I'm pleased to announce my orphaned novella Windswept has found a home at Tease Publishing. One of my "lighter" het reads, Windswept originally appeared in Aphrodite's Apples' Masquerade anthology series. Retooled for Tease's Love's Immortal Pantheon series, Windswept will be released as a standalone e-book, then included in a print volume anthology with other Pantheon stories. I'm happy to be on board at Tease, and can't wait for more readers to discover my stormy little encounter between Greek wind god Aeolus and mortal meteorology student Tempest Rayne. I'll divulge more details once I have an official release date.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Monday, January 26, 2009
Sleight of Hand ties for #1 Cover in Samhain Readers' Choice 2k8!
Sleight of Hand ties with JL Langley's The Englor Affair for the #1 cover in the 2008 Samhain Readers' Choice Awards! Congratulations to talented cover artist Anne Cain who illustrated both. While she was at it, Anne nabbed 3rd and 6th place as well with five covers in all. It's a sweep, and a well-deserved one! :D
Speaking of the Anne Cain goodness, this is the final week to request your free Sleight of Hand postcard. Simply forward your purchase receipt for Sleight of Hand, along with your physical address, to katrina_strauss13 AT yahoo DOT com by Midnight EST, January 31, 2009 and the slick, glossy, 5x7 hotness that is Edwin and Satori shall be on its way to you, tucked discreetly in a plain white envelope. And yes, I'll gladly mail to readers outside of the continental US, so don't delay!
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
What does "blue ruin" mean anyway?
A few readers have asked what the heck "blue ruin" means. Others have asked if I derived the name from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. I've never seen the movie -- weird, I know, considering I dig Ewan McGregor and favor arthouse stuff. I wasn't aware of the movie's use of "blue ruin" in reference to Kate Winslet's hair color until the first BR book was already on the editor's desk. I'd started drafting the second BR book, and thought I'd let Blue invent a shade of hair dye called "Blue Ruin", but ran a check on "blue ruin hair dye" to ensure Manic Panic or someone else hadn't already trademarked it. That's when I discovered the reference from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. So alas, Blue will never make his fortune off patenting "Blue Ruin" hair dye, though at least I was prepared before that first reader asked me about it!
Ah well, I chalk it up to the cosmic stream of consciousness that many creative types all seem to draw from, often coincidentally around the same time. I suspect the writers of Eternal Sunshine were inspired by the same source that I was. "Blue ruin" is Victorian slang for gin -- particularly bad or cheap gin -- and the effects of imbibing too much of it. From there, "blue ruin" has evolved to mean "complete and utter ruin or desolation". I originally chose "Blue Ruin" as the name of an offworld resort in a sci-fi/futuristic piece that I eventually scrapped. When I started on Derek and Blue's first book, I thought back to "Blue Ruin" and felt it perfectly captured how Blue tailspins into Derek's life and knocks down Derek's defenses. After settling on the series' name, I went back and christened what had previously been the unnamed nightclub from the opening scene during the second draft. By book three, "blue ruin" had also become Derek and Blue's safe word.
Thanks to Google image search, I've recently discovered an author made use of the term well before I or the Eternal Sunshine folks came along. With all due respect to the late Grace Livingston Hill, I can't help but giggle just a little. Run your own Google image search and see what you turn up. ;)
So there ya have it. The deep, meaningful insight behind why I named my BDSM yaoi series Blue Ruin. Perhaps a bit obscure, though not an "original" term, but my reasons for choosing it are unique and all my own, while it perfectly fits the wild ride that Derek and Blue have taken me on since they first barged into my world. :)
Ah well, I chalk it up to the cosmic stream of consciousness that many creative types all seem to draw from, often coincidentally around the same time. I suspect the writers of Eternal Sunshine were inspired by the same source that I was. "Blue ruin" is Victorian slang for gin -- particularly bad or cheap gin -- and the effects of imbibing too much of it. From there, "blue ruin" has evolved to mean "complete and utter ruin or desolation". I originally chose "Blue Ruin" as the name of an offworld resort in a sci-fi/futuristic piece that I eventually scrapped. When I started on Derek and Blue's first book, I thought back to "Blue Ruin" and felt it perfectly captured how Blue tailspins into Derek's life and knocks down Derek's defenses. After settling on the series' name, I went back and christened what had previously been the unnamed nightclub from the opening scene during the second draft. By book three, "blue ruin" had also become Derek and Blue's safe word.
Thanks to Google image search, I've recently discovered an author made use of the term well before I or the Eternal Sunshine folks came along. With all due respect to the late Grace Livingston Hill, I can't help but giggle just a little. Run your own Google image search and see what you turn up. ;)
So there ya have it. The deep, meaningful insight behind why I named my BDSM yaoi series Blue Ruin. Perhaps a bit obscure, though not an "original" term, but my reasons for choosing it are unique and all my own, while it perfectly fits the wild ride that Derek and Blue have taken me on since they first barged into my world. :)
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Readers & reviewers praise Sleight of Hand!
Sleight of Hand continues to receive praise from readers and reviewers. Here are a few noteworthy quips with links to the full reviews:
"Blends yaoi, steampunk and paranormal elements into a highly addictive cocktail that left me clamoring for more. Superbly written, fabulously descriptive, tightly plotted and HOT." Boylove Addict
"Ms. Strauss has done an excellent job in bringing this naughty little gay romp to life. This is one story that is as good as the cover art would suggest." Mrs. Giggles
"The setting and the description of Edwin's past are interesting and original. On the other hand, Satori's is only hinted at, but when he enters the scene I almost could see the colors and the sparks." Elisa Rolle
"Only 48 pages but packs one hell of a punch...The characters are beautifully written and developed. The plot is fast paced with twists and turns so that by the end, you have utterly fallen in love with the story. I'm giving this one an A+ because I just think it is that good." The Yaoi Review
"Packed with much frock coated goodness. So pretty and sexy and hot and yeah, I kinda liked it. This has to be one of my favorites by Katrina Strauss." Rain on the Roof
Sleight of Hand - Available from Samhain for only $2.50 at:
http://www.mybookstoreandmore.com/shop/product.da/sleight-of-hand
"Blends yaoi, steampunk and paranormal elements into a highly addictive cocktail that left me clamoring for more. Superbly written, fabulously descriptive, tightly plotted and HOT." Boylove Addict
"Ms. Strauss has done an excellent job in bringing this naughty little gay romp to life. This is one story that is as good as the cover art would suggest." Mrs. Giggles
"The setting and the description of Edwin's past are interesting and original. On the other hand, Satori's is only hinted at, but when he enters the scene I almost could see the colors and the sparks." Elisa Rolle
"Only 48 pages but packs one hell of a punch...The characters are beautifully written and developed. The plot is fast paced with twists and turns so that by the end, you have utterly fallen in love with the story. I'm giving this one an A+ because I just think it is that good." The Yaoi Review
"Packed with much frock coated goodness. So pretty and sexy and hot and yeah, I kinda liked it. This has to be one of my favorites by Katrina Strauss." Rain on the Roof
Sleight of Hand - Available from Samhain for only $2.50 at:
http://www.mybookstoreandmore.com/shop/product.da/sleight-of-hand
Monday, January 5, 2009
Vote Sleight of Hand as Cover of the Year!
In the past few weeks, Anne Cain's beautiful covers for multiple titles have dominated the Best of 2k8 throughout blogland. I'm blessed to have had Anne's lovely work grace my most recent release, and thrilled to see Sleight of Hand included in reviewer Jesse Wave's favorite covers of 2k8, as well as cited by Elisa Rolle as her favorite in Uniquely Pleasurable's year-end selections.
The cover is also up for vote at the annual Preditors & Editors poll. If you'd like to show your support for Anne and her fabulous interpretation of Edwin and Satori, please cast your vote for Sleight of Hand by January 14th at:
http://www.critters.org/predpoll/bookart.shtml
As for the story itself, Sleight of Hand has received more stunning praise, this time from The Yaoi Review. "Asami's Girl" (hey, can't go wrong with a fellow Viewfinder fan!) shares her thoughts at:
http://community.livejournal.com/the_yaoi_review/25237.html
Back to Ms. Cain's fabulous cover art, which I'm still pinching myself over -- Don't forget that if you've purchased Sleight of Hand and want a slick, glossy, full-colored version of the cover to hold in your dirty little hands, simply forward your receipt and snailmail address to katrina_strauss13 AT yahoo DOT com by January 31st, 2009. In turn, I'll gladly mail you a 5x7 postcard of the cover, tucked discreetly in a plain white envelope so as not to damage the bishies or let the postal service know you're reading the naughty yaoi boylovin'. And yes, to those who've asked, I do mail outside of the continental U.S., and in fact keep a book of 94 cent airmail stamps handy for just that purpose. ;)
The cover is also up for vote at the annual Preditors & Editors poll. If you'd like to show your support for Anne and her fabulous interpretation of Edwin and Satori, please cast your vote for Sleight of Hand by January 14th at:
http://www.critters.org/predpoll/bookart.shtml
As for the story itself, Sleight of Hand has received more stunning praise, this time from The Yaoi Review. "Asami's Girl" (hey, can't go wrong with a fellow Viewfinder fan!) shares her thoughts at:
http://community.livejournal.com/the_yaoi_review/25237.html
Back to Ms. Cain's fabulous cover art, which I'm still pinching myself over -- Don't forget that if you've purchased Sleight of Hand and want a slick, glossy, full-colored version of the cover to hold in your dirty little hands, simply forward your receipt and snailmail address to katrina_strauss13 AT yahoo DOT com by January 31st, 2009. In turn, I'll gladly mail you a 5x7 postcard of the cover, tucked discreetly in a plain white envelope so as not to damage the bishies or let the postal service know you're reading the naughty yaoi boylovin'. And yes, to those who've asked, I do mail outside of the continental U.S., and in fact keep a book of 94 cent airmail stamps handy for just that purpose. ;)
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