The Cougar Book – interview with Dona Lee

All this month on the Logical-Lust blog we will have interviews from the authors of The Cougar Book, edited by Jolie du Pre. Today is Dona Lee, author of “Cruising for C-men.”
Dona Lee’s short story’s on family have been published in a family anthology, “From Our Family to Yours,” and she has won numerous awards for her work. She currently leads a Florida writing group and is a freelance editor, writing coach, and ghostwriter.

What made you decide to submit your work for inclusion in The Cougar Book?

I chose to enter my story for The Cougar Book because I have been writing erotica for over two years. I even taught a writing group on the difference between sensual romance and erotica.

Tell us about your story. Give us a little teaser.

I tell the tale of a divorcee who needs to explore her sexuality after years of feeling inadequate. She chooses a cruise for her adventure and spies a young purser. Luring him in, she reinvigorates her sexuality and then slyly entices her friend to give it a whirl.

Could you see yourself being a cougar?

I am a Cougar. I enjoy younger men, they make me feel sexual and sensual. They appreciate my experience and passion, my openness to try almost anything.

Does your writing turn you on?

I generally turn on and then write with the satisfaction of a spoiled cougar, rather than write and then turn on.

The Cougar Book release is in print and ebook formats. With ebook readers becoming more and more popular, what are your views on ebooks and their effect on the publishing industry?

I know e-books are the future of reading, but I still enjoy curling up with book, or sprawling wide legged and holding on with only one hand.

What do you find difficult about writing? What comes easy for you?

I envision my characters, mull them over in my mind, learn them inside and out and then let them tell the story while I throw them obstacles to overcum.

You’re stranded on a desert island and you can only have one book, one album/CD, and one person with you—what would they be?

The man is easy. He’s younger, romantic, and adores the ground I walk on. I drink in his body with my eyes, and then my tongue, lingering for hours pleasing him and he pleasing me. Then we feed each other, our fresh grilled fish, shellfish, fruits, and veggies. We watch the sun rises and sunsets, no stress, no bills, no responsibility to others. Nirvana. One book? Wow. I prefer fiction to poetry, but to read it over and over, I think I would have to go for poetry, probably “Sonnets from the Portuguese”.

What are you working on now? Do you have a current release or a new release coming soon?

I am currently finishing an erotic novel, “Lady Blue,” about a female cop attempting to solve a case involving a serial murderer, and learning about her own sexuality along the way.

SPECIAL OFFER: Pre-order THE COUGAR BOOK and get a free ebook copy of SWING! ADVENTURES IN SWINGING!

The Cougar Book – interview with Madeline Moore

All this month on the Logical-Lust blog we will have interviews from the authors of The Cougar Book, edited by Jolie du Pre. Today is Madeline Moore, author of “Get Up, Stand Up!”

Madeline Moore is the author of three Black Lace novels: Wild Card, Amanda’s Young Men and Sarah’s Education. Writing as Laurie Clayton she is the co-author, with Michael Crawley, of a crime novel called The Women’s Club which will be published by MaxCrimes in the fall of 2010.

What made you decide to submit your work for inclusion in The Cougar Book?

Jolie du Pre struck me as one powerhouse of a woman and I wanted to work with her. Her previous e-book, Swing!, was her first anthology and I thought she did a terrific job with it, all around. It was well publicized and the e-book was followed by a print edition.

As well, my second book for the now defunct Black Lace imprint, Amanda’s Young Men was the tale of a cougar and her conquests. If the name Madeline Moore eventually comes up in a discussion about the topic of cougars, all the better for me. But I’d never submitted to an e-book anthology before, and the main reason I did was to work with Jolie.

Tell us about your story. Give us a little teaser.

I’d had the first sentence of my story, “Get Up, Stand Up!” rattling around in my head for at least a year. The image was firmly fixed in my mind: A woman looking out her closed balcony doors at a boy, crouched outside in the rain.

Now, in my opinion there’s a predatory quality to the kind of women who rightly fit the term ‘cougar.’ It wasn’t until Jolie’s call for submissions to The Cougar Book appeared that the woman in the image took on that predatory quality and the rest of the story fell into place.

Could you see yourself being a cougar?

I think if I wanted a young man, I’d do something similar to what my characters does in the story.

Does your writing turn you on?

I had to think about this for a minute. I like it when my work sneaks up on me and surprises me with a sexual thrill. Sometimes when I’m dug in deep and I’m working on the nuts and bolts of the machinery driving the story, the resulting piece, when I read it as a whole, jumps my bones and turns me on. Of course, I get a sexual thrill from words too. Like my new favourite word: aubergine.

The Cougar Book release is in print and ebook formats. With ebook readers becoming more and more popular, what are your views on ebooks and their effect on the publishing industry?

Ebooks are here to stay. I don’t like to see publishers go out of business, pointing their fingers at e-publishing as the culprit. Actually, I don’t believe it to be true. I don’t believe print books will cease to exist, either. Basically it’s a case of ‘different strokes for different folks,’ and I think once print publishing has finished shifting to accommodate this new delivery system for books, everything will settle nicely.

What do you find difficult about writing? What comes easy for you?

Dialogue has always come easily to me. I work in film so I’ve had a lot of practise, but one of the reasons I became a screenwriter was because I was a natural at dialogue.

Plot is tough. I’m not a huge ideas person. That’s one of the things I like about answering a call for submissions – the parameters of the piece are already in place. Description used to be difficult but I think it’s my favourite now.

Your birthday has been declared a national holiday. How do you want people to celebrate?

People should stay in bed all day and do whatever they want to do most. Might be reading, might be fucking, might be sleeping. In the movie Apocalypse Now there’s a great scene where all the guys going up river get off the boat and go into the forest and are chased by a tiger. When they’re safely back on the boat they repeat to each other, ‘Don’t get off the boat. Don’t get off the boat.’ I have a similar motto. ‘Don’t get off the bed.’

You’re stranded on a desert island and you can only have one book, one album/CD, and one person with you—what would they be?

I’d take Felix Baron with me because he’s my true love. The album would have to be Van Morrison, probably Enlightenment. It’s hell to have to pick one book, though. How about, The Collected Works of Shakespeare. That’d keep me busy for awhile. Although on second thought, I’d have to go with Surviving on a Desert Island For Dummies.

What are you working on now? Do you have a current release or a new release coming soon?

I’m really excited about my latest work – it’s a crime story called The Women’s Club. I co-wrote it with Felix for Maxim Jakubowski’s new imprint, MaxCrime, from John Blake Publishing. Our real names will be on it!

The book was tons of fun to write and Maxim is a terrific editor. It’ll be released in Fall, 2010.

It was funny writing it because, when we’d get to a sex scene, where usually we’d gird our loins and pound out a nice, juicy, fucky chapter, we’d cut to the next morning, as they do in G-rated movies.

It was a very different experience, writing in the crime genre, and I loved it.

Where can we find you on the Web? Do you have a website or blog(s)? Any social networks?

I confess I do not have a website. I have a blog:

http://moremadelinemoore.blogspot.com/

And I’m often on Facebook tending to my virtual farm. Anyone wishing to communicate me is welcome to email me at: telltale(at)primus.ca

SPECIAL OFFER: Pre-order THE COUGAR BOOK and get a free ebook copy of SWING! ADVENTURES IN SWINGING!

The Cougar Book – interview with Trish DeVene

All this month on the Logical-Lust blog we will have interviews from the authors of The Cougar Book, edited by Jolie du Pre. Today is Trish DeVene, author of “Her Apolonio Smile.”

Trish DeVene is a freelance editor, living with her husband and kids in a western suburb of Chicago. She has been writing fiction for twenty years and recently decided to push her mildly sensual prose into the enticing adventure of erotica. It’s a contagious genre—she doesn’t want to stop.

What made you decide to submit your work for inclusion in The Cougar Book?

I had always been attracted to younger men and had always felt uncomfortable with that attraction. When I read about The Cougar Book, I realized that I was hardly alone in this preference. Writing a story to explore the attraction, I thought, might help me understand it and find out what qualities a young partner brings to help create the energizing joy of these relationships.

Tell us about your story. Give us a little teaser.

“Her Apolonio Smile” is about a businesswoman who is tired of the leers from co-workers and the assumptions about her desires and needs. She’s rejuvenated by the unassuming beauty of the young male cashier at her local supermarket–a man who has no desire to own her, but in whom desire radiates like night encasing heat:

“He smelled like sandstone warmed in sun. As she undid his buckle, he didn’t move. Sound beyond him seemed to fly off with the distant jets, streaming far away. She heard the zipper; she heard another breath. He was hard, but she didn’t release the shaft that pressed against cotton. Raising his shirt instead, she put her mouth to a stomach of satin valleys, burnished fields warmed and feathered with sun. Her hands came around the back of him, holding the slender hips, pulling him closer.”

Could you see yourself being a cougar?

All my fantasies are about younger men, but in real life, my maternal instincts tend to confuse my desires. I think the intensity of desire could help bed those maternal instincts if the young partner were convincing.

Does your writing turn you on?

Yes, writing erotica is a turn-on. I hadn’t realized that aspect of writing until I first tried the genre. Sometimes, it’s difficult to finish a story because arousal is too great, and sometimes it’s hard to work my way back into a story I’ve left because I know the energy that will be required.

The Cougar Book release is in print and ebook formats. With ebook readers becoming more and more popular, what are your views on ebooks and their effect on the publishing industry?

I was resistant to e-books at the start simply because I love the texture of books. I like holding books and earmarking pages. But I’m finding that we get accustomed to reading on a screen and the affordability of purchasing e-books allows me to buy more than I could in print. E-book publishing seems to be allowing a greater audience for authors, and opening the market to new writers.

What do you find difficult about writing? What comes easy for you?

For me, the easy part of writing is creating a new environment with new characters. I thoroughly enjoy beginning a new world, meeting new faces, and seeing where the characters will take me. I write to discover, so I generally don’t know what the story will be about until I finish it. This joy is also the biggest hindrance for me in writing. Plot often eludes me. And sometimes an ending can’t be found for months, until I finally come to understand the characters’ needs.

Your birthday has been declared a national holiday. How do you want people to celebrate?

My birthday a national holiday? Oh, please keep it to one simple plan: do what you want. Everyone needs a day in which to celebrate passions, whether that’s sitting quietly with a book in the warm backyard or flying off to Paris for a decadent dessert.

You’re stranded on a desert island and you can only have one book, one album/CD, and one person with you—what would they be?

Stranded on a desert island, I would want my husband first. We’ve gotten along for nearly thirty years; I trust that we’d manage together. And I’d miss him! I’d bring along The Lord of the Rings because what better place to act out fantasies and there’s plenty of very good friends in that book for when I get lonely. Choosing one CD is harder for me. I’m going to go with the Jesus and Mary Chain’s Darklands because it contains songs for sex, songs for confusion, and songs of soothing.

What are you working on now? Do you have a current release or a new release coming soon?

I’m always working on short stories and poems, mostly in the romantic and erotica genre now. I have a vampire novel that is circulating among publishers at the moment as well, and a somewhat erotic novel about shadow exchanges that is in the works.

Where can we find you on the Web? Do you have a website or blog(s)? Any social networks?

On the web, I play around on Facebook and am long-time attached to LiveJournal. I’ve no official writer’s site at the moment. Mostly, I blog to keep in contact with other writer friends, and I’ve a website (http://www.e-grammar-editing.com) in the works offering tips on grammar and punctuation because as much as I love the creative side of writing, I have a copy editor’s eye for the details.

SPECIAL OFFER – Pre-order THE COUGAR BOOK and get a free ebook copy of SWING! ADVENTURES IN SWINGING!

The Cougar Book – interview with Julia Barrett

All this month on the Logical-Lust blog we will have interviews from the authors of The Cougar Book, edited by Jolie du Pre. Today is Julia Barrett, author of “You Just Might Get It.”

In her secret life, Julia Barrett writes in many genres, romance/suspense, science fiction, and contemporary romance. In her other working life, Julia writes nonfiction and poetry and is a registered nurse.

What made you decide to submit your work for inclusion in The Cougar Book?

When I read about the call for The Cougar Book, I realized I needed to move out of my comfort zone, which at the time was full-length Romance/Suspense. Writing a short work that needed to contain all the enticing elements of a longer work was a test, and I discovered it to be a great confidence builder. Writing this short work, and learning that I had succeeded and the story had been accepted for The Cougar Book gave me the courage to branch out into other genres and to loosen up a bit on length.

Could you see yourself being a cougar?

I actually was a cougar once…Before I married my husband, I dated a man five years my junior. We got together because we had many common interests and we had a great time together. We’ve actually remained good friends. I’ve also dated a guy twenty years my senior. That was interesting too!

Does your writing turn you on?

O.M.F.G. No comment!

The Cougar Book release is in print and ebook formats. With ebook readers becoming more and more popular, what are your views on ebooks and their effect on the publishing industry?

Well, one hopes there is room for both ebooks and traditional print books. To be honest, I love my print books – they are my most precious material possessions. However, I’m realistic enough to know that ebooks are the way of the future. My children and my grandchildren will probably do most of their reading electronically. Times change, we just happen to be living in a period of unusually rapid change and it’s a big adjustment for the reading public and the publishing industry.

Your birthday has been declared a national holiday. How do you want people to celebrate?

Go to Disneyland! That’s what I’m doing this year. I love Disneyland…I think I love going there more than my kids do! I ride Thunder Mountain over and over again and I think the Indiana Jones ride is a blast! Plus I gotta admit, Pirates of the Caribbean is very cool!

You’re stranded on a desert island and you can only have one book, one album/CD, and one person with you—what would they be?

Okay…let me think…one book – Shogun, by James Clavell, one album/CD – The Allman Brothers Live at the Filmore, one person – my smokin’ hot husband!

What are you working on now? Do you have a current release or a new release coming soon?

I’m currently working on the fourth book of a futuristic science fiction series, Daughters of Persephone. The entire series will be released in two books in July and August. The work follows a line of genetically enhanced females who are bred in a desperate attempt to save the human race. My most recent release is, Captured, with Siren-Bookstrand, another work of science fiction. The book tells the story of a woman who is captured by an interstellar trapper bound for a meat market – literally a butcher shop – on the other side of the galaxy.

Where can we find you on the Web? Do you have a website or blog(s)? Any social networks?

You can find me with Siren-Bookstrand, with Resplendence Publishing and with Cobblestone Press, and now with Logical-Lust! I have a website: http://juliarachelbarrett.com and I blog over at Seven Sexy Scribes.

The Cougar Book – interview with Jeremy Edwards

All this month on the Logical-Lust blog we will have interviews from the authors of The Cougar Book, edited by Jolie du Pre. Today is Jeremy Edwards, author of “Boston. Breasts. Bohemian.”

The erotic fiction of Jeremy Edwards has appeared in over thirty-five anthologies, including several volumes in the Mammoth Book of Best New Erotica series. He is a frequent contributor to print and online magazines, and a live-reading alumnus of New York’s In the Flesh and Philadelphia’s Erotic Literary Salon.

What made you decide to submit your work for inclusion in The Cougar Book?

I’d previously been published by Jolie and Logical-Lust in Swing! I was very proud to be in that collection with so many authors I admire. I appreciated the care the editor and publisher took in producing and promoting the book, and so I was eager to repeat the experience.

Tell us about your story. Give us a little teaser.

For this piece, I turned to a setting I once briefly inhabited, in real life—the small-publisher world of mid-1980s Boston. Though the male character is not me (nor is the story substantially derived from any real-life experiences of mine), he is about the age I was at that time and is a point of contact with my past in some general ways.

In developing the piece, I was intent on getting inside the mind of the female protagonist—showing what makes her tick, her passion, and her vulnerability. Though the young man in the story could have been my peer in real life at that time, in revisiting this world for the purposes of fiction, I wanted to visualize everything from the perspective of the woman (who would now be the one who is my present-day peer in terms of age and culture).

Here’s an excerpt:

The first thing Ned did when he’d been assigned a cubicle was put a cartoon up on the wall. I winced—tape marks!—but when I read it over his shoulder, and he volunteered that he’d created it himself, I got a squishy sensation in my belly. The cartoon showed a woman declining, as I inferred from the bubbles, champagne (served in what Ned presumably didn’t realize was the wrong kind of glass), and saying to her male companion, “Yes, Frank, I *know* that was a good year. It’s just that I’m not ready to relive it yet.” Frank. If I’d encountered this in the New Yorker, I might not even have lingered to bemoan their sagging standards. But standing almost on top of the boy who’d taken the trouble to draw this slim idea—smelling the youthful, citrusy essence of this kid who’d risked ruining a cubicle wall his first day on the job in order to display his work—all I could feel was admiration. Admiration and a warm tingling between my legs. Suddenly, I was very interested in Ned.

“Sorry about the breasts,” he said nervously, stepping to the side so he could face me. I took a peek at the cartoon lady’s cleavage, which I hadn’t noticed before. “I didn’t mean to draw them so large. I don’t want people to decide I’m one of those guys who thinks a woman amounts to a set of breasts.”

I felt a flush in my own, relatively generous, chest. “It’s okay, Ned. Hey, women have breasts. And breasts are nice, right?” I laughed, more self-consciously than I was used to in my workplace. In my time, a parade of seasoned men, my peers, had tried to flirt and banter and grope me into losing my cool at the office—had tried to make the always-in-control goddess blush or stammer or run off to change her panties. They had all failed. But poor Ned was nearly succeeding, without even intending to. The sincere way he both cared and didn’t care about the size of his cartoon character’s bust seemed to tug at my nipples and tickle my clit.

“Some of us have larger ones than others,” I continued, masking my flutteriness with a reassuring, didactically matriarchal tone, and trusting that my injection of self-referential language wouldn’t completely give away my agenda—yet. “You happened to draw one such woman.”

He gave me a sensitive, tentative-looking smile, and that’s when I understood that his face was capable of more complexity than silently framing the question, “What time is lunch?” I was about to ask him—I don’t know—about his life, what he’d liked best in college, about his family … but he spoke again before the words formed.

“What time is lunch?”

Does your writing turn you on?

Yes—but not by the seventeenth draft.

What do you find difficult about writing? What comes easy for you?

The most difficult part for me is figuring out what’s going to happen in a scene or a story. Once I know that—even if it’s only in a roughed-out way—then actually laying out the narrative and dialogue is relatively easy, for the most part. That is, it’s still hard work, but it tends to flow smoothly—at that stage I’m unlikely to get “stuck.”

You’re stranded on a desert island and you can only have one book, one album/CD, and one person with you—what would they be?

The last part is easy—my wife! The choice is based on my personal feelings for her…but, incidentally, she’s also the kind of person who would make the most of desert-island life—she loves nature, learning, building things, etc. Think the Professor and Mary Ann, rolled into one.

For book and CD, I might go with a complete collection of Wodehouse’s Jeeves novels and stories, accompanied by Milt Jackson’s Statements album.

What are you working on now? Do you have a current release or a new release coming soon?

Glad you asked! My erotocomedic novel, Rock My Socks Off ,was recently released (in the UK; U.S. release will be later in the year). It’s available all sorts of places, from brick-and-mortar bookstores to online vendors, and it has both print and e-book incarnations. Much more info is available at my website.

Meanwhile, as for what I’m working on…stories, always stories!

Where can we find you on the Web? Do you have a website or blog(s)? Any social networks?

My website:

http://www.jeremyedwardserotica.com/

My blog:

http://jerotic.blogspot.com/

I’m also on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/jeremy.edwards.erotica?ref=profile

And Twitter:

http://twitter.com/jerotic

The Cougar Book – interview with Shanna Germain

All this month on the Logical-Lust blog we will have interviews from the authors of The Cougar Book, edited by Jolie du Pre. Today is Shanna Germain, author of “Deep Waters.”

What made you decide to submit your work for inclusion in The Cougar Book?

I would have to say that it’s because I’m officially A Woman of Cougar-ish Age. While I don’t fit the majority of the clichés—namely, the fancy pants that come in tiger stripes and the actual act of prowling for younger prey—I appreciate the sentiment. And while I know some women are up in arms about the term, “Cougar,” I think it’s about time that society has started to recognize that older woman are sexy, beautiful, and powerful. That knowledge seems to have gotten lost somewhere along the way and I’m glad it’s returning.

Tell us about your story. Give us a little teaser.

My story is the tale of the “accidental cougar,” one who doesn’t necessarily set out to seduce a younger man. In fact, she’s been the younger woman in a marriage for a long time, and has dealt with the repercussions of that, of being seen as a gold digger. When she takes a journey to the place of her husband’s recent death, she hopes to find a sense of closure. Instead, she gets something that’s much more complicated, in terms of both grief and desire.

Could you see yourself being a cougar?

I don’t find age to be a deterrent to sexual appeal. On the other hand, I’ve never “had a thing” for older or younger men. My attraction is very specific to a person, their mind, their sense of humor, their sexuality. Could I date and fuck someone much younger in years? Absolutely. Do I actually feel like I’m thirty-seven? Hell no. To me, age is such a fluid, relative, ever-changing thing that has little to do with actual years.

On the other hand, could I go out prowling for a younger man just to entice him back to my place? I don’t think so. I’ve never been good at that. I tend to fall in lust with the mind first.

Does your writing turn you on?

Yes. But then most things do. I’m a creature of lusts, in all of its forms. If a story is starting to bore me, then I think it’s going to bore readers too. So that’s the point where I sit down and ask, “Okay, what do I need to do to stretch this, to make it come alive?” I think an erotic story should arouse the writer and surprise her, and maybe even scare her a little bit. That, to me, is when my writing is the best.

The Cougar Book release is in print and ebook formats. With ebook readers becoming more and more popular, what are your views on ebooks and their effect on the publishing industry?

I really love the opportunities that ebooks provide, both for readers and for writers. There is a sense of security and intimacy for the reader, the option to buy right from your own home, and to read it in any format you like. There is also a lot of benefit to the writer: less overhead costs mean that writers have the opportunity to get a larger percentage of what their work earns and that there are more publishing options available.

On the other hand, there is nothing like a real, paper book to hold in your hands, with its beautiful cover and its black and white printed pages. The heft, the feel, the way it smells—there’s something so erotic about that, something that can be lost in the more impersonal e-reader screens.

What do you find difficult about writing? What comes easy for you?

The most difficult part is finishing something, seeing it through to the end. The middle, the ending, that’s the part where I want to turn around and trash the whole thing. The thing I’m most excited about is always the thing I haven’t started yet.

Easiest? Coming up with ideas and characters. They’re always in my brain, talking, talking. They want their stories told, and they’re begging me to do just that. I have too many ideas, so many that there’s no way I’d ever be able to write them all.

Your birthday has been declared a national holiday. How do you want people to celebrate?

Get naked and have sex. Real sex, the kind that doesn’t have anything to do with how you look or what you’re supposed to do or how you’re expected to act. The kind that pleases you.

You’re stranded on a desert island and you can only have one book, one album/CD, and one person with you—what would they be?

Oh, hell. That’s just too hard, and it’s an answer that probably changes every day or at least every hour. Right now, I’d take one of Amy Bloom’s short story collections to read, something by Jonathon Coulton to listen to, and I’d have to trade the person in for my MacBook (she’s like a person, I swear it). That way, I could treat it like a writing retreat and get lots and lots done.

What are you working on now? Do you have a current release or a new release coming soon?

I’m always working on about a million things at once. Mostly short stories at the moment, plus one non-fiction book and a variety of articles. I have new stories coming out in collections like Alison’s Wonderland, Fairy Tale Lust and Blood Fruit: Queer Horror.

I’m also teaching an online erotica class called Sexy on the Page, and my publishing company, MindFuck Fiction, has a call out for submissions for a fantastic new set of collections based on the Seven Deadly (or sexy, in this case) Sins. Our first collection is Gluttony, and I’m so excited to see what people do with the idea to make it sensual, sinful and sexy.

Where can we find you on the Web? Do you have a website or blog(s)? Any social networks?

I’m all over the web, for better or worse! My main webpage is at http://yearofthebooks.wordpress.com, my class page is at http://sexyonthepage.wordpress.com, and the MindFuck Fiction site is at www.mindfuckfiction.com

The Cougar Book – interview with Heidi Champa

All this month on the Logical-Lust blog we will have interviews from the authors of The Cougar Book, edited by Jolie du Pre. Today is Heidi Champa, author of “Spring Training.”

What made you decide to submit your work for inclusion in The Cougar Book?

I thought the premise of the book sounded really interesting and fun. Cougars are everywhere right now, and it seemed like a topic that I could really sink my teeth into. I truly believe that a woman can be sexy at any age, and I was excited to be a part of a book that really celebrates that fact. Plus, I never turn down the opportunity to write about young, hot, eager men.

Tell us about your story. Give us a little teaser.

My story, “Spring Training,” is about a college admissions officer who spends way too much time staring out her window at the gorgeous, young baseball player who has caught her eye. Things start to heat up when one evening an errant baseball comes crashing through her window.

Could you see yourself being a cougar?

Absolutely!! I’m just not sure how my husband will feel about it when the time comes.

Does your writing turn you on?

If I’m doing it right, it does. If it isn’t making me hot, I figure it probably won’t make anyone else hot either. When a story is going well, the temperature in the room always goes up. That is how I know a story is really working. I know everyone gets turned on by different things, but if I don’t find a piece sexy, it usually doesn’t get very far.

The Cougar Book release is in print and ebook formats. With ebook readers becoming more and more popular, what are your views on ebooks and their effect on the publishing industry?

I think e-books are a wonderful, convenient, and affordable way to get writing out into the world, and I’m encouraged by the popularity. I have been published extensively in e-book form, and so far, my experiences have been all positive. That being said, I do love the feel of holding a book in my hands, and I know piracy is always an issue in electronic media. I think there is a place for both standard paperback books and e-books in the future of erotica, and as the industry grows and changes, I look forward to being a part of it.

What are you working on now? Do you have a current release or a new release coming soon?

I have quite a few things coming up in early 2010. Best of Best Women’s Erotica 2 will be out in February, and contains my story, Amy. In March, my story “Right Way, Wrong Way” will be in the College Boys anthology. The spring will be busy as well with appearances in anthologies edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel, Miranda Forbes and Shane Allison. If all goes well, I’ll start my novel this year. Hopefully.

Where can we find you on the Web? Do you have a website or blog(s)? Any social networks?

My blog can be found at heidichampa.blogspot.com. It has links to all my upcoming releases, information about me and where to find other examples of my writing. I’m also on Facebook and Myspace.

The Cougar Book – interview with Brenna Lyons

All this month on the Logical-Lust blog we will have interviews from the authors of The Cougar Book, edited by Jolie du Pre. Today is Brenna Lyons, author of “Mine For The Night.”

What made you decide to submit your work for inclusion in The Cougar Book?

I’ve enjoyed Jolie’s work for a long time, and she’s an excellent editor. I wanted to get into the SWING anthology with her, but I didn’t have a suitable idea for it at the time. When COUGAR came around, I had an idea within minutes. There was never a question that I would try to submit to something Jolie was putting together.

Tell us about your story. Give us a little teaser.

My story in the anthology is “Mine for the Night.” Imagine a futuristic world where an alien race has released a virus designed to kill only men. Generations after losing every man on Earth…, generations of the only children born being the result of artificial insemination, a group of doctors has found a way to suppress the virus and mature small numbers of men that will be delivered to family pods of four women to a single man. But before a man is delivered to his pod, one of the scientists is granted a single night with the completely uneducated male.

Could you see yourself being a cougar?

If I was single and back in shape, I could see playing cougar. I’m not big on one-night stands though, so if I was a cougar, it would probably be serial monogamy, at least. If I found a younger man that I got along with, I certainly wouldn’t be shy about dating him or doing whatever two consenting adults might decide to get up to together.

Does your writing turn you on?

Of course. If it didn’t turn me on, why would I expect it to turn someone else on? Strangely, as an author, when I’m writing in the mind of someone who is vastly different than myself, I can be aroused by something that doesn’t arouse me personally. It’s disconcerting, but it’s par for the course when you have a character-driven writing process.

The Cougar Book release is in print and ebook formats. With ebook readers becoming more and more popular, what are your views on ebooks and their effect on the publishing industry?

e-Books are incredibly good for the industry. The rise in the industry allows books to sell nearly worldwide from day one. It allows people to backup books that are otherwise lost in fire, flood, or other catastrophes. It allows people with vision problems to have books read to them by software without waiting for an audio version. It allows people who don’t have a lot of storage space the ability to own more books without having to pick and choose. And the indie presses allow new and interesting books that don’t fit the NY marketing scheme.

I know a lot of people blame e-book reading devices (and e-books in general) for piracy, but that is a fallacy. Just like guns and knives, the thing is not bad, though people may well misuse any item to do illegal and/or immoral things. DRM/security placed on e-books is simply broken within a few weeks…, every time. Even print-only books can be pirated as e-books. A pirate takes a box cutter, strips off the cover, OCR scans the book, and pirates it. Those who are intent on being dishonest will do so, no matter what obstacles you put in their way.

Your birthday has been declared a national holiday. How do you want people to celebrate?

With someone they love. I want people to have time paying attention to the truly important things in life…, love, family, the irreplaceable bonds that make us what we are. Have a dinner with family. Have a family game night. Snuggle with your lover or spouse on the couch. Have sex that isn’t rushed or otherwise functional. Go on an outing together…, camping, a picnic, play a game in the park. If there happens to be a cake involved, that’s cool too.

What are you working on now? Do you have a current release or a new release coming soon?

I’m working on several projects I want to finish. One of them is the next Kielan story for Logical-Lust. This one is titled ANOTHER MAN’S MATE. It follows Lady Vahlree, Sevryn’s mother from TIME CURRENTS (one of my EPIC eBook Award finalists). Vahlree doesn’t make a good first impression…, or a second one. It’s hard to imagine her as a heroine, but that’s something I love doing. I love taking a seemingly unlovable character and turning the tables to show the reader something unexpected.

Where can we find you on the Web? Do you have a website or blog(s)? Any social networks?

http://www.brennalyons.com
http://www.facebook.com/brenna.lyons
http://www.myspace.com/brennalyons

http://brennalyonsden.blogspot.com/

The Cougar Book – interview with Tara S. Nichols

All this month on the Logical-Lust blog we will have interviews from the authors of The Cougar Book, edited by Jolie du Pre. Today is Tara S. Nichols, author of “Labeled.”

Ever since Tara Nichols was a little girl she has had an affinity for romantic adventures. With crushes on the likes of Tarzan and Hans Solo she grew up looking for the perfect gentleman rogue. When she is not writing about romance, erotica or paranormal fiction she can be found tending her garden, keeping bees or reading a spy novel. Tara roams free on the flat prairie land in Manitoba Canada where she lives with her young son and husband.

Could you see yourself being a cougar?
Oh sure. If going by my dating record is any indicator, my trend is to go for a younger man. Either they are naturally attracted to me, or I’m naturally attracted to them, I’m not certain. I think out of all the guys I’ve dated only one was older than me. That said, I’ve been with my husband (who is only a year younger than me) for seventeen years.

I don’t have anything against older men, and I wouldn’t seek out a guy just because he was younger, it is just the way things tended to go for me.

Does your writing turn you on?
Yes. I don’t know which comes first, the sex or the plot, but sometimes the two meet in the middle. One often leads to the other, so to speak. I’m just lucky to have a husband who doesn’t mind talking out loud, or, as we call it, plotting.

What do you find difficult about writing? What comes easy for you?
The hardest thing about writing for me is finding the time. I have a young son whom we home school, which doesn’t leave much time for me to get any work done. It used to be that my mother-in-law would take him once a week but that has dropped off significantly as of late. I often work hard and fast late into the night but my son wakes early and that doesn’t always make for a sharp, active mind.

As for what comes easy… I don’t really know. For me writing is involuntary. It sort of just happens. I get a chunk of a story all at once and I scramble like mad to write it all down. If I get enough parts of a story I can weave them together, work the plot so it fits and makes sense. It feels easy when an idea comes like that, but then I often have to wait for more of it to come, and that’s bloody hard.

Your birthday has been declared a national holiday. How do you want people to celebrate?
I’d like it if they’d plant a tree, or maybe go for a hike and appreciate their surroundings. If they brought a dirty book along on the hike and partook in a little nookie in the grass, that’s cool too.

You’re stranded on a desert island and you can only have one book, one album/CD, and one person with you—what would they be?
One book! Oh, that’s not easy. I could be a pain in the arse and say a survival guide of my choice, but I’m going to go with Jane Austen’s complete works. I haven’t read them all, but they are well written, long, and would entertain me for quite sometime. As for what music, a mixed CD would be ideal, but again, that feels like cheating, so… I’ll go with Corb Lund, Hair In My Eyes Like A Highland Steer. I don’t usually go for country music but there isn’t one song on that album that I would get sick of. It’s blues, it has a great beat, and he’s just awesome. (my runner up would be , Homogenic by Bjork.) And as for what person? That’s a no brainer, my husband. He’s hunky, he’s sweet, and he’s very clever, (we’d have an all weather shelter built in no time,) but he’d better have our four-year-old son tucked under one arm.

What are you working on now? Do you have a current release or a new release coming soon?
Currently I am working on a joint paranormal project, titled Black Phoenix Rising, with an amazing writer, Keta Diablo. This is my first attempt at writing with another author and I have to say I am pleasantly surprised. I’m a bit of a loner, both in my writing and my everyday life, but working with Keta is fun. I am also putting the finishing touches on a ménage amour novella titled Island of Three. I had intended to submit this story a year ago but the plot continued to grow, the characters continued to strengthen and deepen, so I took the time the story required and hopefully it will be all the better for it.

Where can we find you on the Web? Do you have a website or blog(s)? Any social networks?
My author homepage is www.tarasnichols.webs.com, my blog is http://tarasnichols.blogspot.com, my GoodReads is http://www.goodreads.com/tarasnichols and I can be found on many erotic, romance, and paranormal Nings, as well as http://www.romancewiki.com/Tara_S_Nichols. My myspace page is www.myspace.com/tarasnichols and my twitter account is http://twitter.com/TaraSNichols. I am a member of the Romance Divas, Coffee Time Romance, The Romance Studio, and a rather long list of Yahoo groups. I’m also available far too often at my facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?ref=name&id=1478861395 where I’ve recently started a fan page.

The Cougar Book – interview with Blue Canyon

All this month on the Logical-Lust blog we will have interviews from the authors of The Cougar Book, edited by Jolie du Pre. First up is Blue Canyon, author of “Inter-Office Men-O.”
Blue Canyon has been writing since age 22. Now age 52, Blue is a single parent of six children. They all live together in Florida. As part of a self-improvement program, Blue belongs to several writer’s groups including Florida Writer’s Association, frequently meeting with authors such as Steven King, Tim Dorsey, Don Bruns, Dona Lee, Susan Klaus, and H. Terrell Griffin.

Tell us about your story. Give us a little teaser.
Even though inter-office romance is strictly forbidden, Carol discovers her growing need for physical satisfaction pulling her closer to a young mail boy named Harry. Unable to avoid his daily mail deliveries, she finally succumbs to her lust and creates the perfect setting to seduce him. But who is seducing whom? Without restraint, she draws Harry into her and discovers he’s wanted her as much as
she’s wanted him. Who says inter-office relationships can’t work?

Could you succumb to a cougar?
Abso-tively! Posi-lutely?

Does your writing turn you on?
Yes, sometimes a little too much. It’s difficult to type one-handed.

The Cougar Book release is in print and ebook formats. With ebook readers becoming more and more popular, what are your views on ebooks and their effect on the publishing industry?
While I’m resistant to the ‘new’ way of things, as so many people are, I suspect e-readers will become the wave of the future. Fewer and fewer people will continue to collect books in printed format. Perhaps the new ‘green’ thinking is part of the reason.

What do you find difficult about writing? What comes easy for you?
I have no trouble sitting down and getting it done. I can create new ideas and new twists at the rate of about a dozen an hour. My problem comes from length. I’m often over or under the target for word count, and like Mozart, I not only don’t know how to change it, I see no reason to. It seems to say what I wanted, just the way it is.

Your birthday has been declared a national holiday. How do you want people to celebrate?
Roman orgies.

You’re stranded on a desert island and you can only have one book, one album/CD, and one person with you—what would they be?
I’ve always enjoyed The Expendables by Richard Avery. There were only four. Instead of a CD, I’d prefer a guitar (I’ve played for 33 years). The only person I could imagine spending that much time with is author Dona Lee.

What are you working on now? Do you have a current release or a new release coming soon?
I actually have a collection of racy/literary novellas (about 20K words each) I’d like to put together and have published. These cover a variety of genres, as my tastes are often eclectic.