Thursday, June 9, 2011

Virtual Book Tour ~ T. Harrison ~ WIN A KINDLE!!!


Alisha: Please welcome T. Harrison to my blog today. She's an erotic romance author currently living in the south with her impish husband, two smallish men and one smallish boxer pup. She can often be found with her nose pressed to the screen of her Kindle, reading red hot erotica, nail biting thrillers or bone chilling horror and paranormals by the small halo of illumination created by her book light. She writes to stave off the boredom of living in a small town. Her stories generally fluctuate from urban/contemporary to paranormal romance but, are always dirty.

T. Harrison: Thanks for having me, Alisha! And hello to all of your blog readers! *waves*
I’ve always been a writer. I know all writers say that but, it’s usually true. I just didn’t know that I was a romance writer until recently. My mother, grandmother and great-grandmother watched a lot of soap operas. They called them ‘stories’. “Hush now, my stories are on!” was a common admonishment during the noon hour. Young and the Restless, Bold and the Beautiful and Guiding Light. These shows were my first exposure to the romance genre. All those longing looks, heated embraces and passionate kisses marked my young mind in a way that wouldn’t come to full fruition until much, much later but, they definitely shaped the way stories bloomed in my mind.

I didn’t write my first full length novel until much later and when I wrote it, I was sure I would get published. It didn’t happen. I queried and edited--queried and edited again and still racked up more rejections than I did contracts. Pretty soon, I began to get discouraged. Who wouldn’t? Insanity is repeating the same behavior expecting a different outcome and writing is definitely a form of insanity. So I stopped writing for a while, enrolled in some online classes and entertained the idea of getting a 9 to 5.

Right around this time, e-publishing began to really kick off. People have been reading books on their computers for years but, suddenly it was a more respected avenue of publishing. Kindles were becoming more popular and the Nook debuted at Barnes and Noble. Everyone was talking about e-books and how they were turning the publishing world upside down. This seemed like the right time to try and get published again so I began to research e-publishers. But a strange thing happened during those Google searches. Names like Joe Konrath and Amanda Hocking and H.P. Mallory kept appearing in the search results. And these brave souls were not only e-publishing but, self-publishing. I began to wonder if this was something I could do.

When I spoke to my friends and relatives about it, they all said it was a great idea. They’ve all been reading my stories for years and were convinced that this would be the best way to get my work out there. I wasn’t convinced. I decided to publish some of my shorter works, LoveWanderLust and The Undoing of Langston Black, while I continued to query my novel length works to traditional publishers. I received a few requests for partials but, still no requests for the full manuscript but, my little self-pubbed books were selling. I made a little cash from them and I also received enough feedback to let me know that my writing wasn’t hopeless and there were people out there who would read and love my stories. So, after receiving yet another rejection, I decided to jump into self-publishing with both feet and the result is my new release, In Her Closet! It features an unconventional romance heroine, a yummy hero and a cast of fun and sexy secondary characters. I hope you all will come to love them as much as I have.

Thanks again for having me and don’t forget to comment on this post for your chance to win a Kindle!



Blurb

Fresh off of a night of anonymous sex we join Yves Santiago on the curb for a cigarette. Yves is a self-proclaimed slut who vows to live her life as carelessly as a man and make no apologies for any of it--though her meddling mother and ex-fiancĂ© seem intent on making it difficult for her to do so. She’s determined to avoid anything that looks even remotely like love and escapes most encounters with her heart and her pride intact.

Then she meets Elijah Weinstein…
Elijah saunters in like a dream proclaiming to be the next great love of her life--a declaration that Yves finds ridiculous, though it doesn't make him any less enticing. With his mossy green eyes, broad, sun-kissed shoulders and a mouth so sensual that it should have an NC-17 rating, Elijah Weinstein is damn near irresistible. She willingly accepts his challenge, certain she will be able to get what she wants without relinquishing her heart.

Excerpt

I dress casually for my evening at the Erotic Literary Salon. I’m excited about this meeting with Elijah Weinstein but, I don’t want to make too big a deal of it. I don’t believe in fairy tales, romantic or otherwise, so I’m always careful not to get my hopes too high. So in my favorite Bob Marley t-shirt and yummy ripped jeans, I sit down at my usual table and settle in to listen to the poets and wordsmiths until it’s my turn to take the stage.

I have no idea what Elijah Weinstein looks like. He told me that he would be wearing a green polo shirt. I scan the room but, I don’t see a Jewish guy in a green polo shirt. He’s late or maybe he just changed his mind all together.

“Now calling the poet Yves Santiago.”

I wipe my sweaty hands on my jeans and make my way to the stage. Reading my poetry in front of a crowd still makes me nervous even though I’ve been doing it for years.

“Good evening,” My voice bounces off the back wall and I hate the way it sounds when it makes its way back to me. Any other time I fancy that it sounds deep and sultry but, up here it sounds high and nervous.

“This is more of a ramble than a poem. I call it ‘Sleek and Tawny’.”

I clear my throat, close my eyes and take a deep cleansing breath.

“She’s lost all the parts of her that were pretty.
Her shine and nubile beauty wore off long ago.
Rubbed off--rubbed raw by men.
She’s nothing sweet anymore.
She’s something feral,
something wild.
Sleek and tawny, un animal.
Something constantly in search of something--
someone to devour.
She sees her prey and when he passes her way
the scent of him enlivens her.
She pursues him because in this moment, he
is what she needs.
What she hungers for.
That tender morsel she draws across her teeth
hungrily…
But when her passion is spent
she remains discontent
until a hint of some other succulent scent
rattles her cage.”

I open my eyes. A wave of satisfaction washes over me from the appreciative smiles of the crowd. “Thank you,” I murmur, backing away from the microphone to a chorus of whoops and applause.

A man approaches me as I walk back to my table. Mmm, tasty, I think as he offers me a smile.

“Yves Santiago?”

“Yes?”

“I’m Elijah Weinstein.”

I'm barely able to keep my mouth from dropping open. This is Elijah Weinstein? Elijah Weinstein is gorgeous. Fuck gorgeous. He is damn fine. He reaches for my hand and shakes it, holding on for far longer than is necessary for a greeting. Our hands sway gently between us--a frizzle of friction forming between our palms.

“Nice to meet you,” I sigh, trying my best to keep from licking my lips.

T. Harrison's Website

Twitter: @dirtyscribbler

CONTEST: T. Harrsion will award a Kindle to one randomly drawn commenter, (limited to participants in the continental US). Follow T. Harrison's Virtual Book Tour and comment throughout the tour for more chances to win!

TOUR DATES ARE HERE!

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

As both a writer and an avid book lover, I love how e-readers are changing the world. Soon the days of 'we are out of stock' and 'this store has such a small selection' are going to be history.

I read that you write horror as wellas your other genres and was wondering if you have ever toyed with the idea of horror-erotica? I ask because I have done some stories in that sub-genre and found it thrilling. A steamy version of Frankenstein starring a buxom and brilliant lady scientist... A succubus who redefines the term 'eating someone out', etc.,

Just curious.

Pommawolf Emeraldwolfeyes said...

Alisha,

Hello!
Congrats on the new release!
Great interview and thank you for not giving up.
where would we the readers be if you did?
I loved your Circle City. Even better the story is out of Alaska! We Alaskan girls love stories based out of Alaska....LOL
thank you so much for the great story, and can't wait to read your this new one!

Darcy
Pommawolf

pommawolf @hotmail.com

mamabear said...

Sounds fabulous! BTW..I already have a Kindle, so I don't need to be entered. Alisha always has gifted writers and I often stop here to see whom she has featured!
Thanks for the excerpt and thank you Alisha for the entertaining feature!
~Cathy~

Anonymous said...

What part of the south are you from?

AsianCocoa said...

I guess I'll be one of the first to comment here. Congratulations on self-publishing your new novel. I've been following the tour and reading the excerpts and Yves and Elijah sound like quite a pair. I am looking forward to reading their story. Some of the excerpts reminded me of scenes from my favorite movie Love Jones. Thanks for the feature and giveaway, T. and Alisha.
asiancocoa94 at aol dot com

Alisha said...

Darcy,

I'm so happy you enjoyed Circle City! I love Alaska! More books to come in the series and more fun in Alaska! ;)

Hugs!!!

T. Harrison said...

Hi Chris! To answer your question, I don't write horror. I wish that I could! But I do enjoy reading horror and horror erotica sounds like it's right up my alley!

And to answer Anon, let's just say it's the deep south or at least it seems like it is to me. I'm not from the south though. I'm a Jersey girl :)

Anonymous said...

How funny you mention Joe Kondrath. I am currently working my way through his Jackie Daniels series. Just ready to start Fuzzy Navel in paperback. I did not know he was e-published.

Congrats on your release, persistence pays off!

acm05atjuno.com

Book Flame said...

I've been following the tour and Yves and Elijah seem like two great characters who's world I would love to get lost in.

bookflamereviews@gmail.com

Krystal Larson said...

I've been following the tour. I really enjoy reading about authors and how they came to write their novels :) Thank you so much for the contest. edysicecreamlover18ATgmailDOTcom I would imagine that the horror genre would be especially hard to write.

Unknown said...

Wow, that's a great excerpt. I think this one is going into my TBR pile.

Deirdra A. Eden said...

You have a fabulous blog! I’m an author and illustrator and I made some awards to give to fellow bloggers whose sites I enjoy. I want to award you with the Creative Blog Award for all the hard work you do!

I invite you to follow me since we have a lot in common, but no pressure. I’m not giving you the award just so you will follow me. You really do deserve it!
Take care:-)

Go to http://astorybookworld.blogspot.com/p/awards.html and pick up your award.
~Deirdra

Alisha said...

Thank you so much, Deirdra! Your blog is FANTASTIC! I look forward to following it! I'm so very honored to receive the Creative Blog Award! I added it to my blog! Beautiful! Thanks for making my day! ~Alisha