Anya Bast

Personally, I prefer books.

I pulled a muscle in my left hip. Well, I guess I pulled a muscle in my left hip. All I know is that something in my left hip is shooting searing jolts of pain as bright as freaking solar flares down my left leg when I : 1. move wrong, 2. bend over, (oh, that’s a BAD thing to do right now), 3. laugh, 4. sneeze (also really bad. There is the white-hot pain of a thousand, million suns when I sneeze), 5. exist and/or breathe.

It started yesterday and caused me an extremely restless night. It’s worse this morning. I have NO IDEA what I did. I must’ve moved wrong or something. Sitting here in the computer chair is painful, but it’s a tolerable pain. Hopefully it won’t affect my writing today. If the pain is still there tomorrow I suppose I’ll have to schlep myself into the doctor’s office.

In other news, I LOVE Market Spice Tea. It’s incredibly yummy. Especially when it’s 30 degrees outside, like it is now. I brought some back for my mother, but now I wish I’d brought some back for everyone. It’s a very strong tea, kind of cinnamony and citrusy all at once. It doesn’t need milk or sugar. Lovely stuff.

I bought it when my husband and I went to Seattle this past weekend to hang out with Lauren Dane. Naaah nah!! I got to hang out with Lauren Dane and you didn’t! *blows raspberry* because I’m sooo mature like that.

Anyway, I discovered this new tea and now I’m addicted. Must. Have. More. Market Spice tea!

In bookish news…I just finished Dead Man Rising, by Lilth Saintcrow. It’s a sequel to Working for the Devil (I suggest reading in order). It was very good. It made me cry! I finished it up on the plane coming back from Seattle on Sunday and whimpered my way to the end. There’s one more in the series to be released and I can’t wait for it.

Right now I’m reading The Hoax, by Adrienne Jones — This is speculative fiction. Well-written, intelligent and surreal. My favorite combo. I love the characters. They grabbed me from the first page.

Other books I recently purchased: (There’s even some romance in there. Funnily enough, I don’t read a lot of it because I write it.)

Anansi Boys, Neil Gaiman
Seduced by Magic, Cheyenne McCray
Witching, Yasmine Galenorn
Master of Swords, Angela Knight
Black Powder War, Naomi Novik

NOW I’m off to write, if my left hip will let me.

So I started “plogging” today over on Amazon.com, something I’ve been meaning to do for a very long time. Plogging made me think of blogging, so now I’m doing that too. Erm…plogging really IS blogging, right? Yeah…thought so.

So it’s a beautifully chilly fall day. My favorite kind. I’ve got quite a list of things to do today. I need to take our desktop computer, just returned from the Geek Squad after two weeks of them “fixing” it, back into be “fixed” again. Grrrr. I think I have to get my bitch on this time. I hate getting my bitch on.

I need to clean my house! Well, okay, I want to clean my house and, you know, even romance writers have to scrub their toilets. It’s cold outside, I have candles burning, and I’m nesting. I feel all domestic and have a yen to make chili and old fashioned chocolate cake for dinner.

Can I mention how much I love my washing machine? I can stuff our entire king-size comforter in there, which means I don’t have to schlep all the way to the laundromat and be assaulted by cute children who want to rip keys off my AlphaSmart and steal my quarters (which is exactly what happened the last time I was there).

I also plan to write at least 3k on my new proposal for Berkley Sensation. This book is the sequel to Witch Fire (releasing next summer). I’m itching to get my hands on this book and there are chores standing between me and it. Somehow I think the chores need to go bye-bye.

Witch Fire is finished and turned in. It’s the story of Mira, a witch with extraordinary magickal gifts. When a group of warlocks hunt her with the intent to steal her power, Jack, a fire witch, is sent in to be her bodyguard. You’ll have to read the book to see the kind of heat they generate.

The next book has the bland working title of “Earth Magick”. It probably won’t stay Earth Magick, but I need to call it something. I adore my characters in Witch Fire and, as Thomas and Isabelle bloom in my mind, I can tell I’m going to love them too.

So, through the course of this blog I’ve realized the Geek Squad can HANG, the house can get messier and we’re having tomato soup for dinner. My writing fingers itch. :)

One of my crit partners, Cathy Pegau, recently finalled in RT’s American Title II competition with her wonderful novel Haunted!!

Watch this author because you’ll be seeing her often in the future. I can say with all assurance that her writing is delectable. To boot, she’s a witty, humble, friendly author with a great sense of humor. (Her heroes are very yummy too).

Check out her recent introductory blog post over on the Title Wave blog!

Some of my covers in a slideshow:

Some friends of mine rescue neglected/abandoned/abused animals and they have some very special dogs for adoption right now. I’ve met them and I must say they are all exceptional pooches — very friendly and affectionate. I just love them all!!

They have been neglected in the past (but not abused). These days they’ve been pampered, seen to numerous times by vets, spayed/neutered, and microchipped. They’re all healthy, happy and looking for Forever Homes!

If you live in Southern Indiana, Southern Illinois, Southern Ohio, Kentucky or Tennesee and might be interested in adopting one of these dogs, email me at anyabast (at) yahoo.com and I’ll get you in touch with the proper folks. They can tell you more about each individual dog.

These dogs are looking for stable, loving homes where they will always have enough to eat, people to scratch their bellies and take them for walks. They want people who will commit to them seriously. So please don’t inquire unless you are able to give them that!!!!

The foster parents have spent a lot of money on vet care, so that part is finished. They are also willing to drive them to their new homes, though you would probably want to make the trip to visit the dogs first!

Without further ado…

Slacker

Raja — (this one is SUCH a love sponge)

Pixie

Emily

Minnie

I just got a piece of spam with the subject line: leeringfkts Girlnqtz Bending Overron!!! Took me a while to figure to figure it out… Leering Girls Bending Over!!!!

Er. I guess. I’m not opening it up to find out if I was right, that’s for certain.

In non-spamish news… (well, maybe this is spam. All is in the eye of the spam beholder), I’ve been getting fantastic feedback from readers in private emails and in reviews for Edge of Sweetness. This makes me happy because, 1.) it was my first BDSM story and 2.) it was my first EC quickie. Short stories are more difficult for me to write than long ones.

eCataromance (Sensual)
Five Stars

“This story was really fascinating, with two leading characters with whom the reader can both readily identify and sympathise. Ben and Savannah are realistic personalities, and even in this short quickie, the author delineates their deeper selves. I really appreciated the emphasis on the immediate connection of their first meeting, and then the long wait of six months until they find each other again. All in all, I highly recommend this to every reader!”

~ Annie_Kudzu

~*~*~*~

Coffetime Romance
4 cups

“I enjoy well-written tales of dominance and submission. This book is an excellent example of this exciting genre. I really like Ms. Bast’s particular writing style. She has a way with words that completely stimulates my imagination. If you like the BDSM genre, then give this sensational story a try. You will be glad you did.”

~ Susan White

I’ve had a lot of great reviews so far for my BDSM quickie, Edge of Sweetness. Here are a few:

Just Erotic Romance Reviews
Reviewer: Marcy Arbitman
Rating: 4 Stars
Heat level: H

“Edge of Sweetness is a book about control and equality, and also a book about self-awareness. Ben thinks that he is totally in control and prepares to teach Savannah how to release her self-control without fear. Savannah teaches Ben that he needs more in his life than control. I found the premise fascinating and Ms. Bast fulfills it admirably. The sex is an important part of the plot and is definitely hot and exciting, so much so that I was searching for a toy for use while I read. However, the relationship between the two characters (and the way it changes) pushes the story. Ms. Bast wrote an intriguing story with no need for secondary characters. I was particularly interested in the way both Ben and Savannah learned about themselves and each other. This is a wonderful story. Ms. Bast, you have done it again!”

Just Erotic Romance Reviews
Reviewer: Wendy Cable
Rating: 5 Star
Heat level: O

“Anya Bast uses her belief in love-at-first- sight to create an exciting adventure that allows two people to find what they both want from life. I found the book well written, exciting and very hot… The submission scene is very imaginative and shows the often-overlooked side of BDSM with the thoughts and feelings of both characters. …I highly recommend this book to any woman who likes the idea of a dominating strong caring man giving a woman what she secretly wants.”

Romance Junkies
Format: EBOOK
Rating: 5

“Anya Bast’s EDGE OF SWEETNESS is a thrilling BDSM story full of heart and hope. At only forty-five pages, this is a quickie that won’t keep you up all night reading but will sure help contribute to any delightfully wicked dreams you might have. I found it extremely easy to sympathize with Savannah. She’s spent years suppressing her need to be dominated because of the expectations of those around her. Ben is absolutely delectable. He’s sexy, powerful, with just a hint of vulnerability. Ms. Bast is a fabulous storyteller and I’ve learned to be on the lookout for anything written by her. This is a perfect read when you want something HOT but don’t have a whole lot of time to read.”

Check out this deck of EC playing cards! Stay tuned to Silverpurr and the Maverick Author email loops to find out how to win some. :)