What erotica writers thought about the #AskELJames Twitter Q&A

I decided to ask erotica writers what they thought about yesterday's #AskELJames Twitter chat. Their varied takes are up at The Frisky. Thanks to writers Rose Caraway, Abigail Ekue, Tamsin Flowers, Shanna Germain, Tasha L. Harrison, A.M. Hartnett, Oleander Plume and Remittance Girl for sharing their thoughts!



Yes, I do have a copy of Grey, but don't think I'll be formally reviewing it, though I will be writing about BDSM and submission in real life soon. Stay tuned!

7 new erotica short stories

I have a bunch of new erotica short stories out - the first 4 are from new ebook only imprint Mischief Books, which has purchasing links and excerpts and also full-length novels, and the last 3 are from Cleis Press. I'm especially excited about the first anthologies edited by writers you are likely familiar with, Shanna Germain and Sinclair Sexsmith, as well as another collection by D.L. King!


my story "Slapper," about, shockingly, a girl who like to be slapped (to find out where she likes to be slapped, you'll have to buy the ebook) is in Shameful Thrills: Girls who Should Know Better. Buy for Kindle or Nook.


my professional restaurant eater story (yes, I have a fondness for restaurant settings) "I'll Have What She's Having" is in Exposure: Those who Love to Watch and be Watched. Buy for Kindle or Nook.


my story "Best Offer," about a woman offered $100 who holds out for more, is in Girl for Hire: The Secret Encounters of Amateur Escorts. Buy for Kindle.


my story "Stranded," about a woman who's left stranded at, yes, a restaurant, and has to "pay" for her meal, is in At Your Mercy: Tales of Domination. Buy for Kindle or Nook


my kinky art gallery story "The Heart of Chaos" is in Bound by Lust: Romantic Stories of Submission and Sensuality


my story "A Slap in the Face" (about, yes, face slapping, in public, no less) is in Say Please: Lesbian BDSM Erotica edited by Sinclair Sexsmith


my butch masseuse and femme client story "Happy Ending" is in The Harder She Comes: Butch Femme Erotica edited by D.L. King

Knife play story "Beneath My Skin" by Shanna Germain rejected twice before landing in Women in Lust

I'm loving all the posts on the Women in Lust virtual book tour, and this one by author Shanna Germain really stands out. I know I'm rarely one to post about rejected stories, because I'd rather tell you about the ones that made it, the little story that could, the story that you can read, rather than one living only on my computer. So I think that's brave, and bold, and powerful. And, I hope, encouraging (have I mentioned that I very much need stories for my female submission anthology? Like, ASAP, and I truly need stories just like this: bold, powerful, take no prisoners, daring, creative, unlike anything else in my submissions inbox, which may or may not be helpful, but that's the thing - don't write it for me, write it for you, and make it an amazing, startlingly new and creative take on the topic, and it'll find a home). She writes:

Wouldn’t you like to know my real kinks? My real interest in sex and writing?

This story actually answers that. All of my stories answer that, if you read them carefully. Don’t look at the small truths. Not at the knife. Not at the kiss. Not at the way his hand moves across her skin.

Look at the emotional truths.

Here are some hints: No, it’s not about knife-play. No, it’s not about getting fucked while having a blade at my back. No, it’s not about having an orgasm.

It’s about opening ourselves to something greater than us. It’s about pushing past our safe places and seeing what lies beyond. It’s about taking the ‘real’ and turning it into something more, something that allows us to see the larger essence of our hearts and minds. It’s about touch and connection and those rare, precious moments where life splits us open and lets us be free

You can read an excerpt of "Beneath My Skin" at Smutketeers and a further one at Shanna's blog. I'm proud of Women in Lust because for the book, I do think it's an edgy story that may be too much for some readers, but for some readers, I hope, it'll be perfect, and for others it may lead them to an understanding of sexuality and humanity that they didn't have before.



Order Women in Lust from:

Amazon

Kindle edition (ebook)

Barnes & Noble

Nook (ebook)

Powells

Books-a-Million

IndieBound (search for your local indie bookstore)

Cleis Press

Pretty pearl handcuffs on cover of Bound by Lust edited by Shanna Germain

This hot 2012 anthology, Bound By Lust: Romantic Stories of Submission and Sensuality, will include my hot wax exhibitionism story "The Heart of Chaos," set in an art gallery, inspired in a weird diffuse way by the documentary My Kid Could Paint That.

Yes, my Seattle June 27th will be this hot

And you should be there. Or wish you were there. It's free and Naked Girls Reading will be reading almost naked and I and Shanna Germain will be reading and signing Gotta Have It: 69 Stories of Sudden Sex. And there are free cupcakes! I'll be in Seattle this weekend for vacation and fun and CupcakeCamp Seattle...in June I'll be there for the Rock N Roll Marathon, which I just may be walking solo (helpful hint: don't make plans nine months in advance with anyone and expect them to stay in place) and for this fantabulous very special reading. As I've said before, I quit In The Flesh because I couldn't afford the time and financial costs, and this is the last year I'll be doing the same amount of readings unless someone else is flying me there (meaning, this is the last year I will be doing a lot of readings). I am hoping to get out to California in 2012 to do some readings with Susie Bright for Best Sex Writing 2012 (deadline May 1 and it's already shaping up amazingly).

Anyway...crazy busy time but I wanted to share this hot flyer with you. If you like it, do me a favor and head over to Facebook and share the news about this reading. Or just copy and paste. Whatever works.



June 27, 6-8 pm, FREE
Babeland, 707 E. Pike Street, Seattle
Gotta Have It reading

Join Gotta Have It editor Rachel Kramer Bussel, contributor Shanna Germain ("Genesis") and burlesque performers Jesse Belle-Jones, Polly Wood and Heidi Von Haught from Naked Girls Reading for a fun, fabulous event at Babeland Seattle for short, sexy readings from Gotta Have It: 69 Stories of Sudden Sex, plus free cupcakes! Free copies of SexIs Magazine will be given away.

Naked Girls Reading Gotta Have It live, free, Seattle, June 27th!

2011 is the last year I will be doing readings all over the place like a crazy woman unless they are very special (or someone else pays for me) so I really am excited about this very special reading. PLEASE do me a giant favor and tell anyone in Seattle who might be interested. I want to pack Babeland. Here's a too-racy-for-Facebook photo of Naked Girls Reading Seattle, who will be joining me, along with erotica writer extraordinaire Shanna Germain, author of the story "Genesis" and editor of the upcoming Bound to Lust. Shanna is also featured in the Gotta Have It book trailer. I'll get to work on some yummy cupcakes - I'll be in Seattle mid-April for CupcakeCamp Seattle and it's a huge cupcake city so I'm sure that won't be a problem.

Facebook invite
June 27, 6 to 8 pm, FREE
Join Gotta Have It editor Rachel Kramer Bussel, contributor Shanna Germain ("Genesis") and burlesque performers from Naked Girls Reading for a fun, fabulous event at Babeland Seattle for short, sexy readings from Gotta Have It: 69 Stories of Sudden Sex, plus free cupcakes!