YUletide Youtube: Jeff Foxworthy Redneck 12 Days Of Christmas

The Blog Tour begins

http://www.jadettepaige.blogspot.com/2011/12/angelia-sparrow-power-in-blood.html

I'm over at Jadette's today, talking about Power in the Blood and vampires in a post-sparklepire era

Gay Christmas Werewolves, BOGO!

(okay, you don't actually get the werewolves, but buy one of my ebookst at LitUnd and get one free)

For the Reader on your list: http://literaryunderworld.com/ We have it all! Free shipping over $25 and 10% of EVERYTHING with code UL2011

Also a variety of specials and sale that run through Monday


Got small children? Try Jon Edward Klement's Smerd books, learn ABC and colors and shapes with a purple pocket dragon.

Middle grade kids? Step into the Circle, by Rowena Wishom introduces them to the fastest growing faith in the country.

Teens? Jackie Gamber's Redheart, The Perils of Picoma comics, and others.

GLBT? They carry a complete selection of my books and my ebooks are BOGO! Sara M. Harvey's Blood of Angels series, with steampunk lesbian demon-hunters, is only $25.

We have horror. Oh boy do we have horror. Elizabeth Donald's zombie books, Steven L. Shrewsbury, Stoker Award winning John Everson books. All on sale.

Fantasy reader? Alex Adams's Dwaves series is half price this weekend. Go swamp crawling with Elizabeth, or enjoy Michelas Joy's series, or Frank Fradella's superheroes.

Comics, mysteries, short story collections. We even have unique ebooks for the ebook reader in your life. "Saving Melanie" is awesome sf.

Come on over!

GayRomLit roundup

So, GayRomLit.

I have been to New Orleans. I have stayed in the Bourbon Orleans Hotel and encountered several of the ghosts, photographing one. I have eaten muffaletta at Johnny's. I have ridden a streetcar and a riverboat. I sold about 30 books. I met a bunch of terrific people. I went to Marie Leveau's Voodoo shop. I also got to go to the La Place Andouille festival, to eat andouille and gumbo.

There is much, much more to say about this. I'm not sure I want to, because I'm still not well.

We-- Joy, Cat and I--arrived late Thursday night and found ourselves in a number of predicaments, Kiernan Kelly and her husband Henry bailed us out of them. We promptly made plans to move OUT of the host hotel ASAP, because $200/night is too rich for my blood. (We spent Fri and Sat nights in a Motel 6 about 5miles away)

Friday was busy busy, with the move and then lunch with an author. EM Lynley is really awesome and Shari and Sadonna were terrific. We hiked through the quarter to Johnny's World Famous Po'Boys. I was dressed for the Riverboat signing, in something similar to what I wore for Outlanta. I know I ended up in a few tourists' pictures. The muffaletta was amazing. And then it all went south. We walked 2 blocks to the streetcar station to go to the riverboat. As we sat and waited, I became aware that I was feeling quite unwell. Despite unlacing my corset, I left my muffaletta in the weeds well away from the platform.

I made it to the riverboat and went immediately to the head. I stayed there most of the trip, emerging occasionally to sign books and retreating to leave more of the muffaletta, and then the beignets from breakfast, behind. I sold out of Glad Hands anyway. Angela Benedetti let me ride in her taxi and fed me anti-nausea meds. I may have offered sexual favors in return, but I'm kind of bleary on that. I need to hire Joy to actually BE Angelia Sparrow for me. She does it so much better than I do.

Accomplished final stage of move, got into more comfortable clothes and went back to hotel just in time for Ghost walking tour. That was good although I was all-over goosebumps the whole time.

Goosebumps tends to be my reaction to ghosts. I had at least half a dozen encounters with ghosts in the hotel, mostly the children who kept triggering the goosebumps. Also snapped a picture of one, accidentally, while taking a pic of Rachel Haimowitz. (with her camera) The balcony door kept opening and shutting by itself and the chandelier swung...in dead calm air.

Saturday was better. we got a later start, which included gingerale from the Winn-Dixie. Sold more books at the Amber Allure spotlight (Sold out of AA titles and Wild Passions) and had several ladies (some of color themselves) tell me how much they liked Kestrel on the Horizon, mostly because I had a black hero.

The girls went to The Gumbo Shop and brought me back Bread Pudding. We also walked around the corner to Marie Leveau's House of Voodoo. A Tree of Life pendant screamed at me and I bought it. A bratty Fairie Tarot deck tried to make Cat take it home and when I put it back on the shelf, it bit me.

The Hurricane party was good. Got some quality time with Cat Grant while waiting for someone to go in the pool.

Hung out until the wine and cheese. Tummy decided to accept some crackers and cheese and a few grapes. I fangirled all over Laura Braumbach. And i fell in love with Kris of Kris N Good Books. I hugged her a lot and kissed her and told her I loved her. I think I would have proposed if I'd had more than a mouthful of the wine. Tam and Kassa are a hoot as well.

This morning was the farewell brunch, and then we went in search of the best Andouille on the planet. My Iphone's GPS got us to the backside of La Place LA, only to find the hole-in-the-wall was closed for the Andouille festival. So we went to that!

An uneventful drive later, punctuated by discussions of love, human greatness and other such, brought us back to Memphis.

Final conclusions:
1) I need to hire someone to be Angelia Sparrow because I suck at networking, especially while ill. Playing well with others isn't my long suit to start.
2) I need to write more horror. I don't really believe in love well enough to write good romance.
3) Albuquerque is too darn far for this. If they do it in St. Louis, I'm there.
4) I do good swag. Not as elaborate as some, but still good.
5) Ghosts play merry hell with my personal energies.

Free books

Leave a comment on the LJ post. You do not have to log in.

http://valarltd.livejournal.com/1394328.html

Big book give away

In honor of being married 22 years, I am giving away 22 ebooks.
(ebooks have no postage!)

So, how do you, my friends and loyal readers, snag one for your own?

Simple.
Today, go to my website, http://www.brooksandsparrow.com and decide which one you want. Alas, Dragons Composed, Dreams of Steam, Four-Play and Zombiality are not available, being print-only.

Tomorrow I will make the request post. Leave your request and email at the screened dropbox.

For those who prefer the heterosexual side of things, let me make it easy:
Pushing the Boundaries of Reality (m/f/m)
Showdown at Yellowstone River (some male bisexuality)
Burning for Eight Days.
A Dark Roasted Christmas
Like a Corset Undone (Full three way menage a trois)
Ellora's Cavemen


If lesbians are your thing:
Worth the Woe
Howl at the Mistletoe. (3 lesbian stories, request this and I'll send Still rolling, the sequel to Rewriting Old Songs)

Where to find me at Fandom Fest

Fandom Fest is coming to Louisville KY on July 22.

I am a guest and will be a busy lady.

Friday
5:00 Panel Room B Author’s Collectives
8:00 Panel Room B Vampires, Werewolves, and Zombies: Keeping Genre Writing Fresh

Saturday
12noon Panel Room B Exploring the World of Children’s Books
3:00 Panel Room B Literary Underworld
7:00pm Concourse Signing
11:00 Panel Room A BDSM in Fiction
12:00am Panel Room A Reading

Sunday
2:00pm Panel Room A Imagicopter
3:00pm Panel Room A Steampunk

OutLantaCon this weekend

I'm off to Atlanta tomorrow. I'm a guest at OutLanta Con, a GLBT science fiction convention.

I'm doing a poker run as self promotion, I should have a dealer table.

Where to find me:
Star Trek: Missing Minority, Friday, 9 pm.

Angelia Sparrow, Saturday, 10 am. This is me, talking about what's out, what's forthcoming and maybe reading a bit of something.

We Need a Few Good ???, Saturday, 2 pm.

Also, I am fund-raising for the Memphis Gay and Lesbian Community Center, which is in danger of shutting its doors for lack of money. 20% of all book sales and 100% of all tarot readings will be donated to the center. Donations also taken, so drop some loose change. Everything helps.

Because it seemed appropriate

from Alive on the Inside

“Tonight, the eight o'clock Ten in One will be replaced by a live Passion Play. There will be no adult show. There will be another Passion Play tomorrow night and a special Sunrise Service on Easter.”

Nick flinched at the notion. He knew there was a hymn-sing and revival service every Sunday morning, but he'd never worked up the nerve to go. He just knew Elijah would throw him out because of Jacob. He gave the idea of a Passion Play some thought. He wasn't sure how they could stage it, since they had very few normal looking people among the crew. The hideous thought occurred to him that it would be a real crucifixion and Jacob would be starring.

He dismissed this as blasphemous and started building the four o'clock tip.

Eight o'clock found him in his usual spot at the back of the Ten in One tent, a little nervous. Giant white scrims had been set up everywhere. The old familiar story began, half rear-projection, half live-action. Elijah addressed the council of the Pharisees as the high priest, the others all just motion picture, but his timing so impeccable, Nick could almost believe they were real. Jene, looking all male,led in the donkey colt to recorded cheers of a throng projected on the scrims at the front.

Nick winced. Jacob was indeed on the donkey. It was going to be a real beating and a real crucifixion and the crowd was going to ooh and ah over the realism and never know they'd actually seen true torture.

Marv was commanding as Pontius Pilate. Nick watched each blow of the whip lay Jacob's back open. The twins, as Mary and Martha, clung to MingXia, dressed in red as Mary Magdalene, and wept. The blood flowed until Nick was sure Jacob couldn't take any more. When Jacob winced at a blow, he
knew it was getting too much.

The tent went dark and Elijah's voice, deep as thunder, narrated the next events. Nick didn't recognize the Roman who was beating Jacob as he staggered under the weight of the huge wooden cross on his back. Then he realized it must be Wolfgang, without the fur. The Phantasmagoria had gone all out for this show.

One of the women in the audience sobbed when a splash of blood hit her face and she smelled the bitter iron of it instead of the sticky sweetness of corn syrup. “It's real,” ran through the crowd at lightening speed.

Wolfgang and Jene, both in full armor, wrestled the cross to the ground and spread Jacob atop it. Nick couldn't watch and from the gasps in the crowd and a thud, he knew others found it just as hard.

The sound of the crudely forged iron nails breaking skin and tendon and small foot bones before thudding into wood sickened Nick. He fled backstage.

The crucifixion went on for an eternity. Jacob bled and writhed and cried out. Finally, he dropped limp, the crown of thorns spattering the front row with more blood. Jene and Wolfgang took him down, none too careful and handed his body to the twins and Mingxia who carried it to the part of the set designated as the tomb. They washed him and wrapped him in white cloth and with some help, got the rock in front of the entrance.

Nick came to the back of the tomb set and helped Jacob sit up, unwrapping his head in the process. He handed over a glass of water. Gently, he lifted the thorns off, puncturing one finger as he did.

“Jacob, are you going to be all right?” He poured another glass of water. After losing that much blood, blood which still seeped through the white cloth, Jacob would need a lot of fluids.

“I'm always fine.” The cold suspicion in Jacob's eyes hurt, but Nick knew he deserved it.

He bent in and kissed one of the shallower cuts, the one at Jacob's temple. “There is no adult show tonight. Come on back to the car and let me take care of you.” He offered a hand and picked up a heavy robe with the other. Jacob stood, exhaustion pouring off of him like the blood. Nick wrapped him in the robe and helped him back to the railcar.

Once inside, he sat Jacob on the sofa and poured more water, adding a shot of whiskey to this one. “Drink,” he said. He ducked into the head and came back with the basin and cloth he'd used in
February.

The girls had washed him, but Jacob had bled again on the walk over. This worried Nick. By now, he should be scabbed over, if not healed entirely.

He washed extra carefully around Jacob's forehead and scalp where the cruel thorns had bitten deep under Jene's crueler pressing. He unwrapped the linen from Jacob's hands and cleaned them, the nailprints in the wrists giving him an odd, twisty sensation in his stomach.

It was how he used to feel as a kid, during the gorier parts of fairy tales or looking at the pictures in his mother's family Bible. Old, full color illustrations of the people dying in the Flood while the Ark sailed serenely on, of Salome presenting the head of John the Baptist to her mother and yes, of the Crucifixion. It was the same odd tingle he had always gotten saying the Apostle's Creed at the words “Crucified, dead and buried.” He knew exactly what he wanted to do.

“Jacob...love. may I stay?”

The hope in his lover's eyes almost burned. “Please stay.”

Nick turned Jacob's hands palm up, washed away the blood and kissed the center of each. Jacob stroked his face, running a light thumb along his cheekbone. Nick took a deep breath and tongued the nail-prints in Jacob's wrists. He looked up with a shudder, terrified he'd overstepped himself.

Jacob pulled him up for a kiss. Nick met him, the taste of blood in his mouth—holy blood, his mind whispered—his passions higher than they'd been for months. He finished stripping away the robe and cloth.

Carefully, Nick washed his lover's back. The whip welts had closed and no longer poured out Jacob's life. He washed the blood from Jacob's legs and feet, kissing those holes too.

Finally, he started cleaning the cut in Jacob's side. Unable to help himself, he slipped four fingers into it, flat, as he imagined Doubting Thomas doing on that long ago day in Jerusalem.

“What do you need, my love?” he whispered.

Jacob opened one eye as if the eyelid weighed as much as the whole world. The exhaustion had not passed, but seemed to grow deeper. Nick wondered if Jacob would survive the next night's show.

Stuff

Oh look, I have a Blogger account.
Oh look. i remembered how to access it.

It's been a busy spring. 4 releases in 4 months. And working on more.

But all in all, it's going well enough.

I have no thoughts on this Maunday Thursday. Work eats me alive