Smut and Stephen King

Well, it's here. The anthology of smut that I've been promising is finally live on Amazon AND I have a promotion to go with it. If you're confused by the title you see on the book cover, I'll clear that up in a minute. Be warned; these stories are not intended for anyone under the age of 18.

First, the Promotion:

I released my short story, "Fear of the Dark," about six weeks ago as a preview to this anthology. Well, Sunday and Monday, June 17 and 18, "Fear of the Dark" is free on Amazon so you can get a little taste. Strange Kisses, the anthology that includes "Fear of the Dark," is now live on Amazon and selling for $2.99. So grab the single if you want to test the waters, then dive into the four-piece anthology.

Next, Change in Cover and Title:

this one didn't make the cut but will
 be used for a different collection

My original intent was to assemble a group of very dark, genre-oriented, erotic tales. The problem was they just didn't come together as quickly as I hoped they would. However, another set of stories that I had been playing with (in my head) for a while pulled together and nearly wrote itself. I suppose the stories decided it was time. So the original title, Eros and Thanatos no longer fit.

The Stephen King Connection:

I had been having this back and forth, via email, with a friend. I convinced him that he needed to read Skeleton Crew, the first Stephen King book I ever read. Because I loved it. I had forgotten how much I loved it until one night when that friend sent me an email that began with, "Wait - just a few minutes. I want to talk to you... and then I am going to kiss you. Wait..." You see, so many people want to pigeonhole Stephen King as a horror writer, but his versatility is amazing. AND I'm convinced he's a hopeless romantic hiding behind a pair of thick glasses and a stack of scary novels.

My favorite Stephen King quote is "...a short story is like a quick kiss in the dark from a stranger." THAT, my friends, is where I got the title for this collection.

A couple of friends have graciously allowed me to take over their blogs for the weekend. You'll find a Q & A-type article over at my pal Matt Posner's blog. You may remember him as the Vampire Poet from April's poetry slam. And Tony Healey over at his website asked me to write a short article about the stories behind the stories that make up Strange Kisses.

If I may, I'd like to offer you one last Stephen King quote, also from the introduction to Skeleton Crew:  "...if I should kiss you in the dark, it’s no big deal; it’s only because you are my love."

Happy Reading!