Looking to add some sizzle to your summer? Some fireworks to your festivities?  How about a free book to your e-reader?  I’m giving away an epub copy of FORBIDDEN FANTASIES.  To enter, leave a comment on this blog post with your favorite way to spend a hot summer day.  I’ll do a random drawing on Saturday, July 7th, around 12pm ET.  I’ll post the winner on my blog, so be sure to check back.  Mature content, so 18 and older only, please.

About FORBIDDEN FANTASIES:
After fifteen years of marriage, Jessica Meyers’s sex life is, well, a little predictable. Her handsome husband turns her on, but missionary style once or twice a week? It just can’t compare to the hot new world she discovers in the pages of erotic romances. Her fantasies fuel the fire of her desire, adding a new spark to her and Alex’s lovemaking. But Jess is afraid to tell her husband what she really wants in bed—and her secrets start coming between them.

State trooper Alex Meyers is a master at uncovering the truth—except when it comes to his sweet, shy wife. She’s clearly keeping something from him. An affair? She wants out? When he finally confronts Jess, he’s shocked to learn she wants to turn her forbidden fantasies into nightly realities. But when he takes her to a unique B and B—Bondage and Breakfast—catering to couples and multiples, Alex is about to find out just how far he’ll go.

(27,000 words)

Was challenged this morning by fellow Carina Press author David Bridger to show a pic of ourselves at work, or in our favorite place to work. I don’t have an actual office (and if you follow me on Twitter, you’ll hear me moan and groan about that often.) I write in a butt-ugly cranberry swivel rocker reminiscent of the orange one from my mother’s house when I was a kid. That’s a folded-up Perry the Platypus blanket behind me. No cats, though…hmmmm. Sometimes I have one on the chair with me, right behind my head.

Here’s David Bridger, Toni Anderson, Cindy Spencer Pape, and a cool video from Christine d’Abo.  Enjoy!

If you’re a writer, where do you like to write? If you’re a reader, what’s your favorite reading spot?

A very late #sixsunday post from me. This is from Forbidden Desires, coming out in November from Carina Press. This is the first glimpse we get inside Marcus’s head as he sees Bella:

She had rich, coffee-brown hair with streaks of cinnamon in it. It hung past her shoulders, thick and wavy. Her eyes were a startling bluish green, like the color of the Caribbean Sea he’d seen on vacation. And those curves. Jesus Christ, those curves of hers had him salivating. This was a woman with the kind of body a man could hold and not be afraid to break.

And if you’re interested, I posted pictures of Bella and Marcus as I saw them on my Pinterest board, here:  http://pinterest.com/jodiegriffin/book-inspiration/

Happy Sunday!

Not sure what mental block it is I have about Six Sentence Sunday, but I forgot. Again. *sigh*  So, today, I give you (on my own blog) six sentences from my upcoming November 19, 2012 Carina Press release, FORBIDDEN DESIRES:

“Hello, ladies.”

Bella jerked at the sound of the deep, masculine voice, and nearly dropped her cards. There was a hint of roughness to it, enough to send shivers down her spine. To cover her reaction, she turned and looked up. Her heart skipped a long beat. Standing behind them, in a firefighter uniform and holding paramedic gear, was the sexiest, hottest guy she’d ever laid eyes on.

Today’s the day I wish it was SEVEN sentence Sunday!  Well…maybe in the comments.

Today, I’d like to welcome Jody Wallace and her furry owner, Meankitty, to my blog.  Remember the cattification of Forbidden Fantasies? Yep, same human and same cat, and I’m thrilled to have them visit!

Books That Meankitty Wants You To Write Next. You, meaning blog owner, writer-type visitors and Typing Slave. Visitors of the reader-type ilk can add their HECK YEAHS! in the comments.

1.  Furbidden Fantasy: When Alma Anderson has to choose between her new, cat-allergic boyfriend and opening a cat sanctuary, even though her neighborhood isn’t zoned for animal sanctuaries, she’ll go up against city government, the Home Owners’ Association, and her boyfriend’s expectations to make her fantasy come true. Her Furbidden Fantasy.

2.  Fifty-Four Shades of Grey: Follow the adventures of gorgeous grey tabby MamaKitty and her five similarly colored offspring as they use up almost all of their nine lives (equalling fifty-four total)…saving the world from copyright violations! And also, the alien menace.

3.  The Hunger Games: Mockingbird Edition. Sassi is a housecat who dreams of escaping her prison in order to eke revenge on the evil bird that flaunts itself on her porch on a daily basis. Ghost is a stray who dreams of being an indoor-only human owner. When Sassi meets Ghost through the glass back door, they hatch a plot to do away with the bird and Ghost’s stray status once and for all.

4.  The Girl with the Dragon FooFoo: Lucy Locket is an attractive, lazy and highly intelligent feline house dweller whose greatest joy is her Dragon FooFoo. This small stuffed catnip dragon has been Lucy’s favorite toy since several weeks ago, at least, or maybe even a month. But one day, when an unusually vigorous play session in the kitchen sends Dragon FooFoo into the Lost Zone under the fridge, Lucy begins to fear the worst. Will Dragon FooFoo ever resurface, perhaps after the humans clean house, or will Lucy be fated to spend half of every day peering under the fridge, meowing piteously?

5.  Calico Joe: (Note: book has nothing to do with lawyers or baseball) Joe is a housecat of average intelligence, breeding and whisker-length…with one small difference. Joe is a CALICO. And a male. When word gets out about him, his life takes a turn for the crazy. Joe’s existence becomes a series of stud sessions, hot ladies, and high-dollar tuna, as humans, desperate to capitalize on Joe’s rare DNA for the next generation, pay top dollar for Joe to visit their kitty in heat. When his travels take him to far-away and exotic land, Joe realizes that he’s got to give up this lifestyle or suffer the consequences. Follow him on his quest for kitty self-realization and some time off for “Little Joe” when he escapes his carrier and learns to survive on the mean streets of Boise, Idaho.

6.  Steve’s Jobs: Steve of Eight, an indoor/outdoor cat who owns a large apartment complex, has many humans who must be tended to every day. In many apartments, Steve must enter the lives of these mostly helpless two-legged creatures in order to perform routine electronics and computer maintenance by depositing the required amount of hair into keyboards, chewing through power cords (not plugged in), spilling glasses of water into any vents available, and hiding TV remotes. He thinks he’s on top of all his jobs…until the humans in the apartment complex get together for a party and realize Steve of Eight is playing to ALL of them! While they are amazed at Steve’s capacity for multitasking, the inevitable jealousy sets in as each human tries to have Steve’s Jobs all for himself.

7.  Game of Thrones: In a mystical land beyond imagination…in a suburban neighborhood called Western Wood…live five cats who would be king. The various thrones in the large, brick, split-level ranch home are comfortable, soft and perfectly suited for feline snoozing. The only problem is, each cat can only occupy one throne at a time, and whenever he or she leaves that throne to eject an interloper from, say, the recliner, some usurper is sure to re-take the desk chair! Musical thrones and intrigue at its finest, with war, bloodshed, yowling and violence on a regular basis, this game is not for the dog-hearted, not for humans, not even for ferrets. It’s a cat’s game of thrones. It’s a way of life.

8.  Water for Elephant: He’s one big cat. He’s Elephant. He likes his food crispy and dry, and his water freshy-fresh. In fact, if Elephant doesn’t have fresh water, less than 2 hours in the bowl, Elephant gets mad. You won’t like Elephant when he gets mad, because he makes water elsewhere in the house…that usually involves clean laundry. Water for Elephant is a psychological thriller about a cat, his water dish, and the ignorant humans who continually forgot to freshen it.

9.  One Thousand Whiskers: Every time you find a whisker, did you know that somewhere, a cat ate a fairy’s wings? Don’t worry, though! They grow back. (The whiskers. Who cares about the wings?) This is the half-true story of the dewinging champion of all time, Master Fey, and the one thousand whiskers he lost in his noble quest to earthbind the fairy race, because DANG is it ever annoying how they just fly off like that when you want to sit in their laps and receive the petting you deserve.

Sincerely,

Meankitty & Jody Wallace

www.meankitty.com * www.jodywallace.com

The book written by my human in which cats reign supreme:

ONE THOUSAND KISSES by Jody Wallace

Publisher:  Samhain Publishing

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Subgenres: Fantasy Romance, Fairies and Elves

More info: http://jodywallace.com/books/onethousandkisses.htm

Blurb:

When one path closes, another opens—if they survive the journey.

The Fey Realm, Book 2

Embor Fiertag, Primary of the Court, has overcome no tougher challenge than the three facing him right now: get reelected, capture the rogue agents who tried to murder him, and improve his love life. The third one should be easy—except he hasn’t exactly told Court trainee Anisette Serendipity she’s his foretold bondmate. Plus, she’s dating his chief political rival and doesn’t seem to like Embor. At. All.

Ani has good reason to avoid the stern, serious Embor. Her wayward sister almost got him killed once, and now he monitors Ani like he expects her to do worse. But Ani’s not the adventurous type. She can’t even break up with Warran Torval, a man she knows she doesn’t want, a man who spends half his time plotting Embor’s downfall.

When Torval attempts to force a bond with Ani, Embor senses her fear and steps in…directly into an unsavory political strategy gone all too right. Forced to flee together to humanspace with a manipulative magical cat, Embor and Ani must find the courage to reveal—and heal—their vulnerabilities before the fabric between the Fey Realm and humanspace is ripped to shreds.

Warning: This title contains sex, fairy drugs, rampant gnomes, bloodshed, and cats ruling the world. As they should.

Today, I’d like to welcome my friend Veronica Scott to my blog. Veronica and I met on Twitter(@vscotttheauthor) and have been having a great time ever since.  She’s incredibly supportive, and she’s a really fun person to hang out with.

VERONICA:  So happy to be guesting on your blog today, talking about my science fiction adventure novel WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM.  Readers seemed pretty intrigued with one of my secondary characters, Khevan, a member of the D’nvannae Brotherhood, an order of assassin/bodyguards, serving a mysterious alien deity The Red Lady. So I thought I’d interview him today.

First, here’s the Book Blurb:

Traveling unexpectedly aboard the luxury liner Nebula Dream on its maiden voyage across the galaxy, Sectors Special Forces Captain Nick Jameson is ready for ten relaxing days, and hoping to forget his last disastrous mission behind enemy lines. He figures he’ll gamble at the casino, take in the shows, maybe even have a shipboard fling with Mara Lyrae, the beautiful but reserved businesswoman he meets.

All his plans vaporize when the ship suffers a wreck of Titanic proportions. Captain and crew abandon ship, leaving the 8000 passengers stranded without enough lifeboats and drifting unarmed in enemy territory. Aided by Mara (and Khevan), Nick must find a way off the doomed ship for himself and several other innocent people before deadly enemy forces reach them or the ship’s malfunctioning engines finish ticking down to self destruction.

But can Nick conquer the demons from his past that tell him he’ll fail these innocent people just as he failed to save his Special Forces team? Will he outpace his own doubts to win this vital race against time?

Here’s a description from the book of the first time Nick encounters Khevan, on the shuttle ride up to the Nebula Dream:

Sipping his drink, Nick assessed the only other man on the shuttle who was as deadly as Nick himself could be when the occasion demanded –  a D’nvannae Brother, dressed all in close fitting, soft black leather, as they usually were when traveling outside their world. The swirling red tattoo all D’nvannae wore proudly inscribed on the right side of the face, as a sign of fealty to their Deity, was particularly well defined on this man. He must be senior in the hierarchy, given the number of details in the tattoo. Gotta earn those the hard way in the Lady’s service. Halfway paying attention to a broadcast of an inter Sector sports semifinal, the Brother was unbraiding his long, jet black hair, signifying his contract had been successfully complet­ed and he was now at liberty to accept another.

Who on backwater Glideon might have needed such a high-priced, exotic bodyguard? Or been the target of such a re­lentless assassin? The D’nvannae could be hired for either pur­pose, conflicting offers resolved by the whim of the goddess.

As if sensing Nick’s gaze, the Brother turned, eyeing him for a long minute, eyebrows drawn together in a frown. He had a strong face, thin lips, high, chiseled cheekbones, and intense black eyes which betrayed nothing of the thoughts going on behind them. Sensing no challenge, nothing on Nick’s part but bored curiosity, the other man nodded, the fine muscles of his face relaxing.

Raising his glass in salute, Nick tossed off the drink as the Brother dismissed him, in favor of watching a replay.

So now let’s interview Khevan!

What was your life like growing up?

When I was very young, perhaps 3 or 4, my father brought me to the Brotherhood on our home world. I am told he was poor and hoped that by dedicating my life to the service of the Red Lady, he could ensure a better future for me. It is a fairly common occurrence. I’ve known no other life than the Brotherhood until now. It is a life of discipline, sacrifice and rewards.

From boyhood I have studied, trained and practiced to be very very good at what I do. Martial arts, assassination techniques, culture, history – one must be well rounded to reach the highest levels of the Brotherhood. (Khevan smiles and lowers his voice.) And then there are the…other arts that the Lady decrees her high ranking servants must learn, to please her in human form. Those skills come in handy on certain assignments as well.

Before the action in the book, what were your plans/hopes for the future?

I was on the path to reach the highest levels of my Brotherhood, completing many dangerous missions of assassination or guarding others against death. The Lady decrees who we contract with and whether we are preserving life or taking it. Some say it is at her whim. I chose to believe she had a plan that was beyond our human comprehension. (Shifting uncomfortably in the chair, Khevan frowns.) I needed to believe that to carry out my assignments at times. I was an Intimate Initiate of the Order, which means I have been privileged to serve the Lady of the Flames herself. Those private rituals are not to be spoken of outside the Brotherhood.

What changed that?

It became necessary on the Nebula Dream to in essence defy my Lady in order to save lives. I know Veronica doesn’t wish to provide spoilers, but there were consequences, to myself and to another…

VERONICA sez:   I think we’ll leave it there. WRECK OF THE NEBULA DREAM  is available from  Smashwords ,  Amazon and Barnes & Noble at a special 99 cent  price.  Thanks for having us as your guests, Jodie!

JODIE:  Thanks for stopping by today, Veronica! So here’s what I want to know…will Khevan have his own story?

When Alex pulled into the garage after the shift from hell, all he’d been thinking about was sleep.

Not anymore.

Tired flew right out the window as he watched his sexy wife playing with the bubbles in the tub. Playing him. Jess was definitely in one of those turned-on, hell-on-wheels-in-bed moods tonight, but he didn’t mind the game. Not at all.

***

Yes, I finally remembered to pre-register for Six Sentence Sunday where authors can post any six sentences from their writings.  Today’s offering is from Forbidden Fantasies, my debut novella from Carina Press, which came out in March.

If you follow me on twitter (@Jodie_Griffin) you might catch other sentences from Forbidden Desires, my next Carina Press novella coming out in November, or from Forbidden Fire, the story I’m writing now.  I’ve been sharing bits and pieces of them as I write/edit.

Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you enjoyed a glimpse into Alex and Jess’s life!

Yes, once again…I’ve forgotten to register for Six Sentence Sunday.  *sigh*  Here’s the real site…very cool place:  http://www.sixsunday.com/

Here’s my on-my-own version, from the book I’m currently writing, Forbidden Fire:

“Oh, hell,” Colin muttered under his breath, dropping the boots to the ground.  He reached out and pulled Delia into his arms, making the decision for both of them.  He’d stop if she protested — maybe — but he wasn’t waiting another minute.

His mouth slanted over hers, not gently like a first kiss between new lovers, but with all the passion of someone who’d been away from home too long.  He shuddered as his heart pounded, adrenaline racing through his veins like wildfire.  When he splayed his hands against her back, the ends of her red ponytail brushed across his knuckles, and another shudder ripped through him. 

If you enjoyed this and follow me on twitter (@Jodie_Griffin) you’ll find other sneak-peeks at lines from my debut book (Forbidden Fantasies, March 2012, Carina Press) the book I’m editing (Forbidden Desires, November 2012, Carina Press) or currently writing (Forbidden Fire).

Heh! Today I was tagged by the another Carina Press author @natgreyangel (Natasha Hoar) fun writer game, the 7 line WiP tag game.  In case you’re not familar with the term, WiP stands for “Work in Progress.”  Basically, it’s the story you’re working on right now.

Here are the rules:

1. Go to page 77 of your current WiP

2. Go to line 7

3. Copy down the next 7 lines – sentences or paragraphs – and post them as they’re written. No cheating.

4. Tag 7 other authors

So, anyway… I don’t quite have 77 pages of my current WiP.  I took page 17 instead, went to line7, and copied the next 7 lines.

From Forbidden Fire:  

“What the hell is that?”  Her voice was unsteady, arousal coloring her cheeks a bright red as she tilted her chin up at him, glaring.  Her chest rose and fell with ragged breaths.

“I think it’s pretty obvious,” he retorted.  “It’s an erection. I tend to get one when I’ve got a wild woman sucking on my tongue.”

Her face flushed even darker.  “Jesus, Colin.  We’re working.”

Colin had seen this side of Dee before and he knew it was time to back off. For now, anyway, but he wasn’t giving in without the final word.

What’s next?

And now, for my 7 author friends *rubs hands gleefully*   I pick…. @vscottauthor, @pjschnyder, @DevBentham, @jodywallace, @DebraKayn, @corazane, @writerlygirl.  Can’t wait to see what you’ve got!