Beth D. Carter's Blog, page 9

Wordsmith Wednesday...Dystopian Worlds

Though the idea of a dystopian society has been recorded differently in many novels, each tale presents a cold and unfeeling world, chilling to the bone and imagination.  And yet, we can’t get enough of them.  What is it that drives us to study these stories?  We are made to read 1984 and Animal Farm in school, we write essays on Atlas Shrugged and The Handmaid’s Tale for college, learning about certain society behavior, and a bit of our own.  



Movies about dystopian societies have tried coming to life from the pages of a book;  ‘Bladerunner’, from Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, and ‘The Running Man’, who was written under Stephen King’s alias of Richard Bachman. Perhaps the most famous dystopian book & movie franchise in recent memory is The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins.



I’ve written a few apocalyptic stories and have recently had two more picked up by my publisher, Evernight.  I have written two strong females tested to their very brink of breaking.  I absolutely loved pushing, not only my characters, but my own limits as well.



But what draws into such grim glimpses into a future?  Is it the hope we never face it ourselves, or the thought we could be headed that way?  Recently, with the Covid 19 pandemic, we've had a brush of a dystopian world, and I'm afraid we didn't pass with flying colors.



Maybe it’s the fight of the human spirit that we enjoy the most, connecting with a hero or heroine and going on the journey with him or her.  Second guessing their decisions or trying to problem solve with them, as well as watching him or her over come almost impossible odds in an environment we hope never to find ourselves. 



Two of my favorite dystopian romance stories are Countdown by Michelle Maddox and Matched by Ally Condie, but I’m sure there are many more I’ve not had the pleasure of discovering yet. 

Blast From the Past...Not Afraid by Elizabeth Monvey

Raleigh Hewes has known Augustus Rains his whole life, and for the past year they’ve been lovers. They’ve kept it a secret because Gus is afraid of what people will say. Not only are they a gay couple in a small town but he is black and Raleigh is white. Raleigh wants to be out and proud, but Gus is concerned since both their businesses revolve around the local market.
After an argument, Raleigh has doubts that their love can last because he’s tired of hiding their relationship. When a storm sweeps over his farm, he’s caught in the eye of a tornado, and Gus races frantically to find the man he loves.
The danger has put into perspective his fears and Gus decides not to be afraid anymore. He just hopes it’s not too late to lay claim to Raleigh’s heart.
EVERNIGHT PUBLISHING * SMASHWORDS * KOBO * AMAZON * B & N



Many THANKS to Beth D. Carter for allowing me the opportunity to spotlight some of my books! Not Afraid is one of my favorites. I loved writing this dichotomy of two opposite men, in almost every literal way, being in love. I grew up in a small, Midwestern town, and I know about the racism that still prevails there. I wanted to write a beautiful love story where the odds were stacked against the heroes. 
There are many obstacles for my two heroes, Raleigh and Gus. First, one is white and the other black. Gus is a business owner afraid of being shunned in his town. And then there's the tornado. My one question as I wrote this book was if someone could survive being in one? There are actually two documented cases of men being in the eye of the tornado and surviving. I took their eye-witness account and wrote their survival story into Raleigh's. 
Growing up in an area prone to tornadoes, I had a hefty dose of fear and respect for tornadoes. In fact, I made sure to move to a place where there weren't any. I think I fear tornadoes more than I fear earthquakes, although those are scary too. (I actually wrote about an earthquake in my book Bother Me). 
I hope you enjoy reading about Raleigh and Gus!

Excerpt:      Augustus Rains was a big bear of a man with mocha-colored skin that stretched tight over his corded muscles. His hair, mustache, and beard were the same short length and black as pitch. His dark eyes held a wealth of suppressed emotions, and Raleigh often wished he could read his mind, could get a glimpse of what he was thinking. Augustus fascinated him and had ever since high school. In fact, he’d been masturbating to fantasies starring the big guy ever since he’d realized he was gay.     “Were you really going to turn me away?”     “It was Mrs. Brumthal, Leigh. Of course I was going to turn you away.”     And then Augustus reached out with his big, beefy hands and pulled him flush against his body to claim his lips in a deep, penetrating kiss. Raleigh reached up to hold on as Gus licked and sucked on his tongue, fusing them in a way that made his dick hard as steel. It was always like this with Gus, always this raw and powerful and hot. Christ, Gus was the sexiest thing on two legs, and Raleigh always sported a boner within two seconds of laying eyes on the man. When Gus tried to break the kiss and come up for air, Raleigh practically attacked him back, throwing himself into the hard, muscled body. Gus’s arms hit the evenly stacked paint cans and knocked all them off their perfectly set row.     “Jesus, Leigh,” Gus muttered as Raleigh pressed kisses over Gus’s jaw.     “Three fucking days, Gus,” he said roughly in between nips and licks. Gus moaned at Raleigh’s attention. “I’ve been jacking off with mental images of you for three days.”     He sank to his knees in front of Gus and worked on getting his jeans undone. He carefully eased the zipper teeth over the straining erection and some white boxer briefs poked out, barely able to contain the large girth pushing against them.     “I’ve dreamed of this cock, of tasting it and sucking it,” he murmured as he yanked the jeans and underwear down far enough to ease out the huge dick. It was a bit darker than Gus’s skin, and the head was bulbous over a long, thick shaft. Gus’s balls hung, large and heavy. Liquid dribbled out of the tip like crazy, and his mouth watered, so he leaned over and licked.     “Holy shit!” Gus panted. His fingers sank into Raleigh’s hair to either hold him in place or direct his movement. Raleigh didn’t actually care. He was too happy sucking on Gus’s cock to really think about anything else. 

COVER REVEAL!.....Come With Me (Those Who Survived)

RELEASE  DATE….MAY 5, 2020




Those Who Survived Part One
Lainey is one of the few that survived the virus that ravaged the human population. In order to remain safe, she stays away from people, preferring to live on her own. Not trusting anyone. Until one night she’s attacked and rescued by a stranger who insists that there’s still good in the world.

Nolan has a fantastical story of a new civilization in Canada, and urges her to go with him. Lainey doesn’t know if she believes him or not, but the unknown is enough to scare her away. Yet day after day he slowly breaks down her walls, opening her up to the possibility that she might be strong enough to take a chance not only on him, but herself as well.

Part Two coming soon from Evernight Publishing...


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The Evernighties Weekly Blog Challenge - Week 18

City Living or Country?
I grew up in Southeast Missouri, in a country town. I call myself a hillbilly, although that's not entirely true. Growing up in a small town I've done some odd country things like night fishing, eating frog legs, and killed snakes with tongs and a butcher knife.

I couldn't wait to graduate school and explore the world.

A typical Sagittarius, I wanted to travel. My senior year in high school I moved from Missouri to Delaware. At the time, I thought this was fantastic. A stepping stone to spread my wings. And then I graduated and got married. All my plans to travel and see the world dried up. My marriage didn't last long. Only four years, and then I moved to from Maryland to Tennessee, then to Los Angeles. I lived in California for fourteen years and my boyfriend and in those years I traveled to Europe, Australia and New Zealand. I finally was able to see the world.

I've lived in many places, and traveled across the USA several times. I now live in Las Vegas.

Would I go back to living in the country? Absolutely. When I retire and don't have to worry about making a steady paycheck. But the resources I need now are in the city.

Wordsmith Wednesday... Why Erotica Romance?

I’ve had it all.  The raised eyebrows, the nose in the air, the disdain very present in the eyes.  Even the rolled eyes. Everything that screams disapproval.  All because I say I write erotica romance.  People can’t seem to get past the ‘erotica’ part of that statement and focus on the part that I’m published.  I write stories that are turned into professionally edited manuscripts with wonderful cover art, ISBN’d, copywritten, and marketed.  I work very hard to create characters that are real, flawed, and redeemed through love, all in the space of at minimum twenty thousand words.  My largest body of work so far has been about 157,000 words, which is 642 pages and represents two years of my time. 



And that book will probably never see the light of day.



Now, for anyone who has sat down to write down a story, carried it through days, weeks or even years to fulfillment, submitted to many (dozens) of publishing houses, received many (dozens) of rejections, revised under advice, changed or deleted characters or dialogue you love, resubmitted, to finally get one person who will give your work a chance…then lets talk.  Writing is a very solitary life because when submerged in my worlds I live in my imagination.  I hear the voices of my characters.  I dream the scenarios of their lives. 



And I do all of this working full time in retail, being a full time mother to a wonderful little boy, and maintain relationships with friends. I usually hike on weekends with my boyfriend and try to get in some exercise. Sometimes I sacrifice sleep, personal time and normal stuff that most people do in order to meet a deadline.



But I can’t NOT write.  I might explode if I’m not at my laptop trying to find a synonym for the words ‘gazed into his eyes’.  And why erotica romance?  Because I’m good at writing it.  The sex is graphic because the love is intense.  My stories are not about people who court each other, go to church on Sunday, and sleep in separate beds.  My stories are about people with problems…about an ex-soldier fighting PTSD, a woman who was raped at fifteen, a deaf woman trying to be normal, a woman dealing with the consequences of choices she made to deal with health problems.  These characters are raw.  Their emotions are encased in ice.  These people are helpless, hopeless…until love finds them.  So sex between these people and their partners isn’t going to have euphemisms like ‘manhood’ and ‘joined together in bliss’. 



What I write isn’t for everyone.  I know that.  Everyone has different tastes and opinions.  There are people out there who think the word ‘cock’ is vulgar.  Really, I get it.  But I am a writer.  I am a published author.  And I don’t deserve the eye roll.  None of us who write erotica romance do.  To my fellow sister and brother writers, I say give me more.  Give me more sex.  Give me more erotica.  Give me more happy-ever-afters.



Give me more.

Blast From the Past...Run So Far by Elizabeth Monvey

When Kyle stumbles into a truck stop diner, he just wants a bit of time to try to remember the weekend that has changed his life. He meets trucker Delaney Vance and when the older man invites him to travel with him across the US, Kyle thinks it’s the perfect opportunity to relax and find his memories.  As the two men start to get comfortable with each other, unexpected emotions start to develop on both sides.  
Del is a man trying to forget the past and he’s done a pretty good job of it away from people, trucking for a living, and forgoing personal relationships.  But all of that changes as Kyle worms his way into Del’s heart. 
The past is about to catch up with both of them.  With Kyle’s memories come a difficult and scary decision to make…ruin his family or hide the truth.  Can Del help him navigate a future when he himself can’t shake the ghosts of his own past?
Excerpt:      All through Del’s nightly ablution, Kyle feigned sleep, catching only glimpses through half-opened eyes of wet, tanned skin. When he climbed up to his bed wearing only low riding flannel pants, he revealed a heavily muscled chest and arms with a smattering of hair that tapered down and disappeared into the waistband. Several tattoos decorated his biceps and back, mostly military in design.       Was it wrong to lust after a man he’d just met? Kyle had met lots of men he’d been instantly attracted to, but the impact Delaney Vance had on his senses was unlike anything he’d felt before. It made him hesitate, however, because he wasn’t sure if it was simply the situation that made the allure all that more potent. Still, he seemed to be in a constant state of arousal around Del and if he’d been alone, he would’ve taken his dick in hand and eased the pressure from his lustful thoughts.     So instead of focusing on Del’s magnetism, he tried to steer his thought back to the problem that had landed him here. Once again, he tried to concentrate on the events that happened last weekend, going step by step through the time line. Somewhere along the way the fog had to clear so he could remember every detail and sent a silent curse to his cousin, Brian, for placing him in the situation in the first place. Had he known what Brian was up to that night he never would have tagged along. Of course, had he known what was going to happen, he would never have snapped the picture.     But he had and he did.      Kyle rolled over onto his side. He wished the night would last forever. Simply hide in Del’s rig and forget the outside world. Forget his family. Forget the picture in his camera. What could he do now? What should he do?      He could never go to the police back home because he couldn’t trust the police in Baltimore. But if he went to the police in Richmond, would they have jurisdiction rights?     Did murder trump state lines?
EVERNIGHT PUBLISHING * SMASHWORDS * KOBO * AMAZON * B & N

Flashback Friday ... The Alpha Gladiator (MF fantasy romance)

 
Warriors of the Arena, 1Ravage is the fierce Alpha of his people, the Lycans. During the mating celebration, while their guards are down, his people are attacked and twelve are captured for the gladiator games of Kappuah, including Aleirah, the woman Ravage wants above all others.He tries to resist, but he’s unwilling to see his men and his female harmed by the ruthless tyrants of the game. He must make the ultimate sacrifice of taking lives if he’s to protect his people.But there is one secret no one knows, and Ravage is more than willing to show how some myths are based in truth, by letting his inner wolf come out to destroy all those who enslaved them.


Where to BuyEVERNIGHT PUBLISHING * AMAZON * SMASHWORDS * KOBO * B & N

“I remember you from when we were children,” he murmured. 
“I remember you too,” she said softly.
He grinned, pleased with her answer.  She may deny that she wanted to be his mate, but the pheromones coming off her body indicated otherwise.  Aleirah found him desirable.  Whether or not she wanted to be his mate, her body had already begun changing to accept his claiming bite.  Now, he just had to get her to admit it, and he wasn’t above using seduction on his part.
He halted her by a big tree and pulled her around to face him.  He tilted her face up.  Even though he couldn’t see her in the absolute darkness under the branches, he traced her face with his fingertips.  Her breath hitched. A heady aroma wafted from her, not a true scent but one layered under the pheromones. Her arousal had spiked. He pressed his cock between her thighs to let her feel how hard she made him. 
“Aleirah,” he whispered, a moment before he bent his head and captured her lips with his. One hand came up to hold her immobile while the other swept around her waist to pull her close to his chest. Ravage slid his tongue into her mouth to twine with hers, jolting a salacious moan from her.  She tasted like ambrosia, addictive and sweet.  When he broke the kiss, they were both panting.
“I want you,” he managed to say, although it was difficult to talk when his wolf clamored to take over. 
“Yes.” She gasped and pulled his head back to hers.

The Evernighties Weekly Blog Challenge - Week 17

Excluding the usual no-nos, are there any topics you won't write about?
Yes, I won't write about BDSM. Not because I'm a prude or anything, but because it's a relationship dynamic that I'm not well versed in so I wouldn't be able to write about it truthfully.
I did write one book that had bondage in it, titled Paper Kisses. In the book, the heroine Alannah visits her hometown after twenty years. She's just broke up with her husband and is basically rudderless. There's so much going on in her head, she can't hear herself anymore. The hero is into bondage, and ties her up in order to bring all the chaotic thoughts in her head to a standstill. I did a lot of research on the book before writing it, and I hope that I did justice to that world. 
One of the best BDSM books I've ever read is "The Reluctant Dom" by Tymber Dalton. It's a gut wrenching story that is amazing. If you've not read it, I highly recommend it. 
If anyone is confused about the usual no-nos that's in the title, that means rape as a romantic element, any romantic story involving minors (under 18 years), and bestiality (not meaning shifter stories).  

Wordsmith Wednesday...How to Write a Kiss

One of the things I have to do as a writer of erotica romance is describe the art of a kiss.  After all, a kiss is everything.  The dictionary defines a kiss as to join lips in respect, affection, love, passion.  How romantic does that sound, eh?  There is a Chinese Proverb that says “kissing is like drinking salted water, you drink and your thirst increases”.  After all, a first kiss represents the spark of love, the hope of the future, quivers in the belly, and tingly sensations all over the body. 



It should be easy, right?  Writing a kiss should be the easiest thing in the world for someone like me.  But capturing the beautiful act of kissing can be extremely difficult to describe.  A written kiss has to be just the right blend of romantic and Oh la la! with no hint of being wet, sloppy or smacking (as I’m sure we’ve all experienced at least once in our lifetime!)



In my first novel, Black Leather Pants, this is how I wrote Kiley and Penny’s first kiss:

“Kiley's tongue slid into her mouth, twined with hers, danced, jolting a salacious moan from her. He explored each hidden corner. In and out he plunged, sweeping aside any doubt that this was exactly where she needed to be at this moment.”


Also, writing such a monumental step as a kiss in the love story of two people has to be stimulating for the reader.  It’s my job to not only write a believable love scene, but to bring that love scene to life.  So sometimes dragging out that first prolonged moment can be sweet torture. 



In A Silver Lining I wrote:   “His hand hit the wall next to her head, trapping her. He leaned in so close that she felt his breath on her face. An answering need rose sharply inside her, and she itched to touch him, to bring his lips down upon hers. Fire ignited her blood. Her heart thumped almost painfully while her pussy creamed for the hard cock that pulsed through his heavy denims, pushing against her thigh. The overwhelming urge to fall to her knees and suck him into her mouth for a feast had her reeling.”



So how does a writer write a kiss?  We close our eyes and jump back to that first moment, when we experienced that soul shattering kiss that changed us forever.  We write them from our heart, from our hopes and wishes, we draw them out from every movie and book that turned us on.  We study kisses, deconstruct them, fantasize about them.  And we read…a lot!



While there are many ways to write a kiss, and many different scenarios to engage in a kiss, perhaps the most rewarding is that kiss when the happily ever after starts.  Love stories start with a kiss, and though they may not end specifically with one, the reader knows that the kiss is there, waiting in our imagination when we turn the last page.

Blast From the Past...Dark Journey by Elizabeth Monvey

Cax, Alisander and Hark are mated, but the true test of their devotion for each other awaits.  
The three warriors must face the challenge of joining the Mercenary Guild.  Since their union is unusual, they must undergo a test, one that will show if they are worthy of being Mercenaries.  
A potion sends them into an alternate world where they each must confront an inner demon.  Ali must find his warrior self, Hark is sent to confront the dragon he never got to slay, and Cax can’t stand the thought of losing either mate, until he is sent into a battle with both Hark and Ali needing help.  He must choose one, but how can he?  
It is a journey each must face…alone.  1)      How long did it take you to write? Dark Journey is a continuation of a story I wrote years ago. It’s part two of my book Dark Rider. I loved writing this very medieval type story set in a fantasy world. As a whole, it needed work, so I broke them into two stories which made it easier to manage the narrative.
           2)      Do you have a writing quirk, or a habit when you write? I like to listen to classical music or soundtracks when I write. Music puts me into a certain mindset which evokes emotion, which allows me to tap into the soul of the story.
           3)      How do you keep yourself motivated to finish your stories? My book sales are a supplement to my incomes, so my motivation is a monetary one, but also, I love completing a story. Of getting what’s in my head onto paper.


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When Lord Hark is stabbed, his uncle, the Governor of Eyvindar, hires a Mercenary to protect his heir. Hark resents having a babysitter, but when he meets Cax he’s unprepared for the spark of attraction between them.

Cax is a Mercenary, living by the code of his Guild. He is hired to protect Hark, even though it seems Hark’s biggest enemy is himself as he drowns in moon-ivy wine every day. But Cax can’t deny his attraction to the warrior, nor can he deny his attraction to Hark’s loyal servant, Alisander.

Alisander has been by Hark’s side almost his whole life. He is in love with Hark, pining over the impossibility of their relationship, but when he meets Cax he sees a future away from the servant life he’s been confined to—and even more than that in the Mercenary’s arms.

They are all three from different walks of life but manage to find love. Yet they need to discover the truth of the threat closing in on Hark, before it’s too late.
EVERNIGHT PUBLISHING