Bethany Michaels, Author of Nashville Naughty & Cuffed

We're excited to join Bethany Michaels at The Buttery Nipple, Courtney Monroe’s bar in “Cuffed”. As we enter, we hear smooth Southern rock playing on the jukebox, glasses clinking and pool balls clacking in the back room. Everyone is having fun! 

Bethany invited us to this cozy bar for her interview. And you all are in for a special treat. First three rounds of Buttery Nipples are on the house!  

Bethany Michaels

Erotic Romance Author

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

Bethany:  I’m from a very, very small Indiana farm town but moved to the Nashville, Tennessee area about six years ago. I often slip the name of my hometown into my books as sort of a warm reminder of where I grew up (Easter egg hunt, anyone?). I have a husband and four school-aged children and work full time in logistics, though my degree is in English. I spend a significant amount of time volunteering with my kids’ scout troops and love the outdoors. I’m also a BIG Elvis fan and incorporated that trait into the heroine of my book, Nashville Naughty. I’ve worked with many small and e-presses and am excited to continue those relationships as well as expand into indie publishing.

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

Bethany: I’ve always loved reading and making up stories, but I actually started writing romance to maintain some of my sanity. Having just added twins to my brood, I had four children under the age of four years old at home. I loved being a mom, but I desperately needed something that was all mine—my own head space. Writing time became “my” time, my own little escape from diapers and housework, and my day job. I started to get serious about writing for publication in 2005, joining Romance Writers of America and Indiana Romance Writers. My first published work was a novella in one of Red Sage’s well-known Secrets anthologies in 2007. That was a good day .

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

Bethany:  “Cuffed” is the first story in my new “My Favorite Fantasy” series. It’s the story of a young woman from a family of moonshiners that has always had a less than positive relationship with the law and law enforcement officers. The heroine has been able to break away from that lifestyle, but she still has a lot of secrets and when she hooks up with a hot cop who knows more than one use for a set of police-issue handcuffs, life gets a lot more complicated. 

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

Bethany:  Yes. “Bethany” is my real first name, but “Michaels” is a pseudonym. Since I write the sexy stuff and live in the Bible belt, I thought that might work out better, though it’s sort of an open secret amongst my friends and family.

Naughty Reader’s: (Brenda) I know all about living in the bible belt and keeping what you write hush-hush. LOL What types of hero or heroine do you like best?

Bethany:  I love a strong, confident hero who knows how to have fun. My heroines tend to be strong-willed, know what they want and aren’t afraid to go after it. For some reason, I have an aversion to virgin heroines and never write them, even in my Regency-set historicals. As a reader, I like a little Alpha in my male—men with a bit of dark side. I find really dark characters difficult to write, though.

Naughty Reader’s: Ready for another round? (Tonya waves at the waitress and points at our table) Tell us about a typical day in your life as a writer.

Bethany:  Well, I have a “day job” that I go to at night, so my day is upside down to begin with. My writing time sort of revolves around what the rest of the family is up to. On a normal day during the school year, I go in to work at about 8 p.m. and get off at 4 a.m. Then I have about two hours to write before I have to wake my kids up for school. After the kids and Hubby have left for the day, I sometimes write or edit a bit if I’m on deadline. Otherwise that two hours between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m. is my only dedicated writing time, though I do write as much as possible on my nights off. During school breaks, I bribe the children to let me have 2 hours of quiet time to write. I also write at the park, the doctor’s office, the pool—wherever I can— when the kids are out of school.

Naughty Reader’s: (Tonya) Bethany hun, just when do you sleep?  Do your books have a common theme or are they all different?

Bethany: Sleep? What's that? A lot of my books have to do with things being different than they seem—people, places, situations. I like to play with the idea that reality is just a matter of perception. I also tend to write about family and family relationships quite a bit, in one way or another. All of my book shave a bit of humor in them, even when dealing with more serious issues. As far as genre, I write Regency-set historicals, contemporaries and a bit of light paranormal.

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

Bethany:  I’m a plotter for the most part and once I have an outline and know where I’m going, I can kick out about 1000 words an hour when I’m drafting. After the whole first draft is done I go back and read it for flow, plot and characterization, and make those larger revisions to the story. Then I go back through again and edit for voice, grammar and general writing stuff. All in all, a 10,000 word short usually takes about a week to draft and another two to three weeks to edit and prepare for submission. For a 50,000 word book, I shoot for eight weeks. My indie books then go to a copy editor before they are finalized and offered for sale. I’ll take one last look after they have been copy-edited and make final tweaks before I start formatting them for upload.

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

Bethany:  I prefer to write alone, but I’ve learned to take my writing opportunities where I can find them! When the kids were really young, I would often write at the McDonald’s Playland. Music helps block out all the distractions when I have to write in a crowd.

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

Bethany:  I kept one of my baby name books and refer to that whenever I need a character’s first name. I sometimes use that for the last names, too, but I also use the phone book. Nicknames are interesting to me, so if it’s the kind of character who might be laid back enough to go by a nickname, I think about what that would be, too, and whether there’s a backstory to how he/she got that nickname.

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?

Bethany:  I really don’t use any visual cues like pictures or collages when I write. I’ve tried finding pictures of my hero and heroine beforehand but find it tends to muddy the characterization for me and makes the character harder to write consistently. The person I picture in my mind is never the same as the one in a picture from a magazine. I prefer the characters that live inside my head. 

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

Bethany:  I like using locations I’ve been to because then I can drop in lots of little real facts or references to places that make the setting seem more authentic. For example, I fell in love with my adopted city of Nashville and set a series of books here. I set some scenes at famous Nashville landmarks like the Grand Ole Opry and the atrium at the Opryland Hotel. If I’m using a location, I haven’t been to myself I research extensively first.

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

Bethany: As I mentioned, I’m really excited about playing in the indie publishing arena. I will continue to work with a couple of small presses I like, but I am very much enjoying the freedom to write what I want, get the cover and release dates I want, and to be able to price my own books as an indie author.

I’m launching a new indie series of short novellas called “My Favorite Fantasy” in a couple of weeks. Each stand-alone story plays on a different kind of erotic theme but is definitely a romance with a happily-ever-after. The first story is “Cuffed” (cop/bondage theme) and will be available at most ebook outlets by October 1st. The others in the series are “Tripled” (ménage), “Played (toys)”, “Exposed” (celebrity sex) and “Cured” (doctor fetish). I’m also writing novellas with a group of friends for Siren publishing under the name The Sextet. My cohorts are some talented, multi-published, award-winning ladies! We’ve done several anthologies and are now writing stand-alone novellas on a common theme. For example, I’m working on a novella with a toy theme, tentatively titled “All in a Night’s Work”. A couple of the ladies have already published their “Toy Stories” so you’ll want to check those out!

Naughty Reader’s: Where can readers find out more about you and your books?

Bethany: My website is www.bethanymichaels.com and that’s the best place to keep up to date on new releases, links and news. I’m also on Facebook  and Twitter @bmichaelsauthor. The website for The Sextet is www.thesextet.com.

My indie works as well as my small-press backlist can be found at most ebook retailers like Barnes &Noble, Amazon, All Romance eBooks, Sony, Diesel, Kobo, Smashwords, etc. 
   

Naughty Readers: Bethany, thank you again for chatting with us this week.

Readers, Bethany is featuring a contest. The winner will receive either an eBook copy or a trade paperback copy of Nashville Naughty (US addresses only for the paperback) or an eBook copy of Cuffed on the release day. (International) Enter through the Rafflecopter below and good luck!

Cuffed, My Favorite Fantasy - Coming Oct 1!

Excerpt: 

He broke the kiss as suddenly as he'd instigated it and stared right into my eyes. His were flinty and hard, but darker now with desire. Desire for me.

"Turn around."

"What--"

"Do it." the tone in his voice left no room for argument, and frankly with my nipples already hardened to painful little points begging for his touch, I wasn’t in the mood to argue.

I turned around and instantly felt the familiar bite of police-issue handcuffs click around both wrists, trapping me.

I twisted around. "What the hell are you doing, Ridgeway? Is this some kind of joke?"

“Does it look like I’m laughing?”

What he was doing was unbuttoning his shirt. Once that was done, he removed his belt and set it onside the front seat of his cruiser through the open window.

He shrugged out of his shirt leaving him in just the regulation white t-shirt and his stiff blue pants. The t-shirt clung to his flat belly and seemed to barely contain his biceps. He could do underwear commercials, I decided. If the whole cop thing didn’t work out.

Travis held my gaze as he tugged the t-shirt over his head and tossed it aside. My mouth went dry even as other parts of me went wet.

God, he was something to look at.

“No, you don’t look like you’re laughing,” I said as I wet my dry lips. “You look like you’re about to get naked.”


Watch for the second book in the My Favorite Fantasy Series.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Author Honey Jans, Small Town Girl - Writer of Spicy Hot Books!

Ready for a taste of Honey? 

Ride a Cowboy, Save a Horse

Savanna Brown returns to Wyoming to save the reputation of the cowboy she ran away from on their wedding night. She makes the ranch owner an offer he can’t refuse if he wants to hang onto his ranch. She’ll pretend to come back to him until the talk dies down, then she’ll be on her way. Rafe Halliday is thrilled that his plan to lure his bride back to his place has worked. Now all he has to do is focus on getting sexy Savanna back into his bed where he figured their links of passion, love, and sex will complete their bond. But will love happen with evil forces trying to tear them apart? To find out lasso a copy of, “Save a Horse; Ride a Cowboy,” today. It’s sure to singe your lariat.

On Amazon 

Rescuing a Runaway Bride

 Samantha Logan is a runaway bride. Jake Ramsey is a PI on a stakeout. When they meet in the dark after midnight all their formerly suppressed desires explode. Samantha so needs to prove her sexiness after finding her fiancée in the sack with another woman and Jake has wanted his bosses daughter for years. But will the fire burn out when she finds out he’s here to arrest her brother? To find out come along on the thrill ride as they battle her kinky ex-fiancée, espionage, and each other. Will Jake be able to rescue this runaway bride? 

On Barnes & Noble 

Twice in a Blue Moon

BDSM Werewolf Paranormal
Series: Blue Moon Magic; Previous Book: By the Blue Moon, Next Book: Never in a Blue Moon

Charity Langford thinks her hormones have finally driven her around the bend. She cannot stop thinking about sex. She wants it night, day, and all of the minutes in between. Thing is, Charity is a virgin. A thirty-two-year-old virgin. She's also a werewolf, but she doesn't know it, and it's her first heat that's driving her mad.

But the middle daughter of Charles Langford and director of IT at Langford and Langford can't chase tail like a bitch in heat. She has an image to uphold. Desperate, she finds an online adult site, and uses sessions with her CyberLaird to get her rocks off and keep her mind on business.

PI Lucas Kendahl is an Alpha half-breed, a wolf without a pack. And after Charles Langford's Elites rescue him from captivity by the Betas, he owes Charles a favor. Like it or not, he's to take Charity as his mate -- and protect her from the Betas after her and her sisters. Fortunately, he likes it a lot. The pheromones Charity gives off are the sweetest form of torture for an unmated male; he's been masquerading as her Cyberlaird, but he can't wait to get his hands -- and everything else -- on her.

On Amazon & B&N  

Click here to see more of Honey's books.

BIO:
Honey Jans lives in a small Midwestern town with her husband and true inspiration. She is a born romantic with an extraordinarily vivid yet kinky imagination.

In February 2005, Honey was overjoyed when "The Gift" became a #1 best seller at Whiskey Creek Press. Then in July, the list went up and "April Love" was at the top, "The Commander's Club" climbed the charts and hit #1 in September, and again in December, Honey was positively delighted. "The Gift" was also a finalist in the 2006 EPPIE Awards Contest and she couldn't be happier.

In her spare time, Honey enjoys lounging under a shade tree and sipping a cool drink while reading a good book. Her talents and interest are not limited to Romance, Erotica or printed words. Honey is also an artist, with an amazing talent that she inherited from her mother. She lives life to the fullest traveling whenever she can, frequently taking tropical vacations and Caribbean cruises with her husband.

Honey hopes her erotic tales add spice and reading pleasure to your life.

Web site / Amazon Author Page / Books on B&N / Twitter

Sadly We Announce a Change in Our Services - Book Reviews

Due to an overwhelming requests of book reviews, A Naughty Reader's Boudoir will no longer be accepting book review requests. Starting October 1st, we will feature a resource page of Book Review Sites for authors to contact a book reviewer directly.

This will give authors a variety of book reviewers to match with their book(s) genre.

Happy Writing and Reading!
Brenda and Tonya

A Chat with Mindi Ferrari, Author of Sinful Writings

From Sunday to Thursday, we featured Mindi's books. Today we chat with Mindi to learn more about the author behind the books.

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

Mindi: Let see, not sure to put this as a personal question or just share something personal.  All of my books and everything I write I always try to think honestly and about readers’ feelings and emotions. It’s the same for my poetry, there are so many of us out there, me included that like to read stuff that makes either something click in our minds, takes us to the past, or really hits our heart enough that we reread the same thing fifty times. I strive to show my readers that I think and feel just like them.

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

Mindi: I have read since I was a toddler and honestly for me it was reading all these horror stories and wanting to create my own world and bring the things I imagined or my personal experiences to life.

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

Mindi: “Sinful Writings” It’s a collection of all my poetry and some shorts that I finally decided to put together and share with the world. There’s so many personal poems that I felt I wrote that so many readers could say “wow I feel that exact way” or even ones that definitely turn you on. So to me there was no option but to make a book and self publish it!

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

Mindi: No I do not; I always felt my real name was cool enough.

Naughty Reader’s: You do have a cool name! What types of hero or heroine do you like best?

Mindi: I like either one to have that edge, the asshole quality that makes women drop too their knees or daydream about him, and that female that makes the man whimper and beg to be apart of her life. I realized in all of my stories the main character is an assassin, so for me the tough talking, take no shit man or female is best.

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

Mindi:  My day consists of hearing these voices from the characters I create and them telling me what to do and sorting out everything to try and get it on the paper. I often find myself so busy that sitting down and writing is almost impossible. I think most writers can agree that a lot of us have ADD or ADHD and sitting down to get stuff down is really hard because we have such wild imaginations and think too much. But writing is what I love more than breathing.

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

Mindi: My first two were paranormal which I love that genre most, one of my releases is a contemporary romance which is way different to write but again loved it. Like I said though, all my main characters are Assassins.

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

Mindi: About 6 months, depending on my kids and how much they let me get done. lol

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

Mindi: To concentrate and edit yes, but to write no, I can write anywhere.

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

Mindi: I try to go for the odd names. Like in Wicked Games Sorrow is my female main character and Vengeance is my male. But it’s always the first name that comes to mind and I never second guess myself.

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?

Mindi: After, definitely after, and even them there’s no one that matches exactly to the picture in my head.

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

Mindi: Usually Las Vegas, everything happens right there and it’s where I’m from. I like to pick places I know very well.

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

Mindi: At this moment I’m still working on Midnight Assassins 2, its Jude’s story and really dark compared to the first and cant wait to get it out there.

Naughty Reader’s: Where can readers find out more about you and your books?

Mindi: www.mindiferrari.com and anywhere eBooks are sold. I have every single link on my books page on my website.

Mindi's soon to be release title with Secret Craving Publishing

Visit the post featuring three of Mindi's book here.

Meet Mindi Ferrari; Blogger, Poet and Sinful Writer!

Mindi Ferrari
Paranormal & Contemporary Romance Author

BIO

Raised in Las Vegas, Nevada I've always had a passion for reading and writing. Since I was 10 years old I dreamed of writing horror novels. That dream quickly ended when I realized boys and girls were supposed to not only get along but they were so supposed to fall in love and live happily ever after.

I've taken just about every course college had to offer, majoring in criminal justice, and minoring in elementary education. I ended up opening my mind to a world with so much diversity that it would enable me to write about different genres, giving my characters a depth that only I could describe. Writing Romance novels is the one thing I enjoy more than life itself.

Web site - Blog - Twitter

Mindi's latest release Sinful Writings

On Amazon and Smashwords

A collection of sinfully erotic short stories & poetry collection for your wicked desires.

Wicked Games

 

On Amazon and B&N

 

Sorrow's reaping skills go above and beyond any other Reaper that has lived, yet she fights with the memory of her father’s death and tries desperately to search for his killer. Signing over her soul to do the Heaven’s dirty work she ends up running into a man who she remembers as trying to kill her and her family. The man she hates just might end up becoming the man she needs to fight this deadly war that’s brewing.

Vengeance is a trained assassin that falls madly in love with the one woman he was supposed to kill decades ago. Searching for most of his life and traveling all over the world to find her he ends up losing all hope. That is until the two meet from what they thought was a chance encounter but was really a set-up.

Four dangerously sexy Horsemen are the only ones cast down to earth too fight the apocalypse that’s nearing. Each Angel has a skill and each character tested beyond measures, will the fate of a human be left in the hands of the underworld, or will Vengeance and Sorrow find a way to help the Angels.

Coming Soon 2012!

With Secret Cravings Publishing

 

Dark Days 

 

 
When Lorelei met Lee she had to admit that she never would have thought that it would have turned into something; a romance author after all never usually finds love, they tend to believe it only exists in their stories. As the days go on she realizes that he was the only man to ever make her love everything life has to offer, including him. That is until reality hits home and she realizes that she may just have to fight even harder to keep a hold of the man she knows is meant for her.

Lee is not a man that cares for many people, so when Lorelei comes along he finds himself falling for her in all the worst ways and ends up feeling like his his life is about to explode. A Navy Seal sworn to uphold his duty, his limits are tested when he has to leave for an assignment, only to find out that assignment has everything to do with Lorelei. Lee resigns his soul with Dark Covert Operations, and tells Victor, his CO, that he will deliver the one man that has always stood in the way of his love for Lorelei.

Lee’s hope to save Lorelei is hanging by a thread. And Lorelei’s hope for life is slim to none. Lee will do whatever it takes to save the women he fought so hard to stay away from.

 

Sinful Writings

leave your inhibitions at the door! 

 

To learn about Mindi's books click here.