L.A. Witt's Blog, page 26

REVIEW: Getting off the Ground

Another great review for Getting off the Ground, this time from Dark Divas Reviews:

"This is the first book by L.A. Witt I have read and she does live up to her reputation for hot sex scenes and well-developed characters. This is a fun, quick read that I think most readers of m/m romance will enjoy."

The entire review is here.

Pimping out a friend's book: IN THE SHADOW OF THE SUN

In The Shadow of the Sun by Aislinn Kerry is now available from Amber Allure. This book is teh ossum. Srsly. Combine Ancient Egypt, vampires, and dirty manlove into one book, add Aislinn's badass writing, and this is what you get:

Aten, immortal pharaoh of the Two Kingdoms, keeps his eternal good looks by sucking the blood of innocents. Everyone knows it. His very existence is a blasphemy against the gods. So when Seth, a priest of Ra, is told to assassinate this tyrant at the masquerade celebration during the Festival of Opet, he accepts the task without questioning it. He seduces Aten and waits until they're in the privacy of the pharaoh's bedchamber before he strikes, driving a stake into Aten's chest. But Aten doesn't die. The stake shatters without even leaving a scratch, and Aten laughs at him for the attempt.

Seth expects to be executed for treason, but neither man can deny their attraction, and Aten's intrigued by Seth's misguided desire to see him dead. He challenges Seth to stay, to see if he can find a way to kill him—and maybe to see that he's not the man people say he is.

The longer Seth remains, the more he struggles with his convictions. Is it possible that all the rumors are wrong? Can a man who survives on the blood of others possibly be good and just? And when the time comes to choose sides, will he honor his gods, or his heart?

Buy it HERE. You know you want to.

The Writing Journey 3: Research

It's time for another visual representation of a part of the writing journey. (If any of the text is too small, click on the pictures to enlarge them) Also, if you missed them, here's The Writing Journey Part I and The Writing Journey Part Deux.

BEHOLD:
Remember me? Yep, there I am, behind my laptop. I do actually have hair, but I'm incapable of drawing cartoon hair. So for the sake of this comic, I am bald.
Now, I like to be accurate with my writing, so I frequently need to cross-reference facts, just to make sure I'm not talking out my ass and accidentally having a character drive all the way from Seattle to Houston in a VW Bug without stopping for gas. As such, Google and I are good friends. Say hello to my friend, Google.
Because I have a crazy imagination and am easily amused, I often entertain myself by imagining some poor shmuck being stuck with the job of monitoring my internet shenanigans. Meet Rex:
Rex does nothing but sit at his computer all day and make sure I'm not googling anything that could be a threat to national security or offend someone who happens to walk past my laptop. Rex's job sucks.

Oblivious to Rex's watchful eye, I write.
And inevitably, I get stuck.

To Google, with a completely relevant but strange-when-viewed-out-of-context question:
And Rex doesn't really bat an eye at this point.
With my question answered, it's back to work. For a minute or two.
Because another quandary presents itself, and it's back to Google.
Question answered, back to writing. But you see, I have ADD or something (the attention span of a cracked out squirrel, anyway). So by this point, I've written the part that necessitated the google search, and have now flitted to another scene. Probably another chapter. Maybe not even the same book. And I've run into another question.
Back to Google!

Now, bear in mind, Rex doesn't know I'm flitting from scene to scene, book to book, paragraph to paragraph. He has no context for my searches, no frame of reference.

All he knows is what I'm googling.
And sometimes, in the midst of writing/googling/writing/googling/flailing/writing/googling...
...I'll have an unrelated-to-writing thought. And that thought will also necessitate a trip to Google.

Rex isn't judging me per se, he's probably just wondering what the hell I'm doing over here. I, meanwhile, have answered my random, non-writing-related question, and return to my customary madness.
But it gets better. Because I'm not just limited to Google. Oh no. There's always Wiki:
And poor Rex, he just doesn't know what to think.

He's wondering if my activities add up to something amusing, disturbing, inflammable, or possibly all three.

I flit to wikipedia once more.

Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

REVIEW: Getting off the Ground

Jessewave gives Getting off the Ground 4 out of 5 stars:

Getting Off The Ground was a fun book and both guys were sex on a stick, each looking for a no strings sexual encounter. [...] If there's one thing that L.A. Witt does well it's her characters and the sex scenes, and this time she didn't disappoint as Derek and Elliott took each other for a ride of the carnal kind, and then some.

The entire review is here.

NOW AVAILABLE IN PRINT: Light Switch

Itching to have Scott Moore in your hot little hands? Well, this is as close as you're going to get...Light Switch is now available in paperback!
After far too much lackluster sex with her now-ex-boyfriend, Kristen Locke isn't just ready to try something new, she's ready to try everything. And as luck would have it, two of her good friends are more than willing to introduce her to the kinkier side of life: Experienced dominant Scott Moore wants to bring out the submissive in her. Neighbor and voyeur Matt Sommers quite literally sees the exhibitionist in her.

Little by little, they open up a whole new world to her, and Kristen's about to learn that love can be found in the most unusual places…

Traipsing around the island again

Have I mentioned lately how much I love living on Okinawa? Because I totally do. Nebraska will be fine and dandy, but I assure you, there won't be views like this:
And...Komaka Island? WTF is that? Well, if you were a loyal blog minion last summer, you may have seen our photos from our shenanigans on that tiny little island. Zoomed in a little, it looks like this:
Bet you can't guess where we're going next weekend, weather/workload permitting. :D

Couldn't get out there today, though, so we just kept driving, and ended up at one of the castle sites Eddie and I visited when we first got here in 2008. There isn't much left of the castle, and since our last visit, they've leveled out the path that leads down to the water (party poopers! Half the fun was having to climb down on a rope!) and filled the awesome cave with concrete. Le sigh.
But there was plenty of gorgeous scenery left. I mean, seriously...
It just doesn't get any prettier than Okinawa.
My friends, to the beach!
Low tide. Warm water. Off with the shoes and into the tide pools! Not like there's any deadly cone snails around to sting our unprotected feet or anything.
George was having none of this "wading into the water" nonsense.
Elisa, harassing some local wildlife...
Seabiscuits...
Eddie, doing some reflecting...
"No, I'm NOT getting in the water."
Oh look, a cone snail.
Elisa, wandering around the tide pools...
Tiny snails...
Tiniest crab ever...can you see him?
Closer look...
Annnnnnd time to call it a day.
As I said, depending on the weather and my workload, we're planning on hitting up Komaka Island next weekend. Pics to follow.

Darling, it's better, down where it's wetter...

...under the sea!

(What the hell did you think I meant? Jeez, some people are dirty...)

Anyway. Today was nice and warm, so my husband and I grabbed our snorkel gear, pointed the car in a northerly direction, and went up to Kouri Island for some snorkeling. Okay, didn't quite make it to Kouri, but we could SEE it from the other end of the bridge. See, there's this itty bitty little island surrounded by a coral reef...
...so naturally, we had to swim out there and check it out. Last time we snorkeled here, the visibility blew and there was a jet skier making things a wee bit dangerous, but today? The water was crystal clear and there were no jet skis in sight. So we made the swim, which was, I don't know, 100 meters or so, and inspected the local wildlife... (all photos from here on out are by my husband)
Tons of coral, obviously.
And where's there's coral...there's FISHIES!
Lots and lots of fishies...
And little spiny prickly things we couldn't identify...
The elusive Lori-fish, photographed in defensive "take my picture and see what happens, jackass" mode...
Sea anemone and a giant clam:
See? Anemone and giant clam:
An anemone on some coral...
Really close to the island, there was less coral, but more large rocks that we could swim between. Always a good place to find creatures.
Such as...PUFFER FISH!!
Puffer fish are awesome. Now that we have seen one (several, actually), the snorkeling season has officially begun. Expect loads more pictures soon, since we plan to get in as much snorkeling as we can before we move this fall. And once the water warms up, because today? Just a wee bit chilly.

Recipe: Payday Soup

Yes, it's a recipe. Sort of. It'll probably be the only one you ever see on this blog, so savor it mightily.

Okay, I'm not much of a cook, but I have a select few things I can make reasonably well without blowing up the kitchen or severing a limb. The very fact that I'm capable of making this should be a testament to how flipping easy it is.

With the potential government shutdown looming, those of us who rely on the U.S. Government for our paychecks are facing the possibility of payday being...well...not. I'm not going to turn this into a political rant or anything, I'm just sharing something that might be useful to those who could suddenly have to tighten the purse strings.

When my husband and I have been broke during various periods of time, this is a soup I've made that is awesome and UBER CHEAP. I can make an entire pot for under $30, and it's enough to feed one person for lunch and dinner for up to 3 weeks, or two people for 10 days. Plus it's easy. See above about me not blowing up the kitchen or severing a limb. The recipe isn't set in stone, and you can modify it to your taste.

So. My loyal blog minions. I present to you:

Lori's Not-Patented But Totally Yummy
Payday Soup
(Or, how to stretch $30 for up to 3 weeks)

Ingredients:
1 bag frozen corn1 bag frozen peas3 cans kidney beans3 cans pinto beans2 cans garbanzo beans/chickpeas1 can diced stewed tomatoes (or) 2 Roma tomatoes1 red onion (white onions are fine too, I just prefer red. In fact, I usually put in two onions, but that's just me. I loves me some onions)
2 lbs ground beef (or ground turkey, or that pre-cut-for-stew-beef-that-probably-has-some-name-I-don't-know)1 portabello mushroom (or) 1 pack of those little white mushrooms. Or, hell, a can of mushrooms. Whatever. As long as it's a cup or so by the time they're cut to the size you like.1-2 jars of spaghetti sauce (I prefer Prego...it's sweeter, which keeps the soup from getting overpoweringly salty)2 bell peppers (I usually use 1 red and 1 orange, green works fine too)1...thing of celery. What are they, bunches? Bundles? Stalks? Just, one clustery thing of celery. Chicken broth, beef broth, monkey broth, whatever kind of broth you like. (Yes, it tastes fine if you use chicken broth with ground beef. The chicken and cow don't have a clue.) How much you use depends on what kind of broth-to-chunk ratio you prefer. I usually use two 32 oz cartons of chicken broth.
Pretty much any fresh vegetable that isn't nailed down -- I've used zucchini, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, plenty of other stuff. You can even use okra, but I don't recommend it. I could be biased, though. Those slimy things aren't fit for human consumption, and they certainly don't belong in my soup.
A really big pot.

Dump the frozen peas and corn into the pot. Add spaghetti sauce and broth. Put it on the stove on low.

"I LEARNED THE HARD WAY SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO" TIP: Make sure the burner is actually on. Also, make sure it's the correct burner.

While that mess does its thing, rinse the canned beans. Trust me, you want to rinse them, otherwise you end up with slimy, gooey bean-flavored slop in your soup, and it's gross. So, to avoid that, dump 1-2 cans at a time into a colander and rinse. Seriously. It takes a few minutes to get through all the cans, but it's worth it for goo-free soup. (Yet another reason not to include okra. They're like little green goo-generators.)

Once all the beans are rinsed, throw them into the pot to join the lukewarm broth party with the frozen vegetables. Stir it all up so it's nice and colorful.

"I LEARNED THE HARD WAY SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO" TIP: Don't use a flimsy plastic spoon. I mean, you can if you want, but I'm just trying to keep you from having to dunk your hand in the half-frozen, half-kinda-warm mixture to find the piece that just snapped off. Remember when you were a kid, and you'd go through a haunted house, and they had those pots of cold spaghetti to put your hand in that felt like you were feeling around in someone's guts? Yeah. Same deal. 'Cept you can't pull your hand back til you find the spoon.

After stirring it, let it all simmer merrily for a while. Now, dig out a frying pan and brown the meat. If the meat's already brown when it lands in the frying pan, throw it out and open a new package.

Depending on how strong you like your onions, you can toss them in with the meat or just chop them and put them straight into the soup. I usually cook them with the meat. Either way, get them into the soup fairly early on so the broth will have some nice onion-y flavor. Because onions are the bomb. They're also not okra, which gives them some extra cool points.

Once that's done, into the pot with the meat and the onions. Stir it mightily, making sure everything is all mixed up and the vegetables are being all social and mingling with the meat. No wall flowers allowed. Make sure you don't have clumps of peas on one side while all the onions float around on the other side, or a clique of beef chunks acting like they're too good to hang out with the corn.

Turn the heat up to mediumish. How hot is too hot? If it starts boiling and foaming and making you flail and go "OMG, no! Shit! Shit! Shit!"...it's too hot. If you taste the soup, and it's still cold, it's not hot enough. Adjust accordingly.

"I LEARNED THE HARD WAY SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO" TIP: Turn off the burner you were using the brown the meat.

Now it's on to the fresh vegetables. You can pretty much do whatever you want here...slice 'em, dice 'em, whatever. I rather like mushrooms minced until they're so microscopic, I won't be able to see them, never mind taste them. Why? Because I hate mushrooms. I put them in for the nutritional value. They're good for you, the little bastards, so I suck it up and put them in. Things like celery and bell peppers, I prefer to keep in nice big chunks.

If you're of the persuasion to include okra, mincing it won't do you much good. It'll still be slimy and unholy, so you might as well drop in gigantic rings of okra so when someone puts a spoonful of soup in their mouth, they have some warning. They can see the green beacon of "OMG DON'T EAT THIS", and know ahead of time that the slippery grossness is coming, rather than having it sneak in as a covert little sliver of horror. Honestly, why would anyone eat okra? One bite, and your mouth is coated with slime. I ate one slice of okra and thought a frog had had sex with my mouth. Not cool, okra. Not. Cool.

Anyway. Vegetables. Cut them.

"I LEARNED THE HARD WAY SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO" TIP: There's a knife involved. Do I really have to say it?

At this point, your mileage may vary. You can throw it all in now and just let the whole kit and kaboodle simmer, or you can wait an hour or so to drop the fresh vegetables in. Anything frozen usually goes in now, but I'll usually leave the bell peppers, celery, zucchini, etc. (anything that is better crunchy than soggy) in the fridge, then drop them in later. I prefer my vegetables crispy instead of squishy (or slime-producing), so I wait. Do what ye will.

By this point, my soup is usually about 2-3 inches from the top of the pot. If it's not, I keep adding stuff until it is...sauce, beans, vegetables, dryer sheets, whatever isn't nailed down. (But not okra. I have standards, people.) Then put a lid on it, drop it to low-ish, and just let it cook for a while. 2-3 hours is usually sufficient, I've been known to let it do its thang for 4-5 just because it smells good.

It's also a good idea to taste it from time to time. Add spices as needed. Hot sauce or chile powder if that's your thing (weirdo).

I suppose you could use a crockpot for this too. If you're this far into the recipe and swearing at me, wondering why I didn't tell you that in the beginning, well, I'm wondering what you're doing cooking something without reading the recipe all the way through first. But that's just me. Anyway, I don't use a crockpot because mine is too small, and I can never get all the beany vegetably beefy okra-free goodness into it. So, giant stainless steel pot it is.

Once it's spiced and cooked and totally made of awesome, take it off the burner, turn the burner off, and let it cool for a while. Then put it in those bigass Gladware or Tupperware bowls, or even freezer bags.

"I LEARNED THE HARD WAY SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO" TIP: Before putting it into freezer bags, make sure it really has cooled down.

Freeze all but one container, keep one in the fridge, and eat like a king until the fatcats in Congress get their collective thumb out of their collective ass and pay us.

REVIEW: Reconstructing Meredith

A couple of lovely reviews for Reconstructing Meredith!

First, The Pagan & The Pen gave it the "Reviewer Top Pick" rating, which was also given to Light Switch.
From the review:

"I'm not sure which two books I'm going to have to kick out of my top ten list in order to fit these [Light Switch & Reconstructing Meredith] in, but they're up near the top."

The entire review is here.

And over at I Like Romantic Stuff, the reviewer had this to say:

"Two great main characters of Scott and Meredith with good side characters of Krissy and Matt. The story was brilliantly told from both sides and allowed us to really immerse ourselves in Scott and Meredith's lives."

Definitely a great review day!

NOW AVAILABLE IN PRINT: Nine-tenths of the Law

Yep, another "now available" post...lots of books coming out these days!

Anyway, Nine-tenths of the Law is now available in paperback from Samhain Publishing...hooray!
Keep an eye out -- more ebooks and paperbacks coming in the next few weeks. (And some out-and-about-in-Japan posts, of course).