Available now at Fictionwise and ARe

2008 Eppie finalist Tea for Three is available now at Fictionwise and All Romance eBooks.

I've been waiting and waiting...and even more waiting to finally have a fuller length novella up at these two venues, so I did a bit of a butt wiggle in the chair when I saw these links :)

Now, I just need to figure out how to update the author bio at FW and just how I can update the listing to show it was an Eppie Finalist.

Tea for Three nominated...

This time for the CAPA Awards in the contemporary erotic romance category!

Tea for Three really is finishing out the year with a bang -- Eppie nominated and now CAPA, too. Merry, merry Christmas to me!

Well, it's turning into quite the week...

I just got the email telling me Tea for Three is an Eppie finalist!!

How's that for an early Christmas present!!

T43 Reader Competition

I just got a comment through, where Toni pointed out that I've never posted the winner of this competition. My bad! I posted it on my website but forgot to here at the Blog.

I won't keep you waiting -- the winner of the Tea for Three Reader Competition is : Michelle Bauer.

With luck she's already gotten the prize, maybe she'll surprise us with a picture of her with it over her shoulder?

First Review for Tea for Three

I've been waiting the first review with baited breath, obsessively plugging "Tea for Three" into Google and not having a lot of success (other than finding out that there is a play of the same name, a episode of Only Fools and Horses, and a movie (which I might just have to try find a copy of judging by the synopsis).

So, for Just Erotic Romance Reviews (JERR):

Reviewer: Marcy Arbitman
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Heat level: O

Craig and Jack live a happy, loving and sexually fulfilling life. Suddenly, Craig begins to feel uneasy; although he loves Jack dearly, Craig sometimes misses the touch of a woman. Jack knows that something is bothering Craig and begins to worry that he will lose the only person he has ever loved. Into their lives limps Wren. She was crippled by the drunk driving accident that killed her mother when she was fifteen. Wren is larger than usual and she knows that no man will ever love her. Is it possible for her to believe that two men could love her?

Tea For Three is a wonderful new novel by Anne Douglas. A relatively new author, Ms. Douglas has a wonderful grasp on her craft. Craig, Jack and Wren are real people with real life strengths and foibles; I easily felt that they could be neighbors of mine. The three of them were hard working people who were written to reflect the seriousness of loving relationships. Throughout the book, I felt attached to them, happy with and for them and sad when they were sad. The plot seamlessly flowed from beginning to end without a single bump in the path. Craig and Jack were interested in bringing Wren into their household as part of their family, with even the possibility of having children at some point. Wren was a virgin; Jack and Craig inducted her into a fabulous loving sex life with grace and extremely erotic behavior. This book is not for anyone who objects to specific m/f/m ménage; the sex was unbelievably orgasmic.. Ms. Douglas pulled me right into their bed; I was desperate for some sexual activity when I finished the book. I truly enjoyed Ms. Douglas' Tea For Three!

Phew, I'll admit, the lack of reviews (after all this is the eWorld, these things do usually happen quite quickly) had me feeling, not worried, but maybe a little apprehensive, so this review has made my day.


Maybe I should send Ms Arbitman a new pack of batteries?

Vote for Tea for Three

Ciar Cullen's doing her Review contest again. This time for your favourite Spring release, and lookie there, Tea for Three made it to her list, and I didn't submit it (which means someone read it and really liked it!)

So go vote ... (by that, I mean for me! ROFL! Hey, I'm nothing if not forthright)

T43 Reader Competition

I'm running a little bit late - blame it on my iron! (no not the 9iron, the old fashioned get the wrinkles out of my clothes one)

So here it is, the prize:

(you can see more pictures here )

How to be in to win:

1. Name three (3) towns or cities mentioned in T43
2. What was the name of the ice cream shop in Mission Bay?
3. How was Wren injured?

Email your answers to annedouglaseroticrom@gmail.com before Friday the 15th of June 2007 to be in for a chance to win.

Available NOW!

Title: Tea for Three

ISBN: 978-1-59632-476-3

Author: Anne Douglas
Cover Artist: Croco Designs
Price: $5.99

Genre: Nontraditional Erotic Contemporary, BBW Heroine
Length: Novel

Straight, gay or in between, turning thirty is never easy.

Craig wonders just where his life's heading. His relationship with Jack is satisfying, to say the least. But deep down, he sometimes still craves the soft touches of a woman.

Something's bugging Craig, and Jack knows it. Some sort of pre midlife crisis that he just can't understand. The sex is hot and demanding. Their home life is comfortable without being too familiar. But he just can't help feeling he might be about to lose the love of his life.

Then they meet lovely, loyal and slightly broken Wren Browne. It doesn't take long to realize, they might have just have found the solution to both of their problems.

Love isn't tidy or simple; it doesn't come packaged in neat little boxes. And sometimes you have to set the table with tea for three.

Publisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable: m/m sex practices, m/m/f menage.

TT #17 - 13 things about Jack, Craig, Wren, & Tea for Three

These are all things you won't learn in the book, yet came about when I was building their personalities:

• Jack loves to grow things - plants, flowers, trees ... the mold in the takeaway left overs in the bottom of his truck.
• If Wren had been a boy her name would have been Laurie.
• Craig has a black thumb, yet he can grow strawberries, a most temperamental fruit if ever there was one.
• Wren's girlfriends bought her a 'dirty' walking stick. Since it has a anatomically correct penis carved as it's handle, it tends to stay in the big pot she uses to hold her collection in. It can be quite the talking point when people come to visit.
• Jack won an award for the garden he has built up around their home, and it was photographed for NZ Home & Garden.
• Craig was the one who took the photographs for the magazine -- he's quite the talented amateur photographer.
• Wren crochets. Or at least she tries to. She can only make squares, which she turns into blankets that quickly become holey, not holy.
• Craig absolutely, positively loathes snails. When he was a kid he nearly ate one in his silverbeet. He hasn't eaten silverbeet since, and Jack now regularly pranks him with snails left in his shoes, the passengers seat of his car ... snuck into his underwear drawer.
• Jack has a lead foot, and talking his way out of a ticket down to a fine art. Craig is not so lucky.
• Wren doesn't know it, but her dad has found his second chance at love. And no that's not sequel bait :), well at least I don't think it is ...
• Other than the actual houses and characters businesses, all the places in the book really exist.
• Kinky Boots is a damn good movie. How can a movie about a drag queens ultimate red high heel, not be?
• T43 is set in my home town/s. Many, many parts of this book are closely based on my own experiences. I'll leave you to figure them out after you read the book.
• Some close friends asked to be written into a book. One of them made it this time around *wave*

Counting down, and a giveway. . .

Final proofreader edits went back early this morning (in ePublishing deadlines tend to be a lot closer to publication than in print), so I can put the cap back on the Tums and party like it's my Birthday ... oh, wait! It is! Well, on Friday that is. I'll be the ripe old age of 34.

So in honor of my birthday I'm giving away Tea for Three mouse pad and some goodies of the chocolaty persuasion. Perfect for sitting down and reading your favorite eBooks with!

Email me, using the address in my profile, with the names of the names of the three lead characters of Tea for Three (hint: you don't have to look far, or hit my main website) by Sunday 27th May, midday, and my 7yr old will scientifically choose a winner from the entrants.

Instead of writing...

I've spent the whole afternoon working on a web ad (kiddo had a B'day party to attend this morning).

Finally, I'm happy.

God help me if I decide to do the print ad, I'll never decide on what to make it look like! Though I think I could make this basically work with a few changes :).

A T43 Excerpt

A little something to start your heart:

Tea for Three
(c) 2007, Anne Douglas

Wren was captivated with the scene playing out in front of her. She’d fantasized about how two men came together, and here it was, right in front of her -- two hot, sexy, men making love to one another.
Wren didn’t dare breathe for fear of shattering the moment -- she didn’t want them to stop. Seeing them together turned her on something fierce. Craig’s tongue lapped at the swollen head of Jack’s cock before taking him deep in his mouth, his cheeks hollowing when he drew back. Wren was certain she heard Craig humming, and judging by the way Jack clenched and groaned beside her, it was as effective as all her erotic novels suggested.
Jack’s hand came up to hold Craig’s head in place as he pumped his hips up. “Yeah ... suck me!”
Craig jerked his head out of Jack’s hold, and on all fours, he clambered across her legs and into position between Jack’s thighs. “I don’t think so, Jack. I have better things in mind for you.”
Wren jumped as Craig directed his next words at her -- she thought they had forgotten she was even in the room. “Wren, baby, grab the lube off the dresser for me.”
Reaching for the requested bottle, she turned back in time to see Craig pin Jack to the bed with his arms behind Jack’s knees. The graphic image the two big virile men made together took her breath away -- Craig loomed over Jack possessively, while Jack grinned up at his lover, waiting for the moment when he got what he had wanted all along.
Moving back beside the pair, she proffered the bottle.
“I’m not the one who needs it, Wren. Jack’s ass is the one that’s about to get fucked.” His growled words and harsh tone shocked her, but perversely excited her, as Craig dominated Jack. Staring at the point where Craig’s thick erection rubbed over Jack’s balls and equally erect cock, she gulped, and felt a gush of heat through her pussy.

Catch up

No not Ketchup, catch up. Besides it's called tomato sauce anyway :)

I've not been blogging a whole lot this week as I've been working hard on my WIP ... along with actually doing the housework I've been putting off for far too long.

Accidentally Were is a 24k and climbing, I haven't got to the mystical woo-woo part yet so I'm thinking that I'm going to end up around 40-50k before I start editing and cutting and adding. Of course since I'm notorious for not using contractions, there's 1000 words that disappear right there. Tell me, in this little scene that I'm penning this afternoon, have I gone overboard with the euphemisms? (assuming I have that right, euphemism that is, and I have a feeling I am wrong.) :

(this is VERY much unedited at the moment folks)

When he pushed her back up against the side of his truck her little angry growls stopped and a low sexy rumble started up instead. “I wasn’t sure there for a second, but I think you were right, this is a damn good idea.”
Rex barely had time to brace himself before Pearl climbed her way up his body and wrapped her legs around his waist. As he wasn’t quite balanced they fell back against the truck with a panel-popping thud that pressed Pearl up against him like she was a stripper and he was the pole. Quite apt really considering his dick felt like a bloody steel bar.
Pearl’s hands were wound through his hair again; holding him tight as she fairly ate at his lips. Pearl made a cacophony of sound as she mewled and groaned as she rode his cock like a cowboy on a prize bull determined to make it to eight seconds. She tore her mouth away and shouted to the sky, “Yes! More, just like that!” and Rex had to wonder what the hell alien had taken over the woman who was usually so uptight and proper she’d make a Mongrel Mob member quake in his boots for being to loud in a library.

Tea for Three's release is a little over a week away now. We should be getting everything finalized this weekend, so it will be nice to get that out of the way until the Monday before release day when I'll sit up late obsessively refreshing the screen until the new releases are posted -- and don't think I wont!

I've got a release out, a sub being read (do you know hard it is to sit on your fingers and not email "Have you read it yet, whaddya think" to your editor?), and I've been trying to make a decision about a national print ad -- I'm not usually one to stress and obsess, but trying to break my caffeine addiction (I'm failing I might add), has me a little twitchy :).

BUT ... I put that twitchiness to good use and I now have clean floors. Eh, which reminds me I need to go finish off the bathroom, bugger!

An excerpt from the up coming Tea for Three

I've had my head buried in edits for the last two days, but they are done now, so I thought I'd surprise you with a little excerpt to introduce you to the characters in Tea for Three:

Most days Wren didn’t understand the rest of the world, let alone herself. So why had she shaved her legs, and stuffed her swimsuit and a towel in her bag -- just in case?

It wasn’t like she was planning on going swimming or anything ... but it was so damn hot today that the idea of taking a dip in a cool pool sounded entirely too wonderful.

Why on earth had she accepted Jack’s invite?

You know why -- you’re bored ... and lonely, and spending a few hours with some interesting near strangers is something better to do with your Saturday afternoon than sitting at home with yet another book.

Well, they were good books! Wren now knew all sorts of things from those erotic romances -- pity she’d never had the chance to try any of the ideas out.

Rummaging through her bag, she made sure she had all the essentials -- sunscreen, hat, cover-up, swimsuit. She made sure her sunglasses were on top of her head and closed up the bag. Heading to the kitchen, she plucked up the dessert she had spent the morning making. Her mum and dad had taught her that it was rude to not bring something for your hosts. She had decided that two grown men wouldn’t say no to some homemade dessert -- even if they possibly were new age guys with gourmet chef tendencies. Besides, her fruit caramel sponge pudding was fairly close to award-winning, even if she did say so herself.

She locked the kitchen door behind her, then made her way to the car and carefully stowed the dessert in the backseat, along with her tote bag.

Absently rubbing her scarred hip, feeling itchy from the stunningly hot day, Wren really started looking forward to at least dangling her feet in a cool pool.

* * * * *

Oh my god, it’s the guy from the bar!

Wren had barely knocked on the door before it was quickly opened and she was greeted by a handsome, smiling face. A handsome, dark haired man with a chocolate voice, who still appeared in her secret, late night fantasies.

“Wren!” Craig’s sun bronzed face lit up with a big welcoming smile.

“Craig? It is Craig, right?” Wren was almost at a loss -- had she gotten the directions mixed up and got the wrong house?

“Yup, you remembered!” Well, duh ... of course she remembered!

“But ...” An extra arm reached around Craig and grabbed hold of the dessert bowl, while Craig took hold of her bag in one hand and her arm with the other, walking her into the house. “Jack? Jack was the blond guy?”

Speak of the devil; a chagrined cough came from the owner of the third arm.

“I have to fess up, Wren. I didn’t tellyou that I recognized you from that night at the club.” A light blush ran across Jack’s cheekbones as he shrugged. “I ... well; I was a bit embarrassed actually. I was kind of rude, pushing my way in the middle of you two chatting – truly, I hadn’t realized you were talking with one another -- and I really
wanted to make a good impression on the best analyst and strategist in town.”

Jack and Craig just stood and watched as her face got redder and redder, obviously waiting for her to blow her top. She blew all right -- right out into peals of laughter, leaving both men looking at her, stumped.

“Oh ... my ...” Wren couldn’t get enough air into her lungs to say more. Forcing herself to calm down, she managed to carry on. “Jack, you idiot! I was already on my way home when Craig stopped me to chat for a while. When I saw you greeting Craig so heartily, I just decided it was time to make a quiet retreat and leave you to it. Believe
me; I wouldn’t have thought any worse of you when it came to your business expansion.”

Craig broke out in a grin, while Jack was still a little more abashed with a smaller smile.

“Come on out back, Wren, and take aload off by the pool. Today is the perfect day for doing nothing but swimming and lazing around with friends.”

“I’ll just take this to the fridge.” Jack took a doorway that obviously led to the kitchen, while Craig took her arm and showed her out to the rear of the house. They had an in-ground pool surrounded by stunning lush gardens.

“Oh, my.” Wren was amazed at the profusion of flowers and immaculately kept gardens and shrubs. “This is Jack’s work, I assume.” It was beautiful, flowers overflowed with scents and shrubsand trees burst with life.

“And you would be correct; this is one of his continual works in progress.” Craig took her bag over and put it down by the large table, waving her to one of the pillow-clad sun loungers. “He does a lot of experimentation here. We have a bit of everything out here in Clevedon. Cool and salty air off the harbor, but moisture, with the fogs in winter, and during summer, it can be as hot as Hades out here on the flats.”

Wren watched as Jack came up behind Craig, laying a hand on his shoulder in a manner that showed the men’s comfort with each other.

Man alive, what a good looking couple they make.

“I guess that means that you have been listening to my gardening rambles?” Craig laughed as he, too, sat down in a lounger.

“Every word! It doesn’t mean that my black thumb has gotten any greener, though.” Jack laughed as he put a cooler down under the table with one hand and a tray of glasses and mixers on top of the table with the other.

“Now that we have all our confessions over and done with, who’s for a drink? ‘Cause it’s bloody hot, and I know I need one!”