Guest Blooger: Viola Estrella

So you may have notice that I have been a bit derelict in my blogging duties but I have an excuse. We've just crawled out from under a blizzard here in Colorado. Unfortunately, I don't have Internet at my house (other than my iPhone but that is a whole other post!) so I haven't been able to blog. Today is the first time I've even left my house (or my jammies) since Tuesday. Yeah.

Anyway, I am back with a bang! And a guest blogger. My lovely CP and friend VIOLA ESTRELLA! Her new book, Bewitching You, is out today from the Wild Rose Press.

Isn't that a beautiful cover?!?!

Take it away, Vi!

Thanks so much for letting me have a day on your blog, Monica! Bewitching You is out today – officially – in eBook and paperback and I’m pretty excited. This book was most definitely a book of my heart. What does that mean to me? It just means I poured my heart and soul into writing it and creating characters that made me laugh and cry right along with them. It was a journey to write this story and I hope readers will like it as much as I loved creating it.

Blurb:

An interfering ghost, a nosy mind-reading grandmother, a psychic man-hating mother, and a spell gone wrong are only a few dilemmas Sofia Good has to deal with in order to find love. It’s not easy having control of your own destiny when you can’t even remember what you put on that morning, even worse when you’re given a “gift” of precognition to save people’s lives, and you have no clue how to use it.

Grayson Phillips lost his brother in a senseless accident, and now he’s trying to gain back control by maintaining a safe and uneventful ‘life plan.’ But after sexy, quirky Sofia crash lands into his world he’s forced to rethink his strategy.

When Sofia’s grandmother casts a love spell, it successfully maneuvers Sofia and Grayson into her home in secluded Amish country. Time will tell if the love spell helps or destroys Sofia’s only chance at love.

Excerpt from Bewitching You:

Sofia finished showering, shaving, and changing into her favorite light green nightgown. It had spaghetti straps and was silky and sleek against her skin. She ran her hands over her hips and felt truly sexy for the first time in her life. It probably had to do with there being a hot guy downstairs who made her feel like she was something more than a short, chubby, wannabe cheerleader. So much more. He was sweet for sticking up for her against her worst high school memory. It made her wish she’d met him back then.

Sighing, she pulled her sketchbook from her duffle bag and sifted through the pages. Her own personal homage to Gray. How humiliating would it be if he found it? Even worse, if he were to see the numerous paintings that filled her bedroom at home. Sofia Good: Dream stalker extraordinaire. Why, yes, Gray, I did spend hours upon hours sketching and painting you, even before I laid eyes on you.

Not good. She stuffed it back in the bottom of the bag and scrounged for a new pair of panties. All that was left were her high-cut cotton briefs. Comfortable, but not sexy at all. She really needed to do laundry, but how embarrassing would it be to hang out your underwear for the world and Gray to see on a clothesline?

No way.

She opted to wear none for tonight. Nothing was going to happen, but it was fun to feel a little naughty. To know that with one slip of his hand, he would realize she was completely bare underneath this lightweight nightgown.

He’d only have to hike it up and straddle her on his lap… Stop it, Sofe. Stop. It.

Twenty-four years without knowing the touch of a man was starting to warp her mind. Sure, she could’ve given into a man’s advances on one of the several dates she’d been on, but when she had visions of the men falling love with someone else, the idea always lost its flavor. Of course, she didn’t have that problem with Gray. In her dreams of him, he loved her, and no one else.

She let out a breath and put a brush through her damp hair.

“Hey, Sofia.” Gray’s deep voice jolted her.

She swerved around to see him standing at the door with his hands braced against the doorframe. She really needed to remember to start closing and locking the door. Or not. His shirt was off again and the top button of his jeans was undone. She managed to squeak out a, “Hi.”

“Am I interrupting?”

“No.” She set the brush on the dresser and watched as he sat down on the bed.

He grabbed her wrist and gently tugged her over until she stood in between his thighs. “I wanted to say goodnight.” He set his hands on her hips and pulled her forward.

“Okay.” Oh, boy.

“And because sometimes words escape me, I wanted to make a point to tell you how beautiful I think you are. Inside and out.”

Sofia gulped. “I, um, thanks.”

His large hands slid down her butt and back up again. He must have noticed her lack of underwear, because he bit into his bottom lip and repeated the action.

Sofia was pretty sure her heart stopped beating. Not since Leo Wendle pinched her ass in the hallway in the seventh grade had someone acted like they appreciated God’s big, old, huge gift to her backside. And Leo Wendle had been an acne-faced pervert with premature facial hair.

This was so much better.

----

Bewitching You is available now as eBook and in paperback from www.thewildrosepress.com. You can also find it online at www.amazon.com, www.barnesandnoble.com, and www.booksamillion.com.

To find out more about me and my writing, visit my website www.violaestrella.com.

WOW!!! That sounds awesome, Vi! Can't wait to read it! Now you out there in Bloglandia, GO BUY IT!!!!

Viola Estrella

Hello Again,

Today I am pleased to welcome another one of my critique partners and fellow Vixen, Viola Estrella, to the Harmless Smut Blog.  You are correct if you believe that I ruthlessly and mercilessly strong arm all in my acquaintance to bow to my will.

Now without further ado, here's Vi!

M: Tell us, how long have you been writing?

V:  I finished my first manuscript a little over six years ago. 

M: Wow!  You were doing what I was supposed to be doing.  Stoopid grad school!  Anyhoo, what attracted you to the romance genre?

V: Good question. I find the dynamics of a burgeoning relationship very intriguing. The pursuit of love or, in some cases, the denial of love, and all the conflict that arises with this process is fascinating. I have a lot of fun bringing the couple together and watching as they struggle to find their happy ending. It always gives me a huge sense of satisfaction to get them to that place.

M: I totally agree.  I'm a sucker for a happy ending (and not the kind given after a massage.)  Wait!  Tangent.  Back now.  So, how many manuscripts had you completed before you sold?

V: Too many! I was working on my sixth full manuscript when I contracted my fifth, so five, I guess. 

M:  That's so cool.  Congrats on even finishing!  Now, what we want to know!  Tell us about the day (the minute, the second) you got ‘The Call.’  What was your initial reaction?

V: I got “The Email” which was fine with me because I would’ve been a blithering idiot if I’d received a phone call and they might’ve changed their minds. With the email, I read and reread to make sure I wasn’t just reading another funky rejection letter. When it finally clicked that the editor was offering me a contract, I hazily remember walking upstairs and telling my husband. I was in shock so I think my announcement sounded more like a question. I think I’m still in shock actually. After pursuing a goal for so long, it might take just as long to fully grasp that I’m now a published writer. But I wouldn’t want it any other way.  

  

M:  That's hILaRIoUs!  Even more so because I can picture it!  Tell me that you at least did something to celebrate?

V: We went to dinner, I think. Like I said, I was in shock. LOL

  

M: The truth.  Anyone you wanted to call and say 'Ha!'?

V: I’m not really a rub-my-news-in type of gal. Bad karma. But if I were, I do have a particularly unkind agent in mind.  

M: That's why we work so well together, Vi.  We balance each other out.  You are WAY nicer than I am!  Tell us about your current release.

V: Angel Vindicated is a sexy urban fantasy now available from www.cerridwenpress.com. Here’s a blurb:

Abby Angel doesn’t always enjoy her job, but she excels at it. Deporting unruly demons back to Hell is her specialty. Her personal life, on the other hand, could use a little work. The virtuous gene seems to be missing in this particular Angel, getting Abby into more trouble than she likes to admit. To date, her biggest vice has been Siméon Keller, a half-demon/half-human, who effortlessly managed to seduce Abby five years ago. She’s avoided him ever since but can’t seem to knock the bad reputation the blunder has branded on her. 

Now the threat of a demon rebellion has Angels, Inc. overwhelmed and Abby must trust Siméon to help her find the fiends threatening to destroy Earth’s only salvation. Staying out of Siméon’s bed is the least of her worries as she fights for the lives of all Angels and humans everywhere.

M: Sounds great.  Got my copy ready to go for my trip to Costa Rica.  Where can we buy it?

V: Angel Vindicated is available as an eBook from www.cerridwenpress.com. My upcoming release, a paranormal romance titled Bewitching You, will be available in print and eBook form on October 30^th, 2009 from www.thewildrosepress.com. Don’t forget!

M: Can't wait!!!  What are you working on now?

V: I’m promoting my current and upcoming releases, and I’m working on the sequels to both of these. 

M: You are a superwoman!  So, any advice you have for us ‘Soon To Be Published’ writers (as I like to call us)?

V: Stay confident and don’t ever let anyone ever tell you that you can’t accomplish your goals. If you believe in yourself then there’s no stopping you. So “Soon To Be Published” is exactly the right attitude to have.  

M: Well said, sister!  And now because we all know I like to have a little fun, here comes the 'sexy' portion of our program.  Boxers or Briefs?

V: Boxer briefs are so sexy!! Love them on my hubby and I put them on all my heroes, well, the heroes that actually wear underwear.

M: Now that, I like to hear!  Although there is something about a hero that goes 'commando'.  Hmm...naked.  Wait!  What?  Where was I?  Oh, so who’s your ideal hero?

V: Hmm. I could answer this question a number of ways but I’ll just go with what I like in a fictional hero:

Confident but not arrogant. Bold but not audacious. Sexy without flaunting it. Intelligent but not pretentious. Smells good without pouring on the cologne. Funny but also laughs at other people’s jokes.

Hey, you said “ideal.”

M: You're right.  I did.  And I want your ideal!  

Thank you so much, Vi, for stopping by.  I'm sure that all my readers never even got this far because they're all 'RUNNING' over to buy your book!  In case you have to ask, my rating for 'Angel Vindicated' is a 'RUN!!!'

Later Gators!