Guest Post: Delicious Delights from Kelli Wilkins

Hi everyone!

Today, I’m sharing a bit about two of my Amber Quill Press historical/fantasy romances, A Midsummer Night’s Delights and A Midwinter Night’s Delights.

A Midsummer Night’s Delights introduced readers to newlyweds, Julian and Annabelle. They were strangers trapped in an arranged, sexless marriage. To loosen them up, Julian’s father sends them to the Marquis of Demby’s estate to attend a Midsummer Ball. (And this type of ball isn’t for dancing!)

Julian and Annabelle meet the Marquis, Vincent, and his wife, Sabrina. Over the course of their visit, they learn how to open up and explore their sexuality. When they attend the Midsummer Ball, they shed their inhibitions while indulging in their wildest fantasies.

This isn’t your typical historical/fantasy romance - anything (and everything!) goes in this sizzling story - same sex frolics (M/M and F/F), ménage, group encounters, and naughty games.

The book was a lot of fun to write. I loved creating the characters and giving Julian and Annabelle free reign to explore all aspects of their sexuality, secret desires, and deepest fantasies.  Readers and reviewers fell in love with the book and the characters and asked for a sequel, so I gave them one!

A Midwinter Night’s Delights picks up six months after the first book. (If you haven’t read the first story, that’s okay – each novella stands alone as an individual read. And yes, this book is just as hot – if not hotter – than the first one.)

In the sequel, we discover that Annabelle and Julian have taken what they’ve learned and gone wild. Ever since the summer ball, they have been overindulging in all sorts of erotic activities and are more than eager to give in to their desires whenever (and wherever) the mood strikes – even if it’s at a formal dinner party. Needless to say, Julian’s father sends them back to Vincent’s estate to be disciplined and learn self-control.

A Midwinter Night’s Delights is more intense than the first book. From the outset, readers know that Julian and Annabelle are learning lessons and being disciplined – but it’s all for their own good. I sprinkled in some B/D/S/M throughout the story to make things even more interesting. It was fun to explore a different side to the games that take place at the estate house and watch how the characters reacted as they received their ‘punishments’ throughout the book. Readers wanted to know about Sabrina’s background, so I included a bit about how she came to know Vincent and learned all about these naughty games.

Readers enjoyed the story and were wondering about a third book. Stay tuned! Ultimate Night’s Delights is the third (and final) chapter in this erotic saga. It’s scheduled for release on September 2, 2013. Here’s a sneak peek at the plot:

Ultimate Night’s Delights

Julian and Annabelle are back for the final ball!

The Marquis of Demby’s Midsummer and Midwinter Balls changed Julian and Annabelle forever. Freed from their inhibitions, they now help other shy couples explore their sexual urges and hidden desires. But life on Vincent and Sabrina’s estate is anything but tranquil. The notorious Duke of Blackwell has discovered the secret about the naughty balls and is out to destroy the marquis.

Vincent refuses to deny the rumors about the “anything goes” parties he hosts, and turns to his friends for assistance. Together, they devise a plan to defeat the Black Duke…and still find time for a few erotic games.
Full plot summaries, reviews, and hot excerpts are on each book’s page:

A Midsummer Night’s Delights http://amberquill.com/AmberHeat/MidsummerNightsDelights.html
A Midwinter Night’s Delights http://amberquill.com/AmberHeat/MidwinterNightsDelights.html

I hope you’ll check them out. They were a lot of fun to write! Stay tuned to my website (www.KelliWilkins.com) for updates on the new book!
Happy Reading,
Kelli A. Wilkins

About the Author: 

Kelli A. Wilkins has published more than 80 short stories, 15 romance novels in varying heat levels and genres, and 4 non-fiction books. Kelli invites readers to visit her website:

www.KelliWilkins.com to read summaries and excerpts from all her romances. She also writes a weekly blog http://kelliwilkinsauthor.blogspot.com/ and shares inside looks at her books, writing tips, and more!
Kelli is also here on the web:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kelli.wilkins1
Twitter: www.Twitter.com/@KWilkinsauthor
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1123678.Kelli_A_Wilkins  
Amazon Author page: http://www.amazon.com/Kelli-A.Wilkins/e/B001JSAB24/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_3?qid=1326933452&sr=8-3
Amber Quill Press Author page: http://amberquill.com/AmberHeat/bio_Wilkins.html

Guest Post: Writing Romance M/M and F/F Versus M/F by Kyra Gregory

Writing Romance: M/M and F/F Versus M/F
by Kyra Gregory
Author of Butterfly

Many, readers and simply curious people alike, have often asked me if I felt any real difference when writing 'straight' romances and 'gay' romances, or if I do anything in particular to prepare for such characters. Frankly, I don't. Is that a strange answer? It's probably not one most people were expecting and probably not the most interesting response either.

Characters are just like people, however fictional they may be, and I treat them as such when I write them. All people are multi-faceted; rarely is there a single aspect or trait to their personality that over-rides every single part of them. Sexual orientation is just another one of those things; one part of many and not everything is necessarily ruled by it. A character forms by itself and who they desire occurs similarly. It's not the first time I start writing a story and the person who they get paired up with changes, sometimes surprising me. Although it's not in the matter of sexual orientation an example that comes to mind is Mary, from my novel Secrets Clad in Light; she took on an entirely different form than I had first imagined of her and to the point that if you asked me now what she was originally planned to be like I wouldn't even know how to answer you. She took on a life of her own and this happens with other characters also. In Butterfly, the relationship between Zack and Alex wasn't planned but, rather, it evolved in a way that felt most natural for them.

Those two were close for a long time and their relationship can't be so easily broken, no matter the trials and disagreements that they constantly have between them. Do I think that either one of them would have developed the same type of romantic relationship if the other was a woman? I have no idea because once it happened I couldn't really imagine it any other way. The only thing that is certain is that the two would not survive without each other as they are.

Have there been characters who have only been attracted to the same sex?

There have been. But have there been characters whose desires are a bit more complicated than that? Absolutely. Most of the time I think that characters fall for another as a person, as can happen in life, the reasons they're attracted to each other, the reasons they have such a strong relationship, are things that are as complicated as the way they act with each other. I don't really believe that 'a relationship between two men is surely like this'; I think just the way relationships between straight couples can vary the same thing can be said for gay couples. The way people act within a relationship says a lot about them; while the type of person they are with may allow them to condone the manner in which they approach their partner much of the way they act comes from within themselves.

Choices in a relationship, the way people behave in a relationship, can't really, entirely depend on a person's sex. Sometimes they'll get into situations that may be a result of it, make some things difficult for them, but it's really characters' personalities that can shape the way they act in a relationship.

All these things make it very difficult for me to say that there are any particular considerations made when I write m/m and f/f, versus m/f. If I had to be more accurate I would say that there are particular considerations for each and every couple written because who an individual is and how they make relationships work is unique to them and not simply a result of their own sex and that of their partner.
I find myself enjoying writing romance because I don't feel tied down. With an open mind I'm able to allow my characters to take over, acting in ways that befit their characters and forming relationships with those that they desire. This makes it an incredibly fun and intriguing journey for me and it gives me little incentive to prepare myself in any way with pre-conceived ideas of how any one of them should act.

About the Author:

At the time of writing this I'm a student and writer, working my way towards finding a place of my own in the world. I'm based on the little island of Malta, balancing all the different aspects of my life through a hectic schedule. I started out writing short stories, just for myself, and then began writing lyrics for a band that I was part of for years. As I became a bit more confident I wrote fanfiction on popular website www.fanfiction.net but always kept my original works entirely to myself. 2012 has started, making it about 10 years now since I first started writing, and I'm ready to take on new challenges as an author. In June I began self-publishing, slowly trying to bring myself out of my shell.

Blog: http://kyralyrical.wordpress.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/kyra_lyrical
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kyralyrical
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6444174.Kyra_Gregory

Guest Post by Kelli Wilkins - Inside Look at Four Days with Jack

An Inside Look at Four Days with Jack
By Amber Allure Author Kelli A. Wilkins

 (www.KelliWilkins.com)

Hi everyone,

Today I’m sharing an inside look at my first Amber Allure romance, Four Days with Jack. I always knew that one day I’d write a gay romance, and I’d been batting ideas around in my head for a while. I was in between books when I heard about the Amber Allure “Postcards from Paradise” line, and I knew I had my next project.

A lot of people cringe when they learn that I write erotica – “You mean porn?” No. I write hot love stories that don’t skimp on details. And when people find out I write gay erotic romances, that really freaks them out. “But why would you do that? You’re not a man or gay.” So? I wrote a Bigfoot romance, and I’ve never seen Bigfoot. 

As a writer, I approach a same-sex love scene the same way I would if I was writing about a hetero couple. For me, it’s not about the gender or the anatomy of the characters – it’s about creating a believable, intimate scene where two people express their love for each other.

Four Days with Jack is one of the very few books I wrote without an outline. I think not having an outline let the characters write their own story (so to speak), and took the book in new directions. As I wrote, David quickly revealed a major conflict – inner turmoil.

David has kept his true desires a secret from himself and everyone else. He is afraid of what people will think about him if they know (or even suspect) he’s gay. How will they react? Will he be shunned by friends and family? Should he tell anyone? Live a lie? How will his life change?

I picked up on this theme of “what will people think?” and ran with it. In the book, David points out that Jack’s family (and some friends) disowned him when he came out, and David doesn’t want to go through the same heartache. Jack’s reply is pretty much: “So? They’ll get over it.”

As I was writing this story, I also considered “what people would think” about this book. How can a woman write a gay romance? What will people think about the m/m love scenes? Then I reminded myself that I’m a writer and I create the characters and scenes that make up the book. Basically, the story needs to be told, and I’m the one telling it. I’ve made up all sorts of things: an erotic Bigfoot story, detailed ménage scenes (in all combinations!), a first-person vampire love story, and even a werewolf/Alpha male romance.

Writers need to turn off their internal editors and forge ahead with the story as it should be (and needs to be) told. If we constantly worried about “what grandma would think” about our writing, or if we were afraid to open up and let the characters and story take us into the bedroom, we’d never write anything except G-rated bedtime stories. And if a friend/relative/whoever has a problem with the subject matter, Jack’s right: they’ll get over it.

Recently I read a blog where a woman was “confessing” to writing an erotic romance, even though she couldn’t tell anyone about it and wouldn’t “dare” put her real name on the story. I got to wondering…why? Why hide your writing? And if you’re “ashamed” to be writing in a particular genre, why invest the time in something you’re not going to stand behind?

Four Days with Jack deals with issues of homophobia, self-doubt, and self-acceptance. I’m proud that I wrote it. Why? Because I’m a romance writer – and in my books, everyone deserves to be in love and live happily-ever-after.

I’m pleased to say that Four Days with Jack has received great reviews. Here’s a snippet from one:

“...I thought that (Kelli) Wilkins did a very good job portraying the confused David and the wary, but hopeful, Jack. David’s inner turmoil and fears about outing himself were so heartbreaking. I definitely felt for him. A strong romance with very likeable characters. I’m quite glad that I went ahead and read this story. I learned that as a romance fan I can definitely appreciate and enjoy those that feature two male heroes. An emotional, yet sexy coming-out story about two men finally opening themselves up to the possibility of a great love. It was an excellent introduction into the world of M/M romance.”--Jennifer, Romance Novel News

Order your copy here: http://amberquill.com/AmberAllure/FourDaysWithJack.html

I hope you enjoyed this inside look at Four Days with Jack. The book was a lot of fun to write. I enjoy hearing from readers and other writers. Feel free to drop me a line and let me know what you thought of the book.

Happy Reading,
Kelli

Read full summaries, excerpts, and reviews from all of Kelli’s romances on her new site: www.KelliWilkins.com (You can also contact Kelli through a link at her site.)

Or visit:Kelli’s Amber Quill Press Author Page: http://amberquill.com/AmberHeat/bio_Wilkins.html

Kelli’s Amazon author page:
http://www.amazon.com/Kelli-A.-Wilkins/e/B001JSAB24/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_3?qid=1326933452&sr=8-3