Samhain Publishing

I'm not talking about a threesome, like in my new release, Birthday Girl, when I say we should share the love.  I'm talking about talking up the books we love, the authors we auto-buy, the stories we keep thinking about days after we turned the last page.

I have found so many new-to-me authors on Twitter. Not from the promo that authors are compelled to do to get the word out there about their new releases. But from discussions between readers in the tweetstream. Sometimes all it takes is one tweet about a book someone loved to have me checking it out. And when I see the same book over and over again, you can be sure I'm going to look it up. 

Word of mouth isn't the same as it used to be. I don't have a group of friends who get together to talk about books. No book club in my area – even if I had the time to leave the house on a evening when I should be writing. Co-workers will mention books they've enjoyed, but that's the best I get in real life, and they are almost all romantic suspense. Nothing wrong with that, I like romantic suspense, but I like so many other types of books too. So I depend on on-line sources, Twitter, Facebook, blogs. I love to find out about books and authors I haven't discovered. And recommendations from readers go a long way when I make my buying decisions.

So share the love. If you read a book you weren't able to put down, one that made you smile, made you cry, made you stay up way past your bedtime to finish, I want to know about it. And I'm willing to bet a lot of other readers do too.

Natasha

www.natashamoore.com

Since today is the first day of autumn, my mind has turned to the weather. While today the calendar says we say good-bye to summer, in western New York state we said good-bye several weeks ago. So while I’m mourning my sandals and short sleeves, I’m loving the cooler nights for sleeping. The weather can affect the way I feel, and likewise, affect my characters and the way they feel.

I think I’ve been missing opportunities to use the weather in my writing. And I don’t mean just a hurricane or blizzard for my characters to struggle against. As a part of the setting itself, weather can be a powerful tool for the writer. And for the reader, using the weather can add more detail to the story, help draw the reader more fully into the story. In my upcoming Samhain release, Risk It, releasing Nov 15th, this is the opening paragraph (one time I actually did use the weather to set the scene and tone):

If the rain slashing across the windshield was any indication of how the evening was going to go, Amy knew she should turn the car around and head home right now. But rain was just rain, for goodness sake, not a bad omen. She wasn’t going to let a little cold water dampen her spirits or wash away the shivers of anticipation skittering over her skin.

As a reader, do you notice when weather is used in a story? Or is it maybe better that it’s NOT noticeable? As a writer, do you consciously use the weather in your writing?

Natasha
FLAUNT IT – Available now
RISK IT – Coming Nov 15th
www.natashamoore.com

In a little over a week, my husband and I are leaving on a two week vacation. We’re taking our RV down to Florida to visit friends and family. Is it bad of me that one of the things I’m most looking forward to is simply to walk on the beach, watch the surf roll in, and curl my toes into the warm sand?

Winter was long and cold in western New York. Spring has been cool and wet. There have been very few days when we can even go out without a jacket. Is it any wonder I’m looking forward to some warm weather? Hot weather, even? But it’s more than the warmth I’m craving. There’s something about the pull of the ocean. The rhythm of the waves and the scent of the ocean air call to me. I need to visit at least once a year and wish I could do it more often.

So this next week I’ll be frantically getting ready for the trip, looking forward to some relaxing days ahead amid ocean breezes. And when I’m back home again, shaking the sand from my sandals, I’m sure I’ll dream of being back at the beach. But that’s not a bad thing. Who knows, my next heroine might be curling her toes into the warm sand.

Natasha
www.natashamoore.com

I know a lot of authors who say they can’t write with music playing, but there’s something about the act of putting on the headphones at the keyboard that lets my muse know it’s writing time. The music also blocks out the TV my husband’s watching in the next room. I’ve also heard about other writers who create entire playlists for each story and only play those song while they’re writing. I’ve never taken the time to do that, but I do find that I like to listen to different types of songs during different parts of the writing process. (Sensual songs during a love scene, instrumental only during editing.)

Music was especially important to me while I was writing my recent Samhain release, SEE ME. In this story, the heroine dances alone in her apartment every evening as a way to release stress after work. During the story, she listens (and dances…and strips) to a bluesy jazz mix – at least she did in my mind. And I have Pandora Radio to thank for that. With this internet radio site, I can set up my own mix of music. Then I’m able to listen to the mix that works for the story I’m writing, the scene I’m writing at the time. When I was writing SEE ME, I often listened to their Smooth Jazz station. It kept me in the moment and in my heroine’s head.

Do you listen to music when you write? How do you like to listen to your music?Does it put you in the mood?

Natasha
SEE ME – Available now
FLAUNT IT – Coming Soon
www.natashamoore.com

Almost a year ago now, the three Binding Ties novellas were released individually as downloads. My novella, Bound by Design, Jenna Ives’ The Initiation of Isabella and Skylar Kade’s Maison Domine all garnered great reviews and made the best seller list at My Bookstore and More. I loved writing Jenn and Scott’s story of trust and being true to yourself. I know I speak for my anthology mates when I say how thrilled we are to be part of this project.

Now the print anthology is available and I’m excited all over again. Once again, Scott Carpenter designed a beautiful cover for us. The anthology received a 4 star review from Romantic Times, saying, “Fans of BDSM will revel in these super-hot, titillating tales. Expect a lot of action tempered by love as each couple finds their HEA in these fast-paced, character-driven stories.”

Jenna Ives and I will be signing copies of Binding Ties at the Romance Writers of America conference in Orlando on July 28th.

Natasha
www.natashamoore.com

This is how I celebrated signing my 15th contract last month! I honestly never thought I’d get a tattoo, but my daughter joked when I signed my first contract that we’d have to get tattoos together after I sold my 15th. Well, 15 sales sounded like a pipe dream at the time…so I agreed! There are 15 hearts for 15 sales. And I hope to be adding more hearts over the years.

So…how do you celebrate??

Natasha
www.natashamoore.com

One of the things I love about writing is researching interesting occupations, hobbies, and settings for the stories I plan to write. I’ve learned so many amazing things that I never would have come across any other way. Through my research I’ve traveled cross-country on a Harley, I’ve performed magic, I’ve designed erotic jewelry. But I’ve never actually experienced any of them.

Right now I’m working on a story where the hero is an erotic artist and during my research I discovered the awesome art of body painting.

I’ve learned that there are different methods of applying paint to the body – foam brushes, artist brushes, air brushes. There is special body paint – think of what you see at face painting booths at your local folk festival. There’s even liquid latex paint that can be peeled off when it’s no longer required.

I’ve spent hours browsing websites featuring body art. The picture here is from a website called Canvas Alive. I’m amazed by the incredibly talented artists out there. The pictures have given me so much inspiration for my book and my characters. I can’t help but wonder what it would feel like to have paint applied to large portions of my body. And how much more I might feel if I was attracted to the artist. By the time I was done researching, I couldn’t wait to get my hero and heroine together. And actually wish I could experience it myself.

So tell me, do any of you have experience with body painting? Have you created art from someone else’s body? Have you had your body transformed into a work of art? I’d love to hear about it!

And if body art’s not your thing, what interesting information have you run across while reading or writing a book?

Natasha
www.natashamoore.com

Dye my hair, that is. I’ve been coloring my hair to cover those pesky grays for over twenty years and I’m tired of it. Tired of the time it takes. Tired of the mess and the cost. Tired of planning my hair appointments around special occasions so the roots won’t show. Can anyone else relate to that?

Now that I’ve made my decision, I love to check out the progress as my hair grows in. I’m excited to see what it will look like as time goes by. I haven’t colored in four months now. It’s quite white at the temples and the sides, more salt and pepper on top and in back. Most people I talk to think I’m crazy. Most everyone tells me I’ll look older. Maybe I will, but I haven’t been twenty for a long time and I’m not fooling anyone.

What is it about the idea of gray hair that seems to get people so up in arms? Most women I mention my decision to are quick to tell me they’re not ready to stop dying their hair! Hello? I didn’t tell them to. I just said I was going to stop. Everyone has an opinion and no one is afraid to let me know what it is.

Is it the fear of getting older themselves that causes people to react so strongly? Yeah, the media is youth-crazy. The ads for hair color for both women and men tell you that you can’t get a date or a job without coloring your hair. Is it no wonder that most people think that way? Luckily my husband is totally behind my decision even if my kids aren’t quite so sure.

Chalk me up as one woman who’s ready to show the world that having gray (or white or silver) hair doesn’t make me old. Gray is just a color. I’m the same person no matter what color my hair is. I can do everything I could before. I’ll just have more money in my pocket, more time on my hands, and less stress to go along with it.

If you or someone you know wants to join the revolution, check out this website:
http://www.goinggraylookinggreat.com/ There’s great support there with a community of women, young and old, who have chosen gray for their hair color.

So what do you think? Is having gray hair a handicap?

Natasha
BOUND BY DESIGN-available now
www.natashamoore.com

Did you ever do something when you were young and foolish, and afterward said, “Never again!”? Well, in my new novella, Bound by Design, part of the Binding Ties anthology, my heroine, Jenn, has vowed just that. She played around with a Master/slave relationship in college and while parts of it were amazing, she gradually lost herself to the boy who called himself her Master. After she was rescued, she vowed, “Never again.”

But then she meets a man whose quiet strength and obvious dominance rocks her down to her toes. There’s something about Scott that draws her to him, that frightens and excites her at the same time. That tempts her to try a taste of that old lifestyle.

Bound by Design got a 5 cherries review from Whipped Cream Reviews! It said in part…“Natasha Moore builds a beautiful world that draws you in. This is a great flowing story with lots of wonderful characters full of love and trust this book is not to be missed. If you enjoy a story full of excitement and trust this is the book for you. I will definitely be on the lookout for more from this author. “ You can read the whole review here:
http://whippedcream2.blogspot.com/2009/09/bound-by-design-by-natasha-moore.html

To celebrate the release of the Binding Ties anthology, Jenna Ives, Skylar Kade and I are holding a month-long contest. In honor of the bondage theme of the anthology, we are giving away a beginner’s Bondage Kit, complete with blindfold and wrist and ankle cuffs! Wouldn’t that add a little excitement to your evening? All you have to do to enter is send an e-mail to bindingties-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Have you ever said, “Never again?” and then done it anyway?? Was it a mistake? Or are you glad you gave it another try????

Natasha
www.natashamoore.com

Twitter???

The internet is a growing, changing entity. First there were e-mails as a way to keep in touch with one another. Yahoo Groups and forums and bulletin boards. Then there was MySpace. And Facebook. Now there’s this place called Twitter, where we’re supposed to catch up with all our friends one sound bite at a time.

Now maybe all of you are old hands at Twitter – I admit, I just started “tweeting” this week. Not sure I have this whole thing down yet. I think the more people I start “following” the less I’m able to follow the conversations. Or maybe there aren’t any real conversations going on. Just comments here and there. Some are interesting. In fact, most of them are interesting in a strange sort of way. Kind of like the headlines without the details or the in-depth interviews.

In one way, I’m sad that our interactions have been condensed down to 140 words or less. But in another way, I’m catching glimpses of a lot of people I probably wouldn’t be hearing from – or about – any other way.

So do you Twitter? If so, what do you like about it? How do you get anything else done if you want to follow all the messages streaming in? Or is Twitter just getting a little too superficial? I’d like to hear what you think.

Oh, and if you want to follow a new Twitter convert…you’ll find me under “natashamoore”

Natasha Moore
Romance with more…sizzle
www.natashamoore.com