Please welcome S.L. Armstrong and K. Piet to the blog, authors of “The Keeper”. Thank you for agreeing to answer my nosy questions and share them with everyone visiting today.
Q: To begin, please share which genre(s) you write in…
A: [S.L.] Paranormal, fantasy, and contemporary, with the occasional smatterings of western, sci-fi, and speculative fiction.
[K.] Pretty much the same as S.L. We co-author most of our fiction, so we work in the same genres. I very much enjoy writing in the paranormal, fantasy, and contemporary genres, but I keep an open mind to branching out.
Q: How long did you write before you received your first contract for publication?
A: [S.L.] Actually, we chose not to seek traditional publication. We’d considered several of the e-presses, but in the end, we wanted as much control over the finished product as we could, and so we chose to release our work ourselves. We founded Storm Moon Press to publish our work as well as the work of other authors through anthologies, and we haven’t looked back. However, I wrote for about ten years before making that decision, spending handful of years in fanfiction, and then writing original fiction for about three years before taking the plunge and finally publishing “The Keeper”.
[K.] Unlike S.L., I had very little experience writing professionally before we collaborated on “The Keeper”. I had written plenty of essays and research papers for college as a student in Kinesiological Sciences, but I never expected to become swept away into the world of writing fiction. It’s been a wonderful experience so far, and I feel like I learn something new with every step we take in establishing Storm Moon Press as a GLBT and alternative lifestyles romance press. Other than a terribly written poem published in a local collection back in High School, “The Keeper” is my first publication.
Q: Out of all the stories you’ve written, which is your favorite?
A: [S.L.] Hmm. I have to say my favorite would be “Catalyst”. It won’t be available until March, but it’s a contemporary BDSM story that really delves into the psychological maze of a masochist. It was a lot of work, went through a couple of rewrites, but the characters of Kasper and Logan have stuck with me.
[K.] S.L. and I think alike! “Catalyst” is also my favorite. It was a challenge to write, but I hope our love for the characters is clear to readers once it is published in March 2011. For the sake of having a different answer, I’ll also add that I love the stories we are still formulating for the World of Egaea. Rarely have I had the opportunity to world build on a large scale, and I’ll be thrilled when we can share the stories of those characters a couple years down the road.
Q: Do you need to be in a specific place or atmosphere before the words flow?
A: [S.L.] For certain types of scenes, yes. If it’s a dark scene, I need to be in that sort of headspace for the words to come. Usually, it’s only the darker stuff that requires a little mood setting.
[K.] It really is the darker scenes that throw me for a loop and demand I break out some music or write in a dimly lit room. When I’m writing very emotional scenes, I also prefer to write in solitude. It saves me the embarrassment of getting all weepy in front of others.
Q: What’s the strangest source of inspiration you’ve found for a story?
A: [S.L.] A Venetian mask. *laughs* I ran across a brief statement about what they were historically used for, and a series of books came into my head in an instant. Those will take some time to fully develop and write, but it was the strangest thing to me. A single sentence about Venetian masks, and I had a whole sci-fi sort of world formed in my head with a main character and plot ideas.
[K.] An epic adventure dream that featured the main characters from Sailor Moon. Hey! Don’t hate! When I sat down to write out the dream for fun, I realized the basic plot worked much better with original characters S.L. and I had created, so it ‘transformed’, if you’ll pardon the pun, into something completely different and made us rethink our approach to the World of Egaea books.
Q: If you could offer one tidbit of information for new writers, what would it be?
A: [S.L.] Patience. Not every story is meant for publication, even when you do it yourself, and you should have patience in cultivating the ideas, writing them, and editing them to the best of your ability. I also think, for new writers in the M/M erotic romance field, the best piece of advice I can give is to make sure you have a *plot*. Sex is all well and good, but it isn’t a plot. You need to ensure your readers relate to the characters so the events-and the sex-mean something to them.
[K.] *nods in agreement with S.L.* Patience and plot are essential. The other tidbit I would offer would be to surround yourself with a support system of people who will give their honest opinions. This definitely ties in with finding ideas worth publishing, writing, and then editing them. You have to find others who are willing to give truth with compassion, not blindly allow you to put out something that is sub par. Their advice, though sometimes hard to swallow, will be invaluable in the end.
Q: Do you have an evil day job or do you write full time?
A: [S.L.] I write and publish full time.
[K.] I wouldn’t call my day job ‘evil’. *chuckles* I am a massage therapist when I’m not writing. I love the profession, and I feel it balances my creativity with my more analytical and scientific side. I also enjoy working with others, and massage therapy is a hands-on job that satisfies my need to connect with other people.
Q: Name one thing readers would be surprised to learn about you.
A: [S.L.] I am incredibly socially inept. Whether that’s surprising or not is whether or not you buy into the myth that all writers are introverts. 
[K.] I once performed on the flying trapeze! I’m a lover of the circus arts, so I’ve tried quite a few of the disciplines, from trapeze, to diabolos, to contortion.
Q: What’s your favorite dirty word?
A: [S.L.] Hands down, fuck. It’s such a versatile word.
[K.] Oh, definitely fuck. I second that.
Q: Do you have any tattoos or piercings?
A: [S.L.] I have pierced ears. One hole in each lobe. I am looking to get small glyph tattoos on the inside of each wrist in the near future, one Pisces and one Scorpio.
[K.] I technically have pierced ears (two holes in each lobe), but I haven’t worn earrings in so long that the holes have all but closed up. I’d eventually like a tattoo, but I haven’t found anything both artistic and meaningful enough to me to be placed permanently on my body.
Q: If you could be intimate with three people (not necessarily all at one time *g*) without getting in trouble with your significant other, who would they be?
A: [S.L.] I have no idea, really. *laughs* I’m more enamored of my fictional characters than I am of real people. Besides, my significant other and I are polyamorous, and so I already have a second partner I adore quite a lot in addition to my husband. 
[K.] What significant other? I’d be more concerned about *their* significant others, since I’m single. I don’t know any real people that I’d actually consider. I’ll just stick to fictional characters: Daeron from J.R.R. Tolkien’s world, Moondance and Starwind from Mercedes Lackey’s Last Herald Mage trilogy (they would come in a pair, I believe. No arguments here!), and Sheik from Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. God, I feel like such a geek!
Q: If you won the lottery tomorrow, what would you spend the money on?
A: [S.L.] Oh, gods, I would pay off my debts, pay off my car and then FIX my car, buy a house, and then put a good chunk of the money into investments. Not very outlandish, is it? Very practical, but I’m a practical sort of person.
[K.] I’d pay out my apartment until my move next year along with a bunch of Storm Moon Press expenses, finally buy myself an ebook reader, and go see every Cirque du Soleil show I haven’t been able to afford to see. Since that would hardly make a dent, I’d do much like S.L. and go the house and investments route. A couple small, fun things, but the bulk of it would be practical.
Q: Which household chore do you abhor and why?
A: [S.L.] I don’t do the dishes. Ever. I hate it. I make my husband do them.
[K.] Cleaning bathrooms, and that goes for humans and the kitty litterboxes. Fumes from cleaners and potent cat litters just really irritate my senses. I only do it when I have to.
Q: What’s your favorite comfort food?
A: [S.L.] Good, old fashioned macaroni and cheese or a decent bar chocolate.
[K.] Cheesy garlic bread or cookies (I love all different kinds).
Q: Do you have a favorite book or movie?
A: [S.L.] I love Tolkien’s world. It’s been a staple in my life for a long, long time. As for movies, I never get tired of “Two Weeks Notice”, even if it is utterly a chick flick. It simply amuses me.
[K.] S.L. and I bonded over Tolkien’s work, so I have to agree with her on that for both books and movies. It’s had such a wonderful impact on our lives. I also love the film “August Rush” for the way music impacts the characters’ lives and serves as an invisible bond between them.
Q: If you don’t mind sharing, would you tell us about your latest work in progress?
A: [S.L.] We tend to juggle a couple projects at once. One is the first novella in a series about a night world and vampires and what goes on with various men in that world. Another is a polyamorous contemporary with two men and a woman trying to make their relationship work as they adjust to adding a fourth (third man) to their lives. There’s also a contemporary western about a country singer and a ranch owner, and a M/M erotic horror set at a haunted hotel.
[K.] In addition to all that, we’re fiddling with the Venetian Mask concept S.L. mentioned and a dystopian society involving vampires. We are very busy people!
Q: In closing, tell us a bit about your latest release (& share a yummy excerpt for those who aren’t yet familiar with your work)
A: [S.L.] Our latest release is actually in an anthology called “Cast the Cards”, which is an anthology that includes M/M, F/F, and M/M/F stories. My contribution to the anthology was a short story called “Oneiros”, which is about a man named Caleb coming to terms with the fact he has HIV. It’s mainly about how he copes as well as how love unexpectedly finds him. Our joint release that is separate from the anthology is “The Keeper”, which is a non-traditional vampire novella we’re happy to have out.
[K.] My contribution to the anthology is a short story called “Surrender”, which is about a man named Aaron and his experience at a private fetish party. When he becomes involved with another Dom named Travis, the foundation of his sexual life as a decided Top is shaken to its core. It’s also my first solo piece to be published, so I’m incredibly excited to have it included in “Cast the Cards” alongside pieces from other talented authors. Thank you very much for interviewing us, Amanda! We hope you all enjoyed the ride and have fun with the excerpts below!
Excerpt from “Cast the Cards - Oneiros” by S.L. Armstrong:
The touch was so real. His skin was soft, warm and smelling of rain and moist earth, against his overheated face. Those hands drew his face upward, and Caleb whimpered when Morpheus’ lips touched his. It wasn’t the desperate passion of the night before; this was something sweet, something tender. Caleb parted his lips, his hands resting atop Morpheus’ as Morpheus slid his tongue into Caleb’s mouth.
It was just a kiss, Caleb told himself. A kiss shouldn’t make him so hard he hurt. It shouldn’t make his pulse pound in his ears. It shouldn’t make him feel so weak, so needy, but it did. The kiss made him want to let the god take away all the worries he felt when he was awake, all the fear and self-loathing and sadness. This was all a dream, something his mind conjured to ease his own loneliness, and even if it was a lucid dream, it really was just a dream.
So, why didn’t it feel like just a dream?
“Dreams are the gateway to the self,” Morpheus whispered into his mouth. “Dreams are what give heroes their courage, kings their bravery, and the common man a reason to believe. Dreams are made of the stuff of legends, Caleb, and I am the maker of those dreams. Dreams are not ‘just’ anything.”
Caleb shuddered, his breath short as their lips teased lightly at one another. “I’m tired of being alone,” he said. “I miss being touched.”
“I know,” Morpheus breathed, pressing Caleb back against the mattress.
Excerpt from “Cast the Cards - Surrender” by K. Piet:
Aaron was about to comment on Travis’ lascivious tone when another strike landed, firmer than before, and he gripped the bedspread with a gasp. It hurt more, the force of it rocking him into the sheets, but with the low throb came an almost unexpected jolt of pleasure. Part of him wanted to protest the treatment-to end the experience right there-but a deeper part of him seemed to stir and stretch. His pride wouldn’t allow him to speak the safeword when he was still on the proverbial fence.
It should have made him uncomfortable, the pulsing pain that slowly seeped into his muscles with each strong blow. It should have made him tense even more and call it all off, but instead he felt the beginnings of arousal flare low in his gut. It made the light rocking of his groin against the bedspread so much more erotic than he’d thought it would be. The pleasure of it dulled his wits, or maybe it just forced his mind stop questioning every reaction so he could simply feel. Either way, he found himself relaxing even more instead of tensing against every strike, and Travis’ voice coached him through every moment.
“You know how it is from my place. You watch the reactions, how the body moves, and you play around with pace, power, and placement until you find just the right combination. When you receive… you feel that experimentation, don’t you?”
The pressure became more stingy and rode higher up on his backside, and he grunted, tensing when the hand went too high. “Yeah,” he admitted, his voice a little breathless as his heart pounded against his ribcage.
To learn more about “Cast the Cards” and “The Keeper”, please visit
http://www.stormmoonpress.com/. S.L. can be found at
http://www.slarmstrong.net/, and K. Piet can be found at
http://www.kpiet.net/.
November 26th, 2010 by 
Amanda Young
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I’m no longer sure where I came by this post, but I found it amusing. 
