As you may recall from my previous post, my lesbian shapeshifter piece, “Thwarting the Spirits” is now available in the Cleis Press anthology, She Shifters, edited by Delilah Devlin.

An excerpt from that story is now available over at the She Shifters site.  Warning: Not entirely safe for work.

A review of the anthology can now be found over at Erotica Revealed.

As mentioned earlier, I’m really quite fond of this story, and pleased with how it turned out.  When I originally saw the call for submissions, I racked my brain for some kind of shapeshifter dyamic which would keep me interested. No wolves or cats for me! If I was going to go with were-creatures, I was going to go as far off the grid as I could manage.  And so the idea of a were-cobra and a were-mongoose, fighting, entangled by emotion and magic, was born.  From there, I worked backwards, to determine just who my lucky protagonists would be.  There had to be a reason for their animal affinities, a reason why these two people were related to these specific beasts.  Many hours of research later, and I had it.

Meet Hala Laghari: Pakistani-American, Muslim, research librarian, mongoose.  And meet Purnima Gurtu: Indian-American, graphics designer, cobra.  They’d love each other, if they weren’t cursed to fight one another in their animal forms….

I’m also pleased because I was able to throw in some other characters who either have, or will, show up in my other works. Isobel Sparks: were-raven and solver of problems. Raoul, one half of the infamous Coyote Brothers, causer of problems. And Phoebe Masters…mystery woman.  I had fun letting these characters interact, and I can’t wait to revisit them all in future escapades.  Some might even be the sort of story you can take home to meet the family. (Though don’t tell the Coyote Brothers, they pride themselves on a lack of respectability.)

So hey, check out She Shifters and see why the editor said, “Michael’s story struck me due to its fairy tale quality, quiet dignity and beauty.”  (Talk about a nice ego boost!)

Normally, I’d wait a little while longer to announce this publication, but I just received my contributor copies of She-Shifters: Lesbian Paranormal Erotica, edited by Delilah Devlin, and I figured why not enjoy a nice morale boost.  The anthology has a release date of July 10, but it’s already available on Amazon.  Go figure.

I’m quite pleased with my story for this collection.  ”Thwarting the Spirits” is, like so many of my other pieces, set in Puxhill, and takes advantage of the slowly-growing cast of characters and places and mythology associated with that fine fictional city.  Not only will you meet Hala Laghari, were-mongoose and Purnima Gurtu, were-cobra, and see just why their relationship has such…difficulties, you’ll run into several other notables, including the first appearance of the Coyote Brothers (about whom I want to write so much more.)  Later, I’ll find a chance to talk more about why I love the protagonists in this story and find them so awesome.

This is a great anthology,  and I’m so happy to be in it. If you like lesbian erotica and shapeshifters who aren’t necessarily wolves, this is one to strongly consider.

I’m still thrilled, pleased, honored, and amazed to inform you all that my first anthology to hit the shelves (so to speak) is even more available than before.  Today is June 19th, and that means that Like A Cunning Plan: Erotic Trickster Tales, has gone live at Circlet Press.  This marks the really truly official launch of this collection.  As of now, you can find it at all of the finest online book retailers.  I’ve helpfully compiled a list on Like A Cunning Plan‘s own dedicated page for your convenience.  So if you want to see gods and mortals, trickster figures and shapeshifters and more getting it on in a variety of sexy, playful, strange ways, here’s your chance.

And review copies are still available for those who’d rather write a review about this anthology than pay actual money. I’m easy, I’ll roll over for a few kind words. But seriously,  just let me know if you’re interested and willing to leave some comments–good or bad–about the book online somewhere.

I’ll be over here, wondering how exactly my life came to this.  If my English teachers could see me now…they’d tell me to put on pants.

I am pleased–no, honored–no, thrilled–no, ecstatic to announce that my second first anthology is now available for download from Amazon, and shall shortly be available via all other major online retailers as they process in the system.

 Like A Cunning Plan: Erotic Trickster Tales is many things.  It’s my first anthology to actually see a release date.  It’s my first official anthology as an editor for Circlet Press. It’s my first erotica anthology. It’s my “second” first because I started Scheherazade’s Facade way earlier, but well, things happened, and we all know that story by now…. And like they say, you never forget your first. Unless you were really, really drunk that night and things happened that you’ll always regret missing out on, especially when you woke up in a Tijuana gutter with an embarrassing new  tattoo instead of pants.  This is not a true story, by the way.

I learned a lot about editing as I worked through this collection, tips and tricks which ultimately made me much better as the whole editing thing, skills I’ve since put to use finetuning and finessing Scheherazade’s Facade.  I also learned that if you even jokingly make a pact with Coyote and he expects you to produce an anthology in his honor, you’d better deliver or else weird things start happening.  Like, for example, the time I went looking for an “Adult” store in Richmond, and not one, not two, but THREE stores ceased to exist for as long as I was looking, and I was only there for research purposes, honest, but still….

But I digress.  The important thing is that I HAVE AN ANTHOLOGY I AM A REAL EDITOR THIS THING HAS MY NAME ON THE COVER LOOK AT THE PRETTY COVER THIS IS AMAZING AND–

*cough* Like A Cunning Plan goes live on the Circlet site on June 19th, but it’s totally available.  Join me in celebrating playful, tricksy, unpredictable, tables-turning, eyebrow raising good times with gods and mortals, shapeshifters and kitsune. More details available on its own dedicated page here.

Review copies are available for any who promise to leave a review–good, bad, indifferent– on Amazon or Goodreads or local billboards.  Just drop me a note.

Now then.  I must Muppet-flail and scare the cats.

Again.

I’ve been informed that the anthology Girl Fever: 69 Stories of Sudden Sex for Lesbians, edited by Sacchi Green, is now available via all the usual methods and places.  This is a collection of short-short erotica pieces featuring lesbians, as though the title wasn’t a dead give-away.  I have a story in this.  ”Love On A Real Train” is exactly what you might expect: a couple seeking to reenact a certain iconic scene from the movie Risky Business. It’s short, sweet, hot, and fun. It’s a change from my usual stuff, having absolutely no paranormal elements to it, but I was pleased with how things turned out. So go forth and enjoy.

Um, if you like that sort of thing. It’s okay if you just sort of nod politely and mumble something about a dog-grooming appointment instead. I understand.

In other news, I sent out an update to Scheherazade’s Facade backers, basically telling them not to panic because I was actually quiet for a while.  That is all.

Some very few of you might have been wondering where Yours Truly has been for the past month or so.  Well, after the Kickstarter for Scheherazade’s Facade ended, I took the money, converted it into gold bars, and fled to Argentina to set up shop in an abandoned castle where I could pursue my lifelong dreams of creating Nazi zombie cyborg mecha.  That you’re hearing from me now can only mean one thing: the subjugation of the running dog imperialist United States is well at hand, and if you look out your window right about…now!

No, wait, that’s the dream I had last night, after being hopped up on cough medicine and antibiotics.  Never mind!  Yours Truly has been under the weather for the past week and a half, as well as under deadlines, and has just claimed what may be a temporary victory.

Before that, of course, was the annual pilgrimage to Boston for the Circlet Press Editorial Retreat, where I reported on the state of things to my glorious benefactors and munificent overlords, and  was thusly described as “a really great guy.”  Yes, this means I’ll be doing more editing work for Circlet, once I have my current projects taken care of.

And now the news.  I have two publications to announce:

1) Lustfully Ever After: Fairy Tale Erotic Romance, edited by Kristina Wright and published by Cleis Books, is now out.  I just got my contributor copies, and it’s a very nice looking anthology.  It contains my story, “The Long Night of Tanya McCray,” which retells the semi-obscure fairy tale “The Boots of Buffalo Leather.”  In it, a wayward photographer gets lost after dark in a very strange part of Puxhill, rescues a sexy stranger, and runs afoul of a malevolent gang.  I’m rather pleased with it.  This is actually the first of four appearances I’ll be making in Cleis anthologies this year.

2) Spec-Tacular is also out.  This is an ebook collection reprinting various selections from Raven Electrick Ink’s various anthologies. It contains my Nick St. Claus story, “Who Killed the Pumpkin King?” and is a great sampler of the previous four anthos.  It’s edited by Karen Romanko.  I’m quite thrilled that my story was chosen to represent the Jack-O’-Spec anthology.

As for other updates:

1) Like A Cunning Plan: Erotic Trickster Tales, continues right on track and should be coming out soon from Circlet Press.  I’ll have more information on that shortly.

2) Scheherazade’s Facade also progresses right on schedule, as I wrangle authors, make sure contracts are properly signed, perform various edits, ad so on and so forth.  Almost everyone involved has been paid, which really takes a load of my mind and makes me quite happy.  I’ll update this as more information becomes available, and I’ll also be sure to update via the Kickstarter program so everyone can stay informed.  I still plan a couple of follow-up posts once things settle down and I have the time and energy to concentrate on the numbers and statistics.

That’s about it for now.  Although I will be attending the mass signing for the SFWA Nebula Awards this coming Friday.  If anyone’s going to be there, I’d love to meet you!

Short and sweet: we did it.  With a final total of $6153 (over our original goal of $5000), and a total of 233 backers, the Scheherazade’s Facade Kickstarter campaign came to an end, and was officially successful.  Thank you to everyone who pledged, pre-0rdered, passed the word, and supported us in various ways.  This was a group effort, and because of you all, this anthology will see the light of day at last.  Our authors will be paid professional rates for their work, and you’l finally get to read the stories that have haunted me for several years.

Now the next phase begins, where we take care of all the little last minute details that go into any publishing endeavor.  I’ll be contacting the supporters to make sure we have all the necessary info for their rewards, wrangling the authors to make sure they’re still awake, and so on.  The important thing is that we have the funding, and this project can move forward.

I’m planning several more post game reports, talking about the Kickstarter process, the pitfalls, what I learned, what seemed to work and what didn’t, and how to stay sane during the process.  If you have any questions you’d like answered, just leave them in any of the usual places and I’ll try to get to them.  In the meantime, stay cool and be excellent to each other.

(Pictured: One of the Feline Advisory Committee. This is Molly. She knows what you did.  How could you?)

Ladies and gentlemen, our month-long odyssey nears its inevitable conclusion.  The Scheherazade’s Facade Kickstarter campaign has approximately twelve hours left to run before it ends tonight at 3 AM EDT.  I’m not going to inundate you with a blow-by-blow countdown as we near the end.  Rather, I’ll just put it out there into the world one last time, that at this point, I have two goals which would satisfy my love of numbers and symbols.

1)We’re at 224 backers.  I would so dearly love to hit 225 (or higher).  One more person would do the trick.  I’d also settle for 250 backers, if there’s 26 people who haven’t gotten around to pledging but really want to.  But I’ll take what I can get.

2) We’re at $5970.  We are -this- close to $6000.  Again, one pledge would do the trick.  We do have a $30 dollar package for both the ebook and the trade paperback, you know….

So it wouldn’t take much to satisfy both of these last-minute “victory goals.”

(Edit: Even as I write this, someone magically pops up to to be my #225 hero.  Yay!  But we’re still $20 short of that magical big number.  Can we do it?  Yes we can!  See, you never know what will happen in these crazy, turbulent times.)

So if you were planning to pledge, you don’t have much time.  Pre-order Scheherazade’s Facade and you get my thanks and admiration, and the satisfaction of a job well done, and a book you’ll hopefully enjoy.  (They also make great birthday presents.  Or blog giveaways.  Or library donations, if you decide it’s not for you afterwards.  See, you have options!

Now, if anyone decides that twelve hours before the deadline is a good time to -cancel-, on the other hand, I should warn you: My cats?  Are CHAMPIONS at horking, and I know where your shoes are.

I kid, I kid.  Just a little last minute editor-is-flailing-with-anticipation-mixed-with-neurotic-worries humor.  But I have a Maine Coon and he knows what to do with potted plants.  Oh, does he.  And I’m not afraid to use him.  Scheherazade’s Facade: pledge now or the potted plant is toast.

So spread the word, one last time.  Talk it up to your friends and readers and followers, one last time.  Remind people that you know where the bodies are buried, one last time. Kidnap the boss’s poodle, one last time.  And I’ll see you in a few hours, when we pop the metaphorical bubbly and celebrate success.

1) Thanks, folks! All of your voting paid off! “Devil’s Masquerade” has been accepted for inclusion in Fantastic Erotica: The Best of Circlet Press 2008-2012.  I’m thrilled that my sexy lesbian adventurers will get a chance to see print yet again, and this time in a real, physical book.  Yay!

2) I got the author proofs for my forthcoming anthology, Like A Cunning Plan: Erotic Trickster Tales, due out from Circlet sometime relatively soon.  Again, yay!  I feel like a real editor, seeing this thing so close to completion.

3) Scheherazade’s Facade has 53 hours to go on Kickstarter, and we’re sitting at $5825.  I know my original stretch goal of $10k was probably a little too stretchy, but we can totally hit $6000, right?  Right?  It would make me and the authors really happy…. If you’ve been waiting until the last minute, this weekend is it!

4) My review of Seanan McGuire’s new urban fantasy, Discount Armageddon, is live on Tor.  Go check it out!

5) I’m on Twitter as Oneminutemonkey and while I may not post a lot, I’d love more followers so I’m not screaming into the wind so much.  I do that enough without the Internet’s help.

That’s all for now.