Sasha White

I’d love to say I have some news, but really, I don’t. Life is life, moving forward, (too fast..can you beleive it’s MARCH?) I’m catching up on things like car repairs, and carpet cleaning. Getting somewhat organized for the upcoming Romantic Times convention. I’m working, and picking up a few extra hours because I renewed my mortgage, and realized if I focus on it, I can have my condo paid off in 5 years.

For some writers this would mean they start writing more, to get more out there and make more sales. Me? It means I write less, and work at eh bar more because the bar is immediate money. I can see it, touch it, and pay bills with it right away. UNlike the writing thing where you know you have money comeing in, but it can take months to get a check – by which time the bills have tripled.

So, for now, until my customers start to really drive me crazy, thats where the majority of my time is. And uhmm, they’re starting to drive me a bit nuts already. LOL I remember why I started writing. I love waitressing, and I love my Sasha White stuff, but I still have not learned to balance them.

But I have a new plan on how to do it all…and I’m going to write it up and share it tomorrow on GENREALITY. You might find it interesting if you sometimes find yourself struggling to strike a balance in your life.

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So, last week I mentioned I had plans for the new year, that I would share with you all as they came to fruition. Now’s the time to share one of my new ventures.

If you’ve been following my blog for a while, then you might remember that I’ve had some motivation issues lately. Yes, motivation issues is a polite way to say I was burnt-out, and maybe even fed-up with certain aspects of this industry. I wasn’t sure if I would continue to write, or find something new to focus on. Maybe photography, maybe traveling again, and definitely health issues.

It’s funny to me, and very telling, that even though I really wanted to take a complete break from all things writing for a while, that my brain wouldn’t sop trying to find ways to rejuvenate my own drive and seduce my muse. One thing became very clear to me though. I have no muse to seduce, and the only thing that was going to rejuvenate my drive was getting back in the game – wholeheartedly.

However, I need to be smarter this time around, about a few things. One of those things is being pickier about what projects I get involved with. GENREALITY is a project that I am behind 100%. I’m so excited about it it’s silly.

What is GENREALITY? It’s a group blog that will be launching on January 19th, and I can’t wait. Not only is the concept of it something I think is awesome, but the authors involved are some of my heros. I’m super flattered and honored to be in such company. I hope you’ll Check it out.

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Menage stories are a hot thing in the erotic market right now. Well, to be honest, they always have been. But in my mind, it doesn’t matter how hot they are, if they’re not written well. Just like any other aspect of a story. It can be written as a completely unrealistic fantasy, or it can be written as a real experience. They do happen in real life, or so I’ve been told. *Wink*

The first threesome I ever wrote was in the fourth story I ever wrote, a short story titled HANDLING AMANDA, that is in Black Lace’s Wicked Words 9. A MFM threesome that is complete fantasy style with the woman restrained, blindfolded and loving every minute of everything that happens to her. I mean come on who wouldn’t want to be the center of attention of two very hot well-endowed men? Even if it’s only a fantasy.

Strangely, that was the only one until recently. The next threesome I wrote was in my August 2007 release from Berkley, TROUBLE. And it too is MMF, and one of the heroin’s fantasies. The great thing about that scene is, the hero arranges it all because it’s her fantasy, and I think it’s a beautiful scene. I didn’t put the scene in there because they’d suddenly become the hot trend, but because the basis of Samair and Val’s relationship in the book is his offer to make all her fantasies come true.

I believe that like any sex scene in a story, threesomes need to be authentic to the character. Not everyone fantasizes about threesomes, so not all characters should.

WICKED was my third single title for Berkley, and once again, it had one threesome scene in it. In all honestly, when I was writing it, it didn’t matter to me how hot the trend of rthem was, even then I wasn’t sure readers would like it, because that particular story is very WICKED, and it wasn’t your typical scene…(if you can call threesomes typical in any way)…but it made sense and was very authentic to the characters, so it needed to be there.

The Handling Amanda scene was a raw sex fantasy with a bit of kink (beyond the threesome angle) and the one in TROUBLE was more like –I imagine – one would be in a romantic relationship. The one in WICKED was tense, emotional, and arousing. It had emotional connection, as well as the kink factor, and I loved writing it.

I got asked why I write threesomes in some of my stories…I write them because it’s fantasy of mine! And why not, I live a lot of fantasies and dreams through my characters.

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So, over the holidays I got an email from a chair of the National Leather Association-International. One of their members has nominated WICKED for thier Novel Fiction Writing Award!

The press release for the Awards states that “the addition of the novel and short fiction awards to recognize writers in these categories whose works “entertain and educate, while building awareness and tolerance of the leather/SM/fetish community and showcasing the talents.“

This is a huge thing for me, because I made such effort to ensure that WICKED was a true representation of ‘living the lifestyle’. To be nominated by a reader in that organization tell me that I accomplished that.

Yay!!

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Just a heads up, I’ll be back to blogging regularly after January 1st, but for today, if you want, you can visit me over at the Novelist Inc blog, where I wrote about Doing It My Way.

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I’m a writer who does actually use things I’ve seen , done or heard about in my stories. And as a waitress /bartender for almost 20 years, that covers a lot of ground.

Yet, I’ve never written a book on waitressing. The idea has played in the back of my mind for a few years, usually when I’m at work and getting frustrated with customers who are clueless. I’m thinking something along the lines of How to be a reasonable customer for Dummies might be a good thing.
Tips would include things like: ~ Look around you. If the place is full, and you only see one waitress, try to have a bit of patience.
~ When the server repeats your order to you, Listen! There is a reason why they do it…so they make sure they heard you correctly and order the right thing!
~ Read the menu. If you have an allergy to tomatoes, and the Taco Salad says it has tomatoes, then ask for no tomatoes. Don’t order it, then try to blame me for not being psychic enough to know about your allergy.

Then again, the people who need to read that sort of book probably wouldn’t because they are so clueless they already think they’re great.

So maybe something like The Waitress Diaries, or Tales from the Kitchen (except I’m not a cook, but Tales from the Service Area doesn’t have the same ring to it.)

Those are non-fiction ideas. I could go the fiction route and creat a character and give her many many of my, and others, experiences, btu I’m not sure if that would interest people.

Who knows, just thought I’d throw it out there.

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I admit it, I’m not a huge review hunter when it comes to my books. Of course I like them, because I like feedback, and the more reviews there are floating around, the more I think people are reading my books. But this time around, with PRIMAL MALE, the wait is killing me.

So far I’ve only seen 2 reviews for this book, one said it kicked ass and highly recommended it,t he other said it was lacking.

I know it doesn’t release for another 12 days, but normally there are some advance ones out there by now. Especially since on top of what my publisher put out there I personally have sent out over 50 copies for review (in eBook and print format).

I know reviews aren’t a huge thing, and they don’t always sell books, but for me, it’s about more than the promotional aspect of them. Sure, getting the word out, and getting readers talking is always a good thing, but it’s also feedback for me, as an author. In general, I feel reasonably confident in my contemporary erotic stories. I know that not all readers will like them, or ‘get’ them, but I feel good about my ability to write a decent story. PRIMAL MALE is my first full length paranormal, and I admit it, I’m feeling a bit insecure about it. So…the wait is killing me slowly.

Just thought I’d share.

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I’m over at Southern Fried Chica’s today doing a BEHIND THE BOOK post and talking about the Soundtrack for My Prerogative.

It goes something like this….

I Don’t Wanna Stop ~ Ozzy
I don’t know what they’re talking about
I’m making my own decisions
This thing that I found ain’t gonna bring me down
I’m like a junkie without an addiction

Mama don’t cry I just wanna stay high
I like playing with danger and fear
Everybody’s walkin’ but nobody’s talkin’
It looks a lot better from here

All my life I’ve been over the top
I don’t know what I’m doing all I know is I don’t wanna stop
All fired up, I’m gonna go ’til I drop
You’re either in or in the way, don’t make me I don’t wanna stop

Why don’t they ever listen to me
It’s just a one way conversation
Nothing they say is gonna set me free
Don’t need no mental masturbation

Too many religions but only one god
I don’t need another saviour
Don’t try to change my mind
You know I’m one of a kind
Ain’t gonna change my bad behaviour

All my life I’ve been over the top
I don’t know what I’m doing all I know is I don’t wanna stop
All fired up, I’m gonna go ’til I drop
You’re either in or in the way, don’t make me I don’t wanna stop
All my life I’ve been over the top

This song is about getting high and going hard in all that you do, and while Kelsey drinks a lot, I associated the lyrics with her sexual appetite. The beat, strong, fast, and edgy suited the tempo of the story with My Prerogative, plus I love Ozzy.

Come visit me over at Southern Fried Chica’s and see more videos, and read about the rest of the soundtrack..!

PS: I’m also over at www.candyready.com all week with interviews and excerpts.

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So I’ve been trying to build some buzz for MY PREROGATIVE (Which releases on Sept 2.) and in order to do that one of the things I do is troll for reviews. reviews are important not so much because praise is good for the soul (And let’s face it reviews are not always full of praise. LOL ) But because it helps create word of mouth. Word of mouth is what makes an author sales. The reviews are just what help get people talking. So if you enjoy a book, talk about it. Tell friends, lovers, co-workers, about this good book you read. However, with erotic fiction, word of mouth is mostly on the internet because no matter how loud and proud people say they are to read it, it’s rarely the genre people go spreading the word about a great book on. Am I making sense?

This is one of the reasons I often quote my reviews on here. And so far, the reviews have been GREAT! And all from Romance Review sites. Top Pick from Night Owl Romance, Recommended Read from Dark Angel Review, 4.5 Blue Ribbons from Romance Junkies… I admit I was surprised. While *I* think My Prerogative is great, I wasn’t so sure readers would. Because if you’ve read a few of my books, you’ll know by now it’s not often my characters are traditional ones, even if their struggles are basic human nature ones.

However, I received a very nice email from a reviewer at a popular site. I’d emailed asking if they’d received my newest book, and if they’d like a copy of TROUBLE, which they’d never reviewed. The review replied back that she started MY PREROGATIVE, but it felt to womans fiction-y so she stopped. She thought I was a very talented erotica author, but she preferred more romance with her erotic fiction.

All very well an good. The email was nice, friendly and complimentary – and it got me thinking.

I’m the first to admit I’m not an author of traditional romance. Hell, I’m not very traditional in anything I do. I color outside the lines, laugh too loud, and swear way too much. I prefer working nights to working days, and I like to eat pizza for breakfast and oatmeal for dinner. I’ve accepted that aspect of my personality – and honestly, I love it about myself.

Now, back in 2006 when I sold my first story to Kensington for their new erotica line, they asked for erotica. I’d been asked to write an erotica novella, and I did. THE CRIB in the PURE SEX antho, is by my definition, erotica, not erotic romance. But before the book was published,(But after the story was written and in the publication process) the line decided to market Aphrodisia as Erotic Romance instead or Erotica. Now, I knew there would be a backlash, because THE CRIB was not a traditional romance. and while *I* thought the character had a happy ending, it was not a Romance or Relationship Happy ending. It was a mystery solved, emotional breakthrough, type happy ending.

Sure enough, there was a huge internet thing on how Aphrodisia has lied to readers. (and not all about my book, there were several books that the same thing happened to.) When Kensington started buying for the line they asked for erotica, they got erotica…then the line labeled as ER. Romance was supposed to have a Happily Ever After, or even a Happily For Now ending. That was the defining element of a romance novel! I understand the readers upset, and I know myself, by that time I’d already written my second novella for Kensington, and it was definitely more romance, with a romantic happy ending. Because it was now labeling the books ER, and authors don’t usually set out to piss off readers. And I’ve made sure that each story afterwards, for them, was a more traditional romance style. Again, my style will never be all traditional…but the Aphrodisias FEEL more romance style to me when I write them…but in all honesty, I’m not sure readers notice it or not though.

Berkley Heat is a Erotica/Erotic Romance line. They have both, and the feel is more mainstream than romance. At least thats the way I see it. So my Berkley books tend to be a bit more mainstream, but again, they always have a happy ending…which is what everyone cried out was the definition of a romance. After 20 years working as a bartender/waitress, I’ve seen people from every walk of life. I’ve seen ‘traditional’ relationships where people are not happy, and non-traditional relationships that work and the love shines through. But more importantly, I’ve noticed that most of us who work in non-traditional jobs (By that I mean not M-F 9-5 ‘careers’) are often non traditional in what we want from others and from life.

One theme in almost all of my books is that my characters are rarely in traditional jobs. This is mostly because I never lasted in a M-F 9-5 job, and I like to follow the ‘write what you know’ theory. I also know that myself, I’d never be happy with what people see as a traditional relationship. Do I want to love, to be loved, to have family…oh yeah, I do. But the man I fall in love with is going to have accept that I have a few quirks. So the hero’s in my books have to accept that their heroines have a few quirks.

I knew going out with MY PREROGATIVE that traditional romance readers might not feel it very romance-ish because not only is it told mostly in first person by the heroine, the hero isn’t even introduced until Chapter 5. But yes, you do get his POV, in third person, (as you can see here) but even then, he’s introduced as a watcher. The reader doesn’t get to know him, and the heroine doesn’t even meet him until page 99. The romance aspect of it doesn’t bloom until after that.

Their relationship is very non-traditional, I can certainly see why someone would think it non-romance at the start…

My point is that I agree, I do write non-traditional characters, and non-traditional romance, but I still feel it’s romance. And by the ‘there must be a happy ending for the couple’ standard, they are romance as well. But do people who have always lived a traditional life see it that way? I know my editor commented that my romances lack the “fantasy element”. And she wasn’t talking about sexual fantasy, or out of this world paranormal fantasy..she was talking the romance happily ever fantasy.

So, I took the reviews email saying I was a talented erotic author as a compliment. I can see how she thought MY PREROGATIVE was a bit woman’s fiction-ish… but I hope readers also see the romance in it. Instead of being a little bit country and a little bit rock’n’ roll, it’s little bit romance, and a little bit realistic. *hee hee hee*

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Not much going on here folks. I painted my office, I’m writing, and I go back to work on Friday night to a nice brand newly renovated bar. YAY! I’m so excited about the renovated bar. LOL

My newly painted office looks great too…except in the places where the roller hit the ceiling…or a place or two where when I triesd to do the outline along the ceiling I wasn’t close enough… Yeah, I’m not a professional, but I still love it.

To tease y’all cuz I’m going to be scarce with my blogging for the next couple weeks…
I’ll be posting plenty of excerpts from everything I have.

Today..here’s a sneek peek at HIDDEN CRAVINGS, the first novella in MOST WANTED, the singel author anthology I’m working on right now…
Remember Devon and Lexy from THE CRIB? It’s them again…

HIDDEN CRAVINGS

Heart pounding and blood heating, Lexy stared at the man leaning against the red brick of her apartment building. Unmoving in the shadows just beyond the light of the entrance, he was barely visible. Yet, as she slammed the car door and moved steadily across the parking lot her insides knotted with an undeniable excitement.
Devon Kaye. It wasn’t really surprising her body recognized him before her brain did. After all, the man had worked her body in ways that, a year later, still lived on in her dreams.
Ignoring the urge to jump on him with open arms and eager lips, Lexy kept her steps slow and even, and her expression casual.
When she got close he moved out of the shadows and she stopped in front of him. Hands on hips she tilted her head to the side and took her time checking him out.
He was six feet of lean muscle covered by scuffed biker boots, faded denim jeans, a plain white T-shirt, and a black leather jacket. His midnight hair was mussed, his jaw unshaven, and his peircing grey eyes turbulent.
Lexy’s hormones settled into a holding pattern and she spoke softly. Gently. “Hey.”
“Hey.”
Talking never had been thier strong point. The first night they’d met, Devon had said they were two of a kind, and it was true. They’d connected almost immediately on a very physical level. Even as they stood there the hunger for Devon’s touch was growing inside her.
Without another word Lexy turned away, unlocked the door to the building, and went in. They didn’t talk in the elevator or the hallway, but as soon as the door closed and they were inside the apartment she turned to him.
“You look like shit.” It was a lie. Despite the roughness of his appearance, he looked dangerously sexy.
Devon’s hot gaze ran over her demure slacks and simple blouse and she wanted to cringe. One side of his mouth tilted up in a crooked smile. “You look great, as always, Alexis.”
Something soft fluttered in my chest at the way he said my name and she forgot all about what she was wearing. To everyone else she was street smart and sexy Lexy Signorino, private investigator and skip tracer, unafraid to use her sex appeal to get the upper hand in a situation. But Devon had called her Alexis from day one, and the way her full name rolled off his tongue never failed to make her feel beautiful … special.
As hot as her blood was running, it was obvious the desire for an erotic fling wasn’t what had brought him to her doorstep. Something was seriously wrong. All romantic thoughts slipped away and she smiled at him. “Why don’t we go into the kitchen and you can tell me what’s up?”
“Sounds good,” he said, dropping his dufflebag on the floor and following me to the small kitchen area.
Devon settled himself into one of the cheap folding chairs set around the kitchen table and Lexy grabbed a couple of cold beers from the fridge. She handed one to him and twisted the cap off the other before settling across from him. As soon as her ass hit the chair Devon started talking, his words slow and precise, his voice calm. “My cousin Theresa called me this morning and asked me to come out and see her. She didn’t tell me why, just said she needed me.”
“And she’s family, so you dropped everything and came,” Lexy said with a nod. She understood what family meant.
“When I got here she wasn’t at the airport so I called her cell. No answer. I called her house, same thing.” He looked at her. “I called her office, and they said she didn’t made it back from her lunch.”
Lexy listened as Devon told her about going to his cousin’s house where he discovered her purse and her keys were still there. He’d waited around her place for a bit, in case she’d just gone to the store, or something, but deep down he’d known it was useless. While he was waiting he’d called a couple of her friends, but no one knew where she was. “And the cops won’t get involved yet because she’s an adult and it hasn’t been long enough. They won’t listen to me because they don’t know me, and they think I’m just overreacting.”
“Are you?” Being raised by a couple of over protective Italian men Lexy knew how they could overreact when it came to the safety and protection of women. Devon had never struck her as that type of macho man, but she’d had to ask.
He shook his head at her. “Teri called me to come out and see her, not one of her brothers, or her Dad. And I think she called me not just because I’m family, but because of what I do for a living.”
“The body guarding?” Devon’s official job title was personal security specialist. They’d met when her own over-protective Uncle had hired him to look after her, without her knowledge.
“Yeah. She didn’t say it when she was on the phone, but she was worried about something – scared almost. If I’d been here I could’ve protected her, but I didn’t get here in time to help her. Now I need to find her, and to do that I need someone who knows this city, who has ties to the police, and who is an investigator.” His piercing gray eyes pinned Lexy to her chair. “I need you, Alexis.”

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