Amorous Woman Goes to Hollywood!

… and Beverly Hills and West Hollywood and the Dr. Susan Block Radio Show!

Yes, Lydia and I are off on a new adventure to the illusion factory of our nation in sunny southern California—very appropriate, wouldn’t you say?

My first stop is the In the Flesh L.A. Erotic Reading Series:

Thursday, September 25TH at 8 PM

At Hustler Hollywood, 8920 Sunset Boulevard, West Hollywood CA, 90069

Admission: Free, $10 suggested donation to RAINN

Hustler Hollywood: 310-860-9009

Then on Saturday night I’ll be chatting with Dr. Susan Block, who has the sexiest, smokiest voice I’ve ever heard. The show starts at 11 pm PDT and can be heard through her web site at http://www.drsusanblock.com as well as blogtalkradio.com.

This will be followed by a busy day at the West Hollywood Book Fair on Sunday, September 28 from 10AM to 6PM at West Hollywood Park, 647 N. San Vicente Blvd. I’ll be part of the California Erotica Authors Booth (E44) and the theme will be international—my booth mates and I will offer an exotic décor of kimono and saris, plus free suggestive fortune cookies and other saucy goodies. I’m hoping to meet lots of people and maybe even send them off with their own Amorous Woman.

Of course, I’ll let you know all about my adventure when I return. As Lydia will attest, telling your story to an appreciative audience is more than half the fun!

Amorous Woman in the Stratosphere!

Well, this is all momentary and relatively speaking of course, but I just had to share the good news. Now, I don't check my Amazon numbers all that often--only to keep tabs on the efficacy or lack thereof of certain marketing strategies--but I just got my October issue of Scarlet, the glossy, sexy UK magazine that ran my story "Love Hotel Hill" last month. This issue is even more of a thrill for me, because Amorous Woman is the featured novel in their "Juicy Bits" section. The excerpt is indeed one of the juicier ones, if I do say so myself, and I just happened to check my Amazon UK numbers as a sort of market research. Now, I know this is only a temporary flight into the heady heights of thin five-digit Amazon air, but please indulge my celebration of my brief ascent in my hot air balloon. I actually made the rankings in some categories!!! Here's the stats, m'am:

September 22, 2008 at 12:30 pm PDT

AMOROUS WOMAN

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 28,465 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Popular in these categories:
#85 in Books > Fiction > Genre > Erotica
#93 in Books > Romance > Genres > Adult

Amorous Woman Gets Even Spicier!

The big day has arrived! Come join me for a fun-filled barbecue book roast of Amorous Woman on Monday, September 22. There will be jokes, laughter, spicy comments, bawdy insinuations, and best of all, one lucky winner will take home their own Amorous Woman!

I hope that lucky winner is you!

Learn to Write Erotica with a Master of the Genre

I've been reading and admiring M. Christian's erotica since...well, since I began reading erotica regularly, over ten years ago. To quote myself (hmm, am I allowed to quote myself?) "With his amazing versatility and silky smooth prose, M. Christian helped forge the erotica revolution of the 1990s and he’s still going strong!" Not to mention, there is no more pleasant company in which to explore the eateries of the SF Bay Area--M. Christian, Sage Vivant, my chief editor and technical advisor (aka husband) and myself have started a wonderful supper club tradition, which I hope continues indefinitely. Timidly claiming the name "colleague" with a writer I've admired so long has been a dream come true--one of the many unexpected benefits of my arduous Amorous Woman promotion efforts.

Okay, enough about me--I have an exciting announcement about sex and writing. M. Christian is offering a one-day erotica writing workshop in San Francisco this October. Unfortunately I'll be off in New York on the east coast leg of my Amorous Woman book tour at that time. But that shouldn't stop you from signing up to learn sexy writing secrets from a man who helped make erotica cool and hot! Here are the details. Be there or be square!


Sex Sells: How to Write & Sell Erotica
With M.Christian

Sunday, October 12th, 1pm - 4pm
$40 before Sept 30; $50 after Sept 30
Center for Sex & Culture
1519 Mission Steet, San Francisco
Register via PayPal (Zobop@aol.com) or pay at the door

The market for erotic fiction and nonfiction is booming! There actually is a secret to writing great erotica - and you'll discover just what that is in this fun, hands-on workshop with well-known erotica writer and teacher M. Christian.

For the beginning writer, erotica can be the ideal place to begin writing, getting published, and -- best of all -- earning money. And for the experienced writer, erotica can be an excellent way to beef up your resume and hone your writing skills. M. Christian will review the varieties of personal and literary expression possible in this exciting and expanding field. He'll also teach you techniques for creating love and sex scenes that sizzle.

Learn how to:

* Get started writing for and selling to this growing marketplace
* Free your creativity and get past inhibitions
* Avoid cliches, common mistakes, and pitfalls
* Write what editors and publishers will want to buy

Plus: current pay rates, how to write for a wide variety of erotic genres, from magazines to websites, where and how to submit your erotic writing, and more.

Students will also receive:

* Several informative handouts including a list of top-notch markets and venues for erotica, as well as funny and educational articles and columns
* A personal invitation to contribute to a special erotica project
* 50% off a wide selections of erotica books
* A free autographed copy of M.Christian's collection Filthy: Outrageous Gay Erotica=

The class is open to everyone (over the age of 21) interested in writing all kinds of erotica: gay, straight, lesbian, bisexual, fetish ... you name it!

M.Christian is an acknowledged master of erotica with more than 300 stories in such anthologies as Best American Erotica, Best Gay Erotica, Best Lesbian Erotica, Best Fetish Erotica, and many, many other anthologies, magazines, and Web sites. He is the editor of 20 anthologies including the Best S/M Erotica series, The Burning Pen, Guilty Pleasures, and many others. He is the author of the collections Dirty Words, Speaking Parts, The Bachelor Machine, and Filthy; and the novels Running Dry, The Very Bloody Marys, Me2, Brushes, and Painted Doll. His site is www.mchristian.com.

For more information write M.Christian at zobop@aol.com.

*no guarantees

See My (Almost) Naked Butt in LA!

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Book Roast Alert!

Anticipation is half the fun—at least when it comes to sex, food and writing. So, to get the saliva glands working just a bit, I wanted to let you all know about a saucy event coming up next Monday, September 22 over at the Book Roast, where they serve ‘em juicy.

My friend, Xujun Eberlein, has already been well-grilled by the Roast Masters with her book, Apologies Forthcoming, and I’m looking forward to my own spicy feast. Like all barbecues, it will be more fun with good friends in attendance, so sharpen up your wit and get ready for a party next Monday. Can I count you in? (For those who already have a copy of Amorous Woman, if you win, I can substitute chocolate or another anthology with a DGS story!)

Madame Butterfly Praises Amorous Woman!

Let me start by saying one of the very best parts of writing Amorous Woman has been the amazing people I’ve met who’ve honored me with their time in reading my naughty tale and then have gone on to write wonderful, articulate reviews. I appreciate how much that takes out of a busy day because even a short review can take a while to craft to satisfaction, not to mention some absolutely stunning analyses of the novel that have even enlightened me as to what I offer!

I'll confess there is one set of readers who make me a little bit nervous—people who’ve actually lived in Japan. One of my goals in writing my novel was to present the “truth” of my experience, ironic given the focus on lies and illusion, but it has been a number of years since I was immersed in the culture and I wasn’t sure I’d get it right. Imagine my delight when I saw the lovely and generous review by Madame Butterfly, a woman who knows and loves Japan in a way that feels very familiar indeed. I first met MB over at Lust Bites, the beginning of many good things, and discovered we had a lot in common. I always stop by her blog when I’m cyber-surfing for her laugh-out-loud humor and evocative reviews of erotica—so imagine my surprise and delight when I clicked on over and saw her, that half-naked woman who is so ubiquitous around my house as seen in the box of bookmarks, the multiple refrigerator magnets, and the shipping-torn copy I use to read from at events which is always lying around somewhere. MB had reviewed Amorous Woman!

Before the little knot of nervousness in my stomach could balloon too large, I dove in and read. Lo and behold, Madame Butterfly had brought a smile to my face again. To check out her review, head on over to her very fun blog here. If she won’t convince you I’m telling the truth about Japan with her seductive words, you are one tough customer to please!

Wanna Get Wet?

I love The Erotic Woman! It’s a smart, sexy site that features some of my very favorite writers like Susan DiPlacido, Jeremy Edwards, and Gwen Masters.

I love the photos, too. They’re geared to the female sensibility somehow. And the editors are fabulously fine to work with--it's always a true pleasure.

Best of all, they’ve just featured an illustrated version of my Best Women’s Erotica 2008 story, “Wet.” You may know that bathing is an important ritual in Japan, but you probably had no idea how very wet you can get!

Check it out and leave a comment if you’re so inspired! For my erotica writer friends (you know who you are and you know I love you!), send them a story and join a very happy club….

I Reveal My Literary Side on NPR!

I wouldn’t blame you if you thought I was just another party girl, running off to foreign lands to have amorous adventures—and making book trailers about it! But in fact, I can be deep and serious in my writing—the tony world of the university literary magazine has even, on occasion, invited me to the table for a glass of wine.

Speaking of which, an essay I wrote about my father’s death when I was seventeen, “Thirteen Views of Grief,” appears in the latest issue of The Tampa Review, a lovely hard-bound journal packed with art and thought-provoking fiction and essays. I was even more fortunate to be invited to read the essay in the studio of my local NPR station, KQED, as part of their Writer’s Block series. I’m joining a long list of wonderful writers, including my friends Lisa K. Buchanan and Naomi Williams.

You can listen to my podcast here. It’s about 20 minutes, much shorter than my KWMR interview. If you enjoyed “Thirteen Views of Grief,” please rate it and leave a comment. Thanks for listening!

New Amorous Excerpt at Frequently Felt

The Amorous Woman makes a stop at a wonderful blog of sexual curiosities, M. Christian’s “Frequently Felt.” This name derives from a nineteenth-century joke: “old hat” is a slang term for women’s private parts as they were frequently felt.

Let’s hope so for the happiness of all.

I'm not sure what it is about sex in the nineteenth century that seems, well, naughtier. Maybe it was the greater obstacles presented by hoop skirts, petticoats and corsets, not to mention so many rules of propriety?

Anyway, in honor of the eclectic nature of Frequently Felt, I chose an excerpt about the sexual hobbyist, Mr. Kimura, who wows Lydia with his knowledge and prowess. I hope the excerpt pleases you, too!

Alison Tyler and My Kinky Collection

Alison Tyler, the Trollop with a Laptop, is one of the very coolest (and hottest) writers and editors in the erotica universe and it was a big thrill for me to have a picture of my panties appear on her blog post a few months back.

Now she's letting the world see another revealing side of me, my book collection about Japan's Floating World. These books have been the inspiration for many steamy scenes in my stories--although I'd have to admit good old-fashioned memories play a big role, too. But if you'd like to take a peek inside a corner of my dirty little mind, check it out here and please leave a comment, if you're so inspired!

Sexy Down in the Stacks

I got a nice bit of writing news today in the form of a Google Alert. Hot Movies for Her Dot Com reviewed Alison Tyler’s Open for Business: Tales of Office Sex, and the reviewer, Porn Librarian, praises my story, “Sex, Lies, and Library Books” right here. By the name alone I feel an affinity for the gal, being an honorary porn librarian myself, but to be so appreciative of my story, well, she is way cool in my book!

I was also checking out the site and I’d say it’s a worthwhile resource for intelligent, woman-friendly revues of videos, books and toys. These kinds of places warm my heart because they present one of the best ways for women to “talk back to porn” by becoming educated consumers and making our voices heard!

Good Girl Gone Bad

If you haven't already seen my brand-new, gorgeous book trailer for Amorous Woman, check it out here on Youtube! I've been getting a lot of great feedback. Many people say they like my sexy voice, which is very gratifying. After all, writing is about voice....

After you've feasted your eyes on the lovely Japanese prints and the mildly provocative photographs from my archives, you might want to do a little feasting of the more literal kind on some of late summer's bounty from the Farmers' Market. If so, head over to the Erotic Readers and Writers Association for a look at my September offering for my column, Cooking up a Storey, entitled "Good Girl Gone Bad: Sucking Up, Getting Down and Risky Encounters in the Kitchen." I talk about the perils of promoting an erotic novel and the thrill of breaking rules in the bedroom, the boardroom and, of course, the kitchen. My "No-recipe Recipe for Empowerment Soup or Stew for Those Who Like to Misbehave By the Rules" is a perfect way to take advantage of the abundance of the harvest.

Come on, live a little dangerously!

An Erotic Trip to Japan: My Book Trailer!

Big, happy news today, my friends--my Amorous Woman book trailer is now up on Youtube! It’s an eye-catching blend of gorgeous Japanese prints and archival photographs of yours truly from Japan, in keeping with the semi-autobiographical nature of the book itself.

I have to say I have not had this much creative fun in a long time. Big, huge, kiss-you-all-over thanks to my wonderful husband who helped me with the ideas and did all of the computer work. This project was an interesting reversal of baby-making for us because I had the twinkle in my eye and he did all the rest to bring our treasure into the world.

So, please do pop over to Youtube and check it out. If you’re up for it, give it some stars, leave a comment and tell your friends about a quick, cheap way to “stay-cation” in Kyoto.