Dorito crumbs, queer romance on the side: ORDER UP!
Published October 2, 2007 | 
My brilliant and always fabulously stylish crit partner, Barbara Caridad Ferrer, has a column up at Romancing the Blog about how it’s the little things that keep us sane.
Mostly, it’s the little things that drive me batty — and if one more person leaves Dorito crumbs on my pillow, he or she will find themselves in a UNIVERSE of hurt — but I appreciate the sentiment, and the fan letter she quotes is a thing of beauty.
In other news, Romantic Times has reviewed Suz Brockmann’s latest (ALL THROUGH THE NIGHT) which features an M/M relationship, thereby breaking their policy of not reviewing queer romance. Instead of going with my knee-jerk reaction — Hey, Hypocrites ‘R’ Us! What happened to “M/M romance is to romantic fiction as Yoga is to NASCAR”??? — I’ve decided to take it as a sign of good things to come. MAYBE if they don’t get a thousand angry letters, and MAYBE if not too many people cancel their subscriptions, and MAYBE if they get a bunch of messages saying “Hey, that was cool, why don’t you review more M/M romance?” (that’s a hint, btw) they will change their general policy in the near future.
It’s not like I don’t understand how the publisher is under pressure to cave to the belligerent homophobes — I do. And I sympathize to the degree that RT will continue to get my business in the form of a subscription, ad revenue, and convention fees. But bravery in the face of ignorant bigotry would earn them my undying love and respect, as well.
For anyone interested, I’ll be at PhazeChatters tomorrow for an all-day fiesta with several other authors. Contests, prizes, filthy excerpts, much giggly banter filled with double-entendre and innuendo. You know — the usual drill.
Butter my ass and call me a biscuit!
Published November 2, 2006 | 
A few months ago, I went all twitchy because I’d just submitted LIE TO ME to Romantic Times Book Reviews and was unsure about its reception there. This was my first go-round with the magazine, and as much as all review submissions are a crapshoot relying on subjective opinion (is that a redundancy? I think it is.) I was especially nervous about this one given its potential to affect sales. Erotic romance told from first person point of view isn’t altogether common, and my heroine is not what you’d call “likeable” right off the bat. I was prepared to receive 3 stars, and was steeling myself for 2.
Damned if Leigh Rowling, RT’s “Erotica” reviewer, didn’t up and give LIE TO ME 4 whole stars.
She says:
“With its fast start, good suspense elements and strong erotic tone, March’s story will keep readers well entertained.
Drew Donnelly and MJ Peters are about to get up close and personal. The question is, does Drew know MJ’s secrets before he seduces her? Also, what will she do when she discovers the truth about Drew? This smart-mouthed, sarcastic woman has good reason for the secrets in her life. Before Drew showed up in her small town, she was doing pretty well. With him in her bed and now in her head, all that is about to be shaken up.”
To celebrate, I immediately went online and bought a two-year subscription to the magazine. And had some tequila.
Not necessarily in that order.
If you get a spare minute, check out the free story (titled Dark of the Day) I’ve posted as part of the 2006 PBW Ebook Challenge. It will be a permanent part of my website, but it’s specially written for this time of year…the dark, windy days of November in the northern part of North America. (Those of you living in New Zealand and Australia can maybe pretend it’s May.)
Have a lovely Thursday. 