Skye Warren's Blog, page 20

Six Sunday #15

Welcome to my serialized short, Escape. If you’ve missed the story up until now, go ahead and catch up at the compilation page here. Escape is set in the same world as my latest release, Trust in Me.

The woods split beneath his axe with a satisfying crack. Alex wiped the stinging sweat from his eyes. He welcomed the small pain as his due and only wiped it so he wouldn’t send the axe into his foot next. Although maybe that was what he needed. Maybe that would finally be enough.

But he knew it wouldn’t.

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A Quick Update

I’m writing this at the hospital. My husband’s down the hall, having surgery while I’m sitting out here with my laptop and a coffee.  I don’t mean to be alarmist. It’s not a major surgery and he will likely be fine… but still, a bit surreal.

That’s not how I meant to start this blog post but it came out that way. What I meant to say was that I have had a lot going on lately. A couple of weeks ago I was running behind on my next release, Hear Me. But I am one of those writers who thrives on deadlines, even ones I set for myself, and so it was good.

Then my husband got sick and I just… stopped writing. Not good.

Anyways, that’s what’s going on for me. I am pushing the release of Hear Me back. Hopefully July, maybe August. It kind of depends on how long it takes me to get back in the swing of things, and then there’s always a long line of things to do even after the creative effort of writing is done, the editing process and then prepping for promo, etc.

Oh, but I do still have the story for the Goodreads M/M Love is Always Write Event coming out, sometime in the next few days. Go join the group on Goodreads to check it out and also read the other stories that are already posted. They are all free – what a great event! It’s called Leashed, and you can see the cover and a brief blurb here.

Thanks.

Revamping Sweetest Mistress

It’s a really good thing I didn’t have to bet on which books of my books would be the most popular. By large margins, it has been the dark books (Keep Me Safe and Trust in Me) while the softer, more romantic ones (Below the Belt, Sweetest Mistress) didn’t do as well. Actually, Beauty Touched the Beast broke trend by being both romantic and popular, so what I’m trying to say is: I have no idea what’s going on. I heard someone say that publishing isn’t a business, it’s a casino.

In particular, I thought Sweetest Mistress deserved a bit more love than it got. To be fair, I never really did any promo for it, I suppose since it’s a short novella (16,000 words). But it’s not just that. Beauty only has 5,500 words and it sells more at the $0.99 price than Sweetest Mistress. It’s just one of those things.

Since I self-publish, I’ve been able to tweak the sales pages and covers all along. However, it’s not something I do often. A lot of thought goes into the cover and blurbs before I post them, so if I change them, I run the risk of making things worse. But for Sweetest Mistress I decided to take a chance.

I have a brand new cover and a brand new blurb. Here they are:

Old Cover


New Cover

Old Blurb:

Wyle knows he’s in over his head with gorgeous Melissa. But when he finally divulges his deepest fantasy, to be dominated by a woman, he just might get everything he’s ever wanted. A hot spanking, one scorching phone sex call, and a humiliating anal play session later, he’s sure of it.

SWEETEST MISTRESS is a 15K-word erotic novella of light femdom, featuring explicit sex, pain, and graphic language. Not for anyone under the age of 18 or who is uncomfortable with the subject matter.

New Blurb:

Wyle is resigned to a life of quiet sexual repression. Women want to be dominated, and though he is a far cry from an alpha male, Wyle’s tired of being alone. He knows Melissa is too beautiful for him, and too young. But she doesn’t seem to mind that he’s a boring financial professional past his prime. Instead she invites him in for a cup of coffee that turns into more.

In a weak moment of honesty, Wyle divulges that he wants to be ordered around. He doesn’t want to possess Melissa, he wants to worship her. Together they explore his fantasies, with a hot spanking, a scorching phone sex call, and a humiliating anal play session, but the true test of his limits comes in a form neither of them expect.

Sweetest Mistress is a 15K-word erotic novella featuring explicit sex, light femdom, and graphic language. Not for anyone under the age of 18 or who is uncomfortable with the subject matter

I also have it enrolled in KDP Select so that curious parties can download it. That means it’s only available for sale at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0069VVQES

Have you read Sweetest Mistress? Do you have an prediction on which one will sell more? I will be sure to follow up in a month or so and give you guys the actual sales data.

Six Sunday #14

Welcome to my serialized short, Escape. If you’ve missed the story up until now, go ahead and catch up at the compilation page here. Escape is set in the same world as my latest release, Trust in Me.

She didn’t recognize the men or the vehicle but that didn’t mean anything at all. It would take them only minutes to realize she wasn’t in the warehouse and then they would look outside.

Tiffany turned and crashed through the brush. Branches whipped at her legs and grabbed at her hair but she tore through them like the hunted animal she was. Footsteps pounded behind her, giving her a last burst of speed.

“Wait! Stop,” a voice called, but she would rather die.

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Ending First: Smart Structure or Writing Ass Backward?

MMMSecret asked on twitter:

Question for writers: Do you always know how your story is going to end before you start writing?

Being all curious, I clicked on the tweet to see what other said. Almost overwhelmingly the answer was NO, NO, NO. There were other things alongside, about how the story must reveal itself or the characters lead the way, etc. The thing is, those can be true, but not mutually exclusive to knowing the end.

Personally, I always know the end. I am open to it changing, and sometimes it does a little, but never a lot. The reason why is, unfortunately, not that sexy: story structure. Every great story has a good story structure, which in turn defines the conflict, which is both driven by (and drives) the characters.

The ending is the resolution of the conflict, but what is the conflict? The dark moment is the moment when all hope is lost, but what do the characters hope for? The middle is the point of no return, but what journey are they on?

If you don’t know what your character fears most, then I’d say you don’t know them well enough to write them. If you don’t know the conflict of your story, then you don’t know enough about your story to set it up properly.

I don’t even think this makes me a plotter. I don’t have detailed outlines. I don’t even necessarily write this stuff down. I just know it.

Another way of looking at it is follow through. If a reader sees a gun in Act 1, they expect it to be fired in Act III (thus you’re setting it up whether you intend to or not). Conversely, if a character fires a gun in Act III, they needed to see it in Act I otherwise it can feel contrived.

As for pantsers, I’ve seen some great books come out that way. And some not-so-great ones, but the great ones STILL follow good story structure. They have some super-awesome storytelling intuitive or intelligence (or whatever you want to call it) that allows them to build the structure without consciously doing so. But it still has to be there.

If you’re a writer, do you pants or plot or somewhere in between? What do you think of story structure – is it intuitive or is there one you follow? If you’re a reader, are you interested in the method of your favorite writers and have you noticed any trends?

Six Sunday #13

Welcome to my serialized short, Escape. If you’ve missed the story up until now, go ahead and catch up at the compilation page here. Escape is set in the same world as my recent release, Trust in Me.

The approaching rumble of a motor snapped her from euphoria. She darted for a copse of trees and made it inside just as an open topped jeep skidded in front of the building. Armed men burst from the vehicle before it was even fully stopped. Their guns were drawn as the entered the empty building.

 

Oh God. They must have realized she was missing and come back for her.

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Cover Reveal for Hear Me

I’ve got the cover for Hear Me, the sequel to Trust in Me. And a blurb, though that may change during the editing process.

She doesn’t remember her past, only her training. She can’t talk, not that a good slave should speak out of turn. None of that matters when she wakes up in the warm, rustic room. Her new master is distant, but kind, but there’s one problem: he doesn’t want her.

Longing for the shackles of safety, she pulls from the last dregs of her will to prove her worth as a slave. It seems to be working. He responds first to her body, and next to her submission. The secrets of his past haunt the cabin, dampening the tightening bond between Master and slave, but it is her own memories that may finally unravel it.

WARNING:

This book contains explicit scenes of sex, including dubious consent and captivity situations. The BDSM does not conform to literary conventions, making it sometimes more realistic, and other times not. This is a work of fiction not appropriate for anyone uncomfortable with these situations or anyone under the age of eighteen.

Coming June 2012
Add it on Goodreads

So, what do you think? Good, bad, slightly confused? I’m working on the trailer and will also put up an excerpt so stay tuned for those. I’ll be in my writing cave but I’d love to hear what you think!

Six Sunday #12

Welcome to my serialized short, Escape. If you’ve missed the story up until now, go ahead and catch up at the compilation page here. Escape is set in the same world as my recent release, Trust in Me.

Her body vibrated, as if her very bones felt the nearness of freedom. She had no idea where the warehouse was located or if she could survive long enough to find help, but even if she died, she’d die free.

 

The door creaked open at the touch of her fingertips. She managed to stand, slowly, shakily, and take a step out into the bright white ether. She savored the heat on her upturned face, the light wind that stroked her greasy hair. She’d made it.

Thanks for playing! Be sure to visit the other sixers here.

Topping From the Bottom

I get a little twitchy when I read another post warning against the perils of topping from the bottom. You’d think there was an epidemic going on!

Okay, this is not a popular opinion, but I don’t think topping from the bottom exists. At least, not the way it’s usually described.

Let’s say there’s a male Dom, female sub. The sub says, oh, I’d like an orgasm now, and he gives her one. By definition, topping from the bottom just happened… right? No! A sub is allowed to ask for things ANYTIME SHE WANTS. It’s still up to the Dom to decide whether he wants to do it or not. He could have denied her, but he didn’t want to. She’s not *tricking* him.

By the way, I feel like the very concept is disrespectful. Can we give Doms a little credit? They are smart. They understand when a sub is trying to get his/her way, and can make a conscious choice to give it or not.

Neither choice makes the Dom weak.

Six Sunday #11

Welcome to my serialized short, Escape. If you’ve missed the story up until now, go ahead and catch up at the compilation page here. Escape is set in the same world as my recent release, Trust in Me.

The sound of her ragged breathing and her skin dragging across the floor intruded on the stillness. She passed each cell as if she were still a prisoner – with her eyes straight ahead. She didn’t want to see the small, barren cells with the thin, infested bedrolls. She didn’t want to wonder about the dark spots staining the concrete.

 

Light leaked through the doorframe, blinding her. Sunlight so thick she thought she’d have been able to taste it if it weren’t for the dank remains of unwashed bodily fluids lining her mouth.

Thanks for playing! Be sure to visit the other sixers here. Oh! And if you are an author of erotic romance, please consider joining the Hot Summer Nights Erotica Bloghop!