that starts getting good in chapter 4. Sad, tragic, not the way they did it in the old days, but true. Back story, as it is in the back and not in the present, pretty much guarantees that the main character, if he or she is in it, will survive. There goes your tension.

And there has to be a buildup of tension. The characters rarely can still be solving the same problems in chapter thirty as they are in chapter one. The characters, by their own actions, have to struggle to fix the problem, even if their attempts have just made the situation worse. Your bad guy is out there, stirring the pot, and it's not enough that your characters just react to what is thrown at them. They have to try to get ahead of the ball and start making changes themselves, for better or for worse. The stakes have to get higher, the personal involvement the characters feel needs to get deeper, and if they give up, their world has to end or change so badly, it might as well have ended.

Okay, I have all that. And I'm still vacuuming my cat. Now what?

Checklist time!

◊ Do you have the right main character? Is he/she/it going to be the character who has the most to gain, the most to lose, and is most at odds with the message of the book. If no, a book can be done from the outsider point of view, but it's very hard to pull off well when the greatest emotion is reported, but not shown. While working on Castoffs, my first erotica novel, there was a blond thug in it that had to bring the main character from place A to place B. I decided he needed a name, called him Vision, and Vision stole the next four books right from under the main character's nose. In the second book, I needed a name for Vision'sdriver, a character I had no plans for at all. I called him Hanz. The vampire series is now the Vision and Hanz show. I'm just saying.
◊ Is your world too big? Do you have a cast of thousands already and you've not gotten past the first chapter? Eliminate as many duplicate point of view characters as possible. Remember any more than a couple characters introduced on a page are too many characters for the readers to keep straight.
◊ An antagonist that does not just kick children and steal candy from puppies is a rare, valuable thing. What is he doing to make sure the good guys don't just waltz in and take over? Why is he being antagonistic in the first place? Does he have a legitimate gripe against your main character? The more real he is as a character, the more he will be remembered.
◊ Is the startling point, the point that changes everything and gets the story rolling happening off screen? And if it is off screen…why? Drag the action onto the page, get your characters in the thick of things for their emotional involvement, and then have them deal with the consequences as things spiral out of control.
◊ Take away the easy outs. Make the characters work. Eliminate any character that only exists to go to the main character to tell or give them stuff. Knowledge has to be hard won. I'm the first to admit that it is rough to have painted the characters into the proverbial corner, but it's even tougher to make readers care about characters that never have to suffer or earn what they're given.
◊ If a chapter/scene/section isn't working, switch it up. Switch point of views. Switch motivations. Switch the outcome of the scene itself. If that doesn't help ask yourself why you need that scene to begin with. If you need to cut, cut swiftly. It will hurt less. Go back to the point in the story where you know deep down that you've backed the wrong horse or gone on the wrong tangent and begin again. For me, it's amazing how listening to the little voice in the back of the head telling you that the scene isn't working can save so much effort. It is almost impossible to recover a scene that feels like it was forced out.
◊ Trust yourself. If you are bored with a scene, ask yourself why. Be honest. I find this especially useful when I've written things out long hand to be dictated or transcribed into text, or I'm reading it over in a draft stage. If I'm bored with a section, or if it goes nowhere or nothing happens, I'm more likely to skip it or work on it then and there so it becomes important, things change, or it goes somewhere. These nowhere scenes and nobody characters can change the book in a whole new way you hadn't even thought of, connecting a bunch of random scenes that had come at the beginning to make it seem like you had that very thought in your head the whole time. Go with it.


I don't plan my novels. I may break out the odd post-it note to work out a tricky scene, but I'm very fluid when it comes do what happens next. I trust my intelligent characters to react intelligently to the problem they're dealing with. Whatever you do, as long as it works for you, is fantastic. But a good solid base can carry a novel through the muddle in the middle right through to the end, and a bad beginning can sink a story before it even had a chance to get good.

So, what's your surefire way to unblock writer's block?

Angela's website: www.angelafiddler.com
Angela's Loose Id titles can be found here
Angela's ManLoveRomance Press are available here