Delilah Devlin's Blog, page 47
June 6, 2024
Gabbi Grey: Are we allowed to have favorites? (Contest)
Hello Delilah! Thank you for inviting me here to discuss my newest release. As your readers know, I love writing short stories for anthologies. Especially charity anthologies. I’ve seriously lost count of how many I’ve done over the past five years. My little part to help contribute to worthy causes. I have to say, though, that my favorite anthologies are the LGBTQ ones. Might this be because they hit close to home? Yep, I can say that for certain. This year, Love is All Volume 7’s proceeds are going to a transgender charity. I know several trans people in my life as well as having several friends whose children are nonbinary and trans. That’s a hard road to go down, unfortunately. The vitriolic rhetoric — and the outright lies told — hurt people I care for. People I love.
Okay, so 10 authors have come together in this amazing anthology to bring you great stories of love across the LGBTQ spectrum. This year, my novella is The Boyfriend Arrangement. I admit, I had fun with this story. I was given the trope of arranged marriage for another project that fell through. In the end, I had started this cute little story that I decided to finish, keeping the anthology in mind. This is the story of two young people, destined for marriage. Josette and Felix were born close together. Their mothers are best friends. Naturally, the two will marry. And everyone’s just sort of gone along with this. Felix has become an elementary French teacher. Josette is an interior designer. When Felix comes into his inheritance and buys a dilapidated old cabin, of course, Josette is going to do all the decorating.
There’s just the little step of renovations.
That’s okay, though, because Josette’s older brother, Jacob, is all about helping his younger sister and the guy she’s going to marry. Okay, Jacob might’ve noticed Felix. Their families are friends. And, okay, Felix might have a crush on Jacob. That’s… Yeah. A problem. As he views his cabin with the woman he’s supposed to marry, he comes to the realization he doesn’t love her the way he’s supposed to.
I suspect you can guess the rest of the story — but I love the execution, and I hope readers will as well. Love is All is a project close to my heart. I thank you, Delilah, for letting me share it today. I would love to give away a $5 Amazon Gift Card to one lucky commenter. Easy one – what’s your favorite trope? What will you one-click over and over again? Leave a comment and random might pick you!
Love Is All Volume 7
The Charities
Get ready to turn the page on love, acceptance, and making a difference with Love Is All: Volume 7!
This limited-edition anthology features swoon-worthy novellas and short stories by ten award-winning and bestselling authors, including A.D. Ellis, Chantal Mer, Gabbi Grey, Lee Blair, Piper Malone, R.L. Merrill, Skylar M. Cates, Sophia Soames, Susan Scott Shelley, and Xio Axelrod. Second-chance sweethearts, steamy encounters, and heartwarming friendships all await you.
All proceeds from the anthology will benefit Advocates for Trans Equality, an organization dedicated to protecting and empowering transgender individuals.
Love Is All: Volume 7 is only available for a limited time.
Links:
Universal Link: https://books2read.com/LIAV7
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Love-All-7-Xio-Axelrod-ebook/dp/B0CTHRJ3GH
B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/love-is-all-xio-axelrod/1145597032
KOBO: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/love-is-all-volume-7
Apple: https://books.apple.com/us/book/love-is-all-volume-7/id6502670886
All proceeds from this year’s collection will benefit Advocates for Trans Equality.
Founded in 2024, A4TE brings together the National Center for Transgender Equality (a previous LIA beneficiary), and the Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund — two powerhouse champions of trans equality.
About the AuthorsXio AxelrodXio Axelrod is a USA Today bestselling author of different flavours of contemporary romance. She also writes what she likes to call strange, twisted tales. Xio grew up in the music industry and began recording at a young age. When she isn’t writing stories, she can be found in the studio, writing songs, or performing on international stages (under a different, no-so-secret name). She lives in Philadelphia with one full-time husband and several part-time cats.
Chantal MerChantal Mer is an author and optimist. Her stories explore relationships and what it means to be family. When she’s not writing about strong women, strong men, and strong love, she can be found walking her adorable dog, volunteering at her kids’ school (in the library, of course), teaching at the local university, and reading.
Chantal lives outside of Philadelphia with her husband, kids, Toffee the Wonder Dog, and vicious cat, Gracie.
Susan Scott ShelleyUSA Today bestselling author Susan Scott Shelley writes stories with heat and heart, where love always wins. Her romances give readers lighthearted and emotionally satisfying escapes into happily ever after. In addition to crafting stories, she is also a professional voiceover artist and enjoys lending her voice to a wide range of projects.
She lives in Philadelphia with her husband and is an avid fan of her hometown sports teams. Her favorite things include running (honestly, it’s more like jogging), sports (especially hockey), hard rock (but will listen to anything from heavy metal to show tunes), and writing about people from all walks of life finding their special someone.
Lee BlairLee Blair is a queer author from Oregon who writes low angst, funny, M/M contemporary romance. She’s constantly amused by the antics of her two ginger cats, considers daydreaming about future trips to Scotland a part-time job, and is obsessed with Schitt’s Creek to an alarming degree.
Piper MalonePiper Malone is an award-winning author of sweet and sexy romance.
Dog lover. Reader. Foodie. Coffee, please.
Gabbi GreyUSA Today Bestselling author Gabbi Grey lives in beautiful British Columbia where her fur baby chin-poo keeps her safe from the nasty neighborhood squirrels. Working for the government by day, she spends her early mornings writing contemporary, gay, sweet, and dark erotic BDSM romances. While she firmly believes in happy endings, she also believes in making her characters suffer before finding their true love. She also writes m/f romances as Gabbi Black and Gabbi Powell.
A.D. EllisA.D. Ellis is an Indiana girl, born and raised. She spends much of her time in central Indiana as a teacher in the inner city of Indianapolis, being a mom to two amazing teens, and wondering how she and her husband of nearly two decades haven’t driven each other insane yet. A lot of her time is also devoted to phone call avoidance and her hatred of cooking.
She loves chocolate, wine, pizza, and naps along with reading and writing romance. These loves don’t leave much time for housework, much to the chagrin of her husband. Who would pick cleaning the house over a nap or a good book? She uses any extra time to increase her fluency in sarcasm.
A.D. uses she/they pronouns.
Whether she’s writing contemporary romance featuring quirky, queer, and relatable characters or diving deep into the supernatural to give readers a shiver, R.L. Merrill loves creating compelling stories that will stay with readers long after closing the book. Ro writes inclusive romance for the Happily Ever After collective, contributes paranormal hilarity to Robyn Peterman’s Magic and Mayhem Universe, and pens horror-inspired tales and music reviews for HorrorAddicts.net. A mom, wife, daughter, and former educator, you can find her rocking out in her Bronco with Great Dane pup Velma, being terrorized by feline twins Dracula and Frankenstein, or headbanging at a rock show near her home in the San Francisco Bay Area! Stay Tuned for more…
Skylar M. CatesSkylar M. Cates loves a good romance. She is happy to drink coffee, curl up with a good book, and not move all day. Her novels feature strong and passionate men. Skylar loves to craft stories where realistic characters are challenged with emotional situations. Although lately the laundry room is the farthest place she has visited, Skylar loves to chat with folks from all around the globe.
Sophia SoamesSophia Soames is a Scandinavian, UK based, Author of contemporary MM romance. She writes stories of everyday people with kids and families living real life fairytales.
The post Gabbi Grey: Are we allowed to have favorites? (Contest) first appeared on Delilah Devlin.
June 5, 2024
Word Search: Inside SECRET IDENTITIES (Contest)
If you didn’t already know, the next Boys Behaving Badly Anthology will release on July 30th! It’s filled with intriguing stories. So, I thought it would be fun to use the themes for the stories inside this upcoming volume for our puzzle today. And if you haven’t pre-ordered your copy, remember, it’s only $0.99 for 14 sexy stories you won’t want to miss! Here’s the link: Secret Identities
In the meantime, here’s a little contest! For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle, then tell me which of the themes intrigues you most!
The post Word Search: Inside SECRET IDENTITIES (Contest) first appeared on Delilah Devlin.
June 4, 2024
Delta Heat, Book #4 is out now! TWICE THE BANG is available now!
The next story in the Delta Heat series is out! And it’s FREE in Kindle Unlimited! Follow the link to read the opening of the book. Be warned! This story has erotic content! Very erotic content. Enjoy! 
Order your copy now! | Read an excerpt!
The post Delta Heat, Book #4 is out now! TWICE THE BANG is available now! first appeared on Delilah Devlin.
Beau wants Pansy for his own. After a BDSM party thrown by his friends to celebrate their new throuple status, Beau decides it’s time to stake his claim. He’s been taking it slow with the sexy sub, but when he sees he’s not the only one vying for her attention, he realizes a long seduction was a mistake. A handsome fireman has caught his woman’s eye.
Billy may be new to the lifestyle, and a submissive like Pansy is probably out of his league, but he’ll do whatever it takes to have her, even if he has to share her with a cop whose confidence contrasts with Billy’s inexperience.
Pansy’s stuck between a rock and a hard place—or rather, stuck between a smoking-hot firefighter with ice-blue eyes and a dark, mysterious cop who can give her goose bumps with just a look.
Of course, she could refuse to decide between them and let both pursue her and, perhaps, if she’s very lucky, they’ll play dirty.
Product Warnings: Contains scenes with m/f/m, f/f/m, and an orgy of pleasure among friends.
Note: This book was previously published.
June 3, 2024
Cameron Allie: Looking for Red Hot Excerpts?
Starting in July I’ll be sending out a “I want sexy excerpts” newsletter once a week.
What’s in each newsletter?
A theme: Each week the newsletter will follow a theme. For example, shifters, vampires, fake relationships, holiday stories, etc. See below for a comprehensive list, so you know what to expect in each letter.Three excerpts: Each week will feature three hot, spicy excerpts from different authors.If I like the excerpt, where can I buy the book?
The availability of the stories will be a variety. Some will be wide, some in Kobo Plus, some from Kindle Unlimited, some on Ream, and yes, some will be free.
This sounds awesome! Where do I sign up?
Are you an author interested in being featured?
Sign up now, but hurry, the spots are filling up fast!
Will this continue in 2025?
If it’s successful and in demand by both authors and readers, then yes. If the sign-up form is full, and you would like to sign up for 2025, watch my social media and blog, or sign up for the newsletter itself. When the 2025 sign up goes live, I’ll add it to the weekly newsletter.
Weekly Themes:
July 19: Beach Reads/VacationJuly 26: Fake RelationshipAugust 2: Wolf ShifterAugust 9: VampiresAugust 16: RH/Why ChooseAugust 23: LGBTQ+August 30: POC AuthorsSeptember 6: Teacher/ProfessorSeptember 13: BillionaireSeptember 20: AutumnSeptember 27: FantasyOctober 4: Dark RomanceOctober 11: Masked MenOctober 18: AutumnOctober 25: Halloween/Dark/Spooky/HorrorNovember 1: MCNovember 8: MafiaNovember 15: Forbidden LoversNovember 22: Friends to LoversNovember 29: Breeding/PregnancyDecember 6: HolidayDecember 13: Fantasy/PNR HolidayDecember 20: HolidayDecember 27: Fantasy/PNR HolidayJanuary 3: Poly RelationshipThe post Cameron Allie: Looking for Red Hot Excerpts? first appeared on Delilah Devlin.June 2, 2024
Cover Reveal & Contest!
Report Card & Open Contests!
Last week…
I finished one editing job for another author; plus, I began work on three other projects.I finished revising, formatting, and uploading Twice the Bang, which releases Tuesday, June 4th.I found art and had covers made for Secret Identities: A Boys Behaving Badly Anthology and the Delta Fire seriesI resumed writing my next MBH release, Cyrus , which is scheduled to release June 25th.I attended a papermaking workshop!This next week…
I will work on three editing projects for other authors, finishing one!Plus, I’ll work on the Secret Identities webpage on the Collections site.I will begin editing the stories in Secret Identities.I will complete revising the last story in the Delta Heat kink series, Once is Never Enough then I’ll format and set it to publish on June 11th.I will continue writing my next Montana Bounty Hunter story, the first in the West Yellowstone office, Cyrus .I will resume creating small art daily for #The100DayProject.I will find pool time!
Open Contests
June 1, 2024
Saturday Puzzle-Contest: An Imaginary Friend
As I start typing, I can tell this is going to be a meandering post. Sorry—not sorry.
I had a good night’s sleep. I’ve had my first cup of coffee. I’ve been reflecting that the summer is off to a good start. The kids have activities lined up. Opportunities for earnings (special chores). I have little fetch-and-carriers who can run up and down the stairs so I don’t have to as I work away at my desk. The pool is gradually getting clearer. (We added clarifier last night, so hopefully, the last of the fogginess will dissipate.) We want to be able to see the snakes.
Anyway, we’re finding our summer groove. One thing we love to do is watch movies, whether in the theater or at home. Usually, in the summer we limit our ventures to the theater to once a month, if that. It’s so dang expensive to take six people to the theater! But to kick off the first week of summer, this past Thursday, we drove the 45 minutes to a neighboring city to catch the movie If. The kids and I loved it. My daughter and SIL complained that it wasn’t as crazy/zany as they would’ve liked. Yes, I cried too many times during the second half of the movie, but I couldn’t help it. Folks reuniting with their imaginary friends… Who wouldn’t want to live that? When I watch a movie, I’m in the movie. It’s my experience, too.
Yesterday, the 15 and 10 year-olds joined me in my living area to watch Interstellar. I’ve made it a goal this summer to watch every Christopher Nolan movie, and since the 15-year-old and I are the only ones in the house who LOVED last year’s Oppenheimer (the others thought it was too long, too boring–what!?), but she was as riveted as I was, so she and I have committed to watching CN movies this summer together. I hadn’t seen Interstellar since it originally came out, so I’d forgotten a lot about it. The three of us (even the 10-year-old) were again riveted.
Aside from my stated goal of watching every Chris Nolan movie ever made this summer, months ago, I bought a poster I adhered to my bedroom door—one of those “100 Greatest Movies Ever Made” things. It’s a big scratch-off list, and I’ve decided I am going to force myself to watch every movie on the list, and hopefully, find some company in the house to do it with me, too. I worry the kids are too fixated on their phones or TikToks and need a little film history education. So, I scratched off the first one—Shawshank Redemption. My dd and the 15-year-old watched it with me. Great movie, just not one I would want to repeat because admittedly my favorite genres are Sci-Fi, action, and comedy. Next up on the list is The Dark Knight—which will kill two birds with one stone—it’s a Chris Nolan flick!
So, that was my long meander. Sorry (not!). For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, solve the puzzle, then tell me whether you ever had an imaginary friend when you were a child.
The post Saturday Puzzle-Contest: An Imaginary Friend first appeared on Delilah Devlin.May 31, 2024
May into June (Contest)
Work-related:
I revised four of my Delta Heat series stories and published three of them: Five Ways ‘Til Sunday , Fournicopia , A Perfect Trifecta .I began writing Cyrus , which is presently scheduled for release on June 25!I completed 6 editing projects for other authors in May.I found art for my upcoming, soon-to-be-revised Delta Fire series, as well as art for Secret Identities: A Boys Behaving Badly Anthology, coming at the end of July.Health-related:
I saw my doctor for a checkup. The bloodwork came back with many improvements! My blood pressure is under control. I still have areas requiring attention.I spent half of the month with my knee still causing me problems, but it appears to have healed. Just in time for the pool!I am paying more attention to what I put in my mouth. (That doesn’t mean I’m making better decisions!)Happiness-related:
The kids are out of school, and we’ve already put dates on the calendar for activities. The 10-year-old is learning to crochet this summer and has archery classes. The 15-year-old will be taking guitar lessons. We took the entire family to see If in the theaters.I continued working on the #the100dayproject art challenge but more sporadically as my day job (writing/editing) got more hectic.I attended a two-day papermaking workshop!Here are some examples of art projects I completed in May:
June
For work-related, I plan:
To complete writing Cyrus , the first of my new MBH in Yellowstone series, and which is scheduled for release June 25th.To complete 5 editing projects in June!To set up the pre-order and edit the stories in the upcoming collection— Secret Identities: A Boys Behaving Badly Anthology !To finish revising and prepare for publication the last books in my erotic romance series, Delta Heat. I’ll republish two of the stories in June: Twice the Bang and Once is Never Enough .To find cover art and set up pre-orders for my Delta Fire series. Three books will be revised for republication and the fourth will be written in July!For health related, I plan:
To swim in my pool every day! (Weather permitting!) Exercise on my recumbent bike when I can’t swim.To start back on my Weight Watchers diet, because it’s time to get serious!To reduce salt and processed food, and incorporate foods good for blood pressure (spinach, broccoli, bananas) and my liver (apple cider vinegar, flax seeds, sunflower seeds).To take my BP every day and log it!To have follow-up medical appointments, routine/annual things.For happiness-related, I plan:
To finish #the100daychallenge. Just 10 pieces to go!To spend time with the family—movies and pool—now that school is out!ContestComment on anything you’ve read in this post. Tell me what you’re doing to make yourself happier and healthier, or tell me what you plan to read in June …
Like I said, comment on anything for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!
The post May into June (Contest) first appeared on Delilah Devlin.May 30, 2024
Clear My Bookshelf Giveaway (Contest)
Just a quick note before we begin… Our pool has been a sore spot. Usually, we’re swimming by the end of April. It’s taken weeks to rid it of algae. Well, yesterday, the pool was finally blue (teal, really), but still cloudy, and we decided what the heck? We swam!!!! Well, the cloudiness made things extra interesting because as we splashed and swam, a snake popped up to the surface to join us! My SIL was quick with the net and flung it into the grass. The thing was a baby water moccasin. So, since the pool is still cloudy today, we decided we’d head to the movie theater 45 minutes away today. We’re going to take the fam to see If! Maybe it will be clearer after we return (we’re going to a matinee). We’ll see. We’re impatient. And I’ll rub a brush over the bottom and smack the water a lot just in case. Being joined by a snake for our first dip does seem like an omen…
Anyway, onto the contest!
As a way to solve my book-hoarding problem and make room in my bookshelves, I’m continuing my Clear My Bookshelf Giveaway! I have a ton of my books, collected over my 20 years of publishing. So, rather than consign them to the burn barrel (which makes my heart hurt!) I thought maybe a bunch of giveaways would be fun. As the first giveaway garnered a lot of interest, I’m happy to offer more opportunities for readers to win a signed copy of one of my old books! The first winner of the first contest is…Sharon Coomes! (Sharon, I’ll be in touch with you today!)
So, for a chance to win a randomly chosen by me (I might say, do you want a western, an erotic novel, or a paranormal?) book, which I will of course sign and fill with a bookmark and a postcard, painted by me, tell me whether you love going to the movies!
The post Clear My Bookshelf Giveaway (Contest) first appeared on Delilah Devlin.May 29, 2024
Genevive Chamblee: Rock of Ages
When most people think of types or subgenres of romance, they think of historical, regency, erotic, romantic comedy, inspirational romance, speculative romance, and suspense romance. This is expected as these are some of the most popular. There are others such as dark romance, steampunk romance, alien romance, and paranormal romance. But have you ever heard about rock romance?
Several years ago, I met an author who stated he wrote rock fiction. I was intrigued. While I had never heard of rock fiction, it made perfect sense. Most of my favorite romance movies have musical soundtracks. I write listening to a playlist. Many romantic evenings include music. So, why would it be farfetched to have music as a romance subgenre? But what does that look like exactly?
Over the months, as I spoke with this rock fiction author, I gained a clearer understanding of what this is. The name rock fiction sounds like a story about music. Well, it is, and it isn’t. Let me explain. Rock fiction is not necessarily about a character who is a musician or about music in general. For example, a book about Taylor Swift, probably wouldn’t be considered rock fiction if the plot was only an imagined account of her life. It would need to entail more than depicting her life and music. Rock fiction is more about the approach to storytelling and the inspiration of a story. It adapts the lyrics, concepts, and titles of a song, album, or an artist’s/band’s collection of work to a piece of fiction. The storylines, plots, and character arcs are taken directly from the music.
A close example of rock fiction would be the rock opera, Tommy, which was adapted from the music of the band The Who. The difference is that Tommy used film as a medium while rock fiction is in book, e-book, or audio form. Rock fiction goes beyond being “inspired” by music because the author incorporates much of the music in the story.
Using Taylor Swift as an example again, consider her song, “Fifteen.” I picked this song as an example because Taylor gives a clear-cut narration of a story. The song is about two fifteen-year-old girls who want to (and do) fall in love but have their hearts broken (or at least one of them does). A rock fiction story would have this as the plot and main characters. However, it would go a step further and include lyrics (maybe not quoted directly as that may tiptoe the lines of plagiarizing and sticky copyright violations) in the story. Some rock fiction stories may have obvious references or the references may be more subtle—nearly undetectable. Readers don’t need prior knowledge of the referenced musical material to understand or enjoy the story.
Additionally, rock fiction does not have to be “rock” music. It could very easily be country, rap, classical, bluegrass, jazz, hip-hop, R&B, or any other genre of music. As long as the author uses the music as a central base of the story, then it’s considered to be rock fiction. Since there are so many genres and subgenres of music, it’s practical to use “rock fiction” as a catch-all title. Otherwise, one would end up with all kinds of subgenres—metal fiction, folk fiction, alternative fiction, K-pop fiction, swing fiction, etc. The list would be endless.
Romance rock fiction is rock fiction with a romance at the heart.
And that’s it. Have you ever heard of romance rock fiction? Have you read any? What did you think? What is your take on the subject? Do you agree or disagree? Did you find this information helpful or informative? Did you learn anything new, or did it change your opinion? Let me know your thoughts in the comment section. Also, let me know if you would like me to cover more of these types of topics or dive deeper into this one. If you like this post, please click the like button and share. Your feedback allows me to know the content that you want to read.
Until next time, happy reading and much romance. Laissez le bon temps rouler.
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Out of the Penalty Box (book #1) One minute in the box or a lifetime out.Defending the Net (book #2) Crossing the line could cost the game. Ice Gladiators (book #3) When the gloves come off, the games begin.Penalty Kill (book #4) Let the pucker begin. Future Goals (book #5) The future lies between a puck and a net.About the AuthorHi, I’m Genevive, a blogger and contemporary sports romance author. My home is in South Louisiana. If you like snark and giggles with a touch of steamy Cajun and Creole on the side, I may have your poison in my stash of books. Drop by the bayou and have a look around. The pirogues are always waiting for new visitors.
The post Genevive Chamblee: Rock of Ages first appeared on Delilah Devlin.
