Happy Halloween and Halloween Romances

So it’s Halloween.  I know in some parts of the world the readers are saying, BFD because you don't celebrate it!  Well in America Halloween is a damned fun holiday.

Lots of people decorate their houses in a spooky manner.  I know in our neighborhood this past weekend there were tons of folks out decorating and even some getting ready for having haunted houses in their backyards or garages.  It’s a pretty innocuous holiday but one I really enjoy.  I hate going costume shopping with my kids (as Kris can attest) because they want to try on everything (even if they already know what they want to be) and never pick what I want them to (lol) but when it comes down to the night of the big H and they dress up and go trick or treating I love seeing them having fun. 

So what do I like about Halloween besides the kids stuff?  That’s easy.  I love reading romances that have costume parties where people meet and fall in love.  I especially like these if one or both of the people are in masks or make-up so that the other person falls in love with the person and has no clue what the other one looks like. 

Sad to say that I haven’t read even one Halloween story/costume party romance this year.  *gasp* Unheard of! Sue me!  There just haven’t been any that have caught my attention!

So even though by the time I get replies and seek out these books Halloween will be over, I’m gonna ask for recs anyway.  Do you have any favorite Halloween romances or romances containing costume parties that you want to pass on?  I’d love to know what they are.  Oh, and you know me – I’ll take m/m recs as well as m/f!

(If you're out and about tonight have a happy and safe Halloween!)

Tropes in Romance: Good or Bad?

I can hear some of you asking now, what is a trope? Simply, a trope is a cliché, a common (sometimes overused) literary device. Some common romance tropes are the virgin, friends-to-lovers, enemies-to-lovers, lovers torn apart, The Big Misunderstanding, The Bad Boy, the brooding vampire, insta-love, etc. There is an endless list of tropes easily found in just about every romance title, be it mainstream or gay romance, and every genre has its own special tropes readers either love or hate.

So, the question becomes, are these tropes good or bad? Do they add to a novel or detract? I know a lot of authors and readers who would say to bury the trope deeply, or subvert it in some way. And I agree, subversion of a trope can be an awesome way to bring something unique into a genre full of tropes. For example, vampires and shifters. The images of the brooding vampire or the dark alpha shifter are classics that can be found throughout the genre.

Imagine a vampire who has every reason on earth to hate himself. He’s a murderer, a thief, a seducer. But, because he has someone in his life that reminds him of all the good he has done alongside the bad, he remains optimistic about his existence. Instead of brooding, as a vampire might if he hates who and what he is, he instead revels in the positive aspects of his affliction, finding love and peace rather than endless angst and self-loathing. This would be a new take on an otherwise tired trope.

A subversion of the dark alpha shifter could be a headstrong beta who challenges the alpha of the pack for leadership, but then loses. Here, the main character has been built up as the big bad shifter, one who will take down the current alpha, and then fails spectacularly. The trope has been taken and turned on its ear, because he is the dark alpha-minded shifter, but he really isn’t alpha material. Not yet, anyway.

At the same time, though, taking a trope and owning it 100% is just as valid. The author just has to do it right, sell the reader on it from page one. Don’t half-ass your handling of a trope. That leads to unhappy readers, poor reviews, and a discouraged author. If you’re going to write your two main characters falling in love within the first four sentences of meeting one another, then take that up right to the end. Explore what happens with fated love, with soulmates, with what appears to be the loss of free choice. If you have a Bad Boy, keep him bad from beginning to end, even if he does have a heart of gold under all the rust.

Tropes are great literary devices, and no one can escape them. They creep into all writing, television, movies, plays, music. They’re just there, the undercurrent of the familiar. Tropes aren’t good or bad. They are what they are, and in the hands of a skilled author, a reader can be taken on an amazing journey.

Where you can find S.L. Armstrong:
Website: http://www.slarmstrong.net/
Twitter: @_slarmstrong

What is Wild Moon Books?

Wild Moon Books is the newest imprint from Storm Moon Press. We’ve branched out from GLBT and alternative lifestyle fiction and created an arm that will publish mainstream erotica and erotic romance. Wild Moon Books focuses on quality fiction, author-centric publishing, competitive pricing, and fun, exciting contests and giveaways for readers.

Currently, Wild Moon Books is scheduled to launch in January 2012, but we’re actively seeking submissions for anthologies, novellas, and novels. If you write heterosexual erotica or erotic romances, then take a look at the Wild Moon Books site where all the submission guidelines and anthologies calls are. Our contracts offer generous royalties, along with one of the first flip-point structures in the erotic romance industry, and we ensure authors are not bound to us through Right of First Refusal or non-compete clauses. We’re here for authors and readers.

Readers can look forward to discounted pre-sales of titles, fun contests, giveaways, and competitive prices. All our books will be available not only on the Wild Moon Books site, but in all major third-party vendor sites, so readers will be able to purchase Wild Moon Books at their favorite retailer. There are many surprises in store for readers during Wild Moon Books’ first year, and we can’t wait to start the ball rolling!

We’re excited to begin this new venture, and we can’t wait to work with some awesome authors to bring readers great reading experiences.

Where you can find Wild Moon Books:
Website: http://www.wildmoonbooks.com/
Twitter: @wildmoonbooks

Moving Beyond M/M

Every writer tends to have their favorite topics and themes, their favorite genre or sub-genre. They might go for years simply writing in one place or continuing a series of books to the exclusion of all else. This is very common, and rather than buying into the view 'Write what you know', I prefer to tell people 'Write what you love'. If we were to limit ourselves only to the topics we have personal knowledge of, I think fiction would suffer. Instead, it's important to just write what you love and explore different topics that you love.

My co-author, S.L. Armstrong, and I love researching new topics and being inspired by a broad range of themes in erotic romance. Ever since we started writing together, we've focused on gay (M/M) erotic romance, because we both love to read and write men falling in love, overcoming obstacles, and finding fulfillment with one another. We've always had a soft spot for paranormal and BDSM themes as well, so we love writing vampires/immortals and exploring different facets of BDSM. Heck, it was a love of both that led to the idea behind Catalyst, which follows the romance between a man with a blood fetish and his psychologist.

Despite our natural tendency to stay in our comfort zones, S.L. and I are always keen to push our boundaries. Because of that, we plan on moving beyond writing exclusively gay fiction (with the occasional dip into lesbian pairings). One of our current writing projects involves Lilith and Cain (of biblical fame), and it will be our first official foray into mainstream M/F erotic romance. We're really excited about the novella trilogy, which will follow Cain and Lilith from shortly after the murder of Abel to modern day London!

In addition to our M/F pursuits, we're also pushing ourselves to showcase more bisexual, trans*, and polyamorous fiction over the next couple years. We pride ourselves on keeping inventive, and sometimes inventive means moving beyond the comfort of M/M erotic romance. Bisexual men and women tend to be sorely under-represented in GLBT erotica beyond the familiar tropes of the 'hot bi chick' and 'one-time ménage', so that's definitely a corner of the market that S.L. and I would love to help expand. The same goes for trans* fiction, which may have a smaller market but is just as important to the spectrum of sexuality and identity.

For both our writing and our management of Storm Moon Press, we strive to find the themes in erotic romance of which we would love to see more, and then write what we wish were there for us to read! While we have plenty on our creative plates for the next few years, with everything from contemporary western to high fantasy to polyamory romance, Storm Moon Press has several anthology calls for all flavors of GLBT erotica and erotic romance, along with open calls for longer pieces with specific themes! Our new imprint, Wild Moon Books, will also be launching in January 2012 for mainstream erotic romance titles, so keep an eye on us these next few months!

We hope that our submission calls spark ideas for you writers and pique your interest as readers! Be it mainstream M/F or the LBT part of GLBT, Storm Moon Press is taking it up a notch and providing you with something that goes beyond the ordinary and beyond the M/M erotic fiction we specialize in!

Where you can find K. Piet:
Website: http://www.kpiet.net/
Twitter: @k_piet
Publisher: http://www.stormmoonpress.com/ and http://www.wildmoonbooks.com/ 

Halloween Reads

Tori & I are recovering from heavy DIK partying last evening and enjoying some quite time sipping some bottled water whilst laying on a cozy lounge chair under one of the cabanas here on the beach. The waves are lapping on the shore under a beautiful blue sky, I love the sound. (Hey a girl can dream right?) :)

This Monday is Halloween and aside from the fact I have to work (bah) it is one of my favorite festive occasions. Certain books and specifically the particular series I'm featuring today makes me think of Halloween. Jeaniene Frost's extremely popular Night Huntress series to me is imminently "Halloweenesk". I mean the names of the vampire heroine and hero associated with the series are Cat & Bones. Bwahaaaaa! The cover art for the six books written in the series thus far have that spooky, dark Halloween feel. And, of course each of the titles reference the grave....

Flirting With The Grave…

Half-vampire Catherine Crawfield is going after the undead with a vengeance, hoping that one of these deadbeats is her father – the one responsible for ruining her mother’s life. Then she’s captured by Bones, a vampire bounty hunter, and is forced into an unlikely partnership.

In exchange for help finding her father, Cat agrees to train with the sexy night stalker until her battle reflexes are as sharp as his fangs. She’s amazed she doesn’t end up as his dinner – are there actually good vampires? Pretty soon Bones will have her convinced that being half-dead doesn’t have to be all bad. But before she can enjoy her status as kick-ass demon hunter, Cat and Bones are pursued by a group of killers. Now Cat will have to choose a side … and Bones is turning out to be as tempting as any man with a heartbeat.

You can run from the grave, but you can’t hide…

Half-vampire Cat Crawfield is now Special Agent Cat Crawfield, working for the government to rid the world of the rogue undead. She’s still using everything Bones, her sexy and dangerous ex, taught her, but when Cat is targeted for assassination, the only man who can help her is the vampire she left behind.

Being around Bones awakens all her emotions, from the adrenaline rush of slaying vamps side by side to the reckless passion that consumed them. But a price on her head – wanted: dead or half-alive – means her survival depends on teaming up with Bones. And no matter how hard Cat tries to keep things professional between them, she’ll find that desire lasts forever … and Bones won’t let her get away again.

Some Things Won’t Stay Buried … At Grave’s End

It should be the best time of half-vampire Cat Crawfield’s life. With her undead lover Bones at her side, she’s successfully protected mortals from the rogue undead. But though Cat’s worn disguise after disguise to keep her true identity a secret from the brazen bloodsuckers, her cover’s finally been blown, placing her in terrible danger.

As if that wasn’t enough, a woman from Bones’s past is determined to bury him once and for all. Caught in the crosshairs of a vengeful vamp, yet determined to help Bones stop a lethal magic from being unleashed, Cat’s about to learn the true meaning of bad blood. And the tricks she’s learned as a special agent won’t help her. She will need to fully embrace her vampire instincts in order to save herself – and Bones – from a fate worse than the grave.

Her dreams leave her in grave danger…

Since half-vampire Cat Crawfield and her undead lover Bones met six years ago, they’ve fought against the rogue undead, battled a vengeful Master vampire, and pledged their devotion with a blood bond. Now it’s time for a vacation. But their hopes for a perfect Paris holiday are dashed when Cat awakes one night in terror. She’s having visions of a vampire named Gregor who’s more powerful than Bones and has ties to her past that even Cat herself didn’t know about.

Gregor believes Cat is his and he won’t stop until he has her. As the battle begins between the vamp who haunts her nightmares and the one who has her heart, only Cat can break Gregor’s hold over her. She’ll need all the power she can summon in order to bring down the baddest bloodsucker she’s ever faced … even if getting that power will result in an early grave.

Danger waits on both sides of the grave…

Half-vampire Cat Crawfield and her vampire husband Bones have fought for their lives, as well as for their relationship. But just when they’ve triumphed over the latest battle, Cat’s new and unexpected abilities threaten to upset a long-standing balance…

With the mysterious disappearance of vampires, rumors abound that a species war is brewing. A zealot is inciting tensions between the vampires and ghouls, and if these two powerful groups clash, innocent mortals could become collateral damage. Now Cat and Bones are forced to seek help from a dangerous “ally”—the ghoul queen of New Orleans herself. But the price of her assistance may prove more treacherous than even the threat of a supernatural war. …to say nothing of the repercussions Cat never imagined.

How do you send a killer to the grave when he’s already dead?

Having narrowly averted an (under)world war, Cat Crawfield wants nothing more than a little downtime with her vampire husband, Bones. Unfortunately, her gift from New Orleans’ voodoo queen just keeps on giving–leading to a personal favor that sends them into battle once again, this time against a villainous spirit.

Centuries ago, Heinrich Kramer was a witch hunter. Now, every All Hallows Eve, he takes physical form to torture innocent women before burning them alive. This year, however, a determined Cat and Bones must risk all to send him back to the other side of eternity–forever. But one wrong step and they’ll be digging their own graves.

I've been glomming this series for a long time and one of these years on Halloween Eve I'm going to immerse myself in a Night Huntress read-a-thon. ;)

Any favorite Halloween reads or series you'd like to share? Do you like the Night Huntress books?

Tonight Storm Moon Press arrives on the Island, for a 3 day vaca! Be sure and give them a warm Island welcome.

This is it for Tori and I until 2012! Wishing all of you a Happy healthy festive season and we will see you in the New Year!