I’m so pleased to have Barrie Abalard here today. Her new book, Hot to Trot, was just released from LooseId.

HOT TO TROT by Barrie Abalard
ISBN: 978-1-59632-665-1
Buy link: http://www.loose-id.com/detail.aspx?ID=695
Excerpt link: http://www.loose-id.com/BAHTHex.aspx

Exes Patti North and Dylan Decker adore each other. Her problem? He cheated. His problem? Her temper. Fixing things will take more than spankings and hot sex, though that’s a good start.

HOT TO TROT, set in the often funny-weird worlds of Boston high-tech and equestrian hobbyists, tells the story of two exes who still adore each other—and still annoy each other—more than any other twosome on the planet.

Where did you get the idea for your latest book?
I’m still trying to figure that out. HOT TO TROT was the first story I wrote that was longer than a short story—the idea came to me back in 2001. Obviously some parts of the story were inspired by my life, but the story itself just kind of appeared in my head one day, poof. It’s been a long road to publish this novel!

I’m what writers call a “pantster” (meaning, I don’t plot beforehand, I just start writing), so Patti and Dylan came to me first, along with the title. Because I was taking riding lessons at the time (and love horses), I added the horse element. And I was working a contract at a company whose products resembled the ones Patti documents in the book.

What do you like about erotic romance best?

I love that my heroines can be fully sexual and unashamedly kinky while falling in love with the man they’ve been looking for all their lives. I love that my heroes can be alpha and still enjoy pleasing a woman in bed. And I love, most of all, that I can write stories that are romantic yet very much true to life.

What’s your writing schedule like?
I am no good early in the morning, so these days I finally get to sleep past seven AM before I go to work. (Can you tell I love my day job?) My “girls” don’t like to write before noon, so I tend to promotional duties, email, errands, chores, and so on in the morning. (I used to do the same thing when I was a technical writer—my prime creative time was about eleven to four. I saved the beginning and end of the day for less creative tasks.) In the afternoon I write as many hours as I can keep my butt in the chair—usually at least three. Sometimes I do more chores when I run out of steam, creatively speaking, or sometimes I simply switch gears to another manuscript and work on that one for a while. I do put in long days.

I have a work-at-home part-time job in high tech. (I’d tell you who the company is, but I’d have to kill you. Seriously, I’m not supposed to broadcast it, at the request of the company.) Between the time I log at my high tech job, and the writing time and associated tasks like email and promo, I work six days a week, between nine and eleven hours a day. That’s real work time, not just sitting in the chair time. So it’s not all eating bonbons. On the other hand, the commute is short, and I can have breakfast/lunch/dinner whenever I feel like it. And I don’t have to go to meetings or answer the phone (I love the last part—I’m not much of a phone person)—or put up with the boss from hell!

What is your favorite part about writing a book? What do you dislike most?

My favorite part is always the first third of any book. My least-liked part is always the middle of the book—sometimes my girls run out of steam at this point, so the writing becomes a chore, and feels like pulling teeth. And the last third is sometimes sort of boring, because I know how it turns out and writing it all down is just too much like, well, work.

I have a very low boredom threshold—can you tell? But I am doing the work I am meant to do. I love every minute, even when it’s hard.

About Barrie
I have been writing and selling erotic romance for over twelve years under the pseudonyms Barrie Abalard, Miss Lee, and Belle. As of 2008, I’ve sold over eighty short stories, eight short novels/novellas, and one long novel. Loose-Id (http://www.loose-id.com), Amber Quill Press (http://www.amberheat.com), and Discipline and Desire (http://www.disciplineanddesire.com) carry my work.

When I lived in Boston, I was a jack-of-all-trades, mastering two: radio personality and technical writer/online help designer. I also did short stints as a taxi driver, clerical chartist for the Federal Reserve Bank, and temporary office worker for half a dozen companies. However, fiction writing is my first and longest-lived love. (If you can say that three times fast, you, too, might have a career in radio.)

I read widely, adoring a good story with quirky characters. Besides reading, I enjoy being around horses and cats, singing, creating new recipes, taking solitary road trips, and hanging with friends. I confess to being hopelessly addicted to the wonderfully-over-the-top television shows Boston Legal, House, Men in Trees, Ugly Betty, Desperate Housewives, and 24, among others. I write comic romance under my real name, and my first release, Cover Me, is now available.

I’m married with a grown child. All three of us live in one of the Middle Atlantic states, along with two persnickety, high-maintenance cats. I believe that a woman should have a past that’s juicy enough to enjoy retelling in her old age. Not that I’m going to tell it here, mind you, and not that I’m old…

Barrie Abalard
…stories of love that hurts so good
http://www.barrieabalard.com
http://www.barrieabalard.blogspot.com
http://www.myspace.com/barriea

Mahaira Fatima just reviewed To Catch a Casanova over at Noveltalk. Thank you Mahaira for the fabulous review!

Luke finds himself in an awkward and difficult situation and the way he dealt with it totally blew my mind…I was so engrossed in the story that the first person narration didn’t bother me at all nor did the detailed M/M scene…The secondary characters played a pivotal role in changing the course of the story…Cherie is definitely going to win hearts and loads of new fans for the author. Ms. Scott captivated me with Cupid’s Kisses: To Catch a Casanova and I hope my account tempts you to get a copy of your own!

You can catch your copy at the Total E-bound website or on Fictionwise!

I’m over at Hitting the Hot Spot today talking about whether great sex is a condiment or the main course of erotic romance novels.

And if you pop over there, I’ve posted a great recipe for one of my favorite condiments!

I was tagged by jj Keller, one of my favorite authors, to answer this meme.

Six random facts about me:

First off…the rules…

a. Link to the person who tagged you.
b. Post the rules on your blog.
c. Write six random things about yourself.
d. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
e. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment at their blog.
f. Let your tagger know when your entry is up.

This is always harder than it seems. But I’m going to give it a try:

1. My favorite television show is: Medium (with Dexter, CSI, and Criminal Minds as close seconds)
2. My favorite book is: The Princess Bride
3. My favorite movie is: The Boyfriend School (if you want to know WHY I became a romance writer, watch the movie)
4. My favorite song is: Affirmation by Savage Garden
5. My favorite color is: Green
6. My favorite smell is: campfire smoke

Bonus question:

7. My favorite actor is: hunk of lust Keanu Reeves

Now…who to tag? Well, always the rebel, I’ll break the rules and NOT tag anyone in particular. If you want to take up the challenge, let me know and I’ll pop by to leave a comment.

Well, my body has been back in California for a week, but I think I’m still back in Canada. It’s been difficult getting back into the swing of things. My house is my own again with the departure of my in-laws, the kids are back on their school schedule, and I no longer have to share bandwidth with hundreds of college-aged computer programmers. So, why do I still feel so…blah?

I think it’s because the trip to Canada was the first time I’ve been alone with my husband for an extended period of time since the weekend we went to Laughlin, NV. and he proposed under the London Bridge. Our marriage resulted in an instant family (my daughter) and almost as soon as we’d tied the knot, we filled out paperwork to adopt “the boys”. Before our first wedding anniversary, we were a family of five with all the pandemonium (and love) that goes with it.

I can’t begin to tell you how wonderful it is to eat dinner without having to tell son number two to “Sit down”, “Just eat please”, and “Chew and swallow before you take another bite” interspersed with having to answer the myriad of “Why’s?” posed by son number one while trying to pry a sentence or two of conversation out of our teenager as “Fine”, “Yeah”, “I know”, and “Whatever” seem to be the extent of her vocabulary these days.

Caught up in the blues, I often forget how nice it is to not have to rely on an impersonal buzzer on the alarm clock to wake us up. Instead, we get seranaded most mornings at six o’clock with the theme songs for various shows by son number two. I’m also grateful that I’m now so sleep deprived I’m seldom plagued with the insomnia I suffered from only a few years ago. And despite being a teenager, my daughter and I still have a few things in common and to celebrate her good report card we’re going to the movies today to see “Horton Hears a Who” and then we’ll meet up with my husband and “the boys” for dinner out somewhere…

If you happen to be in the AV eating dinner tonight…I’ll apologize right now. We’ll be the the family with the two boys who won’t sit still to eat and the sullen teenager wishing she was sitting at a seperate table in a different restaurant.

But, I wouldn’t trade it for the world…

I had every intention of blogging each and every day from Banff…the spotty internet connection we had there dictated otherwise.

I’ve been back for a couple of days now. It’s wonderful to be home, but I miss the wonderful views, the walk into town, and room service. I also miss being able to type and think without the constant interruption of “Mom, I want….” But all in all, it’s good to be home.

As we walked into town from the Banff Springs Hotel, there was a bookstore. My husband always steered me to the other side of the road, knowing that if I went in there, we would go no further. I tried distracting him by pointing off into the distance and shouting “Oh, look, there’s a Grizzly Bear” “Moose!” and even, “Yeti” one day. He didn’t fall for it. As a result, we were able to buy lots of souveniers for our family and friends and ate at The Grizzly House.

I had a Buffalo Burger (bison actually) and my husband had steak fondue.
Now, I pictured your typical fondue dish (cheese with meat that you dip bread into). Instead, a very hot rock was delivered to our table with a pile of raw steak. These cubes were plopped onto the hot rock and cooked to the desired doneness (1 min rare, 2 min med rare, 3 min med, 4-5 min, med well). My husband likes his meat “dead”, so we cooked it the maximum time. The steak was then dipped into various sauces or hot chili ketchup. YUMMY! If you are ever in Banff, you have to try it. Plus, there are phones at the table and in the bathrooms! On the menu was a map of the restaurant tables and the phone number associated with the location. What fun.

The last day was bittersweet. We checked out early and then had two hours to wait for our shuttle. We walked into town one last time and went to the Whyte Museum of the Rockies. Then, as we walked back, my husband pointed me in the direction of the bookstore! Ecstasy!

I was tempted by all the bestsellers in the front, but instead, I made my way to the local shelf. I browsed books about Canada, Banff, and then a shelf of novels written by Canadian authors. There, I found a treasure.

Grizzly Lies by Eileen Coughlin of Calgary! The book is set in Banff and I read it on the airplane home. I couldn’t put it down. The author captured the flavor of Banff and mixed it up with suspenseful tale of murder, poaching, with a sprinkling of romance.

A dead body, a missing eccentric, severed bear paws, a hidden cache of ivory and a hunter on the prowl for revenge …. What secrets connect these bizarre events? Hellie MacConnell must venture into the conflicting worlds of conservation and big game hunting to find the answer before the killer finds her. Hellie retreats from troubled relationships in Toronto to the idyllic town of Banff, Alberta, where life is peaceful and nature abounds. But when Doc Rivard, her landlord and uncle, turns up dead and Hellie’s bear-loving neighbour Arthur Elliott disappears, Hellie finds herself at the heart of a murder investigation. Is Arthur a dangerous extremist who will do anything to protect “his” grizzly bears? Is someone after Hellie, too? And what dark history is shared between Arthur and a visiting Texan hunter? Set in the rugged landscape of the Rockies, Grizzly Lies charms with small-town legend and chills with dark secrets. As Hellie delves deeper into the mystery of her landlord’s death, she must learn to listen to the stories of others, heal herself, and let go of the past

All this week, I’m going to be blogging from Banff. Today, I’ll link you over to the RomEroticaWriters blog to find out where we’re staying!

I’ve been interviewed! To read all about me, click here.

Do you admire Cruella DeVille?
Does the evil stepmother in Cinderella make you want to pull out a mop and bucket for your own kids?
How about Ursula, the Sea Witch. Doesn’t she just want to make you clap your tentacles?

Disney seems to have the corner on evil villainesses. But darn it, I want a piece of the action — and here’s your chance to help me.

I am currently in the throes of writing the sequel to Postcards from the Dead…(it’s title will be Phone Calls from the Dead and it’s even spookier than Postcards!) I need to name the villainess — this woman works at an airline as a reservation clerk…but she’s luring people to their deaths unless Rosalie Hopkins and Tavon Williams can stop her and her evil cohort, Manuel (Manny) Tsangas.

So, help me out here…give me a name (your or someone you, ahem, love) that will make a reader’s blood run cold! The winner will…you guessed it….name my villainess AND be named in the books dedication.

Just post your answers here….I’ll collect names until the end of the month and then announce the winner!

Thanks!

Brokeback with a Happy Ending

When the credits rolled up for Brokeback Mountain were you in tears? Denise Rossetti was.

Then she got mad – two souls who were destined to be together, so much love, so totally wasted. All because of the society those men lived in. But what if a similar situation occurred in another place, at another time? In a world Rossetti knew well? Her writer’s brain started churning…

Enter Stage Center – Fortitude McLaren, a hard-bitten mercenary who’s had a gutful of mud and blood and death. Brought up in the bigoted society of the Straight Church on the fantasy world of Phoenix.

Enter Stage left – Griff, acrobat and knife-thrower, lithe and athletic, a man with a gift for friendship, for caring.

Put the players together and you get something like this…

When Fortitude McLaren joins the Ten Nations Fair as a roustabout, he’s shocked and angered by his hunger for Griff, a circus performer. Fort regards manlove with indifference and contempt.

Not for him. Never for him.

Although Fort fights with everything in him, Griff affects him like no one else. It’s not just his strong, supple body, the big mercenary is irresistibly drawn by the openhearted friendship the other man offers so freely.

Fort may have found a friend, but the cruel memories of his childhood are the greatest enemy of all. When a job for Jan the Aetherii puts Griff in danger, Fort discovers what’s really at risk—everything he is and everything he’s ever believed in. To save Griff’s life and preserve his own sanity, Fort must not only fight the battle in his soul, he must win it.

STRONGMAN

Book 3 in the Phoenix Rising series
Publisher: Ellora’s Cave
ISBN: 978-1419914973
Genre : Male/Male / Fantasy
Book Length: Novel
Release Date: 21 March 2008

To buy: http://www.ellorascave.com/AuthorsBooks.asp?AuthorCode=DRos
For an excerpt: http://www.deniserossetti.com/strongman. html
Denise Rossetti’s website: http://www.deniserossetti.com/
Under and Over, Denise Rossetti’s blog: http://www.deniserossetti.com/blog/
Denise Rossetti’s MySpace: http://myspace.com/deniserossetti

Here’s a little bit more information about Denise Rossetti –
When Denise Rossetti was very young, she had an aunt who would tell her the most wonderful fairy stories — all completely original. Denise grew up, as little girls do, but the love of stories has never left her.

These days, she lives in a comfortable, messy old house in the Australian suburbs and writes erotic fantasy and paranormal romance. Her work is intense, lyrical and excitingly different. One reviewer called it “erotically intelligent, intelligently erotic”.

Rossetti is currently published by Ellora’s Cave and Avon Red. THE FLAME AND THE SHADOW, the first book in her erotic fantasy quartet for Berkley Ace, will be released on 4th November 2008. She has also a story appearing in the Berkley Heat anthology, UNLACED (2nd December 2008), together with authors Jasmine Haynes, Jaci Burton and Joey W. Hill. She’s thinking of changing her name to Jenise to go with the flow.

Rossetti is small and noisy and dreadfully uncoordinated. She tends to wave her hands around a lot, which can be unfortunate if the tale she’s telling happens to have explosions in it!

Interview Questions

What advice would you give to aspiring erotic romance writers?
Hoo boy! There’s SO MUCH advice out there – and really, I shouldn’t add to it! But I guess I do have a couple of observations to make, can’t help myself. *sigh*

The first is that if you want to write erotic romance, you must be a WRITER, first and foremost. If you don’t get that right, not all the graphic sex scenes in the world will save you. The second is that you need to be completely at ease with whatever sex you’re writing. If you’re out of your comfort zone it will show. There’s a whole lot more in an article I wrote called Some Write it Hot: Musings and Myths about Erotic Romance http://www.romanceaustralia.com/articles/rossetti–erotica.htm

Back to being a WRITER. If you’re an aspiring author, take it or leave what I’m going to say, okay? Because if you take on board too many opinions and “systems” and bloody RULES, you’ll end up second-guessing yourself – every word, every phrase. I really abhor “how to write” books, even though many of them are both logical and insightful. But that’s because my head doesn’t work that way. You do what’s best for you, right?

Always remember that reading is a totally subjective experience and so is writing. One person’s “desert island keeper” is another’s “wall-banger”. Therefore, it’s essential that you stay true to yourself, and to your “voice”. Your take on the world is unique, no one writes quite like you. Celebrate your voice!

I know it may be unPC to say this, but I actually believe in talent. Yes, OF COURSE, hard work and persistence is important and will help you to improve, but there’s a “spark” you have to have in the first place.

After that, the only way to learn to write is to write! There’s no more magic to it than that. So, for what it’s worth, here’s my advice –

1. Write
2. Read
3. Trust your gut.
4. Write some more
5. Read lots more
6. Then write more and more and more and…
7. WRITE!

See what I’m getting at? *smile* You need to write in order to gather enough experience to know what the “rules” are so you can break them. You need to be confident enough in your own voice that you can accept constructive criticism with genuine gratitude.

What’s your writing schedule like?
A routine – if only… *sigh* The problem with my entire life is that I have next to no routine. And it would help so much if I did. I’m the Queen of Procrastination ruling over the Land of Clutter. I’m catastrophically untidy, to the point of losing things I really do need. As far as I’m concerned, putting something “in a safe place” is a recipe for disaster!

When I do have a writing day, I fluff around until lunchtime at least, doing emails, surfing and stuff. Heck, I don’t even know what it is that I do, except waste time. I usually start writing after lunch and if I’m serious, I have to move the laptop from the study to the bedroom because the wireless access doesn’t work in there. I sit on the bed with one of those tray table things over my legs. The dog lies on the floor and the cat lies on me. Everyone’s happy.

Funnily enough, despite the fact that I’m so careless with physical objects, I’m a very slow, very deliberate writer. I don’t often get carried away and have words simply flow out of my fingers. I have to dig for every single one, which means I need to concentrate. I have a timer on the computer and I turn it for 45 minutes. When it goes off, I’m allowed to check my email. (Did I say I need a 12 step program?) It’s amazing how little I can write in that time. Around 5pm I have this incredible desire to doze off, but the cat comes in and head-butts me until I fix his dinner. The dog just grumbles. So I yawn and go on. By 8pm, I’m firing on all cylinders and if I’m on a roll, sometimes I go ’til after midnight.

What do you wear while you’re writing?
Most of the time I just want to be comfortable, but every now and then, I’ll fish out my special purple dress. It’s one of those pseudo-medieval numbers, with long sleeves, a scoop neck and a floor length skirt. I like the way it swishes. And if I’m having an especially difficult time, I’ll throw a shawl over my shoulders. It’s really a delicate, open-work baby blanket my grandmother knitted for me a very, VERY long time ago. *smile* It always reassures me that I’m loved and that I can do this.

If you could sit down with any of your characters for lunch, which would it be and why?
I guess you could be expecting someone quite different, but Trey (GIFT OF THE GODDESS) would be my first choice. I love all my men – heck, if I didn’t, you wouldn’t either – but I purely adore Trey. Always have. There’s something about him that just does it for me – the cheeky charm and quick wit, coupled with the absolute loyalty and commitment to those he loves. He’s so centred, so grounded. Then there’s what Anje thinks of as “his slim red-gold beauty”. But he’s all man and all warrior too.

Next would be Fledge (TAILSPIN). I’ve always thought how much I’d like to sit down and just talk with her over a coffee, listen to the stories she tells. It would be an honour to be considered her friend.

And Griff (STRONGMAN). I suspect I’d enjoy Griff’s company enormously. I’d ask him to teach me how to juggle. Or maybe throw a knife.

Surprised? I’m not sure I’d know what to say to pure alpha men like Brin, Jan or Fort. That much testosterone at close quarters and it’s quite possible I’d pass out! Mind you, I’d be happy to simply sit and gaze at Mirry (TAILSPIN) while he read passages from his encyclopedia. You can see what happened when I got a trifle too ambitious during our interview. Wasn’t pretty. http://www.deniserossetti.com/mirry.html

Do you have a “secret or private” drawer, box, shelf, etc. And, if you do, name five things in it.
Brace yourself! I actually have a three drawer bedside table. Five things? Okaaay…

1. A set of Tarot cards. Sadly, I’m too left-brained to let go and be truly intuitive with the Tarot, but I’m totally fascinated by it. I do use the cards for meditation and visualisation, even for plotting sometimes! I love my Robin Wood deck, it’s so beautiful, so rich in Pagan symbolism. http://www.robinwood.com/Catalog/Books/BookPages/RWTDeck.html

2. Writing stuff – pens and pencils, notepads, USB drive, backup CDs (not paranoid at all, oh no), dictionary and a thesaurus. The thesaurus is the New Oxford and it’s so huge (weighs 5.5 lbs!) that when I heave it onto the bed, My Beloved refers to it as the “co-respondent”.

3. The “smellies” – an oil burner, tea light candles and essential oils. Also a cigarette lighter. (No, I don’t smoke.) I love bergamot and lavender and rose and add a bit of lemongrass for mental stimulation when I’m writing.

4. My “comfort/inspiration” books. I have to have my own, of course, because they’re so precious to me – I print out the ones that are still in ebook. But I also have “Menage” by Emma Holly and “Natural Law” by Joey W. Hill, plus the occasional Georgette Heyer or whatever else I’m reading at the moment. Not that I have much time to read any more. *very deep sigh*

5. Music stuff – the radio/CD/Cassette player and CDs. Plus the remote control. Very handy.

6. The TMI things. You know what they are, because you have them too. And that’s all I’m going to say! *wicked grin* Oh, and spare batteries.

Hmm, that’s more than five, but hey, I have three drawers!

If you could be any animal for just a day, which one would you choose and why?
Hmm, that’s difficult. A pampered house cat? But then I’d have to be neutered. Nuh-uh!

I love tigers. To me they’re a symbol of all that is beautiful and fierce and wild. I love the power of a paw the size of a dinner plate. But the thought of living like a tiger? They’re such loners, which isn’t really me. I need regular cuddles! So, maybe not a tiger…

On the whole, I think I’d love to be a bird for the day, a powerful raptor with keen eyesight and long strong wings. A wedge-tailed eagle would do it. I saw one in the bush once, perched on a dead calf and its wingspan more than covered the poor little animal from nose to tail. Wow! I’d spend the day drifting on the thermals, feeling the wind under my wings, watching everything happening so far below, every tiny detail so clear. And I wouldn’t perch on any dead beasties.

I’ve always wanted to be able to fly. I can imagine so clearly stepping forward off a cliff or a building and taking smoothly to the air. Easy peasy. What a fabulous gift!

Guess you can see why I love Mirry and Jan (TAILSPIN) so much and why they’re so real to me!

Thanks for sharing Denise and I wish you much success with Strongman!