Lori Perkins's Blog, page 9

The Princess of 42nd Street, Autobio of the Daughter of the Man Who Invented the Peep Show Machine

Author Romola Hoda Pens her Inspiring Memoir About Growing as the Daughter of the Man Who Created New York City’s Pornography Empire
New York – After surviving a chaotic childhood, Romola Hodas the eldest daughter of the Times Square “King of Porn,” recounts her chaotic childhood amid the turmoil of publicly growing up as the daughter of the man who almost single-handedly built New York City’s pornography and adult entertainment empire from the 1960s to the 1980s before his spectacular and public fall from grace. Her memoir The Princess of 42nd Street: Surviving My Childhood as the Daughter of Time Square’s King of Porn (Riverdale Avenue Books, September 6, 2018) tells the tale of her childhood publicly for the first time.

Behind the salacious headlines, Marty Hodas’ family paid a terrible price. In her shockingly honest, no-holds-barred memoir, Romola describes hanging out as a child in her father’s porn shops on 42nd Street and meeting the eclectic clientele who frequented the stores, making friends with the girls who performed live sex acts on stage, and spying on her parents’ sex orgies and crazy all-night swinger parties. Romola relates, in moving detail, how she cared for her three younger siblings when her brilliant, bipolar mother broke with reality, and how she survived verbal, physical, and emotional abuse; a year in reform school; her father’s three stints in prison; two kidnapping attempts by the mob (one while at summer fat camp); and how her baby brother, Jarrett, actually was briefly kidnapped by mobsters wanting to send Marty Hodas a clear, unambiguous message.
“My story has its darker moments, but it is also infused with humor and hope. Hope always burned brightly inside me, even during the darkest of times,” said Romola Hodas. “My book is provocative, but also inspiring.”
For all its darkness, The Princess of 42nd Street is, at its heart, an uplifting and inspirational story of how one young woman overcame incredible odds to become a successful businesswoman who now devotes her life to helping others. Raw, unflinching, and devoid of self-pity, The Princess of 42nd Street is a one-of-a-kind story.

Deadline Extended until Sept. 9 for Divorce Diaries Comedy Anthology

Michele Traina, a regular at Caroline’s on Broadway and various East Coast comedy clubs, has put together a comedy showcase where performers share their amusing divorce stories. Inspired by that, award-winning New York publisher Riverdale Avenue Books is now collecting anecdotes like these into an anthology.

Divorce Diaries is a comedic journey examining families, careers, and love before, during, and after divorce. In this anthology, writers, actors and comedians share how they, their family or friends have been touched by divorce, and replaced their tears with laughter.

Michele Traina said, “Divorce led me to uncover different facets of my life and affected my journey as a stand-up comic. I live with my parents, make fish sticks for dinner and I’m far from the average soccer mom. But I enjoy my daughter’s silly moments and show her how to find the humor in life's roughest.”

The collection is intended to inspire the reader, and motivate them through any life-transition. Reminding them to laugh because nothing is perfect forever, and remember that you have the power to change your life.

The anthology is looking for humorous prose in the 1,500 to 5,000 word range. Please include a short bio with your submission. If you are on the East Coast, you might be asked to bring your routine to the stage. Please send submissions to: submissions@riverdaleavebooks.com, attn: Divorce Diaries.

Deadline for submission is September 9. Publication will be November 1, 2018. All participants will receive a copy of the ebook and a print book, as well as a pro rata share of the royalties. The book will be on sale online, as well in bookstores throughout the United States, and available in English throughout the world.

The Speech Heard Throughout Romancelandia

Or Suzanne Brockmann’s RWA LTA Acceptance Speech

As we all know, Romance Writers of America acceptance speeches barely get noticed by anyone except the recipients, their families and maybe those attending the annual convention. They never make the news or social media.
But Suzanne Brockmann’s Lifetime Achievement Award acceptance kicked ass and took prisoners as no other speech in RWA history has before.
Brockmann has given Romance Daily News permission to reprint it in its entirety here. We hope you will share it with everyone you know who has ever said that romance novels aren’t important because romance novels, and the people who write them, are about to change our world.


“This past Thursday night, I was given the incredible honor of receiving the Romance Writers of America Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award, and was given a bit of time to make (ahem) a speech.
I had a few things to say.
But first, my son, Jason T. Gaffney, took the stage and gave me an incredible intro. (There was a slideshow with pictures on the big screen
Jason: Before she was a writer, my mom was a musician. She sang in coffeehouses and subway stations, she fronted a rock band, and directed an acappella group.
Since 1993, (I was eight!) she’s written 57 novels, 14 short stories, and three screenplays. She edits a line of own-voices romance called Suzanne Brockmann Presents. She co-wrote and directed an off-Broadway play, and produced four indie movies.
Here’s the trailer for her latest, a rom-com called Analysis Paralysis.
(We showed our trailer for AP here, on the big screens! So cool! You can watch it on vimeo here: https://vimeo.com/271327084 )
Analysis Paralysis was Kickstarted with the generous support of the romance community. It’ll be screening at LGBTQ film festivals and streaming on-line in the near future. In September, we’re filming our next movie, a rom-com titled Out of Body—screenplay and novelization both written by my mom.
But okay, we’re here to talk about books. In romance publishing, my mom is known best for her LGBTQ activism—and for her books about hunky Navy SEALs.
Mom’s fascination with SEALs started in 1995 with Prince Joe and her Tall, Dark & Dangerous category romance series, which exploded her career in more ways than one.
In 1998, Harvard’s Education was Silhouette Intimate Moments book number 884, but only the second book in that line with a heroine and hero who were African American. Mom fought for that book, pushing against institutional racism. It opened her eyes to her own privilege, and she vowed to use it to make romance more inclusive.
In 2000, Mom launched her second, mainstream SEAL series with The Unsung Hero voted RWA’s favorite book of that year. Her Troubleshooters series is set in an inclusive America, where diversity is celebrated and honored.
But early 2001 was the year that her most beloved character—out, gay FBI agent Jules Cassidy—first walked onto the pages of The Defiant Hero, and into the heart of Romancelandia.
Jules was the FBI partner of Alyssa Locke, whose romance with Navy SEAL Sam Starrett played out in real time over the course of five books, before they finally won their HEA in 2003’s Gone Too Far.
But Jules’s relationship with Sam was just as vital to this series. Sam began his journey a hot mess—ignorantly homophobic. But over time, Sam got to know Jules as a kick-ass, capable, smart, funny, highly-skilled, heroic man.
And as Sam began to think of Jules as one of his dearest and most trusted friends, Mom’s readers did, too.
In 2004, in Hot Target, Mom gave Jules his own romantic subplot and story-arc, in which he meets his future Mr. Right—Hollywood movie star, Robin Chadwick.
At the time, RT [Romantic Times] had a “no gay books” policy in place. Neither my mom, nor her incredibly supportive editor, Shauna Summers, nor anyone else at Ballantine Books knew if Hot Target would be accepted by reviewers—or just flatly ignored.
But they all were convinced that romance readers were ready for Jules Cassidy to fall in love.
And they were right—Hot Target was Border’s best-selling hardcover romance of the year. (Remember Borders...?)
Hot Target was also the book where my mother—with my approval—publically, capital-O-outed me in a poetically heartfelt two-page dedication, written in the form of a letter.
“To my fabulous son, Jason:
Even as a tiny child, your smile could outshine the sun...”
She wrote about how I’d always been completely myself, from a very young age, and the way she’d always supported and celebrated what she called “Jason being Jason.”
But then she wrote: “Years later, when you were 15, you still wanted me to tuck you in at night. So I’d stand by your bunk bed and we’d talk a bit about the day. I’d also gather up your dirty clothes...
She wrote: “One night, you took a deep breath and said to me, “Mom, I think I’m gay.”
She wrote: “I know that,” I told you, giving you a hug and a kiss. “I love you. I’ll always love you. Where did you put your dirty socks?”

* * *

My mom and I both believed that by sharing this story, we were giving Mom’s readers a recipe for how they might respond if one of their kids approached them and said, “Mom, I’m gay.”
Love is love is love is love.
I know it’s time to get my mother up here to accept her award, but I have one last thing to tell you:
She wrote All Through the Night—the book where Jules and Robin get legally married in Boston—and gave all of her earnings—advances, sub-rights, royalties in perpetuity—well over a quarter of a million dollars by now—to MassEquality, to help win equal marriage rights in Massachusetts—rights that then spread across this entire nation.
And yeah, that’s our mother-son dance from my wedding to my amazing husband Matt, in March of 2016. Mom wanted you to see this—she considers THIS her ultimate lifetime achievement.

Okay. Then it was my turn. (Ahem.)
I took the stage (wearing my Dress. I have one dress, and it's the same one I wore to Jason's wedding. So it's a Very Special Dress). I waited until Jason had returned to our table in the front, and I turned to him and said
Dear Jason,
In December 1992, when you were seven years old, when things were financially dire for our family, I sold my very first romance novel, and I had my first phone call with my first editor of my very first published book. And it was so weird and cool. As we went down her list of revisions, she said, “Oh! You can’t use penis.”
I said, “I’m sorry, what...?”
She clarified. “You can’t use the word penis. You have to call it something else.”
See, I’d yet to discover RWA, and hadn’t been sent the memo about the 1992-appropriate euphemisms for penis. In fact, this editor asked me, later in that same conversation, “Will you be going to RWA?”
And I said, “I’m sorry, what...?”
She told me about the national conference, and suggested that I join.
But it was then, between our discussion of penis and RWA that she gave me a revision note that broke my heart.
Because even though it was gonna be another eight years before you said, “Hey, Mom, I’m gay,” I saw you clearly, Jason, and I knew. You were like that Pink song. Fuckin’ perfect.
So when my first editor of my first published romance novel told me that I’d have to change my beloved small-town sheriff because he couldn’t appear in my book just casually, openly gay as I’d written him, I laughed. This was a secondary character...
But she wasn’t laughing, so this time, I said: “I’m sorry, WHAT...?”
She told me that traditional romance readers were very conservative and they did not want to read books that included even the briefest mention of gay people. She said, “You have to make the sheriff straight.”
I said, “You can’t be serious. It’s 1992. The real world is filled with gay people.”
One of them—you were playing with your sister in your bedroom, down the hall.
I argued. How were readers ever going to expand their worldview if they didn’t get to meet characters like my adorable gay sheriff...?
But this was non-negotiable. “We’ll get letters,” she said. I remember that so clearly. She said, “Readers will be offended, and they’ll write angry letters.”
I stood there, thinking, This woman absolutely believes that romance readers will be offended by my son’s existence.
I stood there, thinking about you, Jason, thinking, If I make this change, you will never see your reflection in my first book. At the time you were too young to read a romance novel—But I wanted you to read it, someday, and see that little glimmer of a reflection. I wanted you to know that, right from the very start of my romance career, there was always room in my world for you.
I stood there, faced with the choice of doing what was right—pulling that book and finding a different publisher, or... feeding you.
As my silence dragged on, the editor said, “Other publishers won’t let the sheriff be gay, either. That’s just the way it is.”
And that was it. My radioactive spider bite. My origin story.
Because feed you, my child, I would, but I also vowed, in that moment, that I would make room for you in the romance genre. Because I would not write books set in a world where gay people—where you—were rendered invisible, where you were erased “because that’s just the way it was.”
It was not by accident that many of my earlier books have a hero or heroine who happens to have a gay brother. He doesn’t appear in the book, can’t offend anybody, he’s only mentioned in passing, but he’s gay and he’s loved. Can I get away with that? I can? Good. Next book, I’ll push harder.
And I pushed and pushed, and eight years later, with the help and support of my brilliant long-time editor Shauna Summers, my most popular character—my out, gay FBI agent, Jules Cassidy—walked onto the pages of The Defiant Hero.
It was shortly after that, Jace, that together with your dad, we got actively involved in the fight for marriage equality.
And yes, RWA, that was my real lifetime achievement. I have danced at my son’s legal wedding to his amazing and wonderful Mr. Right.
Some of you have no idea how impossible a dream that might have seemed back in 1992, when I was told to erase the gay sheriff from my first published romance. The obstacles we faced seemed insurmountable.
RWA, you were an obstacle. In 2008, I was asked to MC the Rita Awards in San Francisco and I was thrilled.
My book, All Through the Night, had recently come out—a ground-breaking mainstream, New York Times hardcover best-selling romance about two gay men celebrating their love by getting legally married.
My crazy, inclusive, liberal, hopeful, love-embracing brain took RWA’s invitation as approval and acknowledgement that love is love is love.
But not so fast there, you.
Early on, I’d asked if there’d be time for me to speak briefly—just a few personal words at the start of the ceremony...?
“Of course,” I was told.
But at the rehearsal in San Francisco, I was asked to “practice” reading the statement I’d prepared. That seemed a little strange, but okay, I had it with me, so I did.
It was a short, joyful comment about California being one of a very few places in the US, at that time, that recognized Jules and Robin’s marriage.
I was stunned when I was informed that I could not say that. I was told that the issue was divisive and some RWA members would be offended.
Imagine being invited to speak at an RWA event and then being told you could not talk about your most recent hardcover bestselling romance novel or the marriage of your all-time most popular characters, because some members would be offended.
I should’ve walked out. I regret not walking out.
I should’ve rocked the living fuck out of that boat. Instead, I was nice, instead I went along, and I let Jules and Robin and all that we’d achieved, be erased.
But right here and right now, I’m reclaiming my time.
Because that, my second radioactive spider bite, changed me, too. I will never not speak up again. I will never chose nice over right.
I know this is a different organization now—I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t believe that. RWA has grown and changed for the better.
But those changes do not—and should not—erase the past. And there’s still so much work to be done, to be as inclusive as we should be, as inclusive as we can be.
RWA, I’ve been watching you grapple as you attempt to deal with the homophobic, racist white supremacy on which our nation and the publishing industry is based. It’s long past time for that to change.
But hear me, writers, when I say: it doesn’t happen if we’re too fucking nice.
(Some of us are allowed to get angry. You know who you are, and you know who we need to support.) (Note: I cut those lines last minute because I needed to shorten the speech and believed they would be understood without my putting voice to them, but oh, how I wish I’d left them in!)
It’s time to rock the boat in the name of love and inclusion!
* * *
You know, even before I made my 2008 vow to stop being so fucking nice, I’d long been labeled as “too political,” because I write books that include gay people and people of color.
That’s not politics. How can equality and equal rights be political? It’s about right versus wrong. It’s about inclusion versus exclusion. It’s about embracing the incredible gift of diversity.
If that’s political, it’s time for YOU to get political, too.
It’s time to open ourselves—as both writers and READERS—to the people and their often harrowing stories that gatekeepers have long made writers erase from their books, for fear of offending the people who hold power.
* * *
So here comes the part of my speech where I get “political.” Oh, yeah, I haven’t gone there yet.
Be strong, be brave, be courageous and kind, be willing to take a risk and open your heart to let in some stranger—some scary “other”—and only then will you win the beautiful gift of love, of connection, in the form of a romantic HEA.
That has been the message of romance since we first began whispering our stories around campfires on cold nights.
But somehow, somewhere along the way, someone decided “Not so fast there you. You don’t look like me or think like me. These stories aren’t about you. You don’t belong here.”
Some of us intentionally tightened our circle to keep people out.
And when you grow up in a world where you learn, just from watching, that you are let in, but others are not, you often accept it as your truth. So when you write what you see and what you know and what you have been told to believe, like books set in a town where absolutely no people of color or gay people live...? You are perpetuating exclusion, and the cravenness and fear that’s at its ancient foundation.
Yeah, I’m talking to you, white, able, straight, cis, allegedly Christian women.
And don’t @ me with Not all white women.
Because 53% of us plunged us into our current living hell.
53% of us are racist and some of us don’t even know it!!
Oh, wait, what’s that...? You’re not racist...?
Then do something. Prove it.
In November, vote these hateful racist traitors OUT.
If you believe in love, like I do, if you write romance, where the stories we tell are about the courage that it takes to open your heart, it’s time for you to do the same.
Open your heart and look hard at your political and religious beliefs. Examine all you were taught—usually by white men in power—and try to see exactly who and what they erased from the stories they then labeled truth.
Look beyond the fences that they claim will keep you safe—fences that are, in fact, your prison walls. Because the diverse, inclusive world that they’ve erased is vibrant and beautiful and filled with hope and joy and boundless love.
But the sad truth is, we no longer expect anything of you, you 53%. It’s up to the rest of us, including the 99% of all women of color who continue to inspire me and lead the way.
Stand up. Speak up. Fight. VOTE. Our lives, our rights, our marriages, our love depends on it.
RWA, thank you for this honor. I suspect you’ll never invite me to speak at anything ever again. But that’s okay. Because it’s now or never. And my idea of an inclusive, diverse, loving, caring America is worth both creating and fighting for—it’s worth EVERYTHING.

Dear Jason, I love you. Love, Mom.

* * *
In a twitter post after the speech, Brockmann shared that “I got the rights back to that book, Future Perfect, and (easily!) restored the sheriff to his true self! It's available in a self-pubbed annotated edition, in which I talk about this (and a bunch o' other things about romance novels from the early 90s!). http://suzannebrockmann.com/books/fut... … ”

Second Novel in Jack-the-Ripper series, “Track The Ripper” by Dr. Katherine Ramsland, Just Published

Riverdale Avenue Books has just released a new mystery/thriller title Track The Ripper by Dr. Katherine Ramsland. This new paranormal romantic suspense is the first title in Riverdale Avenue Books’ revitalized Dagger imprint. The second novel in this international series features a secret society of telepathic blood-magic angels who come together to destroy what appears to be the reincarnation of Jack the Ripper.

This second novel in the Hearts of Darkness Series, Track the Ripper, takes NYPD detective Dianysus Brentano to London, Glastonbury and Paris as she chases a man who calls himself Jack the Ripper straight into an Internet web that aims to turn followers into killers and control the world. Her resolve to recover what he stole from her attracts allies from among the blood-drinking celestial ma’lakhim. Overwhelmed by their dangerous beauty, Dianysus sets her heart on the leader, Sitri, who has been her secret protector since childhood. But she’s unsure if he’s equally attracted to her or is exploiting her for his own purpose.

Dianysus learns that the mother who’d abandoned her when she was young had been a queen among these creatures. This makes her own blood unique and gives her new skills. When she discovers that the Ripper seeks her blood to complete his conquest, she forms a risky plan. As the ma’lakhim strive to save Paris and London from mass destruction, Dianysus goes to face the Ripper alone. She must trust that her blood-bond with Sitri is true, because otherwise, all is lost.

“Track the Ripper weaves paranormal romance and mystery together as a rogue nyc detective tracks a serial killer aided by a secret society of angels,” said Publisher Lori Perkins.. “It’s Anne Rice’s Talamasca with very sexy angels!”

“"Within Ripper lore and 19th-century occult practices in London and Paris," says author Katherine Ramsland, "were intriguing mysteries that let me blend thriller, crime investigation, and erotic romance in this parallel shadow world. I loved raising the stakes from The Ripper Letter into this much more dangerous mission."

July 17 Launch Date Set for New Romance Magazine

We've been busy designing and assigning the content for Romance Daily News. You can see our work-in-progress up at romancedailynews.com.

There are some exciting new features that we're working on such as This Day in Romance, which will highlight romantic (and less than romantic) events that have taken place on a calendar day in history.

We also have our very own in-house astrologer, Sephera Giron, who has studied occult arts and writes both paranormal romance and New Age nonfiction.

And we will have a regular Last Kiss cartoon from John Lustig, who updates old romance comics form the 60's and 70's (which I love).

In addition, we have a new partnership that we'll be announcing that will enable us to offer subscribers a free book a day, as well as an exclusive author interview.

And lots of trend articles, as well as guest posts from editors, agents, librarians, book sellers and publicists. Even accountants!

And reviews! We're hoping to publish three reviews a day in our first month and gradually get up to 150 reviews a month.

We'll be making our official launch announcement on July 17th in Denver at the annual Romance Writers of America conference.

Please email me of you'd like to contribute a piece or review, or inquire about advertising. lori@romancedailynews.com

Call for Submisisons for Funny Divorce Stories

Michele Traina, a regular at Caroline’s on Broadway and various East Coast comedy clubs, has put together a comedy showcase where performers share their amusing divorce stories. Inspired by that, award-winning New York publisher Riverdale Avenue Books is now collecting anecdotes like these into an anthology.

Divorce Diaries is a comedic journey examining families, careers, and love before, during, and after divorce. In this anthology, writers, actors and comedians share how they, their family or friends have been touched by divorce, and replaced their tears with laughter.

Michelle Traina said, “Divorce led me to uncover different facets of my life and affected my journey as a stand-up comic. I live with my parents, make fish sticks for dinner and I’m far from the average soccer mom. But I enjoy my daughter’s silly moments and show her how to find the humor in life's roughest.”

The collection is intended to inspire the reader, and motivate them through any life-transition. Reminding them to laugh because nothing is perfect forever, and remember that you have the power to change your life.

The anthology is looking for humorous prose in the 1,500 to 5,000 word range. Please include a short bio with your submission. If you are on the East Coast, you might be asked to bring your routine to the stage. Please send submissions to: submissions@riverdalebooks.com, attn: Divorce Diaries.

Deadline for submission is July 30. Publication will be October, 2018. All participants will receive a copy of the ebook and a print book, as well as a pro rata share of the royalties. The book will be on sale online, as well in bookstores throughout the United States, and available in English throughout the world.

We Need Book Reviewers

We're working hard on the launch of Romance Daily News (see the bare bones of the website here--we're still working on things-- romance.dailynews.com) and now we need to line up our reviewers. We need writers who love to read romance, but also books that have romantic elements and aren't romances, as well as nonfiction that impacts women's lives. So please write to me if you want to review books.

Have you read a book you LOVED recently? Let me know what it was and maybe we'll run your review.

We will be publishing 100 reviews a month, and hope to get up to 150 shortly, but we'll need your help. Spread the word.

lori@romancedailynews.com

Thanks,

Call for Stories for LGBTQ Horror Erotica Anthology Dark Rainbow

Dark Rainbow Vol. 1 is the first book of an LGBT dark erotica series edited by Andrew Robertson. The anthology will be released by award-winning New York publisher Riverdale Avenue Books.

Dark Rainbow will explore a wicked hunger within the LGBT sphere with exciting short stories that thrill the reader and all of their senses, but also send shivers down their spine. Send us the type of horrific treats that can only come with a queer protagonist, and tricks that have a lasting effect on the reader…a werebear who longs for more than a full moon can offer, a polyamorous necromancer, a witch who has plans for a different type of coven, a vampire who can’t let go of their favorite same-sex snack, a voodoo tale of zombies with a hunger for bisexual brains…

We are looking for stories that cover all sexualities and have an exciting, horrific edge. Blood and guts should be served with a sexy side course. There are several authors confirmed, so we are looking to complete the anthology with some stimulating new voices.

We welcome anything in the horror-erotica realm but no incest, no underage sex, no dubious consent, and be careful with age play. Horror should be relevant to the plot. Splatterpunk and extreme gore won’t be considered for this anthology.

Payment is a pro rata share of epub and print royalties, a pdf and a print copy of the book. All authors will receive an acknowledgement and response within four weeks. Please inquire about reprints. Original, unpublished work is highly preferred.

All submissions should;

· Be submitted as a Word doc

· Be between 2500-8000 words

· Be proofread

· Follow the Shunn Manuscript format

· Use Times New Roman 12 point and underline italics

· Use ### or *** centred for scene breaks, with a blank line above and below

· Include title, last name and page number in upper right hand corner using the ‘Header’ feature

Deadline is July 6, 2018 at midnight, the witching hour…

Send submissions to: glhcsubmissions@gmail.com

Romance Daily News to Launch in June to Carry on RT Reviews Traditions

I was a little surprised that I announced that I am starting Romance Daily News (which we already affectionately refer to as RDN) at this morning’s opening breakfast for Romantic Times. I had been asked to talk about how much Kathryn Falk has influenced my life in publishing. I wanted everyone to know that she has been a role model for me, a friend, and a constant force of positive energy for everyone who falls under the romance umbrella for three decades in this ever-changing book world, but I hadn’t really anticipated that I would just blurt out the news. It’s just not how these things are done. But when I saw how sad so many of the attendees of the convention were at the news that this would be the last RT convention and that RT Reviews would be closing, I couldn’t keep the exciting news to myself, and I didn’t want anyone to think that Kathryn’s legacy would fail to go on. I have been on the phone with Kathryn, late nights and weekends, talking about how I could fill the gap with a new publication so there would be no void left by the closing of RT.

My vision for Romance Daily News will include a lot of what RT Reviews did – reviews, interviews, trends, free reads, etc., but it will be a little more expansive in its definition of what romance news is. As I’ve gotten older I can see the romantic in places I never saw it before. And as my world gets more complicated, and often darker, I want to share the joy that romance brings in everything I do.

So, Romance Daily News will have a lot of new elements, more like a print women’s magazine -- horoscopes, This Day in Romance, an editorial cartoon by Last Kiss artist John Lustig, but also features on trends in romance on everything from books to films and TV and theater, as well as clothing, vacations, food and drink, friendships, real life romance, and even romance in art, history, gaming, sex, politics, science and math. Romance and the romantic is everywhere, and we, as the readers and writers who love romance, need to show the world that there’s another way to see things every minute of every day. For many, romance is an escape. For me, it’s a reality.

We’re putting together columns and features and new sections. We’ll need reviewers and writers, and all kinds of input, so please feel free to write me with suggestions at submissions@riverdaleavebooks.com.

We are hoping to launch in June, just as RT Reviews winds down.

Some of you may be asking, “Why is Lori Perkins doing this?” Aside from the fact that I personally want Kathryn Falk’s legacy to continue, journalism is my first love (see there’s some romance for you, right there). I have a B.A. in journalism from N.Y.U., and I started the local newspaper in upper Manhattan when I was 22. I also taught journalism at NYU when I was 23 because, as the feminist that I was then, I mentioned that there were no female professors teaching journalism and they asked me if I wanted to teach. I taught at NYU on and off for the next 20 years.

I believe in the power of the press, and I believe in the power of women’s voices and perspectives. We need our own presses where we can express ourselves, and we need women-centered spaces that are inclusive. Kathryn Falk created that space 37 years ago. I want it to go on.

IPPY-Award Winning Author Publishes Third Erotic Romance Mash-Up, Domme Quixote

Riverdale Avenue Books has just published Domme Quixote by IPPY-Award winner Lissa Trevor, her third erotic romance mash-up wherein she creates a fem domme re-imaging of Cervantes’ Don Quixote.

Dulcinea del Toboso runs a nightclub that's part dungeon/part live-action theater. Her exclusive clientele pay a great deal to be told erotic stories at Chivalry and be led on sexual adventures that includes BDSM, voyeurism and multiple partners. In addition to her harem of slaves, Dulcinea has her eye on conquering her chief of security, Alonso Quixano.

Alonso, however, doesn't mix work with pleasure—no matter how much Dulcinea gets under his skin. He would like nothing more than to spend endless nights of pleasure with her. However, he's not one to wait in line. And the line for Dulcinea's bed is varied and never ending.

When mobster Gino de Pasamonte decides his money can buy the best Dominatrix in the tri-state area, he's in for a big surprise when she puts him in a chastity cage and punts him out of her club, naked, for disrespecting her. Now, Gino is out for revenge and it's up to Dulcinea and Alonso to stop him from destroying Chivalry, her reputation, and her devoted slaves.

“Unlike my other mash-ups, it was virtually impossible to tell an erotic story in between Cervantes' prose. So I took his wonderful stories instead and modernized them with a "play within a play" motif,” said Author Lissa Trevor. “Dulcinea may be putting on a show using Don Quixote's famous escapades, but it's often she that is "tilting at windmills" as she goes about running her club and managing her slaves.”
“Trevor’s creative wit never ceases to amaze me as she weaves together these classics we know and love with contemporary erotic imaginings. ” said Publisher Lori Perkins.

Lissa is the author of Menage a Musketeer which won the 2016 IPPY erotica gold medal, as well as Spank Me, Mr. Darcy.