Monday, April 13, 2009

Amazon Debacle


Over the weekend there was an explosion of sorts those who have been following the groups, blogs, and especially Twitter know what I'm talking about. The Amazon Fail, #amazonfail on Twitter, or Amazon Rank, from Smart Bitches Trashy Books. This entire thing apparently started with a post on Twitter and spiraled into what can be only described as viral campaign on the internet. Mark Probst posted on his blog Sunday morning that two high profile m/m romance books had been stripped of their sales ranking, “Transgressions” by Erastes and “False Colors” by Alex Beecroft. When he inquired to Amazon about this he received this letter...

In consideration of our entire customer base, we exclude "adult" material from appearing in some searches and best seller lists. Since these lists are generated using sales ranks, adult materials must also be excluded from that feature.

Hence, if you have further questions, kindly write back to us.

Best regards,

Ashlyn D
Member Services
Amazon.com Advantage

Craigs Pop Life claims that the removal of certain book's ranking has been going on since February, but we're just now noticing. True it seemed to be only books that Amazon deemed “adult” a majority of them being GLBT books. But also some erotic and romantic het, just so they don't appear homophobic. Harsh possibly but the fact is my books, and there fore sales have been effected. The thing that got me was some of the books appearing on the lists were YA or didn't have any graphic sex. (You can see lists of authors effected here http://community.livejournal.com/meta_writer/11992.html and here http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/593110.html.) All in all there appeared to be no rhyme or reason other than the continuing theme that, most of them, are GLBT. Dear Author looked into this more pointing out it seems certain metadata categories were targeted. This means certain search words, used would basically hit a wall.
So what does Amazon say to this PR nightmare, well according to them via Publisher's Weekly
it's a glitch. A three month glitch, that is now being rectified. There was/is no new adult policy. Hmm, sounds like someone might be covering their ass. What about the letter above? Ms Ashlyn D must be in a world of trouble.
This whole thing seems, to me, to be Amazon not wanting to be associated with our books, yet they still want the money. I can understand my local Borders, slowly pushing ero-rom farther to the back of the store each time I'm in there. But being shoved to the back of a webstore, when you can find Playboy, Penthouse and sex toys... that burns my biscuits. I don't like censorship, I even hated doing it on here, but the thing that really pissed me off was this seemed hypocritical. We'll sell your books, take money from it, but we won't let you use all the features on our site. Now the back peddling. They can't even come out and say "We fucked up. Sorry. We'll fix it." Nope we'll blame it on technology.

Which is total BS, Dr. Karl a 20+ year IT veteran explained why on Midnight Seductions yahoo group and has given me permission to repost it here...
"That doesn't look like a "glitch" to me. As of late Sunday evening however, Amazon has come out and tried to spin the whole thing as a technical "glitch" This is a glitch:

select total_sales, total_dollar, title, author from books where
total_sales <50;>50, but typed <>

Now I might not be as tech savvy as Dr.K but even I noticed that the "glitch" was pretty specific. Many others out there are saying the same thing.
The fact is this whole thing is pretty much over, with the authors winning.
Erastes posted on EAA (the Erotic Authors Association) yesterday False Colors is back up on the bestsellers list. So in the end it came down to the bottom line, their bottom line that is. If we kept this up you could see people going else where and Amazon losing money. I guess the real lesson here is never underestimate the power of pissed off people with blogs and a following.
The petition protesting the policy change is still alive and growing. When I last checked it was at 10,937. Here's the link in case you haven't signed.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/in-protest-at-amazons-new-adult-policy


Thursday, March 26, 2009

New interview

Hi all-
I was interviewed over on Dee Dawning's blog. Check it out...
Erotic Authors: What makes them Tick? Revisited #5

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

New review for Mistress of Tiethla

I just got this review from Bitten By Books...

"
I give this book 4 tombstones....I think Jade Twilight does an excellent job of writing the erotic scenes. They keep the reader interested and entertained - and are hot. She also does an excellent job of character development throughout the story. If you’re looking for something to keep you warm on a cold winter night, then you may want to pick up Mistress of Tiethla."

To read the entire review go here... http://bittenbybooks.com/?p=2849


Monday, March 2, 2009

I feel like the white rabbit...

“I’m late! I’m late for a very important date.”
Do you ever feel like this little guy? Seriously lately I’ve felt like I’m late for something yet I have no idea what that something is. I’ve done everything I can think of that I need to do, well that I can do right now. There are a few things that have to wait till the baby comes. Yet I have the nagging suspicion that something still isn’t done... And it’s something I should do now.
But what the heck is it?
Does anyone else get this feeling? And just what do you do when you get like this?
Usually I make lists. Lists are nice. You write down what you have to do, then cross it off as you do it. But how can I make a list if I can’t remember what it is I’m supposed to do? Think this might be that thing they call “pregnancy brain”? Where you can’t remember anything. It gets replaced by “mommy brain” after you have the kid. Where you kinda wander around like a zombie, trying to figure out what your supposed to be doing and why your carrying around stuff animals, toys, or dirty clothes. Oh maybe it’s a combo, “pregnancy brain” on top of “mommy brain”, double whammy.
Which means I’m probably more like this guy...-->
*Sigh* I guess I’ll figure it out at some point. More than likely at the least opportune moment, but at least I’ll figure it out.

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Spotlight Jesse Fox

Jesse Fox was born in a town with a population of 400 at the edge of the Ozark Mountains in Missouri, she grew up on the wrong side of the tracks. Dreams of being a comic artist consumed her every thought from the time she was twelve until she graduated from high school. Unable to attend college for financial reasons she moved to St. Louis at eighteen where she’s held a number of jobs over the past 22 years including sales associate and design student at a floral studio, operations administrator of a ceramic tile company, and a number of positions in food service including baker, grill cook, and 2nd assistant cook. Presently she is managing rental property, honing her writing skills, and dreaming of a long-lived career as a writer.
Keep up with Jesse at her Live Journal, her Myspace or her website

Blurb-

History repeats itself in the small Mississippi River town of Bauman Creek when two star-crossed lovers met their end during one of the darkest times in the history of the United States. Over a century later, six academics arrive at the site of their demise, Evans House, a haunted place, to oversee an inheritance passed to the State of Illinois by the last of the Evans family. Three of those people, Tristan Pryce, Catherine Mullin, and Jake Bauman will come face to face with the secrets of this place in a way they never imagined. Secrets can never be buried deep enough though and amidst its dark halls, the shadows seem to whisper.

Marcus Havers, a seasoned homicide investigator with the Illinois State Police, finds himself also drawn into the shadows. Called in to investigate the violence unleashed within its walls, he discovers that science cannot always explain everything and gradually, these strangers are pulled deeper into a nightmare, one that some may not escape.

Amidst the darkness, the attraction between Tristan and Jake grows, one that may save or destroy both of them. Together they must face the darkness, survive a nightmare unleashed, and discover what lies hidden in the shadows if they are to survive.

They know you are here and they will not rest. Not until they receive what they desire. Be afraid of the shadows…

Excerpt-

“Please, Tristan, just listen.”

“No! I don’t know what kind of sick shit you’re into, Jake, but I want no part of it,” He turned on him, face flushed with anger as Jake reached out to grab his hands.

“Please,” he pleaded softly, “don’t leave me.” He dropped Tristan’s hands as if they scalded his flesh, a lost look in his usually astute emerald eyes. A ragged breath escaped Jake’s full lips as he lifted one hand, his cool fingertips brushing against the razor-sharp angle of Tristan’s jaw.

Suddenly he was close—too damn close.

The scent of his warm skin surrounded Tristan. Lilies, he thought, or maybe wild roses. As Jake’s lips drew close to his, breath warm and soft against his face, a faint stir of lavender in the dusty air. Yes, lavender was the scent.

“You promised you wouldn’t leave.” His words were softer now, more feminine than masculine.

Heat moved through Tristan’s body, heat, and desire so intense he was scared to death. As their lips touched, he caught Jake’s gaze, beautiful sapphire eyes fringed with red-gold lashes.

Sapphire eyes, he thought, but Jake's eyes are green.

Jerking back, he tripped over a box, landing on the floor in a cloud of dust. “Who the hell are you?” he demanded, heels digging into the floor as he scrambled back through the dust and grime, eyes wild.>/p>

“So soon you have forgotten, my love? Soon we shall be together again.” Jake’s eyes, now green once more, fluttered and then he collapsed backward onto the floor.

Tristan sat staring at his limp body, his own body shaking with adrenaline and the fear that threatened to overwhelm him. Head braced against his knees, the fear found a voice finally, a choked sound pushed up from his lungs.

What in the hell had just happened? Am I losing my mind? He wondered. Spine pressed against a stack of boxes, he sat and waited.

With a soft groan, Jake sat up, his tongue darting out to moisten his parched lips. The taste of blood lingered at the back of his throat. The remains of biting pain pulsed through the interior of his skull as he struggled to sit up and tried to remember what had happened.

Why was he lying on the attic floor?



Blurb-

A successful young artist, Ryan Esson lost everything in the blink of an eye, including his ability to create. Courtesy of an anonymous benefactor, he’s given an opportunity to reclaim something he thought lost forever when he receives a mysterious invitation to a weekend artist's retreat at a pre-Civil War sugar plantation.

Built on a secluded string of islands off the Gulf Coast of Louisiana, Le Jardin de la Lumière is a place of intrigue, a haunting legend, and one beautiful stranger, who will mesmerize Ryan. In a stranger’s eyes, will he find the strength to open his mind and his heart again?

Excerpt-

Ryan swallowed hard, trying not to let on that a second before he’d been staring at the tightly muscled curve of Eric’s ass beneath his slacks. “Yeah, I guess so.” He nervously shifted his own duffle on his shoulder and stepped past Eric, eyes focused ahead deliberately on the sleek lines of the yacht. “So why do you suppose we were invited?” He could sense Eric at his side, standing far too close for comfort.

“Who knows?” Shrugging, Eric stepped in front of him gracefully, walking backwards as he studied Ryan with an amused expression.

To be honest Ryan didn’t much care for the familiarity with which Eric looked at him, especially considering he’d never seen Eric before in his life until five minutes ago. It stank of some uppity rich boy gigolo trying to scope out his prey. Ryan had seen more than his fair share when he’d attended parties, showings, and gallery openings all over the country, and it had never seemed to matter to any of them that he was on Michael’s arm. So many of them had assumed Michael was wealthy and he was nothing but eye candy for the sake of appearances.

He sniffed in disgust. “There has to be a reason.”

“Why?” Eric questioned as he spun and stepped up on the gangplank. “Can we just say it is what it is? Enjoy whatever pleasures we might discover here?”

Ryan hesitated for a moment; then the memory of that empty loft reared up, blinding him to any doubts, he might have about his present mind set. “No,” he shook his head, “we can’t.”

A soft hum escaped Eric’s pursed lips, “And why not, Mr. Esson?”

“Because,” Ryan met those wide azure eyes, “nothing is ever what it appears to be.”

“True, but then where is the adventure in that?”

Ryan dropped his duffel to the polished deck and leaned into the railing as the crew released the moorings, the boat slipping away from the dock and out across the twilight waters. “Some of us have had enough adventure in our lives.” He huffed out a breath, staring down into the dark water as the yacht sliced through it silently. “We don’t need any more.”

“Oh, but adventure is what brings us hope, desire, even beauty and faith. Adventure is what life is about. Don’t you believe that as well?” Eric chuckled, but there was a sadness concealed somewhere in the sound of his laugh.

Lifting his gaze from the water, he studied Eric for a moment. “No, I don’t.” He paused then admitted, “I did once, but not now—never again.”


Sunday, February 1, 2009

Spotlight Christopher Newman

Chris Newman lives in northeast Ohio with his soul-mate Diane, two sons (Anthony and Brendan), and has five grandchildren (Sebastian, Miguel, Duncan, Keegan, and Nathan). The residence is home to their pet cat Murphy (who is always under foot). Much to Murphy’s dismay Michaeledes the rat peers down from his cage (if only he had a ladder). Michaeledes teases him as Chris writes nearby. Chris is the published author of The Truth About Vampires, and its sequel Rites of the Vampire Cult, as well as “Ghost Lover & Other Erotic Fantasies” an anthology of erotic/horror.

A life-long fan of Robert E. Howard, Richard Matheson, and Stephen King the bookshelves at the Newman residence run the gambit from erotica to horror to spirituality to humor. In fact, Chris hopes one day to inherit a library (or a castle with a library, that’d be nice!). Surrounding his eclectic library is his collection of medieval weaponry, helms, and shields. Woe be to the foolish mortal who tries to invade the Newman home.

You can find out more about Chris at his website.

Blurb-

The women of the Albrecht family are cursed! For nearly three hundred years the hex uttered by a witch being burnt at the stake has stalked them down the centuries. Priests, herbal women, and even Inquisitors have been brought in to stop it from driving the Albrecht daughters to sexual-induced madness on their twentieth birthday. Nothing has worked; not even an uprooting from their native Germany to America has stopped it. Soon it just became an unfortunate fact of life if you are a female Albrecht.

It is present-day and Baron Markus Albrecht nervously awaits his daughter Elsa’s twentieth birthday. For a year he has searched for someone willing and able to halt the hex from driving his daughter as insanely mad as his sister, Franziska. Four days before her birthday he finds Noah Ravenswood, a practicing wizard and learned occultist. Noah, armed with hereditary mystical training by his mother, and Doctor Sarah Bookings his associate, he travels to southern Ohio to do battle with the Albrecht Curse.

But who or what is Noah really fighting? Is it truly a hex or perhaps a power-play by one of the Albrecht sons? Could it be the angry and distrustful Maximilan Albrecht, the eldest son and inheritor of the vast Albrecht Estates? Could it be the playboy Hans Albrecht, trying to dethrone his older brother and wrest control for himself? Can Noah and Sarah unravel the mystery before they become embroiled in the family politics, carnal activities, and deadly games at Albrecht Manor?


Blurb-

William Paterno is dead.

“Mama” Fonti, his maternal grandmother doesn’t buy the coroner’s verdict of a massive coronary. The Italian matron suspects her grandson’s last girlfriend of arcane foul play.

Despite William’s aunt Rosa O’Leary’s protests, she has a friend search the Internet for a reputable occultist. She finds Noah Ravenswood and his associate Dr. Sarah Bookings, occult investigators-for-hire. Trained since birth to battle the fiends of the dark, Noah accepts the task to uncover the truth for Mama.

Why is Carrie Welsh, WXPL’s morning weathergirl seeming to be benefit from the attacks? Is she an innocent bystander, or is she in control of the very thing that is wreaking vengeance against the men who wrong her? Suddenly Carrie is attacked by something fiendish, as other supernatural beings enter the picture.

These infernals, which have no relationship to the death of William Paterno, further muddle Noah and Sarah’s inquiry.

Then there is Rosa, who begins to take an emotional interest in the bald wizard. Her fiery Italian temperament, outspoken opinion, and pointed observations of Noah’s life provide an unwelcome distraction. Can they stop the attacks and discover who’s to blame before more of Niles’ citizens fall under the deadly gaze of the Hound of Doom?

Blurb-

In part 3 of the Ravenswood series, George Dabrowski has a problem, a very terrifying one.

One Texas night he picks up a woman on his Harley on his drive east. That morning she is violently murdered in front of his eyes by a terrible, vengeful spirit.

The bloodthirsty ghost tells him he and his former Marine compatriots are to pay for causing her death in Grenada back in 1983. Running for his life, George gathers together his old squad mates, including one Noah Ravenswood, practicing wizard and occultist. But when the specter traps them in Noah’s shop, he and his associate, Dr. Sarah Booking, have only hours to uncover the truth. What is behind the wraith’s attacks and is one of his old comrades a serial killer and rapist?

Can they solve the mystery before the killer strikes again?