Thursday, November 30, 2017

PLAY BY THE RULES by Frey Ortega




It was just supposed to be an interview.
It was just supposed to be one morning.
It was just supposed to be a memory...
How did it end up like this?


Sensitive and melodramatic Emmett Yang has had enough of the dating world. Enter Joe Kaminski, former quarterback--driven, determined, recently out of the closet--and knows exactly who he wants. That just happens to be Emmett.

Emmett is convinced that their chance meeting is just a one-time thing: a memory to be cherished. He doesn't think that Joe would ever really want to be with him. After all, he's...him, and Joe is Joe. He's nowhere near Joe's nebula, and there are rules and norms and mores to be followed about this sort of situation, none of which end with Joe and him together.

But can the former quarterback show Emmett that there are no rules in love?
 
 
 

Play by the Rules is a standalone gay romantic comedy in the first-person perspective. This book is steamy and includes full sex scenes, searing kisses, dramatic declarations of love and a protagonist's questionable knowledge of sexual health. It is a HEA, has no cliff-hangers or cheating, and is approximately 59,000 words.




About the Author:
Frey Ortega writes erotic romance, primarily of the gay variety. He lives in what a friend affectionately calls “the south-easternmost part of Spain,” which is an archipelago called the Philippines. He’s a graduate of the Royal, Pontifical, and Catholic University in Manila, with a Bachelors of Science degree in Psychology. Primarily, he works as a writer, a novelist, sometimes a video game journalist, and overall a homebody who spends way too much time on the internet.

He loves writing about people, especially people of all different shapes, sizes and backgrounds, falling in love. You might also find him playing video games from time to time! His favorite ones are MMORPGs, and role-playing games in general (and not just the ones in the bedroom.)

Visit his website at: http://freyortega.wordpress.com/

Thursday, November 23, 2017

Sunday, November 19, 2017

IT'S NEVER JUST ONE BOOK!


There seems to be this misconception that authors are rolling in dough, that they make money left and right, and that one little book put on a free download site won't hurt them. IT'S JUST ONE BOOK...yeah, one book downloaded by hundreds of people.
So, let's look at an example...better yet, let's look at the website I was just on that will show you exactly how much piracy costs authors and why so many of them are quitting and going to get jobs where their hard work is not stolen.
These numbers were taken directly from the site I was just on...the average audio book is $14.95. Now, I don't get that total amount because I have a publisher and only receive a percentage. But, here's the math...
Blaecleah Brothers 1 - downloaded 255 times = $3812.25
Scales and a Tail: Midnight Matings 2 - downloaded 157 times = $2347.15
Inferno: Pacific Cove 1 - downloaded 485 times = $7250.75
Hidden Desires: Tri-Omega Mates 3 - downloaded 306 times = $4574.70
Forbidden Desires: Tri-Omega Mates 2 - downloaded 409 times = $6114.55
Just a Taste of Me: Wolf Creek Pack, Book 2 - downloaded 440 times = $6578.00
Cowboy Keeper: Blaecleah Brothers, Book 2 - downloaded 274 times = $4096.30
Full Moon Mating: Wolf Creek Pack 1 - downloaded 203 times = $3034.85
There were a total of 2529 downloads on this one site. Just ONE website: That's 2529 downloads x $14.95 = $37,808.55
!!! $37,808.55 !!!

Someone wanted a comparison to what I legally sold...so here it is. This last quarter (3 months) I sold 112 audio books x $14.95 per audio book = profit of $1674.40 (before my publisher gets their cut).

Illegal Pirated audio books from this one website = $37,808.55
Legally sold books (for 3 months) before publisher's cut = $1674.40
My water got turned off earlier this month because I couldn't pay the bill. Do you think, just maybe, if the people who illegally downloaded these audio books for free had paid for them, I might have been able to pay the bill?
The people who illegally post audio books and ebooks are breaking the law. People who download them when they know they shouldn't are breaking the hearts of writers everywhere. We work just as hard as you do. We have families to care for. We need to put food on the table and pay our bills, just like you do. I don't steal from you. Why must you steal from me?
IT'S NEVER JUST ONE BOOK!!!

If you find a Siren-BookStrand e-book or audio book being sold or shared illegally, please let us know at legal@sirenbookstrand.com
 

Thursday, November 16, 2017

RELEASE DAY: Earth Demon


EARTH DEMON

Elemental Demons 3
[Erotic Alternative Fantasy Paranormal Romance, M/M, HEA]
Detective Jackson Aniston was pulled into a world he never knew existed kicking and screaming. Demons were real, and one of them swore they were mates. No matter how handsome or intriguing the Djini warrior was, Jack wasn't gay. It could never happen, no matter how many times Clagh kissed him.
Clagh had spent hundreds of years doing his duty to Jinnistan and his people. When his fellow warriors found their mates, he began to hope he would be granted the same gift. His Demonas Amaté was a welcome surprise. Now, if he could just get the handsome detective to see that they belonged together.
The threat to Jinnistan is greater than ever. The Shayatin are coming out in greater numbers, attacking indiscriminately. It's up to Clagh and Jack to find a connection between the rogue demons and a lethal new drug on the streets of both worlds before time run out.

STORY EXCERPT
"So, these tornado things," Jack Aniston said as he watched the two men sitting across the room from him, especially the one that was twirling a mini tornado around in the palm of his hand. That shit was just freaky. "Once you were claimed by Storym you could create them?"
"Yep." Nick twirled his finger, and the mini tornado began to swirl faster.
Jack's forehead creased as he frowned. "How?"
"Got me." Nick shrugged. "It's just something I can do, just like Gabe here can create fireballs."
Jack's eyes widened when Gabe created a fireball in the palm of his hand. He ducked down, the fireball barely missing his head as it sailed past him. He immediately turned and glared at Gabe. Jack rolled his eyes when he heard Nick snicker. He was getting really tired of being a target.
"Better watch it, Gabe," Nick said, "Tehmper is still pretty pissed at you for the holes in the study wall. It took the carpenters two weeks to fix them all."
Gabe pouted. "Well, he shouldn't have told me I couldn't keep my sword then, should he?"
"What are you going to do with a sword?" Nick asked. "It's not like you can return to the surface to fight."
Gabe rolled his eyes. "As we have all recently discovered, fighting is not restricted to the surface world, and I refuse to be locked up in a padded cell."
He needed a padded cell because he was insane. Jack was pretty sure they all were.
"True. I wouldn't mind the training so much if Storym didn't have a panic attack every time I stubbed my toe. Do you know how embarrassing that is? I mean, seriously, we train with all of the other demons, and he totally freaks out if one of them goes a little tough on me. They're all afraid to train with me."
"Be lucky you get to train," Gabe said. "Tehmper and I are still discussing it."
"Talk to him about it while you're giving him a blow job," Nick said. "He'll never be able to say no with his dick in your mouth."
"Eeewww," Jack groaned. "TMI, guys."
Seriously.
"Oh please." Nick snickered. "I've seen you eyeing Clagh's package more than once, and if I'm not mistaken, someone had swollen lips when they left the study the other night."
Jack's face flushed, and he quickly glanced away. "I don't know what you're talking about." Oh god, he couldn't believe someone had seen him. So, he had let the demon kiss him. So, the fuck what?
It was just one kiss.
Maybe two.
"Right," Nick snorted.
"I don't do men," Jack insisted for what must have been the millionth time since arriving in Jinnistan. He was not gay!
"Yes, but do you do demons?"
Jack suddenly laughed even though he felt his face flush yet again. "Maybe."
It wasn't exactly that he did demons and not men. He was just curious. Clagh was damn nice to look at—well, if he was going to be looking, and Jack wasn't admitting to anything—but damn, all those bulging muscles? They were hot.
Nick tilted his head back and grinned over at Gabe. "That just leaves Brayan."
"Brayan?" Gabe looked confused. "What about him?"
"Well, we've all moved back into the clan compound, except for Brayan. With the three of us here, we need to move Brayan here as well. He's one of us."
Gabe shook his head. "You heard him as well as I did. He doesn't want to move out of the palace."
"No." Nick shook his head. "He's afraid of moving out of the palace. Big difference."
"Why do you think that is?"
"A hundred reasons, I'm sure, but the most important one is that he's ashamed of the scars on his body. He needs to be here with us where we can teach him that he has nothing to be ashamed of. Besides, Zayne is here, and what better way for Brayan to come back to the land of the living than with his demon by his side."
Jack glanced up from listening to the conversation between Nick and Gabe when he saw a figure pause in the doorway. Storym, Nick's demon, held a finger up to his lips when he saw Jack looking at him. Jack smirked and glanced away.
"Plotting again, Demonas Amaté?"
Jack snickered when Nick jumped at the sound of his boyfriend's voice. Well, boyfriend, partner, mate—something like that. Jack still hadn't quite figured that part out. The tornado in Nick's hand got away from him when he lost concentration and flew across the room to smash into the bookcase. Books crashed to the floor with a loud thud.
Nick just sat there for a moment and stared. Jack started laughing at the stunned look on Nick's face, and then Gabe joined in until their laughter filled the silence in the room.
Storym grinned, which was actually a good look on the demon. He was usually so serious. "You need more practice, Demonas Amaté."
"Practice?" Nick chuckled as he turned to look longingly at the demon lounging against the archway. "I like practice."
Jack rolled his eyes as Nick jumped up and practically ran out of the room with Storym quickly giving chase. He had absolutely no delusions about where the two men were off too. It seemed every time he turned around Nick and Storym or Gabe and Tehmper were running off to have sex.
Gods, he could practically smell it. The pheromones and scent of sex that hung in the air in almost every damn room in the huge clan compound was overwhelming. Jack had jacked off so many times he was afraid of getting carpal tunnel.
"Well," Gabe said as he stood, "that was fun. I'm going to go find Tehmper."
Jack blinked and watched Gabe hightail it out of the study. He groaned and dropped his head back against the couch once the room was empty, closing his eyes. This was ridiculous. He just needed to go home and find his little black book, and then everything would be fine.
He could think of several women he could call for a night of fun between the sheets, no strings attached. There was…uh…well, she had brown hair. Brown hair and long legs. Brown hair, long legs, and muscles that went—Jack's eyes snapped open as he realized just what long legged brunette he was thinking about.
He rubbed the heels of his hands over his eyeballs, trying to dislodge the image. He so did not need to be thinking about that damn demon when he was horny. He did not do men…or demons.
"You are well, Demonas Amaté?"
Jack gulped and glanced toward the doorway, trying to remind himself that he did not do men or demons, no matter how fucking gorgeous they were. "I'm good, Clagh."
"Would you care to join me?" Clagh asked with a hopeful look on his face. "I am on my way down to the city center and you have not had time to see much of my world. I would be honored to show it to you."
Jack's boredom overrode his common sense. That was the only explanation for him nodding his head. He knew he had no business being around Clagh, especially considering that Clagh thought Jack was his Demonas Amaté.
Oh yeah, there was that whole kissing thing, too.

Saturday, November 11, 2017

FINISHED & SUBMITTED: The Stormy Glenn Convention

THE STORMY GLENN CONVENTION
coming November 29th
What happens when an author loses her muse?
After waiting ages for their stories to be turned into a series, paranormals from the worlds of Stormy Glenn's imagination accept invitations to attend The Stormy Glenn Convention. Between attending classes on interspecies mating and learning how to control their inner growl, they hope to convince the author to write the next story in their saga
When tragedy strikes and Stormy Glenn's muse goes missing, it's up to the characters she created to solve the mystery and bring back the voices in her head. Without her muse, their stories may never be told.
STORY EXCERPT
"I'm so excited."
Memphis chuckled as he glanced briefly at his mate. "I can tell. You're about to vibrate right out of your seat."
Eyes as blue as the ocean and rimmed with the darkest kohl blinked up at Memphis with a brilliance that still had the ability to steal his breath. "Don't you understand? Stormy Glenn is going to be there. We finally get to meet her, like in person."
"Honey, there are going to be a lot of people at this convention. She may not have time to meet with everyone." Memphis hated to burst his mate's bubble, but if someone didn't pull Harper's feet back down to the ground, the guy was going to float away.
"She'll want to meet Bristol," Harper said with more confidence than Memphis was feeling. "Stormy loves babies. She had six of her own, you know."
At the mere mention of his infant son, Memphis glanced in the rear view mirror so he could see the baby sleeping peacefully in the backseat of the car. Harper was his mate, his love, his reason for living. Bristol was his pride and joy, his reason for being a strong alpha.
The six month old infant was a chip off the furry old block. Most days, Memphis just sat and stared at his son with a sense of wonder. Having Harper in his life was a gift from the gods. Having Bristol was a freaking miracle, especially considering Harper had given birth to Bristol, and Harper was a man.
After being bitten ten years before and turned into a werewolf, Memphis thought he had experienced all that was paranormal in the world. After accidentally mating Harper and getting him pregnant, Memphis had learned that there was a lot in the world he had no clue about.
But he wasn't sorry, not one damn bit. He loved both Harper and Bristol more than his next breath. They had given meaning to his bleak existence as a werewolf. More than that, they had given him unconditional love and acceptance. They gave him a home.
Memphis smiled as he went back to watching out the front window of the car. He supposed he did have a little to thank Stormy Glenn for. Her muse had created a world where Memphis would go through hell, but discover his own little bit of heaven along the way.
"Oh snap, I broke a nail." Harper dug in his bag and pulled out a nail file. He started buffing one of his manicured fingernails.
Memphis shook his head as a chuckle rumbled through him. Now, if he could just get his little diva to sit still long enough for them to reach the remote resort where the first annual Stormy Glenn Convention was being held.
"Do you think they have a beauty salon at the resort?"
"They do, imp. I already checked."
Memphis smiled when Harper leaned over and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "And that's why I love you."
Memphis snorted. "That is not why you love me."
"True," Harper said as he slid his hand down to Memphis's zipper. "But I didn't want to say that in front of the baby. You know how good his hearing is."
He did. Memphis had been cock blocked by a crying baby more than once in the last six months. "You know, we could have left him with my parents and turned this into a little romantic vacation for two."
He had suggested it.
"The invitation said you, me, and Bristol."
Which was why his suggestion had been vetoed.
Memphis thought Harper was going to lose his mind when the invitation to the convention arrived in the mail. He had talked of nothing else for weeks. He was so excited he looked ready to burst.
Memphis had to admit he was intrigued as well. It wasn't every day you were invited to meet the author that created you and your world, and then told your story. There was a part of him that wanted to know how Ms. Glenn had conceived of the idea to write his tale. His wasn't the usual werewolf shifter story.
He also wanted to ask Ms. Glenn why she had left everything such a mystery. It would have been nice to know he wouldn't attack Harper once he mated him. That thought had terrified him and almost cost him the most precious thing in his life—his family.
He'd also like to know when his pack mates were going to get their story. Jackson and Truman were waiting for their story to be told, and Jackson was growing a bit growlier with each passing day. If words weren't written soon, Memphis feared what the other werewolf would do.
Truman wasn't much better.
If Harper was the queen of divas, then Truman was the princess. Together, the two flighty men kept Memphis and Jackson on their toes. Of course, Memphis wouldn't have it any other way and he doubted Jackson would either.
Still, it would be nice to find out what the future held for Jackson and Truman. The curiosity was killing him.
"Oh my god, would you look at that place." Pure awe laced Harper's voice when they rounded the bend and the exclusive resort came into view.
Memphis had to admit Harper was right in his astonishment. An exclusive and remote resort in the Pacific Northwest gave him visions of a rustic lodge or something. He never dreamed the place would be an actual castle.
Only Stormy Glenn could come up with something like this. She probably dreamed it up in her imagination and plopped it down in the middle of the Cascade Mountains. The sandy colored stone castle looked as if it had been there hundreds of years, which was impossible considering how long the United States had been an actual country.
Memphis pulled the car into the line of vehicle moving toward the entrance. One by one, they were being met by the valets and unloaded. Memphis was actually kind of surprised at how many people had shown up for the convention. He hadn't realized Stormy had that many characters running around in her imagination.
"Deep breath, Imp," Memphis said as he settled his hand on Harper's bouncing leg.
"I gotta pee."
Of course he did.
"There's only two cars ahead of us. We'll be there in a minute."
"Did you get a chance to look at the brochure that came with the invitation?" Harper asked as he went digging into his bag again. "I signed us up for several of the courses they are offering."
Memphis barely suppressed his groan. "What courses?"
"There's a really great one on interspecies mating that I think we should both attend and then there's one on how to control your inner growl." Harper gave him a pointed look. "That one is all for you."
Memphis cocked an eyebrow. "I thought you liked my inner growl."
Harper's eyes shot to the backseat before moving to Memphis. "I do, but sometimes you growl when we're out in public. If anyone heard you..."
Memphis snorted. "You mean if anyone knew how hard your dick gets when I growl..."
Harper grinned. "That too."
"Maybe you should attend the course with me."
Harper shook his head. "It's for growlers only."
Memphis rolled his eyes. Freaking fantastic.