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Saturday, September 15, 2012

Call for Submissions-Carnal Passions


Aphrodite's Island

 
5-10k words, short story/novella length erotic stories. Each story will be set against the backdrop of a tropical Island.

A luxurious resort set against the backdrop of sparkling blue seas, endless sun, and white sandy beaches. When Aphrodite opened the resort, it had one goal...to give the guests the ultimate in fantasy experiences. The manager, a reclusive young woman known only by Miss 'A' has set in place rules which guide the guests in their quest for the ultimate romantic fantasy...one sensual encounter at a time.

These short books will be hot, sexy reads about couples engaging in different fantasies on the island—everything from pirates and maidens, to BDSM. The only rules—both parties must consent to the fantasy, and pleasure is the ultimate reward.

There are no restrictions beyond the normal submissions exceptions, and can be m/m, m/f/f, f/m/f, f/m/m, m/m/f/f, f/f/m/f, f/f/f/m, etc.  An erotic HEA/HFN is a must.
 
Please visit our submissions page for guidelines and specifics at Carnal Passions Submissions
Email your completed submissions package to submissions@carnalpassions.com

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

THE HAUNT OF THE MUSE

There is something about evil that draws me into its labyrinth of dark heinousness. There is mystery in the pain of it, there is temptation in the promise of decadent pleasure, there is that longing to surrender without thought or restrain to the unknown and sometimes to the very well known, things one dappled with and found irresistibly wondrous. There it is, my secret. I adore evil. To clarify, I adore writing about it. I have a healthy respect for the muse and movement of it in the undercurrent and the potency it provides a story.

Plotinus in 200 AD wrote, "To deny evil a place among realities is necessarily to deny a way with the good as well." I am certain you often heard that evil cannot exist without good. For certain how can white exist without the contrast of black. The clench and chills of the reader is heightened when there are sharp defined lines between an honorable character facing a foe of a merciless horrendous nature. Though we might surrender to providing a singular redeeming quality to a foe, it is often over-shadowed by their true fully-unredeemable evil.

Yet, what does one do when faced with multiple evils. There are times a hero/shero must make a choice and according to Thomas à Kempis, "Of two evils always choose the lesser." As a writer with the power, we say bull-bleep that, destroy both, or maybe allow one to decimate the other. There are infinite options that makes our job utterly delightful.

Sometimes, though, as I or we joyfully enter the mind of the monster, as I tweak and twitter among his/her psychosis, maniacal obsessions and infinite delusions, I feel like a co-conspirator, for to quote Martin Luther King, Jr. "To ignore evil is to become an accomplice to it." And, in the sense of the literary voyeurs that is exactly what we are doing. We are allowing it to thrive and grow, to play with the good people of that particular universe, torment them, hurt them and all without an ounce of remorse. Is that terribly heinous of us? Does that make us monsters as well? I sometimes wonder what is so twisted inside me that makes this such fun, for in truth, I take to the villain(s) much more easily than Zi does. Should I be concerned for my mental health?

Franz Kafka wrote, "What we call evil is only a necessary moment in our endless development." Hence, the answer. I know the effect evil has on the reader. And I want that terror to dip deeply into their primal fear until every bump and squeak has paralyzed their need to scream, battered pulses to quickening, and have their breaths shorten and raspy. That is how I see my/our writing endeavors when it comes to devising the most beastly of all scoundrels, our work is growing into the perfect piece to scare the beejees out of our readers. So, if it takes Angelica and/or Zi to be a bit evil hungry in the sense of respecting it as a fabulous plot device then so be it.

In reality, we both hate evil, hate the clawing and degenerate nature of its makeup, hate the existence of those that hurt others for hurt's sake or even worse for their own demented pleasure. The truth is that the joy of allowing the monsters their day of victory resides in the outcome of each story. In thawing their evilness, rubbing their self-satisfied smugness into the realization of their inability to succeed, the evidence of their cowardliness and the actuality of their failure is what, we believe, gives the reader the greatest pleasure, and it is they that we so humbly serve.
***

We'd love to hear from anyone interested in what we do. Anyone who writes us at writingteamcw@yahoo.com (Write - Blog - in subject line) and leaves an s-mail address, we will send you a gift and add you to any future mailings.

Angelica Hart and Zi KILLER DOLLS ~ SNAKE DANCE ~
CHASING YESTERDAY CHRISTMAS EVE...VIL ~ Christmas 2012
http://www.champagnebooks.com/

Vixen Bright and Zachary Zane STEEL EMBRACE
BOOK NOOKIE-A LIBRARIAN'S BUIDE TO THE DO-ME DECIMAL SYSTEM  (coming soon)
http://www.carnalpassions.com/




Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Back To School/September Releases!


Summer is over and school is back in session.  Every parent across North America (and probably other places too!) is happy to return to familiar routines and dare I say it... some quiet time? Then there are those of us whose children have grown up and moved out. Back to school doesn’t mean quite the same thing, but we’re still grateful, just the same. These days, I’m happy for authors with young children, because it means they can get back to the business of writing and creating our next new best seller. Often hard to do while the children are running around and peering over one’s shoulder.
 
This month’s releases are an exciting bunch of books. Starting with Dustin’s Turn by June Kramin, we’ve got Dusty trying to fix the past, without screwing up his present. Debut author Wendy BurdessThe Diddington Diamond has us nodding in agreement. Where there’s a will, there is most certainly a wife! The Soothsayers by Wanda A. Wallace is an historical intrique, with some very slippery characters and The Cheetah Princess by Joan Conning Afman is a very unique shape shifting paranormal romance. Another debut author (we’ve actually got lots of them this month!), J. A. Garland treats us with intrigue, shape shifting, and things that lurk in the shadows, in her urban fantasy tale, Instinct.   And not to be left out, Arlene Knowell is back with another erotic romance and lots of hunky military men in Sinful.

 Check these titles out on our landing page at http://www.champagnebooks.com. You won’t be disappointed.

 'Til next time,

 
Ellen

Saturday, September 1, 2012

WHAT CAME FIRST THE CHOCOLATE OR THE PHEROMONES by Angelica Hart and Zi


A: So, what came first the chocolate or the pheromones?

Z: What?

A: (Between words munches on a nutty piece of chocolate candy) I'm interchanging the word chocolate for love.

Z: What? (Looking even more confused)

A: Love is like chocolate. Being in love is simply a fabulous feeling, like eating a piece of chocolate, but do people fall in love because of a chemical reaction that exists because of pro-creation? Or does the chemical reaction happen because one person is drawn to another person, and then bingo-bango, the pheromones to crazy?

Z: And we are talking about this cauuuussse???

A: I got a box of chocolates as a just cause you're wonderful gift. (Holds out a heart-shaped box with half the treats gone)

Z: Didn't your hubba-bubba just give that to you five minutes ago. (Indulges, hesitates, and takes another)

A: Maaayyybbbbeee.

Z: You are a certifiable chocoholic! (Scoops up two more sweets)

A: Hmmm, I believe this is a case of the honey calling the beehive sticky.

Z: Maaayyybbbbeee. (Pops a treat, muttering how he doesn't get the connection Ang is making between chocolate and love and alters the subject a bit) Answer me this and that, do you think a person can really be addicted to chocolate? Is love just a chemical reaction, or is there something more?

A: More...More...More....

Z: Explain.

A: (Holds up her empty candy box) I need to go shopping for more candy. We're all out. (With that, Ang flees the office)

Seriously, folks, what is that crazy little thing called love. According to science, our brain creates phenyl ethylamine when people are falling in love, followed by norepinephren and dopamine when people just think about that special other person. These chemicals are what helps us feel excited and fascinates us enough to want to kiss, touch...etc.

But why one particular person over another? Yes, there is that initial attraction, but in a crowd of equals whether it is the beautiful people or the average Janes and Joes, with no one singular person standing out, we would still be drawn to one person over another. Therefore, does love have more to do with emotion and that soul to soul thing? Is it magic? What?

Think about the first time you went gaga over someone. You could have been just a child. Out of the blue, the moon hits your eyes like a bigga pizza pie, to paraphrase a once popular song, and suddenly everyone else fades away. It could have been the gal on the swing in the playground or the boy snapping his gum in study hall, and as you grew up, the guy/gal across the room.

We believe, there is something to be said about our souls and spirits knowing each other better than we do, meeting and engaging in a different dimension, and something even more to be said about the need for one other, the constant yearning to have that significant special other. It is why there are romance readers. It is a way to continuously trigger the chemicals that make us feel so darn good.

Then again, what do we know except that Angelica is addicted to chocolate, and Zi has a secret stash he didn't tell her about.
***


We'd love to hear from anyone interested in what we do. Anyone who writes us at writingteamcw@yahoo.com (Write - Blog - in subject line) and leaves an s-mail address, we will send you a gift and add you to any future mailings.

Angelica Hart and Zi KILLER DOLLS ~ SNAKE DANCE ~
CHASING YESTERDAY CHRISTMAS EVE...VIL ~ Christmas 2012
http://www.champagnebooks.com/

Vixen Bright and Zachary Zane STEEL EMBRACE
BOOK NOOKIE-A LIBRARIAN'S BUIDE TO THE DO-ME DECIMAL SYSTEM
http://www.carnalpassions.com/

THE FABLE OF SIN-SIN CINDERELLA Series
angelicahartandzi.com