Interview with Shoshanna Evers!

It’s been a while since I updated the blog and what better way than doing a mini-interview with the wonderful, talented Shoshanna Evers? Kick back, relax, and learn more about this amazing author with a knack for the super hot.

 

What gave you the idea for the Enslaved trilogy?

 

Shoshanna Evers:

The Enslaved Trilogy came about because my publisher, Simon & Schuster’s Pocket Star, asked me to write a “BDSM billionaire erotic romance trilogy” before they put my dystopian post-apocalyptic erotic romance Pulse Trilogy out. They felt that since I’m known for writing BDSM erotic romance, and I do love my rich heroes (like in Snowed in With the Tycoon), that my readers would prefer to see something I’m more known for before taking a chance on something I’ve never published before like the Pulse Trilogy.

 

My editor at the time, Kate Dresser, helped me craft a synopsis of the three books in the Enslaved Trilogy. We sat on the phone for well over an hour going over ideas. And that’s how the Enslaved Trilogy began! After the first two books were written (Enslaved and Enamored), Kate left Simon & Schuster to go to Harlequin’s HQN. I was (and am!) so excited and happy for her, but a little part of me was worried about my trilogy.

 

As it turns out, there was nothing to worry about! Adam Wilson at Pocket became my new editor, and he and Julia Fincher edited the final book in the trilogy, Enraptured. I’m really thrilled that the trilogy is coming out with each book one after the other – April 8th, May 13th, and June 10th, 2013.

 

 

What’s your writing process like–plotter or pantser?

 

Shoshanna Evers:

I’m a pantser who pretends to be a plotter to sell books. Just kidding! Not really. I need to give my agent and editors a synopsis/outline of what’s going to happen in each book, but by the time I start writing, the only thing that remains the same is the hero & heroine’s name.

 

What exciting things do you have coming up next for your readers?

 

Shoshanna Evers:

The rest of the Enslaved Trilogy! And then The Pulse Trilogy. At some point, I have a book coming out from Entangled Publishing titled The Tycoon’s Convenient Bride…and Baby.

There are several anthologies releasing this year that I’ll have stories in as well.

 

Oh, and I have a contest going on! Just go to http://shoshannaevers.com/contests/ for a chance to win an autographed paperback edition of The Man Who Holds the Whip, a sexy BDSM erotic romance like Enslaved!

 

Thanks for having me!

 

Blurb for Enslaved, Book One in the Enslaved Trilogy

from Simon & Schuster’s Pocket Star:

From a red-hot erotica writer comes an original eBook—a sensual romp across the playgrounds of the unbelievably rich and extremely sexy.

Elisabeth Anderson has seen Trevor and his friends at the infamous Manhattan BDSM club WhipperSnapper, where everyone calls them the BAD Boys, for “Billionaire Arrogant Doms.” The BAD Boys—Trevor Brooks, Marc Wilde, and Roman Chase—are aptly named; they’ve made money hand over fist due to their aggressive investing at the Brooks Wilde Chase Fund. These guys are so rich they can get away with anything, or so the rumors go.

Trevor gives Elisabeth full reign of his estate in Westchester, letting her do as she pleases. He has only two rules. Rule One: she must obey and submit to him while she is living in his house. Rule Two: always answer the blue cell phone. She’s happy to oblige, because being with Trevor makes her want to obey, to love him the way he seems to be falling for her. But Elisabeth’s never been good at being the quiet sub; she’s feisty and gets off on the punishments more than she does by pleasing Trevor.

Elizabeth can’t submit to Trevor the way he needs her to, so his friend and business partner (and fellow BAD Boy) Roman takes her in hand. But love triangles can have sharp edges…and somebody’s bound to get hurt.

Amazon, Barnes & Noble

About Shoshanna Evers:

Critically-acclaimed author Shoshanna Evers has written dozens of sexy stories including Amazon Erotica Bestseller Overheated. Her work has been featured in Best Bondage Erotica 2012 and Best Bondage Erotica 2013, the Penguin/Berkley Heat anthology Agony/Ecstasy, and numerous erotic BDSM novellas including Chastity Belt and Punishing the Art Thief from Ellora’s Cave Publishing.

The non-fiction anthology Shoshanna Evers edited and contributed to, How To Write Hot Sex: Tips from Multi-Published Erotic Romance Authors, is a #1 Bestseller in the Authorship, Erotica Writing Reference, and Romance Writing categories.

Her BDSM erotic romance The Enslaved Trilogy releases April, May, and June 2013 from Simon & Schuster’s Pocket Star imprint.

Shoshanna is a New York native who now lives with her family and two big dogs in Los Angeles, California. She welcomes emails from readers and writers, and loves to interact on Twitter and Facebook.

Sign up for her mailing list to get an email when new books release! http://shoshannaevers.com/blog/

Sexily *Evers* After… www.ShoshannaEvers.com

Email: shoshanna.evers @ yahoo. com (no spaces)
Blog for writers: www.TheWritersChallenge.com

Twitter: http://twitter.com/ShoshannaEvers
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/shoshanna.evers

 

Vristen: Thanks so much, Shoshanna! It’s an honor to have you give me the scoop! Everyone, be sure to check out the first book in her trilogy. Clicking the cover above will take you to the purchase page. And after that, the reading doesn’t have to stop–check out as much of her work as you can!

My Very First Menage!

Well, not technically. I mean, why would I share something like that online?! But here’s some news about the first menáge story I ever wrote…

Though my interracial erotica novella, Between Friends, has been up on Goodreads for a while now, I’ve kept mum since nothing was official. Since the contract’s signed and I’m about to embark on the cover art phase, I guess I can say it now: I’m happy to share that I’ve signed a 2 book deal with Grand Central Publishing’s Forever Yours line. Woot! Between Friends is set to be released in August 2013. Second book has no title yet. Why? I still have to write it. Yikes! This will be my first time writing something because I sort of have to and not just because the mood strikes. Whee! Since Between Friends, I’ve written exactly one other menáge (in the short story Taking Candy, which is part of an anthology), but you never forget your first. So, so emotional… *sniff, sniff* I can’t wait to be able to share the cover with y’all. I’m sure it’ll be beauty-full. Until then…

I’m looking forward to working with the awesome team at Forever Romance!

Musical Synopsis Part 1-ish

According to the fascinating author Elizabeth Boyce, I, too, am fascinating. (And usually right–oh, how I love that woman!) Her thought-provoking tweet started the squeaky wheels in my fascinating head turning. As someone who loves music, this seems like a perfect subject for me to ramble a bit about as my first post of 2013. Woot!

For the purpose of this post, I’ll focus on my first Crimson Romance novel, The Scheme of Things. Let’s give my hero, Eric, a chance to share a bit of what would be on the mixtape he’d make for Cassie. I could totally do another one of these suckers from Cassie’s point of view, but I’m a commitment-phobe so let’s just leave that as a “mm-hmm, someday, yep” instead of a definite thang, shall we?

Warning: This music shares no common thread and shall be, much like myself, all over the damn place. It’s also a bit soundtrackish due to my view of books as “interactive movies”. Think of it as kind of a mixtape/musical synopsis. If only I could give musical synopses to editors and agents! Who’s with me?! *crickets* No one? My bad. I’m special. Here we go…

Eric loves him some Cassie, but it wasn’t always so. She exasperated the shit out of him at first. Okay, well, that never really changes, but in honor of their awkward, slightly bumpy start:

She Drives Me Crazy – Fine Young Cannibals

It doesn’t take long for the wacky brunette to work her way under his skin. Soon, he’s a little conflicted. He’s starting to…care too damn much. Uh-oh. He’s doomed to ask that age old question:

Is This Love – Whitesnake

As Eric’s pondering that question, he decides it would be a good idea to ask his Cass out on a real date. He’s not getting his hopes up, but she surprises him.

Glad You Came – The Wanted

Ooh, so Eric and Cassie get physical and it’s sweet. Very sweet, because there’s lots of cake and icing involved. Naturally, RiRi has something that fits the theme:

Birthday Cake – Rihanna

Damn it, Eric’s glad she came, all right. Woot! He realizes he’s in much deeper than he thought. And worse, he believes he’s suffering from that horrible affliction called “unrequited love”. Aw, snap.

Strange and Beautiful – Aqualung

Thinking their fake romance is destined to remain that way, Eric’s determined to see the week through. No matter how much it’ll hurt to walk away.

Tomorrow – Chris Young

But Cassie has to throw him a curveball and then her ex helps throw him for another loop immediately after. Eric’s more than a little pissed, yo.

Stricken – Disturbed

Of course, it’s a romance; I can’t exactly keep Eric and Cassie apart. They’re oddly matched, yet meant to be. Aww…

Love Will Come Through – Travis

Eric gets his adorkable Cass. Aaaand, naturally, you know it won’t be long until he’s back to…

And, really, a part of me thinks Cassie will have that effect on him forever.

2012 Reasons to Party Tonight

At least 2012, right? But no way in hell am I going to list all of them. It’s my favorite (pre)holiday of the year: New Year’s Eve! I thought it would be nice to make a post here on my sadly inactive blog on this wonderful date. Blogs are cool. I get to ramble on and on to myself and, for once, it’s not kind of a psycho thing to do. (Which is why Twitter is also awesome, but I digress.)

I’ve loved NYE for as long as I can remember. As far as cusps go, it’s a pretty significant one. We’re done with “old” year, but, wait–not quite done just yet. We’ve embarked upon a journey for the “new” year, but, wait–not quite. We’re on the brink, the edge, the whatever… This has to make sense outside my own twisted head. Anyway, I adore the sense of getting a “clean slate”. Not that it’s possible to erase what’s happened, not that you’d even want to, but you’re starting again. With a whole new year. How cool is that? Fine. Maybe not cool in the traditional sense. I’m a complete dork, though so yeah. This shit is awesome!

Last year, at this time, I was lamenting how fast 2011 had gone off the rails for me. But I also did a cool, Gone with the Wind type thing, too. You know, “As God is my witness, I will never have a year like this again!” And, bam, that was it. My resolution was set. 2012 wasn’t going to suck quite like 2011. And it didn’t. Hehe. I got the power! 2012 has been a year full of learning experiences. As a newbie baby writer, I finally got to dip my toe in the publishing pool. Five things I wrote this year, five stories published. It’s been awesome. See? I put my foot down December 31, 2011 and said, “This craptastic life stuff has got to stop.” And it did, for the most part. Yay, me. Now, not every brilliant, nutty thing I typed up in 2012 has been published. Yet. I have another novella out there (with an offer, squee!), a whopper of an erotic romance novel (a whopper for me since writing anything over 50K words gives me hives and this bad boy is over 90K words) that’s on submission, and, finally, my final masterpiece (ha) of 2012, a novella for which I gave myself an evil deadline. It’s time to sub, so, unfortunately, I can’t quite count these three stories as having been published. Yet.

I’m saying it, I’m putting it out there into the universe: 2013 is going to kick major ass. There. I’m planning to go full steam ahead with even more random, WTF ideas and make them into stories. I’d love to ease my way into the self-publishing end of the pool. So many things I want to do. And January 1 is the start of it all. My clean slate. I haven’t forgotten anything of 2012, but I sure as hell am looking forward to doing more, doing better. Everything is a learning experience, but not everything is a fresh start. I cherish those, which is why I’m such a sucker for NYE. Once it ends, we’re no longer looking forward to the new year, we’re in it. So, yeah, we’re on that cusp. Once the ball drops, it’s on. But until then…

Happy New Year!

The Beta Hero

It’s been a while since I rambled here at the ol’ blog and I thought this was a good time since my book is coming out tomorrow and I’d previously mentioned that I’d talk a bit about my one (as of right now) beta hero.

As someone who’s used to those brash alpha males in romance novels and loves them, I think there’s something to be said for the betas. As an alpha lover, I never set out to write a beta, but as I trucked along on my story, Dropping the Ball, I had to face facts: My hero, Dillon Avery, was steadfastly refusing to be an alpha. He’s a sweetheart of a man–still sexy as all hell, but…nice. He’s not arrogant, abrasive, or a playboy. Those traits (and then some) are left to his brothers. No, Dillon’s a compassionate soul who is loyal beyond belief.

That’s not to say he doesn’t have a backbone. I think betas can sometimes mistakenly be labeled as wimps, all because they may not be as impulsive, lustful, or “in your face” as an alpha. Dillon’s not angsty; he’s not a brooding loner. He’s just an all-around good guy who’s not into playing the field. For that reason, it makes sense to me that Dillon would suddenly find himself seeing his best friend, Heather, in a whole new light. I think it’s natural that he would develop feelings for a woman he’s known for most of his life rather than throw himself into the dating scene as he searches for “the one”.

Since alphas are my “thang”, I tried at times to sneak a few of those traits into Dillon’s personality. I failed pretty much every single time. What this writing experience taught me is that it pays to have an open mind. I never would have pegged myself as a woman who could, or would, be fascinated by a beta hero, but I was so wrong and am so grateful for that sheer wrongness. It makes me want to read about some sexy betas other writers have created! As for Dillon… His story is releasing tomorrow (yay!) and I’m happy to make a contribution to romances that feature a beta hero.

I do hope that betas start getting their fair share of love out there in the romance world, if only to show that good guys don’t have to finish last. If not, then I really do think we’ll all be missing out on a great opportunity to meet some fantastic men. Or, in other words, we just might be Dropping the Ball.

 

–Vristen

Reading in a Romance Wonderland…

The best part about fiction, in any medium, is the escape it provides from real life—whether it’s through a television show, a movie, or a book. I’m not the biggest television watcher and I’m far from being a movie buff, but I do love me some books. There’s just something so wonderfully interactive about them. You take what the author provides, but then the rest is up to you. The characters are described, maybe in great detail, maybe not…but how do they really look? It’s pretty much a guarantee that the way you “see” them won’t be the way the author “sees” them. When I read a book, I’m directing a movie. I’ve always seen it that way; I’ve always thought that connection came naturally. Strange…or not?

When I write a story, I still “see” it as I go along. I can’t help but think, “If this were a movie, what would the next scene be? Would it flow with the one before or would it be jarring?” Sometimes, I may want the transition to be jarring. It’s all about effect. Well, effect while still making sense! It’s a blast coming up with a world you hope readers can escape to, if only for a limited time. Most of my stories take place in a connected world of sorts…a shared universe, if you will. What exists in one (e.g. stores, restaurants, offices, agencies) exists in others is basically what I’m sayin’. Why? My mind just works that way I suppose.

One of my favorite things about creating a world in which readers can escape is bringing the characters to life. They’re real enough in my head, but there’s something really cool about putting them on paper—or, um, on the computer screen anyway. Since there seems to be an unwritten rule out there somewhere that says I’m not allowed to outline, like, ever, the characters and the things they do come as a nice surprise to me. In that way, writing and reading provide me with the same exhilaration of the unknown. What’s going to happen next? When reading, I don’t know. When writing… Hell, I still don’t know. There’s beauty in that there symmetry if you ask me. Now, on to what is probably my favorite thing about reading and writing fiction: Dialogue. I’m crazy in love with the stuff. I’m an insanely auditory person so the words the characters speak have to feel right; they have to sound right in my head. And I definitely hear them in my head. Always and without fail. Weird…or not?

Romance is an escape. Real life romance, fictional romance… It’s a thing of wonder, of magic. I try to do my part in providing a little bit on the fictional end. The world needs more love! And what’s cooler than love you read about, but can still see play out in your head? When I write, I’m providing a lot of what my “movie” needs. When you read, you’re doing the rest. You’re directing, you’re casting, you’re doing a bang up job as cinematographer—you’re just awesome basically. My “movies” would never be truly complete without readers.

Comment on this blog and others for a chance at some amazing prizes–a $100 Amazon or B&N gift certificate and two $50 ones! You can find the other participating authors on the list below.

Have a happy blog hop, y’all, and good luck!

1.	Sharon Clare	2.	K.M. Jackson
3.	Lynn Cahoon	4.	Tessa Berkley
5.	Black Creek Burning	6.	Erin Richards
7.	Shay Lacy	8.	M. J. Schiller
9.	Terri Herman-Ponce	10.	Sylvie Fox
11.	Ashlyn Mathews	12.	NLSScribe/Scribbles
13.	Carol Ritten Smith	14.	Beth Yarnall
15.	Peggy Bird	16.	Rowena May O’Sullivan
17.	Suzi Love	18.	nora snowdon
19.	Tara Mills Romance	20.	Vristen Pierce
21.	Embrace the Shadows	22.	Alicia Dean
23.	Heather Thurmeier	24.	Rena’s Ramblings
25.	Dare to Read	26.	Denyse Cohen
27.	Pam B. Morris Blog	28.	Becky Lower Author
29.	Nikkie Locke	30.	Nicole Flockton
31.	Rionna Morgan	32.	Elizabeth Boyce
33.	Amanda L. V. Shalaby	34.	Meline Nadeau
35.	Kate Fellowes	36.	Lola Karns
37.	D’Ann Lindun	38.	Jerri Drennen
39.	Kristina Knight Romance Author	40.	Morgan O’Neill
41.	Shelley Wall Blog	42.	Holley Trent
43.	Karen Sue Burns	44.	Patti Shenberger
45.	Tamara Gill

Crimson Romance Blog Hop!

Where do you like to escape to when you read romance? Do you like the cozy feel of a small town or do you like the hustle and bustle of a huge city?

Starting Nov. 17th and lasting through Nov. 21st, I’ll be joining some fabulous Crimson Romance authors for a fun blog hop. It’s all about the escape that romance offers, no matter the sub-genre. Please stop by, make those wonderful comments you make so well, and enter to win some amazing prizes–an Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift certificate for $100 and two gift certificates for $50 each, to be exact! Check out the lovely Sharon Clare’s site here for a list of participating authors.

It’s going to be a blast so I hope you’ll join us. And good luck to all who enter!

*This is NOT the blog hop post; it’s just a post about the blog hop. Commenting on this post does not enter you for the blog hop prizes. Thank you!