Results from One on One Free Days

So, last week I ran a special on "One on One" at Amazon.  It was free on Wednesday and Thursday.  I wanted to see what offering free days through KDP Select would do for my sales.  I'd heard some people say that free days are a great way to increase your visibility and get your name out there.

On Wednesday, "One on One" moved a little over 230 copies, which I thought was pretty cool.  But what really blew me away was what happened on Thursday, when over 1300 copies were downloaded.  It was very gratifying to watch "One on One" climbing the charts at Amazon, and it finally made it up to the #2 spot in free Urban Erotica.  Even though I didn't make any money off of those "sales," it was still definitely cool to think about 1500 people having access to my work.

It's a little too early to say what the permanent fallout from this special is, but I did definitely see a spike in sales immediately after listing the story for free.  Most of these were for "One on One," but I have seen sales for other stories as well.  Of course, it's hard to say whether those sales were directly caused by the free listing.

I've scheduled the remainder of my free days, and I'll be very interested to see what happens next time!

One on One is Free!

Hello everyone!  My story "One on One" is free on Amazon today (May 28) and tomorrow (May 29).  This is the second story that I wrote, and I still think it's an awful lot of fun.  It's currently sitting at #13 in the Urban Erotica category at Amazon, which is pretty darn cool.

The story has a lot of passionate, sexy action between two athletes whose competitive reaches beyond the court and into the bedroom (or the women's locker room shower, as the case may be).  If you like hot and heavy contemporary erotica, head on over to Amazon and pick it up!

Michelle's Massage: The Encounter Published

"Michelle's Massage: The Encounter," the first volume in my new series is now up and available for purchase!  It's listed at Amazon, Smashwords and AllRomanceEbooks.

I had a lot of fun writing this series, and this first book in particular.  I think it has some of the funniest writing that I've done lately, and I just really fell in love with the characters.  Michelle is a rubenesque, adorably neurotic woman coming off a breakup and having the worst week of her life.  Raul is a to-die-for Hispanic massage therapist who works out the kinks in Michelle's muscles . . . and works a little kink into their massage.  It was a lot of fun to watch these two characters bounce off of each other and begin to form a relationship.

I tried hard to make sure that each of the books in the series is enjoyable both as a standalone title and as parts of a cohesive whole.  It was an interesting, but enjoyable challenge.

I'm looking for reviews, so if you read it and like it, please write me a few words.  I appreciate it!  I'll include below an excerpt for anyone interested.

The promise of the massage on Saturday was the only thing getting Michelle through the week. Ever since she found Brett with that blonde hussy last month, it was all she could do to just get out of bed in the morning, and this week seemed to be actively conspiring to make things worse. On Monday, there was the jerk who ran into her car as it was parked on the street outside her house, busted out a headlight, and left without leaving a number. On Tuesday, she hadn’t met her sales quotas, and so they made her stay after work for an hour and a half doing cold calls until she hit them. On Wednesday, she got pulled over and ticketed about the busted headlight, despite her best efforts to look simultaneously sad and sexy for the policeman. On Thursday the car place told her it’d cost $300 for repairs and that they’d have to keep it over the weekend, which meant that she had to pay for a cab to work on Friday, where she had a surprise performance review where they’d threatened to put her on probation.

But Michelle had her massage scheduled, and she’d go and get to lie in the dark and close her eyes and feel the soothing touch of another person’s hands on her skin, and nothing—absolutely nothing—would be her responsibility.

So, despite everything, Michelle was smiling when she dragged herself out of bed Saturday morning and headed down to the massage parlor. She always went the same place and always had the same therapist. Amanda knew where she was tight and what sorts of strokes she liked. Also, Amanda had seen her naked before, so at least she didn’t have to worry about being judged.

Michelle pushed open the door and walked inside. The air was cool, and the room was darkened by slatted, wooden blinds. A small Zen fountain burbled in a corner, and relaxing flute music was playing. She sighed. Things were already looking up.

Michelle found her way to a soft, leather couch. She sank down into it and closed her eyes. It felt good to sit. And soon Amanda would call her name, and she’d follow her back to the massage room and have a little hour of heaven to counteract all of the hell she’d gone through this past week.

Her eyes closed, Michelle moved her neck slowly back and forth and shrugged her shoulders. Ouch. She was tighter than she’d thought. She needed this. She really, really needed this. She needed the kinks worked out of her shoulders, and she definitely needed that huge knot worked out of her neck so that she could stop feeling like she was looking at the world half sideways.

And also . . . it just sounded nice to be touched. Things had been lonely since the split with Brett. And although Michelle knew that what she really needed was a white-hot fuck, if she couldn’t have that, then at least some platonic, therapeutic, skin-on-skin contact sounded nice.

“Michelle Sorensen?”

A voice rang out, breaking Michelle out of her reverie. But it wasn’t Amanda’s voice. It was a man’s voice, deep and thick and with a trace of a luxurious accent.

Michelle snapped her eyes open. A muscular Hispanic man stood in front of her. He wore dark, tight-fitting scrubs that accented his wide shoulders and broad chest. His skin was a creamy brown, and his arms were large and strong. He had short black hair and a dazzling smile. And, Michelle couldn’t help but notice, he had a tremendous cock. It bulged out against his tight scrub pants, tight enough that she could see the way it hung against his leg, and she almost thought that she could make out the outline of its head.

Michelle blushed and looked up. Why on earth was she looking at his cock? She needed a lay more than she’d realized.

“I’m Michelle,” she said quickly. “But my appointment’s with Amanda.”

“Ah,” the man said. “Amanda is on her honeymoon. I’m filling in.” His voice. It was the sound that dark chocolate infused with chili peppers would make if it could speak. It made her heart race.

“I didn’t know Amanda was engaged,” Michelle responded, wondering if she was as flushed as she felt.

“She eloped,” the man said with a wide smile and a shrug. “I’m Raul.” He extended a hand for Michelle to shake. She took it. The skin was soft and smooth, but the muscles underneath felt strong. She could imagine those hands on her, kneading her muscles and trailing over her skin. No, Michelle. Focus, girl.

“Well, I do really like Amanda,” Michelle hedged. If she got onto the massage table with this man touching her, she’d never be able to sit still. Her nipples would poke through the sheet like drill bits, and she’d probably get wet enough that she’d leak on the table. “Do you know when she’ll be getting back?”

The man smiled. “Two, three months? They’re travelling the world now, backpacking in Europe, sleeping under the stars, sharing a sleeping bag. Very romantic.”

Michelle smiled weakly, finding herself imagining sharing a sleeping bag with Raul.

“You look tense,” said Raul in a voice like a samba. “I don’t think you can wait two months. Come on back. I’ll take care of you.”

Cover Reveals for new series: Michelle's Massage

Hello everyone!  I'm super excited because I have a new project set to come out soon.  It's going to be a series of short erotica pieces.  The series will follow a woman named Michelle through a series of encounters with a very sexy Latino massage therapist.  I just got back the first two covers from the designer and I think they're looking great.

What do you think?

The first story, "The Encounter," will both serve as an intro to the series and as a stand-alone story in its own right.  I'm planning on having it up on Smashwords, Amazon, and AllRomanceEbooks within the next day or two.

Sasha's Soldier Excerpt

Wow--it's been almost a month since I last posted.  Life has been absolutely crazy, and I had to choose between actually doing my erotica writing and updating the blog.  I of course chose the erotica, but I apologize for such long radio silence.  Life has straightened itself out somewhat so I can hopefully be a little more regular with this.

I finally have "Sasha's Soldier" ready for purchase.  It's up at Amazon, Smashwords and AllRomanceEbooks.  I have to say that this is one that I'm proud of.  It tells the story of an African American nurse, Sasha, and one of her patients, Kevin, a wounded marine who's lost the use of his hands.  I feel like this story is really sweet, but also very sexy.  

But enough of me talking about it.  Here's an excerpt--see what you think for yourself!

All of Sasha's patients were getting better, all but her favorite one. She would much rather that it were Mr. Jacobs, who swore at the orderlies and referred to Sasha as “that negro nurse,” who were failing to thrive. But no, it was Kevin, her wounded Marine with the big blue eyes, the broad shoulders, and the simple, childish smile that spoke of apple pie, mom, and America.

Sasha clucked her tongue disapprovingly as she looked at Kevin’s charts. Everything looked fine. He ought to be getting better, but he wasn’t. He was only nineteen. By the looks of things, he’d signed up the moment he could, then went straight to Afghanistan. On a routine patrol, his unit was hit by a car bomb. Kevin was furthest from the blast, and he was the only one who survived it, but pieces of shrapnel tore through both of his arms. That day he lost friends, three pints of blood, and the use of his arms. Afterward he was sent back to the states for surgery and recovery.

The surgery had gone well, and the doctors were all optimistic that Kevin would regain the use of his hands. But while he soon learned to twitch his fingers and later to flop his hand over, after that he stopped making progress. He still did his exercises, but his heart wasn’t in it, and despite the doctors’ promises, it felt like he’d given up. These days when Sasha entered Kevin’s room, she found him looking out the window, his lips pressed together, a faraway look in his eyes. He still had a warrior’s reflexes, and he always heard her coming, no matter how quietly she slipped through the door. As soon as he heard her, his eyes always brightened and he turned toward her, the look of introspection and pain disappearing almost instantly. Almost.

Sasha flipped her chart back closed. It was time to go check on him. He was her last of the day. She tucked the chart under her arm and began walking down the hallway toward his room. As she walked, she tucked an errant lock of hair back behind her ear and glanced in a mirror she passed. Her makeup was fine. She knew it was silly, but she liked to look good for Kevin. She’d been assigned to him the day he got out of surgery. As the anesthesia wore off, he opened his eyes and mumbled “Hello, beautiful.” Even despite the painkillers, he was a perfect gentleman, and he didn’t try to get handsy with her, like a lot of male patients waking up. She put her hand on his shoulder and asked how he was doing, and he told her that he felt okay but had a girlfriend and probably shouldn’t have told Sasha that she was beautiful, even though she was. He rambled on for a while about his girl back home and then fell asleep.

Sasha wasn’t sure whether he remembered anything of that conversation or not, but somehow every time she saw him, she heard him slurring, “Hello, beautiful.” She smoothed down the rumples in her scrubs and wished for a moment that she had something better to wear. Oh well, at least she filled them out well. Scrubs weren’t always kind to the flat-chested, but Sasha was curvy, and she liked the way that her breasts and hips pushed out against the fabric.

Sasha came to the door and looked in. Kevin was sitting in his hospital bed, looking out at a sky that was gray with clouds. This time he didn’t turn when she walked in. His jaw was tight, but his head was slumped back against the bed.

“Hey Kevin,” Sasha said at last.

Kevin jerked and turned toward her. He smiled weakly. “Oh, Sasha,” he said. “I didn’t see you.”

“How’s it going?” Sasha asked with a smile.

“Oh,” he said. “I’m hanging in there. How are things with you? How’s Ben? He heard anything back on those college applications yet?”

Wow. Sasha hadn’t expected him to remember her brother’s name, much less any details of his life. She’d only mentioned him once. “He’s started to. He heard back from his safety school, and he got in there. For anyone else, that’d be great news, but Ben’s so smart he didn’t even seem to care. He’s got his sights set on M.I.T.”

Kevin laughed, and it almost sounded real. “Well, then he’s smarter than me for sure. I’m not even sure I could have gotten into Calhoun Community College, and they’re open enrollment. What’s he wanting to go into again? Programming?”

“Computer engineering,” Sasha replied as she began checking his vitals.

“I don’t even know what that is,” Kevin replied. “Sounds smart, though.”

“I don’t really know either,” Sasha admitted as she bent forward to check his pulse. His skin was warm and smooth under her fingers. She looked up at Kevin and noticed him glancing at her cleavage. It was just a moment, a flicker of the eyes, but she still found herself somehow gratified by it. And then a feeling of guilt. She shifted back up so that her scrubs weren’t falling open anymore.

“How about you?” Sasha asked. “How’s your girl doing?”

The smile faded from Kevin’s lips, and his face went still. “She—” he started. “She’s with someone else.”

“Oh no, baby,” Sasha said, and she sat down in the seat next to Kevin’s bed. “Oh no.”

Kevin faked a smile for an instant, then bit his lip. “Yeah.”

“When’d this happen?” Sasha asked.

“I found out today,” Kevin said. He sighed and looked away. “But it’s been going on a long time. Ever since I shipped out.”

Sasha found his hand, held it. It was warm and limp under her hand. But even if he couldn’t move it, she knew that he could still feel.

“She said that she just was lonely, and she couldn’t bear the thought of losing me,” Kevin said, his eyes far away. “She couldn’t depend on a man who might never come back. Funny thing is, when I talked about joining up, she was all for it. She talked about how I’d be a hero and how good I’d look in uniform.”

Sasha glanced at the picture by his bedside. It showed him tall and strong, dressed in his uniform, every inch a Marine. A girl stood beside him, slight and blonde, showing her teeth in a wide smile. Stupid girl. But she had to admit, Kevin did look good in uniform.

“And she just told you now?” Sasha asked softly.

“She said she had to come clean. She was breaking things off. She still loved me, but she couldn’t be with a man who was a cripple. She couldn’t take care of me.” He fell silent. “She never even came to visit.”

Sasha squeezed Kevin’s hand. She ached for him. His face stayed still, stoic, as a single tear ran down his cheek. Sasha reached a hand up and wiped it away. For a moment it looked like he’d flinch away from her, but then he relaxed and let her touch him.

“You know the worst part?” Kevin said.

“What?” Sasha asked.

“You’ll think I’m awful,” Kevin said. “I think I’m awful.”

“You’re fine, baby,” Sasha said.

“The worst part is that I keep thinking, ‘I should have screwed her when I had the chance.’ She wanted me to. She was willing. The night before I shipped out, she would have let me. But I was trying to be a good boy, so I took her home instead. I waited because I wanted to do right by her, to marry her when I came back. I fought with her picture tucked into my helmet every day, and when I got hit and thought I was dying, I was thinking of her. But the whole time she was screwing someone else.”

A second tear fell down Kevin’s face, then a third, but his voice held steady. “Now I’m just a cripple.”

“You’ll get your hands back, Kevin,” Sasha said. “You just need to give yourself time.”

Kevin continued talking as if he hadn’t heard. “A cripple and a virgin. And I just think that I hate her for cheating on me and I hate myself for not just sleeping with her when I had the chance, and then I hate myself for that, too, because I know that all I really want’s revenge. But at least if I’d done it I’d be a man, really a man.” He flopped his hands. “What woman’s going to want me now? And what could I even do to please her? I never slept with a woman, but I’ve fingered one or two, and I was pretty good at it. Can’t do that now.”

Sasha wasn’t sure what to say, so she just touched Kevin’s cheek. She was supposed to go now, but she couldn’t leave him like this.

Kevin continued on. “I’m sorry I’m telling you all this stuff. It’s not your job. It’s just that no one ever calls me from home, and I don’t have anyone to talk to. You’re the only one here who actually seems to listen to me.”

“Kevin,” Sasha said firmly, and he looked up at her with frightened eyes. “You’re not awful. It’s all right. You can talk to me. You can say anything you want.”

Kevin breathed in and out raggedly. “Thank you,” he said, and there was a smile on his face, although there was still some fear in his blue eyes. “Thank you, Sasha.”

“Tell me everything,” said Sasha. “It helps to talk.”

“Well,” said Kevin, hesitating. “I hope this doesn’t weird you out, but I can’t even masturbate anymore. I used to do that when I was out and it got too hard or depressing. I’d hold that picture or think of her, and touch myself. But now I can’t even do that. Of course, I wouldn’t be thinking of her now. But God I get so horny. I’m all jittery and my balls ache. I’ve tried rubbing up against the sheets, and I can’t do it. I’ve hoped for a sex dream, but they never seem to come.”

Kevin stopped and looked at her, then let out a deep breath.

Sasha’s heart started to pound. Was he asking her . . . ? But then he smiled, and said, “Thanks. You’re right. It really does help to talk about it.” He laughed, and some of the tension seemed to melt away from him. “Most people, you can’t complain to them about not being able to beat it.” Sasha didn’t laugh, just looked at him, taking in his face, so beautiful even where a thin line of scar traversed his right cheek. He seemed so much a man, and yet so young at the same time. She smiled at him and spoke softly: “Would you like me to help you with that?”

Writing Progress

Well, it's been quite a week.  Things have been in major crunch mode at my day job (which I am quitting next month!), my husband is heading right into finals, and it feels like just about every conceivable thing that could go wrong has.

What with all that, I haven't accomplished as many of my writing goals as I would have liked.  I had hoped to get "Sasha's Soldier" edited and uploaded, but that obviously hasn't happened.  My husband often helps me with the editing, and with him so swamped, he just hasn't been able to.  I really like to get a pair of eyes besides my own on my writing.  I find that often it's very hard to tell the difference between your best moments and your worst ones.  And when you're writing, you just have to put them all down, or you might miss out on some of your best work.  Of course, you also need someone you trust who can gently let you know which moments somehow come this close to be amazing, while somehow falling off the gap into horrible.

I have been able to push forward on my first draft writing, though, which means that I've got a little bit of a backlog for when I do have the time to start getting things out again.  I think I've got something like four stories written that just need to be edited, formatted and submitted.

From last Saturday to today, I wrote a new story which has clocked in at a little over 30,000 words.  This is longer than some of the things I've published previously, and I'm excited for that.  This moves out of the realm of short story and into the (occasionally awkward) realm of novella.  But with epublishing, there's more room for novellas than there used to be in the days of print-only publication.  On this one, I've moved at a pretty good pace.  I had a goal of 5,000 words a day, which I didn't quite make, but I did get something over 4,300 words a day.  That's definitely something I can live with.

Both of my currently published works ("In a Stranger's Arms" and "One on One") are contemporary.  This last project of mine has been a definite departure from that.  It takes place in a fantastical setting that's filled with vampires, ghouls, etc.  It also follows a very, very sexy man as our protagonist, which is a departure from my two that are published, which both have female point of view characters.  All in all, it was a ton of fun to write.

My life should start settling down in the next week or two, and I'll get some more pieces published.  Until then, I'll just keep plugging away at the writing.

Cover Reveal for Sasha's Soldier

I have a new story that I'm working on.  It's completely written, and I have a cover.  Now all I need is to find the time to finish editing it and get it up.  This one is a uniform story.  I've heard those sometimes do well, and it was honestly quite a lot of fun to write.  The main characters are a sexy African American nurse named Sasha and a wounded marine named Kevin.  I enjoyed getting to know these two characters as I wrote about them and to see how they need each other.  And of course the sex was fun too :)

Here's the cover for the story.  I got it back from the designer not long ago, and I'm really very pleased with how it turned out.  Hopefully I should have this out and available for sale soon.