Special guest post by Gabrielle Bisset

Please welcome Gabrielle Bisset. I asked her to write a post about series reading. 

Thanks to Laurie here at Bitten By Paranormal Romance for asking me here today to talk about series. As an author and reader, I know the idea of a series can mean different things to many people. To some, it means a group of books that can be read in any order but all have something in common. My Victorian Erotic Romance Trilogy is like that. All three novellas are set in the Victorian period, but that's the only thing that binds them together. One is paranormal, another is BDSM, and the third is a regular historical.

However, to others a series is a group of books that is meant to be read in a particular order, first to last. My Sons of Navarus series is like that. For a reader to come in on Blood Spirit, the third book in the series, means they'll be confused because the series begins with Blood Avenged and then builds on that book in Blood Betrayed. By the time the reader gets to Blood Spirit, there are references to events, characters, and details from the earlier books that are integral to understanding the story.

It's quite popular now, especially in indie published books, to have a series that can be read in any particular order because each book is essentially a stand alone. There's nothing wrong with an author making this choice, in my opinion. My guess is that it's a marketing choice rather than a writing choice, but it certainly can be because an author may not want to get tied down to a continuous storyline throughout as many as seven or eight books. I can attest to the fact that it's a lot of work to keep a series storyline going while making each book focus on a particular couple, as I have to in my erotic paranormal romance series. The author must have the entire series mapped out when he or she begins, and the non-romantic plot (in my case) must be parsed out carefully in each book so as to not give away too much before the culmination of the plot. At the same time, the author must juggle that storyline with the individual one for each book. And when I say juggle, I mean it in every sense of the word.

I like to explain the idea of the series this way: if there's a number after the title of the book, then the series is supposed to be read in a particular order. For example, my Sons series always has a number in the title, such as Blood Avenged (Sons of Navarus #1) and the Harry Potter books on my bookshelves have numbers identifying them as to be read in a particular order.

However, if an author indicates clearly that a series can be read as a group of stand alone books, then readers should feel free to jump around. What's important to remember is that as authors, we have a vision for our stories and series, and if we make sure we let readers know the order of that vision, the experience with our books will be a far more enjoyable one.

Guest Post/giveaway by paranromal romance author Sondrae Bennett

Please welcome Sondrae Bennett! 

Guest Post by Sondrae Bennett

Today, I’m interviewing Amber and Danny, stars of the recently released Covert Desires. So tell us how you two met.

(Amber and Danny exchange a long, speaking glance.)

Amber: That’s a funny story, really. Well, maybe funny is the wrong word. It all started when there were some riots in the area. They attracted some attention because no one could figure out why the riots came about, or what people were rioting against. So, I was sent here to gather information. Only, Danny and his family found out I was coming, and was tasked with distracting me in order to assure I didn’t learn too much about him and his pack of wolf shifters.

Who sent you, Amber?

Amber: The government. FBI, to be specific. I’d just gotten out of a…difficult assignment. (A low growl rumbles from Danny. Amber grabs his hand and entwines her fingers through his.) He gets a little possessive when I bring that up. (She pats their joined hands with her free one.) Anyway, the Bureau thought this would be a nice, simple assignment to ease me back into undercover work.

How’d that work out for them?

Danny: She’s never going back, so not so good.

Is that true, Amber?

Amber: Why would I go back? I have everything I could ever want right here.

Danny: And I’m going to make sure it stays that way. (Amber leans in and kisses Danny’s cheek.)

So what happened when you first met? Was it love at first site?

Amber: He brought me cookies. (Amber purses her lips as Danny groans and hides his face in his free hand.) At least, I think they were cookies. Really, they were just black circular chunks on a plate, burnt beyond recognition.

Danny: I believe you said it was the thought that counts.

Amber: It was. Is. (She turns back to us) It was sweet. Of course, I still didn’t trust him. Any criminal can bake something, or attempt to, and my trust in other people had taken a beating. But it didn’t take me long to realize Danny was a stand-up guy with a heart of gold.

So after that it was happily ever after?

(Both Danny and Amber start laughing)

Guest author Lindsay Avalon

Please welcome Lindsay Avalon! 

What is it about mythology that’s so fascinating? For me, it’s the impossible walking side by side with the ordinary. Men who are also half beast. Magic so commonplace, it seems as natural as tying your shoes. Tales of extraordinary creatures with amazing powers interacting with mere mortals.

But it’s more than all of that to me. How can cultures separated by vast distances and existing hundreds or thousands of years apart share similar tales? Take the dragon for instance. You’ll find stories of dragons in Asian, Greek, European, Indian, Persian, Jewish, and countless other locations. Why would so many different civilizations all write about a similar creature? I suppose it could have traveled by word of mouth among traders, and the general masses found the legends entertaining so they continued to be passed down through the generations.

Or, what if dragons really had existed millennia ago? I know which theory I find the most intriguing.

Let me get one thing straight, I’m not saying every piece of mythology is fact, but you’ve got to admit it’s much more fun to imagine a world where magic and fantastical creatures walk among humans. I’m a dreamer by nature, and this inherent desire to believe that there is more beyond our world. Even in our modern times, people claim to witness the supernatural, citing evidence that everything from elves to fairies to bigfoot exist.

Guest author Jes Young

Daddy Issues

By Jes Young

Have you ever noticed that the parents in fairy tales are either negligent, wicked, or dead? There are a few exceptions, but by and large this is a group of people who Child Services really should have been keeping an eye on.  I mean, Belle’s father’s life of bad business decisions and petty theft is the cause of her imprisonment. The phrase “wicked stepmother” was coined to describe Snow White’s uber-competitive new mommy. Don’t get me started on a list of dead fairy tale parents—that thing could take days to assemble. The point is, parents aren’t always shown in the best light in your average fairy tale. I don’t want to point any fingers, but I think maybe Mother and Father Grimm were monsters. As an aside, my parents are great. In all my 37 years, they’ve never abandoned me in the woods. Not even once.

Anyway, this long standing tradition of fairy tale princesses with parental issues is one I continue in my urban fantasy romance series, the Princess of Twilight & Dawn. In the first book, Tab Bennett and the Inbetween, we learn about Tab’s relationship with her mother which manages to be incredibly complicated even though her mother is dead and they’ve never met. In Underneath, Tab, who’s been raised in away from any contact with the Elvish world, takes a dangerous journey to finally meet her father, Daniel, the dark king of the Underneath. Once she's there, Tab is forced to confront the seductive nature of Darkness and her own potential to truly become her father’s daughter.

Selena Blake Fangs, Fur and Mistletoe Tour/giveaway

The Lost Art of Letter Writing

Photo by: Muffet

When was the last time you received a hand written letter out of the blue? Not for a birthday, holiday or anniversary...just a good old "here's what I've been up to, how have you been?" kind of letter.

I'm sorry to say I cannot remember the last time I opened the mailbox to find such a treasure.

Recently, I posted an infographic on my blog about long distance romance. Let's face it, we now live in a time where you can communicate in half a dozen ways without getting out of bed. Long distance romance has never been more 'do-able.'

But the question is, what does the relationship lose when you converse via text message and email rather than physically, via voice, or hand written letters?

One of my readers emailed me to say that she still likes getting physical notes from her fella.

I wrote back:

I think note writing is becoming a lost art. At this point, I’d settle for a love note written on a post-it and stuck to my monitor. I think there’s something extra special about seeing your honey’s hand writing.

I really do feel like there's a more personal connection via the written word. Ink and paper. The possibility of smudges.

You've seen movies where the heroine gets a letter from her love and she cries and the ink runs. Right? How is that possible when printers now have smear proof/smudge proof ink? Where's the romance in that? The reminder of the heartache involved in love?

And what about tears of happiness? Such joy should be remembered through runny ink, I think.

So here's the point. Get out a piece of paper. It's time to write a note. Find yourself a pen and get to it.

Give the note to someone you love. Husband, boyfriend, wife, girlfriend, mother, brother, father, sister, best friend. Doesn't matter. Just spread the love.

Write a letter.

Warm up your winter blog tour with Caris Roane

Please welcome paranormal romance author Caris Roane! 

Hi, everyone!  I want to thank BITTEN BY PARANORMAL ROMANCE for having me today as part of my WARM UP YOUR WINTER BLOG TOUR.  I created the tour with the hope that you might get to know my work, specifically my Guardians of Ascension, who are my most beloved winged vampire warriors.  I know the covers have wings on them, but the books aren’t about angels AT ALL…just vampires…with wings.  I also have goodies for you to win, details to follow!

My current release is GATES OF RAPTURE, the sixth installment of Guardians of Ascension and features Warrior Leto, a famous, ancient Warrior of the Blood, six-six, long straight black hair, piercing blue eyes, and built to battle death vampires for centuries and drive the ladies crazy!  Romantic Times Magazine gave GATES OF RAPTURE a 4 ½ Star, TOP PICK review!  I couldn’t be happier! 

I’ll be sharing an excerpt today from GATES OF RAPTURE that will give you a powerful introduction to Leto, the warrior vampire who’s been going through hell and really needs his woman to come back home!  Just for you here today at BBPR, I took the excerpt from chapter one, all about Leto when he transforms from man to his beast state, something new to the series.  He’s in his basement, with no way out, the safest place for him when he transforms.  His thoughts are focused on his woman, Grace, and on his despair at becoming something he despises.

BDSM guest author Tilly Greene

Pain does NOT have to play a part in BDSM Books

by Tilly Greene

Let me start this conversation by laying out the basic information you all probably already know but just so were all on the same page:  BDSM is an acronym for Bondage, Discipline, Sadism and Masochism.  Subcultures have split this up further with B/D [bondage/discipline], D/s [Domination/submission] and S&M [Sadism/masochism].

I should also say (actually write) that I need you to remember I’m talking fictionally here, FICTION, not real life.

Guest author Coreene Callahan

Please welcome Coreene Callahan!

I love languages. English. French. Italian. Eenie-meenie-miney-mo…pick one. It doesn’t matter. I enjoy listening to them all. Nothing pleases me more than hearing the beat of each word as one flows into the next. The rhythm of a good sentence, the metronomic pulse of paragraphs carry me forward, making the story come alive with broad strokes and detailed swirls of an author’s turn of phrase. I guess, when you think about it, that’s no surprise. As a writer, I deal in language everyday, tend to immerse myself in the nuances and pay attention to how words lay on the page and sound when spoken aloud.

I never imagined, however, I would go so far as to create a language of my own or chronicle its progression in the Dragonfury Novels. But that’s exactly what happened.

From word one of FURY OF FIRE, and continuing on to FURY OF ICE, (books 1 & 2 in the series), the dragon-warriors began introducing me to Dragonese, the ancient language of their kind. Little by little, with each new addition, I started to understand, combining previously unknown words into recognizable phrases. A weird turn of events? Yes. A bit nuts on sanity’s sliding scale? Absolutely. Beyond fascinating? You betcha.

It wasn’t something I planned. Wouldn’t have expected either, but I have to say, learning Dragonese is a whole lot of fun. So, today, I thought I’d share an excerpt form FURY OF SEDUCTION (Dragonfury series, book 3…released just last week!). It’s a scene in which my heroine, Tania, meets the Nightfury dragon-warriors for the first time. And you guessed, it…there is Dragonese involved.

Author O. M. Grey 2012 blog tour

How kind of you all to join me here today! I am so very proud to launch my week-long blog tour here at Bitten by Paranormal Romance with a Book Promo Giveaway. It is a splendid way to start a week of prizes across cyberspace. All week long, I will be on a different blog giving away different items, everything from author-signed books to fun things like handmade Voodoo Dolls and a Baby Cthulhu. I'm even giving away a Kindle, so do stop by each day and enter to win. Find out all the details and schedule on my blog Caught in the Cogs (http://omgrey.wordpress.com). Also, do share on your social networks and tell all your friends. 

Today, dear readers, you have your choice between the featured book, the young adult Steampunk paranormal romance The Zombies of Mesmer, or my Amazon Gothic Romance bestselling novel Avalon Revisited, if you like your romance a little steamier. My agent calls it 50 Shades of Grey in Steampunk London. Either way, the winner gets a choice not only of the book, but also the format: Print, PDF eBook, or Kindle version. Just leave a comment, ask a question, or tell me which vampire you would most like to be bitten by. 

About The Zombies of Mesmer

Follow Nicole Knickerbocker Hawthorn (Nickie Nick) as she discovers her destiny as The Protector, a powerful vampire hunter. Ashe, a dark and mysterious stranger, helps Nickie and her friends solve the mystery behind several bizarre disappearances. Suitable for teens, enjoyed by adults, the story is full of interesting steampunk gadgets, mad scientists, bloodthirsty vampires, and mesmerized zombies. This paranormal adventure is sure to appeal to fans of Boneshaker, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and the Vampire Diaries.

BDSM guest author Candace Blevins

Many thanks to Laurie for asking me to post a little about safety and BDSM today!

At first glance, safety may seem a bit boring. We want adventure, adrenaline, and fun! Right?

Well, yeah, but if you don’t play safe, you can end up injured, or worse; and that’s not fun, at all. We’re aiming for good hurt, not bad.

I've been in the lifestyle well over 20 years, so it’s easy for me to discern when an activity in a fiction book is safe, or merely there for the fantasy aspects. I’m usually good with both, but there are people who worry about someone new to the scene getting hurt by trying something they read.

I write scenes as realistic as possible, while still holding onto the fantasy. I include some safety details here and there, like the fire extinguisher under the table during the wax play scene, and the quick release clips restraining her so he can get her up and away quickly, if necessary.  However, I’m not writing a how-to manual, and I don’t include every safety detail. If you’re going to do something in one of my books, please look it up, do some research, maybe even find a group on Fetlife discussing the activity and ask questions –– please don’t try it without first learning the pros and cons.

Most people with an interest in BDSM are familiar with the term SSC, which means an activity should be Safe, Sane, and Consensual. Heavy players, like the characters in my books, often abandon SSC in favor of RACK –– Risk Aware Consensual Kink. RACK means both parties acknowledge the risk in a particular activity, but have done their research and are comfortable with the level of risk involved. This also gets rid of the whole “sane” argument, which can be so subjective: one person’s idea of crazy might be another’s ordinary kink.

I’ll briefly run down a list of things I frequently see in books and videos, and list the inherent dangers:

Guest author Dianna Hardy

The Journey of The Witching Pen

by Dianna Hardy

www.diannahardy.com

When I first wrote The Witching Pen, I wrote it for no one but me. I published it because I wanted to publish a whole story. It was in my mind that there would be at least three books to this paranormal romance series, but in my head, I was writing it for my enjoyment only. I sent it off to review sites, but in all honesty, I never thought anyone would like it that much. Karl and Elena (book one) are lovely, but not the norm for paranormal romance nowadays – certainly not adult paranormal romance – they’re far too sweet! Lol.

I was pleasantly surprised at the response to this book, and to this couple. Actually, I was blown away. People still liked “sweet”?

When I began to write the second book, The Sands of Time, I had an unexpected small fan base. I was no longer writing a book just for me. Amy and Pueblo (book two) were always going to be much more spicy and hot than Karl and Elena – that was clear from when we meet them in book one – but I knew I wanted a hell of plot for book two, and I also knew that their relationship would never be clear-cut. In order for book three to work, I also had to develop yet another couple in book two, and kick-start their relationship. I didn’t know how people would take to any of that. This series was turning into … not completely a romance, although at its core it still was.

I was once again taken aback by the response I got for The Sands Of Time. The plot took readers by surprise, my fan base grew a little bigger and people really took to the third couple, Mary and Gwain. I only gave them a taste of Mary and Gwain in book two, but now I had more people waiting for book three.

Guest author TY LANGSTON

Please welcome TY Langston

Finding Balance

Everyone has to juggle something in their lives in some form or another.  Whether its family with work or a hobby with money, there will be always something that will bubble up and throw us off our game.

For me, as I come up on my two year anniversary of becoming an published author, I had up until very recently struggled on achieving balance between my regular job and my writing persona.

Most people know where I work are aware that I’m a published author and they’ve been great about it.  They  know I don’t like to talk to about it that much when I’m there,  and when I’m at work, I’m there for my day job, period. 

My scheduled usually is as follows:

BDSM GUEST POST/GIVEAWAY: Bianca Sommerland

BDSM GUEST POST/GIVEAWAY: Bianca Sommerland

The Sense of Surrender

"You don't have to decide right away. Just consider the adventure, the chance to try something new." His breath teased the flesh over her quickening pulse. "Which is what you're doing now. Right?"

Before she considered the question, the answer came. "Yes."

"Good girl." He backed away and straightened. "I want you to close your eyes."

Her eyes drifted shut.

"Sloan was right. You don't want to be in charge, you don't want control. Imagine giving it up. Imagine me holding you right where you are." She felt him shift and something grazed the jersey between her breasts. His heat swept through the fabric like a gentle caress. "And doing whatever I please."

Guest romance author Kenra Daniels

Hi Laurie! Thanks so much for having me at BBPR today!

Every time I mention that I write about weredragons, I can count on someone asking one particular question. What the hell is a weredragon? Since I've finally released "Safe Heart", the first book in the "Blood Dragon" series, I couldn't wait to fill everyone in on these amazing creatures.

Today's weredragons are the modern descendants of an alien species that arrived on Earth during the infancy of humankind. These highly intelligent reptiles, with their technological advances, considered themselves THE Apex predator. Humans weren't their preferred prey, being considered unpalatable and too much trouble for too little reward, even if they were the most intelligent, adaptable prey on the planet.

When dragons discovered vampires preying on humans, they couldn't allow the challenge to their superiority go unmet. A long and bloody war erupted between the two predator species, but the war only served to keep both populations under control.

Guest Post and Giveaway with Author D. B. Reynolds

Please welcome D. B. Reynolds to Bitten By Paranormal Romance!

Someone asked me the other day if my books were for teens or adults. No doubt about it, I write my books for adult readers, since there is explicit sex and violence in all of them. But the stories aren’t only about the sex and violence. My characters are all adults, not just in age, but in experience. Adults know the world goes on, that you have to find a way to live with the reality of losing your job, or not getting that promotion, of discovering someone you love doesn’t love you anymore, or, even worse, losing someone you love to the immutable force that is death. Tragedy isn’t that the world will end. Tragedy is living with the knowledge that it won’t.

My characters, human and vampire, have all seen what a crap place the world can sometimes be and soldiered on. And none of my vampires started out as the powerful Vampire Lords they are now. They each clawed their way to the top of the pile, some of them surviving personal tragedy, others a predatory Sire they had to destroy in order to find freedom. And there were always plenty of vampires far stronger than they were at the beginning of their new lives, too. Sometimes they were forced to submit, sometimes to fight in order to stay alive, but always they were determined that one day they would be the one on top, the one other vampires looked to for life itself. 

And that’s why I write for adults, not just for the hot sex scenes, or even the glee my vampires take in hunting down and torturing their enemies, although I love writing each and every one of those scenes! But because I’m interested in the adult experience, the decisions and compromises they're forced to make and the consequences they live with, the strength of emotions forged in fire.

My newest Vampire Lord, Lucas, was forsaken by his family, his teenaged mother cast out with her baby to live and die on the streets of Kildare, Ireland, leaving Lucas to survive on his own while still a child. But despite all of that, Lucas is a joyous character and so much fun to write. He’s completely without boundaries and finds such delight in life. Whether it’s tormenting a vampire who betrayed him, or making love to Kathryn, he does it with gusto. 

So, here’s a sexy little taste of my new favorite vampire, Lucas. 

Lisa Kessler Night Thief blog tour

Who Wants to Live Forever?

Hi everyone –

I’m excited to be on the Bitten By Paranormal Romance blog today! 

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live forever?  I think my fascination with immortals started with Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles, carried into the Highlander movies and tv series, and finally culminated for me with my Night series.

I’m intrigued to understand how a person (or being) can keep their lives relevant when the world around them is constantly changing, and they’re not. Anne Rice’s Lestat searched for pleasure and entertainment, but eventually found himself aching for meaning and redemption. In the Highlander television series, Duncan MacLeod, engrossed himself in learning languages and fighting styles while continuing on his “There can be only one” path in The Game.

The immortal Night Walkers in my Night Series each face the challenge of facing eternity and watching the world grow and die around them. 

In Night Walker, my hero, Calisto Terana, walked the earth for over 200 years hoping for another chance at love and redemption. After his love was murdered in 1775, he gave up his soul to the night for a second chance to love her.  He had no idea he would wait centuries for her to live again, to see her face one more time. As decades turned into centuries, he amassed wealth and power, but his heart hardened and bitterness took the place of hope.

Only his memories of her and his desire to love her again keep him going.

In my latest Night Series release, Night Thief, Kane is one of the original Night Walkers, born immortal. As a Mayan God, time has never had any real meaning for him until the night he crosses paths with a mortal woman who steals more than his gold pocket watch.

His feelings for her force him to get involved in the mortal world around him and give him the opportunity to experience life instead of stand as a silent sentinel.

As I wrote the books for the series, each Night Walker hero has his own reason for facing eternity. For some it’s love, for others it’s duty, and for some it’s a quest for answers, but the burden of endless night weighs heavy on their shoulders.

On the surface, immortality, life without the fear of death seems like a great idea, but I think it comes with a hefty price.

So if you got the chance to live forever, would you take it?  If yes, what would keep you going as lifetimes pass by?  And if not, why would you rather remain mortal with only one life to live?

I can’t wait to hear your thoughts…

 

Lisa

Night Walker – The Night Series - Book One  (Available Now)

He gave up his soul for a second chance to love her…

Two and a half centuries ago, Calisto Terana lost everything when a zealous

priest murdered the woman he loved. Now, desperate for another

chance to love her, he wants redemption for the mistake that cost her

life.

She’s haunted by dreams of her own death…

After catching her fiancé with another woman, Kate Bradley returns to

San Diego to clear her head. The last thing she needs is romance, but

after meeting Calisto she’s drawn to him in ways she doesn’t understand.

They’ve waited in the shadows for centuries…

Calisto has no doubt Kate is the reincarnation of his lost love, but the

Fraternidad Del Fuego Santo has a new watcher with dark ambitions of

his own. As old enemies reemerge and a new threat arises, the betrayal

that enslaved Calisto to the night might destroy the only woman he’s

ever loved again.

http://www.amazon.com/Night-Walker-The-Series-ebook/dp/B0083VMX9E

Night Thief – A Night Series Novella (Available Now)

After the fall of the Mayan civilization, Kane, an immortal Night Walker, has taken refuge in France for over 800 years. The modern world holds little interest for him until the night he meets the Golden Thief and is robbed of much more than his pocket watch.

Marguerite Rousseau is living a double life. By day she is the assistant to an eccentric French artist, Antoine Berjon, and by night she dons elegant evening gowns to woo French dignitaries before lifting their wallets.

Sparks ignite when Kane captures the thief, but Marguerite harbors a dark secret that could ruin them both.

BIO - Lisa Kessler is an award winning author of dark paranormal fiction. Her debut novel, Night Walker, won a San Diego Book Award for best published Fantasy-Sci-fi-Horror, and also won the Romance Through the Ages for Best Paranormal and Best First Book. Her short stories have been published in print anthologies and magazines, and her vampire story, “Immortal Beloved,” was a finalist for a Bram Stoker award.

Lisa is an active member of Romance Writers of America serving as President of the San Diego Chapter.  She’s also a member of the International Thriller Writers and the Paranormal Chapter of RWA. You can learn more about Lisa and her books at http://Lisa-Kessler.com

Lisa lives in southern California with her husband and two amazing kids.

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BDSM guest post Bonnie Bliss

Please welcome BDSM guest author Bonnie Bliss 

What kind of man do you consider a Dom?

I saw this question posed a while back on Facebook. I jumped in pretty quick. Before I did though, some other women got to the question before me.

Fireman, Police Officer, a Marine.

Those were the answers I saw.

And why not?

Guest author Danica Winters

Please welcome Danica Winters!

Autumn in Montana

The greatest season is upon us in the land of ghostly hills and phantom sunshine.  The scents of crumbling leaves and the sounds of footsteps upon the crisp early morning frost have invaded the world here in Montana. 

For those of you who don’t know me, I’m a cowgirl, a paranormal romance author, and an avid reader living in the timber and finding inspiration in a back to the land lifestyle.  And recently, we have spent many hours out in the hills readying our home for the harsh winter to come. 

Blog tour with romance author Claire Ashgrove

Please welcome romance author Claire Ashgrove! 

Good morning!  It’s so good to be back here today.  Since we’re five days into the release of Immortal Surrender, I thought it might be nice to check in with our fearless Templar commander, Merrick du Loire, and see what he thinks of the new turn of events.

Claire:  Merrick, it shows through Immortal Surrender that you still don’t trust or care for Tane, but Anne has forgiven him. Why do you think she can but you can’t?

Merrick:  ‘Tis a most unpleasant subject, Lady Ashgrove.  Must we continue this course?  I do not make it habit to speak of the traitor.

Claire:  I know you don’t.  Humor me for a moment or three, please?

(Merrick grumbles, but gives a short nod.)  If ‘tis necessary for the comprehension of our plight, I shall suffer the inquisition.  Quite simply, Lady Anne possesses a gentleness of heart that I do not.  Nor do I possess the desire to cultivate such outside of my relationship with her.  My duties are such that softness and tender-heartedness could be deadly upon a battlefield.

Claire:  But this isn’t a battlefield – not in the temple at least.  This was once your brother.

Merrick:  Indeed.  The very same reason why his betrayal runs much deeper.  Were he another knight, his actions would not be so grievous, though indeed they would warrant punishment.

Claire: Do you think you will eventually forgive him?

Guest post from the CEO of BTS magazine Myra Nour

Please welcome Myra Nour CEO of BTS magazine. Myra is also an author so please check out her website below. 

Why did you start publishing BTSeMag?

     My daughter, Christy, said to me one day, “we should publish an eMagazine.” Simon and I both were against it because Chris was attending college. When would she have time for this? But she really wanted to do it, so we started helping her look for authors to include in the eMag