Welcome author Shira Anthony

I am honored to welcome Shira Anthony to my blog today.  Let's find out more about her and her book "Aria."  Which is part of her "Blue Notes" Series

Hi, Lily, and thanks for hosting me on your blog today!

 

How long have you been writing?

I’ve been writing since I was a kid, although I admit I never finished a long story until about six years ago.  I had way too many ideas, but never seemed to figure out what to do with them.

What is your favorite genre to write?

I adore writing MM romance (gay romance).  About five years ago, a good friend and fellow writer, Venona Keyes, suggested she and I co-author a story about a conductor and a violinist.  I’d never thought about writing gay romance, but once I started, I was completely hooked.  I think it was a combination of my experience with gay men (there were mostly gay men in the opera business – my last career), and my love of men in general.  Add to that the social stigma (which thank goodness is beginning to wane!) of being gay, and the stories of gay men and gay relationships took on a new meaning for me (I’ve always been an advocate of gay marriage and legal recognition of the rights of lgbt people).  After that first book, I never looked back!

What are you working on now?

My current project is a real departure from my usual contemporary romances involving musicians.  “Stealing the Wind” is a pirate/mermen story, a bit smutty (there’s a M/M/M relationship at the beginning, although the romance is strictly M/M), and total romantic fantasy.  Think pirates on the high seas who shift into merfolk.  Add a twist of mystery, magic, and you have “Stealing the Wind.”  It will probably be a multi-book series.  The first book is tentatively planned for a summer 2013 release.

When you start a new story do you begin with a character or plot?

I most definitely start with a character, then work out the plot.  I personally love character driven stories.  I want to take characters from one place to another by the end of the story.  For example, in my book, “The Melody Thief,” the main character is a total mess at the beginning of the story.  Addicted to sex, self-destructive, flirting with alcoholism.  By the end of the story, there’s real hope that he’ll leave a normal and happy life (although it’s still a struggle).  Those are the stories I love to write.

Tell us about your latest/upcoming release. What inspired it?

My latest release is “Aria,” book four in the Blue Notes Series of classical music themed romances.  Each book centers around at least one character who is or was a musician.  “Aria” is no exception.  It’s the story of opera singer Aiden Lind, who at the peak of his success as a musician finds his love life in shambles.  The story was inspired by my own experiences as an opera singer, dealing with a long—distance relationship and its challenges.  It’s one of the most realistic books I’ve written.

Each Blue Notes Series books is a standalone novel, and the books can be read in any order.  Secondary characters in one book become main characters in another, and most of them know each other.

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Blurb:  Description:

A Blue Notes Novel

Five years after a prestigious scholarship jumpstarted his opera career, Aiden Lind has it all: fame, choice roles, and Lord Cameron Sherrington to share his life with. Maintaining his façade takes effort, but under his poised, sophisticated mask, Aiden is still the insecure kid from rural Mississippi. Then he walks in on Cam with another man, and the illusion of perfection shatters.

Philadelphia attorney Sam Ryan never moved on after his partner died, though he tried. Instead of dating, he keeps himself busy with work—but when he unexpectedly runs into ex-lover Aiden while on a rare vacation in Paris, he’s inspired to give their love a second chance. First, though, he’ll have to get Aiden to forgive him. Because when Sam was still grieving five years ago, he broke Aiden’s heart.

When rekindled lust blossoms into a true romance, it seems like the start of something wonderful. But Aiden’s career has him on the road much of the time, and the physical distance between him and Sam starts translating into an emotional disconnect. If Aiden and Sam can’t learn to communicate, their separation may prove more than their love can bear.

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Excerpt (NSFW, 18+)

“I want to fuck you,” Sam whispered. “If that’s okay….” He had never been hesitant before, but he felt like he was seventeen all over again, doing it for the first time in the woods behind the cabins at summer camp.

“You’re joking, right?” Aiden laughed. “Hell, yeah.” He reached under the mattress and pulled out a box of condoms and a small bottle of lube, then tossed them within Sam’s reach.

The tension in Sam’s shoulders relaxed until he felt his companion’s hand rubbing at the crotch of his pants. His breath caught in his throat. Too long. Way too long. He started to loosen his tie, but Aiden stopped him.

“Fuck me in that suit. It’s so damn hot.” He rolled onto his stomach and lifted his ass in blatant invitation. “I want you to fuck me in your clothes.”

“Damn,” Sam hissed as he unzipped his fly and pulled his cock out. There was something thrilling about the way Aiden had taken control, something about the way Aiden's words had sounded almost like an order that made Sam shiver. And, oh God, the globes of Aiden’s ass beckoned, tight and smooth. Sam began to stroke him while he uncapped the lube and slathered his fingers with it, then reached around to press at the hole he had only barely breached before.

“No prep,” Aiden rumbled. “Lube it up. I like it when it hurts a little.”

What the hell do I say to that?

Sam knew the feeling himself, although he had never admitted it to Nick. He and Nick had been tender lovers—the kind of lovers who explored every inch of each other’s bodies with gentle fingers and tongues. Their lovemaking had never approached the rough animal sex Sam had often fantasized about. That hadn’t been Nick’s style; he had been as laid-back and slow in bed as he was in life, and Sam had loved that about him. The sex had been great. Better than great, but now….

Sam rolled the condom over his erection and greased it well, then leaned over and spread Aiden wider. Aiden’s low laugh was an invitation, and Sam looked up to see Aiden’s eyes filled with a mixture of need and playfulness. He pressed the head of his cock against Aiden’s hole, inhaling sharply as the outer ring of muscle gave way and he felt the warm tightness nip at his sensitive tip.

“Come on,” Aiden urged him. “I want it all the way inside.”

He pushed harder, Aiden’s inner muscles gradually releasing with some resistance until Sam was seated up to his balls. Aiden was half-hard again, and Sam grasped his thickening flesh with one hand as he pulled out. Then he pushed in once more, making sure he brushed against Aiden’s prostate. He felt Aiden’s shudder and saw the look of pleasure on his face.

“Harder, Sam. Need it harder.”

“Oh God, yes. But it’s been too long. I won’t be able to….”

“I don’t care.” Aiden’s voice was now rough, husky with need. “Do it like you know you want to.”

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In her last incarnation, Shira Anthony was a professional opera singer, performing roles in such operas as Tosca, Pagliacci, and La Traviata, among others. She’s given up TV for evenings spent with her laptop, and she never goes anywhere without a pile of unread M/M romance on her Kindle.

 Shira is married with two children and two insane dogs, and when she’s not writing, she is usually in a courtroom trying to make the world safer for children.  When she’s not working, she can be found aboard a 30’ catamaran at the Carolina coast with her favorite sexy captain at the wheel.

 Shira can be found on Facebook, Goodreads, Twitter (@WriterShira) or on her web site, http://www.shiraanthony.com. You can also contact her at shiraanthony@hotmail.com.

Please look for the first two books in her "Blue Notes" series.