Isabelle Drake's Blog, page 10
November 17, 2021
before and after, 2021 fall hair color
summer color was brown tones with blonde highlights
color is on...just waiting
fall color, brown tones with copper highlights
November 5, 2021
steaming up the past, girls with turkeys, and bourbon punch for a group 🍁 November newsletter
Hit here for the November newsletter
excerpt from the book of the month: The Fox
He had been sawing logs for the fire in the afternoon and his entire body had been, at one point, covered in a fine sheen of perspiration. What remained now was the scent of his exertion and the lingering effects of the satisfaction that comes across a man when he has done a hard job well.
Darkness came very early. It was still a cold, raw mist. It was getting almost too dark to see. A pile of short sawed logs lay beside the trestle. March came to carry them indoors, or into the shed, as he was busy sawing the last log. He was working in his shirt-sleeves, and did not notice her approach; she came unwillingly, as if shy. When she bent down he saw the firmness of her muscles and the easy way her strong arms moved the logs. She was a fine prey, indeed and they both knew it. He saw her stooping to the bright-ended logs, and he stopped sawing, letting his probing gaze rake across her. A fire like lightning flew down his legs in the nerves and he was more aware of March than he ever had been. Everything about her called to him, her scent, her body, her essence. It was not enough to be near her. He needed to possess her. Indeed, master her.
"March?" he said in his quiet, young voice.
She looked up from the logs she was piling.
"Yes!" she said.
He looked down on her in the dusk. He could see her not too distinctly and he struggled to see what he could of her. If only she would stop shrinking away from him and expose herself to him as she ought to. "I wanted to ask you something," he said, feeling that lightning fire burn in his limbs.
"Did you? What was it?" she said. Already the fright was in her voice. But she was too much mistress of herself. And it was that control, he realised, that he most wanted to take from her. She would weaken and give herself to him. He would see to it. As he felt that was what he wanted, he knew she must want it too.
"Why"—his voice seemed to draw out soft and subtle, it penetrated her nerves—"why, what do you think it is?"
She stood up, placed her hands on her hips, and stood looking at him transfixed, without answering. Again he burned with a sudden power.
"Well," he said, and his voice was so soft it seemed rather like a subtle touch, like the merest touch of a cat’s paw, a feeling rather than a sound. "Well—I wanted to ask you to marry me."
March felt rather than heard him. She felt him everywhere—on her face, across her breasts, deep inside her, filling her and taking her soul. She was trying in vain to turn aside her face. A great relaxation seemed to have come over her as she had known this moment was coming and finally it had arrived. She stood silent, her head slightly on one side. He seemed to be bending towards her, invisibly smiling as he came for her. It seemed to her fine sparks came out of him, ready to jump across to her and burn through her skin.
Get Your Copy of The Fox, revisited by Isabelle Drake
November 3, 2021
interview with Dead Girls Talking podcast
Minda and Jenna chat with author of several romance and erotic novels, Isabelle Drake. Drake’s latest works- Servant of the Undead and Mistress of the Undead- veer into a lesser known realm of paranormal erotica: Zombies.
Watch out, sparkly vampires. The zombies are coming.
Hit here to listen to my hour long chatty interview on Spotify.
October 17, 2021
Isabelle Drake does trivia
I am not a competitive person by nature, but I had a great time on the Pub Experience Trivia podcast. There were enough pop culture questions to keep me feeling at home.Pub Experience Trivia strives to bring the best parts of Pub Trivia: good Trivia, fun times with friends, and drinking!
Hit here to listen on Spotifyorhere to listen on podbeanorhere for other places.
October 8, 2021
October 7, 2021
When writing horror mixed with another genre, how do you ...
When writing horror mixed with another genre, how do you balance between the two?
If I’m writing horror within another genre, I let the story decide the balance. This may mean that there isn’t actually a balance, as in 50/50, but readers won’t mind as long as the story is good.
What is the scariest book you’ve read?
I recently read Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica. It wasn’t scary, but it was really disturbing. The book that got me into reading horror was Stephen King’s Night Shift. My sister lent it to me with a warning that it was scary, and she was right. I loved it.
What’s your favorite supernatural creature?
It’s a tie between werewolves and zombies. Werewolves are fierce and unpredictable. Zombies, as least the ones I write, are cunning and crafty.
What’s your favorite part of Halloween?
Horror movies! And fall gatherings with friends.
What would be your advice to new writers writing in the horror genre?
If you believe that horror should be frightening, write what scares you. If you believe it should be gory, write gory. No matter what you write, go for it and dig in. Don’t hold back anything.
What’s your favorite thing about the horror genre?
Horror can accomplish things other genres can’t. Gothics, for example, can make powerful statements on social conditions. Take VC Andrews’ Flowers in the Attic, for example. The book exposed the realities of abuse, neglect, and familial torment in a way that another genre could not.
Horror does not require a ‘happy ending.” Not all stories can or should have a happy ending. Placing a happy end at the conclusion of a story that exposes harsh realities of life minimizes the impact of such realities.
What is your favorite Halloween candy?
Candy corn. I only eat it in October.
What was your best costume for Halloween?
A Tootsie Roll. I made I body-size roll out of chicken wire fencing and paper mache, painted it, cut eye holes and arm holes, then climbed in. That was seventh grade. I won second place. What beat me? A bumble bee.
Scariest thing to happen to you?
Being present during a drive-by shooting. Laying face down while bullets fly above you is scary.
What’s your favorite Halloween/horror movie?
Us. No, Babadook. Wait, I mean Rosemary’s Baby. How about Pumpkinhead? Sinister? Oh, come back later. I can’t decide right now.
What’s the cheesiest Halloween/horror movie you’ve seen?
Suburban Sasquatch (2004) from Brain Damage studio. A must watch.
Is Nightmare Before Christmas a Halloween or Christmas movie?
Let’s call is a Christmas movie because there aren’t enough Christmas horror films.
Apple cider, pumpkin spice or something else?
Apple cider bourbon cocktail with a slice of pumpkin spice bread, then later, whatever Oktoberfest beer is on tap.
September 3, 2021
August 30, 2021
Ambushing the Boss, Invitations series #5
About the book:
A video camera, a too-short-to-ignore skirt and a come-get-me attitude—Jake Reed doesn’t stand a chance against Sabrina Weller.
Sabrina Weller has just moved to Washington DC and is ready to make the most of city life. When her cousin, Eva Marie, holds a welcome event, Sabrina meets Jake Reed. He’s awkward and abrupt but something about him makes her hot. The next time she sees him, he’s pretending to be Jay Allen, entry level new hire at Steelsmart, the same company she’s recently started working for.
Jake Reed, the socially inept new president of Steelsmart Corporation, has two problems on his hands. One, his newly acquired company has morale problems. Two, he wants to bed one of his employees. When his vice president arranges for the entire company to go on a retreat on a secluded island, Jake can’t avoid crossing paths with the sweet-talking, fast-living temp who continually teases and tempts him. He’s in over his head and she isn’t about to give up until she gets what she wants.
Excerpt:
The wood-paneled elevator stopped on the sixth floor, the doors opened then Jake Reed stepped out. As he had on the first floor, he paused in front of one of the polished mirrors covering the walls on both sides of the elevator door. But unlike a few minutes ago, he reconsidered his choices. He probably should’ve worn a polo, not one of his hand-sewn Oxfords. The belt and pants, khakis, were probably all right, but if anyone noticed his polished-to-perfection Bruno Maglis, his cover as Jay Allen might be blown even before he had a chance to discover anything. To offset the possibility that anyone would notice the expensive shoes, Jake grabbed a fist full of his shirt, cringing as he squeezed the smooth, starched fabric into wrinkled submission then yanked out one side enough to give himself what he hoped was an ordinary guy vibe.
Next, he pulled out his cell and one last quick his email. Nothing that couldn’t wait until lunch, assuming new employees in the lowest positions at Steelsmart got to eat lunch. The working conditions couldn’t be that bad, could they?
Jake turned his phone to silent then slipped it back into his pocket but before he’d taken a step, it hummed against his thigh. He pulled it out and read the screen. Shit. More bad news. Typical Monday morning.
But that was the reason he was there, pretending to be an ordinary employee at Steelsmart instead of who he actually was—the new president. He in the mirror and scowled. Pretending had never been his strong suit. Getting things done had. He dropped his phone into his pocket, took the fake new hire documents out of his back pocket and headed to the Human Resources office at the end of the hall.
August 6, 2021
August 4, 2021
the easy "cosmo", a cocktail recipe
Ingredients2 ounces citron vodka1 ounce Cointreau1 ounce cranberry juice1/2 ounce fresh lime juiceorange peel for garnishInstructionsIn a cocktail shaker, add the vodka, Cointreau, cranberry juice, lime juice, and ice.Shake until the shaker feels very cold in your hands.Strain into a martini glass or coupe and garnish.
Recipe NotesYou can use plain, unflavored vodka if that's what you have on hand. I would just go heavy on the lime juice, so maybe use more like 3/4 ounce.
This recipe from a beautiful mess.
