Interview with Sarah Madison, Erotic Romance Author

Tonya and Brenda are excited to visit with Sarah Madison this week in the romantic city of San Francisco; location for her book Unspeakable Words. Sarah mostly writes Male/Male Erotic Romance but now and then a female voice will tap inside her brain demanding a story. We're standing on a hill overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge. Such a gorgeous site!

Before we get to the interview, we'd like to introduce Sarah.

About Sarah in her own words:

I'm a writer, veterinarian, event horse rider. I like hiking with the dog in the Blue Ridge Mountains of VA, reading a good book curled on the couch with someone I love, and hanging out in the barn on a rainy day. Writing is an addiction--some days I wish there was a 12 step process to cure it, but most days it's what makes me tick.

I write mostly m/m romance with lots of plot, adventure, angst, humor, and a firm belief in happy endings whenever possible.

Naughty Reader’s: Sarah, thanks for inviting us for a chat. Snow Hawkeye is such a beautiful dog. Tell us a bit about yourself  that our readers might not know.

Sarah: Yes, he is. Thank you! I do a really wicked Yoda impersonation. And I can mimic dueling cats so accurately that I’ve been known to trigger cat fights. It’s a rather impressive party trick.

Naughty Reader’s: (Brenda) LOL I just love Yoda. What made you want to become a writer?

Sarah: I had no choice. Seriously, it’s a compulsion. I resisted it for years, told myself that I should put away childish things and give up my foolish dreams, but one day I began writing down the stories that were playing in my head. People seemed to like them, which was when I realized that the only thing preventing me from being a writer was me.

Naughty Reader’s: (Tonya)Well, fans are glad you listened to the voices! Please share a bit about your new release Practice Makes Perfect without giving away any spoilers.

Sarah:  Practice Makes Perfect is meant to be just a little light-hearted fun. My main characters are co-workers who just happen to work in outer space. There is no serious world-building or sci-fi battle action—just two guys trying to figure out if they should take things to the next step or not…while not getting killed at work.

Naughty Reader’s: Do you write under a pen name?

Sarah: Yes. I live and work in a small town in a conservative region of the country. I still get the ‘you shouldn’t give away the milk for free’ speech from my mother regarding the relationship between me and my boyfriend. I have lost some friends over the writing. I doubt some of my employers would be too keen on it either. If I made enough money to quit work and write full time, I’d be one happy camper. Until then, the horse needs a new pair of shoes every six weeks…

Naughty Reader’s: What types of hero or heroine do you like best?

Sarah: Oooooh. Damaged. I like a hero who has lost faith in himself or his path and he needs to find his way again—preferably with the help of people who believe in him.

Naughty Reader’s: Tell us about a typical day in your life as a writer.

Sarah:  Hah. On a good day, I go to the barn to ride my horse. Afterward, I take the dog for a quick run in the woods. These activities aren’t just good for me physically; I do my best brainstorming and plot-devising while performing mindless barn chores or watching my dog run ahead of me on the trail. Then I come home excited over the scenes that are laid out in full-Technicolor glory in my head, and I madly try to capture them on paper. Two or three hours later, I come up for air, look around, and realize I’ve written two to three thousand words.

On a bad day, I get interrupted or distracted so many times that I can’t get back into the rhythm of the story. I have to extract the words out of me one at a time, like pulling teeth with nothing but a pair of pliers. Or worse, I’m excited about a story idea all day long, but when I finally get the chance to sit down and work on it, I’ve run out of steam for the day.  I hate those days.

Naughty Reader’s: Do your books have a common theme or are they all different?

Sarah: They are all different but there are some common threads that run through many of them. My characters often create families out of their friends and loved ones as opposed to blood relatives. Many times my main characters are managing, but not really living. “Life is more than mere survival” is a recurring theme in my stories. I also adore stories with an unusual twist, so you will rarely get a straightforward, simple love story.

Naughty Reader’s: How long does it take you to write and then edit a story?

Sarah: It depends. Mostly on my work schedule. The average day at work is 10-12 hours long, so there are times when I’m hard pressed to get much writing done. I do work better to deadlines (even though I find them stressful) because a deadline will often push me to work through a problem when I’d rather let it marinate for a while. I can write a 20 K novella in 2 weeks or 2 months—it just depends. When I catch myself churning out stories faster and faster, I force myself to slow down and set a story aside for a while, to come back to it six weeks later with a fresh perspective and see if it was as good or bad as I remembered.

My production has slowed down tremendously in the last year, but I hope the quality has improved. That’s because I’ve accepted that I will never be a big name author who can retire to a villa by the sea. I write because I enjoy it. It’s the first thing I think about when I wake, it is the thing I look forward to the most when I have a free moment to spare. That means I’m going to write about the things that interest me and include all my favorite tropes. Hopefully, some of you out there will find the stories as entertaining as I do!

Naughty Reader’s: Let's hop on a trolley and find a coffee shop where we can finish the interview. Do you have to be alone to write?

Sarah: Good idea, Ladies! To write the original draft, yes. To edit and polish, no. I know that sounds a little backward, but I re-read my work obsessively when I am in editing mode. Having minor distractions during that time is not nearly as disruptive to my thought process as when I am getting the first draft down on paper.

Naughty Reader’s: How do you go about naming characters?

Sarah:  Names are tough. They come with inherent baggage, impressions, and influences. I try to select names that suit my characters.  I also have to like the name if I am going to be typing it over and over again!  I often scour the baby names lists by nationality when I am stuck for a name. I tap my friends too.

“Quick! I need a name for the American pilot of Scots-Irish decent and his love interest, the geeky math guy from England!”

 I like clean, simple names. The last time I went with a name that ended in a ‘s’, I had kittens every time I had to write the name in the possessive form.

Naughty Reader’s: Is it easier to write about the characters if you find pictures of them before you write or do you write then find character pictures?

Sarah: I never used to use pictures at all! Then, last summer, I signed up to write a story for the free Goodreads M/M Romance Group’s Hot Summer Days Anthology. Group members provided pictures and invited authors to claim them and write a short story about them. I ended up writing a novella called Surf’s Up, as well as falling deeply in love with characters (in fact, I’m trying to figure out how I can continue their story in novel form). It was my first real experience writing to a picture prompt, and now I can really see the appeal. Since then, when I find myself struggling for the words to describe one of my characters, I’ve been known to scour the internet looking for pictures of people who fit my mental image. Having an actual image (either in front of you or in your mind) really helps you nail some of the specific features when describing a character. It makes them real to me, so therefore, I can make them real to you.

Naughty Reader’s: How do you pick locations for your stories?

Sarah: The locations really depend on the story itself. If the location is a big part of the story, I try to avoid setting stories in places that I’ve never seen. I don’t travel much, so maybe this is an excuse to get out more!  I’m not fond of big cities, and I’ve been known to spend a lot of time on Google Maps scoping out streets and landmarks of cities my characters are supposed to know like the back of their hand. I’m much more comfortable writing about what I’ve loved and walked my entire life: mountain streams and open fields, farmland and small towns, universities and medical environments. Hey, if life was an old sixties sitcom, mine would be Green Acres, and I’d be singing Eddie Albert’s lyrics, not Eva Gabor’s.

Naughty Reader’s: What are you working on now and what should readers be looking forward to from you in the future?

Sarah: I’m currently working on a novel entitled Can’t Take the Heat. The main character is an ER doctor who is teetering on the edge of burnout. Scott thought he had his whole life mapped out and that he knew what he wanted—until he meets the sous chef, Daniel DuBois. Now he doesn’t know what he wants or how to ask for it. I’ve also got several works in process going at the moment—a time travel piece and one about the often crazy and very intense world of sport horses and eventing. I have sequels planned for Unspeakable Words and Crying for the Moon as well.  I just need Hermione’s Time Spinner device from The Prisoner of Azakaban, and I would have all these titles to you by next week.

Naughty Reader’s: Sarah, thank you again for taking the time to interview with us. Where can readers find out more about you and your books? 

Sarah: Everything you need to know about my books and upcoming events can be found on my Web site. 

On the books page, you will find all my available titles, including links to free stories.

All my contact links are there too, for emails, and following me on Twitter and Facebook, as well as my longer blogs on Live Journal. But for the ease of one stop shopping here's my links:

Web site

Twitter

Author Page on Facebook 

Blog on Live Journal 

Amazon Author Page
Goodreads

You can contact me by email: akasarahmadison@gmail.com

My books on Dreamspinner Press

Sarah: Just one more thing…Thank you for visiting with me this week!  I’d like to ask one question of the readers!  What’s the one question you were hoping I’d get asked to today that I didn’t get asked? Go on, ask away! I will do a giveaway to one lucky commenter, winner's choice from my backlist.

Practice Makes Perfect

The now-extinct Brill gifted humankind with the technology of space travel, but the implacable Swarm is determined to wipe all humans from the face of the universe. However, the human race won’t give in so easily. On board the spaceship Fearless, a team led by Dr. Rhys Aubrey and Major Jim Tanner is tasked with developing technology for the fight and making new allies to trade for whatever edge they can get.

Every day the Fearless ventures forth to new worlds and faces challenges that forge strong bonds of friendship among the crew—and perhaps something more between Rhys and Jim. In a life filled with danger and trouble around every corner, are Rhys and Jim ready to risk their hearts too?

An excerpt from the book:

He gradually became aware that he’d slowed his breathing to match Tanner’s. His left side was still freezing, but his right shoulder and thigh were pressed up against Tanner, and the warm contact was making him sleepy.

“Better?” Tanner asked, long after Rhys has thought he’d gone back to sleep.

“Better,” Rhys agreed with a sigh.  He relaxed slightly closer to Tanner.  “Now I know the secret of your freakish metabolism,” he said, smiling into the darkness.

There was a long pause.  “Oh, really?” Tanner said at last.

“Yes.” Rhys grinned at the ceiling.  “You put out heat like a nuclear reactor. You probably burn something like three hundred calories an hour just sitting still.  No wonder everyone wants to sleep with you.”  No sooner had he said the words, he realized how they sounded, and he briefly bit his lip in horror.  “I mean, that is to say, off the ship, you know, when it’s really cold.”

“Go to sleep, Aubrey.” Tanner rolled over onto his shoulder again, presenting his back to Rhys.

Impossibly, he did go to sleep. He must have, because sometime during the night, he gravitated toward Tanner’s warmth and spooned up against him, sliding one arm along the fleece, and worming his hand under the blanket to place it against warm skin.  He wouldn’t even have been aware that he’d done this, except that he muzzily recognized the stirring of someone beneath his hand before Jim stretched into his touch and rolled toward him.

“Aubrey.”  It wasn’t a tone Rhys had heard very often. Tanner was usually the epitome of Texas charm. Whenever Rhys had heard this particular note in the past, he’d always been reminded of the Don’t Mess With Texas motto. “Mind telling me what your hand is doing on my cock?”

 

Interview with Rosanna Leo, Erotic Author

 Congratulations to Parker Kincade! 

Parker won the eBook "Sweet Hell" by Rosanna Leo.

Tonya and Brenda are very excited to introduce Rosanna Leo to the readers. *Handing out hand fans to everyone* Trust us you'll need this. It's hot as Hades here this week because Rosanna's new release Sweet Hell is mostly set in...Hell. Maybe Dionysus and Josie will join us, too, sometime this week. 

We have wine chilling and plenty of glasses to go around. So find a not so hot spot and get as comfy as you can while we chat with Rosanna. By the way, Rosanna is featuring a giveaway; details below.

Naughty Reader’s: Hi Rosanna! We're so glad to meet you. Tell us a bit about yourself  that our readers might not know.

Rosanna:  Hmm…that readers won’t know? Well, some of my readers already know I have an unhealthy obsession with Nutella, so I won’t mention that. I am a nail-biting, coffee-drinking, writing-obsessed mother of two boys. My husband shakes his head at all my pretend boyfriends (i.e. heroes from books). Oh, and I’m best when I’m sitting down. I’m so uncoordinated…I could never excel at sports, but I’ll beat your pants at Trivial Pursuit!

Naughty Reader’s: Hey, Nutella is delicious! Love it on plain bagels. What made you want to become a writer?

Rosanna: All the people in my head, constantly nattering at me, demanding their stories be told. I didn’t realize at first that writing could be my outlet. I thought I just had an active imagination. When I began to imagine all these grand love stories with gorgeous heroes, I began to think romance was for me!

Naughty Reader’s: Please share a bit about your new release Sweet Hell without giving away any spoilers.

Rosanna:  My hero in Sweet Hell is Dionysus, Greek god of wine and theater. He’s seen and done it all…especially women! But lately, his life is starting to feel like one long string of meaningless sexual escapades. Even worse, he is suddenly aroused by the idea of marriage. To top it all off, Josie Marino, the mouthy, disheveled, and eternally annoying woman who serves him coffee at the local bakery, sets him on fire.

Josie, a Toronto baker of Italian heritage, is not looking for love or lust. Especially not with Dionysus Iros, the most aggravating, demanding customer she'd ever had to serve. With his rippling muscles and sexy, knowing eyes, he's obviously trouble with a capital T. Unfortunately, he's also the star of her every X-rated dream. Josie determines she will not fall for his considerable physical charms, come hell or high water.

But Dionysus turns strangely protective when a sinister character arrives at Josie’s bakery, and they can no longer deny their unwanted feelings for one another. They are forced to embark on a bizarre, sexually-charged journey to hell itself, which threatens to either change them for the better, or destroy them.

Naughty Reader’s: Oh, he sure looks sexy on the cover! *Tonya and Brenda wonder what his eyes look like* Do you write under a pen name?

Rosanna:  I do! Rosanna Leo is my pen name, although Rosanna is my actual first name. Leo is my sign…roar!

Naughty Reader’s: What types of hero or heroine do you like best?

Rosanna:  As far as heroines, I prefer the nerdy, awkward ones. It’s pretty much what I write and what I relate to as well. I love the women who have never quite figured it all out, because neither have I. As far as heroes…well, they can be perfect, can’t they? Like everyone else, I like a sexy Alpha, but he has to have flaws too. And I love it when the collision of these two characters involves lots of laughs and lots of hot sex!

Naughty Reader’s: Tell us about a typical day in your life as a writer.

Rosanna:  Drop kids off at school, fill my mug with coffee and sit down. During the school year, I try to take advantage of the time the kids are busy. If I can write a good few hours in one sitting, I’m delirious. There’s no time in my schedule for writer’s block either. I force my Muse to come!

Naughty Reader’s: Do your books have a common theme or are they all different?

Rosanna: I write a lot about self-sacrifice for love and redemption. My heroes see something in my heroines that they’ve never encountered before, and are willing to give up everything for the women they love.

Naughty Reader’s: How long does it take you to write and then edit a story?

Rosanna: Each book is different. I wrote/edited For the Love of God and Sweet Hell in a matter of a few short months. Up In Flames and The Selkie both took a lot longer for some reason. I use an outline, but am also somewhat of a pantster, so sometimes the story changes unexpectedly. I try not to sweat it when it takes a little longer. It all works in the end.

Naughty Reader’s: Do you have to be alone to write?

Rosanna: I prefer it. My kids are sometimes flitting around, but I prefer to write when they’re at school or are occupied.  Just easier to think that way.

Naughty Reader’s: How do you go about naming characters?

Rosanna: Great question! I’ve kept a list of names I love for years! Seriously…I’ve had it since I was about 12 years old! I’m slowly working my way through that list. I do look at my characters’ traits however, in determining their names, and try to ensure the hero’s name sounds good with the heroine’s. Don’t want to throw an Ann and an Andy together! That might work for kids’ lit, but not romance!

Naughty Reader’s: Is it easier to write about the characters if you find pictures of them before you write or do you write then find character pictures?

Rosanna: I have always written my characters first.  I know a lot of authors find pics first, but I’ve never done that. I suppose no picture will ever quite add up to the image in my head.

Naughty Reader’s: How do you pick locations for your stories?

Rosanna: Well, I’m from Toronto, Canada and I’ve set many of my tales there. Toronto is a wonderful location: full of interesting shops and restaurants, it has multicultural neighborhoods and lots of interesting folks walking the streets. However, in my paranormal novels, we do sometimes wander into location such as Mount Olympus and Hades! 

Naughty Reader’s: What are you working on now and what should readers be looking forward to from you in the future?

Rosanna: I am working on another Greek god story, this one about the sexy Apollo! And my publisher Liquid Silver Books recently contracted another paranormal romance called The Selkie! It’s about mythological seal shape shifters from the Orkney Islands in Scotland…who are reputed to have devastating lovemaking abilities! Look for it soon!

Naughty Reader’s: ummm (big)O...verwhelming lovemaking. Sounds wicked. Where can readers find out more about you and your books?

Rosanna: Thank you Tonya and Brenda for the chat and the wine. My site links are below and I would love to do a giveaway of Sweet Hell: one PDF copy to one lucky commenter.

 Blog 

Facebook  

Twitter: @LeoRosanna 

Liquid Silver Books

Amazon Author Page

Goodreads

EXCERPT:

There were usually two men Josie Marino had contact with at the ungodly hour of five in the morning. Not good contact. Certainly not sweaty, chest-heaving, “take me, take me” contact. And definitely not contact with Petter, the Norwegian male model who lived next door.

Nah. That would have been too perfect, wouldn’t it?

Instead, most mornings, Josie had to settle for haggling with her two least favorite men on the planet. Nelson Tate, the deliveryman from her most important supplier. And Dionysus Iros. Worst. Customer. Ever.

Because of the business, she just had to put up with Nelson. He’d been delivering dry goods to her family bakery for years. Had known her parents, schmoozed with her brothers, and basically enjoyed making life hell for her. Not that he was a vicious sort. He was just far too handsy for her liking.

In the case of Dionysus, he was just an early bird and a womanizer. And couldn’t function without the coffee she brewed first thing in the morning. Invariably, he was already waiting for her when she got to the bakery each day.

Oh, joy of joys.

Not that he was a horrible person either. He just intimidated her with his unearthly good looks. Men like him, not that most men came close to looking like him, rattled her. They were best kept at a distance.

Dionysus was so bloody perfect; Josie wanted to shake him to see if she could muss his seemingly unmussable hair. Most days, though, she just contented herself with a lot of grumbling in his presence. He unnerved her, with his sexy brown eyes and long, dark waves of hair any woman would die for. To say nothing of his body… No, it was best not to say anything about that smoking body at all. She couldn’t help hating him, just a little. No man should look so divine at dawn, when she felt about as put together as a cavewoman.

To makes things worse, the man acted as if he were a Greek god. His parents, in a tragic case of bad judgment, had even named him after one. It was no wonder he was so obnoxious.

On this morning, too, he was waiting at the door when she got there. Looking as if he’d just tumbled off the cover of GQ, and the birds weren’t even up yet. At least today he didn’t have a sleepy bimbo on his arm, like he often did.

“Mr. Iros,” Josie drawled, yawning, as she unlatched the bakery door. “You’re losing your touch. I haven’t seen you with a woman in, what, forty-eight hours?” She pushed ahead of him into the bakery, catching the scent of wine on him.

God, how much did the man drink? She was sure he dabbed a little bit of the stuff behind his ears, and splashed it on his face instead of aftershave.

On any other man, the strange cologne would have been a red flag. An indication he drank more than coffee in the morning. But on this man, it just smelled delicious. As if the scent were his pheromone, oozing out of every pore, inviting her to mate with him. In very dirty ways.

He chuckled, low and deep, and sauntered in after her as if he owned the place. Within seconds, he was seated at his usual spot at Josie’s counter. “Just be a good girl and fetch my coffee.” He lowered his shades and peered at her through sensuous dark eyes that should have been bloodshot at that time of the morning, but weren’t. “And don’t forget. Make it a tall, half-skinny, half-one percent, extra hot, two shots decaf, two shots regular latte with whip. And exactly…”

“I know, I know,” she interrupted. “One hundred fifty degrees. Has it ever been anything less, Your Highness?” She pasted on her sweetest of smiles and turned to prepare the elixir of the gods. She heard him huff as he flipped open the day’s newspaper.

“No need to call me that, Josie. ‘My Lord’ or ‘He From Whom All Good Things Come’ will do just fine.”

She reached for the one percent milk, and contemplated tossing in some heavy, artery-clogging cream just to soften up some of his sculpted muscles. A man with that kind of body had to be on some sort of special diet. With that brawny physique he must spend hours a day at the gym and ingest copious amounts of protein powders.

She snuck a peek at the bulges rippling under his sleeves, turning her head sharply when he grinned.

It was one thing to look like God’s gift to women. It was another thing to act like it.

About Rosanna

Hi everyone!

I am a married mom of two wonderful boys who has been obsessed with romance literature ever since I read Jane Eyre in grade six.  Since then, I have been a sucker for a roguish smile, a knowing eye and an alpha male!

I grew up in Toronto, Canada and still live nearby.  I write every chance I get, and my head is filled with stories of Greek gods, vampires, and ethereally beautiful creatures.  I tried getting to Narnia through my bedroom closet when I was a kid, but that didn't work, so I started writing novels.

I am absolutely thrilled that Liquid Silver Books has picked up my first four novels, and look forward to submitting many more.  You can reach my fabulous publisher at www.liquidsilverbooks.com

Join me on this romantic adventure!

Interview with Ray Sostre, Author and Owner of After Dark Online

Tonya and Brenda are meeting with the very sexy Ray Sostre, Erotic Author and Entrepreneur, at the Mall at Steamtown in downtown Scranton, Pennsylvania, Bella's workplace from The Girl Upstairs. Ray has invited us for Lattes in the little coffee cafe.

About Ray in his own words:

I'm just a city boy stuck out in the middle of the desert, writing and doing other things that makes me happy. I love erotica of all types, and I enjoy writing erotica for everyone's enjoyment. When I'm away from the computer, I'm either catching up on some shows and real life, or hitting the dance clubs w/ my woman.

Ummm, Maybe if we put on the right music, Ray might dance for us? Who's going to see the movie "Magic Mike" this weekend? LOL Ladies, Ray will be here all week to answer questions and reply to comments. He is also featuring an eBook giveaway. Details below.

Naughty Reader’s: Tell us a bit about yourself  that our readers might not know.

Ray: Hi! Thank you for having me here. I’m 35, living out in Nevada with my long-time girlfriend of more than 7 years. My love for writing erotic stories has made me very enthusiastic of what I can accomplish to what I write. I enjoy what I do, and I am also the founder of an up and coming website called AfterDark Online, which accept story submissions and hosting contests, soon to go into more in the future. The stories I write are m/f stories, ménage stories, and lesbian romance.

Naughty Reader’s: What made you want to become a writer?

Ray: When I first got into writing it was by accident in the fall of 1990. I was a crazy goof-ball then, but one day when I served detention I write short story about a guy serving detention with a secret admirer. That's when I decided to get into writing, but I only pursued it for 7 more years, before I gave it up and decided to get into music, working the club scene for the next 7 years. When I returned to writing, it was in 2010, when I was persuade from my father to get back into writing. I lost my job at that time, and I had a lot of time on my hands - why not give it a go?

      I was tired of reading stories that contained porn-no-plot scenes, and as a guy, I wanted to prove to my readers, particularly female, that a guy like me can write something erotic with a good feeling wanting more.

Naughty Reader’s: Please share a bit about your new release The Girl Upstairs without giving away any spoilers.

Ray: While I’m currently working on a few others, and awaiting for response on another story. The Girl Upstairs was released on April 6^th through Romance Divine. The story is about a man name Carlos Munoz who moves out of New York and settles in Northeastern Pennsylvania, where he meets a gorgeous upstairs neighbor who lives alone, but visited by her policeman brother that interferes in their relationship. It is a hero-like romance, because the heroine in the story has a dark past, explaining why she moved out there.

Naughty Reader’s: Do you write under a pen name?

Ray: Aside from my real name... no. Ray has been my nickname since I was 8 years old. In fact, very few authors on here knows me by my real name. One in particular, I hope, would keep it hush-hush... lol! She learned my real name from my little brother.

Naughty Reader’s: What types of hero or heroine do you like best?

Ray:  I like emancipated hero/heroines – self thinkers. Mostly, I have a deep attraction to read and write about bad girls in the story. Something about the bad girls that attract me; maybe because of my past and current relationship with one - lol.

Naughty Reader’s: Tell us about a typical day in your life as a writer.

Ray:  Well, aside from a forty-hour week these days, I normally write in the mid-morning and afternoon, unless it is my day off and I’m writing all day into the late night. I am usually monitoring AfterDark Online, my baby, but also staying focus on completing stories that come into my head.

Naughty Reader’s: Do your books have a common theme or are they all different?

Ray: I try to avoid a common theme. If I have a common theme, well it’s based on the roots of city-life. I am a city-boy by nature, and I enjoy writing about things that happen in the city.

Naughty Reader’s: How long does it take you to write and then edit a story?

Ray:  Depending on the length of the story, I’m usually done with a chapter anywhere between a day to two weeks. A short story will easily be done within 4 hours. Now the editing part, I have to give thanks to Annabelle Crawford; homegirl can really edit! I wrote a lesbian romance at the end of May and sent it to her; she did her editing touches within two days. I was super-amazed. I had to bring that there, because her editing touches have opened my mind.

Naughty Reader’s: Do you have to be alone to write?

Ray:  Mostly, yes. I need to concentrate more. My woman knows what I write and there are times I need her help in describing certain things that I can’t explain easily. But I need the peace-of-mind to write.

Naughty Reader’s: How do you go about naming characters?

Ray:  It comes up naturally to me. I don’t go by simple, common names; they just come up easily. I have a much harder time finding a title to the story than characters names.

Naughty Reader’s: Is it easier to write about the characters if you find pictures of them before you write or do you write then find character pictures?

Ray:  To me, it is easier. I’m always looking for a muse of still and motion pictures on the internet. Sometimes, a particular scene like a skyline or a park in any city, and I’m painting a picture in over a thousand words. What I learned is that it gets very addictive – lol!

Naughty Reader’s: How do you pick locations for your stories?

Ray:  Well, a lot has to do with my east coast roots, and now my west coast roots as well; the flow just comes naturally.

Naughty Reader’s: (Brenda) Excuse me for a minute you two. I'll be right back. (Tonya) Ray, I'm not sure what's she up too, but it can't be good! Let's continue. What are you working on now and what should readers be looking forward to from you in the future?

Ray: I just received a contract from No Boundaries Press for my f/f short story – “Her Angela & Protection”, and now I’m working on next menage story: Suburbian Secrets Pt 2, Secret Rendezvous. I originally worked on it in Feb, but I took time off to let the feeling of the story develop more. And I’m also working on Finding Possibilities – a younger male/older woman romance. If there’s any luck, I would like to get that story done. I have a positive feeling about the story.

Naughty Reader’s: Where......can readers find out more about you and your books? Uh oh.....She has trouble written all over her face!

*Brenda walks back in with a boom box, sits it on a table, places a CD in the top and hits play. "Sassy Sexy Wiggle" by Joe Tex streams from the speakers.* "Okay, Ray show us your moves. Come on."

Ray: Ummm..... shit. Oh, excuse me. I should've known. LOL While I have three self-published titles under Smashwords and Amazon; just enter Ray Sostre on the search engine, I have The Girl Upstairs in several locations:
 

Romance Divine - The Girl Upstairs

All Romance eBooks (ARe)

Kobo - The Girl Upstairs

Barnes & Noble

Amazon Kindle

Bookstrand

       If there was something my readers would like to ask my book they’re welcome to email me at anarchy0029@gmail.com, however I couldn’t think of questions to ask my readers, except what else would they want to read out of my work? I appreciate the fan base I have, even if they are small – they matter to me.

       And since I’m appreciative to anyone who comments on this interview, I would love to giveaway a free eBook of The Girl Upstairs.

Ray's Sites

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The AfterDark World with Ray Sostre

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Author Ray Sostre on Facebook

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Ray Sostre on Twitter

Also his website:  

AfterDark Online

EXCERPT:

A couple of hours later, Carlos was sitting on his couch as he flicked though the channels, looking for something on television. He heard someone knocking on the door. When he opened the door he was surprised to see Bella standing there with her arms folded from the chill.

“Bella?”

“Carlos, look I’m sorry about what happened earlier. I know my brother can be a dick sometimes and—”

“Oh, don’t worry about it. Uh you want to come in?”

“Yeah, actually. It’s a little chilly standing here.”

“It’s supposed to go down in the thirties tonight.”

He let her in, closing the door behind her. He felt her wrap his arms around his body, feeling the cold from her arms, extracting the warmth from his body.

“Oh you feel so warm.”

He chuckled with the thoughts of her touch. You feel so soft. The feel of her body pressed against his made him feel hard again.

“My brother can be such a jerk sometime. He’s my big brother, but he plays big brother way too much whenever’s he wearing his badge.”

“Well, he just being protective of you.”

“Overly-protective. Sometimes he meddles in my life too much. I wish he would understand that I’m a big girl.”

“You’ll always be his baby sister.”

“I know. You know, Carlito...” She rolled her eyes quickly. “I’m—”

“It’s alright.”

“I can’t help it. I really love your name.” She looked up, “I really had a great time with you.”

“So did I... Annabella”

He gave a smile, feeling a sudden air of seduction before closing his eyes, letting his mouth find hers.

Bella spoke against his lips, “The way you sound out my name; I don’t mind.”

“I love your name.” He sucked on her bottom lip with tenderness.

He let his hands run over her body, while slipping his tongue inside her mouth. He felt her exhale hard against him, as he felt her hand on his neck, pulling him closer.

His excitement was bursting through his jeans. He pinned her against the door and ran his fingers under her dress. In return, he felt her fingers digging inside his jeans, past his boxer while grabbing on his ass. He felt her grip, she was hungry for him and she pushed him further to her body.

“Is he gone, really gone?”

“Uh-huh! He’s been long gone.” Suddenly she purred seductively, “Take off your pants I want you, Carlos.”

The way she expressed her desire for him made him anxious to be inside her. He stepped back and unbuttoned his jeans, while watching her raise her dress and slipping off her panties.

Once his pants dropped, he moved closer and kissed her hungrily. He felt her hand on his cock, his tip being caressed in her possession. The feeling of her touch was hypnotizing; he gazed into her inviting eyes one last time before taking her in another kiss.

While exchanging kisses, he raised her leg up and felt his cock being pushed inside her folds.

He heard her gasp into his ear, and nuzzled at her neck with sensual kisses. As he pumped her with furious strokes, he felt her hand run across his back. Then once he was able to work out a balance he lifted her up and pinned her against the wall. Every thrust he gave her had her gasping in enthusiasm.

“Harder Carlos... harder!” She gasped, digging her nails into his ass.

Carlos was panting from every thrust. Sweat was building inside his body, but the heat from her was more exciting. She may have been pinned to the door, but she was able to meet his thrust, until he wasn’t able to hold off any longer. His thrusting became aggressive. At the same time, her moans were growing louder. He watched her transfixed expression as he gave one last thrust, pinning himself against her body as he came inside her with hard shivers and panting, causing Bella to climax.

Once spent, they remained, still, on the door, catching their breaths. He looked into her eyes still glazed over from her sexual rapture.

They ravaged each other’s mouths, before he set her down.

“Oh, Carlito,” she pushed a wisp of hair from her face, “that was wonderful.”

“Why don’t you stay for the night?”

“I will, if you can help me off with this dress.”

“I don’t have any spare clothes for you to sleep in.”

“Who said I need to sleep with clothes on?” She gave him her most wicked grin.

To get a feel of Ray’s writing download Poetic Motivation

Available as a FREE read on Smashwords.

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/113982

Okay everyone let's dance!!!

Happy Fourth of July - Have fun and be safe with those fireworks!

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!

Tonya, Steve & Brenda are taking a break this week to visit with family on July fourth and in between write on WIPs (works in progress) that need attention. 

Tonya is writing on her upcoming release, Come Tame Me!, Wild Fillies Book 1. Who doesn't want to be tamed by or tame a Cowboy? Follow Tonya's blog to stay updated on this erotic western. Help her decide on the cover by commenting here. Pssst...she's also has The Boss's Pet Book 5 in notes. Yeah!

Brenda & Steve is working on Triangle of Secrets, Book Two featuring Morgan, Vivian and Kirk. For those of you that read book one, you've met Morgan and Kirk is Scott's dad. Vivian is an old flame of Kirk's. Ummm, makes for an interesting triangle; wouldn't you say? Follow Brenda & Steve on their blog to be updated on the release date and two other books they are writing.

Mockup Cover (courtesy downloads from iStockphotos)

So while they're MIA this week:

Check out Naughty's book reviewers; they've read some awesome books to add to your summer reading list and visit their personal blogs. Naughty's Reviewers

Venture over to Brenda's book review blog Bren's Book Reviews to see what she has to say about her latest read A Walk in the Snark by Rachel Thompson. Explore the other books she has read.

Tonya just released Master's Email available on Amazon and Smashwords for $0.99. 

Brenda & Steve's Rainie's Lake is now only $0.99 on Amazon, All Romance eBooks and Smashwords.

Follow Brenda and Tonya on Pinterest