Pen to Pen: Write Sex Scenes that Sizzle with Elizabeth Lister

Two men kissing under a white sheet

Just like it takes practice to get good at sex, it also takes practice to get good at writing about it. Award-winning romance author Elizabeth Lister is here to pass on what she’s learned and to help you draw from your own experiences when writing about this crucial part of a character’s story. … Read more

Piracy Alert: Seller Stealing Books on KissLibrary.com

KissLibrary.com users have been using the site to sell pirated ebooks, including romance and erotica titles. Fortunately, KissLibrary.com’s owners have been good about getting infringing content removed. Authors and publishers, read on to learn how to make sure your books aren’t being pirated on the site. … Read more

Rainbow Snippets: Check out the new cover for Mi Alma and read it for free!

Mi Alma book cover—click to download excerpt

It’s Rainbow Snippets time again, and I’ve still got a bit more from “Mi Alma” to share, including updated cover art (check out previous posts to see earlier versions). Thanks to everyone who gave feedback on earlier versions!
… Read more

Pen to Pen: Write Blurbs that Sell More Books with Clare London

I’ve been working on blurbs for some upcoming releases these past couple weeks, so the topic of this week’s Pen to Pen post by gay-romance writer Clare London has been fresh on my mind. She’s got some great tips for luring in new readers with the power of your words. And since you’re a writer, isn’t that what you were born to do? … Read more

Rainbow Snippets: This skinny white boy ain’t half bad

This week for Rainbow Snippets, I’m sharing again from “Mi Alma,” which appears in my short story collection Falling Hard: Stories of Men in Love. It’s told from the point of view of Damian, who answers a Craigslist wanted ad seeking a bartender for an office event. When he calls the phone number listed, he gets taken by the deep, Barry White-esque voice on the outgoing voicemail. That voice belongs to Alma, the man who’s throwing the party. … Read more

Book Review: Honey and Heat

book cover for Honey and Heat by Rian Durrant

Today I am talking about first-time novelist Rian Durant’s Bulgarian Christmas romance, Honey and Heat. Keep reading for an excerpt and some bonus photos of Varna, Bulgaria, the city where most of the story takes place. … Read more

Pen to Pen: Audiobook Creation for Indie Authors with Isobel Starling

black man speaking into microphone

This week in Pen to Pen, romance author Isobel Starling stops by to advise independent authors on publishing and marketing audiobooks using ACX (Audiobook Creation Exchange), a platform developed by Amazon and Audible.com. She’s got a lot of information, so she’ll have two columns this week. Today’s, “Using ACX: Audiobook Creation for Indie Authors” is on creating your audiobook and paying for a narrator. On Thursday, she’ll be back with some great promotional tips in “Marketing Your Audiobook.” … Read more

Rainbow Snippets: “Hijo de mi alma” means “child of my soul”

This week for Rainbow Snippets, I’m sharing from “Mi Alma,” which appears in my short story collection Falling Hard: Stories of Men in Love. It’s told from the point of view of Damian, who’s lost touch with his Spanish-speaking roots after his Dominican-American mother died.

… Read more

Pen to Pen: Matching Character Dialogue to Age with Ginna Wilkerson

infographic condensing the main article points

I spent last week revising a young adult story that had been lazing around on my hard drive, so the topic of this week’s Pen to Pen column by Ginna Wilkerson has been on my mind. Wilkerson recently published the young adult urban fantasy Buried Secrets, for which she had to reacquaint herself with the ways that teens talk—not only now, but also three centuries ago. Read her advice and try out the easy-to-follow checklist. … Read more