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Monday, February 02, 2009

GUEST BLOGGER: JAMAICA LAYNE


Greetings Romance Readers' Connection Fans!

Allow me to introduce myself. I'm JAMAICA LAYNE, a hot new rising star in the erotic romance market. I had the pleasure of meeting one of TRRC's administrators, Livia, at a book-signing for my latest print release, MARKET FOR LOVE last week in downtown Chicago. Livia invited me to do a post about my book and my writing career in general, and I'm honored to have the opportunity to share some information about myself with TRRC readers.

First of all, my current print release is MARKET FOR LOVE, a Virgin Cheek release that is available in bookstores everywhere, and available on Amazon by clicking here, or BN.com by clicking here. In keeping with the current economic downturn and stock market crash, MARKET FOR LOVE takes place in the high-pressure Chicago financial industry in the midst of---you guessed it----a major stock market crash. The novel opens with protagonist Miranda Johannson having a VERY bad day. The stock market crash has trashed her clients' investment portfolios, to the point that she has just lost eighty-seven million dollars of her clients' money. Humiliated and fearful she will lose her job, Miranda takes a coffee break and heads downstairs to her office building's coffee shop. While there she meets a handsome, mysterious stranger---and despite her strait-laced, conservative nature, Miranda finds herself sneaking off to have an impromptu tryst with this red-hot stranger. Little does she know that the mysterious stranger just bought the company she works for, and will soon become her new boss. The plot just gets thicker (and hotter) from there!

MARKET FOR LOVE is getting rave reviews. ROMANTIC TIMES just rated it 4 stars, and DIRTY GIRL REVIEWS gave it 5 stars, and also commented "once you read Jamaica Layne, she will be on your auto-buy list!" For a complete list of reviews, check out the "What Critics Are Saying" link on my webpage, http://www.jamaicalayne.com/.

In addition to my latest print release, I also write ebooks for new erotica epublisher Ravenous Romance. I currently have 4 books and 2 standalone short stories available at Ravenous, as well as several short stories included in their several currently available anthologies. For a complete list of all my available titles, check out the "My Books" link at http://www.jamaicalayne.com/. (Also be sure to check out "Taking Care of Business", a "lost scene" from MARKET FOR LOVE, which is for sale exclusively at Ravenous Romance!)

A little bit about me----"Jamaica Layne" is a pen name I use for my erotica. In my "other" writing life, I'm a playwright and journalist. My plays have been produced around the US as well as abroad, and I have also contributed journalism and commentary to numerous newspapers and magazines, including the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Reader. I live in the Chicago suburbs with my husband and son, and I write full-time. Back when I had day jobs, I worked as a journalist, healthcare policy analyst, technical writer, and financial journalist and editor. In fact, it was my days as a financial journalist/editor that inspired me to write MARKET FOR LOVE. My healthcare background comes into play in the VITAL SIGNS series, a five-book erotic medical romance series I'm writing for Ravenous (volume 1 is currently available). I also write time-travel and paranormal erotic romance (such as my Ravenous release KNIGHT MOVES), as well as some kinky S&M stuff (like my Ravenous release A CAPITOL AFFAIR). My own favorite erotic romance authors include Zane, Alison Tyler, Kathryn Harrison, Kate Pearce, and of course, old standbys like Anais Nin.

I will have a lot more new material releasing this year, so be sure to keep your eyes on my website http://www.jamaicalayne.com/ for all the latest news! And thanks so much to Livia and Thia for inviting me to participate on the site.
Remember to always keep things sexy!

JAMAICA LAYNE
"Circle Line" Produced by Mind the Gap Theatre, NYC, October 29-November 1, 2008
MARKET FOR LOVE (writing as "Jamaica Layne") Coming October 14, 2008 from Virgin Books.
KNIGHT MOVES and VITAL SIGNS (writing as "Jamaica Layne") Coming to RavenousRomance.com December 1, 2008
THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS. Included in BEST AMERICAN SHORT PLAYS 2004-2005. Forthcoming in 2008 from Applause Books.Visit my blog: http://jillelainehughes.blogspot.com/

5 comments:

Unknown said...

OOHHH! Sounds interesting! I look forward to reading your new book. I like the aspect of a boss connection!

Thia said...

I am a sucker for an employee/employer love story! Make it a little spicy and I am 100% there! I am thankful Livia ran into you. I love finding new authors, especially when they are in my favorite genre!

Since you write plays, can you tell me which is harder - the dialogue for a play (since a play is mostly dialogue) or the dialogue in a book (where youo can see all aspects of the conversation)?

Anonymous said...

First, thanks so much for havingme on the blog! I really appreciate it!

Second, to answer your question, Thia, I honestly don't know whether it's easier to write plays or fiction. Some days plays are harder, other days fiction is harder. It really depends on how the creative winds are blowing.

I will tell you though, in the US it's much harder to get a play produced and published than to have a novel published and distributed, mostly because theatres in the US are very cash-strapped. I'm told it's much easier for playwrights in Europe, in the UK especially. (though it's much harder to be a novelist in small countries). Interesting question, though.

Elissa said...

Hi Jamaica, I'm really glad you posted. Your latest release sounds really good. I saw Thia's question about dialogue and for me, that's the hardest to write. What aspect of storytelling is the easiest? and the hardest? I'm heading over to your website now. Best of luck in your career!

Anonymous said...

Elissa, I think I have the most trouble keeping the plot suspenseful while making the story readable. I try very hard to make all my books real "page-turners," and my readers always tell me that they can't put my books down (which is great). But plotting a book in a way that will keep the reader interested from page one all the way to the end is always the hardest (and probably most important) part of writing for me. I always have to work very hard at it. And I also have found that my writing style is very "episodic", since I tend to write complete scenes in my books from beginning to end in one sitting. That probably comes from my playwriting background.

I find that writing dialogue is the easiest part of writing for me, but again I think my playwriting background comes into that.

Thanks for your questions, Elissa!