Party party party! Free massage candles, custom cupcakes, posters and more

I hope you will join me at Fontana's on August 25th for our exciting book party for Obsessed and The Lost (paranormal romance fans - check it out!). Also very excited about my first book posters, which I ordered from PosterBrain, who were extremely fast and had excellent customer service, and which we'll be signing and giving away to a lucky attendee!

August 25, 7-9 pm
BOOK PARTY FOR OBSESSED AND THE LOST
Join editor Rachel Kramer Bussel and Obsessed contributors, along with The Lost author Caridad Piñeiro, and Tied Up Events for a fabulous book party celebrating The Lost and Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women! Obsessed contributors Logan Belle and Jennifer Peters will read. Free giveaways include JimmyJane massage candles and signed book posters. Author readings, free cupcakes, gift bags from The Pleasure Chest NYC, snacks, giveaways and more! Free, 21+
Fontana's, 105 Eldridge, NYC

I'm doing a few scattered readings in New York for the rest of the year but this is the only event I am hosting. I'd had a dream about doing a multimedia event with comedy, music, film, trivia and readings but realized my energies need to be focused elsewhere and that there are plenty of events going on in this wonderful city. So do come and if you can't make it, I hope you will offer up a bit of good karma and tell someone else in NYC who might be able to. Sexy readings, free cupcakes, poster and sex toy giveaways (thanks The Pleasure Chest), giveaway of a JimmyJane massage candle (you so want this!) and more.

To spread the word: Facebook invite

And the cupcakes aren't just any cupcakes! I'm ordering them from Treat, who made these:



These cupcakes will have the covers of Obsessed and The Lost on them!

For more about Obsessed, including the table of contents and introduction, visit obsessederoticromance.com/about. Want a free postcard? (US only) Email obsessedantho at gmail.com with "Postcard" in the subject and your name and address in the body!

For the pubic hair lovers: an excerpt from "Topiary" by KD Grace in Obsessed

An excerpt from the story "Topiary" by KD Grace in Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women.

At first Aden simply strokes my heavy curls, his face in deep concentration. His creative juices, like my own, are flowing. I begin to thrust lightly against his stroking, impatient for him to get on with it. But he won’t be rushed. There’s a stroke with the comb here, a shove of my leg there, a shivering with his fingers as he plumps and fluffs. “Yes, I see it now,” he breathes. “I know exactly how it’s supposed to be.”

He begins.

He combs and snips and says half under his breath, “Mm-hm, uh-huh, just a little more. That’s right. Perfect.” Then he switches to another pair of scissors. I can’t tell the difference, but he says he needs to create texture, depth, a sense of perspective.

“The landscape should always showcase its finest feature.” His fingers press in around my clit, and he rubs and strokes it to prominence.

I try to sit still as he clips and combs, but I’m slippery and swollen and all of the fantastical shapes in Aden’s exquisite topiary now appear orgiastic, spreading wide, thrusting upward, pouting and arching. The bench is damp beneath me and Aden’s trousers look as though they’re about to lose the battle for containment. He breathes like there’s a windstorm in his lungs, and with each snip, he squirms and shifts.

Read the whole story in Obsessed!



Order Obsessed from:

Amazon

Kindle edition (available August 15th)

Barnes & Noble

Powells

IndieBound (search for your local indie bookstore)

Cleis Press

Yay! Yay! Yay! Obsessed gets 4 stars from RT Book Reviews

I'm in with the bigtime authors in the must-read RT Book Reviews and they liked Obsessed! I'm so thrilled. They gave it 4 stars!

In the 20 novellas in this collection, obsession is the name of the game. The pages sizzle and the words smoke. Readers will love the variety and the intensity of assignations, ranging from a foreign city to a small cottage under a hurricane onslaught, with a varying mix of locales in between.

Two standouts include: “One Night,” by Kayla Perrin, in which a lonely assistant sets out to seduce her boss for one magical night in Paris. In “Storm Surge” by Teresa Noelle Roberts, two lovers find extra magic in the coming hurricane. (CLEIS, Aug., 248 pp., $14.95)



Order Obsessed from:

Amazon

Kindle edition (available August 15th)

Barnes & Noble

Powells

IndieBound

Cleis Press

BOOK PARTY!!!

August 25, 7-9 pm
JOINT BOOK PARTY FOR OBSESSED and THE LOST
Join editor Rachel Kramer Bussel and Obsessed contributors, along with The Lost author Caridad Piñeiro, and Tied Up Events for a fabulous book party celebrating The Lost and Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women! Free cupcakes, snacks, posters and toy giveaways and more! Free goodie bags from The Pleasure Chest! Featuring readings by Rachel, Caridad and Obsessed contributors Logan Belle and Jennifer Peters. Free, 21+
Fontana's, 105 Eldridge Street, NYC
obsessederoticromance.com
caridad.com
tiedupevents.com
The Pleasure Chest

Obsessed out on Kindle August 15th!

Finally...news that Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women, which I promise more excerpts from, will be available for Kindle on August 15th. Party is August 25th!

If you missed them, the excerpts so far:

"Silent Retreat" by Donna George Storey

"Spellbound" by Garnell Wallace

Silent retreat sex in "Silent Treatment" by Donna George Storey in Obsessed

Another Obsessed excerpt for you. Personally, I think I'd get kicked out of a silent retreat, but maybe I'd really like it. I don't know. I do want to go on a retreat, and maybe have quiet/solitude but not total silence. I'm very impressed with this story by a favorite writer, Donna George Storey, read the whole thing in Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women!



As she writes on her blog, "My story, 'Silent Treatment,' is about a silent retreat in the moments, where a couple learns all the wonderful ways to communicate when you can't speak. Silence can be golden, baby!"

From "Silent Treatment" by Donna George Storey:

We both paused to admire the night sky, then I felt him turn to look down at me. I caught my breath. I could swear I heard words through his unmoving lips. It’s a beautiful night. You’re beautiful. There’s a reason we’re together here.

Or is that only what I wanted to hear?

Did it matter? We were in a place where the real me decided what happened, not the voice of common sense yammering, “You should make him work harder for forgiveness after what he did,” and “If he fucks you over again, you have only yourself to blame.”

I reached out and brushed his hand, nothing more than an unspoken way to reassure him that I forgave his long, hurtful silence. I wasn’t surprised when he wrapped his fingers around mine and squeezed.

But my own response shook me. My pussy contracted like a fist, as if he’d touched me there instead, and a jolt of electric pleasure made my nipples so hard I was almost afraid they’d poke holes in my shirt.

I guess I did still want to fuck him.

Song title inspiration for erotica

My story in Obsessed (out next month! party in August! postcards just ordered! please pre-order at the low cost of $9.95 at the moment or request your free review copy) is called "I Want to Hold Your Hand." The title is obviously inspired by the Beatles song. The story is inspired by...me and my kinda sorta "type." I don't really have a type, but it's not a secret that I like "big" guys. I have another story about sexy hand holding percolating, based, actually, on a pretty skinny guy who was very good at holding hands. I think hand holding is underrated as an erotic activity.



But anyway, what I wanted to talk about was music. I wrote a story once called "Fast Girls" inspired by the Sarge song, then edited a book of the same name and used that song in the book trailer. My Irresistible story will be called "That's The Way I Always Heard It Should Be," because I am a Carly Simon fan. I love taking a phrase or a title that has one meaning from its original artist and giving it a spin. Sometimes when I'm stuck, which is often, lately, I try to see what or who might give rise to a story. There is always something. Maybe Vashti Bunyan's "I'd Like to Walk Around in Your Mind."

I love having a reference point, like this one story I wrote, "Bed-In" (I think that's how I spelled it) inspired by John and Yoko's bed in, though this one had a much more commercial twist (set in a bedding store). We'll see...I'm hoping my trips give me time to properly work on some stories; I have to write a hotel erotica one and a bunch of others and just get the creativity flowing again after my mind kindof not going in that direction, or at least, me not finishing stories I should have. I am determined to write a story inspired by the blowtorch at Sweet Iron Waffles which was just one of the sexiest things I've ever seen and I'm not really at all a fire play kind of girl. It was more the way the guy using it looked while he was using it, so focused and intense and holding this powerful machine in his hand to feed me something delicious. Since I so rarely listen to my CD collection anymore, maybe they can prove useful for story ideas.

Here's a snippet of "I Want to Hold Your Hand:"

At least he had two body parts that hadn’t lost their heft: his hands and his cock. She knew that saying about a man’s feet predicting his size below the waist, but with Ron, his hands and his cock were both, well, manly, while his size nine feet were what she considered average. His hands, though, they were big, strong, powerful; there was nothing he could do about his man hands. Ron had always been able to speak to her with his hands, even on their first date, when he’d reached for one of hers and massaged it, his thumb tricking along her palm, his fingers tickling her skin, making her curious about him, about what he could do to her. They were soft, and seemingly tender, but when she dared to try to get to know them, he’d crushed her fingers within his own, letting her know that he would be the one to master their manual dexterity.

She was still curious, as she’d been then, eager to get to know him by running her lips along his skin, by listening to his heartbeat, though truth be told, the parts that everyone else was so eager to talk about and salivate over were not the ones that interested Shelly. His abs, his biceps, all sounded like clichés to her ears. Her Ron wasn’t the macho bodybuilder they were making him out to be, and if he were, she wasn’t sure she would want him anymore. She’d caught a couple of college girls, home on break, whispering about what he might look like underneath, and had huffed her way through their conversation, stalking right in between them and giving them the stink eye. Who were these brats and why didn’t they find someone their own age?

“Honey, I want to go to the movies,” she said, pulling him aside, not caring how petulant she might sound.

“Now?” He looked at her in confusion.

“Well, tonight, yeah.”

“What do you want to see?”

“I don’t care,” she said, then lifted his right hand and brought it to her mouth.

Amazon reviewers, start your engines!

I'll be deleting this post Friday evening, so if you want a review copy (and will actually review it), details are below. Please note each book/mailing costs me $10. My choice, obviously, to do this, but flaky people jeopardize me doing it in the future. Anyway, here you go - I also post these giveaways on Twitter closer to the pub date. Thanks! Basically, if my books do well, I get to/want to keep doing them; if not, not So I try the best I can with the limited means I have, and this is one tactic that I hope also gives people who can't afford my books a chance to check them out. You can also try your local library for that.



If you'd like a free copy of Obsessed (and get to feel special cause you'll have it in your hands before it's in stores, and for free), the terms are: you are in the US, have an Amazon.com account you've made a purchase from at some point, and promise to review the book by August 31st. You'll receive it probably the 2nd week of July (I'm sending them media mail the prior week). That's it. If you're game, email me at obsessedantho at gmail.com with "Amazon" in the subject line and your name and US mailing address in the body. Then in early July I will send you a book. And you will review it. And hopefully like it (no pressure, but, I'm proud of this, and my story is about sexy hand holding and a hot big guy and...you'll see when you read it).

More about the book (excerpts are coming soon):

: Erotic Romance for Women is edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel, with a foreword by romance author Caridad Piñeiro, and will be published by Cleis Press in July 2011. Stay tuned for more information.

Obsessed is not about obsession for a new purse or a new car. Instead, these stories sizzle with the kind of obsession that is fueled by our deepest desires, the ones that hold couples together, the ones that haunt us and don’t let go. Whether just-blooming passions, rekindled sparks, or reinvented relationships, these lovers put the object of their obsession first. From the almost-divorced couple in “Aftershocks,” by Bella Andre, who finally confess their deepest desires during an earthquake, to a woman who confesses to her boyfriend just how much she lusts after another man in Emerald’s “Then,” these lovers push the boundaries of their relationship and the boundaries of their trust in each other. Obsessed lovers don’t always do what is rational; sometimes they chase their dreams, such as in Kayla Perrin’s “One Night in Paris,” across the world and across the landscape of their lovers’ bodies.

BOOK PARTY!!!

August 25, details TBA
JOINT BOOK PARTY FOR OBSESSED and THE LOST
Join editor Rachel Kramer Bussel and Obsessed contributors, along with The Lost author Caridad Piñeiro, and Tied Up Events for a fabulous book party celebrating The Lost and Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women! Free cupcakes, snacks, giveaways and more!
Fontana’s, 105 Eldridge Street, NYC
obsessederoticromance.com
caridad.com
.tiedupevents.com

Pre-order Obsessed from:

Amazon

Kindle edition (available August 1st)

Barnes & Noble

Powells

IndieBound

Cleis Press

Foreword: Behind the Mask of Obsession Caridad Piñeiro
Introduction Rachel Kramer Bussel (see below)
Silent Treatment Donna George Storey
One Night in Paris Kayla Perrin
Concubine Portia Da Costa
Love and Demotion Logan Belle
Mephisto Waltz Justine Elyot
Then Emerald
It’s Gotta Be Fate Jennifer Peters
Hooked Ariel Graham
Aftershocks Bella Andre
Secret Places Adele Haze
Loser Charlotte Stein
Here In Between Kristina Wright
Spellbound by Garnell Wallace
Raven’s Flight Andrea Dale
Raindrops and Rooftops Elizabeth Coldwell
Topiary K. D. Grace
I Want to Hold Your Hand Rachel Kramer Bussel
Storm Surge Teresa Noelle Roberts
Undercover Kink Louisa Harte

The women in Obsessed show their passion for their lovers in all kinds of ways. For some it’s about indulging in acts of daring, for others it’s about letting go of their preconceived notions of propriety and going where their bodies tell them.

In many of these stories, communication, the touchstone of advice about good relationships, is missing in some key way, whether it’s the almost-divorced couple in “Aftershocks” by Bella Andre who finally, during an earthquake, confess their deepest desires, or the one-time lovers in “Silent Treatment” by Donna George Storey who find plenty to say with their bodies at a silent retreat. In “Then,” Emerald explores what happens after a woman confesses to her boyfriend just how much she lusts after another man. They push the boundaries of their relationship and the boundaries of their trust in each other—another theme of this book.

Charlotte Stein paints a portrait of a “Loser” who manages to capture the attention of the narrator–and keep it by impressing her with his ardent desire. Stein writes, “He does little things, like when I stop him saying words like those with my mouth on his, he brings his hands up to cup my face. Other guys don’t cup my face. And he does it as though he wants to keep me as close as possible, so he can fully concentrate on my mouth and the way it moves and how much tongue I’m giving him at any given time.”

Obsessed is not about obsession for a new purse or a new car or a new perfume. It’s not even about the obsessiveness of a crush, the kind of panting lust that cycles over and over itself with no end in sight. Instead, Obsessed is about the way a lover can get under your skin, can drive you crazy with lust as well as so many other emotions–love, longing, hunger, anger, confusion. Are there happy endings here? Yes, there are, but they are not always the happy endings you’d expect. These stories sizzle with the kind of obsession that is fueled by our deepest desires, the ones that hold couples together, the ones that haunt us and don’t let go. Whether experiencing just-blooming passions, rekindled sparks or reinvented relationships, these lovers put the object of their obsession first. They don’t always do what’s rational or proper; instead, they chase their dreams, as in Kayla Perrin’s “One Night in Paris,” across the world and across the landscape of their lovers’ bodies.

I hope Obsessed speaks to the part of you that knows what it’s like to do anything for the right person, to bare yourself body and soul in the hope that once stripped to your most secret self, you will be rewarded with someone who sees you for who you truly are. With these nineteen stories, though, you don’t have to hope–I can tell you now that these gutsy heroines find men who know exactly how to treat their wild, hungry hearts. How they get there is yours to savor.

Rachel Kramer Bussel
New York City

August 25: Celebrate Obsessed and The Lost with me, Caridad Piñeiro, and Tied Up Events

Just a heads up, I'll post details like time when I know them. I'm partnering with Tied Up Events, who run Chat Lounge, to have a book party on Thursday, August 25th at Fontana's at 105 Eldridge Street between Grand and Broome on the Lower East Side (NYC) for Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women (click to read my introduction and the table of contents - it's a great one), edited by me, and The Lost, a paranormal romance by Caridad Piñeiro®, who also wrote the foreword for Obsessed. Yes, there will be free snacks and free cupcakes (would it be a party of mien without those??). Probably my only book party this year.

Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women table of contents and introduction

I can now give you a sneak peek at Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women, out officially and on Kindle August 1st but really out mid-July. You'll have to read the book for the foreword by noted romance author Caridad Piñeiro!

For my very special Amazon.com reviewers you get them hot off the press. Those will be mailed out mid-July, stay tuned to @raquelita on Twitter for an announcement about freebies toward the end of June - first come, first served, you have to review it on Amazon within a month of receipt. And if you blog about books and want to review it, email me at obsessedantho at gmail.com with "Review request" and your full contact information (URL, mailing address). I'm really proud of and excited about the sweet sexiness in this one!

Silent Treatment Donna George Storey
One Night in Paris Kayla Perrin
Concubine Portia Da Costa
Love and Demotion Logan Belle
Mephisto Waltz Justine Elyot
Then Emerald
It’s Gotta Be Fate Jennifer Peters
Hooked Ariel Graham
Aftershocks Bella Andre
Secret Places Adele Haze
Loser Charlotte Stein
Here In Between Kristina Wright
Spellbound by Garnell Wallace
Raven’s Flight Andrea Dale
Raindrops and Rooftops Elizabeth Coldwell
Topiary K. D. Grace
I Want to Hold Your Hand Rachel Kramer Bussel
Storm Surge Teresa Noelle Roberts
Undercover Kink Louisa Harte



The women in Obsessed show their passion for their lovers in all kinds of ways. For some it’s about indulging in acts of daring, for others it’s about letting go of their preconceived notions of propriety and going where their bodies tell them.

In many of these stories, communication, the touchstone of advice about good relationships, is missing in some key way, whether it’s the almost-divorced couple in “Aftershocks” by Bella Andre who finally, during an earthquake, confess their deepest desires, or the one-time lovers in “Silent Treatment” by Donna George Storey who find plenty to say with their bodies at a silent retreat. In “Then,” Emerald explores what happens after a woman confesses to her boyfriend just how much she lusts after another man. They push the boundaries of their relationship and the boundaries of their trust in each other—another theme of this book.

Charlotte Stein paints a portrait of a “Loser” who manages to capture the attention of the narrator--and keep it by impressing her with his ardent desire. Stein writes, “He does little things, like when I stop him saying words like those with my mouth on his, he brings his hands up to cup my face. Other guys don’t cup my face. And he does it as though he wants to keep me as close as possible, so he can fully concentrate on my mouth and the way it moves and how much tongue I’m giving him at any given time.”

Obsessed is not about obsession for a new purse or a new car or a new perfume. It’s not even about the obsessiveness of a crush, the kind of panting lust that cycles over and over itself with no end in sight. Instead, Obsessed is about the way a lover can get under your skin, can drive you crazy with lust as well as so many other emotions--love, longing, hunger, anger, confusion. Are there happy endings here? Yes, there are, but they are not always the happy endings you’d expect. These stories sizzle with the kind of obsession that is fueled by our deepest desires, the ones that hold couples together, the ones that haunt us and don’t let go. Whether experiencing just-blooming passions, rekindled sparks or reinvented relationships, these lovers put the object of their obsession first. They don’t always do what’s rational or proper; instead, they chase their dreams, as in Kayla Perrin’s “One Night in Paris,” across the world and across the landscape of their lovers’ bodies.

I hope Obsessed speaks to the part of you that knows what it’s like to do anything for the right person, to bare yourself body and soul in the hope that once stripped to your most secret self, you will be rewarded with someone who sees you for who you truly are. With these nineteen stories, though, you don’t have to hope--I can tell you now that these gutsy heroines find men who know exactly how to treat their wild, hungry hearts. How they get there is yours to savor.

Rachel Kramer Bussel
New York City

Cover of my 39th anthology, Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women

Once I get the copyedited version I will share my introduction and the table of contents, but I can now share the cover to my July release, my 39th anthology, Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women, which is available for pre-order on Amazon. My story is called "I Want to Hold Your Hand." It's about size and jealousy and, yes, hot hand holding. And a foreword by Stronger Than Sin and Aztec Gold (both of which I recommend, especially for paranormal and history fans - Aztec Gold is contemporary, but has a touch of history) author Caridad Piñeiro®.



Actually, here's a tiny snippet of my sweet (for me) story - there are dirtier ones in here, I promise!

She smiled at him as she chewed the licorice while he held it, until she reached his fingers. She licked them gently, enjoying his soft moan, feeling almost giddy at their running off in the middle of their party to play at being luststruck. Or maybe they weren’t playing at all, because when he reached for her hand with his free one and held it, she felt nothing but love and lust coursing through her.

I'll have other purchasing links and more information closer to the pub date. Next is Women in Lust, Best Bondage Erotica 2012 and Best Sex Writing 2012, all out this year, then a bunch more hotness in 2012. Amazingly for someone like me, a few of those 2012 books have already been filed! Which leaves me more time to focus on brainstorming new ones and reading through piles of submissions and, in the case of Best Sex Writing 2012, searching far and wide and reading lots of books, magazines and websites for the authors on my wish list. It's gonna be brilliant, if I do say so myself.

The $90 message I most needed to hear this week

I will be posting more about last night's wonderful reading at Coco de Mer, also about nausea, goodbyes, a mystery missed call, Virgin America and adjusting, here from today's home base in Silverlake. I've been taken in by some very kind friends until I can fly home. Today's project, in addition to hanging out with an adorable baby and a huge to do list of writing I've been neglected in this surreal week, is trying to reconfigure my belongings so they'll fit into my bursting-at-the-seams suitcase.

For now, though, I will tell you that I bought this $90 blindfold, not because I will be getting blindfolded anytime soon, but because it was beautiful and I thought that I, so full of fear in so many matters, needed to own this message. "The only real freedom is freedom from fear." Indeed. It's called the "Bondage for Freedom" Blindfold and Cuff Kit, and indeed, on my receipt, it said "Bondage for Freedom." Fitting as I contemplate both bondage erotica and in the more broader sense, the idea of freedom and how that is a blessing and a curse in so many ways as I try to work on starting over this month on my personal goals and, ironically, trying to remove myself from the world of sex and dating so I can accomplish them with minimal heartache.

But the fear is something I live with every day. Just a week ago I faced a lot of my biggest fears and it wasn't all perfect. It was bittersweet in a lot of ways but I think every time we don't face our fears, we give them a way to control us.



And this is what the bag looks like:



In other news, I'm excited that my book Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women, out in August, is available for pre-order on Amazon (no cover yet). It'll also have a foreword by the wonderful erotica writer Caridad Piñeiro®, whose new e-book Aztec Gold, just out from Harlequin's digital imprint Carina Press, I'm looking forward to reading on my phone tonight. I'll post a review when I'm done, but I started it and if you like paranormal romance, it's a steal at $3.19.



Official description:

Six months ago, Cynthia Guerrera's lover and fellow archaeologist Rafael Santiago trekked into the Mexican jungle in search of one of the fabled Cities of Gold—and never emerged. Guilty over their parting, Cynthia won't rest until she knows what happened. When the discovery of a conquistador's journal corroborates Rafe's intended path, Cynthia is determined to finally leave the safety of the museum to rescue him, despite the conquistador's dire warnings, and her own traumatic past.

Arriving at a remote village deep in the jungle, Cynthia is both elated and angered to find Rafe alive. But he is far from well, having watched his team be decimated by a bloodthirsty demon-goddess. When Rafe reveals he has been gifted with supernatural powers—powers he plans to use to kill the beast and save his brother, still held captive in the temple—Cynthia must face her own inner demons to fight alongside the man she loves.

35,500 words

My call for Going Down officially ending, but you can get the guidelines for the kinky couples and erotic romance anthologies as well as Best Bondage Erotica 2012 here. Earlier submissions are always preferred as I work on anthologies on a rolling basis.

Reminder: September 15 is Obsessed anthology deadline

The hard deadline for Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women is September 15th. I'm honored to have some wonderful romance authors included in my (in progress) manuscript and am very excited to see what else authors have cooked up. And the Women in Lust deadline, for the wilder and crazier type erotica, is November 1st. After that I'll have another call or two to post. I'm excited because this month will bring my anthology Smooth and then very soon Passion: Erotic Romance for Women, for which I'm doing a reading/35th birthday celebration November 11 at Word. I love getting to read alongside the authors in my books, and that I've gotten to do so in Minneapolis, Portland, Seattle, Eugene, and right here. Dusty Horn will be in from San Francisco to read October 21st at Orgasm Night at In The Flesh Reading Series, along with fellow Orgasmic contributors Heidi Champa, Lana Fox and Velvet Moore. I met Dusty through Violet Blue while in San Francisco last year, and she also has a story in Best Bondage Erotica 2011 and hopefully more on the way. So stay tuned for event details. I promise fun and hotness! And with In The Flesh ending, I may do selective and special events going forward in new venues, hopefully combining multimedia elements with traditional reading. And, of course, cupcakes.

Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women
To be published by Cleis Press in Spring 2011

Editor Rachel Kramer Bussel is looking for romantic, primarily heterosexual erotic stories for women's erotica anthology Obsessed: Erotic Romance for Women. Final book will include couples having passionate adventures as well as new relationships. Stories can feature couples exploring new erotic territory, strangers who share a spark, exes ruining, etc. Creativity and diversity of story lines are key. You may include the hero’s point of view alongside the heroine’s but please keep in mind this book is geared toward a female audience. Kink, sex toys, exotic locations/scenarios welcome as long as there is an element of erotic romance as opposed to strictly erotica. Stories should be strongly plotted, have engaging, unique characters and be hot and original. I highly prefer contemporary settings but will consider a limited amount of historical and paranormal fiction. All characters must be over 18; no nonconsensual scenes, incest or bestiality. No poetry. For an example of the kinds of stories I’m looking for, see my anthologies Bedding Down: A Collection of Winter Erotica and Dirty Girls: Erotica for Women or the work of Megan Hart, Lauren Dane, Kayla Perrin, Marilyn Jaye Lewis, etc.

How to submit: Send double spaced Times or Times New Roman 12 point black font Word document with pages numbered (.doc, NOT.docx) OR RTF of 1,500 to 5,000 words. Indent the first line of each paragraph half an inch and double space (regular double spacing, do not add extra lines between paragraphs or do any other irregular spacing). US grammar (double quotation marks around dialogue, etc.) required. Include your legal name (and pseudonym if applicable), mailing address, and 50 word or less bio in the third person to obsessedantho@gmail.com. If you are using a pseudonym, please provide your real name and pseudonym and make it clear which one you'd like to be credited as. Authors may submit up to 2 stories. I will get back to you by February 2011. Publisher has final approval over manuscript.

Rights purchased: Non-exclusive rights.

Payment: $50 and 2 copies of the book on publication.

Deadline: September 15, 2010 (earlier submissions preferred)

Women in Lust
To be published by Cleis Press in 2011

Female (or female-identified) authors only. Editor Rachel Kramer Bussel is looking for hot, sexy stories of women in all sorts of scenarios, covering everything from vanilla to kink, sex in unusual places, with sex toys, threesomes/group sex, making fantasies come true, BDSM. Stories should grab me with the first sentence and not let go. Looking for characters with a range of voices, storytelling tones, diversity of age, race, sexual experience. Book will feature primarily heterosexual stories but will include some lesbian and bisexual stories as well. All characters must be over 18; no nonconsensual scenes, incest or bestiality. No poetry. See Fast Girls: Erotica for Women for an idea of the types of stories I prefer.

Deadline: November 1, 2010 (earlier submissions preferred)

How to submit: Send double spaced Times or Times New Roman 12 point black font Word document with pages numbered (.doc, NOT.docx) OR RTF of 1,500 to 5,000 words. Indent the first line of each paragraph half an inch and double space (regular double spacing, do not add extra lines between paragraphs or do any other irregular spacing). US grammar (double quotation marks around dialogue, etc.) required. Include your legal name (and pseudonym if applicable), mailing address, and 50 word or less bio in the third person to womeninlust@gmail.com. If you are using a pseudonym, please provide your real name and pseudonym and make it clear which one you'd like to be credited as. Authors may submit up to 2 stories. I will get back to you by April 2011. Publisher has final approval over manuscript.

Rights purchased: Non-exclusive rights.

Payment: $50 and 2 copies of the book on publication.

About the editor: Rachel Kramer Bussel (http://www.rachelkramerbussel.com) is the editor of over 30 anthologies, including Fast Girls, Please, Sir, Please Ma’am, Bottoms Up, Spanked, The Mile High Club, Do Not Disturb, He’s on Top, She’s on Top, Tasting Him, Tasting Her, Crossdressing, Dirty Girls, and is Best Sex Writing Series Editor. She is Senior Editor at Penthouse Variations, a sex columnist for SexisMagazine.com and has hosted and curated In The Flesh Reading Series in New York since October 2005. Her writing has been published in over 100 anthologies, including Susie Bright’s X: The Erotic Treasury, Best American Erotica 2004 and 2006, and Zane’s Purple Pantiesv and the New York Times bestseller Succulent: Chocolate Flava II. She has written for Cosmopolitan, The Daily Beast, Fresh Yarn, Mediabistro, Newsday, New York Post, Penthouse, Time Out New York, Zink and other publications.

How to get published in my erotica anthologies

Some erotica writing advice in my latest column - also, I think I forgot it in the latest round of writing guidelines, but DON'T send more than one version of the same story. Send your BEST work, not your worst or an unfinished draft (sounds obvious but happens all the time and people don't realize that I'm reading and making a draft of the manuscript as I go, so you waste my time, I don't appreciate it at all).