The wonderful and wickedly sassy Jax Cassidy is with us today, and we’re so excited to have her back! Jax is a dear friend, an awesome author, and a creative evil genius. Accomplished not only as a writer, but as a graphic designer, and one of the two great minds behind Romance Divas, an award-winning writer’s resource website and discussion forum with over 3,700 members, Jax never stops! Today’s interview theme is ‘Stayin’ Alive’, so let’s have a chat with this powerhouse to see how she’s surviving the challenges of today’s publishing industry!
Smutketeers: Jax, the Smutketeers tend to be nosy (one of our more charming features), so tell us something people might be surprised to know about you. And make it scandalous!
Jax: Scandalous, huh? I normally don’t kiss and tell but I’ve been known to strip down to my au naturale state in the name of comic book modeling. Let’s just say it was a very titillating experience. …
Smutketeers: You’ve been doing some interesting things with Smashwords. Tell us about this new publishing phenomenon, and about your Smashwords books.
Jax: About a year ago, my good friend Eva Gale had her rights reverted back for a series of short stories from her ePub. She had mentioned a desire to expand her readership and shared information about Smashwords. Her friends had experimented with this online platform and had successful results so she tried it out. In retrospect, I wish I had taken more of an initiative because, after a year since she put up her free reads, her stories are one of the most downloaded stories on their website–ever! Even their formatting guidebook uses one of her short stories as an example. Then and there, I decided I needed to get my stories up ASAP. I figured that as an author I promote on as many online venues as possible so this is no different than a type of online marketing campaign. Based on Smashwords professionalism and business structure, it was a win-win.
What I love most about Smashwords is that I get to control whether I want to sell my own stories or offer them for free for readers. Why hide those old manuscripts under the bed when you can just edit, format, and upload to get people familiar with your writing style. I haven’t put up any of my paranormal stories but from the results of my own experimentation…after the first 3-4 weeks of having my free reads available, I had around 2,000 downloads and counting. The responses were amazing and so I decided to put up a short story, DEVIL’S HEART to sell. I love this story! It’s set in Ireland and involves a hunky bar owner and a sexy indie singer. It’s a contemporary erotic that has a splash of fairytale and I even designed the cover.
What I took away from this experiment is that free reads will get you maximum exposure and heavy downloads but don’t expect to have high sales. The stories I’ve noticed that has grabbed lots of interest are ones that reach both the male and female audiences. As I mentioned, this release was a promotional experiment for me. It certainly helped bring in additional visibility but my money’s still on pursuing the traditional NY publishing route.
Smutketeers: The publishing industry is changing, and small press and e-books are becoming more familiar to the reading public. How do you think this will affect authors? Readers?
Jax: Any kind of publishing exposure is good exposure…more people are willing to try out eBook authors because it’s much cheaper and they won’t feel bad if they don’t like what they’ve bought. A lot of instant bestsellers have emerged from ePubs and small press and the numbers of them doing very well owe it all to ePublishing. I think there’s a wider demographic that ePubs and small press are able to tap into. They’re also more willing to take chances and publish stories that traditional publishers won’t.
In any industry, there are reputable and scandalous ePublishers out there but an authors job is to do the research before submitting. Don’t be eager to sign. Read the fine print on the contracts. Plan your future and see which ePub will help you get to where you need to go. There are so many online resources and so many ePub authors out there who will share information.
I’m thankful to have my start in both ePub and small press. It’s given me a chance to learn about the submission process, edits, deadlines, and proposals. The experience will help you out immensely when you get those big contracts. By that time, I’ll be prepared and at my best professionally!
Smutketeers: We know you now have an agent-the same agent who represents all of the Smutketeers, the amazing Roberta Brown of the Brown Literary Agency! Tell us a little about your writing history and the trials and joys you’ve been through. How have your writing goals and your career changed over time?
Jax: I can’t praise Roberta enough! She is the most amazing individual and has a gentle soul. She has a way of making you feel like the most special person in the world and her support has given me a huge boost during this economy. Getting signed by her was a total accident. She had rejected three of my proposals in a three-year period and I decided I’d wait to send her something fabulous when the time was right. Well, a few weeks before Thanksgiving a year and a half ago, I had written a short story I wanted to submit to Spice Briefs. I begged her to read over it and give me her thoughts on my story because I knew she had sold plenty of Briefs to Harlequin. A few days after I sent her the email, she wrote back and asked me to set up a time to speak with her. Let’s just say for Thanksgiving I had signed with my first choice agent… Still can’t believe it!
Everything is supposed to be great when you have one of the best agents in the biz, right?
In my case, I can say that it was the happiest and toughest time for me. Unfortunately the economy was swirling down the crapper the week I signed and publishers weren’t buying because they were undergoing re-organization and downsizing. Lucky me. I was no longer in the slush pile but on a whole other stack of slush pile for new authors with agents. Yep, there is a hierarchy to everything. My waits were shorter with an agent but unless you wrote what fit their bill, the days of trying to sell the book of your heart is virtually on hold. I still didn’t allow all this frustration and negativity to bring me down, so I kept writing and staying busy.
Although I had a full plate with my boutique design company and Romance Divas, I managed to submit two short stories and four proposals. I am currently trying to finish two manuscripts and 3 more proposals. The deadlines never cease even when you’re awaiting your fate. I truly learned so much about resilience, spirituality, internal strength, and staying positive because those things will keep that fire lit within you. I’m a firm believer that hard work and a strong work ethic will get me that big freakin’ contract. Just wait and see…
Smutketeers: What are you currently working on?
Jax: I am finishing up a paranormal romance that involves the world of Death. It’s not a fallen angel story but it’s the coolest world I’ve ever built in my head and I hope I’ll be able to share it with everyone someday real soon…
I’m also going to pick back up on an Italian contemporary I started eons ago but never had a chance to finish. I’m only one chapter away from being able to polish and send to my agent. In addition, I’ll be able to work on a very cool young adult series wrapped around Asian mythology and the elements. I can’t wait to try my hand at reaching the younger audience…of course, under a different pen name.
Smutketeers: What are your favorite genres to read? To write?
Jax: I LOVE contemporaries but I don’t limit myself to just that genre. I enjoy historical, some paranormal and erotica books. Sad to say I don’t have many opportunities to read but when I do, I can go through a stack of books in a day or two.
I never say ‘never’. I think anyone who writes historicals are brilliant. I have entertained the thought but my first love is contemporaries. Paranormals are fun to delve into when I’m in that dark headspace and need the release. Perhaps someday I’ll write a historical set in Vietnam. I think most people might not find it the most romantic or exotic country because predominantly Chinese and Japanese stories have always been at the forefront..but I’m proud of my heritage and I hope someday I can talk about all those amazing figures in history that I learned about and bring them to life!
Smutketeers: Do you believe in love at first sight, or do you think it’s lust at first sight that can turn into something more?
Jax: I’m a firm believer in soul mates and destiny. I have totally fallen in love at first sight (even had lust at first sight) but it’s even more amazing when the emotional, physical, and mental is solidified through a strong relationship. That’s when the passion never wavers and the other person is the very air you need to breathe and keep you alive. I’ve found my Mr. Right so I can tell you I have firsthand experience on this topic.
Smutketeers: What else do you want to tell our Smutkedettes and others reading the blog today?
Jax: I live by the philosophy of helping others, staying true to yourself, and indulging in whatever it is that will make you feel alive. I wish I had more free time to focus on charities, fighting against human trafficking, feeding and helping the less fortunate…but every chance I get, I try to do one act of kindness. I think that in this time and age, a lot of people have forgotten about just being nice. It doesn’t take a lot of effort. Open doors, smile, help someone whose hands are full, thank someone…I guarantee you’ll feel good about yourself if you try it.
I always sign my books with “Live with Purpose, Love with Passion” and it’s something I feel strongly about. Writing has helped me through so many personal hurdles, health issues, and so much more that’s happened in my life. It’s given me an outlet and it’s a gift that I never take it for granted. I hope that when someone reads one of my stories, they’re able to escape, laugh, cry, or feel anything at all…in knowing that, I have done my job as a writer. Thanks for inviting me into your livingroom!
* * *
We always have to end with our classic Smutketeer rapid-fire questions-so here goes! ~Love or lust? Love ~Big wedding or awesome honeymoon? Awesome honeymoon ~Daniel Craig or David Beckham? Daniel Craig (Hubba hubba) ~Rock star or Regency rake? Rock star ~Chocolate or vanilla? Chocolate ~Mini skirt or cute jeans? Cute jeans (Of course! I’m a jeans addict) ~Tropical beach or mountain ski lodge? Tropical beach (where I can run around naked) ~Raspberry mojito or mango margarita? Raspberry mojito (I love those girly drinks with a bit of color)
Smutketeers: Where can we find you on the web? Do you have any appearances coming up so readers can see your fabulousness in person?
July 10, 2010
CFRWA Meeting: Group panel on preparing for RWA Conference
Downtown Orlando
Public Library
Orlando, FL
Time: 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
July 10, 2010
Borders
880 W State Road 436
Altamonte Springs, FL
Time: 2:00-4:00 PM
July 26 – August 1, 2010
RWA National Conference
Orlando, FL
November 6, 2010
CFRWA Multi-author Holiday Book Signing
Barnes and Noble
Altamonte Springs, FL
Time: TBA
Smutketeers: Thanks for coming to visit us today, Jax-you’ve worn us out, and that’s no easy task-whew! But you know you’re always welcome here-we luvs ya, Jax!
Jax: Thanks for the love. I may not be as kinky as you Smutketeers but I won’t divulge all my little secrets or show you the skeletons in my closet. Some things are better left behind closed doors.
Love you all and thanks for giving me the opportunity to ramble!!!!
CONTEST: To show our appreciation for our blog readers, we’re running a contest! Just post here with the names of any two of Jax’s heroes (you’ll have to visit her website to find out!) and we’ll give one lucky winner a copy of Eden’s kinky e-book BREAKING SKYE, and another winner a copy of one of R.G.’s e-books-anything from her backlist-go to her website to see what she’s got available!
******** BTW, Smutkedettes, Eden is blogging today with the Lolitas over at the Steamed blog about the making of her Eve Berlin costume for the Smutketeers’ recent photo shoot-and we promise those pics will be revealed here soon! Come on by and say hello! http://ageofsteam.wordpress.com/
My story in the Smutketeers’ Wasteland anthology, Book Three: THE BREEDER, was supposed to release tomorrow, but it’s out now! Buy it now at MBAM or on Amazon! To celebrate, I’m posting an excerpt and having a contest because Yay! for free stuff! Here we go…
In 2012, the world came to a grinding halt as radiation hit from a massive solar storm. Crops died, animals perished, cities fell and humans became little more than beasts themselves. Under the threat of starvation, civility was reduced to mere memory. Only the strongest men survived, and physically weaker women and children wasted to nothingness.
More than a century later, humanity struggles in the desert Wasteland that was left. The solar radiation rendered most women infertile, and the population dwindles more with each year that passes. Scattered up and down coasts, isolated cities eke out an existence from fishing, foraging and hunting for what little game remains. Outside the city walls, men face the threat of pirates and raiders.
Few women remain, divided into four classes—Wanderers, Whores, Breeders and Priestesses. They are as reviled as they are worshiped, a commodity any man must pay to touch.
There is only one rule in the Wasteland—survive.
Book One: THE WANDERER — Crystal Jordan, May 4, 2010
Book Two: THE WHORE — Lilli Feisty, May 11, 2010
Book Three: THE BREEDER — Eden Bradley, May 18, 2010
Book Four: THE PRIESTESS — R.G. Alexander, May 25, 2010
THE BREEDER, Book Three in the Wasteland Series
Destined to serve the desires of an entire city, all she wants is one man. Or maybe two…
Wasteland, Book 3
Born to the Temple, Nitara knows the Great Goddess’s plan for her: to bring life into what is left of an arid and wasted Earth. Since puberty she has been trained to arouse and titillate, to ensure the continuation of the human race.
As is the custom, the man captured for her is strong of blood, though considered little more than a wild animal. Yet when she looks into his eyes, she sees no primitive creature, but the man whose face and hands haunt her sensual dreams.
For Akaash, a hunter and warrior, it’s his shame that he will be sacrificed to a goddess he doesn’t believe in, for a people who are not his own, leaving behind his Wanderer clan—and his bonded lover, Dhatri. Locked in the bowels of the Temple, he has a month to ponder his fate, all while falling helplessly under the spell of the virgin temptress who will soon take his life.
With each tortuously erotic encounter, however, Akaash realizes that Nitara is as much a prisoner as he. If he can just get a message out to Dhatri, there may be a slim chance both of them can escape… Warning: Sexual acts in a prison cell, by the sea, in the desert, on an altar, with every possible combination of dirty deeds between two men and one very lucky woman, and all of it hot enough to melt sand! And her panties. If she were wearing any.
* * * !!!!!!!WARNING! X-Rated Excerpt Ahead!!!!!!!
“Do something for me now, Nitara.”
“I will do whatever you ask.”
“Give me your pleasure.”
She smiled, light filling her heart. He wanted from her the one thing she was able to give.
She stripped her robe off and stood close to the iron bars. His gaze was hungry as she stroked her palms over her belly, her thighs, her breasts.
“Yes, draw out your nipples as I would with my tongue, could I reach you. Ah, beautiful. I’ve never seen anyone so beautiful, Nitara.”
She shivered, holding the hardening flesh of her nipples between her fingers, stroking, pulling on them. Pleasure suffused her. Her clitoris grew hard, needy. The anticipation of awaiting his instruction was strange and thrilling.
“Tell me what you want, Akaash.”
“Part your thighs for me so that I can see your lovely cunt. So pink…I can see how wet you are. I need to taste you again, Nitara.”
She slipped her fingers into her slick juices. She was shaking with need as she held a trembling hand between the bars that separated them, held her damp fingers to his lips, as she had done before. He leaned forward, took her fingers between his lush lips, and sucked.
“Ah, Akaash…”
Pleasure was like the sun, burning into her skin, arcing through her body.
He let her fingers go, but she couldn’t pull away. Instead, she explored the contours of his face, tracing over his mouth, his beard-stubbled chin, finding a long scar on his cheek. It only made him more beautiful, somehow, that he had survived hardship.
He turned his face and kissed her fingers as he had done before, lingering kisses, his lips soft on her skin. She turned her hand over, and he pressed his mouth to her palm. Her heart fluttered in her chest.
She felt stunned by his touch. Immobilized.
“Nitara,” he whispered, his breath warm on her palm. “Come for me.”
* * * And now for my Dark or Dirty contest!
This week I’ll give away two prizes, but you have to tell me if you’re Dark or Dirty. If you’re Dark, you could win a copy of my vampire story, THE SEEKING KISS, Book One in my Midnight Playground Series (Book Two, BLOODSONG, is coming soon!). If you’re Dirty, you could win a copy of my BDSM novella, BREAKING SKYE. You can read about both books on my website. Just post here on the Smutketeers blog this week. I’ll choose and announce the winners next Sunday night (May 23rd).
Speaking of my website, I just it redesigned to match the site for my new persona, Eve Berlin! My first Eve book, PLEASURE’S EDGE, a BDSM novel for Berkley Heat, will be out in October! Eve will be here to blog about it in the fall, so stay tuned. Meanwhile, take a peek at my new website!
You can browse all of my books, see what’s coming up next, and hop over to my Eve Berlin site to see what’s new with my evil twin.
Be sure to check back here for the contest winners, and for the release of the last book in the series, R.G.’s THE PRIESTESS, next week! You can find the entire Wasteland series at Samhain, and you can buy THE BREEDER there, or on Amazon!
We’re running TWO contests to celebrate the Smutketeers’ appearance at the Romantic Times Convention in Columbus, Ohio, coming right up! One special giveaway for those attending the Convention, and another great giveaway for those who can’t make it.
We’ll all be there April 27-May 2.
Be photographed with the Smutketeers!
For those of you who will be attending the Romantic Times Convention this year we’re having a very exciting contest! On Friday, April 30th from 11:00AM to 12:00PM The Smutketeers will be meeting readers at Club RT-come and say hello, if you can. We’ll be in full Steampunk gear, so you can’t miss us. Club RT will have a drawing for an awesome basket full of Smutketeers books and other amazing goodies, including an exclusive Smutketeers T-shirt, so be sure to drop into Club RT to enter! But we’re doing something really special…Friday is the day of our next Smutketeer photo shoot. Have you seen our photo gallery? If not, you should browse through! We got together in the middle of the Nevada desert nearly two years ago, with a 7 foot long sofa, our costumes, and two photographers. But it’s been way too long, so it’s well past time for some new pics-and you could be part of the shoot! If you’ll be at RT, just enter by emailing me with your name and cell phone number by Sunday, April 25th at: eden_bradley@yahoo.com, or come by our table during our Club RT hour. One lucky winner will be dressed in Steampunk style and be photographed with us!
There are a few limitations, so be prepared for this awesome opportunity:
You must be reachable by cell phone at precisely 12:00PM on Friday, April 30th, and ready to meet us in the lobby of the convention hotel at 12:30 sharp to get into costume (we have various pieces in different sizes. Or, if you’re already a Steampunk fan, you’re welcome to bring your own costume). If your name is drawn and you don’t answer your phone, we will immediately choose another name. You must be available at 12:30 to be dressed and photographed for approximately 1 hour.
Entry in this contest constitutes permission to use your image on The Smutkleteers blog-the winner’s picture will be posted here as soon as we’ve recovered from RT. Fun!
We have a few other events planned for RT:
~We’ll all be signing our books at the Book Faire on Saturday, May 1st (and you don’t have to register for the convention to attend-if you’re local, come on by!). ~The Smutketeers will be giving a workshop, along with Samhain managing editor Laurie M. Rauch. ‘Sextopia: Writing Sex Scenes Across the Ages and Genres’ will be presented on Thursday, April 29th at 10:00AM. ~Crystal and Eden will be on several other panels, so be sure to check your RT schedule when you arrive!
The winner of the RT photo shoot contest will be announced here as soon as we have computer access after the drawing!
Win a basket of e-books!
We wouldn’t leave out those of you who won’t be at RT, of course, so we’re also running a contest for everyone right here! Enter to win a copy of one e-book from each of us from our Samhain or Ellora’s Cave backlists-that’s one e-book each from R.G., Feisty, Crystal and Eden of your choice. You can browse our websites to see our book lists. To win, just post here and let us know which of our Samhain or Ellora’s Cave back list titles (that means books that have already been released) you’d like from each of us. A winner will be chosen and announced here after we return from RT-we should be recovered from our post-convention hangovers by May 5th. We hope. :)
Meanwhile-we have an awesome interview coming up on April 20th over on the Steamed blog! The Steamed Lolitas were kind enough to let us babble at them…uh…interview us, mostly about our upcoming Wasteland Continuity Series coming out from Samhain in May. Be sure to visit us over there on April 20th!
Stay tuned for more exciting news about our upcoming Wasteland series, photos from the RT Convention and other smutty fun!
Hey there folks-you’ve probably been wondering where the heck we all are and what we’re up to…Since we’re the Smutketeers it’s usually safe to assume we’re up to no good, but, sad to say, we’ve been staying out of trouble because we’ve been working so hard. That could be boring, except, again, it’s us, and we’ve been busy writing more smut for all of you! And let’s face it, if we must work, writing smut is an awfully nice way to go…
We’ve all just finished our novellas for our upcoming Wasteland continuity series. This last week we’ve been completing our stories, polishing them up, and sending them off to our editor-very exciting! We’ve been working on this idea for almost a year, I think, so making it happen is pretty damn thrilling! I think our readers are really going to love the post-apocalyptic world we’ve created-and our hot heroes! Here’s our blurb, for those who haven’t seen it before:
THE WASTELAND SERIES
Coming from Samhain Publishing in May 2010!
In 2012, the world came to a grinding halt as radiation hit from a massive solar storm. Crops died, animals perished, cities fell, and humans became little more than beasts themselves. Under the threat of starvation, civility was reduced to mere memory. Only the strongest men survived, and physically weaker women and children wasted to nothingness.
More than a hundred years later, humanity struggles in the desert Wasteland that was left. The solar radiation rendered most women infertile, and the population dwindles more with each year that passes. Scattered up and down coasts, isolated cities eke out an existence from fishing, foraging, and hunting for what little game remains. Outside the city walls, men face the threat of pirates and raiders.
There is only one rule in the Wasteland: survive.
Crystal Jordan~~ Book One: The Wanderer Lilli Feisty~~Book Two: The Whore Eden Bradley~~Book Three: The Breeder R.G. Alexander~~Book Four: The Priestess
Somehow, we’ve all ended up writing stories with multiple partners…great-and dirty-minds think alike-lol!
Meanwhile, we’re waiting with baited and panting breath to get our cover art for the Wasteland series-look for our covers to be revealed here first!-and busy writing more for Samhain and our other publishers. I’m working on my next Spice novel, R.G. is putting her next novel together for Berkley Heat, Crystal is always working on a hot new story for Kensington Aphrodisia, and Feisty is working on her next erotic romance for Grand Central Publishing.
Speaking of Feisty, her latest novel, DARE TO SURRENDER, was just released and is in bookstores and available for order on Amazon and other online outlets now! Awesome, hot, romantic story-a must have!
I love this cover! It’s suggestive without being obvious, in your face nudity-I think it’s classy yet seductive. I prefer this sort of cover to one that reveals too much-I love the subtlety of it, yet the message comes through loud and clear. One of my favorite covers is for my BDSM book The Darker Side of Pleasure. If you don’t look at it carefully, it’s easy to miss what’s going on, and I love that. What about you? Do you like classic clinch covers, a naked male torso…? What kind of cover really draws you in? CONTEST! Let me know what sort of book covers you love, and you’ll be entered to win a copy of one of my e-books, WINTER SOLSTICE, Book One in my Celestial Seductions series! The second book in this series, SPRING EQUINOX, will be out March 5th. The winner will be announced on Thursday, so a quick little contest, just for fun. Hurry to enter-and be sure to check back to see if you’ve won!
And stay tuned for author interviews and giveaways coming up soon-we have some awesome stuff in store!
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