When you put it that way…
July 31, 2006
“Would you vote for a candidate who wrote a trashy, pornographic romance novel that glorifies premarital sex and seeks to arouse sexual interest as your State Comptroller of Public Accounts?” Head asks in a campaign flier.
yes, yes I will vote for her… full story here
Guess that answers that question
July 30, 2006
From HelenKay’s blog:
In the never-ending Aphrodisia v. Brava debate, the editors say: Aphrodisia is about sex and Brava is about romance. Hillary Sares (the main Aphrodisia editor) says the term “erotic romance” with the imprint is a misnomer. The books are not really romance and don’t have to be. Use of the title is for marketing - Kensington wants the books in the romance section and wants to reach romance readers. That’s it. And, the only limit on the sex is that it be legal.
I have to say this annoys me greatly. Since when is misleading and lying ok marketing?
What is next, erotic sex in inspirationals? hmmmm
::see that isn’t as much fun without the lil pictures::
He Shoots, He Scores
July 30, 2006
Or she….
JMC has a question! Anyone have an answer? I thought it was a common slang but what do I know?
Haven’t read a one
July 30, 2006
Well I do own The Devil to Pay, and recently reread The Devil You Know. Does that count?
Don’t forget it is a Week of Bad Boys, Good Spies, Unforgettable Lovers
July 30, 2006
Don’t forget about the hunt for free Alison Kent books.
I think she draws the names on Aug 1st. So get to commenting if you haven’t already!
::cough, cough, cough::
July 29, 2006
I so don’t feel well and have now had this stupid cough for over two weeks. I am dying slowly… whine, bitch, moan, whine.
Blogging National has some nifty posts from RWA as well as links to others updating, thanks for the link angiew.
really I find it mostly eh but I am sure that is cuz I am not a writer, somewhat interesting
Running with Quills has two fun posts quotes, quotes and more quotes I can’t seem to link to this directly. I love this one:
““The difference between fiction and reality? Fiction has to make sense.” Tom Clancy
My most reread author has a post on rereading
My hacking cough and I are going back to bed for a bit.
Can we hope…
July 29, 2006
Lisa shows you Gibson’s “Wall Flower”
but the last paragraph of her post is what really interested me…
What you you think about alternative time periods for romance novels? Do you like the comfort and familiarity of the Regency and Victorian periods to the exclusion of all other settings? Can American be an appealing backdrop for a historical romance too? If you could read a romance set in any place or time, what would you would wish for?
go forth and post…
When was it ever all about smut and shirtless heroes…
July 28, 2006
Are any authors blogging from RWA? Anything nifty happening? link me!
A Week of Bad Boys, Good Spies, Unforgettable Lovers
July 27, 2006
Screwing with Perfect, Her Wildest Dreams, Her Best Friend’s Lover and Seducing Simon all have a theme in common… friends becoming lovers.
This is one of my faves because, well, hmmmm….
What is it about friends becoming lovers?
click me…
SCULLY: Well, it seems to me that the best relationships– the ones that last– are frequently the ones that are rooted in friendship. You know, one day you look at the person and you see something more than you did the night before. Like a switch has been flicked somewhere. And the person who was just a friend is… suddenly the only person you can ever imagine yourself with.
Love that quote! And I agree. A true friendship is an amazing thing. The trust. The bond. The knowledge. The understanding. The caring.
You have this person who is there for you, you can turn to and you can count on.
If you add in attraction and great sex, isn’t that the perfect relationship?
MULDER: It should be right here. The entire tape is blank.
SCULLY: You know, an electrical surge in the outlet the storm may have degaussed everything, erasing the entire tape. You still have nothing.
MULDER: I may not have the X-Files, Scully, but I still have my work. And I’ve still got you. And I still have myself.
With two characters who begin as friends, the reader generally doesn’t have to worry about the whole, I hate you/lets have sex/I hate you scenario(s). I find the push pull grows old quickly.
They already like each other. It is grand to read about two people who respect each other and want to see the other person happy.
Mulder: “Scully, I was like you once. I didn’t know who to trust. And I chose another path. Another life, another fate where I found my sister. The end of my world was unrecognisable and upside down. There was one thing that remained the same. You were my friend and you told me the truth. Even when the world was falling apart you were my constant; my touchstone.”
And friends KNOW each other, the good, the bad and the ugly, and it doesn’t matter. There is a acceptance and trust a true friends brings to a relationship you don’t get with two people who don’t have a friendship foundation to build on. And it can make for some explosive sex.
They already knows the real you, the dirty secrets you hide away from the rest of the world. The horrible things you have done. The wild, wicked and wonderful adventures you have taken, hell he/she might have done them with you.
That level of openness is a pretty powerful thing. The whole ‘getting to know you’ bullshit is not needed. There is no phase where one person is at their best trying to wow the other person with who they are really aren’t.
HOLMAN: I’ve been envious of men like you my whole life. Based on your physical bearing, I’d assumed you were… More experienced. I mean… You spend every day with Agent Scully a beautiful, enchanting woman. And you two never, uh…? I… confess I find that shocking. I… I’ve seen how you two gaze at one another.
MULDER: This is about you, Holman. I’m here to help you. I’m perfectly happy with my relationship with Agent Scully.
HOLMAN: So according to your theory I walk in there, tell her I love her and the drought will end?
MULDER: Just tell her how you feel. And Holman. I do not gaze at Scully.
Then there is the risk factor and fear involved. Do you risk fucking up a grand friendship? Will sex bring you closer or tear you apart? What if the sex is bad? Can two people be perfect together in every way but the physical?
What happens then? Can the friendship survive? Can sex ruin a great relationship? Is it worth the risk?
oh sweet, sweet angst…
MULDER: All right, fire away, Poorboy. Ooh! That’s good. All right, what you may find is you concentrate on hitting that little ball… The rest of the world just fades away– all your everyday, nagging concerns.
The ticking of your biological clock.
How you probably couldn’t afford that nice, new suede coat on a G-Woman’s salary.
How you threw away a promising career in medicine… to hunt aliens with a crackpot, albeit brilliant, partner.
Getting into the heart of a global conspiracy. Your obscenely overdue triple-X bill. Oh, I… I’m sorry, Scully. Those last two problems are mine, not yours.
SCULLY: Shut up, Mulder. I’m playing baseball.
Friendship merging into loves seems like the perfect idea. And it is believable two people with a history can find their way to happy ever after.
And really isn’t that what romance is all about? (hee sorry cece 
)
SCULLY: Mulder, the case is over. There’s no more evidence to be gathered. There’s only my hope that you’ll be able to see past this delusion.
MULDER: You have to be willing to see.
SCULLY: I wish it were that simple.
MULDER: Scully, you have to believe me. Nobody else on this whole damn planet does or ever will. You’re my one in… five billion.
Do you enjoy a good friends to lovers tale? Do you hate it with a burning passion?
What are your favorite books to fit the theme? Or if you are not a friends to lovers reader, what theme(s) do you enjoy?
A book I currently have on the tbr pile seems to fit really well and after reading Julia Quinn’s take on Friendship in Romance Novels, I think I will need to make time to read Minx soon.
others I have read that come to mind I liked are:
Fire and Rain by Elizabeth Lowell
The Romantic by Madeline Hunter
One Wish by Linda Lael Miller
Standing in the Shadows by Shannon Mckenna
Casey by Lori Foster
As You Desire by Connie Brockway
The Devil You Know by Liz Carlyle
Too Much Temptation by Lori Foster
more than half of Diana Palmer could fit here… Fit for a King, Lawless, Friends and Lovers…
Sandra Brown has some
Only Mine by Elizabeth Lowell
The Last Man in Town by Susan Kay Law
hmmm at least I think those fit, damn I will have to go check 
so throw some more rec’s at me…
Anyone know the names of the episodes the quotes come from *g*
MULDER: As difficult and as frustrating as it’s been sometimes, your goddamned strict rationalism and science have saved me a thousand times over!
You’ve kept me honest… you’ve made me a whole person. I owe you everything… Scully, and you owe me nothing.
I don’t know if I wanna do this alone… I don’t even know if I can… and if I quit now, they win.
The Rules of Seduction by Madeline Hunter - NOW with excerpt!
July 27, 2006
Dangerous. Sensual. Handsome as sin. Meet Hayden Rothwell, the shamelessly erotic hero of The Rules of Seduction and author Madeline Hunter’s most irresistible alpha male yet: a man of extraordinary passion and power, a man who can bring out the seductress in any woman.He enters her home without warning or invitation-a stranger of shadowy motives and commanding sensuality. Within hours, Alexia Welbourne is penniless, without any hope of marriage. Until Hayden Rothwell takes her to bed. When one impulsive act of passion forces Alexia to marry the very man who has ruined her, Hayden’s seduction of Alexia is nearly complete. What Alexia doesn’t know is that her irresistible new husband is driven by a secret purpose-and a debt of honor he will risk everything to repay. Alexia is the wild card. Reluctant to give up their nightly pleasures, Hayden must find a way to keep Alexia by his side…only to be utterly, thoroughly seduced by a woman who is now playing by her own rules.
I squuee’ed I must admit. If for no other reason than I have been stalking sites looking for info on this book. Hey now it is on her site as well… excerpt is the same as what is in Lady of Sin.
Show Her The Money
by Stephanie Feagan
(0373513542) Silhouette Books (Bombshell) - Natashya Wilson, editor
Best Contemporary Single Title
Lakeside Cottage
by Susan Wiggs
(0778321908) MIRA Books - Margaret Marbury and Dianne Moggy, editors
Best Inspirational Romance
Heavens To Betsy
by Beth Pattillo
(1-4000-7044-9) WaterBrook Press - Dudley Delffs, editor
Best Long Contemporary Romance
Worth Every Risk
by Dianna Love Snell
(0-373-27426-2) Silhouette Books (Intimate Moments) - Allison Lyons, editor
Best Long Historical Romance
The Devil to Pay
by Liz Carlyle
(0743470044) Pocket Books - Lauren McKenna, editor
Best Novella
“The Naked Truth about Guys” in The Naked Truth
by Alesia Holliday
(0-425-206149) Berkley Books - Cindy Hwang, editor
Best Paranormal Romance
Gabriel’s Ghost
by Linnea Sinclair
(0553587978) Bantam Books - Anne Groell, editor
Best Regency Romance
A Reputable Rake
by Diane Gaston
(0263843912) Harlequin Mills & Boon Limited - Linda Fildew, editor
Best Romantic Suspense
Survivor in Death
by J.D. Robb
(0-399-15208-3) Penguin Putnam - Leslie Gelbman, editor
Best Short Contemporary Romance
The Marriage Miracle
by Liz Fielding
(0263 842754) Harlequin Mills & Boon - Emma Dunford, editor
Best Short Historical Romance
The Texan’s Reward
by Jodi Thomas
(0-425-20584-3) Berkley Books - Christine Zika, editor
Novel with Strong Romantic Elements
Lady Luck’s Map of Vegas
by Barbara Samuel
(0-345-46912-7) Ballantine Books - Linda Morrow, editor
Best Traditional Romance
Princess of Convenience
by Marion Lennox
(0263848795) Harlequin Books - Sheila Hodgson, editor