Releasing Rage – The Mantidae
In Releasing Rage, the cyborgs are ordered to fight the Mantidae, huge insect-like creatures that are in the midst of migrating to their breeding planets. Unfortunately, their migration leads them through Humanoid Alliance-controlled space. Some of the planets they normally swarm and feed from are now inhabited by humans. The Mantidae view humans as simply another food source.
Mantidae resemble human-sized praying mantis (mantidae is the family name for the species). They have razor-sharp raptorial forelegs. Mantidae prefer to eat their prey alive but if the prey struggles (as humans tend to do when faced with a giant insect intent on devouring them), they use these forelegs like scissors to cut their prey into two. Yes. (grimaces) It is a gruesome death.
Earth mantises also prefer to eat their prey alive and the larger a mantis grows, the larger the prey it hunts. Small mantises devour other insects. Large mantises can eat scorpions, birds, snakes, and rodents. They aren’t predators to be messed with!
Could creatures like the Mantidae exist?
Of course. On Earth, there are 200 million insects for every human. If there are humanoids spread throughout the universe, these humanoids being different sizes, colors, having different features, it is logical that there are insects spread throughout the universe and that some of these insects could be as large or larger than humans with corresponding appetites.
Are the Mantidae the ‘bad guys’?
Calling the Mantidae the enemy would be like calling a shark the enemy. They’re not deliberately trying to harm humans. Their goal is to reach their breeding planets. They need food to fuel their trip. Humans are living on the planets they use as ‘rest stops.’ So the Mantidae eat them.
I’m not pro-Mantidae (they’re giant scary bugs) but I understand why they’re killing humans.
Subscribe To My Release Day Newsletter: http://tasteofcyn.com/2014/05/28/newsletter/
Half Man. Half Machine. All Hers.
Rage, the Humanoid Alliance’s most primitive cyborg, has two goals—kill all of the humans on his battle station and escape to the Homeland. The warrior has seen the darkness in others and in himself. He believes that’s all he’s been programmed to experience.
Until he meets Joan.
Joan, the battle station’s first female engineer, has one goal—survive long enough to help the big sexy cyborg plotting to kill her. Rage might not trust her but he wants her. She sees the passion in his eyes, the caring in his battle-worn hands, the gruff emotion in his voice.
When Joan survives the unthinkable, Rage’s priorities are tested. Is there enough room in this cyborg’s heart for both love and revenge?
Buy Now:
On Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Releasing-Rage-Cyborg-Sizzle-Book-ebook/dp/B00ZOL1DRO
On ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-releasingrage-1850041-340.html
On B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/releasing-rage-cynthia-sax/1122455646
Topics: Guest Post | Comments Off on Releasing Rage – The Mantidae
Why I Think Warrior Heroes Are Sexy
Today, on Kate Hill ‘s awesome blog, I’m talking about why warriors are so freakin’ sexy!
http://kate-hill.com/blog/?p=5360
Here’s a snippet…
This is the release week for Releasing Rage, my latest sizzling hot SciFi erotic romance! Releasing Rage features a hunky cyborg warrior (named, surprise, surprise, Rage). I love, love, LOVE warrior heroes.
Why?
Because warriors are willing to die for something—a homeland or an ideology or beings they’re seeking to protect or other important things I can’t think about right now. That type of passion is sexy, can be infectious and is bound to add conflict to any delicious erotic romance.
Subscribe To My Release Day Newsletter: http://tasteofcyn.com/2014/05/28/newsletter/
Half Man. Half Machine. All Hers.
Rage, the Humanoid Alliance’s most primitive cyborg, has two goals—kill all of the humans on his battle station and escape to the Homeland. The warrior has seen the darkness in others and in himself. He believes that’s all he’s been programmed to experience.
Until he meets Joan.
Joan, the battle station’s first female engineer, has one goal—survive long enough to help the big sexy cyborg plotting to kill her. Rage might not trust her but he wants her. She sees the passion in his eyes, the caring in his battle-worn hands, the gruff emotion in his voice.
When Joan survives the unthinkable, Rage’s priorities are tested. Is there enough room in this cyborg’s heart for both love and revenge?
Buy Now:
On Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Releasing-Rage-Cyborg-Sizzle-Book-ebook/dp/B00ZOL1DRO
On ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-releasingrage-1850041-340.html
On B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/releasing-rage-cynthia-sax/1122455646
Topics: Guest Post | Comments Off on Why I Think Warrior Heroes Are Sexy
Releasing Rage – 10 out of 10!
Woot! We have another great review for Releasing Rage.
Cara at Cara’s Book Boudoir shares
“The writing, characters and plot for Releasing Rage is spellbinding! It truly sucked me in and I felt like I became Joan Tull and trust me, I cried SO hard with this book, I literally went through a whole box of Kleenex!
I give Releasing Rage 10 out of 10, for sheer brilliance!”
Read the full review here
http://www.carasbookboudoir.com/2015/08/releasing-rage-by-cynthia-sax-review.html?m=1
Subscribe To My Release Day Newsletter: http://tasteofcyn.com/2014/05/28/newsletter/
Half Man. Half Machine. All Hers.
Rage, the Humanoid Alliance’s most primitive cyborg, has two goals—kill all of the humans on his battle station and escape to the Homeland. The warrior has seen the darkness in others and in himself. He believes that’s all he’s been programmed to experience.
Until he meets Joan.
Joan, the battle station’s first female engineer, has one goal—survive long enough to help the big sexy cyborg plotting to kill her. Rage might not trust her but he wants her. She sees the passion in his eyes, the caring in his battle-worn hands, the gruff emotion in his voice.
When Joan survives the unthinkable, Rage’s priorities are tested. Is there enough room in this cyborg’s heart for both love and revenge?
Buy Now:
On Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Releasing-Rage-Cyborg-Sizzle-Book-ebook/dp/B00ZOL1DRO
On ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-releasingrage-1850041-340.html
On B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/releasing-rage-cynthia-sax/1122455646
Topics: Reviews | Comments Off on Releasing Rage – 10 out of 10!
Talking Cyborgs With Delilah Devlin
I’m talking cyborgs at Delilah Devlin’s online home today.
http://www.delilahdevlin.com/blog/2015/08/19/cynthia-sax-releasing-rage-and-why-cyborgs-are-sexy/
Here is a snippet…
Releasing Rage releases today! Woot! I’m super excited about this SciFi erotic romance, especially as it features a sizzling hot cyborg hero. I’ve written android heroes, clone heroes, but I’ve always wanted to write a cyborg hero.
Why?
Because cyborgs are half man, half machine. They’re torn between their emotion-driven human side and their logic-driven mechanic side. Yes, their mere existence is conflicted. My cyborgs have both a brain and processors. Often these two tell them different things.
Subscribe To My Release Day Newsletter: http://tasteofcyn.com/2014/05/28/newsletter/
Half Man. Half Machine. All Hers.
Rage, the Humanoid Alliance’s most primitive cyborg, has two goals—kill all of the humans on his battle station and escape to the Homeland. The warrior has seen the darkness in others and in himself. He believes that’s all he’s been programmed to experience.
Until he meets Joan.
Joan, the battle station’s first female engineer, has one goal—survive long enough to help the big sexy cyborg plotting to kill her. Rage might not trust her but he wants her. She sees the passion in his eyes, the caring in his battle-worn hands, the gruff emotion in his voice.
When Joan survives the unthinkable, Rage’s priorities are tested. Is there enough room in this cyborg’s heart for both love and revenge?
Buy Now:
On Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Releasing-Rage-Cyborg-Sizzle-Book-ebook/dp/B00ZOL1DRO
On ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-releasingrage-1850041-340.html
On B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/releasing-rage-cynthia-sax/1122455646
Topics: Guest Post | Comments Off on Talking Cyborgs With Delilah Devlin
Releasing Rage Releases Today!
Yay! Releasing Rage releases today!
Half Man. Half Machine. All Hers.
Rage, the Humanoid Alliance’s most primitive cyborg, has two goals—kill all of the humans on his battle station and escape to the Homeland. The warrior has seen the darkness in others and in himself. He believes that’s all he’s been programmed to experience.
Until he meets Joan.
Joan, the battle station’s first female engineer, has one goal—survive long enough to help the big sexy cyborg plotting to kill her. Rage might not trust her but he wants her. She sees the passion in his eyes, the caring in his battle-worn hands, the gruff emotion in his voice.
When Joan survives the unthinkable, Rage’s priorities are tested. Is there enough room in this cyborg’s heart for both love and revenge?
Buy Now:
On Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Releasing-Rage-Cyborg-Sizzle-Book-ebook/dp/B00ZOL1DRO
On ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-releasingrage-1850041-340.html
On B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/releasing-rage-cynthia-sax/1122455646
Topics: New Releases | Comments Off on Releasing Rage Releases Today!
Talking Self-Publishing On CJ England’s Blog
On CJ England’s blog, I’m talking about Releasing Rage and why I decided to self-publish this sexy cyborg erotic romance.
Here’s a snippet…
“I now have total control over my SciFi series, how many books I’ll release in it, and if I use these characters in other series (even series that I contract with publishers). I can also write stories that large publishers would shy away from (Releasing Rage is very dark). I LOVE this.
Yes, I will publish through established publishers in the future but now that I’ve had a taste of self-publishing, I plan to explore that route also. It is an exciting time for writers and for readers. We have so many choices!”
Read the full post here
http://cjslivingdreams.blogspot.ca/2015/08/guest-blogger-timeintroducing-cynthia.html
Subscribe To My Release Day Newsletter: http://tasteofcyn.com/2014/05/28/newsletter/
Half Man. Half Machine. All Hers.
Rage, the Humanoid Alliance’s most primitive cyborg, has two goals—kill all of the humans on his battle station and escape to the Homeland. The warrior has seen the darkness in others and in himself. He believes that’s all he’s been programmed to experience.
Until he meets Joan.
Joan, the battle station’s first female engineer, has one goal—survive long enough to help the big sexy cyborg plotting to kill her. Rage might not trust her but he wants her. She sees the passion in his eyes, the caring in his battle-worn hands, the gruff emotion in his voice.
When Joan survives the unthinkable, Rage’s priorities are tested. Is there enough room in this cyborg’s heart for both love and revenge?
Buy Now:
On Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Releasing-Rage-Cyborg-Sizzle-Book-ebook/dp/B00ZOL1DRO
On ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-releasingrage-1850041-340.html
On B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/releasing-rage-cynthia-sax/1122455646
Topics: Guest Post | Comments Off on Talking Self-Publishing On CJ England’s Blog
The Evolution Of Cyborgs
Note: This post will be amended as the series matures (i.e. we’ll only talk about models that we’ve met).
In Releasing Rage, we were introduced to a variety of cyborgs. Cyborgs are half human so every unit is different. However, models have common characteristics.
The first cyborgs were human warriors who had been injured and were ‘fixed’ with mechanic parts. A computer was also added (because, hey, why not build one in?). These parts became more and more complex and pervasive. These cyborgs didn’t have model numbers. They had names.
A and B Model Cyborgs
When the Humanoid Alliance started manufacturing cyborgs, they viewed them as merely war machines. What these cyborgs looked like was low on the priority list. There was also fear in the general public that these cyborgs would infiltrate human populations and gradually take over.
So the Humanoid Alliance designed them to be clearly cyborg. The first mass produced units were big and bulky, more robotic than human. Their eyes resembled lights. Their skin was gray. They were given a model letter (which was the version) and a unit number (which was the order the cyborg was produced). This was tattooed under their right eyes.
A000001 was the very first mass produced cyborg. A000002 was the second. Etc.
As far as I know, no A and B model cyborgs continue to exist. They’ve all been decommissioned.
C Model Cyborgs
The huge A and B model cyborgs created a storage and transport nightmare. C models were smaller (yet still larger than humans).
Again, their focus was fighting. Their communication skills aren’t as smooth as a human’s. They have electric blue eyes, gray skin. Their frames are metal. They have both processors (multiple) and a human brain (single). Their nanocybotics allow them to self heal. They have a high pain tolerance yet still feel wounds. They have the ability to transmit privately over a secured line so they can communicate during battle without the enemy being aware of their conversations. They’re fast and strong and skilled warriors.
C model cyborgs were the last cyborgs to be used in the breeding programs.
Rage, the hero of Releasing Rage, is a C model cyborg. There aren’t very many of them left.
E Model Cyborgs
Cyborgs became smaller, more compact yet they retained the strength and speed of their predecessors. The Humanoid Alliance started to consider them for other roles. Perhaps, in the future, the cyborgs could be used as spies or sent in to negotiate on human’s behalf or become bodyguards for high ranked council members.
Scientists experimented with eye colors. With the E Model, their attempts went horribly wrong. The units’ eyes were a disturbing matte black.
E Models still have the gray skin common to cyborgs. They’re more technologically advanced than previous models.
Crash, in Releasing Rage and Crash and Burn, is an E model cyborg.
G Model Cyborgs
Except for the gray skin and the model number tattooed under the right eye, a G model cyborg looks human. G models all have pale gray eyes and normally dark hair, giving them a monochrome appearance.
Gap, in Releasing Rage, is a G model cyborg.
K Model Cyborgs
K models are the most advanced cyborgs ever created. Except for the model numbers tattooed under their right eyes, they resemble (large!) human males.
With the failure of the breeding programs and generations of humans having grown up knowing of cyborgs, there’s no longer a fear that cyborgs will take over and dispose of humans. Humans believe cyborgs are fully under their control, that they are weapons that won’t be used unless humans order them to be deployed.
K model cyborgs usually have dark hair and tanned skin as that allows them to better hide in the shadows. They have all of the skills of previous models and more. There are few locked doors they can’t access, few communications they can’t intercept, few enemies they can’t defeat.
As Mira, the heroine of Breathing Vapor, says the Humanoid Alliance might have made cyborgs too advanced.
Vapor, the hero of Breathing Vapor, is a K model cyborg.
Subscribe To My Release Day Newsletter: http://tasteofcyn.com/2014/05/28/newsletter/
Half Man. Half Machine. All Hers.
Rage, the Humanoid Alliance’s most primitive cyborg, has two goals—kill all of the humans on his battle station and escape to the Homeland. The warrior has seen the darkness in others and in himself. He believes that’s all he’s been programmed to experience.
Until he meets Joan.
Joan, the battle station’s first female engineer, has one goal—survive long enough to help the big sexy cyborg plotting to kill her. Rage might not trust her but he wants her. She sees the passion in his eyes, the caring in his battle-worn hands, the gruff emotion in his voice.
When Joan survives the unthinkable, Rage’s priorities are tested. Is there enough room in this cyborg’s heart for both love and revenge?
Buy Now:
On Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Releasing-Rage-Cyborg-Sizzle-Book-ebook/dp/B00ZOL1DRO
On ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-releasingrage-1850041-340.html
On B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/releasing-rage-cynthia-sax/1122455646
Topics: Coming Soon | Comments Off on The Evolution Of Cyborgs
Releasing Rage – Chapter One, Part Three
I’ve been sharing the first few scenes of Releasing Rage.
You can read the previous scenes here: http://tasteofcyn.com/2015/07/28/releasing-rage-chapter-one-part-one/
Here is the third and final part of chapter one.
He grunted. “Then clean me from the top of my head downward, little engineer.” She approached him. “You’re too small to reach,” he advised her unnecessarily. “Use the elevation platform.”
That placed her breasts at his eye level. Joan trembled as she massaged his scarred scalp with the cleaning cloth, purifying each strand of hair. It was an intimate act. His long straight locks were decadently soft. His hot breath wafted over her skin.
“Did they give my little engineer breeding drugs?” His tone was mocking. “I smell her arousal.” He inhaled deeply, his nostrils flaring.
“C models were designed to reproduce.” Joan swiped the cloth over his broad forehead. That skin was also crisscrossed with old scars. How many times had he been experimented on? “Everything about you, from your deepened voice to your enhanced pheromones, was modified to maximize your appeal to females.”
“It appeals to cyborg females.” His lips twisted. “They have no effect on, other than to frighten, human females.”
“And you’re an expert on human females,” she mumbled, dabbing the cloth carefully over the more delicate skin around his brilliant blue eyes. His model number was inked below his right eye. Joan traced the mark with her fingertips.
“I was forced to breed with twenty-two human females, one hundred and fifteen cyborg females, before the program was deemed a failure.” He watched her.
“They forced you to breed with strangers?” Joan stared at him, horrified.
“If you truly served me, you’d show me respect and call me sir.”
He was an obstinate cyborg. She suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. “They forced you to breed with strangers, sir?”
“The breeding didn’t result in offspring.” There was no emotion in his reply. “A cyborg’s nanocybotics views a fertilized egg as a damaged egg and repairs it.”
“I’m sorry.” She didn’t know what to say, what to do to make that right.
He lifted one eyebrow.
“Sir,” she amended.
C899321’s eyes gleamed with satisfaction. “I’ve survived worse, little engineer. Save your pity for the human females.” He blew over her nipples, knowing damn well what he was doing to her. “They had to breed with a primitive cyborg, tolerate my touch. Even with the breeding drugs, they weren’t as aroused as you are right now.”
She had to get her attraction to him under control. Joan scrubbed harder, rubbing the cleaning cloth over his grooved cheeks, his flattened nose, his full sensual lips. “I’m caring for you because this is my duty, sir.” This reminder was more for herself than for him. “This is what I’ve trained my entire life to do.”
He opened his mouth. She chattered about nonsense, not allowing the cyborg to speak, to use that sexy voice of his against her.
As she told him about the agri lot she grew up on, the solar cycles spent as a ward, the courses she mastered at the Academy, Joan explored the squareness of his jaw, his compact neck, wide shoulders, sculpted biceps, pecs, abs. He had lived longer than many humans and had scars that made her cringe, yet was a prime male specimen, fit, strong, virile.
She progressed downward. “What happened here, sir?” She touched the dozens of lighter nicks of skin over his stomach, having seen similar marks on his face and chest. “These are fresh.” They’d occurred more recently than his scars and had completely healed. “But they’re not battle wounds.”
He didn’t answer.
She gazed upward. His face was hard, his anger returning.
Joan caressed his hips with the cloth. The nearer she moved to his cock, the more concentrated the marks became. She paused when she reached his base. She had cleaned plenty of mock cyborgs at the academy but this was different. This cock was attached to a real male.
“You’re to clean all of me.” C899321 pushed his hips forward, thrusting his shaft toward her. “Must I do your job for you, female?”
“No, sir.” Joan jutted her jaw. “I can do this. It’s like cleaning a female bovine’s teat.” She folded the cloth around him.
“I’m a cyborg, not an animal.”
“We’re all animals, sir.” She stroked him once, twice. His cock was thick and long and had an interesting ridge. As the blood disappeared, she realized that the ridge was another scar. “They experimented on your cock?”
“They removed one of my balls.” His voice deepened even more.
Shit. She cupped his sac, having avoided looking directly at this private part of him. He was right. One ball had been severed.
“What was the point of that?” Her outrage grew. “They could have taken a seminal fluid sample without removing a testicle.”
“They wanted to see if the nanocybotics would repair it.”
“A tiny portion would have shown them that.” She no longer wondered why he was so angry. She wondered why more humans hadn’t died.
Because his torture hadn’t ended with the experiments. His shaft and sac were also striped with nicks. “Did my predecessor make these fresh wounds, sir?” Joan caressed him with the cloth. A bead of pre-cum formed on his tip and she cleaned that too, poking into his slit.
He grunted, not answering her question.
She gazed at his cock. He remained hard. When the bovines weren’t milked regularly, their teats would swell and crack, and the animals would then bellow with agony, the sound twisting her heart.
She didn’t want C899321 to endure more pain.
“I could…ummm…finish you, sir.” She couldn’t look at him while she said this.
“Finish me?”
She waved at his cock. “I could milk you with my hands, release the tension.”
A long nerve-racking pause followed her embarrassing offer.
She peeked up at him. He stared down at her, his eyes sparking with emotion.
“Sir?”
He shook his head, his long hair, now dry, brushing against his broad face. “Finish cleaning me, female. You can milk me like one of your beloved bovines later,” he promised as though that was a treat he was granting her.
“My offer benefited you, not me,” Joan muttered.
She glided the cloth over his thighs, knees, shins, catching the drips on his feet. He then turned and she repeated the process, moving downward, learning the breadth of his shoulders, the small of his back, the indents in his ass cheeks.
He couldn’t watch her and that made it easier to clean between them. The nicks deepened into gouges around his puckered hole.
“He violated you, sir?” That was outside her realm of understanding. Caring for a cyborg was a trusted duty, one half of a partnership. “If you hadn’t already terminated him, I would have.”
“He was one of your kind.” The cyborg didn’t believe her. “You would have joined in or done worse.”
“You don’t know me.” She snapped the cloth, ensuring it had renewed fully, and cleaned his thighs and calves. “I should report him.”
“He’s dead. What purpose would that serve?”
It wouldn’t serve any purpose, other than embarrass the engineer’s family. “You should have justice, sir.” She scrubbed his heels.
He turned, pushing her away from him. “I took my own justice.” He backed into the docking station. His cock remained hard, jutting from his hairless base. “As I’ll take my own justice when you harm me.”
She shivered, his tone telling her he wouldn’t hesitate to kill her. “I’d never harm you, sir.” A cleaning bot rolled between her bare feet, sucking up the spilled blood. Would it be her blood it cleaned in the future?
“Kneel before me,” the cyborg ordered.
She obeyed, gazing up at him. His eyes blazed, reflecting lust, triumph, a hint of cruelty. The cyborg enjoyed having her at his mercy.
And she liked following his commands…a little too much.
“Put those agri skills to work and milk me, female.”
“My name is Joan, sir.” If he planned to kill her, he should know that. She ran her hands over him from base to tip and back again. He was soft skin over hard metal, ridged with the scar, smooth at his bloomed cock head, his shaft slick, self-lubricating. “You’re C899321.”
“You’ll call me sir.” He grunted, swaying into her fingers.
“You’re in pain, sir.” This was a kindness, not a sexual favor, she told herself.
Joan skimmed her fingertips over his solitary ball. He quivered, unable to hold back his reaction to her touch.
She’d give him relief and he’d feel grateful to her. Gratitude would lead to trust.
Joan stroked his shaft, formulating a plan.
“That’s it, female. Touch me with those delicate human hands.” He moved faster against her, animalistic noises coming from his throat, raw and fierce. “Show me how you can serve me.”
“I will, sir.” She’d show him and he’d decide to keep her, allow her to live. This hand job could delay her death for a planet rotation or a solar cycle or permanently.
Joan tightened her grip, increasing the friction, and his cock bobbed with appreciation. “You’ll never wish for another engineer.”
“I don’t need an engineer.” The skin on his face pulled tight, his lips flattening. “That’s why I killed the last one.”
No, he killed the engineer because the human hurt him, tortured him. He wasn’t a bad being. She worked him with everything she had, with all the experience she’d gathered over the solar cycles, all the passion in her lonely, neglected heart. Her breasts jiggled with her efforts. Her knees protested their contact with the hard floor.
It wasn’t enough for him. He covered her hands with his, guiding her up and down, up and down his shaft, his ball slapping against her fingers. “Frag.” His voice reached deep inside her. “Frag. Frag.” He sounded desperate. “Make me come, female.”
She slipped one of her hands away from his, folded her fingers over his sac and squeezed. He roared, driving his hips forward, pushing her backward. Cum arced from his tip, splattered on her breasts, and she screamed with ecstasy, her pussy clenching around nothing.
The sensation was unlike anything she’d ever experienced, his essence warming, tingling, pinching, a thousand bubbles bursting over her skin. It was too much, too good.
“Need. Relief.” She reached to wipe his cum off her breasts.
“No.” C899321 caught her wrists, preventing her from removing his savage branding. She twisted, writhed, whimpering, trying to free herself, light and sound blurring.
It was several moments before her rational thought returned.
“What was that, sir?” She slumped against his legs, worn out by pleasure.
“My nanocybotics.” He released her wrists. “They’re concentrated in my cum and, to a lesser extent, my saliva. Your skin will absorb them. Until I give you permission to move, stay where you are and don’t touch them.”
Joan gazed up at him, blinking, her mind numb. He wanted to mark her.
It was the primitive action of a primitive male.
And she had no objections.
Subscribe To My Release Day Newsletter: http://tasteofcyn.com/2014/05/28/newsletter/
Half Man. Half Machine. All Hers.
Rage, the Humanoid Alliance’s most primitive cyborg, has two goals—kill all of the humans on his battle station and escape to the Homeland. The warrior has seen the darkness in others and in himself. He believes that’s all he’s been programmed to experience.
Until he meets Joan.
Joan, the battle station’s first female engineer, has one goal—survive long enough to help the big sexy cyborg plotting to kill her. Rage might not trust her but he wants her. She sees the passion in his eyes, the caring in his battle-worn hands, the gruff emotion in his voice.
When Joan survives the unthinkable, Rage’s priorities are tested. Is there enough room in this cyborg’s heart for both love and revenge?
Buy Now:
On Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Releasing-Rage-Cyborg-Sizzle-Book-ebook/dp/B00ZOL1DRO
On ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-releasingrage-1850041-340.html
On B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/releasing-rage-cynthia-sax/1122455646
Topics: Coming Soon | Comments Off on Releasing Rage – Chapter One, Part Three
Writing Erotic Romance – Prologues
I wrote a 3,000 word, 12 page prologue for Breathing Vapor, the follow up story to Releasing Rage (Breathing Vapor will release in November).
Mira, my heroine, acts like a major beyotch when she’s around other beings. She has a great reason for acting this way but I was worried that if you didn’t know this reason when you first met her, you might find her an unsympathetic heroine (i.e. you’d hate her guts).
So I wrote a prologue, sharing a scene from her past that showed why she was that way. It was powerful. It made me, as a writer, cry.
It was also unnecessary. My awesome editor convinced me I didn’t need it, that I’d created a character readers would love without knowing the backstory. I took it out and you know what? It’s a much stronger story without the prologue.
I’ve written many prologues. Not one has survived the editing process. Why? Because usually a prologue isn’t required (usually! There are always exceptions to every rule, including this one, but those exceptions are rare.).
Why Editors (and Readers) Hate Prologues
A prologue is set at an earlier time and often a different place than the core story. Every time writers change settings, we jar the reader out of the story. Jarring the reader out of the story between the prologue and chapter one is a HUGE risk. The reader hasn’t yet become emotionally invested in the story.
Especially since the first pages are a prologue. The reader bought the story expecting the hero or heroine portrayed in the back cover copy. In Releasing Rage, readers want to meet a tormented, angry hero. They don’t want to read about Rage when he had a kinder, gentler view of the worlds. It is kind of like seeing a guy’s baby photos on a first date. It’s much too soon for that.
Prologues are also backstory dumps. Backstory is powerful. Readers often read for it (in the case of E.L. James’ Grey, they’ll buy an entire book to read a character’s backstory). That’s why they turn the pages. “This hero is completed fucked up. I have to know why.” We can only use a juicy piece of backstory once. Do we really want to use it at the beginning of a story, before the reader cares about the character?
Alternatives To Prologues
A great writer once told me that ideally backstory should be threaded into a story as the reader needs to know it (threaded, not dumped – again, you don’t want to draw readers out of the story). That timing often makes it more powerful.
In romance, this revelation is often easy to do because a heroine, loving a fucked up hero, for example, will eventually want to know WHY he’s fucked up. The reader can discover this at the same time.
If both of the characters already know the backstory, it is a bit more challenging. If the past truly haunts the character, he or she will likely dream about it. An incident might also trigger a memory. In Breathing Vapor, the heroine sees someone and, at first, thinks that person is a person from her past. The character might be facing the same decision they faced in the past. Will he or she make the same choice?
There are thousands of great ways to reveal backstory. If you’re stuck, reread beloved stories and note how those authors handle it. (Or email me and we can brainstorm!)
How did I handle the unsympathetic heroine in Breathing Vapor?
Mira acts like a beyotch when she’s around other beings. The solution? I show her true nature when she’s alone (actually, she’s caring for a cyborg baby but he can’t tell anyone about her kindness so she feels she’s safe).
Yes, the solution was ridiculously simple. I threaded the rest of the information throughout the core story and eliminated the prologue entirely.
How have you eliminated prologues in your own manuscripts?
Subscribe To My Release Day Newsletter: http://tasteofcyn.com/2014/05/28/newsletter/
Half Man. Half Machine. All Hers.
Rage, the Humanoid Alliance’s most primitive cyborg, has two goals—kill all of the humans on his battle station and escape to the Homeland. The warrior has seen the darkness in others and in himself. He believes that’s all he’s been programmed to experience.
Until he meets Joan.
Joan, the battle station’s first female engineer, has one goal—survive long enough to help the big sexy cyborg plotting to kill her. Rage might not trust her but he wants her. She sees the passion in his eyes, the caring in his battle-worn hands, the gruff emotion in his voice.
When Joan survives the unthinkable, Rage’s priorities are tested. Is there enough room in this cyborg’s heart for both love and revenge?
Buy Now:
On Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Releasing-Rage-Cyborg-Sizzle-Book-ebook/dp/B00ZOL1DRO
On ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-releasingrage-1850041-340.html
On B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/releasing-rage-cynthia-sax/1122455646
Topics: Writing Tips | Comments Off on Writing Erotic Romance – Prologues
Upcoming Releases
August 19th
Releasing Rage
SciFi Erotic Romance
Half Man. Half Machine. All Hers.
Rage, the Humanoid Alliance’s most primitive cyborg, has two goals—kill all of the humans on his battle station and escape to the Homeland. The warrior has seen the darkness in others and in himself. He believes that’s all he’s been programmed to experience.
Until he meets Joan.
Joan, the battle station’s first female engineer, has one goal—survive long enough to help the big sexy cyborg plotting to kill her. Rage might not trust her but he wants her. She sees the passion in his eyes, the caring in his battle-worn hands, the gruff emotion in his voice.
When Joan survives the unthinkable, Rage’s priorities are tested. Is there enough room in this cyborg’s heart for both love and revenge?
Buy Now:
On Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Releasing-Rage-Cyborg-Sizzle-Book-ebook/dp/B00ZOL1DRO
On ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-releasingrage-1850041-340.html
On B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/releasing-rage-cynthia-sax/1122455646
September
September’s special project has been cancelled. However, that means I’ll be giving newsletter subscribers an exclusive surprise in December! I’ll talk about that soon.
October
The Good Assistant
Contemporary Erotic Romance
My boss, John Powers, represents everything I want in a man. He’s the CEO and founder of a powerful company, that position having made him a billionaire, striking in an I-survived-a-bar-brawl sort of way, and too clever for my sanity.
I’m his assistant and desperately in love with him. I’d willingly serve him both in the boardroom and in the bedroom.
There’s one problem.
He doesn’t mix business with pleasure.
Ever.
November
Breathing Vapor
SciFi Erotic Romance
I don’t yet have a cover for Breathing Vapor but here is an unedited first kick at the blurb.
Vapor is the most advanced cyborg the Humanoid Alliance has ever developed. He’s a finely honed weapon, a warrior without parallel, half man and half machine. No locks can contain him. No beings can stop him. Whatever he wants, he takes.
He wants Mira Breazeal, the Designer’s daughter.
She’s his one temptation, his sexy target. Vapor shouldn’t crave her caresses, steal her kisses, make her scream with ecstasy. The cyborgs want her dead, would question his loyalty if he doesn’t kill her. The humans would shoot him on sight if he dared to touch her.
Their love is forbidden. Their desire could be lethal. One human and one cyborg will risk everything for a moment of passion.
December
Being Green – A Newsletter Subscriber Exclusive
SciFi Erotic Romance
As a thank you for being awesome, every newsletter subscriber will have the option of receiving Being Green, a 40 page short story, for free. This story will be provided in Mobi/Kindle, ePub or PDF formats so it should work with your eReader. (If you haven’t yet subscribed, sign up here – http://tasteofcyn.com/2014/05/28/newsletter/)
I don’t yet have the cover for Being Green but here is the blurb
Green, a cyborg warrior, cares for one being—his plant Windy. When Windy becomes sick, he’ll do anything to heal her, even venture across the universe to visit a worlds-renowned plant doctor.
He doesn’t expect to find love.
Doctor Shelby Cooper is the sole resident of a tiny planet. She prefers to be alone rather than risk caring for another being and then losing him. The curvaceous scientist is determined to resist Green’s patient caresses, his thought-burning kisses, his slow seduction.
She has underestimated the power of a cyborg’s passion.
That’s it, thus far, for 2015. I already have one story written for release in 2016 and many more planned!
Topics: Coming Soon | Comments Off on Upcoming Releases
