My Mother's Day Excuse

It's been about a month since my last post, but this time there's an excellent reason - four weeks ago, the twins decided to make an early appearance! In the middle of the night, of course, because that's when all the chaos and drama always happens, right? Despite being two months early, they are doing extremely well, and should be coming home this week or next. (Cue the "oh god, what have I done" panic now.)

For privacy reasons, I'm not going to share too many details, but I will say that both girls share a name with strong female fictional characters I admire and appreciate. (I don't want to say "named after", as that's a little intense, and Mr. Landen probably doesn't have the same connection to those characters as I do...instead, I say their names are "inspired by". ;) ) And when I say "strong", I don't necessarily mean physically, though both can hold their own in a fight - they're also confident, passionate, determined women who stand up for what's right. I don't think me finding those traits admirable means I'm setting the bar too high or putting too much pressure on my new daughters. At least I hope not....

Anyway, I obviously haven't written anything in a while. I'm filled with IDEAS! and I swear I will put them down on paper (or type them in a document, rather) eventually. For now, though, I'll be letting something else prevent me from falling asleep at night.

Happy Mother's Day!

Smart People Read Books

Eeep, it's been a while since I checked in over here. Between promoting Elysium, gestating these twins, and actually getting some writing done, it's been a busy time in the Landen house! So today I'm totally going to take the slacker route and point you in the direction of my featured post over at All Romance. As the title suggests, Smart People Read Books. I even manage to quote Virgil in there, so you definitely don't want to miss out! ;)

“In groves we live, and lie on mossy beds,
By crystal streams, that murmur thro’ the meads:
But pass yon easy hill, and thence descend;
The path conducts you to your journey’s end.”

Elysium is Out Today!

It's release day, yaaaay! I really can't say it enough, Elysium is one of the best stories I've ever written, and I am so very in love with this entire project, from the first flash of an idea to the gorgeous cover design. I've already shared the blurb, so today I'm posting the official excerpt:

We sat in silence. It was the first time a client had asked me so many personal questions. On one hand, I worried about coming across as unprofessional, but on the other, it felt good to verbalize those thoughts for a change. Putting that aside, April hadn’t come to play psychiatrist with me. I had a job to do.

“Anything else before we get started?” I pushed off the edge of the desk and straightened.

She didn’t get up. “Do you ever go into your own virtual realities?”

“Actually, I don’t.” I ran a finger along the top of one of the screens. “First of all, it needs to be monitored from the outside. I can’t do both at the same time.”

“Got it.” She nodded. “What else?”

A clammy feeling crawled over me. “Nothing.”

“You said ‘first of all.’ That means there must be a second.”

She’d paid attention, I’d give her that. I tried to backtrack. “Forget it.”

Sliding her arm off the chair, she leaned forward, ginger hair spilling over her shoulders. “I want to know what I’m getting into. Tell me.” Face upturned, she stared at me and I struggled to breathe in a normal rhythm. “Please?”

Don’t say it, don’t admit to it, she doesn’t need to know…. Talking to her eased a little of the tension that had been twisting tighter and tighter over time. I ignored the voices telling me not to make a confession, but the words spilled out faster than I’d intended.

“With all the misery and heartache I see in the world, the temptation exists to disappear into a painless fantasy.” The chill spreading through me intensified. “I’m afraid I’d lose myself and never want to come out.”

April blinked her long lashes and straightened in the chair. “That’s one of the reasons I’m anxious about going in there.”

Elysium is available at all major online book retailers. As an additional bonus, I also have a guest post up at the 1Night Stand blog today about why I chose to write in first-person this time around. Stay tuned for news about future guest appearances!

Promo - The Complete Underground Series, by Jessica E. Subject

In the future, deception runs deep and betrayal can come from anyone. Will the rebels defeat Planet Core and love freely again, or end up fighting for their lives?

Today I'm thrilled to help promote fellow sci-fi romance author Jessica E. Subject's new box set, The Complete Underground Series! For a short time, this set will be available for a steal, at only $0.99! This set has it all - action, rebellion, futuristic worlds, and all sorts of pairings to satisfy any reader.

Still need convincing? Here's an excerpt!

The door slid open, and Brook rushed into the room she’d left less than an hour ago. After she’d been told Melina had been killed by the same creature that had attacked Calla. Now she knew the truth. Now, she had to get on the mission.

Her father glanced up, his hard brown eyes steely in their determination. “Brook, what are you doing here?”

“Daddy, I—” No, I can’t be weak anymore. I have to stand up to him.With a deep breath, she took the empty seat beside Jager, the new mission commander. “Malock, I request permission to join SFEA-4. You are short a biologist, and I am the only one left sufficiently trained for the mission.”

“Denied. Now, please leave the room. You do not have clearance to be here.”

Brook stood, flinging the chair against the wall. Wrong answer. She refused to back down from him anymore. Slamming her hands on the table, she leaned forward and glared at him. “Your last biologist was attacked by an unknown predator, the mission commander killed. You need me there to study it, find out what we’re up against.”

“The answer is still no,” he growled.

She straightened her back. “It’s because I’m your daughter, isn’t it? You’d rather keep me sheltered here while you put everyone else’s life in danger.”

Malock stared, nostrils flaring. “This has nothing to do with the fact that you’re my daughter.” He sighed and shook his head. “But if you want to go, fine. It’s your death sentence.”

He stood and nodded to Jager. “You know what to do.” He turned his attention to the rest of the table. “Your mission directives will be presented to you before departure. Please be familiar with them prior to setting up camp.”

Her father made his way around the table, stopping beside her. She tensed when he rested a hand on her shoulder.
He shook his head. “You left me with no choice.” Then he marched out of the room.

Jager took the floor, and Brook picked up her chair and returned to her seat. The new mission commander projected a holographic image of the foreign landscape across the table, but she couldn’t concentrate on his presentation. Her father’s cryptic words echoed through her mind. Your death sentence…. No choice….
Was the entire mission doomed for failure? Were they all being sent to die? Why would Planet Core do that? Airondelle was supposed to be the corporation’s future.

Brook focused on Jager, but his words went in one ear and out the other. A pit of worry grew in her stomach. Would her father really allow her to be ripped apart by a predator in the night? No, I can’t think about that. She’d demanded to go on the mission. And if Melina could survive on the planet, so could she. She just had to find her first.

“Okay, let’s roll out.”

Out? Time to go, already?

The rest of the crew pushed away from the conference table and trooped out the door with excited murmurs. A far cry from the turmoil rolling through her.

“Let’s go, Malock.” Jager raised his eyebrows. “Or did you change your mind?”

She stood and released a deep breath. Even with her trepidation, she refused to back out now. Melina waited for her. “No, I’m looking forward to seeing Airondelle for myself.”

Brook spun away and rushed to catch up with her comrades. If she revealed her plans, she’d be stopped before she could find her lover. She would have to hide Melina right under their noses to bring her home. She pushed her shoulders back. I can do this. I have to.

The all-terrain vehicles sat loaded with equipment for the mission in front of the swirling mass of the portal. Her father certainly wasn’t wasting any time getting a team back to Airondelle. Crewmembers already filled the first vehicle, so she hopped into the back of the second.

Jager passed around everyone’s mission directives then shoved in on her left. Thank goodness he was the last to load. With his bulk, he occupied both of the remaining seats.

Before she had time to read her personal orders, they proceeded into the portal. She passed through the spinning matter, her body pulled and stretched in every direction. Unknown forces pushed on her chest, making it difficult to breathe. She gripped the seat, hoping she wouldn’t get pulled out. But the awkwardness didn’t last long. The transporter room light years away, clean, fresh air poured into her lungs. The alien vegetation of the foreign planet lined the rough dirt road they traveled. She yearned to explore the flora and fauna on a more intimate level. And she would, after setting up camp.

She opened the folder with her mission directive inside. Instead of the stack of papers detailing what Planet Core expected of her, she found a single sheet. Her father’s handwriting scrawled across the page. You can never know the truth.

Hard, cold steel pressed against her temple. A gun. Her breath caught. What the fuck is going on? She grabbed her knapsack and launched out of the vehicle.

If you're a sci-fi romance fan, don't miss out!

Buy Links:
Amazon Decadent Publishing All Romance

About the Author:
Jessica E. Subject is the author of contemporary and science fiction romance, ranging from sweet to erotic. In her stories, you could meet clones, or a sexy alien or two. You may even be transported to another planet for a romantic rendezvous.

When Jessica isn't reading, writing, or doing dreaded housework, she likes to get out and walk with her giant, hairy dog her family adopted from the local animal shelter.

Jessica lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband and two energetic children. And she loves to hear from her readers. You can find her at jessicasubject.com and on twitter @jsubject.
Website Twitter Facebook 

Coincidence vs. Influence

Back in September, I blogged (again) about those "oh, shit" moments I've had when realizing something I've written is very, very similar to something that already exists. It's happened to me a couple times, but I've reassured myself that there's always enough differences for it not to be a big deal. To recap that particular post, I'd just sent in the manuscript for The Fall of the Midnight Scorpions, had played through Dragon Age: Origins, and to my surprise/dismay, one scene in the former bore a striking similarity to one in the latter.

Sometimes the reverse happens, and I fully acknowledge what has influenced me in writing. In a very old post, I freely admitted that the setting for the interlude between Parts 2 and 3 in The Edge of the Sphere came right out of one of the games in the Myst series. It wasn't an exact replica, and I did make some changes; even if someone who was familiar with the game read that scene (or vice versa), I doubt he/she would think, "Hey, that seems an awful lot like ______!"

Then there's a third situation that sometimes occurs, and it's where I find myself now: starting to write something and not realizing until the project is underway what, precisely, were the influences that shaped the ideas. My current WIP, about two-thirds of the way done, mostly takes place in a fantasy setting. There are dragons. From this post alone, it's not too hard to tell what helped inspire me. (I think my thought process was actually something along the lines of "Man, I really love Dragon Age, and there are some kick-ass women in that series. I should write something with dragons and kick-ass women!)

I planned, I outlined, I sat down to write. It wasn't until recently that I started pinpointing the other influences that snuck in. Granted, generic "fantasy" has a lot of common elements, but I noticed some more specific similarities sneaking in. The biggest one (that I laughed at) was when I went back to do some revising, I finally noticed that my heroine bears a striking resemblance to Princess Cassima from King's Quest VI, one of THE games of my childhood.

Minus the pointy hat/head scarf thingabob

I know, I know. At first glance, the "damsel in distress" thing has been done to death. But while both Cassima and my female lead are imprisoned and technically need to be rescued, don't underestimate them. In fact, the only way to win KQVI is to sneak Cassima a dagger before triggering the final sequence so she can bail your ass out in the final battle. (Didn't give her the dagger? Game over. Hope you have an earlier save state.) As for my character...well, I can't give away everything here. ;)

I can pinpoint the influence of other books/games/movies not only in this story, but in just about everything I've written. I don't consider it a bad thing - we all have the books/games/movies we love, and as long as it's not a blatant ripoff (and who's to judge what is or isn't), it's fun to pay homage to the fiction that's shaped us. After all, no one ever sets out to emulate crap, right?

Elysium Has a Cover!

And I am completely in love with it. Still waiting on a release date (maybe March?), but for now, the cover is enough to make me squee like a little girl.

A funny thing happened as I worked on the final edits for Elysium - I got my writing mojo back. Don't get me wrong, there's still a ton of stuff to distract me as I realize I'm going to have two newborns before summer rolls around, but as I spent time polishing this novella which just might be the best thing I've ever written, that spark came to life again. I wouldn't say I'm churning out thousands of words a week, but I'm getting back into better habits and not feeling any sort of disinterest or guilt when I open up a document.

And enjoying the process of writing usually results in me spending more time in my own blogspace as well. ;) Win!

(*scampers off to update the Books tab with the latest addition*)

Promo - Merry "Chris"mas, by Clare Dargin

I know, I know, it's January, but 1) I love the Christmas season and am fine with extending it a little bit, 2) even though we didn't get hit nearly as bad as was predicted, there is snow on the ground so we need to stay warm, 3) who needs an excuse to promote sexy menage stories?, and 4) I like numbered lists and could go on forever, but I'll stop here.

Today I'm thrilled to help Clare Dargin promote her latest release, Merry "Chris"mas. Like me, Ms. Dargin is a fan of reading and writing sci-fi romance, but it's good to expand our horizons every now and then, right? So if you're still missing the holidays (or you just want to enjoy a steamy read), check out the book!

Excerpt:
Jilly Reimers wants love but can't find it. Chris Spinell is a veteran of the war in Afghanistan who suffers from PTSD and a haunting feeling that something is missing in his life. Chris Poole is also an Afghanistan war veteran is ready to break out of his shell but is unsure how.

With Christmas just around the corner, they decide not to spend it alone. Believing The Love Play Matchmaking Service to be just what they need for a night of fun and passion, they sign up. But when the guys show up and see that they've been set up on a menage, the only one happy about it is Jilly. 

Their consultant, called an Eros, assures Jilly that the service has a perfect track record but she's certain they'll be the first ones to get their money back. Will they have a very merry Christmas? Or will the three spend yet another one alone?
 
Excerpt:
Jilly idly twirled a lock of her hair as she gazed at the fire. The meal was good, a bit awkward, but all right. Now with Chris S. in the shower, she and Chris P., who’d freshened up after her, sat beside her. She hoped she’d get a chance to know him a little better, now that they were alone.

Unlike Chris S., Chris P. was quiet, more reserved. His warm smile could melt ice. They’d spoken a bit about his life in Australia and how he met the other Chris when they were on Diego Garcia, a tiny atoll in the Pacific. It was there he garnered a better perspective on life, friendships and love. She reasoned that war tended to do that to a person.

She looked at him again, admiring what she saw. He was gorgeous. If only she were a femme fatale like her friends. She pictured grabbing him by the scruff of his collar and planting a long seductive kiss on his pouty lips. Anything to ease the tension between her legs and the moisture dripping from her swollen pussy.

Golden and sun-kissed like a surfer, he had a look impossible to have around this time of year in Michigan, unless he spent countless hours in a tanning booth. But at the same time he didn’t look like the type who’d go to one. He seemed too rugged. She glanced at his short, flaxen hair, which he wore pulled back in a stubby tail. It accentuated his keen facial features. His physique, like that of a gladiator, made her want to whimper. Built like a brick wall without being too thick, he was three words—supple, etched, steel. And his Australian accent added to his raw sexiness.

Whereas Chris S. was the perfect picture type of the all-American, boy-next-door type, with light brown hair and sandy-colored tips and eyes so blue they looked like the color of tropical water. He reminded her of the high school captain of the football team who’d gone into the military and become a man, except he had a sensitive edge that permeated his being. While Chris P., who looked like he could take on a few guys at once, was more lighthearted and outgoing.

Either way, she knew she hit the jackpot because both guys were like something out of a magazine called Hot Guys “R” Us. They were a perfect ten. It was best Christmas gift anyone could have ever given her. She hoped a Chris Sandwich was definitely on the menu for the night. But how to get past the talking stage, she had no clue. She wondered if all of her Love Play’s match ups started like this.

Wearing some leggings and a cami, and he a T-shirt and shorts, she suddenly felt overdressed. The art of seduction was not something they taught in any of the schools she’d attended, and she sure as hell never picked up any pointers from her so-called “friends.” And her exes never gave her any encouragement in that department either.

This date should have come with instructions. I think I’m in trouble.

She let out a long sigh.

“Did you say something?” Chris P. asked, stirring from his long silence.

“I was just thinking how beautiful this place is,” she lied. What? How lame is that?

“It is. I’ve never been to a place quite like this.”

“Love Play has quite a reputation.”

“You’ve used it before?” He perked up, facing her.

Heat burned her cheeks. “No. It’s what I heard from some of their clients.”

“So have you been married?” he asked.

“No.”

“Neither have I. Never found anyone to get serious with,” he said, shrugging. “I don’t know. Maybe cupid’s arrow doesn’t work on me.”

“For me they’re defective. Or maybe his aim is bad,” she said, trying to suppress the memory of her ex-boyfriend.

“What do you mean?”

“My relationships, they never work out.” She shrugged her shoulders. “For whatever reason, they seem to choose my friends over me. Or it ends up that way once we get together.”

He shook his head. “Nah. They were bad blokes from the start. Believe me. I know. I’ve been around those types my entire life. The randier they are, the worse they will be. If a man wants you, he’ll stay.” His tone was soft, almost vulnerable.

“Maybe.”

“So tell me,” he said, turning to face her, “you ordered this hook up?”

Again, her face flushed. She imagined it turning its characteristic red when the blood rushed to her cheeks.

“Yes. But according to the guidelines, you would have either had to be open to it or requested it too. Right?”

He chuckled. “I see he also got the smart I asked for. Yes, I am open to a ménage.” His expression became serious. “Do you think me odd?”

“No. I’m glad we share that desire.”
 
Author Bio:
Clare Dargin is an author of Science Fiction and Romance and has been writing stories all of her life before being published in 2007. She’s a great fan of the two genres and loves promoting them.

An educator by profession, she possesses a Bachelor’s Degree in English from a major mid-western university. She presently resides in the Midwest and she hopes to expand her writings to include non-fiction, historical romance, and contemporary novels.

Links:
http://www.bookstrand.com/merry-chris-mas

http://claresblog2thehaven.blogspot.com

http://theembraced.blogspot.com