Three Fantastic Authors and a Contest!

I'm still away on vacation, but through the wonder of blogger and preposting, I actually have a blog today. Let me tell you about three wonderful women who are also wonderful writers - Charlotte, Jessica and Rachel. I am so freaking thrilled that we were all chosen to participate in the Sultry Solstice Collection.

I'd like to share a little bit about each one of them so please sit back and enjoy my fellow faery authors! And one lucky commenter will win all three ebooks in my Celtic Fire Series! (A winner will be chosen on Sunday, August 1st, at 7 pm EST)

So please, comment, ask questions, help me welcome my victims, I mean...interview subjects! I've had the extreme pleasure of reading all three Sultry Solstice stories and they're FANTASTIC! I highly recommend them all!

1.) Why did you want to take part in the Sultry Solstice collection? What appealed to you about it?

Charlotte: Everything. Fairy stuff, magic, summer sensuality, Zachary Quinto's bare ass, Labyrinthy stuff, magic, writing more things for Total-E-Bound...

Interviewers note: Zachary Quinto's bare ass is indeed motivational. Just sayin'

Jessica: Anything about faeries intrigues me. My first published book was the start of my faery series, The Fey. So a collection centered around faeries definitely appealed to me.

Rachel: It was a cold, rainy day in January. I saw the words “sultry” and “summer” and knew that if I didn’t immediately start writing about gorgeous people having al fresco naughtiness in a forest glade I was going to go crazy from the winter blahs and order an ill-advised novelty sun-lamp off Amazon. And then I was fortunate enough that the editors at Total E-Bound were clearly trying to avoid sun-lamps too. So, win-win, especially since it’s been so great getting to know the other writers in the collection!

2.) When you started this book, what was the one scene that was the clearest in your mind – the scene that you knew you had to have in your story?

Charlotte: The hero running naked through a green, wavering field. The feel of something dark and blazing behind him, at the end.

Jessica: The first time the 2 heroes and the heroine make love. That was what was in my head from the very beginning. Not so much the physical aspect of it...though that's just swell....but the emotions and thoughts of the characters' heads were so clear to me from the get go. As a result, I didn't write the story from beginning to end the way I normally do. I started with that scene and bounced around. Then I had to go back and "sew" it all together. LOL

Rachel: The scene that fuelled the story for me was definitely Mira’s discovery ofthe captive Johnny. I wanted to explore her shock, her arousal, her confusion. And, of course, the aesthetics of a desirable young man spread
out across an ancient oak! His vulnerability, her conflict, the otherworldly setting…I loved writing the chemistry between them.
3.) Do you have a faery inspiration? Feel free to share pictures if you have them.

Charlotte: The world of the movie Labyrinth has always been a strong influence on me, and particularly its idea of what fairies are really like-cruel little imps that bite you. And I think we've discussed the work of Brian Froud before, which definitely inspires. It's hard not to look at his work and be inspired. All the hidden little ugly-beautiful things...that's what I imagine when I think of other worlds.

Jessica: I love David Delamare's faery art. Amy Brown and Jessica Galbreth are 2 other artists whose work I stare at while plotting my faeries.

Rachel: I was looking through some old pictures taken at the Latitude music festival and rediscovered this beauty. When I saw the Sultry Solstice call I thought it would be great to mix the idea of someone dressing up like a fairy at a festival with actual fairies (who probably wouldn’t appreciate that very much).

Interviewers note: I'm thinking that would definitely piss off the faeries!



4.) What five words would you use to describe your writing?

Charlotte: Ridiculous. Fun. Dirty. Love-suffused.

Jessica: Oh boy...I don't know. I hope it's fun, engaging, emotional, sexy, and hot.

Rachel: “The perfect amount of cock.” (Note to self: What eloquence did you expect when you asked your tipsy dinner guests for their thoughts on this question?)

5.) What shiny new projects do you have coming up? Share!

Charlotte: Oh, I've got loads coming up. More than I ever thought I'd have coming up. Got a lot of sci-fi coming out soon- Past Pleasures is out August 9th from Total-E-Bound, and it's all dirty threesomes and time travelling and strange woman-less future worlds. Then there's The Horizon, which will be my first release with Ellora's Cave. That's out September 10th, and it's about spaceships and lust drugs and it's built on my love of funny sci-fi like Firefly and Red Dwarf. Oh, and I've got a novel coming out in November, about a woman who has to choose between a dominant and a submissive. Busy busy!

Jessica: I'm currently working on the next book in my vampire series, Into the Shadows - Seth's story. I've got a lot more "in the works"--the final 2 stories in my faery series, The Fey--and hopefully will be able to announce
some new releases soon!

Rachel: I’ve been quite into threesomes lately (who isn’t?), and I’ve got several in the works, including a very-enjoyable-to-write Victorian-era BDSM story. At the moment I’m working on a free read that’s a prequel to the events of The Festival Spirit (three days of hot sex in a swanky NYC hotel!), and if all goes according to my devious plan, that’s not the last you’ll see of Lee, Johnny and Mira.