With the release of DARK NIGHTS DANGEROUS MEN I’m doing a ‘Spread the Sale Word’ contest! Some of you might know what this is but for those who don’t, here’s what this contest is all about: I’m asking readers to help me spread the word about DARK NIGHTS DANGEROUS MEN, which is on sale for 99 cents for a limited time!


6 Bestselling Authors, 6 Sexy Reads…let’s spread the word about this deal because it won’t last long!

It’s currently on sale at

Amazon, Barnes & Noble and All Romance eBooks

To enter this giveaway, simply spread the word about this sale. You can post on Facebook or tweet about it. You can blog about it or even change your twitter avatar to the cover. Don’t have a twitter account? You can change your facebook profile picture to the cover. There are a lot of options to pick from to enter. It’s basically as much or as little as you’re comfortable doing. Each share or action counts as one entry. The contest is open from now until Sunday, May 26, 2013 at 11:59 PM Central.




What are the prizes?

One winner: $25 Amazon.com or B&N.com gift card

One winner: Signed copy of WAIT FOR ME

One winner: Signed copy of MARKED

One winner: Signed copy of STOLEN FURY

Two winners: Digital copies of SLAVE TO PASSION

Two winners: Digital copies of POSSESSED BY DESIRE

One winner: ETERNAL GUARDIANS SWAG PACK (bookmarks, set of four fabric coasters, trading cards, and other fun stuff)

*International entries accepted!*

If you’re game, will you please help spread the word about DARK NIGHTS DANGEROUS MEN? You can enter on multiple days, multiple times.

Thanks,
Elisabeth

Open to all readers, 18 years or older, who are legally allowed to participate in such a contest as allowed by their local laws. All federal, state, local, and municipal laws and regulations apply. Void where prohibited. No purchase necessary. By participating in the contest, participants agree to be bound by the decisions of the contest sponsor, Elisabeth Naughton. Odds of winning depend on number of entries received. Winners will be randomly chosen and notified via email after the conclusion of the contest. Winners will have 48 hours to respond to the email notification before they forfeit their winning and a new winner is chosen to replace them. Open until May 26, 2013 at 11:59:59 PM Central.

I’ve wanted to write a series of blog posts about self-publishing for a while but haven’t had time. Now that BOUND is out and I can breathe a little easier between deadlines, I thought this would be the perfect chance to share a little of what I’ve learned about publishing and how the market is changing. Hopefully, some of what I share will be of help to those of you who are looking at your publishing options.

First off, I have to say I am by no means an expert when it comes to self publishing, but I’m happy to pass on what I’ve learned because I had great authors who shared (and continue to share) with me. Authors like Bella Andre, Marie Force, Tina Folsom and Gemma Halliday. What’s fabulous about the industry these days is that authors are willing to help each other. When I started writing everything was hush-hush. You didn’t ask what authors got paid because every publishing house treated their authors differently. Some amazing writers were handed BIG contracts, and some amazing writers got paid next to nothing. It all came down to which authors a publisher wanted to push. When I first told my husband I wanted to seriously pursue my dream of being an author, he said, “Well, what kind of income do authors make?” I answered, “I don’t know. It’s all different. No one talks about money.” He was shocked. “What? How can you not know what to expect?” I just shrugged my shoulders and went back to work on my laptop. He was right to be horrified, of course. Part of the reason authors have been treated as non-essential to publishers for so long is because we never stood up for ourselves. For years authors took crappy contracts all for the “prestige” of saying they were published (and I know this is true because I was one of them). I wrote for four years for traditional publishers and spent more money on marketing and promotion and conference travel than I ever made in profit. Something’s wrong with that. Thanks to self publishing, though, that isn’t the case anymore. Instead of publishers deciding who sinks or swims in this business, readers are now choosing who to support. And authors who write books readers want to buy are the ones who are succeeding. For a determined writer, for someone with book business sense who wants to make a living doing what they love, this is a fantastic time to be an author.

To give you a little background, I began writing in 2003 with the goal of one day becoming a published author. It took me five years to sell to a New York Publisher. When I finally got “the call”, I thought I’d made it. Yeah, the contract wasn’t that great, but I was PUBLISHED. My dream of seeing my name on a book had finally come true. STOLEN FURY was my debut book and released in 2009. It got great reviews and was nominated for two RITA awards in 2010 in both best first book and best romantic suspense. Over the next few years, I wrote four more books for Dorchester–two more romantic suspense books in my Stolen series, then the first two books in my (ongoing) Eternal Guardians series. I did a novella for Kensington which linked back to my Stolen books and could spur a new series. When Dorchester started having problems I moved to Sourcebooks and continued my Eternal Guardians series by writing three more books for them. From a professional standpoint, I was doing great. I had all the accolades of being a published author–my books were on store shelves and in airports, I was getting rave reviews, I was a top seller in romance for Sourcebooks, I even hit the USA Today bestsellers list! But what no one saw was the hard reality: I wasn’t making any money. I was working my ass off for a couple thousand dollars, which I was then spending on promotional materials, conference travel and expenses to write MORE books. In fact, I was spending more money than I was making. It was a vicious cycle, one I kept convincing myself would one day pay off. But the truth is it didn’t change. Not because of traditional publishing, at least. It changed because of self publishing.

In late 2011 I got my rights back on my Dorchester books and wasn’t sure what to do with them. I was continuing my Eternal Guardians series with Sourcebooks, but what about books one and two–MARKED and ENTWINED? I didn’t want to see these books disappear. Sourcebooks was willing to put these books back into print, but for a ridiculously low advance. I wasn’t sure what to do. Luckily, self publishing was just starting to take off, and I’d been watching what my friends were doing. One phone call to Marie Force was all it took to convince me to give it a try. In December 2011, I put MARKED and ENTWINED back up online. Did I know everything about self publishing right away? No. I learned by trial and error. It took me a while to get the metadata right, to play with pricing and to advertise that the books were once again available to readers, but I slowly figured it out. To this day, that was the decision that changed my career in ways I never saw coming. If Sourcebooks had offered me the same advance they were giving me for my other books (which wasn’t much at all) I would have handed those two books over. I would not be writing this post today.

Just after I self published the first two Eternal Guardian books, I also decided to publish another book a few agents had told me would NEVER be published by a NY Publisher. WAIT FOR ME was actually the second book I wrote, but it was the book of my heart–the one I revised over and over every time I learned something new about writing. I never pursued a publisher with this book because I thought those agents had to know what they were talking about. The book straddles genres, it’s not a typical romance, it’s got an amnesia plot! But I loved that book and I wanted readers to love it too. So, when I decided to self pub my backlist books, I took a chance and put it out there.

Then…only a few months into my self publishing venture…I found myself up for contract renegotiation with my publisher. At this point I was just starting to see an income from my self published books. It wasn’t a lot, but it was growing every month, and I was starting to see how exciting it was to have total control. To be able to play with pricing, to be able to advertise how I wanted, to adjust metadata or change covers…it was liberating. And I was getting paid monthly instead of biyearly! That right there was a huge plus. I found myself with a decision to make: keep accepting what would be considered less than minimum wage for my work if I broke down all the time I was spending writing by hour, or take a chance. I chose to take a chance. I decided to continue my Eternal Guardians series on my own. I didn’t announce to readers that I’d left my publisher because the next book in my Eternal Guardians series (ENSLAVED) hadn’t even come out yet, but I told my writer friends. And as my revenue from self publishing continued to grow, I knew I’d made the right decision.

BOUND (Eternal Guardians #6) is the first book in my Eternal Guardians series that is straight-to-Indie published. I know that some readers are frustrated this book is not available in mass market form or on store shelves like the others in the series, but when deciding what to do, I had to take a lot of things into consideration. Book stores are closing, store shelves are shrinking, and my print run between ENRAPTURED and ENSLAVED (only six months!) dropped by 20,000 books. There was no guarantee Wal-Mart (who was the biggest buyer for my print books) was going to pick up the next book in the series, and at 4% royalties (most people don’t realize authors get reduced royalties from sales at Wal-Mart, so at a $4.99 sale price, I make less than 20 cents a book on my Wal-Mart print sales) I couldn’t come up with a valid reason to take a crappy contract JUST to say I was “traditionally” published. Especially when I looked at the fact the MAJORITY of my sales were coming in digital form. If there’s one thing I want readers to understand, it’s that this was not an easy decision for me to make, but at the end of the day I realized that if I wanted to continue writing this series (which I do!), I couldn’t do it for free anymore. It was a business decision, plain and simple. My books are still in print, they’re just not in MM size. And though you can’t casually pick one up in a grocery store, you CAN order them in print version online. My books–my writing–hasn’t changed. All that’s changed is where you can buy the print versions.

And that brings me back to a little book called WAIT FOR ME. The book that most people in the industry consider my “break out book”–the one that pushed me onto the NY Times list–was not a traditionally published book. Remember, I self published WAIT FOR ME in late 2011. Of all my books, it had the most amazing reviews, but it had the least visibility, so one day I decided…what do I have to lose? I made WAIT FOR ME free with the distinct goal of garnering a few more reviews. Readers started downloading it. Incredible reviews began popping up. I was thrilled. Then I took it off free, and because the book had generated buzz, it shot to the top of the paid charts. No one was more surprised than me. The book of my heart, the book no one wanted, catapulted me into a new publishing category. It spent nine weeks on the USA Today list, five weeks on the NY Times list and hit every other bestsellers list out there. My agent has sold numerous foreign rights for this book, it will soon be released in audiobook, and other exciting things are happening for the story (tho I can’t share details just yet.) The bottom line though is simple: if this had been a traditionally published book, it never would have reached the level it has reached. No publisher would have left WAIT FOR ME free for four weeks. No publisher would have GIVEN AWAY 500,000 copies with no promise of making those sales up somewhere in revenue. Because I self-pubbed this book, I had control over it, and I was able to let readers decide what would happen.

Every author has to look at his/her career and decide what is best for them. Self publishing is not for everyone. It’s a lot of work. Since I’ve done both (traditional publishing and self publishing), I see the pros and cons of each. I’m not trying to sway anyone toward self publishing here. I’m very thankful for the years I worked with traditional publishers because during that time, I learned a lot about the industry, about formatting and editing that I now find invaluable information as I self publish. But don’t let a publisher tell you self publishing is “hard”. It’s not hard. It’s more time consuming than anything else. How much time do I spend on publishing versus writing? I will be honest and say that I spend as much time wearing my “publishing” hat during my work day as I do writing, but it doesn’t bother me because I know I get the payout at the end–not someone else. To me, the work is worth the time spent because at the end of the day the profit is all mine. I mentioned before that I spent more money in expenses as a traditionally published author than I took in. (And this was even after hitting the USA Today list with one of my Eternal Guardians books). To give you an idea of how my life has changed since I began self publishing, in 2011 (traditionally published only) I reported a negative income on my taxes. In 2012 (after I began self publishing–and it’s important to note that the majority of my income that year came from self published books, NOT my traditionally published books), I reported six figures. In 2013, we’re projecting I’ll be approaching the seven figure mark. To me, that’s a HUGE difference.

Some authors don’t want to be publishers and that’s ok. If all you want to do is write books–then traditional publishing is for you all the way. But some of us–those of us that have that business savvy and want more control over our careers–can see amazing results through self publishing. Will I ever traditionally publish again? I’m contracted for three books with Montlake (a new RS series that links back to the novella I did for Kensington, with release dates in 2014), but after that…honestly, the contract would have to be enticing enough to draw me away from the income I’m now making. Thanks to self publishing, I have the time to write the books my readers are eager to get their hands on (like the sequel to WAIT FOR ME, which I’m working on, and the 7th Eternal Guardians book–Nick’s book!–which I’m in the process of plotting.) I get to write the books I want to write, the way I want to write them, and I get to release them when I want…not when a publisher can fit me into their schedule. For me, self publishing is a perfect fit and no matter where I go from here, it will definitely be part of my career plan.

Of course, this all seems fabulous and it sounds like I’m making tons of money, doesn’t it? But you have to remember that I wrote for ten years without making a penny. Three plus of which as a published author. If you add up what I’ve made self publishing and divide it by ten years, trust me, it’s not much in the long run. But the growth potential is there, and that’s what keeps me going. There was a time not long ago when I was pretty sure I was going to have to go back to teaching because I wasn’t making any money writing. I was even looking at job postings online, trying to find a science position in my area. Now that’s all changed. I get to keep doing what I love. I get to keep writing the books readers love because of self publishing.

I’m happy to share what I’ve learned, so if you have questions about self publishing, post them in the comment section and I’ll try to answer.

 Wanted to let everyone know about the “Bound” Blog Book Tour!
There will be guest posts, reviews, excerpts and I hear even some of the Argonauts may be visiting the tour as well!

There’s also a giveaway!

One winner will be selected!

1 e-copy of “Bound”
1 “Eternal Guardians Coaster”
1 “Eternal Guardians Temporary Tattoo”
Character Cards
1 Book Marker
1 “Bound” Key chain
1 “Bound” Car Charm

Below are the dates and stops (links will be updated daily).

In an effort to help solidify the relationship between the Argonauts and the Misos, Orpheus thought it would be a great idea to hang out with Nick and have a March Madness party. Orpheus has shared their conversation with me and insisted I share it with you all.

I can’t show you the rest of their conversation as it was quite colorful to say the very least. However, I’m sure you all can imagine how the conversation went between them.

Speaking of Argonauts, Titus’s story next, March 26th actually!

TITUS—To most his gift seems like a blessing, but for him it’s a curse the other Eternal Guardians—those who protect the mortal realm from threats of the Underworld—seek to exploit. One he would gladly trade for the chance to be free…

Obsessed. Her touch is like a drug. From the moment he met her, Titus knew she was different. Even dangerous. Yet though his guardian brethren are convinced Natasa is working for Hades, Titus can’t stop thinking about her. Can’t stop fantasizing about her. Can’t stop craving the one thing he knows could lead to the downfall of his world.

Possessed. Faced with stopping Natasa or joining in her quest, Titus falls to temptation and is thrust into a world of lust, deception, and deadly treachery designed by the gods. Her touch—only hers—frees him from his bonds, but desire may just condemn him. Because before the end he’ll have to decide which is more important: duty and honor to those he took an oath to defend, or a woman who could very well be the biggest curse to them all.

I will be giving away an e-copy of “Marked (Eternal Guardians, Bk #1)”

Below is the March Madness Blog Hop giveaway and information:

March Madness: That time of year when women across the country are left to their own devices during the NCAA basketball playoff tournaments.

Sure we could do some early spring cleaning, catch up on laundry, organize closets, and throw out all the junk in the garage/attic, but where’s the fun in that? So, instead of work, we thought we’d host our version of March Madness: A prize filled hop presented by some of the best names in romance. And we’ve made it easy for you to join in.

Simply hop from blog to blog—the links are below—and “follow”, “Like”, “Friend” etc. the authors sites then leave a comment on their blog post. Each author is running their own giveaway as well as participating in the Rafflecopter Grand-Prize Giveaway of a Kindle Fire OR Nook Color, A $50 Amazon/B&N Gift Card, A $25 Amazon/B&N Gift Card, and 6 – $10 Amazon/B&N Gift Cards, as well as a “basket” of books. The event is live from March 5 – March 31st, 2013 to give you plenty of time to tour all the sites.

Rules: You must be 18 years or older as of 12:01AM March 5, 2013. No purchase Necessary. Avoid where prohibited. This event is open to worldwide participation (basket of books limited to US/Canada shipping address only)You are limited to one tweet, follow, like etc per day, however you can follow one blog, tweet about another, and like a 3rd’s facebook page all on the same day. Be sure to follow the rules laid out by the individual authors about their respective giveaways, as they will vary form site to site. Rules and Terms are listed in the Rafflecopter. Grand-prizes will be announced on or about April 5th, 2013 on SnSreviews.blogspot.com. While we will make every effort to contact you, it is ultimately the winner’s responsibility to check winning status and claim their prize. Posted winners will have 5 days, from the date of post to contact host and claim their respective prize. If the posted winner fails to contact host, prize may be forfeited and awarded to another randomly drawn entrant and distributed without further notice.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

My friend Kris Kennedy, author of several historical romances including her current release DECEPTION, which was recently nominated for a 2012 RT Book Reviews K.I.S.S. Hero award, tagged me to take part in this blog hop-along.

So, here goes my Next Big Thing:

What is the working title of your book?

I’m currently working on the 6th Eternal Guardians book, BOUND, set to release in March 2013.

Where did the idea come from for the book?

Since I write series, most of my book ideas come out of events that happen in previous books. Titus, the hero in BOUND, is a descendent of Odysseus, the great thinker. So I like to tie in bits and pieces of the old myths.

What genre does your book fall under?

The Eternal Guardians series is paranormal/fantasy romance.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

I hate this question! No actor ever lives up to what I see in my head for my characters, so I leave that up to readers to choose.

What is a one-sentence synopsis of your book?

BOUND: Things are never what they seem.

Welcome to the Rock*It Reads Heating Up the Holidays Blog Hop. There are 15 stops on the blog tour. The more blogs you visit and comment on, the greater your chances of winning the grand prize, a $75 gift certificate to Barnes & Noble or Amazon, and a huge collection of books from the authors of Rock*It Reads. Smaller prizes will be available at each stop along the way.

Good luck, and have fun!

Oh, that blog hop header makes me think of…snow. Yeah, that’s it…snow!

Since we’re heating up the holidays, I thought it would be fun to heat them up with the hero from my latest release. ENSLAVED hit stores last Tuesday (Nov. 6). It’s the 5th book in my Eternal Guardians series and it features Gryphon, a guardian who was once a playboy but whose life completely changed when he was imprisoned in the Underworld. Yeah, yeah, there I go, taking a nice, cute and sexy guy and making him all dark but…isn’t that what readers love??? (I know I do.)

Inspiration for Gryphon was’t all that hard to find. He’s blond, muscular, blue eyed and of course…hot. And I knew exactly who to pattern him after as soon as he came on scene in the very first Eternal Guardians book, MARKED. I’m not the kind of author who usually visualizes celebs for her characters, but when I started this series I had 7 (okay, 9, really) very unique men and I needed to visually be able to differentiate them in that very first book. So I made a character chart for each of them and–yes–looked for images online that fit their descriptions. This is what I used for Gryphon:

So now I’d like to know what you think.
Do you like knowing who an author envisions when writing, or does it ruin the fantasy of the book for you? I’m giving away a print copy of MARKED to one lucky commenter, and an ebook copy of BOUND TO SEDUCTION to another!

Leave a comment below to enter for your chance to win!

Don’t forget to visit the other authors on the Blog Hop for more chances to win!

And don’t forget to join me on my ENSLAVED blog tour! Follow along with the discussions and interviews and enter to win free books!  You can find all the blog stops HERE.

Finally, the fifth book in the Eternal Guardians series is available everywhere…today!

GRYPHON—Honorable, loyal, dependable…tainted. He was the ultimate warrior before imprisonment in the Underworld changed him in ways he can’t ignore.

She calls to him. Come to me. You can’t resist. But Gryphon will not allow himself to be ruled by the insidious whispers in his head. And there’s only one way to stop them: kill Atalanta, the goddess who enslaved him. But with so much darkness inside, he can’t be sure what’s real anymore. Even the Eternal Guardians, those who protect their realm and the human world from threats born of the Underworld, want to exile him.

Finding Malea is like a miracle. Somehow he doesn’t feel the pull of the dark when she’s near. And he’s determined to keep her as near as possible, whether she wants him close or not. But she’s a temptation that will test every bit of control he has left. One that may ultimately have the power to send him back to the Underworld…or free him from his chains for good.

Purchase at:

Amazon    Barnes & Noble    BAM    Indie Bound    Powells    iBooks

What Reviewers are saying about ENSLAVED:

“The world of the Argonauts and the Greek Gods will entertain you and keep you coming back for more. ” - Fiction Vixen

“Prepare yourself to be thrilled by incredibly hot warriors, strong heroines, a fabulous love story and diabolical villains that will leave you craving the next installment.” - Fresh Fiction

“Another winning installment in the Eternal Guardians series will leave you eager for more as the action is unbelievably thrilling and the emotional conflicts are involving throughout. 4 ½ Stars” - RT Book Reviews

“Elisabeth Naughton has done it again!! “Enslaved” is filled with action from the very beginning.” - Enchantress of Books

“An original, imaginative and vivid world… An emotional roller coaster of a ride with some very unexpected turns that keep you turning the pages. ” - Romance Book Junkies

“Elisabeth Naughton’s books have become a bit of addiction for me… an excellent balance between action and emotion, thrill and suspense. ” - Love Affair with an EReader

“A spectacular read.” - Bookaholics Romance Book Club

“A nice change from the average vampire or shifter paranormal romance. ” - Scooper Speaks

“Yet another incredible installment in the Eternal Guardians series… ” - Literal Addiction

“A strong series that continues to deliver action, adventure, romance with kickass heroes and smart heroines. Definitely worth the read!” - Leslie’s Psyche

“I recommend this book on so many levels. It represents good triumphing over evil, that with perseverance anything can happen, that family love and loyalty is nothing to take for granted and finally that when you are with the right person, nothing can really destroy you. ” - Tea and Book

“This was a fantastic book, and one that is definitely going on my keeper shelf. ” - Riverina Romantics

“Exciting, fresh and scorching hot… ” - Romance Junkies

“Elisabeth has the unique ability to write these extremely tortured heroes and do it in a way that we can’t imagine them any other way.” - The Book Reading Gals

Now…
Get a jump on reading ENSLAVED!
Check out the first chapter of ENSLAVED HERE 

And when you’re done reading, purchase a copy of ENSLAVED at:

Amazon    Barnes & Noble    BAM    Indie Bound    Powells    iBooks

Happy Reading!!

Dearly Beloved,
We are gathered here today,
to join two awesome things in a state of increased awesomeness.
Today, we’re bringing together an author/reader mini-con,
and the chance to WIN YOUR WAY IN FOR FREE!

That’s right, ladies and gentlemen… starting today, you will all have 7 days to hop around from author to author, blogger to blogger, and enter at every stop to win one of 3 FREE REGISTRATIONS to Olde City, New Blood, the upcoming urban fantasy/paranormal romance mini-con in St. Augustine, FL next February.

You can check out the official website for the complete list of Featured Authors (I’ll give you a hint… one of them is ME!!) and Featured Bloggers. There’s also a main contest post with all the participating authors, bloggers, and dates for the contest. It’s super easy. Visit each of the spotlight blog posts and author websites listed, fill out the Rafflecopter link on each one (one entry PER POST, not per day… and yes, they will be checking), and POOF, multiple entries to WIN!!

The prize is one of 3 FREE REGISTRATIONS to see me and about 49 other authors on the sunny beaches of St. Augustine, Florida, from Feb 8th-10, 2013. We’re going to be doing panels, readings, meet & greets, and just generally having a fun weekend with our incredible fans!! Please keep in mind, if you win, you’ll have to cover your own travel and hotel expenses, but your ticket into the party will be on Olde City, New Blood!!!

The contest runs from September 30th – October 6th, and the 3 winners will be announced on September 7th. Don’t forget to click the Rafflecopter link below before you hop off to check out the rest of the contest posts!! Good Luck, everyone!! I hope to see you ALL in Florida this February!!

 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Irresistible Heroes: No Cookie Cutter Required

Hi, everyone! First, I want to thank Elisabeth for welcoming me to her blog! She’s full of talent, energy and laughter, and generally the kind of girl I like to be around.

Last month, Elisabeth shared, on twitter and facebook, her pet peeve about promiscuous heroes. You know the ones—they’ve slept with every female in the city and everyone knows it. In real life, unless you’re looking to put the finishing touches on your collection of STDs, this is not sexy.

What makes a sexy hero? Like all good things in lit, there’s no formula. So I wanted to talk about what a great hero might not be.

They May Not Be Alpha

I always roll my eyes when people talk about alpha heroes like there’s no acceptable alternative. Betas can be just as sexy. Ever watch The Office? How much did you melt watching Jim and Pam find their way together? Jim is the ultimate beta. He sat back and waited for the girl he wanted (Pam) to figure out she was with the wrong guy. Sexual tension? Heck yeah! I loved every minute of it.

The Next Best Thing by Kristan Higgins is another great example. I love this book on so many levels, but I think it’s a great example of an irritable beta hero. The back story is that Ethan met Lucy in college, fell for her, brought her home (as a friend) to meet his family, and then got to watch as Lucy fell in love with and married his brother. He did all this because he loved Lucy enough to let he be with the man she loved. Let’s be honest: An alpha wouldn’t let this happen. But the story wouldn’t be what it was, wouldn’t have had the delicious tension it had, if Ethan was alpha.

They May Not Be Rich

I have yet to read a romance featuring a lazy, jobless, broke-ass who lives off his aging parents’ Social Security checks. But there’s a lot of room between that kind of loser and the richer-than-God likes of Christian Grey and Edward Cullen. Not all heroes out-gross Bill Gates.

I grew up reading Jude Deveraux, who wrote about this big extended family of millionaires, and there is something to be said for the fantasy of money never being an issue. However, for those of us living in the real world, there’s something even sexier in a man who works hard for what he has. Heroes have to be successful in their own right, but that success doesn’t have to be measured by dollar signs.

They May Not Be Promiscuous

I don’t blame Elisabeth for finding the promiscuous hero…icky. While I think it can be an important part of a hero’s character arc—poignant, even, if handled carefully—I think it’s overused. Does this come from the fantasy of “taming” him? (Gag!) Or just from the desire for the hero to be most-excellent between the sheets? I’m not convinced a long series of one-night stands makes one a stud in bed.

I just finished reading Victoria Dahl’s Real Men Will and realized this post was a great excuse to gush excessively talk about it. It ties in perfectly with the subject of hero promiscuity and why it is or isn’t appealing. To have a chance with the heroine, the hero of RMW, Eric, pretended to be his (allegedly) promiscuous brother. Before you decide you hate him, know he had the confidence to hook up with her only because of her false perception of his sexual experience. Guys have insecurities too. Go figure. He worried he was too vanilla for the heroine—who was also not as experienced as she pretended to be. What a clusterfuck…

Dahl explores societal expectations of male and female sexuality and sexual identity in this novel. One of the themes is that great sex isn’t the result of loads of experience or freaky toys or wild contortionist positions. Great sex happens when you’re comfortable with your partner. And Eric, whose sexual resume isn’t that of his brother’s, is really good in bed. Or, more to the point, he’s good with the heroine.

At the end of the day, I think the only thing a hero has to be is a flawed being (human, alien, were, whatever) with…potential to be better.

What characteristics do your heroes have to possess?

I like to give away things, so I’ll give away a digital copy of my short novella, JUST ONE NIGHT, to one random commenter. I’ll pick the winner on 8/31, so make sure you leave your comment by then.

Bio:

Author of both contemporary and paranormal romance, Lexi Ryan writes smart, spunky stories that sizzle. She enjoys reading, sunshine, a good glass of wine, and trips to the beach. If she’s not hitting the pavement in an attempt to be a runner, you can probably find her perusing the nearest selection of fully-loaded ice cream.

Lexi’s latest novel, Text Appeal, features a bad boy poker player who has the reputation for being both rich and promiscuous but is neither. Lexi concedes, however, that Charlie’s a little more alpha than beta. Lovers of the beta hero—stay tuned for her January release, Accidental Sex Goddess.

Lexi lives in Indiana with her husband and two young children. You can find her at her website: www.lexiryan.com

Links:

Text Appeal is available at most eretailers, including:

Amazon: amzn.com/B0089UCR04
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/text-appeal-lexi-ryan/1111454979?ean=2940014791472
ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-textappeal-861992-149.html
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/169977
Kobo: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Text-Appeal/book-lGY5ZeqFO0uKL7qr-aqIRg/page1.html?s=fr-B3kiKtEapl8EPVB8Srw&r=4

Please welcome long time friend and fellow Oregonion, Paty Jager!

Growing up in an area rich in Native American history made me curious and empathetic to the band of Nez Perce who summered in Wallowa County many generations before Lewis and Clark entered their lives.

The Wallowa, or Lake Nimiipuu as they call themselves, are a band of the Nez Perce(Nimiipuu) who moved like nomads across the Pacific NW and into the plains with the seasons. They wintered along the Imnaha River in the lower warmer regions of Wallowa County, spent the early spring in the camas meadows of Idaho, and summered at Wallowa Lake, fishing the Columbia in the fall and returning to their winter home before the snows became too treacherous. The warriors and some of the women went out on hunting expeditions to the plains for buffalo. This expeditions could take them away from the band for a year.

While the Nimiipuu were nomadic, they had a fierce love of the land in their hearts. Their ancestors were b

uried in the earth of their summer and winter homes.

The Lake Nimiipuu under the leadership of Old Chief Joseph signed the first treaty of 1855. This treaty was accepted by the Nez Perce because it encompassed nearly all of the land that they considered home. But in 1861 the government opened up some of the Nez Perce’s land “to whites in common with the Indians for mining purposes.”  The miners moved into the Nez Perce land ignoring treaty regulations. Towns went up and behind the prospectors came business and families.

With this influx of whites into the Indian land there was more and more trouble between the two factions. A new treaty was drawn up by the government in 1863. This removed extensive land from the Nez Perce that had been given to them eight years before. Specifically the areas of the bands from the Wallowa and Salmon River regions. The bands that lost their land in this treaty refused to sign and became known as the non-treaty Nez Perce.

The non-treaties worked at keeping in the good graces of the whites to remain on their land. It wasn’t until 1871 after  Old Joseph died and Heinmot Tooyalakekt(Thunder Traveling Over Mountains) or as the whites called him, Young  Joseph, became the new leader that the whites began to move into the Wallowa Valley with  greater frequency.

Spirit of the Sky is the third book in the Spirit Trilogy and focuses on the flight of the non-treaty Nez Perce as they seek a place to remain free.

Sa-qan, the heroine in the book, is the third spirit sibling. Her name means Bald Eagle and she takes this form when soaring through the sky trying to help the Nimiipuu stay ahead of the army determined to put them on a reservation.

Blurb for Spirit of the Sky

To save her from oppression, he must save her whole tribe. To give her his heart, he must desert his career…

When the US Army forces the Nimiipuu from their land, Sa-qan, the eagle spirit entrusted with watching over her tribe, steps in to save her mortal niece. Challenging the restrictions of the spirit world, Sa-qan assumes human form and finds an unexpected ally in a handsome cav

alry officer.

Certain she is a captive, Lt. Wade Watts, a Civil War veteran, tries to help the blonde woman he finds sheltering a Nez Perce child. While her intelligent eyes reveal she understands his language, she refuses his help. But when Wade is wounded, it is the beautiful Sa-qan who tends him. Wade wishes to stop the killing—Sa-qan will do anything to save her people.

Can their differences save her tribe? Or will their love spell the end of the Nimiipuu?

Excerpt

She smiled and his heart leapt into his throat. He thought her beautiful from the first moment he saw her standing in the river fiercely protecting the child, but watching her tense face relax and smile, he was smitten. A light and pleasing calm washed over him for the first time in a very long time. He could only bask in the moment briefly. They were enemies.

“I am from the sky, and I watch over the Nimiipuu.” She nodded her head and flashed him with yet another smile. “You may call me Angel.”

“Only if you call me Wade.”

She nodded. “Let me check your wounds. You have moved around.”

“Why are you taking such good care of me when your warriors left me for dead?”

Her sunshine gaze peered straight into his eyes. “You saved my niece at the village and the wounded from the Bannock scout. You do not have the thirst to kill like the other soldiers.” She bowed her head and removed the blood encrusted bandage from his shoulder. “The Nimiipuu need you.”

Her touch warmed his body, tingling the areas around his wounds. He glanced at her small, delicate hands hovering over his injuries. He shut his eyes, and then opened them. Her hands shimmered as if in a fog. His pain subsided, in fact, his body felt well rested.

A soft lyrical chant rose from her lips as she continued to hover her hands over his wounds. Her eyes remained closed, her light lashes resting on her sun-kissed cheeks. He’d never seen a woman as beautiful as this. He had to learn her true origins and return her to her family.

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Wife, mother, grandmother, and the one who cleans pens and delivers the hay; award winning author Paty Jager and her husband currently ranch 350 acres when not dashing around visiting their children and grandchildren. She not only writes the western lifestyle, she lives it.

She is a member of RWA, EPIC , and COWG. She’s had eleven books and a short story published so far and is venturing into the new world of self-publishing ebooks.

Her contemporary Western, Perfectly Good Nanny won the 2008 Eppie for Best Contemporary Romance and Spirit of the Mountain, a historical paranormal set among the Nez Perce, garnered 1^st place in the paranormal category of the Lories Best Published Book Contest. Spirit of the Lake was a finalist in the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence.

You can learn more about her at:

Blog: www.patyjager.blogspot.com
Website: http://www.patyjager.net
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/#!/paty.jager
twitter:  @patyjag.

Contest!  I’m giving away a $5 Amazon gift certificate to one lucky commenter on this blog stop.

Follow the Tour and Win!

Each blog stop has a picture of an eagle in the post. Follow the tour and send me the number of different pictures you saw while following the tour. If there is more than one correct entry I’ll draw a winner on May 21^st  to receive a $25 gift certificate to either Barnes and Nobles or Amazon, a handmade custom ereader cover, and chocolate.  Find the tour schedule on my blog (http://www.patyjager.blogspot.com) or website(http://www.patyjager.net)  and send the answer to: patyjag@gmail.com