Monday, June 10, 2013

~ Symposium: Writing Therapy! ~

Hello Everyone! Welcome to my June symposium!

This time I asked my fellow authors how reality influences their writing. Do they write about real places or real people? Find out what they had to say!
 

LAURIE ROMA: Do I have a wicked right cross? Yes, but I can't exactly go around punching people in the face, no matter how much some may deserve it. Sometimes the beauty of writing is that I can pour my anger and frustration out onto the page. If you've been bitchy or snarky to me, or if you're one of those extreme assholes that I've had the misfortune of dating then yes; you have probably ended up in one of my novels. In my IAD series my agents deal with a variety of nasty characters that no one in the world will miss if they were...exterminated. I get to think of interesting and creative ways to kill off characters all the time. And boy, is it fun! Writing is therapy...only this way there is less cost and no cleanup.
 
 
Tara Toshi is a woman on the edge. Code name "T-rex," Tara is one of the elite agents of the IAD Agency, modern-day warriors tasked with taking down terrorists and keeping the world safe. She doesn’t believe that happily ever after exists for her, until her world collides with corporate tycoon Julian King.
 
Julian King is the owner of a multimillion dollar hotel empire and personally runs the Palace Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. He is a man who rules his kingdom with an iron grip and knows that the house always wins. But when he meets agent Tara Toshi all bets are off. As a terrorist plot threatens his city, Julian realizes that he is also in jeopardy of losing his heart.
 
Passion explodes every time Tara and Julian come together, but can she risk taking this one shot at finding happiness and give her heart to a man she barely knows?

BUY LINKS:

 
SOPHIE OAK: Do I use things from my real life in my writing? Of course. Writers write best when they come from a place of personal and emotional knowledge. But I also like writing from my husband’s real life. My husband grew up in a small Colorado town in a cabin his grandfather built along the Rio Grande River in the middle of the Sangre de Christo Mountains. It should. South Fork, Colorado and it’s surrounding towns form the basis for my Bliss, Colorado series. It’s one of the most unique parts of the world I’ve ever visited. It’s beautiful and has an amazing combination of hippie artists and cowboys. Many of the stories about the characters growing up come from my husband’s childhood. During those summers, it was just him and his cousin and they ran wild. Bliss, CO is a way of honoring one of my favorite places on earth.

 
Logan Green is back in Bliss, but only for a few weeks to help out at the sheriff’s office. Everything changes when Seth Stark strolls into town with Georgia Dawson on his arm.
 
Seth’s arrival is anything but a happy accident. He always dreamed of a big house on the river and a wife he could share with his best friend, Logan. After building a software empire, his only goal has been to make that dream come true. He just needed the perfect woman.
 
Georgia is still haunted by the dark, troubled Dom who saved her life. She can’t get Logan out of her head. Her boss brought her to Bliss to help him outfit his new summer home, but when Logan Green walks through the door she discovers Seth has something different in mind.
 
Seth has a plan for their mutual happily ever after, but he never dreamed that coming home would put all their lives in danger.

BUY LINKS:

SAM CRESCENT: Writing from life experiences is supposed to be an essential part of writing. I have to say I write from a mixture of feelings and fantasies. I’ve always struggled to use a person from real life into a book as I feel I’d be more concerned with getting the accurate descriptions right. Also, I’ve never been part of a threesome. My writing allows me to come away from the real world and delve into something more magical. Writing is my own kind of therapy. I don’t need to talk things over, I just need to immerse myself into my characters and work the charm. I know this is a completely boring answer and I wish I had so many wonderful tales to tell. My writing is part of me and I love doing research *wink* but I also love stretching my mind into characters I would never be. 
 
 
Prue has been taken from him. James will stop at nothing until he gets her back. The odds are stacked against him but he refuses to give up. Prue is his woman and he’ll hurt anyone or anything that gets in his way.

When James saves her, Prue can’t give herself to him. Something has happened during her captivity, and she’s not the same. She demands time. But time isn’t what she needs. Since she’s been gone, James has changed. After talking with a therapist, Prue realizes what she needs and it isn’t the placid man James has become.

Can James be the man she needs or has their affair run its course? James is a possessive man, an owner. There is no chance of him letting Prue go, but can they both survive the fire that their passions create?

BUY LINK:

SUSAN HAYES: I think that everything I write is influenced at least in part by my life experiences. Even when it’s not blatant, it creeps into my work and subtly seasons the story. There have been times though, where it’s been anything but subtle. Like when I use the name of someone who has royally pissed me off. Ex-boyfriends, a friend’s cheating ex-husband, and an irksome neighbor have all made cameo appearances in my books, and never in a good way. They’ve been mocked, cast as the villain or killed off in horrible ways, and I’ve saved a fortune in therapy and legal fees. Apparently feeding your ex to a shark is illegal, unless you do it in a book.  

 
Rory Frazier is destined to be the next leader of Kismet Cove, a secret colony of seal shape-shifters known as selkies. The catch? Rory can only claim his birthright if he and his blood brother Evan Sinclair find a suitable mate.

Jessica Jones has come to Tofino to reclaim her life and move on from the grief of her mother’s death. Jess just wants time alone and space to heal, but kismet has something else in store. After a rogue wave sweeps her out into the frigid Pacific Ocean, Jess is rescued by two handsome men who heat her blood and help to heal her wounded heart.

Time’s running out for Rory and Evan. They need to present the colony with their chosen mate and tell Jess the truth about who they really are. When their secrets are finally revealed, will their newfound love survive, or will the emotional riptide tear the three of them apart forever?

BUY LINKS:

SHAE SHANNON: I want to give a great big hug to the wonderful and uber talented Laurie Roma for inviting me to participate!  This was one of the most enjoyable blogs I have done!  It was hard to narrow down just one to write about, but this has to be my favorite. In my newest submission, Her Knights in Black Stetsons- Smalltown USA, EmmaLee is going through a rough bump in life.  After a run in with an ex boyfriend-psycho who roughs her up, and dealing with her heart that longs for the three Dennison brothers with whom she grew up with, her emotions are past breaking point.  She heads to the local honkey tonk to drown some of her pent up anxiety, only to find the two girls from high school that were utter pains in the ass.  When EmmaLee walks up and sees Rachael Bradly and Angela Howard rubbing up on one of her cowboys, she loses it.  Everything goes black, and fists fly.  These two characters are girls that tormented me in high school. (With slight name changes and my dad’s current evil girlfriend’s name incorporated...)  It felt so good having my Emmie beat the living shit out of them.  Sweet revenge. 

 
An alpha wolf, and an alpha panther—both of which are hot, sexy, brick walls of ooh-la-la wrapped up in "yes please, give me more"—decide to pursue Giselle Shalay, things explode in a supernova of desire and need. She is torn between what her body craves and what her mind protests. She is a free-spirited, independent witch who could never succumb to the role of an obedient, mindless, submissive wife.
 
Aiden Grey refuses to share Giselle, whether Brandon Knight is meant to mate her or not. Brandon tries to show him reason, but any discussions end up in blows. When push comes to shove, he turns to his pack and declares war against the panthers in a fight to win her hand.
 
Can they come to terms with what fate has dealt and work together in convincing Giselle that her place is with them, or will egos and misconceived ideas keep destiny from joining their hearts forever?

BUY LINK:

JAN GRAHAM: I don’t usually base characters on real people but in Playing Jax I made an exception. A friend asked me to write a character based on him, he pestered me to do it actually. I finally gave in and Cal Webster, the commitment phobic fireman was born. Cal is a secondary character in the story, he’s personality is very much like my friend, as is his appearance. He has a great sense of humor, is committed to his work but guarded with his heart. He also loves to play the field where women are concerned. My friend loved the character I created but now keeps asking me when Cal will get his own book. My reply to him remains consistent. When you get over your commitment issues, open up your heart to love and finally settle down, then so will Cal. His response…I guess we’ll have to see what happens. J

 
Steve Jax buried his heart, along with his soul mate, two years ago. He had his turn in the game of love and it didn’t work out, end of story. His new neighbor might stir certain passions within him, but his dark, kinky desires aren’t the sort of thing a sweet, naïve ex-nun should be exposed to. All he has to do is convince the determined little minx of that?

Rhiannon McCabe has never been in love. She’s hidden under a religious veil since she was eighteen, now everything’s changed. She’s left the church, created a new life, and finally met the only man to ever arouse her sexual nature. Steve might think he doesn’t have the capacity to love her, but she’s determined to convince him otherwise. If love really is a game, then Steve Jax is a prize worth playing for.
 
BUY LINKS:

TARA ROSE: I admit it. I used an ex-boyfriend from college as the basis for a hero’s checkered past. It wasn’t out of revenge of a sense of justice. It was because this guy was such a caricature in high school, and what he had done fit my character’s past so perfectly, that I couldn’t resist. I did, however, change his name and several key details, so I doubt he’d recognized himself in this character. Sometimes real life is simply too bizarre not to use.

 

When Cherilyn Barker casts aside her inhibitions with Doms Thayer Denning and Evan Rydell after hours in the gym they co-own, she awakens her submissive desires. Her late husband has been dead for eighteen months, and Cherilyn is lonely. Evan and Thayer seem like the perfect answer to her fantasies, until someone breaks into the gym and leaves behind a tie that belonged to her late husband.
 
Thayer has recently broken up with his on-again, off-again sub, and is just looking for a woman who will love him. Life seems perfect when Cherilyn becomes not only his sub, but also the woman he loves. Until the man playing cat and mouse with the Racy police kidnaps her, that is…


 
Evan Rydell has never truly given his heart to a sub, until Cherilyn falls into the role with him and Thayer. He’s in love with her, and when she disappears one stormy night, he will move heaven and earth to find her.
 
BUY LINK:

LORI KING: I am constantly using real life experiences and people I know in my books. It’s not like I set out to do so, it just seems to happen. In Sidney’s Triple Shot, the main character Sidney lives through a very serious domestic violence situation that unfortunately is awfully close to my own real life experiences. It made the book difficult to write and yet very therapeutic. In that same book there is a character named Paxton Novak who is actually a real person in my life with a different name. He’s fun and funny, and doesn’t take anything seriously. The fact that he’s deliciously sexy certainly helped, and I’m hoping that in the future I can give “Paxton” his own happy ending. In every story I write someone, or something is pulled right out of my reality, but only those who know me would be able to pick it out.

 
Sidney Rowe has been abused in ways that most people can’t even imagine. After a horrific miscarriage, she left behind everything she had to escape her ex-boyfriend. She finds refuge in the kindness of the three Dawson brothers. They give her a job and a sense of security in the small town of Apache Crossing.

Xavier, Tyce, and Noah Dawson have built their bar, Triple Shot, into a profitable enterprise. The three former Marines have also built a reputation for integrity in the community, but their sex appeal and charm are legendary. They enjoy their playboy status…that is until a jumpy, skittish Sidney stumbles into their lives needing their help.

Sexual tension explodes when the brothers decide they want to protect and share Sidney, but to have her they have to stop her ex from haunting her. Can they keep her safe and win her damaged heart?

BUY LINKS:

DIANE LEYNE: Who hasn't dreamed of killing off an annoying co-worker or boss using pen and paper or rather computer and keyboard... this is the 21st century after all. It's enough, sometimes, to make me want to start writing murder mysteries. Because I write erotica, I rarely have an actual villain that I can kill off or at least send to jail. However, I finally had the opportunity in Libertine Island 1, Sex on the Beach, to get some written revenge. I wrote the character of Leo Holtzman to represent every asshole who's ever been condescending just because I'm female.  Holtzman harasses the heroine and she gets no support from her men who think she needs to learn to deal with difficult people.  Of course, he gets his comeuppance, and to make it sweeter, rather than having one of the heroes punch him out, I let the heroine do it.

 
PhD and Dominant Joshua McClain is in love with sweet, naturally submissive Innkeeper Jillian Madison. He's visited the Inn twice and plans to claim her on his next visit.

She's spent the last decade raising her sisters and when they leave home for university, she is looking forward to selling the Inn and starting a new life, putting herself first for once. But Joshua gives her something else to consider when he introduces her to BDSM. Could she submit to the extremely hot doctor who's heated up her sheets, or does she need to be alone to spread her wings?

She agrees to stay with him at his island home for a month to give their relationship a chance, but throw in an author's tour for his provocative new book The Dominant's Guide to Owning and Training a Sex Slave and a vindictive ex and the obstacles may be insurmountable.
 
BUY LINK:

TYMBER DALTON: I've "ripped from real life" quite often. Usually fictionalized heavily. LOL Although my book "Cross Country Chaos" was inspired by a real-life trip I took with my son (a wheelchair athlete) one year and I pulled a couple of the mishaps for fictionalization. And "The Denim Dom" contains quite a few autobiographical elements in terms of Tony (based heavily on my own Sir), and the play sessions and dynamics between him and Shayla (some of the things are pulled nearly verbatim from our own play). And in one of my Triple Trouble books, Brodey complains because his breakfast cereal routine is disrupted. That was directly from a conversation Hubby and I had one morning when we were out of one of his cereals. LOL Also, I've killed off several people in my books to get a vicarious (and perfectly legal LOL) thrill. (Law enforcement frowns on murder, even if the victims are total douchecanoes.)


Who needs leather when you can have denim? A denim Dom, that is.
 
Shayla Pierce dumped her lying ex and moved to Florida to start a job at a magazine. An assignment to write about BDSM leads her to discover a new world and make a slew of new friends, including the sinfully sexy Tony Daniels. She’s just not sure she can ever trust again.
 
Tony is used to teaching about BDSM, but he’s never trained a submissive he wasn’t dating before. After losing hope he’ll ever find the perfect submissive for him, Shayla walks into his life and asks him to train her for her series of articles. He knows about her bad break-up and their agreement is supposed to be nothing more than business. But as she raises the ante, he’s finding it harder to keep his heart under lock and key.
 
Will Shayla stay a hostage to her past, or allow Tony to become her Denim Dom?

BUY LINKS:

REBECCA JOYCE: To use my Sexpertise or not to use my Sexpertise…that is the question. When I write, I pull from all sorts of outlets, not just from my own knowledge of the freaky-deaky, but from other forms of enjoyment, like PORN, PORN and more PORN! Pornography is the best-hidden secret when it comes to this author’s Sexpertise…not only have I watched it, I have even tried it. I am a porn watcher, doer, and voyeur! However, when it comes to writing, I take in everything I have ever read, saw or participated in, and channel that into one hot steamy sex scene. If you wondering just how hot my sex life really gets, read the first sex scene of “Gabriel’s Heart”. YEP!…That was ME!!!!

 
Destined to live alone, Gabriel has never said a word about the hunger inside him. Never able to touch her, to hold her, to love her, she lives in his dreams, where he can cherish her as he wishes. Struggling with his desires, he is gifted one night to bask in her glory.
 
Antoinette has loved Gabriel since childhood. Her protector, confidant and friend, she prayed that some day he would be hers. She gives into her desire for Gabriel, only to have her dreams shattered when he walks away.
 
Alexander Ellis has quietly lived in the shadows of a man he has considered his best friend from childhood. Concerned, he travels to Treasure Cove, only to lose his heart to the one woman his friend desires.
 
When a secret from the past seems destined to destroy them? Can forgiveness sooth the soul or will shattered dreams keep all of them apart forever?

BUY LINK:

HENNESSEE ANDREWS: Have I ever used a real life situation or person in my books? Hmmm. I’d have to say yes to that. Sometimes I take personalities from people I know. Other times I use my “what if?” method to develop a book. But the one book that is closest to any real life person or situation would be Leather and Steel. I’m an ex railroader, yes, it’s true. I have lots of railroading family and I find a unique sensual quality in the heavy steel and the enormous trains. When I wrote Leather and Steel, I borrowed from past recollections and feelings. Railroad men for me are about as hot as men in uniform. The job is hot, dirty, and strenuous. Most all positions require superior skills and education, making the men not only hot, but intelligent too! I’ve always heard, “Write what you know”, so that’s exactly what I do.

 
Fifteen years ago, Skye Erikson tucked tail and ran far from Tulsa, Oklahoma and railroader Brock Masterson. For six months their relationship blossomed into a raging love affair filled with hot, erotic nights. The relationship became intense and bordered on becoming serious, prompting Skye to run.
 
The years passed, but the memories endured, inhabiting her heart and mind. Brock had been the one man to masterfully control her body without words. She had thought of him over the years, and at times she considered trying to find him again, but fear prevented her from doing so.
 
A trip back to Tulsa lands her back in the strong arms of Brock, and she becomes a slave to the passion that once bubbled between them. Their intimate encounters rekindle a firestorm that cannot be denied any longer.
Will she admit her love for him or run again?
 
BUY LINKS:

JENIKA SNOW: There have been several people that I've imagined writing into my stories that met less than pleasant ends, but surprisingly I've never actually done it. Of course, I have used the real names of the people I disliked for the less than favorable characters. In regards to a real situation, yes, I have used some instances that have happened in my life. The story I'm currently writing is a good example. It involves a car crash that resulted in a death. The story is very emotional which is how that situation was for me and the people that experienced it with me. Writing out traumatic events that happened to you is a good way to work through your feelings, for me at least. I find it therapeutic.

Ecstasy, Colorado, a town full of beauty and secrets...

Jane Silver has a past that rivals horror stories, but she prevails, because with the Holden twins by her side she knows she can get through anything. The only problem is she loves not one brother, but both.

Two brothers in love with the same woman...
William and Rys Holden, twins, have been in love with Jane since they were young. But the brothers know she deserves so much more than what they can give her. With one brother reserved and the other the town playboy, a platonic relationship is the safest for all of them. But soon the three are involved in a love triangle with no intent on stopping. When a scandal threatens their newfound relationship, the brothers will do anything to make sure nothing stands in the way of claiming Jane Silver as theirs.

BUY LINK:

MIA ASHLINN: As a writer, I definitely need therapy—often. After all, I do have lots of little people (aka characters) talking in my head twenty-four hours a day. But I have yet to use writing as my therapy for a real life situation or person. Now I must share a secret with you. I am going to break down and try writing therapy soon. Why? Because I have heard that it is quite therapeutic to torture your mother-in-law or your next door neighbor in a book. Well, seeing how I’m a pacifist in my daily life, I want to see how it feels to release some of the animosity I bottle up written down on paper. In fact, I already have the person picked out, and I have my hubby’s go-ahead. So…it is coming and no one is safe. Cue the evil laughter. See, I told you I needed therapy!
 

Sometimes what a person wants most has been standing in front of them all along.

Four months ago, an eye-opening discovery drove Sam Carrington away from his best friends, Brett Monroe and Ethan Bartlett. Now he’s beginning his new life in Luscious, Kansas. But still, he longs for the men he loves.
 
Brett and Ethan were shattered when Sam vanished. Every day since his disappearance has been devoted to finding him. However, their search is in vain because two of Sam’s powerful friends made sure he was impossible to find.

After Sam is stabbed while protecting a friend, he shuts everyone around him out. Concerned for his emotional well-being, one of his protectors turns to Brett and Ethan for help. Once the men know where Sam is, they’ll do whatever it takes to get him back. Only their journey won’t be easy. And the path they must take will lead them to either a luscious beginning or a heartbreaking end.

BUY LINK:
 
TONYA RAMAGOS: There’s probably always a tidbit of a real-life situation or person in all of my books, but the one that sticks out to me the most happened in Taken By Surprise [The Heroes of Silver Springs 7]. The heroine, Rhonda Ramsey, turned out to remind me most of myself in the end than any other character I’ve created. At the time, I was coming out of a divorce and struggling to learn how to stand on my own while still providing the best life for my 2 sons that I could. Rhonda helped me through this as she came out of a divorce of her own, devoted her life to her son, and stood strong against all adversities. Of course, I didn’t get kidnapped by a notorious Cambodian drug lord and have to trudge my way through a jungle with the hunky DEA agent Michael Cosmos, but her adventures were really great therapy for me.
 
 
Erotic author Danica Wallace spends her days creating sexy, dominant heroes and her nights yearning for an explosive orgasm only one man can give her...or is it two men? Lately, another faceless, dominant male has invaded her fantasies. Together, they’ve left her longing for a man she pushed away and another she’s never met. When FBI agent Lowell Tucker returns with fellow agent and friend, Zane Kalkin, she’s given an opportunity to turn her dreams into reality. But is the promise of a dominant night worth the pain she’ll feel when they leave again?
 
Five years ago, Lowell walked away from Danica. Now he’s back to claim the only woman he’s ever loved and he’s brought backup. Sharing Danica with Zane wasn’t part of his plan, but Zane has fallen for her, too. Danica’s infinite pleasure is all that matters. All Lowell and Zane have to do is figure out how to keep her forever.
 
BUY LINK:
 
 
THANKS FOR JOINING ME!!! I LOVED THE INSIGHT INTO EVERYONE'S WICKED MINDS *WINK WINK*
 
 

4 comments:

  1. Oh how fun!! Thank you for letting me be part of this. I loved reading everyone else's responses. :)

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  2. What a great topic Laurie! I love knowing that all of my fav authors are sharing pieces of their real lives in their stories. Thanks for including me!

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  3. This was so fun Laurie! I love this topic, and hope there is more to come! It put a new intrigue to each of the ladie's books, and made me want to immediately rush out to get each book and spot each character similarity! These answers were awesome ladies! Thank you for letting me take part.

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  4. What a great post. Thanks for including me. I loved hearing how everyone else adds reality to their work and gets free therapy of course.

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