One thing I am always asked is where my inspiration comes from. The other one is, but how does it work, really? Trying to explain to a non-writer that I simply follow the voices in my head always has me looking over my shoulder nervously, in case they call the men in the white coats, and cart me off to the mental asylum.

I suppose it must sound strange to someone, who hasn’t experienced it. Even hubby had a hard time getting his head round the fact that my characters are real people in their own right, who I have regular arguments with. He is used to me muttering now, when I write, or telling him about a particularly stubborn hero, who will simply not do as he’s told. I don’t know why I even try to argue with them to be honest. They always win!

Arguing just means they’re going into a sulk and stop talking to me, and then what do I do? Well, I go and catch up on my ever growing TBR pile. Never fails to get the voices back.

So, inspiration—where does it come from? Anything and anywhere would be the answer to that one.  A lot of my ideas come to me in dreams. I have dreamt entire scenes before now. The bath is another place to shut my eyes and let my mind wander. Sometimes it’s a picture, an overheard conversation, a newspaper article, even my children.

Whole parts of Too Hot To Handle were inspired by my then three year old. I smile to myself now when I read them, his little sayings forever memorized.

The other big inspiration for Too Hot To Handle was found in True Blood. I’m a huge fan of the series and I’d already used Eric for the hero in my Erotic romance Scandinavian Scandal, so when I first thought about Alex Giovanni, Alcide popped into my head.

I’m sure you can see how he would be inspirational right? 

I knew he needed a strong, fiery heroine to stand up to him and his interfering Mamma, so Kitty popped into my head. I wasn’t entirely sure about Alex’s profession. Originally this story was first set in an office.  Then I thought about setting it in Italy and Kitty was an au-pair. And then I was early for school pick up time one day. I sat in my car, waiting for the fire engine to leave, after one of their educational visits, and I observed the interaction between some of the staff and the firefighters, and I giggled to myself. Something about firefighters that turns grown women into giggling school girls…

Now there was a story just begging to be written, so Alex became a firefighter and Kitty a school teacher and the rest is beautiful history. Being a panster the story took on a life of its own, and Alex’s Mamma, well you have to read the book. She undergoes something of a journey herself and is a constant through the series of the Giovanni Clan. I’m still toying with the idea of giving Stella Giovanni her own book.

So, there you have it, a little insight into how this story came about. I can’t always pinpoint my inspiration this precisely, because an idea can hit me out of nowhere and with no warning. My upcoming Naughty Fairytale with Breathless Press, for instance, just grabbed hold of me one day and I sat down to write and couldn’t stop until it was done.

And with Too Hot To Handle too, once I started writing it, there was no stopping me, until Kitty and Alex had their HEA. Because it has to be a HEA. I couldn’t write a story without one.

Blurb:

When firefighter Alex Giovanni returns to his old neighborhood to fulfill family obligations, he is reunited with the woman inhabiting his dreams. The sexy siren ran out on him after one explosive night many years ago. Hiding behind her sensible clothes she portrays the perfect image of Miss Prim and Proper and Alex vows to unlock the passionate woman he remembers. Mixing business with pleasure has never been so much fun.

Kitty Jenkins’ orderly life gets turned upside down when Alex walks into her school. Their passion filled night four years ago has left her with a secret that threatens to tear them apart. Giving into Alex is out of the question, regardless of how much her body craves his touch.

When secrets spill and disaster strikes, can their passion turn into love?

Excerpt (Adult-rated, 18+):

Kitty’s heart beat a strange staccato against her breastbone. What had possessed her to slip back into her school girl outfit, she would never know. Yet here she was, dressed like some third-rate hooker, about to embark on a one night stand. Taking a deep, fortifying breath, she knocked on the door of Alex’s hotel room. All was quiet on the other side, and she was just about to turn round when the door opened; and Kitty’s greeting stuck in her throat.

Dressed in nothing but low riding jeans, Alex smiled at her, and she hastily wrenched her eyes upwards from the incredible abs on display. Covered with a light dusting of chest hair that trailed down to his jeans, they would give any model a run for his money, and Kitty swallowed. Dressed he was bad enough, but like this he was breathtaking, and judging by that lazy smile he knew it, too.

“Room service around here just keeps on getting better.” Alex’s husky voice raised goose bumps on her exposed skin. “Coming in?”

He hooked one finger under her chin and tugged the end of her shirt tails with the other hand, forcing her to take a step toward him.

“I-I shouldn’t be here, really. I’m not sure why I’m even here.” Kitty mumbled the words, and heat spread into her cheeks.

Alex merely smiled and pulled her closer still. “Liar, we both know why you’re here. Question is, my naughty little girl, will you step through the door and expand your curriculum?” Alex’s heated whispers against her ear sent her heart into overdrive, and she leant into his warmth.  His clean, male scent wrapped itself round her senses, and her stomach flip-flopped in delicious anticipation. It had been so long since any man had held her. That had to be the reason for her immediate reaction to this man.

“Well, Sir, that all depends what you have in mind, because I have been very naughty.”

Alex went very still at her breathy statement, and Kitty bit her lip. Has she read this wrong? Was he not up for a little role-play? She hesitantly raised her eyes to his face to read his expression, and the heat in his gaze scorched her skin.

“So, I’ve heard. Come here, and take your punishment.” His deep voice had dropped several octaves, and he grabbed her by the wrist and spun her into the room. The door clicked shut, the sound loud in the quiet room, and before she could even blink, he had her pinned against the wall. One jeans clad thigh spread her legs wide, and he raised her hands high above her head, whilst his other hand blazed a trail of heat along her exposed tummy. His mouth claimed hers in a bruising kiss, and she opened to his quiet demand automatically. His tongue found hers in an erotic dance that left her jelly-legged, breathless, and grateful for his big body holding her up against the wall.

He groaned his approval when she kissed him back, and he deepened the kiss, his fingers slowly slipping south, until they dipped under the elastic of her thong.

“My, you are a naughty girl. What have we here?”

He chuckled into her neck, and Kitty gasped when he thrust one finger into her wet core.

“So wet already, and we’ve only just started.” He flicked her clitoris once, and the slight pain caused a renewed burst of moisture to coat his fingers as he inserted another finger into her and found her g-spot. Kitty moaned into his shoulder as sensations built deep inside her core, and he licked himself down the column of her throat towards her breast. She screamed when he bit one nipple through the shirt and bra and thrust her hips at him, desperate to reach the release his talented fingers were driving her toward.

“Not so fast. You’re being punished, remember.”

Alex smiled and withdrew his fingers.  He licked each digit in turn, murmuring his approval and then stepped back, his heated gaze roaming over her body. Kitty clenched her thighs together in a vain effort to relieve the hot ache in her pussy.

“Spread your legs, naughty girl.” Alex growled the demand, and Kitty’s eyes widened at the steely determination she saw in his face. “You will not come until I give you permission. Do you hear me?”

“Yes.”  Good God, does that porn star voice really belong to me?

Alex’s eyes narrowed, and Kitty automatically dropped her gaze. She licked her lips, seeing the huge erection straining the flies of his jeans. Oh my. He was clearly as turned on as she by their little game. But how far would he take this? And did she trust him enough to find out?

“Yes, what?” His deep voice held an edge of steel, and she bit back her moan. That voice alone would send her over the edge. Who’d have thought a little role-play could be so erotic?

“Yes, Sir.”

“Good girl. Now strip – slowly.”

Alex’s voice brooked no argument, and Kitty hastened to comply. She fumbled with the tails of her blouse until Alex stepped forward and ripped the thing clean off her.

“Not that slowly.”

His eyes wicked, he unhooked her bra and sent that, too, flying. He whistled his approval as her breasts fell free. He cupped each mound in turn, and spun her around and toward the double bed, which took up one side of the hotel room. The slap on her ass took her by surprise, and she yelped. He soothed the sting with his large hand massaging her ass cheeks, and he chuckled into her neck.

His fingers once again dipped into her wet folds, and she froze when he inserted one digit, slick with her juices, into her anus.  Heaven help her, that felt way too good. Heat spread across her skin, and Alex bit into her earlobe, as his fingers continued their erotic dance in and out of her forbidden passage, and her body betrayed her arousal by a renewed gush of moisture between her legs.

“That’s my naughty girl.” Alex’s erratic breathing into her neck pitched her own arousal sky high, and she put up no resistance when he urged her onto the bed, his naked, warm, torso heating her back.

“Get on all fours for me.”

Purchase Links:

Evernight

Amazon

ARe

Bookstrand

Find me here:

Web

Blog

Twitter

Facebook

Many thanks, Jennifer, for letting me crash here today.

Jen:  How did you get started writing?

CW:  I wrote my first story when I was about ten.  It was a romance about me and a little boy I liked.  I also wrote some very depressing poetry.  I decided that poetry was not for me and stuck to romance.

Jen:  What genre(s) do you write in, and why?

CW:  I have a historical western romance and a sci-fi romance out now.  The sci-fi is the first in a series.  I write in these genres because they are the ones whose stories reached out to me.  The western was the first book I wrote and was inspired by my parents’ love story.  It’s set on the same ranch that they met on in 1941.  My book is set in 1885, so it’s not their love story.  My dad was a cowboy and trapper but to the best of my knowledge was never a bounty hunter.

The sci-fi series was done because of dreams I had when I was a teenager.  I knew I was a princess from Alpha Centauri.  There was no way I could belong to the crazy family I had.  Of course, I adore that crazy family now.

Jen:  What movie best describes your life?  Why?

CW:  I think Romancing the Stone best describes my life.  It’s just one crazy misstep after another, but I got my happy ending.

Jen:  What inspired your latest book?

CW:  Centauri Twilight is the second book in the Centauri series.  I used to dream that I was a princess from Alpha Centauri, that was the basis for Centauri Dawn, book 1 in the series.

Book 2 is much darker.  Lara is the twin sister of Audra in book 1.  Lara has been a sex slave since she was a child.  Having escaped, she’s now an outlaw and working to free the rest of the slaves who are now her people.

Jen:  What is your favorite part of writing?

CW:  My favorite part is what I call the ‘puking’ phase.  Just getting it all down on paper for the first time.  You just let if flow out of you, not caring, for the moment, if it is good or bad.

(Jen: LOL, I love that description!).

Jen:  What is your least favorite part of writing?

CW:  Editing is my least favorite.  I’m constantly questioning myself and my work.  Changing it, correcting it, putting it back to what it was and starting it all again.  It’s never good enough for me.

Jen:  What is your next project and when will it be released?

CW:  My next book is called Centauri Midnight and is the third book in the Centauri series.  It will be released in January 2012.

Jen:  What is your typical day like?

CW:  I don’t know that I have a typical day.  I’m lucky enough to be able to write full time.  I was laid off in June and am taking advantage of it to write while I look for another job.

Jen:  How much time do you spend promoting your books? What works best for you?

CW:  I spend a lot of time promoting my books.  A minimum of two hours per day.  Usually more but it is in 15 or 20 minute increments throughout the day, not in one big chunk.  Between Facebook, Twitter, blogging, putting announcements on loops, etc., I spend a lot of time doing it.  So far, blogging seems to get me the biggest bump in  my sales.

Jen:  How has your experience with self-publishing been?

CW:  My experience has been wonderful.  I highly recommend it for everyone out there who doesn’t want to be constrained by the “big” traditional publisher.  For everyone who wants to write from their heart and not according to the industry rules and constraints, self publishing is the only way to go.

Jen:  Where do you get the ideas for your stories?

CW:  I have ideas from everywhere.  My sci-fi series is from my dreams as a teenager.  My western was inspired by my parents own meeting and love story.  I place Tame A Wild Heart about 60 years earlier than when my parents met but the setting on a ranch is the same.  My dad was a real cowboy and my mom was what we would call a nanny now.  They were called nursemaids then.

Jen:  What advice do you have for other authors wanting to self-publish?

CW:  Go for it.  It’s a wild ride but totally worth it.

Please join me in thanking Cynthia for visiting with us today by leaving a comment on her interview. You’ll go in the draw to WIN a paperback or digital copy of Centauri Dawn, book 1 in her Centauri series, or Centauri Midnight.

Cynthia Woolf writes fiction with both futuristic and historical settings. Whether set on the planet Centauri or outside Creede, Colorado, her books are fast paced, romantic and suspenseful. Find out more at Cynthia’s Website, or connect with her on Facebook or Twitter.

Tame a Wild Heart, Centauri Dawn and Centauri Twilight are available at Amazon, Smashwords, Barnes & Noble and All Romance ebooks.

They have all been a big part of my life this past year

I’m one of the featured authors over at The Romance Studio, and I’d love it if you popped by to take a look! See how – and why – a busy working mum can find time in the day to pen erotic romance stories.

I’m pretty sure of the answer, actually. But I want to put it down here on my own blog, where I can see it clearly in black and white (well, technically white on purple) and hopefully, I can face it more directly that way.

Fear. Fear of failure. Fear of having “lost it”. Fear that this time around, I’ll get a rejection and everyone will know I just fluked it before. But that’s what the second one was for, wasn’t it? To prove to everyone (make that, myself) that it wasn’t just a one-off. And truth be told, I liked Pandora’s Gift even more than Seducing Serena. (Is it okay for an author to have a favourite book? Seems kind of disloyal to my firstborn, Serena, but I love her too not least because she was my first!). Its just that the writing seemed to flow much more easily the second time. It felt right.

But I stopped writing for a bit. Worked a day job, ran an internet business at night, ran teenage kids around all over the place, sold a house, moved, got sick, got better, got sick again. Hmm. Well. Now that I’m finally on the mend, the business is sold, the house is unpacked and the kids’ activities are relatively under control, I’m gonna give myself a piece of advice:

If you’re a writer, you write. Only 500 words at a time if thats what it takes to make it achievable. When, and only when, the story is finished, you edit. Then you think about submitting and all the emotional angst that comes with it. Not before. For today, just write, damn it!

I’m going to print that last sentence out and put it on the cork board above my computer. Hope it works!

Jennifer Lynne writes erotic romance and is published by Red Sage. Her first novella, Seducing Serena, appeared in the popular Secrets anthology (Secrets Volume 28 Sensual Cravings). Her second, Pandora’s Gift, is available as an e-book from Red Sage.

Meankitty interviews Cleo

Writer & Cat: Jennifer Lynne interview

Find out what Jennifer has to say about the felines in her fiction – such as Lancelot in the recent Red Sage Secrets Volume 28 novella, Seducing Serena – and what part her own cat Cleo plays in the overall writing process.

Princess Cleo’s interview will be available later in the week!

Are you a cat person, a dog person, or something completely different? Read Meankitty’s interview and let us know!

Happy reading!

Jennifer Lynne

2. I don’t like ice cream or chocolate but I do love coffee, cheese, salt & vinegar crisps and seafood. Not all at once.

3. I got my head stuck in a hole in a cave at the beach when I was a child and now have a fear of not being able to escape enclosed spaces. For half an hour I thought the tide was going to come in and drown me.

4. My favourite colour is green. It reminds me of nature, large rambling parks and the hills around Melbourne and helps me feel at peace.

5. I know how to make a pair of spectacles, and how to read the prescription in a lens.

6. I sold Avon while at high school and used to go into strangers’ houses after school to teach them makeup tricks. Would I let either of my daughters do that now? No way.

7. My aunt went to Sean Connery’s BAFTA party and I helped her choose the dress she wore!

8. No matter how much time I spend in the sun my legs never turn brown. Even fake tan fails on my legs. Why?

9. Worst hair day ever – while having my hair dyed the hairdresser became ill and left for some time. When she returned my hair was dead white. So she tried to fix it by adding auburn. It came out bright orange. Seriously bright. I cried all the way home. They couldn’t fix it for two weeks.

10. Favourite holiday destination – Port Douglas & Palm Cove in Far North Queensland. Hoping to get back there one day soon.

My favourite Twitter post recently was the one from author Jeaniene Frost, posting a link to  her latest Night Huntress book, where you actually get to read some of it online. Way cool!

There are too many demands, none of which leave much space for writing.

Until recently, I just made the time anyway, and whether it was for half an hour while the girls were at diving training, or at 11.30pm when the costume business had been put to bed, I always tried to write for at least a short while every day.

So what has changed? Lately, every time I sit down at the computer, I am racked by a fit of ‘the guilts’. I should be putting on another load of washing to get ahead for tomorrow. I should be checking out our costume competition on the web, designing a new Google ad, analysing visitor trends to the Costume Illusions website, reviewing the checklist for tomorrow’s seminar to ensure I haven’t forgotten anything, ringing my mum, feeding the cat… the list goes on and on.

So I open my work in progress, look at it for a couple of minutes, then sigh and close it down.

On my priority list, writing has become firmly entrenched at the bottom.

But as corny as it sounds, without writing I’m simply not complete. And I’ve decided it is time to take back control of my life. Rein it in just a little, so that the part of me that needs to write, can.

This blog is the first step in that process, and from here I have a whole afternoon ahead of me. The significant other has been banished back to his house, the children are out with friends, the family are on notice not to call, the washing is done  and Costume Illusions… well, its Sunday, damn it, and everyone deserves a day off.

So I’m closing now with the blog, and I’m going from here to open my work in progress, and to keep it open, for as long as it takes to get back into the swing of writing…

That sense of guilt can go to Hell.

I am a writer.