Teresa D'Amario

Archive for the ‘Just because’ Category

Thank you for visiting my stop on the 1RomanceEbooks.com One year Anniversary Blog Tour!  Happy Birthday 1RomanceEbooks.com!  I am stop number three.  Your last stop should have been #2, Aspen Mountain Press!  And a happy Anniversary to you and your wife.  What a wonderful pair you two make!

It’s a celebration! So settle in and party!!!!

What better way to party than to talk about my favorite type of books.  Shapeshifters.  No, I don’t write Jacob Black type shifters.  Mine are much…. Older? LOL.  And I can tell you I loved shifters long before I saw the Young Taylor’s “hawt abs”.  But I can honestly say that when I first read my first shifter, I really didn’t believe I’d like it.  After all, how sexy can something that turns into an animal be?   How wrong I was.  And the next thing I knew they were coming out of my fingers as I typed, telling me just how hot they could be.

During my career as a writer, I’ve had a lot of reviews try to explain what it is that makes my books different, and what makes them so hot.  Some say it’s my alpha males.  And it’s true, in every book I write there’s a super hot, masculine male.  He’s confident.  He’s powerful, and he doesn’t take shit from anyone.  Except his mate, of course.

Some say it’s their love of family.  For inside every shifter is the desire to procreate.  They also are willing to protect any child with their life.  Who doesn’t love the man who loves and adores children?

Some say it’s the true animal-like qualities I give my shifters.  Whether wolf, tiger, lion or leopard, there’s always something very “animalistic” in my characters.  I study the beasts I model them after, from their movement to their actions.  From the low edged snarl of the wolf to the vicious stealth of the tiger, the characteristics of the animal inside is more than something they change into.  It’s a part of them.  It’s their true nature.

But I think it’s the love.  Yep, every one of my shifters has this special connection with their mates.  Yes, it’s instantaneous.  It’s almost like “love at first sight”, with a lot of “Fate” thrown in.  Some say they don’t like a “fated mate’s” scenario.  But there’s nothing sweet an innocent about these pairings.  There’s danger.  There’s fire.  And there’s passion.

Mix in a lot of wildly violent danger, and you have my shifters.  There’s a reason I tell people to think Underworld, without the vampires.   Sometimes there’s magic.  Sometimes there’s murder and mayhem, but through it all, there’s love and respect between a couple who come from far different worlds.

It’s the ultimate Cinderella story – the poor little girl who marries the prince.  Only in my world, Cinderella may be human, or she may be filled with animalistic strength herself.  And Prince charming?  Well, he’s a little special himself.   He’s everything a man was before civilization tamed him.  He’s wild, and passionate, and dangerous to his enemies.  He comes from a world where to show weakness is death.

In my world, an unknown war has been fought in the city streets, and Man is no longer the strongest predator.

I’ll be giving away a prize!  To win, you have to do TWO Things:  First, head on over to 1RomanceEbooks.com to register!   Then, head back here and leave a comment – tell me what you think about shapeshifters, and who is the hottest shifter out there?  Don’t forget, the more comments you leave along the entire 1RomanceEbooks.com tour (One comment per blog is counted), the better chance for you to win the Sony Ebook Reader giveaway!  But just cuz only one comment is counted, doesn’t mean you can’t come back and ask more questions.  I’ll be happy to chat with you!  I’ll be giving away one e-copy of Dark Succession!

And dont’ forget to head over to today’s next stop, #4 William Maltese

I was thinking today about the different characters I’ve created, and the things that make them “individual” and not cardboard figures.  In SheWolf, my heroine was a veterinarian.  She thought about animals all the time.  She thought about her job, and how stupid white coats were when you worked with animals.  How the dirt and dog hair were always obvious.  We see her at work, with her employees, and how they bond like their own pack.  Her hero, Kieran, identifies himself entirely by his failures until he meets his mate.  The death of his parents.  The death of his first wife.  They all play on his mind and guide his every action.  But once life begins to change. Kieran identifies himself entirely as a mate.  It’s a touching and unusual role to see an alpha male take.

Then there’s Ryland, with Dark Succession.  A man who has to fight for everything, to prove himself, to be what he wants to be.  To be what his brother thinks he should be.  He can’t even control his life enough to know who his parents truly are.  His past has created a powerful, yet edgy alpha male.  One thrown into a world he’d rather not be in, but must fight to keep it.  His heroine identifies herself as nothing more than an alpha’s daughter.  A woman who isn’t attractive in her own eyes, tired of being courted for her position instead of who and what she is.  A college girl, struggling to avoid what she believes to be her future – a loveless mating. 

In Tigress by the tail, we were more with Lance, who was the youngest brother of a family of 5 kids.  How he looked up to his brothers and identified not so much with himself, but what his brothers made him.  Cassie, however is more than confident if not a little bit innocent.  The ultimate college diva, from money.  She identifies herself more as a shifter than as a woman.

In Lone Wolf, Krystal is a movie buff.  You can tell because she is constantly comparing her brothers, or events to movies.  References to Underworld, Fantastic Four, and Matrix are throughout her thought processes.  Krystal was fun for me.  My favorite line in the movie is “The Matrix, in living color.  Times Four.”  A reference to her four brothers, all wearing black trench coats.  It made me smile every time I saw it.  She considers herself the weakest of the Maxey children.  And damn it, she’s going to prove herself even if it gets her killed.  Damon, however, identifies himself as a man without a past, who fears for his future.  It’s there, in everything he says and does. 

Now I’m working on Cougar’s Fate, and our hero, Jared, has trouble identifying himself as little more than the typical “Middle child syndrome”.  The third child in a group of five, he isn’t the oldest.  He isn’t the youngest.  He isn’t the smartest and he isn’t the most powerful.  Those titles all belong to his siblings.  He isn’t even the most “Sensitive”, as he describes his next oldest brother.  At this point in the story, he has at last met a woman who will draw him to be more than “the middle child”.  More than the less than powerful Maxey brother.  I can’t wait to see what she draws out of him.  What power, or strength he develops because of her love. 

So tell me about your favorite characters.  What makes them special?  How do they identify themselves?  How does it differ from the beginning of the story to the end?  Does your favorite develop into something OTHER than what they were in the beginning? or did they simply develop more of that identification till they truly knew who and what they were?

Sorry I’ve been lax lately, but that’s because I’ve been busy.  Writing.  Among other things.  So what am I writing?  The third book in the Maxey Wizard series, of course.  The working title is Cougar’s Fate, and it looks like it’s going to have a few surprises for folks.  It seems the Cougar isn’t the only shifter in the book.  But of course I can’t give away my secrets, that would ruin the book!  For you and for me.

But, Cougar’s Fate isn’t all I’m working on.  Slowly but surely, Dark Succession gets closer and closer to release.  And since that is my current favorite book (with very good reason), I thought I’d share a little bit from the pages of Dark Succession.

Dark Succession - coming soon from Freya’s Bower

Nora Hunt is the daughter of former pack leader Sean Hunt and niece to Kieran Hunt.  Emotionally and physically scarred after being held captive for weeks, she’s finally ready to move on with her life.  But when she meets Ryland, she discovers not only a world of darkness and pain, but discovers Ryland may not be any better than those who held her captive all those weeks.

When Ryland Keegan steps in as Alpha of his dead brother’s pack, he inherits a pack of savage rogue wolven, as well as a legacy of violence, lies and five women held captive within the pack’s confines.

But when Ryland’s pack members start dying one at a time, he must decide if Nora is the catalyst or the killer.  Can he trust his True Mate? Or will he be relegated to a life of leading the dregs of Wolven society?

“What do you want?”  Nora was tall compared to most shewolves, at almost six feet, one inch, yet still he towered over her. He moved slowly, giving her every opportunity to run, his eyes watching her every move. Running almost seemed like a good idea. But then again, he might give chase, and she wouldn’t stand a chance. She tilted her head back to stare into his eyes. She lost her balance and was forced to step back.

“I want to know,” he leaned in, whispering, “why you were in the bar.”

“My car broke down.” His scent moved from her lungs to her blood. The mix of masculine power and leather worked like an aphrodisiac, striking with a force that nearly brought her to her knees. His heat burned against her flesh, though they were still inches apart. Nora longed to lean forward, hungry for more.

“Why did you run?” He cocked his head, curiosity shining in those glittering eyes.

She wasn’t about to tell him it was because she’d caught his scent and had found it shockingly attractive, something that had never happened to her before. “I didn’t want to infringe on another wolven’s territory.” Well, it was true. To a point.

His nostrils flared, he inched closer, his breath whispered against her ear. He rumbled low in his chest.

“I don’t believe you,” he murmured. His breath played across her skin and goose bumps rose. “I think you’re like all the rest.”

She narrowed her eyes. “What do you mean?”

“You’re like all the other shewolves who come through town, looking for an alpha to fuck, in hopes he’ll offer to mate.”

His words splashed over her like cold water. He was wrong. And she would tell him so.

Just as soon as her breath returned.

His sharp fangs grazed the side of her neck, and she fought the urge to offer tilt her head in offering.

She shook her head. “I’m not like the others.”  Small, powerless words.

His taunting, soft laugher rolled through her, her muscles turning to water.

“You want me, you know you do. You can’t hide it.” He inhaled deeply, his nostrils flaring. “So what’s it to be, little rabbit? Do I fuck you and send you on your way?”

He was taunting her, pushing her, and, while she knew what he was doing, she couldn’t stop the cold flush of anger. “I’m different from the others. I don’t want you.”

“Really?”  He cocked his head and met her gaze.

Her hands drew up to his massive chest. Hard, powerful muscle lay beneath his black shirt. It was almost distracting enough to make her forget her goal. Higher and higher her palms slid.

His eyes narrowed, watching. Waiting.

“Yes, really.”  She gasped the words, took in a deep breath, and continued, her voice stronger. “Unlike those mangy bitches, I have a brain, and my brain says no.”  With her hands on his shoulders, she slammed her knee upward. He twisted to the side, and she just missed his groin. Nora drew her arm back and let loose, the sharp crack of her palm against his cheek so gratifying.

His eyes widened, and he stepped back, the dull red imprint of her hand evident on his face.

Anyone who has followed me on twitter knows that I’m a big time olympics fan. I love both the summer and winter olympics and have since I was about twelve years old.  I may not be able to tell you who won what 2 years later, but most of the time I’m familiar enough with all the sports to recognize the names of the athletes and have my favorites.

One of my absolute favorite winter sports is ice skating, preferably the individual events over pairs or ice dancing.  So when the male skaters took the ice, I was very excited. I remembered Plushenko from the last olympics. I remember I didn’t like his attitude.  Well it’s four years later, and I’m an open minded fan, so when they showed a biogoraphy on Plushenko, I was prepared to like him. I Felt he was the underdog, and because people didn’t like him, I WANTED to like him.  He deserved it.  Didn’t he?

I remembered Lysacek from the 2006 Olympics as well. I remember watching his short program, wondering what had happened to him. He looked terrible.  Then we find out he had a horrid case of the stomach flu.  Then came his long program and he slam dunked it, despite having been bedridden the day before.  I admire people who can do that.  ALOT.

Enter the 2010 Olympics. 

Plushenko skated first.  His routine was technically flawless when it came to the jumps, but his arms flailed around during the footwork section to the point you wondered if he had any control at all.  And it lacked artistic talent.  It was sharp, edgy, a total “in your face” performance designed to turn people off.

I didn’t like it. 

And again, I didn’t like Plushenko.  And I didn’t think he got a score he deserved.  Compared to later skaters, it was too high.  But he skated first, and that made it hard for judges to know what the “bar” would be, so I understand that.

Lysacek did an awesome job on his short program and I was happy for him.

Then came the long program.

Lysacek skated first.  I liked his performance.  I didn’t love it, because it seemed to lack some of the emotion I’d seen in his performances in the past.  But at the same time, it was technically perfect.  No bobbles that I noticed (I think I remember one which was mentioned, but I didn’t see it).  It was artistic.  It deserved the score it received!

Plushenko’s long program came last.  I’d expected a huge shoot out by the Skaters, and while the media still hypes it as such, to the long time fan, it wasn’t even close.  Plushenko’s program was marred with multiple bobbled jumps.  Low jumps.  Slow jumps.  He was marred with a boring end to his program.  Though I have to admit, his footwork section was much better than on his short program.  All in all, it didn’t have the power he thought it did, and I have a feeling when Plushenko gets back home, deflates that ego of his and truly watches the performances, he’ll see the same things.

But now to the point of this post.  Sportsmanship.  It’s hard to lose.  It’s even harder to get so close and not win, when you know you could do better than you did.  I think Plushenko knows that.  Plushenko has been the epitome of poor sportsmanship, blaming the scoring system for his low score, when in reality it was his bobbled jumps.  Complaining skating was taking a step back because people wouldn’t do quads in competition.  If a skater can do other jumps and make up those points, what does it matter?

Ice skating is a combination sport. It’s not just about altheticism. And it’s not just about artistry.  It’s both.  It appears the Russian skater doesn’t understand that. 

I feel bad for Lysacek, who has not only earned every point and tenth of a point he received on his routines, he deserved that gold medal.  And he’s had to listen to question after question from reporters about how he feels about Plushenko’s complaints.

The man has been amazing.  He’s never once put down Plushenko, his performance or his behavior.  My hat is off to Lysacek!  Great job!  Great sportsmanship!  If they gave out medals for sportsmanship, Evan, you would stand at the top of the podium!  Great job!

Oh and one last word.  To all the Olympics winners standing on that podium listening to the National Anthem:  Thank you for putting your hand over your heart where it belongs.  Since the moment I put on twitter how the olympians were not showing proper respect, all but ONE has done so.  Kudos to you!!!!!  You’ve done your nation proud, not just in your absolutely AWESOME accomplishments, but in your respect for your nation!