Last Call Europe: Siberian Husky

With a world of shape shifters to choose from, why on Earth did I choose Siberian Huskies for my contribution to the Last Call Europe series?

Well, they say to write what you know, and frankly, I know Siberian Huskies. I’ve got six of the buggers. At one point when I was taking in rescues, I was up to twelve. So yes, I know Siberian Huskies.

If you aren’t familiar with the premise of the Last Call series at Changeling Press, here it is in a nutshell. The series was originated by the writing team of Moira Rogers, who expanded it to be a multi-author series. The Last Call is a bar that caters only to the paranormal community. Mundane humans can’t even make it through the doors. Once inside, the patron has the opportunity to order a drink from the specialty menu. That drink is a signal to the other patrons as to what the man or woman is seeking sexually. For example, a woman who orders a Virgin Bloody Mary might be a vampire seeing her first lover.

So of course, I found a recipe for a drink called Siberian Husky, and knew I had to sign up! Here is the recipe:

SIBERIAN HUSKY COCKTAIL

2 PART STOLI BLUEBERRY

1 PART cranberry juice

1 PART sprite

1 PART (CRUSHED) Ice

MIX TOGETHER AND ADD THE ICE

So without giving away too much of the story, let me tell you a little about the Siberian Huskies that I live with. First of all, Siberians are a running breed. They were created to pull a sled over a moderate distance. They are humorous, silly, and the consummate tricksters. They love to play. The can be incredibly naughty.

They are one of the most intelligent breeds of dog that exists. Many trainers don’t agree, as the breed doesn’t take well to obedience. The reason is that they were created to be independent thinkers. A Siberian can actually make a decision and weigh the consequences of their actions. If a musher tells his lead dog to go right, and the leader senses danger, it will deliberately disobey the musher.

They are primitive. What this means in evolutionary terms is that they are nearer the source of their origin than other dog breeds. In fact, genetic studies indicate that the Siberian is one of the first four breeds that was developed by humans, and hasn’t changed much from its origin. You can see that in their pack behavior, their upright ears, double coat and other physical similarities to wolves. They are more than willing to hunt for their food, dig in the soil to stay cool, and howl to express their happiness or distress.

They aren’t a guard dog or a watch dog, and unless a Siberian has been taught badly by humans, they rarely show aggressive behavior.

So check out Last Call Europe: Siberian Husky. Let me know if I got it right!

Siberian Husky: Catch me if you can!

http://www.changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1224

New Cover! Last Call Europe: Siberian Husky

From Menage to Manlove and Back Again

One of the questions that shows up in every interview, every chat and at every live appearance is craft related. "How do you write? Are you a plotter or apantster?"

I'm a little of both. Depending on the feel of the story, I might draft a fairly elaborate outline or simply a cast of characters and run with it. When I started Bad Angels, I had an outline, and interestingly enough, the story simply wrenched itself away and went somewhere unexpected.

Initially, this book was a bisexual menage, boys meet girl and so forth. The opening scene had Rex and Rion cooking in a diner, and Noemi coming in, drawing their attention with her tightly controlled power. But after starting, I realized that I really needed an intro to the story. Here I had a fallen angel and asidhe...how did things start for them?

I began with Rion...Kokabiel...falling from Heaven and landing in a sheep pasture in 1860's Scotland. Well, that little prologue took on a life of it's own. My planned six pages grew and grew until I knew this was a novella specifically about the boys. Yes,Anahita shows up, and there's some m/f sex, but essentially Falling is the love story of Rex and Rion.

That left me with a conundrum: should I leave the book as it stood, or move forward? The readers love Falling. The reviewers have been very kind. Do I dare mess with the chemistry? And what about Noemi? Here I'd created these two men for her...she's the Fire to their Earth and Sky. And yet Rex andRion are so beautiful on their own. I tossed the outline, closed my eyes and wrote. It takes some nerve to throw it away and trust your muse, especially after you've put in a good deal of work on the project.

The outcome of that trust was Bad Angels: Burn. I haven't received the outrage that I expected, and as the story ends on a cliff-hanger, I did expect some angry letters. They haven't come. Readers have written to say they love it and can't wait for the final book of the trilogy.

Where does it go from here? Frankly, I'm not sure. I've got scenes in mind, but no definitive outline for the third book. In a way, I'm setting it at the back of the table, like the biggest present at the birthday party. Very soon, I'll sit down, open a blank page and wait to see happens.

www.belindamcbride.com


Click here for excerpt of Bad Angels: Fallling

Just what exactly happens when an angel goes bad?

Stripped of his voice, his memories, and his divinity, Rion Hunter falls to Earth in a fiery blaze. After crashing into a muddy sheep pasture in Scotland, the disgraced angel finds himself face-to-face with an unlikely rescuer: a sidhe-born farmer named Rex.

Rex finds himself rapidly falling for the beautiful angel, which can be risky when the object of your affection just might be psychotic. And if that isn’t enough, the men find that they’ve come to the attention of a ravenous succubus, who has developed an appetite for Scottish farmers.

Falling isn’t so bad… it’s the landing that hurts.

Click here for excerpt of Bad Angels: Burn

Following an auto accident, Rex Clark lays near death in the rocky wilderness of the Trinity Alps. Just when it appears that things can't get worse, she shows up. Anahita... the succubus. She's been his frequent companion, and the bane of his lover Rion's existence, for well over a century. But it seems that this time she's come to help.

From the frozen villages of the Inuit to the cities of America, Dr. Noemi Gastineau has seen it all. When a fallen angel shows up at the reservation clinic with an injured Sidhe, Noemi takes everything in stride. Yet within hours, she's swept into an enchanted world she never imagined existed. So why are the men so temptingly familiar? And why is she suddenly so afraid?

A fallen angel, a Sidhe, a human and a succubus. Never mind the demons, these four are about to catch fire! The question is... who will survive the burn?

Please visit my website at www.belindamcbride.com