Huntress book 4, Blonde & Blue, releases next week! I’m having a trivia contest for current readers. Answer all five questions right and you’ll be entered to win a free ebook copy of Blonde & Blue. To sweeten the pot a little I’ll even throw in signed print copies of the first 3 Huntress books.

1. Alexa is older than Shaz. By how many years? 
2. What is the name of the gene condition that gives Kale two different coloured eyes? 
3. Jez is a shifter but not a wolf. What is she? 
4. What kind of car does Alexa drive? 
5. Arys ate his neighbour’s dog. What was its name? 

Contest Now Closed

Counting down to the August 2 release date of Huntress book 4, Blonde & Blue, I will be hosting a few give away contests. Whether you are new to the series or have read it all so far, there will be something for you.

New readers: Comment on this blog post and you will be entered to win a copy of book 1, Once Bitten in either ebook or print format.

Current readers: Already read the first three books? No problem. Comment here and you’ll be entered to win a free ebook copy of Blonde & Blue when it releases on August 2.

Please indicate in your comment which book you are entering for so I know if you are a new or returning reader. If you are new to the series and want to know more, please check out the book blurbs and excerpts by clicking each book cover on the right side of the page.

Winners, drawn at random, are Melissa for Once Bitten and Chandra for Blonde& Blue. Thanks to all who entered!

As an author who has been reading and writing since I was old enough to hold a book, I’ve had many influences over the years. There are so many writers out there that have inspired me in one way or another. Yet, the one who has inspired me the most has to be Joss Whedon. If you don’t know who that is, go Google his name, then slap yourself, then come back to this post.

Joss is a genius. At least to me he is. He’s done everything from writing to directing, producing and more. He’s known for several successful (and not so successful) works but the one that means the most to me is Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I’ll admit, in the beginning, I didn’t like Buffy and had a hard time understanding its mass appeal. And then I started to really pay attention.

Any devout Buffy fan will be aware of the genius of this show. For example, the foreshadowing of the character Dawn long before she ever made an appearance, among other things. But one thing I always loved the most about Joss was that he wasn’t afraid to hurt us. It may sound lame to non Buffy peeps but I’ve never cried over a TV show as many times as I have with Buffy. Silly? Lame? Cheesy of me? Perhaps. Or maybe I just saw the beauty in the pain.

Whedon was never above killing off his own characters, even though we loved them and so did he. Hell, he even killed Buffy herself and then let us sweat over it for three months in between seasons. And yes to this day I still cry when I watch The Gift.

I learned a lot from Joss in the sense that sometimes there is more power in the pain you inflict on your audience and more meaning for everyone involved than if you were to hand out the typical happy ending. It’s always easier to tie things up in a neat little package that leaves everyone happy. But does it leave them fulfilled? Do they take away as much meaning and emotion than they do if you were to pull the rug out from under them? I doubt it.

So happy belated birthday to Joss Whedon, a man who with a “cheesy high school vampire show” changed the way I look at writing. Some readers of my urban fantasy Huntress series may notice that I tend to write as if each chapter is a scene in a TV show rather than a book. I also find something special in the pain of my characters and hope that my readers see it too. I strive to bring more than mindless entertainment to my readers. I want to colour the pages in a rainbow of emotion and meaning.

“Passion, it lies in all of us, sleeping… waiting… and though unwanted… unbidden… it will stir… open its jaws and howl. It speaks to us… guides us… passion rules us all, and we obey. What other choice do we have? Passion is the source of our finest moments. The joy of love… the clarity of hatred… and the ecstasy of grief. It hurts sometimes more than we can bear. If we could live without passion maybe we’d know some kind of peace… but we would be hollow… Empty rooms shuttered and dank. Without passion we’d be truly dead.” – Quote from the episode Passion

The wonderful readers over at PURLS have asked me to do an author chat in their chat room on Saturday, May 21, 2011. The chat will start at 3pm Mtn time, 5pm EST. All you have to do is register at the forum and show up. I hope to see you there! And if you haven’t checked out the PURLS forum yet, you should if you like to read and discuss urban fantasy and paranormal romance. It’s a great discussion forum.

http://purlsonline.forumotion.com/

Happy Easter!

Welcome to the blog hop! If you jumped in partway, you can find the beginning and the tour bus at http://justromance.me/. 

Because it was also Earth Day on the 22nd, I have chosen some related photos to share instead of a short story.

I would also like to announce that early in May (exact date TBA) Huntress Book 1, Once Bitten, and Book 2, The Wicked Kiss, will be dropping to the new price of $2.99 for ebook. Also, my stand alone paranormal romance, Lyric’s Gift, will see a new price of $.99. Watch for it!

Happy Easter everyone! Spread the love.

Welcome to Six Sentence Sunday! To see the whole list go to http://sixsunday.blogspot.com.

My six today comes from my Ellora’s Cave Quickie, IF ONLY FOR TONIGHT. This scene comes after Jadyn and Ash run into one another in a Vegas casino, ten years after they were torn apart.

Jadyn sighed and merely stared at her. She fully expected him to tell her what bullshit that was and leave her standing there quaking and alone. She didn’t expect him to close the space between them, take her face in his hands and kiss her with ten years of pain, longing and passion.

Slipping his tongue between her lips, he claimed her mouth with a wanton hunger. His fingers shook ever so slightly against her cheek, betraying the emotion that racked him. There was a possessiveness to his kiss that sent Ash back in time.