My Trading Card Adventure

Even though I took a break from writing over the holidays, I kept up with promo.

Before I went to RomantiCon last October, I'd never heard of a trading card. Browsing the promo tables, I spotted the nifty little cards and picked some up. When I got home, I looked up the official web site and said, "I've gotta try this."

I happily designed a card for Plucking the Pearl, my interracial historical erotic romance novel -- putting my blurb on the back and my book cover on the front.

The book cover is very explicit, which I believe helped sales. However, it didn't help when I tried to get my trading cards printed. Vendor A had reasonable prices but declined to fulfill the order due to the cover. Okay... So I contacted the publisher who suggested some other vendors. Turned out those didn't do trading cards but one thought it was a great idea, so that could change.

Next I went to Vendor B, one that had printed bookmarks for my first book. Their price was higher, but something was better than nothing. However, they couldn't handle the cover either.

At that point I was pretty frustrated. Then I got on iStockPhoto and found a bunch of images of the same couple that appeared in my cover. I happened to find a very nice one that is suggestive but not nearly as explicit. I bought it. To make sure it would pass the vendor's censors, I even cloned part of her nightie to remove any hint of shaded nipples showing through! I also put a moustache on my hero because he has one. Vendor A printed it, no questions asked. Hooray!

The result is above. What do you think? I can't wait to distribute them at shows.

Afton Locke
Unlock your fantasies...
www.aftonlocke.com

My New Year's Resolutions

The holidays were a whirlwind this year between shopping, cleaning, family, parties, and cooking. That's right, cleaning. Something I usually avoid. Next year I'm hiring a professional. Scouring a dirty kitchen doesn't exactly put me in the holiday spirit. To keep things interesting, the car broke down on Christmas Day away from home. I'm glad to say there are good folks out there and the Christmas spirit is still alive and well.

While 2010 and 2011 were not good years for me, 2012 was. At the end of every year, I like to look back and find things to be thankful for. Here's to 2013 and hoping it's a good one.

So what are my New Year's resolutions?
1) put out more books per year
2) exercise more (Doesn't everyone say that after pigging out during the holidays?)
3) clean more? (Nah, takes too much time from writing.)
4) blog more

So why is #4 so hard for me?
-It's hard to see a direct connection to benefitting my career. Does anyone actually read this?
-It takes time away from writing.
-I can never think of what to say.
-Everyone else's blog pictures always look so much better than mine.

Even though it's hard, I'll try to do it more. I want to be accessible to readers and share my life, boring as it sometimes may be!

So if you're out there and you're reading, give a shout-out.
By the way, what's your New Year's resolution?

Afton Locke
www.aftonlocke.com

6 Sentence Sunday - Plucking the Pearl

Plucking the Pearl by Afton Locke -- now in print at Ellora's Cave!

He groaned when her hand clasped the hard ridge of his trousers. Inside, his organ strained against the fabric and ached for release.

“I need to see you too,” she said.

“Pearl,” he warned.

“I bet you have a naughty word for it too. Tell me.”

“It’s called a cock,” he replied.

Afton Locke
www.aftonlocke.com

Tribute to Dallas

I’m sorry to hear another great star passed this year. Larry Hagman, better known as J.R. on Dallas. I grew up watching Dallas. It was great family time on Friday night, after a hard week or school or work, to get wrapped up in the drama. I remember when everybody wore “who shot J.R?” T-shirts.

This is the show that inspired me to write. The emotions and twists and turns of the plot drove me to pick up the pen for the first time. I remember buying a theme book of blank notebook paper where I hand wrote my first novella. A western, of course. And who can forget the character Afton, the sultry songstress who tangled with both J.R. and Cliff?

The inspiration didn’t stop there. I bought a cowboy hat, boots, and a pack of bandanas. I rode a horse every chance I got. When I won a trip to Houston, I was beyond excited. The men handling the bags at the airport wore hats and boots too.

Need I mention that Texas men are especially hot? There’s nothing sexier than a cowboy wearing tight designer jeans with a big belt buckle and a half-buttoned shirt. Dallas had plenty of men to drool over and nice ranch scenes for overall western flavor. I can’t wait to go back to Texas in 2013 to The Naughty Little Sleepover reader event (http://sassyseven.com/naughty-sleepover/).

I’m a retro TV fan, so I’ve been watching the Dallas reruns. Having experienced more of life, I get even more out of them than watching them the first time. I watched part of the sequel that aired recently, but it just didn’t have the same magic. The power, the elegance, the something I can’t even define.

You might be gone, J.R., but never forgotten.

Afton Locke
Unlock your fantasies...
www.aftonlocke.com

RomantiCon 2012 was a blast!

Last week’s RomantiCon 2012 was a blast. I met up again with authors I hadn’t seen in a few years and met some new ones. The fun workshops make learning painless. And may I say the cavemen this year were particularly gorgeous. On Thursday night, there was a meet and greet party with my fave, karaoke. I was way out of practice but I managed not to clear the room with my singing. The cavemen danced with us as we sang.

Friday, we learned how to use hula hoops, which is a great calorie burner. Who knew? My favorite event of the whole convention was getting to pose with the male models as if it would go on a book cover. Imagine my surprise when I was lifted into the air! The camera, everyone watching, and being sandwiched between two shirtless hunks is enough to put a girl into sensory overload. That night we dressed up, celebrating Mayan Carnival. I finally got to wear the dress I’d been sewing and struggling to finish since June.

Saturday, we had a zumba lesson from the caveman who ultimately won the Alpha Caveman title. I’d heard of zumba but had never done it. I’ve never had so much fun working out. If only I could get that instruction every week. After that, we learned how to give lap dances and the volunteers had us in stitches of laughter.

That evening was apocalypse night. Since I don’t have any camo, I dressed like a vampire zombie. To my surprise, I won an award for my last book, Plucking the Pearl. It was great to meet fans. I felt like a celebrity!

Sunday, I had the best book signing ever. The four hours flew by with performances from the cavemen and Cleveland Exotic Dancers. After experiencing book signings early in my career where I sold no books or maybe one or two, this was fantastic. That night was the pizza and bingo party. We were all laughing so hard from the antics of the cavemen.

It was sad to see it end, but after four nights of partying I needed some rest. I realized I hadn’t danced or worn a fancy dress in a couple of years. Life had been too heavy and serious. This convention reminded me what FUN is and that it’s necessary. I’ll be back.

Afton Locke
www.aftonlocke.com

Enter the MRW Vixen contest before 9/30!

LAST CHANCE TO ENTER 2012 REVEAL YOUR INNER VIXEN CONTEST
Attention romance writers: show us the chemistry!
WHY ENTER THIS CONTEST?
* FEEDBACK: Entrants receive constructive feedback from first-round judges,
many of them published authors. Finalists receive a brief critique by the
final round judge.
* EXPOSURE: Finalists in each category will be judged by editors publishing
in that subgenre. First place winners and category finalists will be listed
in advertising and announcements in the RWA® Romance Writers Report.
* PRIZES: First place category winners receive a $50 cash prize and a gold
Vixen pin!
* OPPORTUNITY: Last year, ONE THIRD of our contest finalists were asked to
submit partial or full manuscripts.

WHAT TO ENTER
Up to 20 pages of any scene that showcases your use of sensual tension, plus an
unjudged 1-page set-up (optional).
WHO CAN ENTER?
Anyone! Membership in Maryland Romance Writers or Romance Writers of America is
NOT required. The author can be published or not yet published, but the contest
entry must be original and uncontracted as of September 1, 2012.
WHAT ARE THE CATEGORIES?
(Word counts apply to targeted finished length of completed manuscript.)
* Series Contemporary: 1950-present, 40,000-79,000 words finished length
* Single Title: 1950-present, 80,000-120,000 words finished length
* Historical: BCE-1950, 40,000-120,000 words finished length
* Alternative: time travel, fantasy, futuristic, paranormal, 85,000-120,000
words finished length
* Erotic Romance: 60,000-120,000 words finished length
* LGBT Romance: 40,000-120,000, any genre/era
* Young Adult: 40,000+ words finished length

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?
$20 MRW members
$25 Non-MRW Members–U.S. entries and International entries
WHO JUDGES MY ENTRY?
Each entry will be judged by THREE qualified judges, i.e., trained and/or
published authors. The three top-scoring entries in each category will advance
to the final round for evaluation by one editor and one agent who acquire in
that genre.
2012 Judge List
Category Editor House Agent Agency
Series Contemporary Elizabeth Mazer HQN Jessica Alvarez Bookends Literary
Single Title Emily Ohanjanians HQN-Mira Paige Wheeler Folio Literary
Historical Erin Molta Entangled Nicole Lukosil Bradford Literary Agency
Alternative Chelsey Emmelhainz Avon Nicole Resciniti Seymour Agency
Erotic Christa Desir Samhain Jenn Schober Spencerhill
LGBT Kelli Collins Elloras Cave Alissa Davis Carina Press
YA Aubrey Poole Sourcebooks Kevan Lyon Marsal Lyon
WHEN IS THE DEADLINE?
Contest opens for entries on July 1, 2012. Entries must be received and
time-stamped no later than October 1, 2012.
Visit http://www.marylandromancewriters.com/ or email the 2012 Reveal Your
Inner Vixen Contest Coordinators, Christi Barth or Eliza Knight at mrwvixen@yahoo.com.

Afton Locke
www.aftonlocke.com

Plucking the Pearl gets 4.5 star review

Plucking the Pearl earned a 4.5 star review from Long and Short reviews!

 

http://whippedcream2.blogspot.com/2012/09/plucking-pearl-by-afton-locke.html?zx=713906d291469c29

Pearl is a sympathetic and well crafted heroine...And the sparks in this story are hot and plentiful... I highly enjoyed the forbidden nature of their affair and the uniqueness of the time period and setting. The historical aspect was good and genuine. ...All and all, a hot and enjoyable historical that I highly recommend. This is definitely a re-read for me. Take an emotional escape to a different time and era with Plucking the Pearl.

***

And Ellora's Cave Romanticon 2012 convention is just weeks away! See you there.
http://ecromanticon.com

Afton Locke
Unlock your fantasies...
www.aftonlocke.com