Freebie Alert: Nuit Blanche (for your adulterous reading pleasure!)

Nothing says Merry Christmas like an old bald guy cheating on his wife with a much younger woman who has a slight latex fetish...

I'm watching a Victorian Christmas marathon as I type up this post (yes, it is 4 in the morning--why do you ask?), but Nuit Blanche is not a holiday story.  It's actually a story from my Audrey and Lawrence collection, which is a series of short stories about a married man named Lawrence and his young mistress Audrey. 

As other formerly taboo topics move more into the mainstream, it seems that adultery has taken over as the love that dare not speak its name.  It's been suggested to me by readers and other authors that this reflects a shift in how we view love and marriage.  Used to be that couples married young and grew apart.  When divorce wasn't so common, you'd stick it out because you were expected to. If you happened to slip into indiscretion (and you were a man--double standards do apply), well, hey, that's life.

Now we're getting married later (I use the term "we" with artistic license--I've never been married) and if we want a divorce, meh, whatevs.  Also, if we want polyamorous relationships, more and more of us are open to the concept.  So why would you cheat on your wife, you bloody bastard?  Cheating is lying and lying is unacceptable.

Speaking as a person who's written a fair amount of adultery erotica... yikes!  Bad for business. My Audrey and Lawrence stories don't sell very strongly, despite being close to my heart and close to my life. In case you hadn't heard, I was mistress to a married man for nearly 10 years.

And Nuit Blanche is based very much on real events. You can't make this stuff up...

Nuit Blanche is free at your friendly neighbourhood Amazon site until Sunday December 22nd, 2013.

US: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GIO11PA
Canada: http://www.amazon.ca/Blanche-Audrey-Lawrence-Adultery-Erotica-ebook/dp/B00GIO11PA/ref=sr_1_46?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1387358904&sr=1-46&keywords=nuit+blanche
UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blanche-Audrey-Lawrence-Adultery-Erotica-ebook/dp/B00GIO11PA/ref=sr_1_6?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1387358836&sr=1-6&keywords=nuit+blanche

Those are all the Amazon sites I can think of at 4... oh, now 4:30 in the morning.

Enjoy!
Giselle

Your Purchase Makes A Difference for LGBT Youth

I've made this announcement a few times, but it's always been buried in the fine print.  I want to make sure I'm getting the word out, so this post is devoted entirely to letting you know that I'm donating 10% of what I earn on my trans books until the end of the year to LGBT Youthline.

You've probably heard of Youthline because I've been raising money for them via book sales for a few years now.  LGBT Youthline is an organization that provides peer support to Ontario youths who identify as trans, gay, lesbian, 2-spirit, bi, queer, and questioning. Here's their website, in case you'd like to find out more, get involved, or donate directly: http://youthline.ca/index.php

Which titles qualify?

I'll donate 10% of my royalties from my trans/2-spirit lesbian erotic romance The Red Satin Collection and my anthology My Mistress' Thighs: Erotic Transgender Fiction and poetry (whether you buy them in print or as an ebook), as well as the short ebooks in my Transgender and Genderqueer Erotic Romance series, which is available through Smashwords, All Romance Ebooks, Amazon, and other retailers.

Titles in the  Transgender and Genderqueer Erotic Romance series include Licorne, Eclipse the Stars, Friends of Dorothy, Dressing for Dinner, Secrets of the Solstice Sacrifice, and many more!

Many of those short stories are available in My Mistress' Thighs, if you're interested in scooping up a whole collection:

Print:

Createspace: https://www.createspace.com/4545682

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/My-Mistress-Thighs-Transgender-Fiction/dp/1494301539/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1385853910&sr=8-1&keywords=my+mistress%27+thighs

Ebook:

All Romance: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-mymistress039thighs-1364488-166.html

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/383308

And if you're in the mood for some holiday romance with a loving spoonful of family drama on the side, I recommend The Red Satin Collection.  It won a Rainbow Award when it came out in 2012!

Get it in print:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GOL8VXC

CreateSpace: https://www.createspace.com/4521764

Or as an ebook:

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/378166

All Romance: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-theredsatincollection-1350117-341.html

Coffee Time: http://www.coffeetimeromance.com/BookStore/pubs_product_book_info/indie-authors-giselle-renarde-c-152_193/the-red-satin-collection-p-11340

Thanks for your help in supporting queer youth!
Giselle

Now In Print! Secret Confessions: 36 Erotic Encounters

This is my chair. I found it in someone's garbage.

Secret Confessions: 36 Erotic Encounters 

Authored by Giselle Renarde

List Price: $7.99

5.25" x 8" (13.335 x 20.32 cm)
Black & White on Cream paper
168 pages

ISBN-13: 978-1494311575
ISBN-10: 1494311577
BISAC: Fiction / Erotica

No naughty encounter is ever complete until you tell somebody about it. And who doesn’t feel a tingle while reading a naughty story and wondering, “Is this true? Did that really happen?”

In this collection, you’ll find a whopping 36 erotic stories, as explicit as they are wicked! These confessions involve lesbian encounters, exhibitionism, voyeurism, deception, threesomes, group sex, sploshing, ice play, public sex, fetish, female fantasies, anal play, stranger sex, spanking, insertions, bondage, and so much more! 


Read the Introduction:


No naughty encounter is ever complete until you tell somebody about it. And who doesn’t feel a tingle while reading a naughty story and wondering, “Is this true? Did that really happen?”

There’s one quality that unifies all confession-style erotic stories, no matter how sweet or how kinky: they’re all written in the first person. (I did this, I did that.) For that reason, when reading these stories, we’re particularly inclined to wonder if these stories are true. The author is writing as though they were (I cradled her breast, I kissed his mouth), so why wouldn’t we believe it?

One of the best things about confession erotica is its unique capability to allow readers to suspend disbelief. When we hear these stories, we trust that we’re being told the truth. Even if we try to be rationally and consciously skeptical, we still believe, and there’s a bit of magic in that.

So, now I’m sure you’re wondering about the confessions in this collection. Are they true? Are they fiction? The answer is yes. Some stories are entirely fictional, pure fantasy. Others draw on real events, but aren’t entirely accurate. Of course, names have been changed, to protect the “innocent” parties.

Some stories are true, some are false, some are somewhere in between. Does it spoil the fun that I’ve made this confession? I don’t think so. I still haven’t told you which are which.

Giselle Renarde

  CreateSpace eStore: https://www.createspace.com/4547127

Licorne: a trans lesbian unicorn fantasy

Princess Galiana has fallen in love with another woman. And that woman is trapped in a unicorn’s body.

When Licorne’s cruel former master tracks her down and destroys Galiana’s castle home, the princess and the unicorn must flee to Limen, the world between worlds.  Limen is a special place, where Licorne can alter her physical form. They can finally be women together--kiss each other’s mouths and touch each other’s skin and make love in the damp grass--but how will Galiana react to Licorne’s shocking transformation?

In human form, Licorne’s body comes with much more flesh than Galiana had anticipated…

Excerpt:

When her arms and legs reached the peak of exhaustion, Galiana floated on the water.

Licorne looked on from the shore, every so often bending to drink as Galiana’s naked body moved with the current. Sunlight dappled her pale breasts while a cool breeze kissed her pink nipples, drawing them to tight buds. Between her thighs, downy hair glinted like gold.

“When we reach the Limen…” Licorne began.

A sudden thrill ran through Galiana’s body, buzzing warmly in her core. “Oh Licorne, my love, I never imagined this day would come, when we could be women together, when we could be lovers at last! Though I hoped it would be in a happier circumstance.”

Licorne halted by the riverside, and Galiana saw in those beautiful blue eyes that she was lost for words.

“I have only passed through once before,” Licorne said at last. “When first escaping my master. In the Limen he could not find me, for I entered before him and one only perceives the parties with whom one crosses the threshold. My time was limited to one day and one night before I was forced to pass through into your world.”

Galiana stood in the river, sheets of water coursing from her wet hair and caressing her bottom. As Licorne explained the Limen, she found her focus shifting, her mind forming a unicorn into a woman. It had always been an idle fantasy, this idea of making love with Licorne in human form. In Licorne’s own world she had been embodied in flesh, so the fantasy was not a terrible stretch.

“You are beauty itself, my love.” Licorne lowered her head as Galiana walked dripping from the river.

“Ah, but you are vastly more so.” Falling to her knees, Galiana pressed her forehead to the expanse between Licorne’s nose and horn. Her skin tingled with anticipation. “And when you are a woman in flesh, I shan’t resist your feminine wiles. I shall kiss your face and your lips and your neck, my beauty. I shall savour your breasts and your belly before my lips fall between your legs.”

Licorne whinnied, stepping away from Galiana with shocking rapidity.

 

Buy Now from...

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/386167

All Romance Ebooks: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-licorne-1370407-341.html

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00H7CZ31K

Coffee Time Romance: http://www.coffeetimeromance.com/BookStore/pubs_product_book_info/indie-authors-giselle-renarde-c-152_193/licorne-p-11486

Other titles in the Transgender and Genderqueer Erotic Romance series include:

Friends of Dorothy

Dressing for Dinner

Third Rail

A Wolf in Grandmother’s Clothing

Eclipse the Stars

Licorne

Spring Fever

Everybody Knows

Glitter in the Gutter

…and more!

***

Giselle Renarde is a queer Canadian, avid volunteer, and contributor to more than 100 short story anthologies, including Best Women’s Erotica, Best Lesbian Erotica, Best Bondage Erotica, and Best Lesbian Romance. Ms Renarde has written dozens of juicy books, including Anonymous, Ondine, and Nanny State. Her book The Red Satin Collection won Best Transgender Romance in the 2012 Rainbow Awards. Giselle lives across from a park with two bilingual cats who sleep on her head.

Take Me! I'm Free!

Not sure how long this is going to last, but at the moment Take Me: A Collection of Submissive Adventures is FREE on Amazon. 

This collection is published by Mischief Books and includes stories by me, Sommer Marsden, Tenille Brown, Victoria Blisse, and many others!  I'll tell you something terrible: I have absolutely no idea which of my stories is in this book... mind you, I did just wake up after falling asleep on the couch at 8 p.m. so I'm more than a little groggy.

Ten rough and ready stories about men who take the lead and adventurous women.

‘Take Me’ features original erotica from Lucy Salisbury, Sommer Marsden, Rose de Fer, Tenille Brown, Giselle Renarde and many more. Another sexy short story collection from Mischief Books.

When Alice meets a charismatic stranger on a train, she’s introduced to a special brand of corrective public shame…

On the porch of her new home, Maggie’s feet don’t touch the ground when a local tom cat takes a fancy to her…

Julie is an investigator hot on the trail of a wayward wife who’s in danger of being handled like the suspect…

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Take-Me-Collection-Submissive-Adventures-ebook/dp/B008TGMRM6/

Now In Print! Girls Gone Carnal: Lesbian Vampires, Witches and Weres

Girls Gone Carnal: NOW IN PRINT

Girls Gone Carnal: Lesbian Vampires, Witches and Weres
by Giselle Renarde
 
List Price: $7.99

5.25" x 8" (13.335 x 20.32 cm)
Black & White on Cream paper
150 pages

ISBN-13: 978-1494384104
ISBN-10: 1494384108
BISAC: Fiction / Lesbian

Furry. Vicious. Wicked.

Lesbian shifters, vampires, and witches come in all shapes and sizes. From the humblest mouse to the most ferocious cougar, from maids and their mistresses to urban vamps and the women they lick, these stories are sure to inspire chills, thrills, and delicious shivers.

Girls Gone Carnal includes:

Milady’s Bath ~a Gothic tale from a Lady’s maid at midnight

Mrs. Fox and the Cat of Nine Tails ~a fairy tale cat seduces her mistress

Sneak ~a mouse shifter saves the day in a backwoods bordello

Sparrow Takes Flight ~a wind witch leaves as often as she comes

Blood Lust ~this vamp plays with knives

Wild Things ~a deaf witch meets her match in the rainforest

Taken from Behind ~cougar shifters must be extra careful

Blood Whore ~urban fantasy from a student just vamping for the cash

Oubliette ~vacationing girlfriends enjoy a ghostly encounter in a haunted castle

Nine paranormal stories in one sizzling collection!

Now Available from the CreateSpace eStore: https://www.createspace.com/4557546  

 

Kobo's Response

In case you're new to Donuts and Desires, here's the score:

Over the past month or two, I've blogged a few times about the fact that Kobo has been declining (ie. refusing to publish) ebooks in my Transgender and Genderqueer Erotic Romance series--five to date, including the re-release of My Mistress' Thighs: Erotic Transgender Fiction and Poetry.

Many of you have expressed your outrage at the perceived censorship of transgender fiction. You advised me to write to Mark Lefebvre, Kobo's director of self-publishing and author relations.

I didn't.

He wrote to me.

Rather than paraphrase his response, I'm sharing his communication, with permission:

I noticed your recent blog post (below) regarding having titles rejected at Kobo and wanted to clear up some confusion.

http://donutsdesires.blogspot.ca/2013/12/kobo-declines-another-transgender-title.html

When we have to reject titles for publication, we denote a reason.  So, if you go into your account and click on the the title in question it will take you to the PUBLISHING screen and you’ll see a reason for the rejection.

In the case of several of your titles you should see something along the lines of the following reason (ie, there was an issue with the sub-title field)

The sub-title field is meant to be used for the actual subtitle of a book and not for what appears to be “tag lines” or the type of info that one might enter into the synopsis field (ie, potentially text that might appear at the top on the back cover of a print book.

All you need to do is modify the subtitle (ie, remove the “tag lines”) and republish, and the books should flow through the system.

I wanted to ensure you that the rejection has nothing to do with the topic matter and everything to do with the metadata.

Due to the manner by which this can be misunderstood, my team is in the process of revising the process in such a way that we can be more clear on what needs to be fixed whenever we have to reject a book.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask.

Sincerely,

Mark

I'm not going to editorialize.  I'm not.  Except that I'm reminded of Wednesday's little censorship experiment. Particularly the paragraph where I compare the metadata from my trans series to my Paranormal Erotic Shorts series. Because I also concluded it was the metadata and not the content that was getting my work "declined."

Here it is, in case you missed it: http://donutsdesires.blogspot.ca/2013/12/a-censorship-experiment-youll-find-this.html 

Thanks for your encouragement and support, everyone.
Hugs,
Giselle

A Censorship Experiment... (you'll find this VERY interesting)

Yesterday, I reported that the ebook retailer Kobo had declined yet another transgender erotic romance.  This time it was my anthology My Mistress' Thighs: Erotic Transgender Fiction and Poetry. 

Kobo never gives me a reason for declining my work (they don't even send me an email to inform me the way Amazon does), but it's hard not to notice that every one of the five ebooks Kobo has declined included "transgender" in the metadata.

So I decided to try a little experiment.  Last night I happened to be uploading a short story called Glitter in the Gutter. You might remember it from Rachel Kramer Bussel's anthology "Twice the Pleasure."  It's quite a beautiful little story about Connor and Dotschy, whom you may recall from "Spring Fever." 

In Glitter in the Gutter, Connor finds himself in a dark place.  He's having a crisis of conscience about cross-dressing, and the only way he can get over it is to toss all his girl-clothes into garbage bags and get them out of the house.  I think this should ring a few bells for many gender non-normative individuals.

Now for the "experimental" part:

Glitter in the Gutter belongs to a series called Transgender and Genderqueer Erotic Romance.  Kobo has already mysteriously "declined" five of the ebooks in this series.  So when I uploaded Glitter in the Gutter, instead of filling in the series slot with Transgender and Genderqueer Erotic Romance... I left it blank.  The metadata is basically just populated by the title and the following blurb:

Dotschy didn’t mean to fall in love with her cross-dressing co-worker Connor. Now she’s in way over her head.  When Connor stops returning her phone calls and tells their boss Dotschy's a bad influence, she’s baffled. She thought they had something really special. Dotschy forces her way into Connor's house only to find that he's getting rid of all his girl clothes and purging his life of feminine presence.  When Dotschy discovers the source of Connor's shame, can she convince him not to discard the clothes he loves so much?

This love story contains explicit romance, heartfelt moments, and a hint of dumpster diving. Originally published in the anthology “Twice the Pleasure.”

And, lo and behold: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-CA/ebook/glitter-in-the-gutter

Glitter in the Gutter is available from Kobo.

I think you get my drift, but if I need to be blatant about it, here's what I'm saying:

Kobo censored FIVE ebooks when I included the keywords "Transgender" and "Erotic Romance" in the metadata.  When I uploaded a similar story from the same series, but DID NOT include "Transgender" and "Erotic Romance" in the metadata, it was made available for sale with no issues.

Well, maybe Kobo's just censoring anything with "erotic" in the metadata, right?  After all, they did overreact hugely in recent memory, and all because of us evil erotica authors. 

Okay... but take, for example, my ebook Milady's Bath. That's available through Kobo with the subtitle "Gothic Lesbian Dark Erotica" as a part of the series "Paranormal Erotic Shorts."  So that book's got "Erotica" AND "Erotic" in the metadata, as do many of my 20+ ebooks available through Kobo.

It seems to be the combination of "Erotic" and "Transgender" that gets my ebooks censored.

Do I need to explain why that's so wretchedly offensive?

I don't think I do.

Hugs,
Giselle

btw if you want to buy Glitter in the Gutter from a retailer that ISN'T Kobo (hey, it's only $0.99), it's also available from:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Glitter-Gutter-Giselle-Renarde-ebook/dp/B00H35OGNC/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1386195814&sr=8-2&keywords=glitter+in+the+gutter
All Romance Ebooks: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-glitterinthegutter-1366241-341.html
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/384442

Kobo "Declines" ANOTHER Transgender Title: My Mistress' Thighs by Giselle Renarde

UPDATE: Kobo contacted me after reading this blog post! Read their response: http://donutsdesires.blogspot.ca/2013/12/kobos-response.html

The first four times this happened, I was willing to call it a curiosity.  Now that the infamous ebook retailer Kobo has decline five (count 'em--FIVE!) of my transgender romance titles, I can't consider it a coincidence.

I really don't think this IS a coincidence.  I think Kobo is censoring transgender romance.

Most recently, I uploaded one of my prestige pieces--My Mistress' Thighs in its 2nd edition, Honourable Mention in the 2011 Rainbow Awards--and when I signed into my Kobo account just now, hey, guess what?  It's NOT available for sale through Kobo.  The book and its related metadata have disappeared behind a button called "Declined."

As I mentioned, FIVE of my titles (out of nearly 30 that I've uploaded to Kobo) have been "declined" (censored, restricted, banned, deemed unfit for sale--call it what you like).

Every one of those FIVE titles was an erotic romance ebook with the word "transgender" in the metadata.

Last time I blogged about Kobo censoring transgender romances, I disclosed that some of the transgender titles that have been "declined" contain very little erotic content.  Most are love stories that involve transgender issues. Take Eclipse the Stars as an example: it's about a couple dealing with jealousy and other issues within the context of a long-term trans lesbian relationship.

And Kobo banned it.

Why?

I have no fricken' clue.  I'm just the author.  I'm out of the loop.

I'm kind of shaking with anger right now, to be honest.  Kobo is obviously equating "transgender" with "filth" and, hey, you know me--I DO write filth... but My Mistress' Thighs ain't it.  My Mistress' Thighs is classy-ass fiction involving sex, love, and trans people.  The subtitle is "Erotic Transgender Fiction and Poetry."  Yes, that's right.  Poetry.  Sonnets, to be exact.

My Mistress' Thighs has been well-reviewed, and the first time it was available in print I got lovely thank you letters from people who identify as trans and recognized themselves in my characters.  The book's got sex in it, yeah.  And you know what else?  It's GOOD FICTION.  It's made a mark on people's lives.  I know because they've told me so.

But Kobo thinks it's inappropriate because it's about transgender characters.

I'll leave it at that.

For now.

Hugs,

Giselle

My Mistress' Thighs is available from a number of retailers, including Amazon (I never thought I'd live in a world where Kobo restricts more content than Amazon!).

Ebook:  http://www.amazon.com/My-Mistress-Thighs-Giselle-Renarde-ebook/dp/B00H0O73CW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1386136649&sr=8-2&keywords=my+mistress%27+thighs

Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/My-Mistress-Thighs-Transgender-Fiction/dp/1494301539/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1386136649&sr=8-1&keywords=my+mistress%27+thighs