It’s Official! How to Save a Life to be Published by Loose Id

Posted on October 17, 2012 by SloanParker

I’m thrilled to announce that Loose Id will be publishing my next novel, HOW TO SAVE A LIFE. I don’t have a release date yet, but it’ll be sometime in 2013. I’ll post the details when I know more.

To give you a preview, here’s a brief unedited excerpt. It starts with Walter’s point of view, then we get to see a bit of Kevin’s.

Walter brushed the back of his index finger over Kevin’s lips. He’d always loved kissing. Even in his youth, when most of the guys wanted nothing more than the fucking or the sucking, he’d loved the kissing and touching and exploring. Kevin liked it too. He was sure of that. He’d felt it in the first kiss. And the second.

“I know what you want. And so do you.” Walter gave up on the touching and offered Kevin a little distance. “You’ve never been with a man, have you?”

“Yes. No. Yes.” Kevin blew the hair out of his eyes. “Yes, I have.”

“What? You get stroked off by another boy in junior high school?”

“No.”

“You did more than a teenage experiment?”

“Yes. Sort of.”

Walter moved in close once more. “I’m guessing it’s been a very long time, and you’ve been denying yourself what you really wanted most of your life—what you still want.”

It took a moment, as if he had to force his body to comply, and then Kevin nodded.

“You’re not out?” Walter asked. Without giving it much thought, the tone of his voice had shifted to something softer.

“No.”

“Do you have a wife?”

“No. I wouldn’t…” Kevin gestured with his hand between them.

“A girlfriend?”

“Yes. I mean, no.”

“Which is it? If you can’t remember if you have a girlfriend, then trust me, you don’t have one anymore.”

“I don’t. Have one anymore, I mean.” Kevin sucked in a deep breath. “Talking to you is exhausting.”

“Talking to you is entertaining.”

Kevin rolled his eyes. He sobered. Staring at Walter’s shoes, he said, “I left her. My girlfriend, Sondra. A couple of months ago.”

“I’m sorry it didn’t work out.”

“We’re still friends.” Kevin lifted his head. “We’ve been friends for a long time.”

“Which is why you stayed with her for so long.” Walter took another step closer. “And now?”

Kevin evaded his gaze again.

The silence stretched on between them. Walter wasn’t about to back down. He had years of experience pushing people for the truth.

Something told him with Kevin, there was a fine line between not pushing enough and pushing too hard.

KEVIN DID NOT want to talk about this. Yet a part of him longed to do just that.

Here, in this room, with a gay man listening to him, he couldn’t pretend any longer. He wanted to kiss Walter again, let his tongue wander over those lips, down along the skin of his neck to the warm flesh under his clothes, his chest, and lower to his abs, and even lower. He wanted to taste it all. He couldn’t hide from that fact. Not any longer.

He’d known for months now that he’d been heading to this moment. Whether he’d wanted to admit it or not.”

It had been easy to keep the promise he’d made in his youth. At least while he’d been with Sondra. He wasn’t a cheater. Now that she was gone, now that he was here, now that he’d felt this man’s touch…he was done holding back.

Walter cupped his chin and forced him to look up.

“I guess I can’t hide from it forever.”

“That’s good. You don’t have to hide. Not here. Not in this room. Not with me.”

After I wrap up working on the edits with my editor, I’ll share more snippets and there may even be a contest or two leading up to the release so stay tuned.

Meanwhile, I’ve got several other projects underway that are keeping me busy–so busy I’ve been hit or miss with blogging lately (in fact, I haven’t been online much at all), but I’m really digging the short piece I’m writing so that feels great. Here’s what I’m working on:

MORE THAN JUST A GOOD BOOK part 6
A Christmas short story (no title yet)
Print versions of BREATHE and TAKE ME HOME (with new covers since the print versions will be self-published)
MORE book 2 (with Luke, Richard, and Matthew)

More news to come on all those.

Thanks for checking out the excerpt. I’m off to celebrate with my honey for signing my fourth book contract. Have a good one!

MORE Now Available in Print and a Deleted Scene

Posted on June 29, 2012 by SloanParker

I’m thrilled to share that MORE is now available for the first time in print. It’s the same story as the e-book version with a few minor wording corrections/tweaks. The trade paper is available at Amazon, Amazon UK and CreateSpace. It may take several weeks for it to appear in any other bookstores.

To celebrate the release, I’ve updated my website with a deleted scene that never made it into the final manuscript. This is the original scene for what happened when Luke came home early after meeting with his dad for the first time, then Richard arrived, having left his office early. Some of it may sound familiar as a few descriptions and Luke’s internal realizations were eventually merged into the next scene or moved elsewhere. I think this part of the story turned out much better without this sex scene, but I was still sad to hit the delete key. I’m glad I can share it with everyone now.

I hope you enjoy visiting with Luke, Matthew, and Richard.

Preview Excerpt from How to Save a Life

Posted on June 27, 2012 by SloanParker

Edited to Add: The opening of this book has since been revised and added on to, but this scene will give you a good idea of Kevin’s character.

Here’s a first look at a short excerpt from How to Save a Life. This is unedited so please forgive any typos or mistakes I may have missed.

Chapter One

Stupid leather pants.

Kevin Price stood in the aisle of the crowded downtown bus and tried not to draw attention to himself.

Hard to do while flailing his body around, trying to get his right hand unstuck from the front pocket of the most ridiculous, tightest pants known to man.

Why the hell had he listened to Myles?

“It’s a sex club. You gotta look sexy.”

Asshole.

Jerk who’d offered to pick out his outfit for the night and ended up buying a pair of pants two sizes too small. On purpose. Kevin was sure of that.

He couldn’t walk into a swanky, underground sex club with one hand stuck inside his pants. He’d probably look like he was trying to grope himself as soon as he stepped inside. He might as well paint a sign on his forehead. Gay virgin here. First night in a gay bar.

Well, not his first, but pretty damn close.

The bus rounded the next corner, and the buildings went from the precise lines of concrete and glass to the graffiti-covered faded bricks and shattered windows of abandoned factories.

Almost there.

He’d been listening to the police scanner app on his phone for the past fifteen minutes. Not that he would’ve cancelled his plans that night if he’d heard anything interesting come across the scanner, but old habits and all that. Mostly, he’d been trying to get his mind off where he was headed. Then he’d gone to slip the phone and headphones into his pocket, and that’s when he’d found himself standing there with only one free arm, gyrating his hips, and mentally cursing out Myles.

He gave a tug, chaffing his wrist on the edge of the leather pocket.

Why would anyone wear pants like this?

To get laid.

If he could remember when he’d last had sex, he might’ve contemplated that longer.

He tugged again.

Nothing.

If this was a sign for how the rest of the night would go, he should pack it up and head home. Forget why he’d come.

Only, he couldn’t forget.

Another Preview of more from More Than Just a Good Book

Posted on June 6, 2012 by SloanParker

Good news! I have the next installment of More Than Just a Good Book written. It’s three scenes. Just need to do some tweaks and have a couple people go over it. In the meantime, here’s another sneak peek at what’s next for Mark and Scott. And if you didn’t get a chance to check it out during the scavenger hunt, you can view a longer preview at Mary Calmes’s blog.

From Part 5, coming soon…

“What do you mean it’s been cancelled?” Mark stared at his advisor across the cramped office space and tried to process what Dr. Wolfe had just said and what it could mean.

His dissertation defense had been postponed. Indefinitely.

Dr Wolfe didn’t say anything for half a minute or so, which felt a hell of a lot longer. The man was always direct, the kind of guy who looked you in the eye and told you the truth about your work, about your potential, whether you wanted to hear it or not. He’d said on many occasions that anything other than sheer honesty only held a person back.

The hesitation wasn’t a good sign.

Finally, he spoke again. “They need to investigate an allegation before the committee will agree to meet with you.”

Can’t wait to share the rest.

Erotic Romance Scavenger Hunt & ARe eBook Bucks Giveaway

Posted on May 25, 2012 by SloanParker

Today I’m pleased to share a special event, The Erotic Romance Scavenger Hunt, a blog hop featuring nineteen authors, a ton of exclusive material and fantastic giveaways, and an amazing grand prize for one lucky scavenger hunter.

For the event, each author is hosting exclusive content for another author in the hunt. I’ve provided an exclusive preview excerpt from part 5 of my serial novel More Than Just a Good Book so be sure to keep any eye out for that.

I’m also giving away $15 in All Romance eBooks bucks to one lucky person here on my blog. See the end of this post for more details on that.

Just joined the hunt? Click here to start from the beginning.

SCAVENGER HUNT RULES: Hidden within each post on the hunt will be a single letter that is red. Jot those letters down because they’re part of the following mystery phrase you’ll need to unscramble:

_ _ _ _ I _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ R _ _ _ _
At the bottom of each post will be a link to your next stop on the hunt. Once you’ve completed the hunt, read all the fantastic exclusive material and entered all the individual giveaways, unscramble the letters you collected to reveal the mystery phrase. When you’ve uncovered the phrase, fill out the entry form in order to qualify for the grand prize. Grand prize is open internationally. You must be 18 or older to enter.

The hunt will only be open for 72 hours so play fast! Entries sent without the correct phrase or without contact information will not be considered. All entries must be received by May 28 at noon Central Time.

On with the hunt!

Today I have the pleasure of hosting the exclusive content for author Amelia June. Amelia has her first m/m title coming out in July with Torquere Press. Congrats, Amelia! I’m so glad to have you on the blog.

Amelia June writes steamy erotic stories and novels. She favors stories that leave little to the imagination and never uses words like “flower” or “manhood”. She has been writing since the age of five when she self-published her first novel “The Scary Gost.”

Amelia lives in the desert southwest with seven–yes seven–male creatures including two children, one husband, and an array of critters. She is a student of humanity, loves eavesdropping, and prefers chocolate to just about anything.

Find out more about Amelia on her WEBSITE.

NOW FOR AMELIA’S EXCLUSIVE MATERIAL!
Hi there! I’m Amelia. Thanks to my lovely host, Sloan, for hosting me on her website. I’m excited to be a part of the scavenger hunt.

Today I want to talk about my tarot card story, Pleasure’s Power. Based on my concept of the High Priestess card, Pleasure’s Power is a naughty fairy tale. All great stories start with once upon a time, right? In this time there is a prince, Peter, who loves his kingdom but cannot obey his mother the queen. There is a priestess, Jocasta, whose faith is strong though she has private doubts about the high priestess’s ability to lead. In between them lies the Goddess, who only concerns herself with pleasure and abundance. When the unlikely lovers meet on a bright spring day, the fate of the kingdom comes to rest in their hands. Can they unite crown and temple and please the Goddess? Or will they be separated by those who seek power over pleasure?

I had a lot of fun writing this story. Peter is less of a big bad alpha male and more of a sweetheart. He’s kind, thoughtful and shy around the pretty Jocasta. When push comes to shove, though, Peter shows his mettle. I wanted to talk about a man who could be gentle and tough all at once. Jocasta is his perfect match, too. She’s a priestess of the goddess, not a fainting maiden. She needs Peter’s genial warmth just as he needs her wisdom and strength.

Here they meet for the first time:

(excerpt copyright me, please don’t steal it)

Jocasta walked into the field an hour later, arms laden with baskets for the various herbs she was gathering in the forest. She had just about given up on finding any blooming night jasmine when she spotted some on the edge of the same clearing where a man napped. “Nice,” she murmured. Her slipper-clad feet barely made a rustle in the fallen leaves. Intent on the fragrant blooms, she shouted in surprise when an animal snuffed her hair.

“Oye horse, keep your snout off me. I have no clover on my head,” she said, pushing his nose away from her with more force than she intended. The horse whickered and blew a puff of air over her face. “Good thing you’ve been eating sweet clover,” Jocasta muttered, waving her hand in front of her nose. “Now where did you—oh!”

The man apparently hadn’t heard her scream. He still slept in the same spot, soft plants flattened under his weight. Jocasta spied his royal crest and took him to be a guardsman snuck off for a mid-day nap in the midst of duty. She grinned and walked over to the lad, who was handsome and sandy-haired, his body long and lithe. The bow and broken arrow lay forgotten next to him. She took a sprig of lavender from her basket and tickled the tip of his nose. At first nothing happened until the man inhaled. He snorted, sneezed, then blinked awake. She quickly hid the flower behind her back.

“Good day, sir.” She nodded her head toward him. “I noticed you sleeping and came to have a proper look.”

The man’s brows furrowed in irritation, as if annoyed at her. She thought to speak again when the man suddenly scrambled to his feet, his gaze wide and focused on a charm at her breast. “My lady,”his voice, a breathy whisper, competed with a breeze.

As she regarded him with amusement, he dropped to one knee and bowed his head.

“Oh there’s no need for that when I stumble upon you in a field having a perfectly lovely nap. I only thought to send you back to your duties before you were noticed miss…” Her voice trailed off when her mind registered the necklace he wore and the particulars of the insignia on his chest. “Your highness,” her voice broke on a high note she disliked. “My apologies, I took you for a—well, never mind, but please rise. No need for you to bow to a lowly attendant.”

The prince raised his head and smiled at her, but didn’t rise from his knee. “My lady, I am the prince of the land, true, but your kind rule here and we all know it. Well, perhaps all but my mother. You keep the crops abundant and the game spry but plentiful.” At this he rolled his eyes, but didn’t explain about the getaway boar. “I know the full moon clasp at your breast to be a sign of elderhood within the temple, despite your young age. You must be quite powerful.”

Pride welled within her and a rush of heat filled Jocasta’s cheeks. “Still rise, you’re making me nervous down there.”
—–

You can see what happens to Peter and Jocasta in Pleasure’s Power from eXtasy Books.

I also want to brag that my first m/m title, The Ruby, will be published by Torquere Press in July! For news on my treasure hunting boys and everything else me, you can visit my blog at http://www.ameliajune.net or follow me on Twitter @ameliajune.

Thank you again for visiting, and good luck on the scavenger hunt!

Amelia

WAIT, THERE’S MORE!
SLOAN’S GIVEAWAY:

One lucky commenter will win $15 in All Romance eBooks bucks. To enter, leave a comment on this post stating you’d like to enter. My drawing closes when the scavenger hunt ends (May 28 at noon Central Time). After that, I’ll draw one random winner and will notify them via email.

Good luck!
Sloan

Ready to move on? The next stop on the Erotic Romance Scavenger Hunt is… Ava March!