The Bird is the Word

By Pat Cunningham

All that talk about dirty birds last week made me realize how underrepresented avian shifters are in the community. Sure, we’ve seen hybrids, gryphons and such, but no straightforward werebirds. And, since I hate to see a niche go unfilled, the flash marathon continues.

(I still want to do a caper story involving a male human and a female coyote. Ravens and coyotes are too evenly matched when it comes to trickiness. Of course, if they were to team up … )

“You bird-brained idiot! What have you done?”

Corvin sat up groggily and rubbed his aching head. What in the name of the one-eyed eagle did I drink? he thought. He opened his eyes to Lady Perriot’s snarling face and pearly fangs. Hulls, there was a sight you didn’t want to wake up to. He flinched back, then flinched again as the first flinch triggered a fresh wave of dizziness. He remembered pouring wine …

Lady Perriot sniffed the air. “You brought a woman in here.”

So that’s who he’d poured the wine for. Bits of memory drifted back like the lazy flutter of feathers. That new serving wench with the coppery hair and legs whose length put a heron’s to shame. She’d come along willingly enough, for all her demure manner. He’d shown her the wonders of the royal treasury and smiled as her golden eyes grew wider and wider …

Golden eyes. Shifter eyes. Oh hulls.

He hissed under his breath and ran his hand through his shiny black hair. “What did she take?”

“What do you think?”

He glanced around. She couldn’t get at any of the good stuff; all that was safely locked away. Most of the ornaments, gems and artifacts in here were fake, used to impress visitors with a show of the kingdom’s wealth. He might have a weakness for a pretty girl, but he wasn’t a complete imbecile.

Then his gaze hit the alcove that housed the Idol of Shim. Normally. Now it stood empty. The all-but-invisible mesh that formed the alcove’s protective screen had been neatly snipped and bent aside.

Starlings peck my eyes out, Corvin thought, I’m in it now.

“Head of security,” Lady Perriot said on a sneer. “’I’ve got the room booby-trapped. Nothing can get in.’ Yet a bitch with a knockout potion gets by you.”

Not just any bitch, he thought. This one had a voice like a nightingale’s song and a bosom you could bounce your head on. He doubted very much if Lady Perriot would appreciate such attributes as he did. He risked a glance at her face. Her tiger’s stripes showed faintly like scars along her cheeks, indicative of her rage. No, most likely she wouldn’t.

“Not a problem,” he said. “What’s she going to do, sell it on the open market? No, she must have a buyer lined up, a collector. I think I know who. I’ll beat her there and get the idol back.”

“You’d better. Otherwise – ” She leaned in far too close again, and ran her tongue over her long, bright teeth. “I get to eat crow.”

(On second thought, maybe I’ll make the thief a werevixen. They’re tricky bitches too.)

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Humungus congrats to Savanna for "Branded" hitting #1 on Siren's bestseller list. Looks like it's time for that party. You bring the virtual booze, I'll bring computer chips and dip.

More of Love's Frenzy

I've worked on more of Love's Frenzy this week. I'm having fun letting my muse go where it will with this story. I usually write by the seat of my pants, aka pantser writing style. Shape Shifter Blues has some ploting format and large sections figured out (i.e. beginning, middle and end). It is turning out to be a series. More on that as I get the first chapter done and ready to share. So here is a bit more of Love's Frenzy.

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Roberto circled counterclockwise around the young woman standing close to Maxwell. Her coloring and build remind him of---No! Had Maxwell kidnapped Luta and seduced her? Broken her will? If he had. . .Roberto clenched his hands and spun toward Maxwell.


“How dare you?” He shouted startling the young woman. She jumped and cowered in fear. Her cat green eyes pivoting back and forth between he and Maxwell.


Roberto drew in ragged breaths, pressing his lips together, willing his next words and thoughts to still. He couldn’t and wouldn’t shed familiar blood. Damn the curse! Pitting brother against brother like common foes until several generations of males lay dead from war’s lust consuming them. No, he and Maxwell along with their few remaining male relatives vowed they would not fight over women or property. Instead they would take multiple spouses to ensure continuance of their lineage with numerous births.

““What is your problem?” Maxwell’s tone and ire smacked against Roberto’s psychic shields. Neither of them allowed others inside their private space, their inner most thoughts. Control and mental discipline required constant vigilance when in the presence of other males.


“My apologies. She looks a lot like Luta. Such a resemblance.” Roberto touched the frightened woman’s arm. She shook harder with each stroke of his hand brushing her hair off her face, tucking it behind her ears. Catching her chin, he tilted her head back looking her in the eyes.
“You may use her after I am done.” Maxwell continued stroking his cock, stepping closer to the woman. Her apparent fear filled her eyes.


Maxwell threaded his hand into her hair, grabbing several strands in his fist. He forced her head back further. “One mouth is as good as another. Fuck her if you like as she sucks me.”
Roberto forced his gaze downward. Maxwell’s power play would not affect him. Why Maxwell insisted on trying his patience made no sense. Dominance did not ensure compliance. Neither did fear. Maxwell used both thinking he led. Taking two deeps breaths, Roberto moved away from Lilly.

“Look at her ears,” Roberto gasped as he smoothed her hair behind the ear closest to him. Pointed at the top very similar to a cat’s, the rest of took on human attributes.

The Pronoun Puzzle...

Pronoun, pronoun, who's got the pronoun...

It's amazing to me how littered with pronouns my rough drafts get with hims, hers, and he's, she's.  When I try to cut back on the pronouns up front I end up with a draft overflowing with names...lol

It's a good thing we edit, and have kick ass CP's and editors!  Anyone else have the pronoun problem?  If so, have you found a good way of catching it up front rather than waiting for the edit phase of a story?  I'd love to know...  :)

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Gypsy Wolf

Edmund couldn’t decide if it was the gypsy’s beauty or her scent that intrigued him more. Her hair was a lovely black, reminiscent of a raven’s wing and her eyes were a perfect green—akin to the meat of the sweet kiwi he longed to feed past her full lower lip. Her skin was smooth and pale and her nose was just a bit of a thing, nothing like the aged crow he’d been expecting.


“Tigan, gypsy? Are you the gypsy wolf ?” Her scent was that of a pup, lacking its first change, only less. It was as if her body had yet to decide if it would ever change. She was a paradox in their world and could not be trusted.

“Yes, I am the seer.”

Her husky whisper slid  down his spine and grabbed him by the balls. His wolf paced, pushing at his skin, reaching out to rub itself against the warmth standing before him. Edmund growled, filling the small tent and sending this diminutive gypsy wolf stumbling backwards.

This woman could be his mate, if only he didn’t have to kill her.
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Have a great weekend!

A first in a series and a last in a series.

Hi and welcome to your Wednesday fix of Shapeshifter Romance! This week I’ll be reviewing “Serpent Moon” by C.T. Adams and Cathy Clamp. This is the eighth book in the “Tales of the Sazi” series. According to the authors’ website, this isn’t the last one planned but it is the last one currently in print. This book was just release March of 2010, so you should be able to find it pretty easily.

But First: I am going to shamelessly plug my own book, “The Hawk’s Bride,” which was released last week.

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In a realm far away and almost lost to living human memory, there are dark forces at work trying to tear the fabric of existence apart. The high Sidhe struggle to keep the cosmic balance and leading the way are the Wild Lords: mythological elves with the power to shift into animal forms. For the most part, the Unseely, or dark fae, keep to the shadows in this struggle, but every now and then a bold- or particularly foolish- faction rises up and attacks the great lords of the Wild Hunt…

Someone is assassinating the heirs to the Mountain Elf king. In an attempt to foil the assassin, King Patton names his surly nephew, Lucan Hawk, his heir. Banished as a child and trained to be a Lord of the Hunt by the feared Black Lords of Argental, Lucan has become a hard and bitter warlord. He can’t forgive his uncle for the betrayal and wants no part of his kingdom- until he is offered the chance to marry the only woman he’s ever loved…

Orphaned as a young girl, Cait was found by a mountain elf warrior, who took her home with him and raised her as his daughter. As a human-born cat shifter, Cait’s life with the elves hasn’t been easy. The one bright spot in her childhood was Lucan, the only other shifter cub in the court of the Mountain king. They were playmates as children, then sweethearts as they grew up. Cait was devastated when Luc was banished for refusing to let his abusive father beat him for defending her against the castle bully, Lady Donnella. She never thought to see him again, so when he came to claim her one night, she thought she was dreaming. But her dream come true turns into a nightmare when the assassin targets her!

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Ok, just so you know, I don’t do whiny heroines so no, Cait doesn’t wait helplessly for her hero to save her. And that’s all the spoiler I’m going to give you. J

To celebrate the release of my very first published book, I’m giving away several 4 gig USB flash drive bracelets in a random drawing to be held September 1st. All you have to do is buy a copy, read it, then enter the drawing on the contest page of my website, RebeccaLGillan.com. There is one question you need to answer and you need to have read the book to find the answer, but it’s an easy one.

And to celebrate having made #5 on Siren-BookStrand’s best seller’s list for mainstream romance, I’m going to do a pre-drawing. I’ll be giving away one USB drive today at 5pm MST. If you’ve bought a copy of “The Hawk’s Bride” but haven’t yet entered the drawing, pop on over and enter!


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And now on to “Serpent’s Moon!”

Holly Sanchez started life as a Sazi family member and daughter to the Boulder Pack’s omega. Her life took a sharp turn when she was attacked and turned (in book three, Howling Moon). Her life’s dream of going to vet school dashed, Holly finds herself floating, not sure of her place in the world.

Eric Thompson is a wolf with a bad rep he didn’t earn. Several years older than Holly, he has trouble connecting the grown, sexy she-wolf with the skinny fifteen-year-old he remembered. Eric had always felt at ease around Holly, though her father had made a point of never leaving the two of them alone back then. That ease of company with teenaged Holly has been replaced by a burning need to claim the grown woman before him now.

Just as Holly rediscovers her teen crush- and realizes he wants her as bad as she wants him- she’s given the chance to be human again by FMU, the underground support group founded by abused and neglected family members. They have a drug which they say can turn any Sazi Shapeshifter full human. Holly realizes she has a choice to make: life as a Sazi wolf with Eric or the chance to regain her lost human life and dreams. But before she can make that choice, she must first save her people and her own life!

I love this book. We have star-crossed lovers who get a second chance at love if only they are brave enough to reach for it. Eric is quite possibly the nummiest lead character of the series and you can’t help but root for Holly after following her story from being Cat’s human best friend to her current form. Holly’s story is why hope burns eternal in my heart that the mush beleaguered Raven will get a happily-ever-after of his own.

This book is written in third person and is the climax of not one but two major plots. It is a very dark book. While Holly and Eric get their happily-ever-after, several characters don’t. That being said, I definitely recommend this to anyone who loves epic tales of mystery, suspense and good vs. evil.

Next week, I plan on doing an author interview with Cathy Clamp. I haven’t received the completed interview form back from her yet and if I don’t get it in time, I’ll do a review of the series story arch, including a recap of all the couples who found love. Until next week!

Rebecca
RebeccaLGillan

The Three Star Republic and Sci Fi Weightless

Time out for this proud-author promo ~ Yippee-kai-yay! and wahoo! It’s finally here, and released yesterday. My *Sliders meets Bonanza meets The Three Star Republic* erotic romance novel. Check out the blurbie below if this is your kind of ‘read’.
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So, have you ever been intrigued by the idea of being weightless... out-in-space weightless? I have. What would it feel like, each sensation as you float and swim in the air, lighter than a feather.

So, anyone old enough to recall the campy sci fi film, Barbarella? The sex kitten heroine, based on a French adult cartoon character, is definitely kick-ass for her day. And she knew how to handle a really, extra-big rifle cannon. I couldn’t find an image of Babarella floating in zero gravity as she does at the beginning of the movie. The above movie poster will have to suffice to jog your memory banks.

Not exactly a shapeshifter topic... except, as I dreamed-up this new sci fi story before I fell asleep... my heroine is in zero gravity, in utter darkness... no, I didn’t think of Barbarella until I began penning this blog... anyway, the hero is watching her because she’s there for his pleasure... did I mention she’s naked?... oh, and he is a shapeshifter... but what kind? What breed?

Truly, the possibilities in sci-fi landia are limitless, just as our imaginations are limitless. Mr. Hero Shapeshifter hasn’t fully revealed himself to the potential writer of his story, me, yet... however, I sense hawk or falcon... perhaps what we would call a mythical creature... a panther-hawk... who shifts into a deliciously potent man... hmmm...
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The Kougar’s news and mews ~

BRANDED BY THE TEXANS
Three Star Republic

Blurb ~

What can three Texans do to a woman’s body and heart?
Kylie is about to find out.
Beyond her wildest dreams.
On a parallel Earth.

It’s 2009... Kylie is on the run from the law for a crime she didn’t commit. A promising doctoral student, she’s lost everyone and almost everything, except for what she stows in her car. Now, Kylie has to salvage the rest of her life. But, where in this age of GPS tracking, TV’s Most Wanted and cameras everywhere?

It’s 2009... Dillon, Dono and Dash are three brothers desperate for a wife to brand as their own. The Union made women scarce in the Three Star Republic by releasing a bio weapons’ plague during the border wars. These tough-as-leather Texans will do anything to keep the right woman, even if they have to lasso her like a wild filly and love on her until she loves them back.
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NOW! AVAILABLE from Siren-BookStrand ~ http://bookstrand.com/branded-by-the-texans ~ http://bookstrand.com/savanna-kougar ~ Rated: SEXTREME
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~ HAPPY SUMMER SHAPESHIFTING ~

Savanna Kougar

~ Run on the Wild Side of Romance ~

Author of ~

All Shades of Blue Paradise
Red Lioness Tamed
When a Good Angel Falls ~ In Print
Tangerine Carnal Dreams
Murder by Hair Spray in Gardenia, New Atlantis ~ In Print
Black Cat Beauty
Her Insatiable Dark Heroes ~ In Print
Stallion of Ash and Flame ~ In Print
Branded by the Texans ~ AVAILABLE from Siren-BookStrand
The Tiger’s Masquerade ~ Coming from MojoCastle Press
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Do Shorties Stand a Chance?

By Pat Cunningham

First of all, I get it: romance novels are female fantasies. Of course the guy’s going to look like a harlot’s wet dream. Tall, dark (or blond, or bald, or whatever you’re into), and naturally impossibly handsome without being the slightest bit gay. That’s how we operate here in the genre. I wish my muse would catch on.

Take, for example, the bit about “tall.”

I make my heroes tall. I like tall, skinny guys. My first major crush on a TV character was Mr. Spock from Star Trek. Leonard Nimoy pretty much set the tone for my preferences. Since tall guys fit the fantasy, this was never a problem.

Then I did that flash about Carmen the ocelot, and there was Henri Levesque: pale hair, big hands and feet as befitting a lynx, and coming in at a whopping 5-foot-5.

Shoot.

You know how it is when your characters dictate how they’re going to be. Henri doesn’t want any growth hormones. He’s happy as he is. Carmen is 5-foot-nothing so she still has to look up to glare at him. If they’re okay with it, so am I.

Trouble is, what about the readers coming in for their dose of fantasy? Will they accept a hero who isn’t physically imposing? To coin a phrase, does size matter?

The women have it better. These days romance heroines are allowed to be full-bodied, short, big-butted, flat chested, even (gasp!) older than their 20s. With kids. It’s part of the fantasy. She can be pushing 40 with 10 extra pounds on her hips, and the hot hunk next door will still fall in love with her. The hot, tall hunk.

Sometimes it works in the movies. Michael J. Fox, who won’t be playing for the Boston Celtics any time soon, had a hot career in the ‘80s. Back to the Future, Doc Hollywood, The Secret of My Success. He got to play the romantic lead, and he always got the girl … in comedies. Did he ever play a romantic role in a drama? Was it believable? Or were you too busy drooling over that 6’2” stud you spotted in the lobby while you were buying your popcorn?

That’s today’s question. Have you ever read a romance where the hero wasn’t at least 6 feet? Have you written one? If I decide to finish the ocelot story, will Henri pass muster as is, or should he wear lifts? If I do my job right with story and character, will anyone even notice?

This should be included in submission guidelines: You must be this tall to be a romance hero. It would save some of us a lot of grief.

SPECIAL BONUS: FLASH DIALOGUE
I’m not kidding. I’ll do whole scenes with no description. Here’s one from the vampire story. The prostitute and his boyfriend (both tall, by the way) have just started living together and are learning each other’s little quirks. This proves that vampires aren’t automatically experts at everything.

“Jesus figureskating Christ! What the hell are you doing?”
“Yoga. It keeps me flexible for work.”
“Slinkies are flexible. That’s just plain unnatural.”
“Says the undead guy.”
“You know what I mean. Whoa. Now that is … that is giving me ideas.”
“What kind of ideas?”
“Depends on how long you can hold that position.”
“Let’s make it interesting. Whoever’s legs give out first does the dishes.”
“You’re on.”
Fifteen minutes later …
“Don’t forget the frying pan.”
“Bendy bitch.”