New release date for DOUBLE DARE

I've just heard from my lovely agent with the exciting news that my novel DOUBLE DARE has been moved forward in the schedule. It will be published in October! This is such good news!

You know what this means...? Even more to celebrate on our midweek break tomorrow. Manchester may never recover... ;-)

100 best opening lines

From Litline and the American Book Review, check them out HERE.

Planning the next novel and the week ahead

These past few days I’ve been working on a synopsis and road map for my next big novel, plotting it out thoroughly. I used to be what authors call a "pantser" — this means starting to write and building as you go — but as I’ve progressed I’ve become a “plotter” and more so with each project, long or short. I now need to know where I am going right from the start. I know that if I’m having a rough day and feel uninspired, the outline is there and I can go to it, see where I should be at and still press ahead.

This current project is the most developed synopsis I’ve ever done. On my website I give some tips for aspiring writers (well, it’s more like stuff I wish someone had told me ;-) and I talk a bit about writing the synopsis. The best time for me to write a synopsis is before I begin the novel. If I do it then, all my enthusiasm for the project is distilled into the synopsis. The synopsis is a sales device, so it has to be good. I’ve had much more success this way. If I wait until after the novel is underway or complete, I get weighted down with all the details I’ve put in during the writing. I talk about this and some other stuff on my tips page. Click HERE if you want to read more.

I’m nervous to place this, my second big novel, of course, but I love the story and characters. They’ve already made themselves felt in a big way and I’m hoping I get to tell their story. Next up are the first three chapters. Normally I could get this done in a week if I had no other interruptions. It’s going to take me a bit longer this time around, because we have a midweek break booked this week. We’re off to see legendary uber Goth band BAUHAUS play Manchester on Wednesday.



We’re making a break of it, staying overnight so we can go visit the City art gallery – one of my favourite collections of Victorian art and pre-Raphaelite brotherhood paintings, shown in authentic Victorian rooms.



And the cafe is to die for. :-) We’ll hit the bookshops, a restaurant and pubs later on, before meeting up with pals at the venue for the gig itself.

I’m going to try to get chapter one done before then. Wish me luck!

An interview with me

Linda Lattimer recently interviewed me for the Fallen Angel Reviews site. It was fun! Linda made me think about stuff like my first ever novel (which I went about at the grand old age of 12.) I've still got what exists of that first effort and one day I'll have to get it online at my site, for fun.

I was excited to have the opportunity to chat about my writing. The interview is now online and here's the link: INTERVIEW.

Thoughts for the day

Things are going to get a lot worse before they get worse. Lily Tomlin

A male gynecologist is like an auto mechanic who never owned a car. Carrie Snow

A man's got to do what a man's got to do. A woman must do what he can't. Rhonda Hansome

Every time I close the door on reality, it comes in through the windows. Jennifer Unlimited

Whatever women must do they must do twice as well as men to be thought half as good. Luckily, this is not difficult. Charlotte Whitton

Thirty-five is when you finally get your head together and your body starts falling apart. Caryn Leschen

I try to take one day at a time -- but sometimes several days attack me at once. Jennifer Unlimited

If you can't be a good example -- then you'll just have to be a horrible warning. Catherine

If high heels were so wonderful, men would still be wearing them. Sue Grafton

I'm not going to vacuum 'til Sears makes one you can ride on. Roseanne Barr

When women are depressed they either eat or go shopping. Men invade another country. layne Boosler

In politics, if you want anything said, ask a man. If you want anything done, ask a woman. Margaret Thatcher

I have yet to hear a man ask for advice on how to combine marriage and a career. Gloria Steinem

and best of all:

Nobody can make you feel inferior without your permission. Eleanor Roosevelt

Mammoth Best New Erotica volume 5

The Mammoth Book of Best New Erotica volume 5 is now shipping in the UK. This volume contains my short story RICHARD’S SECRET. I’m so excited to be part of this prestigious annual collection of erotic stories selected by Maxim Jakubowski!

"In the realm of the senses, everything can be explored. A fabulous collection of new writing from all over the world during 2004-05, selected by bestselling editor Maxim Jakubowski. These tales explore the extraordinary variety of the erotic experience, as men and women play out the eternal rhythms of desire. Here is explicit sexual drama in all its forms from some of the best writers in the field."

This edition has already been shipping in the US for a few weeks and now that the UK has copies I’ll be doing a draw for a free copy over at my newsgroup in the next week or so. All members are automatically signed up for the draw. Click here if you would like to join. I send out a newsletter about once a month or so, and do a draw for each new publication.

The book has a different and very naughty cover indeed in the States. So just for completeness (hehehe) here it is too.

Back to blogging

A close family member has been in hospital this past week, until today. I don’t want difficult personal stuff to spill over into my Naughty Lady blog so I went on hiatus for a while. Thankfully everything is returning to normal -- and that means me too.

Expect more naughtiness soon!

I’m now working furiously on a new erotic novel proposal, loving it immensely but worried about placing it. I’m in the strange place I’ve seen other recently-signed novelists in, wondering if I’ll ever get a second bite. My first novel, DOUBLE DARE, (warning: that's an adult content link ;-) is due out later this year. At the moment the project I’m working on feels even more exciting to me, but it's nerve wracking hoping that an editor will feel the same. Yes, if there are any aspiring novelists reading this -- it never gets an easier. Placing that first just means you have to do better and better, working consistently in innovative ways. I knew it would happen and I was eager to be at this point, to have this chance to grow as a writer, but the nerves about subbing don’t go away. I've got a couple of small projects out there now, waiting to hear back on, and this new novel on the boil. Oh, the adrenaline! I'll post more about the project soon.

In other news, I’ll be doing an interview with our own lovely and prolific British Erotica Queen Wendywoo, in the springtime. It will coincide with Wendy’s new release, Entertaining Mr Stone, as well as celebrate her back catalogue and her many Black Lace re-releases for the year. It’s going to be fun and I’m looking forward to it immensely.

Oh and thanks to everyone for your lovely comments on my “Who, me?” post, you’re the best.

Hope you’re all keeping warm, happy and healthy wherever you are. It’s been cold and foggy here in Yorkshire. Can you tell?


“Me and the fire, we go way back.”

Out of office

Thanks for calling by! I'm away from my desk for a little while. Back to blogging later this week, all being well.

Who, me?

Someone thinks I'm a "popular erotica writer." Surely some mistake, was my first reaction. Then I got embarrassed, (I'm very shy) then I got all bleary eyed and happy. What am I on about? Seeing my name mentioned this way on Amazon. It totally floored me.

Restraint is sexy. A simple leather strap, a shiny pair of handcuffs, a delicate silk scarf, a dominant’s stern gaze. The yearning for a partner who will take control can grip one as powerfully as the most intricate, indecipherable rope knot. In Slave to Love, Alison Tyler gathers the most popular — and often most taboo — fantasies of sexual control and erotic restraint. Featuring such popular erotica writers as Thomas Roche, Saskia Walker, and Rachel Kramer Bussel, Slave to Love is luscious, naughty, and infinitely sexy.

I'm stunned. I never thought I'd see my name alongside amazing writers like Rachel and Thomas. It lifted my spirits after a rough few days. Many thanks to Cleis Press and to editor Alison Tyler, one of the loveliest people in this biz. And with that happy thought, I better get back to work. These stories don't write themselves. Alas ;-)

My name is Earl

I've got to say, My name is Earl is the best new sitcom I've seen in a while. Real enough to be believable, mad enough to be hilarious. Love it, totally love it.

In other news, writing picked up again after a glitch over the weekend. Woohoo! Hope everybody is doing good out there.

Have you lost your virginity?

When new characters come calling

So, here I am writing a futuristic novella, (with a whole bunch of things lined up for when that is done,) and suddenly these new characters pop into my head with their story. Does this happen to other authors?

It happens to me a lot. I used to make some notes. This time I felt the need to capture them quickly, so I abandoned a Samurai movie I was trying to "relax" with, in order to get them down -- both their mood and their message. Now that I've got them established I can return to the story at a later date. A lot of my short stories get written that way, alongside longer projects.

Anyway, I love the new characters, so I thought I'd share!

Excerpt (c) Saskia Walker

Leonie Carlton watched the hulking shape of the Land Rover weave along the rough dirt track towards the house. Her heart was racing. Despite her best preparations for this moment, she couldn't keep her emotions in check. Mike Racine. She’d have fought tooth and nail to keep him out of her place. She’d also dreamt about him every night since she’d taken over the coffee plantation, three years earlier.

Was it really that long? She had to face it; everything she'd walked away from was arriving on her doorstep. Three years of hard work; this should have been a moment of pride. It still was, but it was tinged with memories, with baggage. Mike Racine, the man who she’d wanted so badly but failed to understand, was about to walk into her space. Thank god she knew he was coming. He hadn’t wanted her to know. Luckily Tansy, her old friend back at HQ, had faxed to warn her. Mike himself was coming over to check out her beans. No kidding.

She gave a wry smile and watched as the Land Rover drew to a halt in the gravel space of her driveway. The windscreen was tinted, hiding the occupant from her gaze. She walked to the edge of the veranda, folding her arms across her chest. “Come on, Mike,” she whispered to herself, “give me your best shot.”

After what seemed an eternity, the vehicle door opened. A moment later a figure stepped out. Unfurling his long, limber frame, Mike Racine climbed out. He slammed the door behind him and walked the path to her door. Dressed in boots and faded black jeans, his khaki shirt outlined the breadth of his shoulders and the lean line of his waist and hips. He wore a baseball cap pulled low on his brow. A poor disguise, she'd have known it was him from his posture alone.

She waited until he drew to a halt at the foot of her steps and then gave a wry smile. “You promised you’d leave me alone, Mike.”

Taking off his hat, he ruffled his shaggy black hair. He wore a teasing smile that tugged at something deep inside of her. He looked good; the intervening time had added charming laughter lines around his sardonic smile, and a more relaxed twinkle to those black eyes of his. He shrugged, eyeing her deliberately from top to toe. “I lied.”

Damn you Mike. So, that was it, there was no apology for breaking his promise. No explanation. Arrogant prick.. Nothing had changed.

Her heart raced in response to his nonchalance, her skin tingling under his scrutiny. "Let's just get this over with, shall we." She managed to turn away, leading him inside the house and vowing to remain professional throughout the encounter. She just had to do her job and get him out of here as soon as possible.

His presence strolling behind her was totally magnetic. It’s three years since you’ve had a decent lay, she told herself, annoyed beyond belief. But she wanted him, always had. And he was so bad for her. When she failed to understand him -- and he’d failed to help her -- she’d walked away. Far away. Queensland. She exchanged a directorship on a leading fair trade coffee importer in London for a hard graft job developing an Australian plantation. And she'd worked him out of her system, or so she thought.

Defining the Alpha Male, a visual aid

I'm a great believer in not taking oneself too seriously.

Romantic Times

Wooohoo! I've received my first ever copy of Romantic Times magazine. Forgive me; I'm like a kid here. I wanted to subscribe for ages and when Berkley signed my novel I decided it was time to splash out and get the industry journal shipped over. It's so exciting to see the Red Sage stuff, the book reviews, announcements and more. Last year Wendywoo kindly typed out my RT review for SECRETS volume 12 and mailed it to me. I'll now see all the fab goodies for myself. In other news, I'm busy on the WiP and I'll post an excerpt soon. Oh, and I've got some stuff to say about writing menage stories, also coming soon! ;-)

On being reviewed

I have to confess that I find the whole experience of reading reviews of my stories awesome, strange, scary and wonderful ~ in varying measures! I’m gradually getting used to it, but it took a while. First time it happened, I was so amazed. Seeing someone I don’t know from Adam talking about my work ~ wow! Is it just me?

Once I'd been through it a few times I started to anticipate the reviews, and that gets nerve racking, especially when I tried something new i.e. suspense (Falling for Trouble) and paranormal (The Strangeling). I’ve had one review where the reviewer really didn’t like the story, but other than that I’ve had the responses I would wish for, and more. Long may it last LOL It helps with my motivation, and with my confidence too ~ which I could always do with more of.

I've struggled getting over flu this past few weeks and some unexpected reviews really helped. Courtesy of Google, I found out that author Paula Beaty had reviewed my novel ALONG FOR THE RIDE. Here's a bit of what she had to say:

FIVE hearts! The characters are vibrant and alive with emotion and extremely comfortable in their skin lending a very real feel to them. This is definitely a keeper for all those self-proclaimed romance book junkies like myself.
Full review.

How could I not love that? That put a big grin on my face when I was feeling rough. Thanks, Paula! I’m so glad you enjoyed Georgie’s story. And on that note, I’m spurred on with the work in progress. ;-)

On being interviewed and WiP

So, the holidays are over and all that remains are the straggling decorations and Christmas cards to be taken down on 12th night. I usually dread the dreary days of January but I feel very positive about it this year. It helps that there's a big blue sky and glorious sunshine over Yorkshire right now.

I’ve just been doing an interview for FALLEN ANGEL REVIEWS. I had a lot of fun with it. I haven’t done an interview by email before. I've conducted them that way (I've interviewed musicians, promoters and artists for arts/music zines,) but up until now I haven't been the subject. It felt good, having the time to think about the answers. I’ve been interviewed as a Black Lace author in the past, on TV (James Whale show,) over the phone for a national magazine (SHE,) and in person by the women's editor for the Yorkshire Evening Post, the local newspaper. They were all fun, but I think the emailed version will be the most complete. Many thanks to Linda Lattimer at FAR for her time and interest – and super questions! I’ll post a link when it goes on line.

Better get back to work on the current WiP, AGAINST THE GRAIN. It’s going well. I’m about 2/3rds in and things are fraught, tense and erotic ~ yum. There’s nothing like a bit of forbidden sex to heighten the danger. ;-)

Thought for today, and everyday...

The common mayfly has a life expectancy of just one day.
But is he miserable about it? Not one bit.
He fills his day with the things he loves.
He soars, he swoops, he savours every moment.
Maybe there's a lesson in this for us longer living creatures.
Just think, if we embrace life like a mayfly, what a life that would be...

Okay, it's from an advert, but it's so good. Happy New year, everyone!