C. Margery Kempe's Blog: Lady Smut, page 175

The Life We Juggle

I am a planner by nature. In fact, the only things I don’t seem to plan are the manuscripts I write and even those I wish I could plan as I feel it would save me time in the long run. But I’m not here today to talk about pansters vs. plotters (I’m pretty sure I’ve done that in a past blog). I’m here to talk about everything that we decide to juggle in our lives, or what can be imposed upon us.

We live in the age of high-speed internet, iPads and smart phones. I see the effects of this every day at work and outside of it. We want things now, period. We don’t have patience and there is no slower pace of life. These days, we juggle families, jobs, hobbies, relationships, outside of work obligations, etc. Even in a struggling economy, we strive for nice cars, nice houses, beautiful clothes and interesting vacations.

While some of the above is true, it is far from the truth to say we all are like this, but our society as a whole? I wouldn’t say the description is that far from the truth. And for most of us, much of what we juggle is based on decisions we make. I use myself as an example. I choose to write, I choose to work a demanding job, I decided I was ready for a baby…you get the picture. In this current state of economy, many people aren’t always choosing the situation thrust upon them: foreclosure, bankruptcy, loss of job, sick family member, etc. Granted there are positives too like going to school or having children or getting a new job, but many of us are more willing to do the “juggling” if we want the situation we are in.

I’m not referring to this life juggling for any true moral of the story. It really can be something good or something bad depending on the situation and how it all occurs. Either way, sometimes it is nice to stop and smell the roses so to speak. I know that is cliché but it is also necessary, otherwise we might miss life amidst all the juggling.

Filed under: Toni Kelly, Writer's Life

Some Like it Rough by Leia Shaw

If you’re a romance reader (like me!) you probably like this genre because;

1) the connection between the characters

2) the happily ever after

and

3) the steamy love scenes!

Or maybe you have your own reasons, but those are mine.

So, my question is…do you like it rough?

Okay, we’re talking fantasy here, not personal life. We don’t need to go there.

The majority of the books I read contain very primal, wild sex scenes. Granted, I read a lot of paranormal — predatory, animalistic themes are popular. And it makes sense for the characters. But I’ve read a good number of rough sex scenes in other sub-genres as well.

For me, rough sex doesn’t equal violence, or even dominance. It’s passion. The intensity of not only the shared lust, but the emotion behind it. Who doesn’t want to be wanted so bad that it turns a man into a beast? Who doesn’t think it’s sexy that a guy could be so hot for you that he rips your clothes to shreds just to get at your body?

he’s coming for you

Oh, yes. A beast it is.

A beast with a tender, gentle side when it matters. But when it’s beyond mattering…

You know when it gets to that point, right? When the heroine says “to hell with it, gimme all you got.” And she doesn’t care if there’s a pointy rock shoving into her back, or if there’ll be bruises on her arms where he’s holding her down, or if her lips are raw from the harshness of his stubble. She can’t feel any of that anyway. And if she can, it turns her on. Cause it reminds her how bad this man wants her.

When it gets to that point — chests heaving, gazes locked, bodies tingly all over, growls echoing in the night — I say let the beast out of his cage.

Are you with me?

Filed under: romance

Memorial Day and the Weekly Paranormal-Scope

Memorial Day has an overriding influence this week.  Thoughts go back to brave ones lost, and in that way they are never truly lost to us.  They remind us how one life can do so much and mean so much.  We are connected to our past and our loved ones.   Each time we remember them, we remember how freedom is a gift hard won and how much they loved us.

While I’m not qualified in any way to read neither stars nor planets, I am intimately linked with the paranormal in the world.   In many ways, so are you.

The week ahead for:

Aries

A dragon will teach you how to roar.  It’s time others heard you.

Taurus

An elf wants to friend you.  Go ahead.  He will bring magic into your life.

Gemini

Hobbits are wonderful friends.  They also love to cook.  Get together with friends and make dinner.

Cancer

Dragons smoke too much.  It’s time to tackle an old habit and be done with it.

Leo

A vampire has crossed your path.  Stay in the sunshine and avoid the naysayers.

Virgo

Luck has been sprinkled all over you.  Pixies are messy but it will work to your advantage.

Libra

A shapeshifter has one eye on you.  He or she (not telling which) wants to help you.  Let an unexpected friend help.

Scorpio

Change your wardrobe and take a walk.  The Fae Folk encourage a new look and a new look on life.

Sagittarius

Centaurs love dancing.  It’s time to kick up your heels.

Capricorn

Stop hiding.  Nessie has found you and it’s time to get in the swim of things.  Life is good.

Aquarius

That werewolf is still hanging around.  You must be someone great.  He’s howling about your high potential.

Pieces

A mermaid has given you the gift of song.  Enjoy the music and open your heart to a new adventure.

–Susan

Susan Hanniford Crowley

http://www.susanhannifordcrowley.com

 

Filed under: romance, Susan Hanniford Crowley, vampires, Weekly Paranormal-Scope

Earning Emotions

The fabulous Leonor Fini

by C. Margery Kempe

The notion of a universality of human experience is a confidence trick and the notion of a universality of female experience is a clever confidence trick.

~ Angela Carter

I don’t like shoes.

I thought I should get that right up front at the start. I grew up running around barefoot the better part of the year and no one in my family wore shoes indoors. They’re just not comfortable. You’ll understand why My Side of the Mountain hit a chord immediately with me: I’m a real wild child.

But judging by popular culture that makes me a freak: oh, didn’t you know? Women are just CRAZEE about shoes. That meme is making the rounds again, the one about how The Wizard of Oz is the ultimate chick flick, two witches fighting over shoes, ha ha! I recall my keen disappointment when one of my fave comedy writers based an entire episode around the idea that the only female character would cripple herself for cute shoes. It’s a tiresome meme.

We’re still fighting an uphill battle with gender; this limits everybody. We should give the same respect to a stay-at-home dad as we do to a stay-at-home mom. Men largely get funneled into high pressure jobs that kill them with stress, while women get shunted off into the pink collar ghetto because their willingness to help seems to outweigh their ability to get paid to do so: empathy gets ingrained in women through our culture.

In narratives this leads to lazy characterisation. I still remember my first viewing of Aliens. I had loved the original haunted-house-in-space film but had my doubts about Cameron helming the second. I did enjoy the action most of the way through, but then came that scene: “Get away from her, you bitch.” In that moment it became a lazy, gendered shortcut — an assumption rather than a character. The lazy assumption that all women have ‘maternal instincts’ that undercut every other consideration in the world, that all women are ‘natural’ enemies over scarce resources whether they’re shoes or children — that any woman who doesn’t have a child is eaten up inside by that lack and so unfulfilled.

(-_-)

This was sparked by an ebook that I meant to review, but now I don’t much feel like doing so. Let me just say, if you’re going to label something as “romance” then you need to do a little work understanding the genre. I jump between a lot of genres under my various names, so I’m always conscious of the bounds for the one I’m working in at a given time. If it’s romance, then I know I can’t be lazy and just suggest that a woman will suddenly forget her life, her job and her ambitions because a guy looks like her favourite movie star and his baby is in danger and oh, by the way she can’t have kids and it’s the only thing that matters. Those might well spark interesting underlying emotions, but don’t expect the reader to do all the character development for you: you have to earn it.

Have you read a story where the author tried to cut corners like this? Did it stop you from reading?

 

Filed under: C. Margery Kempe, Characters, contemporary romance, Emotions, inspiration, Kit Marlowe, mystery romance, romance, Romance suspense, What Are You Reading?, What are you watching?

Love, Sex and Mischief–Excerpt from A Vampire for Christmas

This is the third week for the sexy love scenes/excerpts.  As usual, I have to give warning that if you are below the age of 18, you are asked to leave.  The link below leads to Adult Content.  The 3rd book in the Vampires in Manhattan series is A Vampire for Christmas.  Funny how this comes our way just as the weather is heating up.   Summer always leads to mischief. LOL

Warning:  Adult Content!   http://romancebystarlight.wordpress.com/2012/05/26/love-sexand-mischief-a-vampire-for-christmas/

–Susan

Susan Hanniford Crowley

Filed under: Love/Sex Scenes, paranormal, paranormal romance, romance, romance novels, Susan Hanniford Crowley, vampire books, vampires

The Power of the Universe by Gerri Brousseau

If you read yesterday’s blog, Hold Onto Your Dreams, I promised to tell you another story about the power of the Universe and how it has worked in my life. This is a true story. This really happened to me.

Many years ago (2001) and for reasons to numerous to mention here, my son and I moved from Connecticut to California. After living there for three months, my son decided he didn’t like it there and so he moved back to Connecticut. Of course, the expense of moving an entire household back to Connecticut was too much at that time and so, I couldn’t move back.

Time passed, my son met a nice girl, and they wanted to get married. It seems now that everything in my life was aligned. My lease would be up in a matter of six months and I would have to move anyway, so why not back to Connecticut? Yes, well, that’s all well and good, but the cost of such a move at that time was approximately $15,000.00. Considering I only had $5.00 in the bank at the time would make one think it impossible.

What I did next might surprise many, but if you know how the laws of the universe work … maybe not. I asked the universe to bring me the money I needed to go home and I started to pack boxes as if I were going to move. I set the wheels in motion by not only asking for the money, but by packing the boxes as if I already had the money to move.

Soon money started coming to me, and ideas for ways to increase my income and bank account started to come. I would wake up with an idea, and it would generate income. I set the moving date for 6 months and actually scheduled the movers. Yes, this was my first experience on relying on the universe, but I have unquestioning faith.

The day of the move arrived. The moving van pulled up in front of the rental house and loaded up all my belongings. Three days later, I flew out of LAX and left California in my “rear view mirror” so to speak. I came home. In the span of the six months from when I first started things in motion, not only did I manage to get the money to move, I also flew back here (I think it was in Feb. 2007) and purchased a condo. I arrived back in Connecticut on April 4, 2007.  Crazy?  Some might say so, and some might say unwavering faith.

Since that time, the universe has brought me new living room furniture at no cost to me, dreams and ideas to write several novels.  Magic?  I suppose there is some magic in the universe, but mostly it was faith.  Rhonda Byrne wrote “The Secret” and although I never read it, I seem to live it by trusting the universe.  Believe it … or not … it worked and continues to work for me.

Filed under: romance

Hold Onto Your Dreams by Gerri Brousseau

When I read Toni Kelly’s blog yesterday about dreams, it got me to thinking about something that really happened to me and I wanted to share this strange story with you.  Not so many years ago, and as many of my readers may know, I had a job that required me to take two trains to get to work.  I was spending four hours per day on the train.  Crazy, I know.  To pass the time during this ride, I would read.  I was reading probably two books per week.  One day, after about a year and a half of reading so many books, I decided I wanted to try my hand a writing one.  I had no idea how to write a book.  I had no idea if I had what it took to do something like that.  I had just finished reading The Twilight Series and read an interview on the author, Stephanie Meyers.  She told the person taking her interview that she had dreamed Twilight.  Hmm, ok … well, maybe I could have a dream and write it as well.  Mind you, I didn’t own a lap top, a digital notebook, or IPad, nor did I have a clue about writing.  Still, I had the desire burning in me to write a novel.

Well, from past experience (topics for another blog article), I knew if I asked the universe to bring something to me and I proceeded in my normal day-to-day life as if I already had it, I would, in fact, get it.  Yes, this has worked for me in the past and I will have to relay one of those stories … perhaps tomorrow.

What did I do, you ask?  Well, that night as I was preparing to go to sleep, I sat on the edge of my bed and I said “Universe, please bring me a dream that I will remember and write into a novel.”  And I got into bed and drifted off to sleep and … nothing.  Still, I had my pad and pencils ready and packed in what I referred to as my “train” bag.  I was ready to receive.

The following night as I was preparing to go to sleep, I again sat on the edge of my bed and I said, “Thank you Universe for bringing me a dream that I remember so I will write my novel.”  And just like the night before, I got into bed and drifted off to sleep.  And again … nothing.  Still I remained ready to receive.

Now came the third night, and most would believe me to be silly, or just plain crazy, but again I sat on the edge of my bed and thanked the universe for the dream, speaking as if I had already received it.  And lo and behold that night, I had a dream.  A crazy dream about a woman who comes into possession of an enchanted dream catcher and in her dreams gets drawn back in time and into the arms of the Warrior Chief.  Wow, what an exciting dream it was, and so vivid.  I woke up recalling every detail of the dream and that day I wrote the words “Chapter One,” and “According to Legend” was born.

The words seemed to flow from the pen, as if I were channeling someone from the “other side.”  It was as if the book wrote itself.  I wrote like a woman possessed, and perhaps I was.  I wrote the majority of the book on the train, but I also wrote on my lunch break, while I was eating dinner, and on the weekends.  I remember taking the rough draft to the beach and editing it.  I wrote for months.  Then finally a few months later, I typed the words “The End.”  And I was so full of emotion, I cried.

What happened next?  Well, I by chance happened to see a TV magazine type talk show called Connecticut Style.  A local author by the name of Sandi Kahn Shelton was on.  She was offering a workshop for individuals who wanted to write a novel.  Wow, this could be just what I needed.  So, I called her.  She was not at home, but I left a voice mail and guess what?  She called me back.  She was so kind and so nice.  She suggested I join my local writers’ group, which is Connecticut Chapter of Romance Writers of America (CTRWA) … and so I looked them up on line and went to a meeting.  That was in April, 2010.

During the next two years, I learned a lot from the mentorship program at CTRWA.  I went to all the meetings and conferences.  I became a sponge for learning the craft.  I wrote two subsequent novels, and decided it was time to find a publisher.  And, I did.

I found out later that I am in good company.  You see, author JK Rowling dreamed Harry Potter and she wrote on the train as well.  I tell you this story for two reasons … first, never sell yourself short … don’t listen to the nay sayers, because there are always nay sayers; and secondly, always hang onto and believe in your dreams.

Filed under: romance

Dreams and Their Possibilities

Despite the fog of early motherhood, I slept this weekend. I don’t really remember it but I know I slept because I had the most vivid of dreams (despite the fact that we supposedly dream every night). It got me thinking about where dreams come from. According to the School of Metaphysics, by age 60, we will sleep 175,200 hours, dream 87,000 hours with 197,100 dreams. These dreams come from the subconscious mind and tell us about our present state of awareness (for more info see the School of Metaphysics).

Thinking about the dreams I remember from this past weekend, I can definitely see how they have to do with our present state of awareness as I can probably connect every portion of my dream to something I recently saw, experienced or thought about. Still, I’m not really sure what they mean and I’m by no means a dream interpreter. This weekend, I dreamt of beaches, iPads and lights. Not sure about the correlation but they were amazing dreams nonetheless.

Occasionally, I come across the writer who writes from their dreams. I personally don’t dream up my stories but admittedly they might make interesting scenes if I could make sense of them or at least gain inspiration from them. I do, however, seem to “day dream” my scenes as I am writing my book, each scene becoming a mini motion picture in my mind as I try to figure out what will happen next?

What about you all? What do you dream about and what do your dreams mean to you?

Filed under: Toni Kelly, What inspires you?, Writer's Life

The Avengers – a movie review by Leia Shaw

I’ve never done a movie review before but I couldn’t think of another topic for a post today. I just saw this movie over the weekend and it’s fresh in my mind. So, all my lovely readers, you get a somewhat rambly, completely non-informational, but funny, movie review.

 

I don’t read Marvel comics. I’ve never picked up a comic book in my life. Now that you know I have absolutely no qualifications to do this review, we can get started.

Plot: Evil alien god-ish guy Loki has it out for the world because, like most super villains, he’s hungry for power with a bit of vengeance on the side. And, of course, daddy issues. Cry me a river, right? Anyway, he’s tripping on this glowly blue stuff that makes him all “I have cosmic power so suck it humans and bow to me!”

Eye patch guy wants to save the world – or maybe just his stash of weapons – so he gathers a team of super heroes. Iron Man, Hulk, Captain America, Black Widow, and Hawk. Thor swoops in all full of godliness and says “that’s my brother and I love him even though he tried to kill me and do other bad stuff in the last movie we were in.” So he joins the team too.

Oh, but before Hawk is a good guy, Loki hypnotizes him with his Spear of Power to do his bidding. Later Black Widow is all “I have googly eyes for you but all I want to do is repay my debt. No really, I do.” Through the amazing technique of whacking him in the head really hard, he goes back to normal.

So Loki opens this portal to who the hell knows where and weird alien creatures fly out to wreak havoc on NYC. Does anyone know why it’s always NYC? Who in their right mind would live there? When natural disaster strikes, NYC is the first to go. When aliens come to control our minds and harvest our bodies, NYC gets the first blast. There isn’t even a good exit system. You live in Manhattan, you’re just asking to die.

Anyway, so the aliens include these giant monsters I can only describe as a flying slug-turtle hybrid. So Iron Man is, like, the only one taking down the slurtles, cause he can fly and all. Black Widow and Hawk are doing their assassin thing. Captain America is being all super hero-y and saving civilians. Thor is trying to hammer his brother. Then Hulk comes in and is all like “Smash!” Lots of action, lots of explosions, lots of fighting done by stunt doubles. It’s all very exciting.

Anyway, I won’t tell you the end except to say the good guys lose, NYC is overrun by armored aliens, and the whole world goes down the crapper.

Just kidding

Acting: Who loves Robert Downey Jr? Me! In my mind, he was the star of this movie. Playing the cocky but funny Iron Man, he had all the great one-liners. Not to mention the best love sub-plot with Gwenyth Paltrow. I don’t know who plays Thor but whoever he is has the best biceps in the world. That’s all I have to say about that. Mark Ruffalo was an awesome Hulk. Well, the human version anyway. The Hulk version is lots of CGI and grunting and smashing. Hawk was just a guy shooting arrows – not sure what his deal was. But I think archers are sexy so he was alright in my mind. Captain America was a stiff, old-fashioned goody-goody. So not my thing. And I think the costume is dumb. But the actor played him well so bravo. Normally I can’t stand Scarlet Johansen but she was actually rockin’ in this movie as the Russian assassin Black Widow. And she’s never looked better with short strawberry hair and a black leotard. The guy who played Loki has the best creepy grin in the world. So that’s my professional analysis of the acting.

Directing: I’m pretty sure I’m supposed to say something highly educational and critical here. But I’m not highly educated or critical so I’m just going to leave it at this. Um. It was directed. By a person. They did some cool directing. And it was good. Um. Smash!

Sum up: This had the perfect blend of humor, sentiment, and “whoa, that’s so freakin’ cool” moments. I highly recommend it.

.

Gratuitous picture of Thor’s biceps

Filed under: romance

Weekly Paranormal-Scope

While I’m not qualified in any way to read neither stars nor planets, I am intimately linked with the paranormal in the world.   In many ways, so are you.

The week ahead for:

Aries

Eagles have embraced you.  You will soar to new heights.

Taurus

Shapeshifters know the ins and outs of good relations.  Smile to all your co-workers and keep your own counsel.

Gemini

Wood elves follow your path.  Good luck is yours this week.

Cancer

Mermaids love chocolate.  Now every fisherman has changed his bait. lol

Leo

Aslan has returned to claim what is his.  Sit back and watch the fun.

Virgo

Werecats purr loudly.  Someone close to you will give you support in your next venture.

Libra

Ents love you.  Add some plants to your home.

Scorpio

Dance with the fairies.  They sense of fun is infectious.

Sagittarius

You can tame a hell hound. Of course, the problem is where he buries his bones.  You may have some clean up to do.

Capricorn

That new vampire is ready to impress.  Your adventures continues.  Dress well and enjoy the fun.

Aquarius

A werewolf thinks you’re great and is howling your praises.

Pieces

A vampire has crossed your path and lending some mystery to your life.  Enjoy your nights.

–Susan

Susan Hanniford Crowley

http://www.susanhannifordcrowley.com

 

Filed under: Susan Hanniford Crowley, Weekly Paranormal-Scope