Email: rachelkramerbussel at gmail.com



 

Lusty Lady

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Watch my first and favorite book trailer for Spanked: Red-Cheeked Erotica. Get Spanked in print and ebook

Wednesday, May 31, 2017

On Fire has a hot cover and even hotter stories and you can review it early!

I'm thrilled that on July 18, the ebook edition of my latest Cleis Press anthology, On Fire: Erotic Romance Stories, will be out (the print edition hits stores August 8). This book is super hot, as befitting an anthology titled On Fire. It's also one that I got delayed on, so I'm extra excited that it's almost out in the world and determined to have these wonderful authors read as widely as possible, because they are seriously hot. Many of them are different from what I've published before; I've got a vampire story here ("Masquerade") and a femdom story ("Dreams Made Flesh") and sexy swingers (my story "The Dance") and so much more..

While most of my books are in bookstores across the country (and occasionally outside the U.S.), the vast majority of you read them as ebooks or listen to them as audiobooks. I love this, both as a price conscious shopper, because people can buy more ebooks since they tend to be cheaper, hence they get to read more, and because I have always had a vision of my books being as accessible as possible. When I took a vacation in Honolulu, I was overjoyed that some of my books were on the shelves at Barnes & Noble. It was like I'd visited Hawaii before I even got there! So I want them out in as many formats as they can possibly be. The On Fire audiobook, narrated by my favorite narrator in the world, Rose Caraway, who I've worked with on 10 other audio titles, will be out at the end of July.

Getting back to accessibility...here's the scoop: Some of the books I've edited since I started this journey way back when are out of print, most likely never to return to bookstore shelves, and lots of those never got an ebook or audiobook edition because they were published before that was so common. Some publishers I've worked with have folded, some books quietly didn't sell and have pretty much vanished. It happens, but these days I work far harder to get my books "out there" and am determined that the ones I put out now stay in print/as ebooks and audiobooks for a long, long time, ideally throughout my lifetime. To that end, I want to spread the word to as many readers and potential readers as possible. This is both my livelihood and my passion, but that means that if my books don't sell, out of financial necessity, I'll have to stop editing them and move on to something else to sustain myself, because I believe equal pay also means, Work only for what you're worth. That's a discussion for another time, but my point is, I both want and need my books to reach lots of readers. My personal goal is always to have each new book outsell the last. Of course I can't control that, but I can set it as my goal to push myself to try harder with each release and explore new avenues of reaching readers in this vast world of endless books available to you at the click of a button 24/7. It's a world I love and indulge in myself as a consumer, but it also makes it more challenging to make any single title stand out.

All of this is to say that the #1 way I promote my books and drive sales is through readers like you leaving reviews on sites like Amazon and Goodreads. Yes, over the years I've tried ads on book-related websites, I've paid to fly myself here, there and everywhere, I've made postcards and bookmarks and buttons. I won't say I've tried everything, but of all the methods of book promotion I've tried, having honest reviews on the main sites where readers congregate has been what gets other people interested. This is partly because of how the algorithms on those sites work, so the books of mine with the most reviews, such as The Big Book of Orgasms, almost always sell better than the ones with fewer reviews.

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So until June 18, one month before the ebook release, I'm offering all of you a free e-copy of On Fire, with the request that you leave an honest review of at least one sentence on Amazon (U.S.) and/or Goodreads. To comply with FTC rules, your review should state a version of, "I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review." And that's it! Read one story, or two, or all 20. Share the one you loved the most, the one you liked least, what turned you on, what intrigued you...that part is up to you. I can't tell you what to write, I can only tell you that I am so proud of this book and all the sexiness contained in it. It's filed under "erotic romance" but I think it's safe to say if you like erotica, you'll like much of it, and if you like romance, you'll like much of it. Here's the official blurb about it and endorsements by two authors whose writing I adore (thank you, Charlotte and Elizabeth!):

"Every story is a sinfully sexy yet always romantic delight." Charlotte Stein, author of Never Sweeter

On Fire is a delicious collection of sensual, luxurious erotic shorts, like bites of the finest chocolate that linger on your tongue.” Elizabeth SaFleur, author of the Elite Doms of Washington series
In On Fire, today’s top erotic romance authors don’t skimp on love or lust--they are entwined in tales that will make pulses pound and hearts race. Bestselling editor Rachel Kramer Bussel takes us inside the passions of couples who go above and beyond in their pursuit of sexual and romantic satisfaction, exploring the racy to the outrageous during their many arousing adventures. You’ll treasure the sex toy exploration in “Every Second of It,” find paranormal pleasure in “Masquerade,” and be transported to “A Place As Beautiful As This.” You’ll go “Beyond the Blindfold,” find out what lurks in the “Art of Darkness,” and delight in discovering “The Sweetest Thing.” These steamy stories by Kristina Wright, Delilah Devlin, Giselle Renarde, Kay Jaybee, Victoria Blisse, Jade A. Waters and others are perfect intimate reads to enjoy with your lover or for your own pleasure.
You can see the full table of contents and my introduction on the book's Tumblr.

That's my spiel. If you want to review the book, leave your name and email address in this form by June 18, 2017 at 11:59 pm EST. I'll send you the PDF and then you can post your review any time at Goodreads and starting July 18, 2017 on Amazon. Of course if you want to review it elsewhere, such as on a blog, other book retailer, etc., that is wonderful, but all I am asking is for you review on either Goodreads and/or Amazon.com (U.S.), which are the sites most of my readers use. If you want to do an extra erotica good deed, you can add the book to your "want to read list" on Goodreads (you'll see the button when you click the Goodreads link above). Again, I'm not an expert, but I believe Goodreads factors in which books have the most people listing them as want to read and promotes/showcases those books more widely. My hope is a) you'll find something, or many things, that entertains you and b) you'll discover a new author whose work you'll want to keep on reading. Thank you in advance and here's to On Fire and a sexy summer!

And if you're sitting there thinking, But I really want a free print copy of On Fire, I'll be giving those away in my monthly newsletter in July, so subscribe on the left-hand side of my Lusty Lady blog or at rachelkramerbussel.com. June's newsletter giveaway will be to win a copy of my femdom anthology She's on Top!

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Tuesday, May 30, 2017

Win my BDSM erotica anthology Please, Sir - enter by Wednesday, May 31!

Every month I give away books to my newsletter subscribers. If you haven't subscribed, you can do so on the left-hand side of this blog, Lusty Lady, or at my website, rachelkramerbussel.com (which may be experiencing some temporary technical difficulties), or at my Facebook page. This month's giveaway is 10 copies of my BDSM erotica anthology Please, Sir - enter using this Google form (which only I see). The deadline to enter is May 31, 2017 at 11:59 p.m. EST. Make sure to use the email address you're subscribed to the newsletter with and include your full mailing address - I sometimes have to pick a new winner when there's an incomplete address.

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Monday, May 29, 2017

BDSM erotica sale alert: The Big Book of Submission is $1.99 through June 3!

Happy news: now through June 3, The Big Book of Submission: 69 Kinky Tales is only $1.99 thanks to my awesome publisher, Cleis Press. Buy links are below, and something else cool: If you are an audiobook fanatic, you can get the Audible audiobook version of these 69 stories read by Rose Caraway for the discount price of just $7.49 after you purchase the Kindle edition.

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Buy The Big Book of Submission for $1.99 until June 3rd for:

Kindle

Nook

Google Play

iBooks

Kobo

Here's a little more about what's in the book:
Submission takes many forms in this collection of 69 short stories, from straining in bondage to taking a spanking, being put on display, and beyond. By turns bratty and worshipful, these submissives will go to great lengths to fulfill their naughtiest fantasies and are rewarded splendidly by their masters and mistresses. A student returns to show his former teacher who’s really in charge, a photo shoot becomes an opportunity for erotic games, and a man revels in his wife’s past as a former dominatrix. These brats, masochists, and hungry-for-sensation subs go above and beyond for the ones they adore, pushing themselves to new limits while their devious dominants put them through their paces. Edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel, these short stories sizzle with the tension of erotic power play, commands followed, and service willingly performed.
Want to be the first to know when my books go on sale? Follow me on Bookbub and you'll get an email whenever they're at rock bottom prices.

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And if you like this book, stay tuned for The Big Book of Submission Volume 2 out in December in ebook form and January in print!

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Friday, May 26, 2017

Listen to anal sex free erotica story "Hard Astern" on The Kiss Me Quick's Podcast

To celebrate the recent release of the Baby Got Back: Anal Erotica audiobook narrated by the amazing Rose Caraway, she's posted free erotic story "Hard Astern" by Thomas Roche on her The Kiss Me Quick's Podcast! Enjoy this sexy tale and subscribe to her podcast on iTunes or Stitcher so you can hear every story, and visit thekissmequicks.com for more hotness.

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Tuesday, May 23, 2017

Podcast recommendation of the week: Sluts and Scholars

I'm starting a new hopefully weekly series here on Lusty Lady, Podcast of the Week. Over the last two years I've become a voracious podcast listener and love discovering new to me podcasts. They really stay with me in a different way than reading, and I can often listen while working (though not when writing). So for my debut, I want to recommend a new podcast, Sluts and Scholars. They cover all sorts of sexuality topics in a really fun, engaging way. You don't need to have any prior knowledge of the subjects. Here's how the hosts describe themselves: "Nicoletta is an MFT Intern (sexologist) and Simone is an actor and activist and they both like . . . . SEX, or at least talking about it."

I've especially enjoyed their interview with porn star Nina Hartley and recent episode on parents talking to kids about sex (title: "When Your Daughter Finds Your Dildo"). Check out all the episodes here and subscribe via iTunes, Stitcher or your favorite podcast method, and follow them on Twitter and Facebook.

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Have a podcast recommendation? Leave a comment or email me at rachelkramerbussel at gmail dot com with "Podcast" in the subject line!

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Monday, May 15, 2017

Listen to me talk resistance erotica and meeting my celebrity crush on Susie Bright's podcast

For your listening pleasure, check out my interview on the podcast In Bed With Susie Bright. The show's title: "The Resistance Will Be Hot and Heavy." It's about my Rolling Stone anti-Trump erotica article and meeting my celebrity crush after 18 years (stay tuned for more about that experience from me soon).

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Friday, May 05, 2017

My Rolling Stone article on erotica writers and publishers resisting Trump

I wrote about anti-Trump political erotica for Rolling Stone, talking to erotic writers and publishers including Chuck Tingle, Go Deeper Press, Coming Together and the writers behind Kickstarter funded anthology NASTY: Fetish Fights Back, whose content and motivations are explicitly about resisting our new administration and its policies. Their books benefit organizations lie the ACLU, Planned Parenthood and MoveOn. If you like the article, I'd appreciate if you'd share it.

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