Crystel Greene's Blog: Crystel's Corner, page 3

Instalove - It Happens!

Hi! Do you believe in Love at First Sight? Do you like the trope in a story? Or are you generally wary of instalove, as it’s sometimes called a little less poetically?
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When two characters fall in love within days, like Justin and Andi in my mm romance GLACIER GOLD, I'm sure some will feel that here’s a romance author asking them to stretch their imagination beyond what’s reasonable. But sometimes reality can be surprisingly fluffy.

GLACIER GOLD has actually been inspired by two friends of mine: she’s from the US, he’s from Austria. She came to Tyrol for a vacation in his mother’s hotel, they went hiking together, and two weeks later, on her last day, he proposed. They’ve been married for fifty years now. Can you think of anything more romantic? And I didn’t even make that up!

Seriously though, it doesn’t necessarily take a lot of time to get a sense of someone. Scientists say it’s decided in less than twenty seconds whether two people will hit it off or not.
Anybody who’s been on a Tinder date (or, in the days of yore, on a blind date) knows that, because in nine out of ten cases the magic doesn’t happen, and you just know it the moment you set eyes on this guy who sounded so promising; you want to be gone because you know you’re wasting your time, but you can’t just get up and leave because you’re a decent person who wouldn’t want to hurt somebody’s feelings like that. The worst part being, most likely your date feels exactly the same about you…

But it can be the other way around too. There can be this feeling that everything about this person you’ve never seen before is, like, completely right.

Sure, there’s always a margin of error. Sometimes there’s wishful thinking involved. Or alcohol. But on a very lucky day, you just might find that on some deep level, something about this stranger truly speaks to you.

They might not even have the looks you expected from the love of your life. I always thought I was meant for the black-haired, brooding type (―it probably had to do with reading Pride and Prejudice and watching the BBC series a couple of times too often, and yes, I am team Colin Firth ;)).
But suddenly there was this red-haired guy with the ready smile and the fun vibes, and, yeah.

On our wedding day, an elderly widowed aunt expressed her bewilderment at the madness to marry (we were quite young, and no one was pregnant). Luckily, neither my husband nor I had second thoughts. We were in love and didn’t think that much at all, I guess.
A good twenty years later, I think I can safely say it wasn’t a mistake.

Love is stronger than different backgrounds, other people’s doubts, or even your own beliefs. And it can happen in a heartbeat.

If you like that idea, I invite you to read Justin’s and Andi’s story, GLACIER GOLD!

Saunas, celebs, superheroes

Hi all! *waving from my little corner in the Alps* If you're up for a little Greene time, I'll tell you about the fun I had searching the net for beautiful guys to cast for the two leads of my M/M romance GLACIER GOLD, snowboarders Justin and Andi. I love surfing the net on the lookout for cute men who could star in my stories (or be on my covers). Usually I try not to do it before I’ve written the first draft, though: my characters tend to develop in unexpected ways during the writing process, inside and out, and while pictures can be inspiring, I’ve found they can also limit the imagination. And then there’s the problem of procrastination: you can kind of lose track of what you’re supposed to be doing once you embark on that google search for “black-haired blue-eyed actors”… It’s funny with these searches; sometimes you find a picture of a guy who’s one of your heroes to a T, looking exactly like you dreamt him up. From the cool smirk to the color of his shirt (if minus the glasses, but maybe he just took them off for the photo). It happened to me with Andi from GLACIER GOLD. I’m sharing the picture here, to give you an idea what it was like for Justin to see Andi behind the hotel reception for the first time, looking all sleek and trim and perfect. A little arrogant, a little enigmatic, and his eyes this hypnotic mix of ice and fire... (I’m so in love with Andi!) Only when I was knee-deep in the process of editing GLACIER GOLD and needed a break from the hunt for stray commas, continuity errors and the like and treated myself to an update on a few celebrities’ private lives did I realize that my protagonist, Justin, actually looks a lot like a younger, shorter Chris Hemsworth in the movie “Thor”. I love Chris with the long blond hair and the extra twenty pounds of muscle. And the way he plays Thor, the way he lends the character that certain purity, that cheerful energy and charming simplicity of soul? I love that even more. His Thor could be Justin’s older brother any day. Chris is a lovely sports guy to stalk online too: he does all kinds of sports, including snowboarding, looking great in any gear. It’s a safe guess he’d look nice in the sauna too. I invite you to lean back and imagine him as Justin relaxing all alone in the vapor bath in this scene from GLACIER GOLD, the moment when it all started… EXCERPT: … Leaning my head back against the wet wall, I close my eyes to soak up some warmth and think of the guy from reception for a bit. A. Fankhauser. That’s what it said on his shirt pocket. It’s A for angel, in all likelihood. Honest to God, this man is the most beautiful guy I have ever laid eyes on, so beautiful I had trouble wrapping my head around it. I had expected a nice Austrian lady in a dirndl to book us in, the kind that was on the hotel home page. Not a supermodel. God, he looked so damn trim in his black button-down and his horn-rimmed glasses and with his shiny dark hair slicked back over his pretty head. I’ve moved my hand too close to my cock. It’s what happens when you’re relaxing on your own in a cozy place while being bare-ass naked. And I’ve got to stop this now. I’ve got to think of something else, and quickly. Opening my eyes, I see another sign mounted to the wall opposite me, right above two bowls on a shelf. Squinting through the vapor wafts, I look for the part in English and learn that this is pine honey and rock salt, and that a honey-and-salt peeling will give me baby-soft skin. It can never hurt to have baby-soft skin. I get up, slipping a bit on the melting ice cubes, and start slapping generous amounts of honey onto my chest, stomach, and back with a long wooden ladle. For good measure, I sprinkle a couple handfuls of salt onto the mess. It quickly spreads everywhere, and I mean everywhere, causing a nasty itch where I need it least. I still sit down and try to hold up for the sake of the promised effects, but after a minute or so I can’t take it anymore. Quickly I get up again, grab for the hose that’s attached to the wall next to the door, and switch on the water. Putting a foot onto the bench, I aim the jet straight at my ass to try and rinse the biting stuff away. Phew, my blood pressure doesn’t seem to like this. And the tiles are even more slippery now with the honey-salt mix all over the place. Oh man, I need something to hold on to— The next moment I’ve crashed to the floor in one smooth, curved motion. As I struggle to process what just happened, I’m hit by a flash of brightness and a cool draft. “Everything okay?” Someone is in the doorway. Through the vapor and the sweat running into my eyes, I can make out a tall figure looming above me. Must be Jay who came to look for me. I rub at my eyes. “It’s fine,” I say, looking up at Jay. Only it isn’t Jay. It’s the angel from reception, without the glasses. …

Sweet stuff from Austria

I don’t know about you, but I never sit down at my computer to write without some cookies or a piece of cake. I really hate those health blogs that claim sugar makes you age faster and is basically toxic. I can only hope those scientists are lying! I have tried the healthier alternatives. Fruit, nuts―all not bad. But not satisfying that certain craving, you know? I’ve tried to eat muesli while writing too, and even salads, but it has turned out healthy food is a hazard for my keyboard. Cookie crumbs are so much better! I have a pretty effective strategy of dealing with those that involves rotating the keyboard and a special blowing technique. Try the same with a spoonful of muesli or a piece of tomato, and, well, take my word for it: it’s not going to fly. So pastry it is! And ever since I moved to Austria, my favorite has been the Sachertorte. Have you ever had the chance to try it? It’s a typical Austrian chocolate cake. The original recipe is a secret. But I wouldn’t try to make a Sachertorte myself anyway: I am ace at eating cake, but a little less of a pro when it comes to baking… Here’s a little excerpt from my mm romance novella GLACIER GOLD starring the Sachertorte. Justin came to Austria, Tyrol, for a snowboarding vacation with his two friends, Jay and Carl. Carl is very fond of eating and has a piece of Sachertorte while they discuss Justin’s chances of hitting it off with his crush, local snowboarding instructor Andi: … Jay and Carl refuse to share in my newfound optimism. Jay especially seems to feel I need some reining in. He acts as if I were an out-of-control fifteen-year-old and he my dad. When we get ready for dinner, he looks at me askance as I take a turn in front of the mirror. “Why don’t you choose something more appropriate for a country hotel restaurant for a change? Do you want to burn his eyes out with that shirt?” It’s a perfectly regular semitransparent satin shirt in magenta. If people tend to look at stuff that’s magenta, that’s hardly my fault. Jay struggles to make the ends of the belt of his dress pants meet over his stomach. When Antje moved on, it didn’t take him long to redirect his amorous efforts toward an Italian girl who sits at the table next to ours at dinner every night. She’s with her parents. It’s him who should stop being inappropriate, chatting up people while their parents are watching and while wearing blue dress pants with cowboy boots. And this man has the nerve to comment on my outfit. Ignoring him, I sit down on my bed and put in my heart-shaped pink rhinestone earrings. I got them at Innsbruck airport, so what could be a more appropriate choice of jewelry for a Tyrolean hotel? In the mirror I can see Jay give Carl a pointed look, as usual when he feels he needs support. Carl, who’s lounging on his bed with a selection of snacks, gives a tiny nod in response and noisily swallows a chunk of Sachertorte. They’ve been talking about me, the bastards. “We don’t mean to rain on your parade, dude,” Carl begins, confirming my suspicions, “but what about your studying? Did you get stuff done today?” Fuck. He knows full well that, no, I didn’t. “Not to spoil your evening,” he goes on. “But we think that you should get started. Like tonight. You won’t be happy if you fail that test again.” “So not happy!” Jay affirms. “I won’t fail! I have time enough for studying on the flight home!” They exchange a glance that is nothing short of infuriating. Fuck, this is like being on vacation with two fucking parents! I could just as well be that poor Italian chick! “Okay, dudes, here’s the thing. I have more important stuff to do at the moment than focus on my future. Stuff that can only be done while I’m still here. And you know what I’m talking about.” “He doesn’t want you!” Jay exclaims, sounding almost hysterical. “Forget it, Justin!” … * "This was just one delicious read. From annoying to sweet sweet tenderness." Open Skye Book Reviews on GLACIER GOLD * You can get the Sachertorte on the photo at the Cafe Sacher, Innsbruck, and my Austrian M/M Romance GLACIER GOLD here: https://books2read.com/u/bP5lJz https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/boo...

Blog Tour Giveaway

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Glacier Gold on Tour

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