New Cover Art + New Release Date + A Huge Favour to Ask!

Packing Leather's release date has been brought forward. It's now coming out this Wednesday - July 27th. Click on the cover to find out more.

But before you do that, I'd really appreciate if you took a moment to pop over to give your vote to Jack. He's currently languishing in last place in this round of All Romance E-book's Summer's Hottest Hero Contest and is feeling more than a little sorry for himself, lol.

He's not going to win his heat and go through to the final, but he still has a chance to come third! Click here to vote!

Vote Now!

Jack Bowen from Call Me Sir, Boy! has made it through to the semi finals in ARe's Summer's Hottest Hero contest.

In this round, he's up against Victor Jones from Amber Kell's Wooing Master Jones.

If you'd pop across and vote for one of the guys, that would be great! Just click on the banner below :)



In somewhat related news, Harland Rawlings has been pouting ever since he was knocked out by Jack in round 1. Now, Jack is pouting because last month, when I was taking dictation for their answers to this round's question, I let Harland go first and Jack had to come up with something different.

In an effort to convince the guys in my head to get along, here's the answer Harland Rawlings would have given to "What makes a man strong?"

Some people think strength and dominance are the same thing. They’re wrong. Some of the strongest men I know are submissives. It takes a hell of a lot of mental strength—not to mention a huge dose of courage—to willingly put yourself in another man’s hands and trust him with your mind, your body and maybe even your soul.

Picking yourself up after a bad relationship takes strength too. My subs name is Alastair, his ex-boyfriend was a complete bastard. But, somehow, Alistair still found the strength to let me into his life and try again. I don’t usually do the mushy stuff, but I’ll admit I’m as proud as hell of him. A weaker man would have given up on submission. Alistair didn’t.

As for physical strength—when I’ve got a leather cuff around each of Alastair’s limbs and he’s straining against his bondage, I don’t think anyone could look at him and see anything but strength. He’s all muscle, all determination to be the best sub he can possibly be. Even though he loves being tied up, when he starts squirming with his need to come, it takes some really thick chains to hold him down!

*Hugs*

Kim Dare

Bits and Pieces

Hi everyone,

I have a new book coming out soon - Gayday! Gayday! and the fantastic Chris from the Stumbling Over Chaos blog is giving away a copy. You can enter the give away here.

I'm also over on the Hitting the Hotspot blog profiling a couple of my e-books that have been converted into audio books. You can check out that post here.

Away from the internet, I'm half way through editing a Christmas story for TEB and half way through writing Cameron's Pride - the fourth and final book in my Thrown to the Lions series.

And, since I have very little else to share writing wise at the moment, you might rememebr that a little while ago I showed you a picture of a crochet blanket I was just starting. At that time, it looked a bit like this:



132 hexagons later, it now looks like this.



The next blanket is already 1/4 done. It's solid coloured granny squares with black borders, if you're wondering :)

Have a great weekend everyone!

Tell me something I don't know + a giveaway

I've just been tagged by the lovely Bronwyn Green for a meme. Apparently the meme says I'm supposed to tell you ten things you probably don't know about me.

Because I like giving away e-books, I'm going to run a give away at the same time. Just leave a comment on this post to be entered. (More info at the bottom of the post.)

Anyway, (with random pictures as and when the mood strikes) here goes...

1. I collect eggs. Not birds eggs, decorative ones. Last count I had 154.





2. I almost joined the army. I was in an army college when a knee injury made me unfit for service.

3. I can't function without post it notes.



4. At my worst point health wise, I didn't leave the house for over three years, and I didn't have a conversation with anyone outside my immediate family. I still sometimes struggle with 'small talk' as a result and worry that this makes me seem rude.

5. I really love the theatre. Especially Shakespeare and Musicals. (This is the last one I went to see - an early 27th birthday present from my parents. We're going to see HMS Pinafore week Saturday too.)





6. I'm dyslexic and find it almost impossible to tell the time on clocks that don't have all the numbers on the face.

7. I really love to crochet. My last three projects are below, along with one I'm just starting.









8. I've pretty much given up on ever being able to find adult shoes to fit me. (I'm a UK size 2).

9. I've only ever read 2 erotic romance e-books - both after I was actually published my. (I decided not to read any others until I got my own works in progress under control because reading other peoples stories tends to spark ideas for more of my own. One day I'll be allowed to read again, lol, but I'm not sure when.) Click on the links to find out more about the books.





10. Before I was ill, I was really into sports. I was school jr athletics champion for two years and competed in 100m, 200m, relay, shot put and high jump. I also played netball, volleyball and did gymnastics. I also got an A in Physical Education at GCSE after I fell ill (it seemed like a good idea at the time...)

And that's it.

I'm not going to tag anyone to do the meme. But as I said at the top of the post, I am going to do a giveaway. Anyone who leaves a comment on this post will be entered into a draw to with the e-book of their choice from my back list. (Or an IOU for a future release if you have all the back list ones you want.)

One winner will be chosen at random on Friday 23rd July and the results will appear on this blog.

Double Celebration! (Win an e-book)

Hi everyone,

I'm having a double celebration today.

The first half of the celebration is kind of easy to explain. Handcuffs and Leather was released yesterday by Resplendence Publishing, and it's officially my 25th e-book to go on sale.

Needless to say, I'm really chuffed with that!

The other half of the celebration needs a bit more back ground.

*Deep breath* Here goes...

Two months ago, I thought I was going to have to give up writing for publication.

As some of you already know, I have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome / ME. As well as the physical symptoms, there are a few psychological ones. They call it brain fog, where you're so exhausted and in so much pain that you just can't think properly.

Well, over the last two years, while things have gone really well for me writing wise, they've really sucked health wise and the brain fog in particular got progressively worse.

Fast forward to two months ago and I'd completely lost faith in my own mind. One of the reasons why I've managed to publish 25 books in so short a time (apart from the fact I write short books, lol) is fear. It's amazing how much writing you can do today, if you're not sure if tomorrow will be the day your mind finally topples over the edge and you completely lose the ability to write at all and that was a very real fear for me.

As far as I was concerned, I was on a mental downhill spiral and I'd pretty much hit rock bottom.

Then, seven weeks ago, I tried a new treatment. I don't use the word miraculous lightly, but it really is the only word that fits. With in a few days of taking my new tablets, my mind started to clear. Not only that, but the pain started to lift, the fatigue started to improve too. After almost two months on the tablets my mind is working better than it has through the last 13 years - since I'm 26 now, that's officially half my lifetime!

I feel like I've been given my mind back. I'm still ill, I know that. But I can see some sort of hope for the future now. I don't know how long the miracle will last, but I really am cherishing every day.

So, yes, a double celebration, and anyone who leaves a comment will be entered into a draw to win an e-book from my back list. (IOU's are available for future releases if you have all the back list ones you want!)

Competition closes midnight GMT Sunday 23rd, when the winner will be announced on this blog.

Thanks guys!

Kim.

The Truth will out...

Thanks to everyone who entered.

Okay, time for the truth...

1. I have a BA in Creative Writing from a top British university. FALSE - I did do one undergraduate creative writing course - and, strangely enough it's the only subject I've ever tried out that I didn't actually enjoy studying. I do have two other undergraduate degrees on the go - a BA and a BSc which I'll finish at some point.

2. Every story I've submitted for publication has been accepted on first offering. FALSE - I've had a good run of luck, but not quite that good. Two stories were accepted by the second publisher they were submitted to. A different two received a recommendation to revise and re-submit from my current publishers (too much kink, not enough romance in each case) and there are four short stories that were submitted to competitions or magazines that I'm going to re-write into novellas when I get a chance.

3. I'm a fluent Welsh speaker, and have been since I was old enough to talk. FALSE. I live in Wales and I studied Welsh in school, but I'm first language English. I'd love to be fluent one day, at the moment I manage a bit of Wenglish.

4. I've written a minimum of 1000 words every single day for over three years. TRUE. I found it really helped me get into the discipline of writing when I first started to take writing seriously, so I kept going with it. If it's not broke and all that, lol.

5. All my characters are based on the kinky people I know in real life. FALSE. All a product of my rather over active imagination I'm afraid.

6. Nobody in my family knows what kind of books I write. FALSE. Everyone knows - no one has a problem with it. My family kind of rocks in that way.

7. I sometimes forget my characters aren't real people, and worry their feelings will be hurt when reviews dislike them. TRUE. Yep, I do think of them as real people. And I do worry about weird things like that. I think I'm getting better as time goes on - not so much in not thinking they're real, but in remembering that by the time the reviews come in, they've already found their happy endings - they're strong enough to take it.

So that makes numbers 4 and 7 the correct answers. One person got them both right - Bronwyn, you obviously know me far too well!

Since Nancy, Chris, Lisabet, Candy, Orelukjp0 and Kristie all got one right, they get their choice of free e-book too.

If you send an e-mail to kim@kimdare.com telling me which free book you'd like to receive, I'll e-mail you a pdf back :)

Creative Liar Competition

Just in case anyone hasn't seen these posts popping up all over the net, here's the basic theory.

I make 7 statements. 5 are lies. 2 are true. You leave a comment guessing which are the true statements, and I pick a random winner out of the right answers (or out of all the answers if no one gets the right answer!).

The winner can pick any e-book title from my back list (or opt for an IOU for a coming soon title if they have all the backlist titles they want).

Everyone up to speed? Then let the game begin.

1. I have a BA in Creative Writing from a top British university.

2. Every story I've submitted for publication has been accepted on first offering.

3. I'm a fluent Welsh speaker, and have been since I was old enough to talk.

4. I've written a minimum of 1000 words every single day for over three years.

5. All my characters are based on the kinky people I know in real life.

6. Nobody in my family knows what kind of books I write.

7. I sometimes forget my characters aren't real people, and worry their feelings will be hurt when reviews dislike them.

And that's it. Guess away. The competition will remain open until Sunday 21st. I'll tell you who the winners are, and which were the right answers then :)

Good luck everyone.

BTW - I was tagged by Lisabet Sarai. Unfortunatly, I think everyone I know has already been tagged, so I'll have to beg off that part of the game, lol.

And a random add - I'm on the Shared Wisdom blog today, talking about who I write for and why. Do drop by and leave your thoughts if you get a chance.

Win a Free e-book!

(This is a cross post from the Hitting the Hotspot blog - you can enter here or there.)

Hi everyone!

Ever since I was first published (all of a year and a bit ago, lol!) I seem to have been starting lots of series, but not actually finishing any of them.

Well, that hasn't actually changed yet. I still haven't finished one - but in a few days time, I'll actually reach the half way mark on one!

There are 12 books in the G-A-Y Lust Bite series. Book 6 will be going on sale February 1st.

As it happens, I've actually just finished writing all of them. But the last one won't be coming out until October, which seems like a very long way away at the moment.

So, in the meantime I'm going to enjoy celebrating the half way mark :-)

Would you like to win one of the first 6 books?

All you have to do is read the blurbs below, and decide which one you'd like to win if your name is picked out of the hat. Just leave a comment telling me which title you've chosen and I'll pick one winner on Sunday Jan 31st.

Gaydar

Find a gay man in a gay bar. Matt’s sure that should be a lot easier than it actually is.

Matt’s having a run of bad luck – one that’s lasted ever since he stepped out of the closet. An uncanny ability to home in on the only straight guy in a bar room full of gay men really isn’t doing his sex life any favours. A knack for picking complete jerks whenever he does stumble upon a genuinely gay man isn’t helping either.

But, this time everything is going to be different. This time Matt’s absolutely sure his gaydar has guided him towards a completely sane, entirely gay man – which is why he’s arranged to meet him in the gents’ room in five minutes.

What could possibly go wrong?

Gay Like You

Cody’s more than happy to have sex, he may even be willing to offer his submission, but experience has taught him that’s as far as he can go as a gay man. Tristan disagrees…

Tristan has being gay all worked out rather nicely. His biggest problem with his sexuality is his mother’s persistent attempts to find a nice young man to marry him off to. And even that doesn’t seem like such a terrible thing when he arrives to have dinner with his parents and finds Cody sitting at the table.

Homosexuality isn’t working out quite so well for Cody. As far as he can see, Tristan’s appearance in his life is unlikely to make things any better. Nice guys rarely stay nice for long and dominants have a way of turning into complete psychos if he lets his guard down.

Cody needs to walk away before Tristan tempts him into wanting the sort of happiness he knows he can’t have. Tristan needs to stop him.


Gay Until Graduation

A gay man should know better than to get involved with a guy who is only gay until graduation, but Baxter’s never been very good at saying no to Spencer…

Stunning, dominant and cheerfully bi-sexual, Spenser’s been screwing his way through both the male and female student population since he arrived at the university. Baxter is entirely gay, completely submissive and, by his own estimation at least, thoroughly average. He knows that being more than friend’s with Spencer would be more trouble than it’s worth.

When a drunken Spencer decides that he’s going to be gay until graduation Baxter doesn’t pay much attention. But when his friend’s attention suddenly focuses in on him, the guy he’s had a crush on for months soon becomes far more dangerous to his peace of mind.

Baxter knows he should say no to a relationship that will break his heart when they graduate, but he’s never been very good at saying no to his friend—especially not when Spencer is offering him everything he’s ever wanted.

Gay for Pay

An experienced gay dominant, a gay for pay submissive and an auction. Let the bidding commence!

Nate Lockwood has a plan. It involves slipping away from his security officers, hitting a BDSM club, entering himself in a submissive auction and spending the next twenty four hours as a gay for pay rent boy. If he wishes he could be submitting to someone far closer to home, then at least he’s realistic enough to know it’s never going to happen.

Smith has a job to do. As chief of security for the Lockwood family, it’s his responsibility to track down his boss’s brat of a son and bring him home. The fact that his search leads to the kind of leather bar he considers beneath contempt is not important. The fact he’s been fantasising about being Nate’s master since he first set eyes on him isn’t relevant.

The plan has to work. The job has to be done. And the bidding starts now…

Gay Divorcee

Grayson gave up on the idea of gay marriage when he became a gay divorcee. Can Jones remind him that not all gay men are like his cheating ex?

Gay marriage, civil commitment and equal rights. Jones doesn’t care what it’s called. He wants that security to be part of his future, and he wants it to be available to everyone else too. He’s happy to tell his dominant friend Bernard, and anyone else who will listen, how wonderful it will be when every gay man can live happily ever after with the man he loves.

Gay divorce, cheating husbands and bad decisions. Grayson used to think that the right to marry another man would cure all gay ills too - until he married and divorced Claude. The adorably submissive Jones obviously needs someone to explain to him exactly why gay men should never get married before he makes all the same mistakes Grayson made.

Before the Christmas celebrations end, someone will have to accept that they are wrong and the other man is right. The only question is who?

Gay Since Today

Ford’s hidden everything about his sexuality his whole life. Tyler says he can accept everything about him. But can he?

Tyler knows he’s wasting his time fantasising about Ford. The guy he’s had a crush on for months might make a wonderful dominant, but a straight dominant never did a gay submissive any good. It’s time he stopped wasting his history lectures wondering what his life would be like if he belonged to James Ford.

Ford’s had enough. A man can only stay in the closet for so long. It’s time he came out and made his peace with who he really is. And if he can get a date with the cute guy from his history lecture, so much the better.

And that's it.

If you can't make up your mind, clicking on the covers will take you to a page where you can read an excerpt of that book. But don't forget to come back and leave a comment when you've made your decision!

Kim Dare
Kink, love and a happy ending. Do you Dare?

Win a free e-book!

Hi everyone,

My Halloween Vamp e-book is being released on Monday.

To celebrate the release, I'm giving away a free copy. Just click on the cover for more details on how to enter :)

Win a Free e-book!

Hi everyone,

I'm over on the Rainbow Review blog today.

Please, drop by for a chance to win your choice of e-book from my back list.

Take care,

Kim Dare.

Five things... about five different projects

Okay, it's a bit of a mish mash of a post today. I've recieved different bits of news for a few different stories, so I thought I would share them all at the same time.

1. Between Tooth and Paw - it's been accepted for the Caught in the Middle anthology, to be released on May 11th 2009. Very excited about that.

2. Secret Service - part of the My Secret Valentine Collection - now has cover art! It's stunning - it's also on my other computer. I'll drop it into a seperate post later on.

3. In the Heat of the Momment - the one I told you all I wasn't writing any more. Well, I'm back with it again. Possibly for a call or maybe for a stand alone short or something else if the call doesn't pan out.

4. The Gift - part of the Christmas Spirits collection - four days until it comes out and counting down all the time. Very excited about that. Enough said there.

5. This one's not actually about a book I'm writing. But I forgot to post about it before, so I'll do it now before I forget again.

TEB has a competition running. The cover art is the m/f version of the Christmas Spirits cover art I've got for The Gift, so I'm adopting it on that rather vague basis. The picture below is the link. Click on it - really it couldn't be easier to enter!