Casual Smex Friday with C.R. Moss!

Hello All,

Welcome back to Casual Smex Friday! Today I've got another smexy author stopping by to share a little naugthy with us.

For those of you unfamiliar with the CSF posts, here's a quick breakdown. On Casual Smex Friday you’re encouraged to sit back, relax and get smexy. Remember that Smex day posts consist of the following four segments:

1.) The Quickie- For those of you who only have time for some quick relief.

2.) The Afternoon Delight- For the reader who wants a little foreplay before smexing.

3.) The Midnight Grind-For those of you who want to go beyond foreplay and get to main show.

4.) The After Glow Strut- For those of you not afraid to show your love and go for another round.

So without further ado please welcome the sweetly naughty and deliciously raunchy author C.R. Moss.

The Quickie…

Name: C.R. Moss

Stats: An eccentric and eclectic writer, C.R. Moss pens stories for the mainstream and erotic romance markets, giving readers Worlds of Possibilities. So what does she write? She writes stories from the light and sweet to the dark and deadly with varying degrees of sexual heat. Writing as C.R. Moss gives her and her muses the freedom to explore worlds of possibilities when it comes to love.

Latest Release: Sunset Temptations

Genre: Contemporary, erotic romance, GLBT/gay/bisexual, ménage

Sunset Temptations: Can wishes come true in just one night?

Roommates, Ivy Tramonto and Kiran Emerson, are heading out for their blind dates set up through a prestigious matchmaking service. Neither know anything about the men they're to meet at a charity event being held in a mountain resort, but they're looking forward to the adventure and forgetting about all their problems for an evening.

Resort owner, Robert Bourbon, doesn't have time to play the field, especially when he wants a polyamorous relationship. After requesting the services of Madame Eve, he's matched with the perfect pair and believes life can't get any better.

Everything seems to be going great, until a mistake one of them made comes back to haunt them. Will they make it through the dilemma or will they miss out on having their

Availability: Amazon | ARe | BnB | Bookstrand | Decadent

Smex Quotient: Uhhh, you did read that blurb right? Don't let the legnth fool you. This spicy short read is full of heart and scorhing heat. Two men, one woman, one night of trust, lust and the promise of much more. . .need I say more?

The Afternoon Delight…

This trio of lovers most definitely have more than a bit of sizzle. What made you decide on a polyamorous/menage relationship for this story?

When I was developing the story, Ivy was originally going on the date herself, but her friend didn’t want her to go up the mountain alone. So, when he decided to tag along, the man up at the resort told me he’d be up for a threesome. Since Ivy and Kiran are adventurous souls and had wanted to add a third to their dynamic, it all worked out.

I'm used to seeing m/f/m menage romances where the two men are friends and they pursue the woman. I like the idea that your story is set up with the "alpha" pursuing a m/f pair of friends. What made you decide to tilt the usual standard for this story?

The characters wanted it that way, and I just typed what they dictated. ;) Plus, like you said, it’s a different and interesting way to approach a ménage relationship.

The 1 Night Stand series never seems to disappoint when it comes to packing a lot of heat into a small package. How do you go about planning a short story/novella yet still keep the story full and complete?

It’s a bit difficult trying to get people together, having their relationships and attractions go full speed ahead right from the start, and having it all make sense in such a short time. But with some particular key phrasing and character thought processes throughout the stories, it seems to work. In my first 1NS story (Sunset Desires) and in Sunset Temptations, I have the people meeting for the first time. They all go into their dates with certain expectations about what will happen, so when the attractions and hook-ups do occur, it works within the stories. For my second story (Sunset Seduction) and upcoming fourth one (Sunset Heat), the women are reunited with men they knew once upon a time. With histories already set between them, it made getting the pairs together much easier.

If your main characters participated in Casual Smex Friday which segment would they enjoy the most? The Quickie, The Afternoon Delight, The Midnight Grind or The Aafterglow Strut?

Because it’s a short story and Robert is a busy man, they’d probably go for The Quickie, but if he allowed himself a respite from the business they’d be all into The Midnight Grind. ;)

Is there anything else you'd like to tell readers, or any new upcoming projects?

I’m having a ‘Sunset Blog Tour and Scavenger Hunt’ June 3 thru 13 in celebration of the release of Sunset Temptations. For details and lists of the dates, locations and prizes of this tour and hunt, visit: http://crmoss.blogspot.com/p/blog-page_26.html .

As for upcoming projects, my writing partner and I are working on more sexy Double D Ranch Tales so stay tuned to my website and blogs for updates on them. And come meet us in Las Vegas, NV on October 2013 for Hot Mojave Knights!

Thanks for having me on your blog today, and thank you, readers, for stopping by!

The Midnight Grind…

You know that C.R. wouldn't just strut on by without leaving us with a smexy exerpt to kick off our weekend. But be prepared, the following excerpt is only for the grown and smexy, not to mention the naughty! Yes I'm talking to you. . .

Robert kept from shifting from foot to foot. His breathlessness shocked him.

Did they have good news for him? “Yes? Have you made a decision?”

Ivy nodded. Kiran said, “Sure. Let’s go for it.”

An answer. And it is yes!

Excitement whizzed through his body and settled in his cock. They wanted to be with him. His heart sang. For so long, he’d been alone. Granted, he had his business, the company of his employees and Brandan, but associations like that didn’t measure up to personal commitments. The affairs he’d had in the past hadn’t been all that great either. He had so much love to give and needed all the excitement, heat, and passion love could provide, too. That’s why he desired a polyamorous relationship, and the two perfect people for him were ready and willing.

Feeling more at ease, he stepped forward before either of them had a change of heart. “Ivy, turn around.” He unzipped her dress then slid it down her body. Her black bra and panties contrasted against her pale skin. “Lovely.” He trailed the tips of his fingers down the indent in the middle of her back. “So soft.”

Kiran removed his jacket and tie. Robert stood in front of him and helped him unbutton his shirt. When it fell open, exposing a smooth chest and chiseled abdominal muscles, a groan of deep-seated pleasure escaped him. “You are a work of art.”

“Thank you. I do my best,” Kiran replied with a half-grin.

The entertainer’s sexy smile hit him square in the balls. Robert embraced him and held tight. He molded his mouth upon Kiran’s. Had it been less than two hours since they met? It seemed like they’d known each other for ages. He swept his tongue into the dancer’s mouth. The taste of alcohol and the scent of spicy berries and sandalwood filled his senses. Kiran reciprocated the movements of the kiss, and thoughts of how the man’s lips and tongue would do the same motions to his cock ran rampant in Robert’s mind.

He hated to do it, but he broke the lip lock, and with an arm around his new friend, he turned and gazed at the almost naked woman before them. “She’s beautiful, isn’t she?”

“Yes. She is.”

Robert released Kiran and strolled over to her. He took her hands in his, and held them up in the air. Appraising her well-toned body, lustful stirrings of want and need to sink himself in her hot, moist mouth and pussy streaked through him.

“I think it’s time to retire to the bedroom.” Holding Ivy’s hand, he grasped Kiran’s fingers and led the pair into the master bedroom.

Sunset Temptations, Available Now Via Amazon | ARe | BnB | Bookstrand | Decadent

The Afterglow Strut…

You know you want more so don't be too shy to beg (sweetly of course). C.R. is nothing if not a benevolent giver of hot literary smex. If you enjoyed your naughty jaunt on the wild side with Ms. Ross, you can find her strutting about the interwebs. Stop by her website for more info on all of her books and upcoming releases.

Website: http://crmoss.com

Blog: http://crmoss.blogspot.com

Twitter: @CRMoss

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CRMoss.author

Double D Ranch: http://doubledranchtales.blogspot.com/

Spring Musings

Good Evening Lovelies,

It's the middle of April, and spring is officially in full swing. Admittedly I live in Miami so technically I experience a year long spring/summer, either way Happy Spring! I've been running around like crazy lately tiling soil, planting seeds, pruning bushes and what-not for my next book releases (hooray metaphors hyperbole...whatever!) This is what I get for trying to look smart. Anyway I've basically been busting my butt, making sure that I have at least three new releases for 2013.

The first book officially completed this year was Persuasion Skills, the second book in my Boardroom Acts series. This is a stand alone contemporary romance that shares the co-worker theme/trope from Negotiating Skills but with a whole new set of characters. I teetered back and forth for months trying to decide whether I was going to self-pub this book or submit it for publication, and finally decided to send it out for publication. Fingers crossed that it will be picked up because aside from the fact that I wrote it, I really do think that its a great story and has mile long legs to stand on. I'll let you know how it goes. According to experts/people out in the interwebs, I shouldn't talk about this. Mainly because it will look bad if the book doesn't get picked up. Thankfully not only do I think that's a load of bull, I also want to provide any insight into this process as I can for those of you embarking on your own journey into writing.

I finally figured out how to fix my How To Kill Your Immortal, dilemma and have decided  to release a few books set up in the HTKYI world, prior to releasing Dante and Jasmine's story. I've struggled with this for over a year. No matter how I looked at it, and no matter how much I love their characters, I just don't think Dante and Jasmine are ready for prime time. It's funny actually because a writer friend of mine told me I would have separation anxiety when it came to releasing my first book and she was sooooo right! Although Negotiating Skills was my first published book, HTKYI, was my first completed book. I hyperventilate every time I think about publishing it. It's crazy, I know. It doesn't make a lick of sense, but there it is. I'm absolutely terrified of putting my baby out there.  But, thankfully, I can't put it off forever. When I first came up for the idea for my current work in progress, Frosted Bites, it was intended to be a short three book PNR series, but somehow my characters found their way into Dante and Jasmine's world and wouldn't leave! Next thing I knew I had half a book completed with Dante and Jasmine doing cameos. Talk about my subconscious kicking my ass! The awesome thing is that it totally works and I'm crazy excited about it!. So sadly, my lovelies you will have to wait a little longer for HTKYI, but before you get it you'll have:

1.) Sweet Dreams (A Frosted Bites Prequel)

2.) Cupcakes at Midnight

3.) Death by Chocolate

4.) Whipped and Chained

Sweet Dreams is already completed and as soon as I have a free moment to edit the second draft it will be off to my editor. I'm also already two chapters into Cupcakes at Midnight. It was originally intended to be a short story, but after outlining it, I realized it will be another novella. *Sigh* One day I will master the short story. I swear it.

Okay those are the updates I have for now, hopefully in a week or so I'll have good news to share regarding Persuasion Skills. Either way I'll share with you my mental breakdown over query letters and the like soon.

Talk to you soon,
Laurel

High Stakes: A Sneak Peek

Hello Again Lovlies,

I'm excited to share with you an excerpt from my new upcoming erotic contemporary romance, High Stakes. The book along with Negotiating Skills is part of my Boardroom Acts series. It’s a stand alone story, maintaining the theme of mixing business with please. The release date will be announced soon, but until then please enjoy this quick excerpt. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed bringing Pepper and Jaxon's romance to life!

Excerpt:

-Hey Pep, Can’t make the meeting next month. Reschedule.

~We can’t postpone again. Get down to Miami A.S.A.P!!!

-No can do.

~Then give me your proxy. I will handle on my end.

-No

~Stop being an ASS!

-Stop being a BRAT! See you in a few weeks.

That last text had caused her to throw her phone across the room and smash it against the opposite wall. The phone had splintered and shattered into small electronic pieces that gave her a split second of satisfaction before she added its demise to Jaxon’s list of transgressions. It was the third phone she destroyed since he decided to pull his disappearing act.

As she stared at the shiny broken pieces scattered on the floor across the room, she made her decision to come looking for him.

It only took her a few hours to track down his location. She just had to lure his ever efficient assistant away from his desk long enough to search for his latest bills. Jax was notorious for liking the finer things in life, so Pepper knew that wherever he chose to hideout, he would leave an extensive money trail.

She was surprised to see that there had been only two major charges to his credit cards in the last three months. The first was for a first class plane ticket to Denver and the second was for a cabin rental in somewhere named Lissit, Colorado. When she had investigated she learned that he had rented the cabin through the remainder of the year. The news had only fueled her anger. No way was she waiting another two months for him decide to come back to Miami!

She was on a plane to Colorado within twenty-four hours. When she arrived she took the time to buy a satellite phone, some warm clothing and rent an SUV equipped for trekking through the mountains.

The weather delay had only served to increase her frustration. She had a lot of work still left to do regarding the acquisition of Lubtech. There was only so much she could get done from her laptop within her hotel room.

After years of friendship, she couldn’t believe that he would up and just abandon her when he knew how hard she had worked to secure the deal. They had been friends throughout college and had survived financial ups and downs, family tragedies, and recent health issues together. Her mind skittered away from the breast cancer scare she had three months ago.

Jaxon had been her rock through the whole thing. He was the first person she ran to when she noticed something odd in her left breast, and he was the one who sat, gripping her hand in support, when she was told the cyst was benign.

She flushed deeply as she thought of that day. No doubt she felt relief about her results, and she knew that she was lucky to have been given a clean bill of health. However, she still remembered that day with a profound sense of embarrassment. If I had only avoided that last glass of wine, she thought. Perhaps if she hadn’t had that last glass of liquid courage her relationship with him wouldn’t be so awkward right now.

Shifting uncomfortably in the leather driver’s seat, Pepper replayed that day, more specifically that night, over in her mind for what must have been the millionth time.

Jax as always, had been an amazing friend. Just as she had been there for him only a few months prior when his mother passed away, he dropped everything to help her through the doctor’s visits, biopsy and ultimate good news that the lump she found was nothing serious.

After the last doctor’s visit he took her out to dinner to celebrate, and the night should have ended at that. Unfortunately, Pepper was so relieved that she was healthy, that she made the drunken decision to finally act on her long standing attraction to him.

The giddy need to seize life and finally live out her fantasy had almost ruined their relationship. For one night she had lived her fantasy. She had him in her arms and bed, but the cold light of day had shown her that he only stayed to spare her from embarrassment. Even now the event caused her panties to go damp and her body to prickle with heat.

Do you trust me Pep?

The huskily asked words whispered through her mind.

She had always known that Jax was an intensely focused man. To have all of that raw energy focused on her was one the most erotic things she’d ever experienced. The idea of allowing someone else to control her pleasure had always appealed to her, but she’d never trusted anyone enough to give them that power. But with him…with him she had relinquished everything.

Yes.

She whimpered softly into the cabin of the plush rental car as her body heated and remembered the feel of him rubbing against her flesh. The feel of his hard chest pressing against her nipples as he pulled her hands above the bed and tied them loosely to the headboard.

She remembered the sense of freedom she felt when she gripped the edges of his silk tie bond around her wrists.  

That’s it honey let me in.

A shiver worked its way down her spine as her body relived the feel of his almost bruising grip holding her hips down as he kneeled between her legs circling his cock at her wet entrance.

The sound of his hisses of breath and grunts of satisfaction. The feel of his lips against hers. The slow licks of tongue and soft nips of teeth. The feel of his hard length slowly working its way into her was ingrained in her memory forever.  

If only it hadn’t been the worst mistake of her life.

 

Casual Smex Fridays

Hello Lovelies, 

In my quest to learn more about the world of romance writing and publishing, I've been fortunate enough to have met some amazing readers, writers and bloggers via Goodreads, Twitter and Facebook and other interweb tube routes. In honor of all of these great contacts I've decided to institute Casual Smex Fridays. Each Friday I will share with you an excerpt from a new book or new and upcoming author. If you'd like to be featured please message me via laurelcremant@gmail.com 

The whole process of being a new self-pubbed author is grueling. Getting the word out about your books takes a lot of time, effort and oftentimes just plain old luck and word of mouth. I've been really lucky that my sales have been relatively steady since I released Negotiating Skills and slowly but surely it's gaining traction. Don't get me wrong I would kill (almost but not really) for review sites to post about it. But I'm biding my time. I've already submitted it for review to several (as in a bazillion) sites and have been told that I'm in the "queue". I've also gotten some amazing feedback from readers so for now I'm quite content. All of that being said there is still A LOT that can still be done and I know that, but I'm not the only writer out there that would like to get their worked recognized and build a fan base.

So please stay tuned for the first Casual Smex Friday!    

Talk to you soon,

Laurel

Negotiating Skills - The Soundtrack!

Good (Early) Morning Lovelies, 

Music plays a huge part of my daily life. It calms me, soothes me and revves me up when necessary. It helps set the mood for my days or cheers me up on bad days. When it comes to my writing I tend to create playlists that put me in the right frame of mind and that remind me of my characters. Music helps set the mood for the overall mood of a scene or complete book. I thought you all might enjoy the playlist I had on loop while writing Negotiating Skills. 

Each song listed was chosen to help capture a feeling or mood of the characters and overall feel for the book. The most of the songs listed are definitely sexy, but Inertia Creeps is the song that actually helped me get in the right state of mind for writing most of the scenes for Negotiating Skills. I love the pacing and yes tension in the song.  

• Feelin Love, Paula Cole
• Glory Box, Portshead
• When Doves Cry, Prince
• Slow Wind, R Kelly ft. Sean Paul and Akon
• Ooops Oh My, Tweet
• You're Makin' Me High, Toni Braxton
• Holler, Spice Girls
• It's All About Me, Mya ft. Sisqo
• My Love is Like Whoa, Mya ft. Missy Elliot
• Juicy Fruit, Mtume
• Close To You, Maxi Priest
• That Girl, Shaggy & Maxi Priest
• Touch My Body, Mariah Carey
• Inertia Creeps, Massive Attack
• Ooh La La, Goldfrapp
• Say Yes, Floetry
• Sexy Daddy, Destiny's Child
• Promise, Ciara
• Dip It Low, Christina Milian ft. Fabulous
• Get Mine Get Yours, Christina Aguilera,
• At Last, Christina Aguilera
• What's It Gonna Be, Busta Rhymes ft. Janet Jackson
• Speechless, Beyonce
• Breathe On Me, Britney Spears  

Well Enjoy!
Laurel

Why Should They Fall In Love?

Hello Lovelies,

So I may or may not have mentioned this, but I've already got the basics of the next two "How to" books roughly outlined. The books will be part of a series I plan on calling OWLS Inc. How To Kill Your Immortal will be book one in this series. I'm currently working on beefing up the story line of Jasmine and Dante. I've been cleaning up some clunky paragraphs and trying to make the dialogue as un-wasteful as possible. While doing this I've found myself adding some more dialogue here or there as well as some additional narrative. This is mainly because despite the fact that this story is meant to have elements of suspense and mystery it is still fundamentally a romance and I want that to be reflected properly. 

In the end I want my readers to see two people in love and it make sense. I don't want readers to be told Jasmine and Dante are in love, I want them to know they're in love. I want them to feel the attraction between these two people and get why each one has fallen for the other. This is not easy. I find myself going back to certain scenes and asking myself, "Why did she kiss him?", "Why does he want her?," "Why should they be together?", "Why is he on top?". I guess it's a writer's version of "what's my motivation". When I come across scenes or moments in the book where I don't feel my own questions are properly answered, then I know it's time for some work on narrative and dialogue and more often than not, the delete key.

I've read books in the past where it felt like the author was following a formula regarding her main characters. Two (or three, or four, yay erotica!) people meet, there is some sort of conflict, sparks fly, they have sex, declare their love and we as the readers are supposed to believe that because they bumped uglies or said the requisite I love yous, they're  in love. I need more than that. Have you ever read a book where the love just wasn't believable? Does it burn you as much as it burns me? Like I want to soak this book in kerosene and make a bonfire burn?

I read an erotic romance recently, which out of sheer embarrassment for the author, I will not reveal the title, but I swear I was told the hero was in love with the heroine and vice versa and given absolutely NO reason or evidence as to why. I feel like providing this info to the reader is like the proverbial reach around. Seriously help a sister out!

Now after all of the griping I'm doing here wouldn't it be just HILARIOUS if someone tells me the love between Jasmine and Dante isn't believable to them? To that I can only respond at least I tried! Argh!

Talk to you soon,
Laurel

What Is Sexy?

I recently came up with a storyline for a new erotic short story. The bulk of all the scenes take place in an office setting. I've always thought that there was something very naughty and forbiden about having a sexual encounter where you work, but when I mentioned the story idea to a friend she stated how un-exciting the workplace seemed to her. At first I thought she meant that the office was just too recycled and too cliche. However when I asked for clarification, she stated that the office just didn't seem like a sexy place. Since I thought the opposite it got me thinking about what we all consider sexy.

I'm a firm believer that sexy (in romance novels specifically) is all about the characters involved, the emotional tension and the actual action in the scene. For me the setting very rarely detracts from the overall sexy factor if all the proper elements are in place.

What do you consider sexy? Is setting a deal breaker for you too? Or is it all about tension and anticipation?

Talk to you soon,
Laurel