Friday, April 25, 2014

Goblin Fires


A Fae Knight's life belongs to the Monarchies. For Reagan, a life is a small price to pay for the princess she loves.
  
From the moment she laid eyes on sweet Ceri, Reagan knew she would be lost forever. A Sidhe Royal, though, could never return such feelings for a War-Child...
As the daughter of the Fae Goddess of War, Reagan was sworn into service to the Sidhe monarchies before she was born. Her contract forever binds her to the beautiful goblin princess, Ceridwen. When an unseen enemy threatens the Fae Courts, Ceridwen is caught in the attack, and Reagan must fight to the ends of the earth to save her. But will this battle tear her away from her princess forever?

 
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We came out on the other side of the park, across from the Terrace, in time to see the three Princesses and Erin emerge from the restaurant patio, bright with conversation. There were flittering butterflies—or at least, what mortals would take to be butterflies—drifting playfully around them. Pixies, three of them: one dusky lavender, one a pale coral orange, and one pristine white.
It happened in a perfect storm of a moment. Ceri distracted me, my head perhaps too busy with all Finn had said. She captivated me, such a joy to behold, and in the beautiful noonday sun all the pretty kindness of her face radiated, brimming with unspeakable serenity. She walked between Nina and Neri, laughing at something Nina told her. Erin and Puca scampered ahead, the latter bounding and barking at the coral-colored pixie with seamless dog-like excitement.
We had no reason to expect danger. I brushed at the snowflake-white pixie, who flew up very close to tug prankishly at my hair, trying to shoo it away as I watched the girls enter the street at the light change.
Then—almost too late—I realized the little creature wasn't trying to play with me.
It wanted to get my attention.
That's when my hackles raised and my spine stiffened. I sensed it—a brief split-second warning, a flutter of heat in my stomach: my portent of ill to come. Finn noticed me react and in turn he lunged to be ready. I saw it first, though, coming up the street too fast, swerving between lanes, and heedless of the light: an old, rusted, ugly car, something enormous and boat-like, full of dents.
Careening straight for the Ladies.
We moved quickly. I have said I am no hand at magic but this is why: as the adrenaline rushed through my limbs, I surrendered to a surge of unearthly power. I launched myself into the street like a charging beast, lunging violently through the knot of strolling pedestrians, and avoiding collision with wildly preternatural speed. Finn, even bigger and broader than I, danced through the started people with the precision of a practiced gymnast.
Erin stumbled, caught off guard as she saw us rushing at her; at the same time a blue truck waiting to turn noticed the oncoming sedan and sped up to get out of the way.
I grabbed the handmaiden and swept her to one side, bringing my hand down on the truck's bumper hard enough to dent it as I forced it to a stop. A second vehicle, a utility SUV leaving the park, saw the rust-bucket coming and swerved to the right to avoid being hit; Finn squared himself in front of it, seizing the grill in both hands before it could barrel through the crosswalk. I bounded up over the hood of the truck and managed to grab Nina and Ceridwen out of the way of the oncoming car.
Neri, though, froze, caught in an instant of paralyzing shock. The rust-bucket screeched, desperately trying to squeal to a stop... and instead going into a skid.

Author Interview Questions:

1. How did you start writing erotic romance?
I read too many erotic romance novels that ended up disappointing me. It already seems like romance and erotica aren't taken very seriously as literary genres... and the authors of these novels weren't taking their work seriously either. I wanted to write something that was not only erotic and emotional, but had a strong story and solid plot as well.  As I wrote Lotus Petals, I discovered I really enjoyed the freedom and creative potential of writing erotic stories.
2. Plotter or pantster?
I plot, mostly, though I don't like to use outlines or other more 'structured' methods.  Most of my scenes come to me in little nuggets, and I sort of 'massage' them into a plot.  While I was looking through stock imagery to use for my Goblin Fires book trailer, I saw that the model I used for Finn—Reagan's half-brother—also modeled in an image of a man with the body of a snake. It put one of those little nuggets in my head, and so when I write Finn's story, things might get a bit... snaky.
3. What are three things you have on your writing desk?
Sometimes it depends on what I'm writing. When I was writing my supernatural western series, I kept a deck of Nordic Rune Cards near so I could shuffle and draw them while I worked. These days it's usually a large iced tea, the controller for the TV (even if I'm not watching anything I seem to need background noise to work), and my iPod.
4. Favorite food?
I love Macaroni and Cheese, especially if it's sharp cheese or white cheddar.
5. Tell us a little about your new release. What character in the book really spoke to you?
Goblin Fires is the story of Reagan, a rakish lady Knight in love with her goblin princess Ceridwen.  For me, Reagan turned out to be incredibly satisfying to write. I could really get into her headspace, really feel through her.  Her half-brother Finn, though, made for a very fun, scene-stealing character, and I really adored writing him, too. I'm excited to write his story next.
6. I write because I have stories to share, and my biggest dream is to know others might enjoy hearing them as much as I enjoy telling them.
7. What is your favorite type of character to write about? I like to vary my characters and try out new things, though by this time I've got so many in my head there are, of course, some very similar personalities. I have to admit I'm a fan of the independent "warrior" woman, like Rhiannon (from Lotus Petals) and Reagan both are. That doesn't mean I don't write other characters, though: Sarayana, my dragoness from Equinox, is infinitely more feminine and Talaith, Reagan's paramour, is much more a thinker and a schemer.  I'm always looking to stretch my boundaries, but I think the gals like Rhi and Reagan are definitely my most comfortable types.
8. What is the sexiest scene you ever wrote?
I'll answer this question differently depending on my mood, and how I'm feeling like defining sexy at any given moment. In this case, though, I have to say that, at least from the writing standpoint, the final scene in Goblin Fires really made an impression on me. I don't want to give away too much, but for me, on an emotional level, that scene really stands out.
Of course if we're just talking straight-up, X-rated, no-holds-barred sexy, I'm going to say the experimental "tentacle" story I wrote.  But that's all we'll say about that one for now...
9. What advice would you give new authors in the erotica/romance field?
Don't limit yourself to stories reflecting your own fantasies or lifestyle. Be open to possibility of writing a something new and different, something you haven't experienced and maybe never even considered. Do some research, talk to people 'in the lifestyle' (whatever that lifestyle might be). For years, I wanted to write a story about a polyamorous trio, a concept I thought of as 'a perfect love triangle'. I'm not poly myself and have never really felt the desire to explore the lifestyle in my own relationship, but I knew there could be a really wonderful story there, if I took the time to learn, ask questions, and discover new things.
10. What is next on your writerly horizon?
Well, I've got a bit of a juggling act going on. Readers of Lotus Petals have been looking forward to the sequel and I've been trying to polish that one up and get it to my editor. After that, I've got Finn's story to work on (and I've been looking forward to getting into my half-elf male's head). I've got two short stories, part of the Flirts line for Breathless Press, and for the longest time I've been wanting to get out a story about a deep Master/slave, BDSM relationship. So there's a lot on my drawing board, so to speak!  The first two are my priorities, but I go between projects as I reach different points.



Social and buy links:

Buy link on Breathless Press: http://tinyurl.com/ohhk644
Brantwijn's Facebook Page: http://tinyurl.com/qf2bzwk
Foreplay and Fangs on Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/q2cmnep
Find Brantwijn on Google+
And on Goodreads
Say hi to her on Twitter

Author bio:
They say you should never meet your heroes, but Brantwijn Serrah says otherwise. At a Los Angeles book signing in 2012, Brantwijn met one of her all-time favorite authors of urban fantasy, Jim Butcher, who couldn't have been kinder or more encouraging to her as an aspiring novelist herself. As it turned out, the book he signed for her that night gave her the first spark of inspiration for Goblin Fires, the story of a goblin Knight hopelessly in love with her princess.
When she isn't visiting the worlds of immortals, demons, dragons and goblins, Brantwijn fills her time with artistic endeavors: sketching, painting, customizing My Little Ponies and sewing plushies for friends. She can't handle coffee unless there's enough cream and sugar to make it a milkshake, but try and sweeten her tea and she will never forgive you. She moonlights as a futon for four lazy cats, loves tabletop role-play games, and can spend hours watching Futurama, Claymore or Buffy the Vampire Slayer while she writes or draws.
In addition to her novels, Brantwijn has had several stories published in anthologies by Breathless Press, including the 2013 Crimson Anthology and 2014 Ravaged Anthology.  She's also had a short story published in the Cleiss Press Big Book of Orgasm and the anthology Coming Together Through The Storm. She hopes to have several more tales to tell as time goes on.  She has author pages on GoodReads and Amazon, and loves to see reader comments on her work. Her short stories occasionally pop up at Foreplay and Fangs, her blog at http://brantwijn.blogspot.com



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