Kris Cook's Blog, page 3

Man Candy Monday

Time for my favorite supernatural creature - Vampires.  Here are three of my favorites from some great shows:

David Boreanaz is now on Bones, but I will always love him as Angel, the vampire with a soul.Found on Occam's Broadsword.

Alexander Skarsgard makes my heart beat faster as Eric, a ruthless vampire with a heart.Found on The Goddess Blog.

I know there is a woman in this pic, but I just love how Ian Somerhalder looks in this photo. He knocks me out as Damon, the vampire Elena should definitely choose. But why? Shouldn't she have both him and his brother?Found on TVPedia.org
Dream Blood!
Kris

WIP Wednesday

Titos looked back at the sexy detective. God, the man was smoking hot.
“Nice pool, Love.” Derek scanned his back yard like he was making mental notes of every nook and cranny, instead of appreciating the beauty of the design. “The tattoo business must be paying you major dividends.”
“You like to swim?” Without waiting for an answer, he stripped off all his clothes and then looked back at hunk, whose chocolate brown eyes kept creeping into his dreams.Derek’s lips curled up into a sexy grin.

Man Candy Monday

Last week ManCandy had Triplets. I thought this week would be nice to take a look at some hunky twins. 


Joey and Jason Barbera are so easy on the eyes, don't you think?  Got this from MostBeautifulMan.com Definitely worth visiting and looking over their pages.
Dream Big!
Kris

Friday Fireworks Blog Hunt

I’m so excited to be a part of this Blog hop fun. And what a great grand prize – a Kindle Fire.
I love being a part of such a wonderful community of authors and readers. Romance books have brought us together. What keeps us together is something more. I think it has to do with what kind of people read and write romance.
I’ve met many readers at events. In fact, I just went to one in Fort Worth sponsored by the Righteous Perverts and just a few weeks ago attended Romantic Times in Chicago.
What I’ve found in both readers and writers of romance is they have incredible heart. They love life, play hard, and are extremely loyal. My closest friends are also members of this amazing circle. It makes me want to work harder to make my stories richer, deeper, and more enjoyable.
I’m currently working on two books. One is Misty’s Bondage Diary, book 3 in my Secret Diary series. I’m also about to start on my new Gay Romance book – Cupid’s Arrow, part of the Love Ink series.
I’ll have more details for you in upcoming blogs. BTW – Brandy is kicking my butt to keep this blog going. With her, I bet I do.
Shoot me an email. I’d love to hear from you.
Good luck!
Here’s my question for Friday Fireworks: What is the name of Missy's Shape-Shifting book?  (Hint: Check out her 'Shape Shifters' at authormissyjane.com )
Rules:10 Authors. 10 Questions. 10 Easy Answers.You will go from blog to blog gathering questions about each author. There will be a hint and a link that will lead you to the answer.In order to be entered to win the big prize, a Kindle Fire, you will need to send your answers to Brandy at bray829@gmail.com SUBJECT: Friday FireworksYou must include all 10 questions with answers.Winner of the big prize will be drawn and announced on Heather Long's blog. Any prizes offered individually on the author's page will be taken care of by that author.Participating Authors - Blog Links:Heather LongVirginia NelsonMelissa SchroederSaranna DeWyldeDelilah DevlinLissa MatthewsJenn LeBlancWendi ZwadukMissy Jane

WIP Wednesday

This week's WIP comes from Cupid's Arrow. The new m/m series I'm working on.
~~~~~The medical examiner turned on the big light above the stainless steel table holding the lifeless body of the twenty-six year old male.
Visiting the county morgue and the horrors it presented didn't disturb detective Derek Stone. In his line of work, you either learned how to turn off your emotions, or you ended up at a desk shuffling papers for the department. Besides, he'd learned years ago from Thomas, his one and only ex, that feelings were completely overrated.
Derek turned to the examiner, "Tim did you find any drugs or alcohol in the vic's blood?"
"He's totally clean. Also, no external wounds, bruising, or lacerations."
The dead man had been found thirty-six hours ago in a parking lot of one of the premier gay dance clubs on Cedar Springs Road.~~~~~
Dream Big!Kris Cook

Man Candy Monday

So, I thought I'd kick off our first edition of Monday Man Candy with a triple treat. 


I found this on the Blog Neo Male, where you can find more pics of the Karshner Triplets. 
You've heard the old marketing slogan "Double Your Pleasure...Double Your fun."How about "Triple Your Pleasure...OH MY GOD!!!"
Dream Big!
Kris

WIP Wednesday

I'm getting back into the blogging and one of the weekly things I'm going to do is WIP Wednesday. I'm going to give you 3-5 sentences from the current WIP I'm working on. They aren't necessarily going to be the first 3-5 sentences either.


WIP Wednesday
Titos Love lifted his foot off the pedal to the tattoo machine, and its humming noise stopped. The finished tat on his latest customer filled him with pride. It was one of his best. And the extra he’d put into it made the ink shimmer in the ethereal plane. “All done.”The young man sat up from the table, and positioned his leg to get a better view of his new tattoo on his ankle—an eagle.He grinned broadly. “It’s perfect.”“I’m glad you like it.”The mortal man could only see motionless body art. Titos, on the other hand, watched the wings of the inked bird spread out. Yes, it is perfect!“You’re so talented.” His customer tilted his head back. “My boyfriend’s gonna flip.”Boyfriend? Titos knew better. When the guy had entered the studio, there’d been no hint of passion, not even slight affection on his aura. With the eagle on his ankle, all that would change.Titos smiled.  ~~~Dream Big!
Kris Cook

Why Diaries?

I’ve gotten the question “why did you choose the diary format for your latest books?” from several readers, and even some authors. So, I decided to give my answer here for those who haven’t asked but still wonder.
Romance readers typically like third person books; that’s the reason most stories are written in that way.
I love third person, but also enjoy first person – both reading and writing it. One of the first stories I ever wrote was A Perfect World, which was a sci-fi first person erotic short. It was years later that it finally got published, but I always loved that story.

After writing in third person for so long, I wanted to return to first but wasn’t sure what kind of story to do that with and still appeal to romance readers. I was talking about Fifty Shades of Gray’s explosive rise to mainstream with some author friends when it hit me that a woman’s discovery of BDSM might be well suited for a diary format. My buddies encouraged me to go for it, agreeing the personal tone of first person might work.
I decided to start with a very basic entry into the BDSM lifestyle—spanking. I let that whirl around in my head for a month or two as I worked on a couple of deadlines. During that time, the hero popped up in my imagination first. The kind of man he is came so clear to me. He is uber-Alpha and so very confident. But he had also given up on finding a woman who he could spend the rest of his life. Then came Mia. I loved her innocence and curiosity. Thankfully, so did Lex.
After I turned in those books meeting my deadlines, I started on Mia’s Spanking Diary. I’ve been so pleased with the feedback I’ve gotten from readers on that book. Next came Lea’s Menage Diary, set in the same place and time. In fact, Mia and Lea are cousins. Again, terrific emails from readers enjoying the story of Lea and the twin Doms—Reed and Kane. Readers can get the two stories separately or together in Secret Diaries Mia & Lea, which includes the bonus story A Perfect World.
Dream Big!
Make sure you check out The Smutketeers today and tomorrow where you might find a new author to read. 
Kris  

Testing... Testing...

Is this microphone on?

Yes. I'm still alive.

Shocker I know but I wanted to let you all know that I'm back... sort of. My plan is to post twice a week and work on getting some guest authors on here.

I've hired a PA to help out. This place certainly needs some sprucing up, which will be part of her job. Make it nice to look at and hope it keeps you guys coming back for more.

With that I'm off. I need my rest as I'm sure many of you know.

Until next time. (Which will hopefully be sooner than later)

Giving my notice to the Day Job!

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Last Wednesday night when I learned my earnings from my books had far surpassed my day job salary, I rocketed into a state of ecstasy and giddiness. Even now, I'm still flying on the news. Sure, the money is important, just ask my partner. But for me, there's so much more to it than that.

For two years I've held two full-time jobs. One – a Fortune 20 corporate position. Two – writer. When I began this journey, I thought, "I'll get a few books out. Make some money. Quit the day job." Right? (Sarcastic tone)



Sounded so easy back then, but it's turned out to be more difficult than I imagined. My weeks became day job / night writing & weekend writing. Then there's the promo I did for my books, etc. Soon, I had to give up much of my very active social life. For some, that wouldn't be a big sacrifice. For me, it was. I love parties. My partner often went to dinner with friends alone and continued to send my apologies and to say, "He's working on a book." I am not the only one who has sacrificed to get to this moment. So did he. Thank you, Stephen. I love you.



Even with all the time I dedicated to writing it still was hard to deliver the stories swirling in my imagination. Why? I had a split mind. I would shut off the work laptop for the day gig and then flip on the personal laptop for the night gig (writing). Very tough. My thoughts kept drifting back to the day job in the middle of scenes. Not good. Still, I forged ahead. Pushed. Kicked. Screamed. Failed. Quit. Got up. Rededicated. Pushed. Kicked. Screamed. Failed. And on and on. Thankfully, my dream is finally realized.



07-Sep-2009 - my first book, Perfection: Eternally Three, was published.

05-Sep-2011 - giving my two-week notice to the day job I've had for twelve years.

16-Sep-2011 - will be my last day with the day job.

17-Sep-2011 - will be my first day as a full-time writer.

I've learned in the last two years that the winners aren't always the most talented or lucky. Sometimes, they are the ones who just don't stop, just don't give up - no matter what comes.

So please, whatever your dream, keep pushing, kicking, screaming...