Get Charged with Sensual Energy!

Sensual Energy, an erotic short story, is now available from www.Phaze.com.

Contest! The first five people who buy the story and e-mail me the answers to the following questions at jessie@jessieverino.com will receive a signed book flat, a custom made book thong,
an exclusive excerpt from Spellbound, and a surprise. Everyone who e-mails me the
answers will be entered for a chance to win a goodie bag. The winner of the goodie bag will be drawn Mother's Day, May 14th.

1. Where does Jake work?
2. What color is Jake’s energy?
3. What color is Amy’s energy?
4. What’s the name of the other paramedic?
5. What material is Amy’s bra?

Life Intrudes

Well, so much for my meager Harley fund. It (and more) was used to buy a new refrigerator, and to pay the tax man on Monday. Now, I get to look forward to a trip to the grocery store to replace all the food that went bad, which fortunately wasn't a lot, because I'd been putting off the grocery shopping. And I can't even ride the motorcycle to do that. Eggs don't do well in saddle bags. Trust me on this....

But, on the bright side, the thunderstorms have stopped for a few hours and the sun is shining.

Peace,
Jessie

It started with the familiar rush of anticipation. My grip was light, a caress really. Vibrations skittered through me, from my fingers where they gripped, from my core, up my spine. Heaven.

I got comfortable in the saddle, closing my eyes and letting the power between my thighs course through me. Then I tightened my grip, kicked it into gear, and reveled in the feel of the wind in my face and nothing but open road ahead of me. Yep, my first trip on the bike this season. What did you think I was talking about?

The world feels different on a motorcycle - a little daring - a lot of freedom. Only inches from the pavement during the tight turns, the tug of your clothes as the wind catches them, the wonderful scents of an East Tennessee spring as you roll through the countryside. Nothing in the world like it.

Peace,
Jessie

Sex & Chocolate

So, I'm on line at work, doing a little research for the new Samba Surge promotion at Phaze, and came across this little tidbit:
Mama Coca (aka Cocomama) was a goddess of health and joy. She was originally a promiscuous woman who was cut in half by her many lovers. Her body grew into the first coca plant, the leaves of which men were only allowed to chew (to bring health and happiness) after having given a woman an orgasm.
--www.wikipedia.com

Very interesting...

Peace,
Jessie

Exciting Months Ahead

The Phaze Heat Sheet Surges will be released ~April 20th, and the next few months are going to be cram-packed with stuff to do. Phaze has a few chats scheduled for the Surge authors on April 17th at Fallen Angel Reviews, April 19th at Literary Nymphs, & April 24th at Literary Nymphs.

In May, I'll be at the RT Convention in Daytona Beach, FL from the 15th through the 20th soaking up the sun and partying with readers.

In June, I'll be at Lori Foster's and Diane Castell's Readers and Writers Get Together in West Chester, OH. It's a great event will have all sorts of goodies. For more info, check out Lori's site www.lorifoster.com and click the 2006 get together.

This weekend, I'll be attending a writer's retreat with my fellow writers of SMRW in North Carolina, and I'm sure I'll find lots of inspiration and motivation.

Peace,
Jessie

Extra, Extra, Read all about it!

Here is a link to join my newsletter group. It's announcement only, which means the only e-mail you'll get from the group is the newsletter. http://groups.google.com/group/Jessie-Verino

I'll be giving away prizes with each edition to subscribers.

If you don't want to subscribe, my newsletter will be posted on my website, www.jessieverino.com, about a week or so after it goes to print on my group.

I expect my first edition to be available around April 20, 2006.

Feeling the Surge

I'm very pleased and excited to announce that my Surge submission, Sensual Energy, was accepted by Phaze!

Here's a teaser:

His aura darkened, like a blush. “Sorry, I can’t answer that. Classified.” Holding out his hand, he smiled, took a step closer, and offered to help her stand. Their fingers barely touched, but the light contact sent sparks flying, and the shock sent erogenous heat radiating through her charged system and igniting her libido.
“Did you feel that?”
Hoping he hadn’t felt the same jolt of lust that still hummed in her veins, she answered with the obvious. “You mean that static electricity?”
“Not static electricity. Sensual electricity. I got the first shock, and it must have taken on the characteristics of my nervous system which was pretty revved from watching you straddle me.”
Sensual electricity. That was the perfect description—a high intensity aphrodisiac shock. And addictive. She already felt the need to touch him again, and before she could stop herself, took a step forward and wrapped her arms around him as if some kind of magnetic force pulled them together. A sudden burst of red and blue energy engulfed them. The arcs coalesced into a purple haze, enveloping them in the heat of a cocoon.

Eight manuscripts were selected for the Surge line, and I'm sure excerpts will start showing up today on the Phaze Forum. Be sure to stop by and check them out at www.phaze.com/forum.

Peace,
Jessie

Spring

It's the first day of Spring and Old Man Winter decided to shut the door in her face and refuse her entrance. Here in East Tennessee, a steady rain has fallen all day, and we may even experience some light flurries. The last time we had weather like this in late March/early April, it turned into a blizzard. Well, as the old saying goes, you can't do anything about the weather. And I refuse to complain. If nothing else, all the cold rain should lessen the pollen in the air, and I'll quit sneezing for a little while.

I'm still trying to decide which project to tackle, working in very short spurts on all of them to see if any story will reach out, grab me, and take off.

So far, that hasn't happened. I guess I'll keep plucking away at them and try to find my muse.

Peace,
Jessie

Monday, Monday

Good Monday Morning! I hope everyone had a great weekend. I gave a workshop at my local RWA meeting Saturday morning, slouched around Sunday, and am ready to start a new week-- and a new project.

Ah, herein lies the problem. Which new project do I start (or return to)? I have the second book in the Lord Night series mapped out, I have an idea for a companion piece to Spellbound, I have a few pages on a non-erotica sci-fantasy for Kensington, and about 70 pages of a romantic suspense. Too many stories, not enough time. Priorities must be established.

But, not until I have my second cup of coffee.

Peace,
Jessie

Surged Out

Whew! I made it just under the wire after chucking my first attempt and starting over. The title of my submission is Sensual Energy. It's about Amy & Jake who, through an accident with a defibrillator, get pulled into an alternate dimension and find themselves "charged" with sensual energy. To get back to their own dimension, they must discharge all the energy, and the only way to discharge it is to have sex. Definite sparks fly (literally) in this story.

I understand that Phaze had quite a few submissions, and I wish everyone who submitted luck.

Peace,
Jessie

Scavenger Hunt

To celebrate the March 14th release of Her Passion, Denise McDonald is having a savenger hunt. The winner, whose name will be drawn out of all the correct scavenger hunt answers and announced on Monday, March 13th, the day before the release, will win one free copy of Her Passion. Visit her blog at www.denisebelindamcdonald.blogspot.com to find out how to win.

I'm still writing on my Surge and hoping like heck to get it finished by the deadline. More on that later.

Peace,
Jessie

Surging Again

Never one to give up, I've started another submission for the Surge promotion at www.phaze.com. I've only managed to write about 1000 words so far, but hey, I have 7-8 more days.

Peace,
Jessie

Sold!

I'm very excited to announce that Lord Night has been contracted by Samhain Publishing! You can read an excerpt at my website, www.jessieverino.com.

I'm still surging, but the story I originally went with completely fizzled out as a short story. It's now on the back burner, slowly simmering, and I'm sure it's going to be a great book -- someday. Meanwhile, I've started another story for the Surge contest, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed, when they're not typing, that I can finish it in time.

Peace,
Jessie

Fizzling Out

I've gone from surge to fizzle.

Some writers feel they are sculpting a fine work of art from a lump of cold stone, and they work skillfully with hammer and chisel to produce their masterpiece. Me? I feel like I've got a jackhammer in my hands and shards of rock are flying everywhere. Bits and pieces of my story showering around me, dropping at my feet, and stirring up a cloud of dust that is choking the life out of my manuscript. I'm considering nixing the whole thing and moving to the next lump of cold stone.

Yeah, right. That's the problem. I can't let go. Even if I don't complete the story in time for the Surge promotion, I'll keep it, and keep hacking at it, until I sculpt something recognizable.

Peace,
Jessie

I'm Surging

Literally. Phaze has a call for another set of themed Heatsheets for spring entitled Surge, and I'm trying to finish one before the March 10th deadline. For more info on entering, visit www.phaze.com.

Lord Night is finally finished, past the first edits, the beta readers, and is out the door! I've posted a new excerpt on my website, as well as a new excerpt of my Phaze release, Spellbound. Please stop by and check them out.

The weather is absolutely georgeous in East Tennessee today. I went out at lunch, and it's a beautiful 68 degrees with a slight wind. Considering we had snow last Saturday, I'll take the 68 any day in February.

Peace,
Jessie

Happy Birthday to...

Me! Yep, another year I survived. Thankful, I'm very thankful.

So far, it's been a wonderful day. I received flowers from someone very special, and he took me to lunch. It was very fairy tale.

And, I finished my self-editing on Lord Night (finally, only a few weeks after my self imposed deadline) and have sent it off to my beta readers. I was very excited about this story all the way through, and I loved the ending. There's a small snipped on my website now, from an earlier version, but I plan to have excerpts of Spellbound and Lord Night on my site this weekend when I update.

Next week, I'm playing listmaven on the Phaze e-mail loop. This is my first time hosting, so please drop by and give me some encouragement. And, since next Tuesday is Valentine's, I've got some romance tips and tricks to share. To join the e-mail loop, visit www.phaze.com and click the join box at the bottom. Every couple of weeks or so, another Phaze author will host for a week. This week, Leigh Ellwood, author of the Dareville series and Muse, is hosting. Please drop by and tell her hello.

On another note, Phaze has just announced its theme for the spring heatsheets -- Surge -- and it looks yummy! Please go to www.phaze.com and check out the guidelines. We'd love to see new authors submit, and it's a great way to get in the door! I love writing these short stories, and I've already got one started.

Phaze also has a new author blog with excerpts, reviews, and the ten things you've always wanted to know about the Phaze authors but were afraid to ask. Check it out at www.phazeromance.blogspot.com.

Peace,
Jessie

Happy New Year!

I took a small vacation during the craziness that is the holidays, but I'm back and ready to work!

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and that 2006 is a healthy and prosperous year for everyone.

My thoughts and prayers go out to the Dungy family and their tragic loss. I hope they can find some measure of peace.

Well, the vacation stalled my writing. I had hoped to finish Lord Night by Christmas, but now it looks like another two weeks. I plan to have it submitted by February 1st. I've posted a small snippet on my web page to whet your appetite.

Then, I have a few other projects in the works: a companion piece to Spellbound, a short story I envisioned when the call came out for the Shivers line at Phaze, although it's morphed into something quite different, and enough ideas to keep me writing steadily through the year.

Please be sure to visit Literary Nymphs as they are featuring Phaze on their website. As part of the feature, you can vote for your favorite Phaze author. If you get a chance, please go by and vote. (even if it isn't for me) The link is http://www.geocities.com/literarynymphs/featured_publisher_Jan_06

Go Colts!
Peace,
Jessie

An Early Christmas Gift!

I just got the news this morning that Lord Night won the Spicy category in SMRW's Sweet, Spicy, Spooky & Suspense Contest! I'm very excited about the win since this was the first contest I entered with it since I reworked the plot. Briana St. James from Ellora's Cave was the final round judge.

I know the holidays are cram-packed for everyone, but if you have a few minutes, the Phaze authors will be having their monthly chat tonight from 9:00 to 11:00 p.m., and another chat at Literary Nymphs on Wednesday night same time with lots of giveaways. To get to the Phaze chat, go to www.phaze.com and click the chat link. To get to the Literary Nymphs chat go to http://www.lhcw.net/Literary_Nymphs.

I'm gearing up for my first newsletter with the release of Spellbound and giving away some prizes for subscribers. If you want to subscribe to my newsletter, an announcement only Google group, visit http://groups.google.com/group/Jessie-Verino. Or, if you're not interested in the prizes, you'll be able to read it on my website, my blog, or the Phaze Forum about a week after it's published.

Peace,
Jessie

It's Time for Coffee

Coffee Time Romance.

That's where I'll be tonight from 9:00 - 11:00 p.m. with fellow Phaze authors, Alessia Brio, Selah March, Leigh Ellwood, and M. Barnette.

Join us for the chat and be eligible for some great giveaways! http://www.coffeetimeromance.com/Chat.html

Peace,
Jessie

What happens at The Pink Banana

Stays at The Pink Banana.

Ha! Thought you were going to get all the juicy tidbits about the booksigning, did ya? Well, I've never been one to kiss and tell, but I can say that we had a great time and nobody went to jail.

No, really, nobody went to jail.

The Phaze authors who attended were absolutely wonderful ladies, and we had a blast with the very friendly staff of The Pink Banana (pun intended), and the myriad of customers who visited with us during the day. It was a very educational experience....

You may be hearing rumors about, oh all sorts of things, and I emphatically deny all of them now. (I'm really very shy and retiring, a true southern belle who swoons at the least little impropriety.)

Peace,
Jessie