New Release! Mastering Maya: A BDSM Erotic Romance by Lisabet Sarai (@lisabetsarai) #BDSM #Dominance #Submission #Bondage #Discipline #KinkCommunity #Dominatrix #Femdom #Switch #Safeword #Consent #Boston

by | Jan 19, 2021 | | 1 Comment

Mastering MayaBlurb

Mistress Maya’s precise discipline and unshakable self-possession are legendary in the Boston kink community. Newcomer Dom Shark is fascinated by her beauty and power from the moment he sees her flogging a sub at Club Inferno. Behind the Ice Queen’s mask of perfect control, he senses a spirit aching to submit. He’s determined to break through her defenses and bring her the same release she grants to the lucky slaves she tops.

When Maya dismisses Master Shark as young and inexperienced, he offers her a challenge: a night together, during which he’ll show her what it means to be mastered. If he fails to bring her to new heights of bliss, he agrees to become her slave.

Can he make Maya trust him enough to surrender? Or will the flawless, untouchable dominatrix take possession of his body as well as his heart?

Note: This book was previously published by Totally Bound. It has been revised, expanded and re-edited for this release.

Buy Links

Kinky Literature – https://www.kinkyliterature.com/book/8574-mastering-maya-a-bdsm-erotic-romance/

Amazon US – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08SKJQFZ8

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08SKJQFZ8

Smashwords –  https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1063272

Barnes and Noble – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/mastering-maya-lisabet-sarai/1138601539?ean=2940164780654

Kobo –  https://www.kobo.com/th/en/ebook/mastering-maya-a-bdsm-erotic-romance

Add on Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56610584-mastering-maya

*****

Excerpt

While washing the stickiness from her hands, she surveyed herself in the mirror. Milk-white skin and ebony hair from her Black Irish father, cut severely to the level of her jaw; high cheekbones and plump lips from her Lebanese mother. Her nose was a bit prominent, and a few tiny lines decorated the corners of her green eyes, but, all in all, she approved. Not too bad for a thirty-six-year-old broad. Most of all, she liked the strength she saw in her expression. She lived her own life. She made her own decisions. She controlled herself. No one else could step in and take that control away.

But that strange Dom…

She’d felt oddly transparent under his scrutiny. It had been unsettling, but exciting, too. The challenge in his eyes had been too blatant to miss. He wanted her. He wanted to play.

A vision seized her—the nameless stranger bent naked over the foot board of her bed, with his arms spread wide and his wrists roped to the bedposts. Tattoos would wind around his biceps—barbed wire, or perhaps Celtic patterns. His taut, round butt elevated by pillows, he’d beg her to fuck him. She’d beat him first, though, marking his long thighs with her crop, paddling his butt cheeks to the color of raw hamburger. Maybe she’d clip weights to his scrotum and nipples, or trap his swollen prick in a tight leather cage.

And he’d plead for more—more pain, more humiliation, more proof of her power. She’d never head his voice but she imagined it, deep and a bit gravelly, a contrast with his James Dean bad-boy appearance. It would be so sweet, finally giving him what he craved, donning her harness and driving her prick into his ass.

The image was so vivid! She dimly realized that she’d sunk to her haunches, her thighs splayed open, just inside the ladies’ room door. Three fingers of one hand were buried in her cunt. With her other, she plucked at her nipples through her bra, twisting them almost as hard as she imagined doing to the stranger.

She settled the pad of her thumb against her clit, while her fingers delved deeper. She was already close to the edge, self-stimulation combining with fantasy to ramp her back to the brink where James had left her, only ten minutes before.

Someone will see…

She arched her back, screwing the stranger Dom for all she was worth. The knob near the base of her dildo rubbed over her clit as she rammed into him, giving him what they both craved. He whimpered with pleasure, his strong body totally open to her power.

You’re losing control…

Doubts buzzed like mosquitoes, distracting her from her pleasure. She focused on her fantasy sub, reading his body language, sure that he wanted more. He tightened his butt around her silicone cock, transmitting the pressure to her sensitized tissues. “You’re mine,” she cried in her daydream, drilling into his ass as though to tear him open.

You’re mine.

The thought intruded. It was Roger’s voice at first, warm and cultured, seductive and treacherous. Then it deepened and grew rougher. All at once, her fantasy shifted.

She was the one tied spread-eagled with her ass in the air, not just her wrists but her ankles too, the ropes so tight she could scarcely move. Her shoulders ached with the pull of the bonds. Her cunt dripped onto the carpet. A blindfold hid her tormentor but she couldn’t ignore his fingers, poking into her to gather her pussy juice then smearing it over her anus. The rude fingers probed, loosening her, triggering sharp stabs of delight. She contracted her muscles, trying futilely to keep him out, but the fingers dancing in her cunt melted any determination to resist. “You’re mine,” he repeated, whoever he was, rubbing the knob of his huge-seeming cock against her back entrance. “Let me in.”

*****

About Lisabet

Lisabet Sarai became addicted to words at an early age. She began reading when she was four. She wrote her first story at five years old and her first poem at seven. Since then, she has written plays, tutorials, scholarly articles, marketing brochures, software specifications, self-help books, press releases, a five-hundred page dissertation, and lots of erotica and erotic romance – over one hundred titles, and counting, in nearly every sub-genre—paranormal, scifi, ménage, BDSM, GLBT, and more. Regardless of the genre, every one of her stories illustrates her motto: Imagination is the ultimate aphrodisiac.

You’ll find information and excerpts from all Lisabet’s books on her website (http://www.lisabetsarai.com/books.html), along with more than fifty free stories and lots more. At her blog Beyond Romance (http://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com), she shares her philosophy and her news and hosts lots of other great authors. She’s also on Goodreads, Pinterest, and  Twitter. Join her VIP email list here: https://btn.ymlp.com/xgjjhmhugmgh

Night Song by E. D. Parr (@parr_books)

by | Dec 15, 2020 | | 2 Comments

Night SongBlurb:

Twenty-five year old Oliver Honeycutt has no idea how handsome he is. He’s creative, brilliant at his job, and underused in the designer fashion store where he works. Behind the scenes, Oliver takes special care with orders for customer, rock star, Zane Highwood. When Zane is to be the main attraction in the store’s Christmas party, fashion show, Oliver hopes Zane will notice him.

Multi-millionaire, twenty-five year old, Noah Somersby, made his first million before he was twenty-one and now owns a number of casual-chic menswear stores. He’s a designer, gorgeous, and desperate to find a man who will love him for himself and not see dollar signs as they kiss.

Noah doesn’t often take the train into the city, but one rainy day he does, as he settles into a seat opposite Oliver, the two men exchange interested glances.

In fact, Noah is super attracted to Oliver and Oliver thinks Noah is gorgeous.

As the store holiday season party approaches, can serendipity bring them together?

BUY the BOOK

On launch discount at Evernight only https://www.evernightpublishing.com/night-song-by-e-d-parr/

Or find this gay romance on All Amazon sites http://mybook.to/NightSong

Smashwords https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1057936

Siren Bookstrand https://www.bookstrand.com/book/night-song-mm

KOBO https://www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/night-song-12

NOOK https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/night-song-e-d-parr/1138445708

*****

Read a sweet, sexy teaser

Noah felt Oliver shift in his arms as if to pull away, but then he winced, bent his head, and leaned on Noah.

Concerned, Noah tightened his hold on Oliver. “I’m worried about you.” A tingle of surprise raced along Noah’s body as Oliver raised his face to gaze at him with open desire in his eyes.

“I think I need another kiss … to make it all better.”

Noah smiled before he kissed Oliver, not even feeling a sliver of guilt at kissing a possibly dazed man.

This time Oliver returned the kisses.

Noah drifted in sensation. He lingered on Oliver’s lips, kissing him, then breathing, then kissing him again. His eyes closed and his mouth only a sigh away from Oliver’s, he rested his forehead on Oliver’s and murmured, “I wanted to kiss you the other morning on the train. I’m sorry I hurt you, but not sorry I jumped on you, because I want you … want to know you … get to know you.”

Oliver stirred in his arms again and Noah opened his eyes.

Oliver placed a soft kiss on Noah’s mouth. “I … feel the same about you. I wanted the kiss—craved it, in fact. Noah, I should probably go home and check my bruises, get cleaned up—if the ride is still on offer.”

Noah forced himself from the languor of Oliver’s kiss. “What if you stay here and I’ll race off and bring my car back? I’ll only be a few minutes.”

“I’m really okay, just sort of achy.”

Noah shook his head. “I’d feel better if you rested here.” He left Oliver leaning against the wall and dashed along the street to his store’s delivery space. Happiness shielded him from the cold, foggy night. Lingering delight from Oliver’s kisses protected him from the fine rain that drenched everything. Elated, Noah sped back for Oliver. He turned up the heat in his car, parked in the no-parking zone, and helped Oliver into the passenger seat.

Oliver smiled at him in the dim glow of the streetlights. “Thank you.”

The seasonal fairy lights in the adjacent store window penetrated the fog with hazy dots of color. The drizzle put a ring of sparkles around Christmas lanterns hanging from the decorative rope lights strung across the streets. Noah leaned to Oliver and kissed him gently.

“Where do you live?”

Copyright E. D. Parr 2020, Evernight Publishing

*****

Find E. D. Parr

Evernight Publishing http://www.evernightpublishing.com/e-d-parr/

Twitter https://twitter.com/parr_books

Amazon page https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B01MUNJ3I8

Blog https://parrx.blogspot.com

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/parrbooks/

New Release! Comfort & Joy: Red-hot Holiday Romance by Lisabet Sarai (@lisabetsarai)

by | Dec 4, 2020 | | 3 Comments

Blurb

Kick off the festive season with this red-hot celebration of holiday love. An aging author of kinky romance surrenders to the charm of her rock star neighbor. A selfish, cynical stock broker finds himself rescued by a spunky homeless girl. On her Dom husband’s orders, a devoted submissive provides Christmas service to his best friend. A gay grad student moonlighting at a sex shop discovers it’s definitely worthwhile to stay open on Christmas Eve.

Let Lisabet warm you up with a generous portion of comfort, joy and sensual pleasure.

Buy Links

Amazon US –  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08P2CM6KL

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08P2CM6KL

Add on Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56030561-comfort-joy

*****

X-rated Excerpt  (from “A Contract for Christmas”)

Stripping off his shirt with typical economy and ease, he folded it on the vanity stool. His jeans followed. Before he set them down, he extracted his belt from the waist. “I’m going to want this,” he said, laying it alongside my outstretched body so I could smell the leather. “And these, of course.” He dropped five or six condoms onto the bed table.

I couldn’t help laughing. “How many times do you plan to fuck me, James?”

He kneeled between my legs, his engorged cock bobbing as he moved. “As many times as you can handle, woman.” He picked up the belt, running it over his palm. “Then I’ll fuck you some more.”

He loomed over me, fierce and unsmiling. A burst of fear tingled through me.

“But first, I’ll beat you. Do you agree?”

I closed my eyes, momentarily overwhelmed. No one but Greg had ever inflicted the sort of pain I knew the belt would produce. Even in our three-way scenes, my husband had always taken the lead when it came to punishment. I was scared. What if James couldn’t read my signals? Would he know, the way Greg always did, when I’d had too much?

He sensed my uncertainty, at least. His voice was gentle when he spoke again.

“What’s your safe word, Bella?”

“Artichoke. But with Greg I never…”

“Use it if you need to. I think I know you well enough walk that fine line between not enough and too much, but don’t be afraid to stop me if I’m wrong.”

“And if you really don’t want me to whip you,” he added with a grin, “just say so. I have lots of alternative ideas.”

“No, no—I want it—I want your belt—it’s just that you—you…”

“I’m not Greg,” he answered. “I know. But I am your master, at least for tonight. You’ll know that soon.”

Without warning, he brought the belt down just above my right knee. A line of fire stitched its way up my thigh, then jumped to ignite my sex.

“Oh, God—James!—oh—” I bit back my words, afraid he’d misunderstand, that he’d stop. Instead, he lashed at my other thigh, a strong, pure blow that only fanned the conflagration.

I’m not a pain slut like some subs. Mostly I endure the hurt in order to please my master. This beating, though, was different. The leather played across my skin, cutting, bruising, heating me to a fever that was like nothing I’d never felt before. Pain, but somehow not pain—not when I watched the flow of muscle under James’s skin, the graceful arc of the strap as he prepared another stroke, the dark energy dancing in his eyes.

He had perfect control over his instrument. Every lash landed exactly where he intended. For the most part he concentrated on my thighs, but occasionally he’d flick the leather across my nipples. I screamed, thrashed, strained at my bonds, driven higher each time the belt connected with my flesh.

James whipped me into a frenzy. Between my legs the ache built and built, and built some more. I needed to come, more than I needed air. Yet still he whipped me, and I let him. I understood that was what he needed—what only I could give him.

The belt edged closer to my cunt. Dazed and drunk with lust, still I guessed how this would end. Yet his final stroke took me by surprise—the one that kissed my clit and sent me spinning into climax.

Pleasure poured through me in a flood that cleansed me of the pain. It left me stranded. I lay on the bed, limp in my bonds, gasping and shuddering as though I’d just escaped drowning.

“Are you all right, Bella?”  James peered down at me, looking concerned.

“Oh, yes,” I sighed. “Wonderful. Thank you, sir.”

This time, that felt right.

My new master broke into a grin. “Don’t mention it.” He reached across my body to retrieve a condom from the table. His cock grazed my belly, smearing me with pre-cum.

“But you haven’t come yet.”

“I plan to remedy that shortly.” I watched his deft movements as he rolled the latex down his shaft. I wanted nothing more than to feel that hardness inside me.

“By the way, when you’re with me, you don’t need permission to come. Come as many times as want. As you can. Starting now.”

He drove his cock into my drenched cunt. That one stroke was enough to kick me back into a screaming release.

*****

About Lisabet

Lisabet Sarai became addicted to words at an early age. She began reading when she was four. She wrote her first story at five years old and her first poem at seven. Since then, she has written plays, tutorials, scholarly articles, marketing brochures, software specifications, self-help books, press releases, a five-hundred page dissertation, and lots of erotica and erotic romance – over one hundred titles, and counting, in nearly every sub-genre—paranormal, scifi, ménage, BDSM, GLBT, and more. Regardless of the genre, every one of her stories illustrates her motto: Imagination is the ultimate aphrodisiac.

You’ll find information and excerpts from all Lisabet’s books on her website (http://www.lisabetsarai.com/books.html), along with more than fifty free stories and lots more. At her blog Beyond Romance (http://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com), she shares her philosophy and her news and hosts lots of other great authors. She’s also on Goodreads, Pinterest, and  Twitter. Join her VIP email list here: https://btn.ymlp.com/xgjjhmhugmgh

New Release! The Pornographer’s Apprentice (The Toymakers Guild, Book 1) by Lisabet Sarai (@lisabetsarai) #Steampunk #Menage #Lesbian #Bisexual #Dominance #Submission

by | Nov 16, 2020 | | 1 Comment

Blurb

In prudish, patriarchal Victorian England, nineteen year old prodigy Gillian Smith finds a secret society dedicated to the erotic arts. She’ll need both her intellect and her physical charms to earn the permanent position she craves.

Inspired by a salacious catalogue found in her deceased uncle’s library, she applies for an apprenticeship with the Toymakers Guild. The Guild fabricates bespoke sexual artifacts for the private pleasure of select clients – an occupation for which Gillian, with her technical abilities and her lascivious temperament, is eminently suited.

The other apprentices, initially skeptical about a female engineer, become enthusiastic supporters once they’ve tested her erotic aptitude. The voluptuous Governing Director, and the dashing French journeyman likewise help expand her carnal repertoire. The final decision, however, rests with the reclusive Master Toymaker, who has been missing for nearly two years.

When an unscrupulous nobleman sets up a competing enterprise, he threatens not only the livelihood of the Guild’s members but their lives as well. Gillian hatches an audacious plan to entrap the villain, save the Guild, and leave the absent Master no choice but to grant her heart’s desire.

If you like steam punk erotica with a kinky feminist bent, you’ll love The Pornographer’s Apprentice.

Buy Links

Kinky Literature – https://www.kinkyliterature.com/book/8424-the-pornographers-apprentice-the-toymakers-guild-book-1/

Amazon US – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08MWMZZGP

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08MWMZZGP

Smashwords – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1053072

Barnes and Noble – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-pornographers-apprentice-lisabet-sarai/1138144978?ean=2940164724573

Kobo –  https://www.kobo.com/th/en/ebook/the-pornographer-s-apprentice-1

Add on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55857159-the-pornographer-s-apprentice

*****

The Pornographer's ApprenticeExcerpt:

Red welts now streaked the journeyman’s back. Amelia surveyed her handiwork, apparently taking a break. “That’s half of what you’re owed,” she told him. “However, the next dozen strokes won’t be so easy.” She rummaged in her box. “I’m sure you’ll remember this. One of your cleverest designs.”

She held up a bulbous device, tapered at both ends, about two inches in diameter at its largest. A quartet of wires flowed from the base, terminating in broad rubber cuffs.

Sébastien groaned. “Mr. Bosley’s electric arse stimulator? But we delivered that more than six months ago!”

“I had Mr. Fawcett and Mr. Burns build a duplicate. Just in case. Fortunately for you, I have plenty of lard…” Suiting actions to words, she scooped some waxy white substance out of a covered jar and smeared it over the device. Spreading Sébastien’s rear cheeks with one hand,  she pressed the greased plug against his sphincter with the other. “Just relax,” she crooned.

“I’m trying, ma’am.”

She reached around to grab his erection, using it for leverage. He shuddered at her touch. “Don’t fight me, boy. You know you won’t win.”

“Oh – oh, Mistress…”

Pushing and twisting simultaneously, she finally seated the bulb in his rear channel.

Gillian moaned in concert with the victim, her recently reamed arsehole twitching.

“Such a brilliant concept,” she continued in a even tone as she fastened the cuffs around his thighs and upper arms. “Harvesting the power of the user’s own kinetic energy, I mean. The more frenetic the struggles, the more intense the electrical stimulation.”

Gillian immediately grasped Sébastien’s dilemma. Poor man!

Amelia smoothed the curls away from his forehead, then dropped her hand to his rampant cock and squeezed. His jerk of pleasure turned to a cry of pain as the devilish toy delivered a shock to his tender rectum. “Are you ready for the second dozen strokes, my boy?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he managed, through gritted teeth.

“Very good. Now try to stay still…”

The lash snapped, landing on his shoulder. Reflexively, he flinched away from the blow. The sudden movement activated the electric plug. He let out a wail, his back arching as the infernal thing in his arse came to life.

“One,” intoned Amelia.

The next stroke carved a red path across his buttocks. This time he managed to keep himself still enough to avoid being shocked.

“Two,” called his tormenter. Before he could catch his breath, the whip flew once more, slashing across the backs of his thighs.

“Mon dieu!” he cried, shaking as electric pulses wracked his rectum.

“Three. Are you all right, Sébastien?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“And if you need me to stop?”

“I’ll say ‘Logarithm’,” he replied. “But you need not worry. Finish the punishment, Mistress. I deserve it.”

“Good boy.”

*****

About Lisabet

Lisabet Sarai became addicted to words at an early age. She began reading when she was four. She wrote her first story at five years old and her first poem at seven. Since then, she has written plays, tutorials, scholarly articles, marketing brochures, software specifications, self-help books, press releases, a five-hundred page dissertation, and lots of erotica and erotic romance – over one hundred titles, and counting, in nearly every sub-genre—paranormal, scifi, ménage, BDSM, GLBT, and more. Regardless of the genre, every one of her stories illustrates her motto: Imagination is the ultimate aphrodisiac.

You’ll find information and excerpts from all Lisabet’s books on her website (http://www.lisabetsarai.com/books.html), along with more than fifty free stories and lots more. At her blog Beyond Romance (http://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com), she shares her philosophy and her news and hosts lots of other great authors. She’s also on Goodreads, Pinterest, and  Twitter. Join her VIP email list here: https://btn.ymlp.com/xgjjhmhugmgh

Pink Triangle by Lea Bronsen (@leabronsen) #WWII #WW2 #Historical #Manlove #MM #Gay #Erotic #Romance

by | Nov 13, 2020 | | 1 Comment

Pink TriangleBlurb:

Fearing and desiring the enemy… Sometimes you can’t choose who you love.

Oslo, April 1945

Paul is a handsome, free-spirited Norwegian in the prime of his life, but he doesn’t fit the German occupant ideology simply because he’s gay. And so, when the Gestapo catches him for producing illegal propaganda, he’s tortured and threatened to be sent to a German concentration camp with a pink triangle sewn on his shirt, the symbol for homosexuals.

It will take great courage and mind-blowing circumstances of luck, as the Führer commits suicide and the end of the war seems nearer by the day, for Paul to avoid his death transport to Germany.

And it will take the growing attraction of the Gestapo commander himself to regain his full freedom—and capture his heart.

Available from: Books2Read / Amazon.com / Amazon.uk / Barnes & Noble / Kobo / iBooks / Smashwords

Put the book on your to-read shelf on Goodreads

See photos that inspired me to write the book on Pinterest

*****

Excerpt

A couple hours later, when the sun stood high and bright in the sky, the sound of horseshoes came from the garden. Paul had dozed in the hay, enveloped by the soft jacket lining and lulled by happy bird songs and the rustling of leaves outside, but the commander’s return had him sit up against the wall.

The horse’s hairy muzzle appeared in the crack before the big animal pushed the door open and stepped into the shed.

Heimlich sat straight in the saddle, bare-chested, slim but muscular in all the right places, his uniform folded across his lap. Paul tried not to gape at the sight. With ease and grace, the commander dismounted and hung his clothes on hooks on the wall. Drops of sweat pearled on his forehead and temple and rolled down his firm chest and abdomen, making his skin shine. So, so very sexy. He took off his hat, uncovering his dark blond hair slick with sweat—but it only accentuated the sexiness.

He turned to Paul and caught him staring. “What are you smiling at?”

Oops.

Paul straightened and regretted having let himself be carried away. “I wasn’t smiling.”

“Yes, you were. You think I’m not aware I look like an office rat? You need to rub it in?”

“What are you talking about?”

“I know very well I could use more muscle, and that I need to strengthen my stomach.” He tapped his six-pack, which was perfect in Paul’s world.

“Well, that hasn’t crossed my mind.”

An understatement.

“Really?” The commander raised a brow. “Do you honestly like what you see?”

Holy fuck, what a question…

Uncertain whether the man realized what he’d just said, Paul waited a bit before he asked, voice low, “Are you honestly asking a homosexual if he likes your body?”

The commander blinked slowly. “When you put it like that…” With a goofy smile, he turned to gaze out of the shed and shook his head.

Paul allowed him a moment to recoup. He was tempted to tease, but didn’t.

When the commander returned to Paul, he pointed at him. “Forget I said that. I didn’t mean it like that.”

Yeah, I’m likely to forget…

They held each other’s looks for a while, the commander inscrutable.

“Listen,” Paul said, emboldened by the awkward situation. “I’m going to be very frank with you. I hate you with all of my heart—”

No reaction.

“—But when you parade around me like that,” he pointed at the man’s naked torso, “you make it difficult for me to…”

“To what?”

To not like you.

*****

About the author

Lea Bronsen likes her reads hot, fast, and edgy, and strives to give her own stories the same intensity. After a deep dive on the unforgiving world of gangsters with her debut novel Wild Hearted, she divides her writing time between romantic suspenses, dark erotic romances, and crime thrillers.

Meet Lea Bronsen on

Website / Blog / Facebook / Twitter / BookBub / Instagram / Goodreads / Amazon

An Interview with an Audiobook Narrator – Frankie Holland (@voiceoffholland) #audio #audiobooks #audible #narrator

by | Oct 21, 2020 | | 0 Comments

Hi lovelies,

I am absolutely delighted to be bringing you something a little different today. One of my superb narrators, Frankie Holland, has graciously agreed to be interrogated about her job for my blog. As an author AND a reader, I’m always fascinated by this side of the business, a side I know very little about, so it’s been fabulous to grill Frankie and find out more.

Please welcome Frankie!

When considering a project, what turns you on to a book, and what turns you off a book?

Would I want to read it myself?  Is it something that speaks to me?  Have I worked with this author before, so I know I like their writing style?  Is the project going to sell well?  Do readers like it if the ebook/paper/hardback is already available?

What’s your process when you’ve accepted a new project?

I will always read through the whole book first of all.  It’s really important to me that I know the full story that I am going to narrate.  I make note of any pronunciations I might need clarification on, and start to form ideas for voices as I get to know the characters in the book.  I will ask the author for any direction that they may have for me with regards to pace, tone, style, and any accents/character notes that they feel are important.  I then record a sample for the author, and that is where the honing in on what exactly they want, and what my imagination has come up with comes in.  Once the sample is nailed down and we are both happy, I get to work!

Describe your recording studio to us—include a photo (or more than one) if you have them.

I have a custom-built home recording vocal booth studio.  It is fully acoustic treated which means that my voice doesn’t bounce off the walls and echo, it means my voice will sound much more intimate, like I am right there in the listener’s headphones reading to them!

In my booth I have all the essential technical equipment – microphone, stand, pop shield, interface, headphones, computer, and I also have a comfy chair and cushions, kindle stand, my trusty vocal-zone throat lozenges, a mood lamp as I am without sunlight the whole time I record, and a cushion for my dog when he decides to join me!!

How do you prepare for a recording session?

I start with a vocal warm up, and then a physical warm up.  As I am going to be narrating for hours at a time, it is important to make sure I am fully prepared.  I have a range of vocal exercises that help get my voice ready for recording.  The voice is not just situated in the mouth though, the whole body impacts on your voice, so it is important to move my body, and stretch and warm it up too!  I also make sure I have a big glass of water, and normally a mug of earl grey too.

What are the biggest problems you come across in this job?

Probably time management!!  When the schools were closed because of COVID19 I was so aware of how key my time management is.  It is really important to have boundaries around my work time, I love it so much and if I’m not careful it could eat in to all of my family time too!  When my daughter was off school for 6 months, I found it extremely challenging to divide my time between parenting, crisis home-schooling and booth time.  Now that my daughter has returned to school it is much easier, but I still have to remember that I only have a specific amount of time in the day that the house is empty and I can be fully dedicated to my work.

What are the biggest positives in your job?

Oh my gosh!  That I am living out my actual childhood dreams in reality!!  I always wanted to be a voice actress and audiobook narrator.  I spent a significant portion of my life being consumed with self doubt, and being far too scared to even attempt to try narration.  Now that I live and breathe it, I feel like I have unlocked so much more confidence and happiness and pleasure in the rest of my life too!  I get to READ BOOKS for a living!!  I literally get to breathe life into stories for listening ears.  It is the ultimate honour to be trusted with an author’s work.  I feel such gratitude that I am trusted to do their words justice.

Tell us about the relationship between narrator and author when you’re working on their book.

This honestly depends entirely on the author.  Some authors have a lot more input, and others leave everything to me.  Either way I always keep the channels of communication open, so that no matter who I am working with they know that I value their input, as the book is their creation.  That said, all authors respect that once they have approved the sample of the book that the creative process is up to me after that.  They have final approval of the book at the end, so it is important that anything that they want to be done differently to my initial interpretation is highlighted to me before I start the lengthy process of recording, so that the final audiobook is true to their vision.

Do you have any favourite audiobooks you’ve worked on?

Oh my goodness, how can I pick a favourite?!  For Lucy…  probably our very first collaboration – Stately Pleasures.  It was so well written, so many fantastic saucy scenes, I absolutely LOVED it!  I also really enjoyed Chasing The Chambermaid for Lucy too.  I got to bring out my Scottish accent for a few characters, which was fun, and the mystery of the location and relationships was fun to bring to life!

What’s been your most challenging project to date?

I feel like my latest Lucy Felthouse novel – Search and Rescue has been a real challenge actually.  This book contains 4 male characters, each with distinctly different voices, and 1 female character.  My natural voice is not deep, and so maintaining so many deep voices and accents was quite a challenge, but a challenge I was happy to accept…  Let’s hope Lucy and our listeners enjoy it!

*****

Thank you so, so much to Frankie for taking the time to give us a little peep into your world. I’ve found it fascinating, so I hope anyone reading this will, too!

Here’s a list of the audiobooks Frankie has narrated for me. Please do check them out, and also, once you’ve listened, it’d be awesome if you could leave a review – they really help both myself and Frankie out in terms of us being discovered by other listeners.

And, of course, Search and Rescue, which is coming soon. The eagle-eyed amongst you may already have seen a sneak peek in Frankie’s booth photos 😉

Happy Listening!

Lucy x

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