BLE v. 3 Blog Tour with Victoria Janssen and "Still Marching After All This Time"

Today our virtual road trip takes us to Victoria Janssen's Philadelphia, via her story "Still Marching: a Tale of Our Times." It turns out that "our times" stretch over decades. Go visit her post and you'll see what I mean. Hint: "I Can't Believe I Still Have to Protest This Shit!" Another hint: Victoria  tells us about the event that inspired her story, and it turns out that I was participating in the same event, although I was in Northampton, MA while she was in Philadelphia.

http://victoriajanssen.com/2018/12/still-marching-a-tale-of-our-times/

On Loss and Anger and Being Unafraid: “Fearless” in Best Lesbian Erotica, Vol 3

Today T.C. Mill, author of "Fearless," takes us to her own blog at http://tc-mill.com/2018/12/04/on-loss-and-anger-and-being-unafraid-fearless-in-best-lesbian-erotica-vol-3/.

Go there. Now, if you can. Her story in the book struck me (and some reviewers) with its fearless portrayal of love that works through past emotional trauma and recent medical trauma, all the while remaining tender and, in its way, uplifting and lit by sunshine.

The blog she's written shares her feelings about how she wrote her story, as well as a great deal of profound discussion about the issues faced in it. You really don't want to miss it. Trust me.

Sacchi


Here’s our schedule of all the posts from contributors to the anthology, and potential links, which may change, so check back here. I’ll keep the list up-to-date.

December 1
Sacchi Green
Introduction
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 2
Pascal Scott
The Night Shift
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 3
R. D. Miller
Perfume
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 4
T.C. Mill
Fearless
http://tc-mill.com/2018/12/04/on-loss-and-anger-and-being-unafraid-fearless-in-best-lesbian-erotica-vol-3/

December 5
Victoria Janssen
Still Marching
http://victoriajanssen.com/2018/12/still-marching-a-tale-of-our-times/

Anna Watson
Sweet of My Heart
December 6
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 7
R.G. Emanuelle
The Auction
 http://rgemanuelle.com/2018/12/07/the-auction

December 8
Scout Rhodes
Morning Fog
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 9
Emily L. Byrne
Rainbow’s End
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 10
Mags Hayward
Yin and Yang
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

Valerie  Alexander
Ninjutsu
December 11
valeriealexander.org

December 12
Xan West
Trying Submission
December 13
https://xanwest.wordpress.com

M. Birds
Where There’s Smoke

December 14
Raven Sky
Fuck Me Like a Canadian
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 15
Sommer Marsden
Husher

December 16
Lea Daley
Rules
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 17
Nan Barret
Oliver: Twisted
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 18
Nat Burns
Jani-Lyn’s Dragon
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

https://www.amazon.com/Best-Lesbian-Erotica-Year-3/dp/1627782869/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1543190819&sr=2

Blog Tour for BLE v. 3, “Perfume” by R.D. Miller

Today we get not only a hot excerpt, but first-time author R. D. Miller lays it all on the line when it comes to how and why she wrote her story “Perfume” as well as what the Best Lesbian Erotica series has meant to her.

Here goes!


Hello Readers!

I want to thank you for reading the Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year Volume 3. This anthology means so much to me. I’m so excited to be included in this collection, and to have my work alongside these other women. This is my first publication, and in case you can't tell I’m really excited! The editor of the anthology asked me to discuss my story “Perfume” and the inspiration behind it. She wanted to know what my creative process was like and to include anything else that influenced my writing. I’ll try to keep it playful … lol

When I learned that my story was going to be included in the Best Lesbian Erotica Anthology, I was over the moon! Over the years, the work of Cleis Press has had so much impact on my identity. Especially this Anthology, its volumes hold a special place in my heart. As a sporty baby dyke, at 23 I moved to South Korea. I didn’t speak the language and had a very light understanding of the country and its culture.

I had met a beautiful woman at a queer bar in Halifax. She was moving to Korea where she would teach English. Sparks flew! And not to be outdone by all the other U-Haul toting lesbians that came before us, it was decided that I should go too. When true love is on the line, what’s 10,000 KMs… right?!

Living in Korea opened my heart, and I was transformed by my time there. I fell completely in love with the country. Yet, I longed for queer literature with a lesbian focus. It was difficult to find lesbian writing of any kind in Korea, let alone in English. So every time that I would fly home to Canada, I would ALWAYS stock up. The BLE series from Cleis Press was my perennial favourite. Filled with searing erotica, I would carefully pack the anthologies in my carry-on for the long flights back. When I thought no one was looking, I would slowly slip the volume out of my bag. From there I would furtively read the stories. Although, after reading “Ninjutsu” by Valerie Alexander, I realize that those long flights back could have been far more interesting if I had been a bit more bold!

People who’ve read my story often ask me if I’ve been to Grasse, where my piece “Perfume” is set in France. Yes, I have been to Grasse. I’ve been so lucky to have stepped foot on some of it’s legendary flower fields and visited its long storied perfumeries. The story, however, is entirely fiction. This totally did not happen:

“My pants are unfastened now and she roughly shoves her hand down them. She pauses, just long enough for her eyes to lock with mine and check for consent. I'm nodding like a madwoman, praying she doesn't stop.
She must be satisfied with that because her hand is suddenly inside of my underwear, and I am dripping for her. She gasps. She bites my earlobe, “You are so wet! My butch likes being shoved against the bathroom stall and fucked, does she?””

So how did the story come about? One night I was hanging out with @stashingbreadcrumbs, she’s a dear friend of mine. She was enjoying a cider, while I was enjoying a beer. Somewhere in the conversation we found ourselves drunkenly discussing interesting places we’d done it. She was blown away that with all the places I had been to I had very few stories of sex in interesting public places. From the pause in our dialogue, I could tell what she was thinking. I needed to do better!

So this got me thinking – of all the places that I have visited; if I could go back, where would have been the best place to share such an intimate act in such a public setting? I considered many locations and venues, but the perfume factory was the one place that kept coming up in my imagination.
When I got home that night, I grabbed my laptop and began to write down all of the fun I wish I’d had. Writing the sexy times came really naturally to me (… that was the fun part!). I would later construct the rest of the narrative for the story after deciding I would like to submit it for publication.

So there it is, as nude as the scent one wears. That’s the inspiration behind “Perfume”. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy every sizzling hot moment of Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year volume 3.


Notice: Any commenters on any of these blog posts will be entered into a drawing for a free ebook copy of this anthology. It's come to my attention that commenting here doesn't work for many folks, so commenting on my Blog Tour posts on Facebook will count for the drawing, as well, and I'll offer two copies as prizes. https://www.facebook.com/sacchi.green

Here’s our schedule of all the posts from contributors to the anthology, and potential links, which may change, so check back here. I’ll keep the list up-to-date.

December 1
Sacchi Green
Introduction
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 2
Pascal Scott
The Night Shift
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 3
R. D. Miller
Perfume
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 4
T.C. Mill
Fearless
http://tc-mill.com/2018/12/04/on-loss-and-anger-and-being-unafraid-fearless-in-best-lesbian-erotica-vol-3/

December 5
Victoria Janssen
Still Marching
http://victoriajanssen.com/2018/12/still-marching-a-tale-of-our-times/

Anna Watson
Sweet of My Heart
December 6
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 7
R.G. Emanuelle
The Auction
 http://rgemanuelle.com/2018/12/07/the-auction

December 8
Scout Rhodes
Morning Fog
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 9
Emily L. Byrne
Rainbow’s End
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 10
Mags Hayward
Yin and Yang
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

Valerie  Alexander
Ninjutsu
December 11
valeriealexander.org

December 12
Xan West
Trying Submission
December 13
https://xanwest.wordpress.com

M. Birds
Where There’s Smoke

December 14
Raven Sky
Fuck Me Like a Canadian
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 15
Sommer Marsden
Husher

December 16
Lea Daley
Rules
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 17
Nan Barret
Oliver: Twisted
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 18
Nat Burns
Jani-Lyn’s Dragon
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

https://www.amazon.com/Best-Lesbian-Erotica-Year-3/dp/1627782869/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1543190819&sr=2

Blog for BLE v 3, “The Night Shift,” by Pascal Scott

You’ll laugh, you’ll wriggle in in your chair, and laugh and wriggle some more reading "Night Shift." Here’s what Pascal says about the inspiration for her story:

“For many years I was employed by a tourist destination in North Carolina. Part of that time I worked the night shift in its call center, booking adventure packages. As it happened, one of our toll-free numbers was one digit off from a popular sex line and so, on occasion, we would receive calls from confused men looking for the kind of good time we weren’t selling.

I sat in a cubicle across from a young woman from the Philippines, who was still getting a sense of the English language with its strange idioms and verbal nuances. One night she happened to answer one of those sex line callers who had misdialed. The conversation continued until our supervisor, monitoring the call from her office on her headphones, realized what was happening and came rushing out to tell my co-worker to hang up.
It turned out the caller was a woman. Because I was out as a lesbian to everyone at work, I joked that they should have let me handle the call. But it caused me to wonder, what kind of woman calls a sex line? “The Night Shift” is based on my fantasy of how that evening might have gone if I’d been in charge.”

And here’s a brief teaser of an excerpt:

“All right,” I say, making an executive decision. “I’ll play along. Let’s pretend you’ve just called a sex line—”
 “Well, I did just call a sex line, at least I meant to call a sex line—”
 “And you’ve reached the sexiest woman on the planet. Me.”
 “Hmm,” Sammy says, “That sounds interesting.”
I slip my voice into a lower register.
 “Thank you for calling Nine Hundred SLUT. My name is Roxy. What may I do for you tonight?”
 “Hey, you’re good,” Sammy tells me, surprised. “I like that voice.”
 “Thank you, baby. What’s your name? And may I call you baby?”
 “Sammy. And you may call me anything you like.”
 “Sammy,” I say, “I like your attitude. I can tell you’re a woman who knows what she wants and what Sammy wants tonight is an adventure. Sammy, I can assure you that you’ve reached the right girl.”
 “I believe I have,” Sammy replies.

Pascal Scott is the pseudonym of a lesbian writer whose short fiction has appeared in Thunder of War, Lightning of Desire: Lesbian Historical Military Erotica; Through the Hourglass: Lesbian Historical Romance; Order Up: A Menu of Lesbian Romance and Erotica; Unspeakably Erotic: Lesbian Kink; Best Lesbian Erotica, Vol. 2 (2017);Best Lesbian Erotica, Vol. 3 (2018); Harrington Lesbian Literary Quarterly; and other anthologies. She is currently trying her hand at novel writing by working on a series of lesbian mysteries. She’ll let you know how it goes.

Here’s our schedule of all the posts from contributors to the anthology, and potential links, which may change, so check back here. I’ll keep the list up-to-date.


December 1
Sacchi Green
Introduction
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 2
Pascal Scott
The Night Shift
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 3
R. D. Miller
Perfume
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 4
T.C. Mill
Fearless
http://tc-mill.com/2018/12/04/on-loss-and-anger-and-being-unafraid-fearless-in-best-lesbian-erotica-vol-3/

December 5
Victoria Janssen
Still Marching
http://victoriajanssen.com/2018/12/still-marching-a-tale-of-our-times/

Anna Watson
Sweet of My Heart
December 6
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 7
R.G. Emanuelle
The Auction
 http://rgemanuelle.com/2018/12/07/the-auction

December 8
Scout Rhodes
Morning Fog
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 9
Emily L. Byrne
Rainbow’s End
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 10
Mags Hayward
Yin and Yang
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

Valerie  Alexander
Ninjutsu
December 11
valeriealexander.org

December 12
Xan West
Trying Submission
December 13
https://xanwest.wordpress.com

M. Birds
Where There’s Smoke

December 14
Raven Sky
Fuck Me Like a Canadian
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 15
Sommer Marsden
Husher

December 16
Lea Daley
Rules
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 17
Nan Barret
Oliver: Twisted
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 18
Nat Burns
Jani-Lyn’s Dragon
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

https://www.amazon.com/Best-Lesbian-Erotica-Year-3/dp/1627782869/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1543190819&sr=2

Blog Tour for Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year, Volume 3

Time to get this tour on the road!

https://www.amazon.com/Best-Lesbian-Erotica-Year-3/dp/1627782869/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1543190819&sr=2

This is really more of a prelude to the tour, which will include posts by each contributor to the anthology. Some will post on their own web sites, while some will send me their posts to include here. There will be story-behind-the-story tales, steamy excerpts, and possibly some surprises. The schedule and links are listed way down below, although I don’t have all the final links yet, so checking back is advised.

Notice: Any commenters on any of these blog posts will be entered into a drawing for a free ebook copy of this anthology.


I edited this anthology, which is in fact the twenty-third in the iconic Best Lesbian Erotica series from Cleis Press, so of course I didn’t choose a story of my own for it. What I can offer instead is my introduction, to give you some idea of what you’ll find inside the book.

Introduction:

We open a book hoping to be taken somewhere—to faraway places, into the lives and inner thoughts of intriguing characters, into times past or even unexplored depths of ourselves. If the book is classed as erotica, we also expect to be intensely stirred both sensually and emotionally. The beauty of an anthology is that we can be taken in multiple directions, and meet an assortment of characters with a wide range of viewpoints.

The drawback is that with short stories we often wish for more time with these characters, these sensations, these adventures. But writers with a special gift for short fiction can still draw us deeply into the brief length of their work, with multidimensional characters, vivid settings, intriguing story arcs, and, of course, sex as intrinsic to the story as any setting.

I’ve been lucky enough in two previous volumes of this series to be the editor who gets to read the flood of submissions and decide which of the best, in my opinion, should be included. I could never fit all of the very best into the limited space of a single anthology, so I try for a balance, and as wide a variety of themes and styles as
possible, especially those I haven’t seen before. Originality is high on my wish list.

Here are some hints as to where the stories I chose will take you, and what you may find there. Could there be a better start than the fantasy-fulfillment story, “Jinjutsu,” set on a plane high above the Pacific en route from Tokyo to Honolulu? And what could feel more real than longtime lovers waking in the “Morning Fog” of San Francisco? How about touring the South of France in “Perfume,” or a massage in a Moroccan public bath in “Fuck Me Like a Canadian,” or a cabin “Where There’s Smoke” in the snowy North Country, or the surveillance area above the ceiling of a
Las Vegas casino where “Oliver: Twisted” begins?

New York City figures in at least three stories, playing different roles. In “The Auction,” the city is an artsy background for socialite fundraisers. In “Trying Submission,” it’s an upscale background for a decidedly non-upscale character. And the Harlem of 1931 in “Sweet of My Heart” is the home of a Peace Mission’s free meals where even a dance hall girl could be fed.

While most of the stories have contemporary settings, two more are set, at least partially, in the past. If you’re old enough to have been swept up in the rock and blues bands frenzy of the ’60s and ’70s, you may catch the significance of September, 1970, and even if you aren’t that old, you’ll find out in “Jani-Lyn’s Dragon.” And in “Still Marching,” old friends who met and parted twenty-five years ago at a march for abortion rights in Washington DC bump into each other at a present-day march in Philadelphia.

There are various themes included in the anthology. I had quite a few submissions featuring coffeehouse encounters, but “Husher” is the one I chose for its deft and evocative style. There were also several submissions involving cancer, something I hadn’t seen before, and others referring to trauma from past abuse; I went with “Fearless,” which included both, along with a beautifully uplifting conclusion. Of the several stories I received featuring differently abled or neuro-atypical characters, I settled on “Trying Submission,” with a vulnerable character who lingers vividly in
my mind.

On another tack, “The Night Shift” proves to be just the right time for accidental phone sex. Then the familiar professor/former student theme of “Rules” travels in unexpected directions and gets as steamily entertaining as they come, while the queer bookstore in “Rainbow’s End” provides an ideal place for a hesitant would-be writer to find just what she hardly dared hope for. And in the beautifully balanced “Yin and Yang,” a contemporary ballet dancer and her lighting-technician lover make the perfect team, while the writing, alternating between lyrical and straightforward, makes the perfect presentation of their story.

Yes, all of these stories include hot, intense sex, in its many-splendored manifestations. I’ll leave you to discover those, scene by scene. A word of caution: you may not get jet lag from this journey, but a suitable recovery period between stories is highly recommended. Trust me.

So, are you ready to take your own journey through these blog posts, and potentially through the seventeen stories?

Schedule of Blog Posts:

December 1
Sacchi Green
Introduction
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 2
Pascal Scott
The Night Shift
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 3
R. D. Miller
Perfume
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 4
T.C. Mill
Fearless
http://tc-mill.com/2018/12/04/on-loss-and-anger-and-being-unafraid-fearless-in-best-lesbian-erotica-vol-3/

December 5
Victoria Janssen
Still Marching
http://victoriajanssen.com/2018/12/still-marching-a-tale-of-our-times/

Anna Watson
Sweet of My Heart
December 6
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 7
R.G. Emanuelle
The Auction
 http://rgemanuelle.com/2018/12/07/the-auction

December 8
Scout Rhodes
Morning Fog
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 9
Emily L. Byrne
Rainbow’s End
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 10
Mags Hayward
Yin and Yang
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

Valerie  Alexander
Ninjutsu
December 11
valeriealexander.org

December 12
Xan West
Trying Submission
https://xanwest.wordpress.com/2018/12/11/the-alchemy-of-d-s

December 13
M. Birds
Where There’s Smoke
www.mbirds.ca/journal

December 14
Raven Sky
Fuck Me Like a Canadian
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 15
Sommer Marsden
Hushed

December 16
Lea Daley
Rules
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 17
Nan Barret
Oliver: Twisted
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 18
Nat Burns
Jani-Lyn’s Dragon
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

Time to wake this blog from its summer sleep!

 I have news, and, even better, tomorrow (December 1st) begins the blog tour for Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year Volume 3. Every day until December 18th, one at a time, the contributors will share thoughts about their stories and themselves, and often provide excerpts to whet your taste. Some will post on their own web sites, and some will send me their post to present here. I don't have all of the final links yet, but I’ll try to keep the schedule I’m posting at the end of this up to date.

Notice: Any commenters on any of these blog posts will be entered into a drawing for a free ebook copy of this anthology.


Now to get the news part out of the way tonight, here’s what I’ve been doing on the writing and editing front.

First, of course, BLE v. 3 comes out from Cleis Press on December 11th, as you might suspect from the imminent launching of the blog tour.

https://www.amazon.com/Best-Lesbian-Erotica-Year-3/dp/1627782869/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1543190819&sr=2

Next, after many years of writing short stories and editing eighteen anthologies, I finally buckled down and wrote an entire novel, Shadow Hand, featuring a heroine coping with having a superpower suddenly thrust upon her. This is from Ylva Press, part of their Superheroine series.

https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Hand-Superheroine-Collection-Book-ebook/dp/B07KQH1VJC/ref=mt_kindle?_encoding=UTF8&me=&qid=1543190408

 And then, early next year, a collection of my own short stories is coming out from Dirt Road Books. Wild Rides and Other Lesbian Erotic Adventures  covers much of what I’ve published since my first collection, A Ride to Remember, from Lethe Press back in 2011, plus a couple of never-before-published pieces. Look at this gorgeous cover! (And try to ignore that at this point the central image has still got the stock photo markings.)

So more about these coming attractions later. For now I’ll move along to the urgent matter of the Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year Volume 3 Blog Tour!

Schedule:

December 1
Sacchi Green
Introduction
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 2
Pascal Scott
The Night Shift
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 3
R. D. Miller
Perfume
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 4
T.C. Mill
Fearless
tc-mill.com

December 5
Victoria Janssen
Still Marching
http://victoriajanssen.com/2018/12/still-marching-a-tale-of-our-times/

Anna Watson
Sweet of My Heart
December 6
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 7
R.G. Emanuelle
The Auction

December 8
Scout Rhodes
Morning Fog
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 9
Emily L. Byrne
Rainbow’s End
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 10
Mags Hayward
Yin and Yang
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

Valerie  Alexander
Ninjutsu
December 11
valeriealexander.org

December 12
Xan West
Trying Submission
December 13
https://xanwest.wordpress.com

M. Birds
Where There’s Smoke

December 14
Raven Sky
Fuck Me Like a Canadian
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 15
Sommer Marsden
Hush

December 16
Lea Daley
Rules
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 17
Nan Barret
Oliver: Twisted
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December 18
Nat Burns
Jani-Lyn’s Dragon
sacchi-green.blogspot.com

December Dreaming in July

Ah, December! It seems strange to be longing for December on the first of July, even though the temperature today in Western Massachusetts has been just about 100 degrees, but that’s not the only reason to look forward about five months. The main reason is that Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year Volume 3 will come out on December 12th.

I like to share the introductions to my anthologies and the Tables of Contents well ahead of publication, but not usually this far ahead. In this case, though, as I keep rearranging the fans for maximum effect and hoping that my antiquated air conditioner doesn’t quit, the thought of December is so appealing that I’m going to pretend it’s almost here, and dive right in.

Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year, Volume 3: Introduction

We open a book hoping to be taken somewhere—to faraway places, into the lives and inner thoughts of intriguing characters, or into times past or even unexplored depths of ourselves. If the book is classed as erotica, we also expect to be intensely stirred both sensually and emotionally.

The beauty of an anthology is that we can expect to be taken in multiple directions, and meet an assortment of characters with a wide range of viewpoints. The drawback is that with short stories we often wish for more time with these characters, these sensations, these adventures. But writers with a special gift for short fiction can still draw us deeply into the brief length of their work, with multidimensional characters, vivid settings, intriguing story arcs, and, of course, sex as intrinsic to the story as any setting.

I’ve been lucky enough in two previous volumes of this series to be the editor who gets to read the flood of submissions and decide which of the best, in my opinion, should be included. I could never fit all of the very best into the limited space of a single anthology, so I try for a balance, and as wide a variety of themes and styles as possible, especially those I haven’t seen before. Originality is high on my wish list.

Here are some hints as to where the stories I chose will take you, and what you may find there. Could there be a better start than the fantasy-fulfillment story, “Ninjutsu,” set on a plane high above the Pacific en route from Tokyo to Honolulu? And what could feel more real than longtime lovers waking in the “Morning Fog” of San Francisco? How about touring the South of France in “Perfume,” a massage in a Moroccan public bath in “Fuck Me Like a Canadian,” a cabin “Where There’s Smoke” in the snowy North Country, and the surveillance area above the ceiling of a Las Vegas casino where “Oliver: Twisted” begins?

New York City figures in at least three stories, playing different roles. In “The Auction,” the city is an artsy background for socialite fundraisers. In “Trying Submission,” it’s an upscale background for a decidedly non-upscale character. And the Harlem of 1931 in “Sweet of My Heart” is the home of a Peace Mission’s free
meals where even a dance hall girl could be fed.

While most of the stories have contemporary settings, two more are set, at least partially, in the past. If you’re old enough to have been swept up in the rock and blues bands frenzy of the ’60s and ’70s, you may catch the significance of September 1970, and even if you aren’t that old, you’ll find out in “Jani-Lyn’s Dragon.” And in “Still Marching,” old friends who met and parted twentyfive years ago at a march for abortion rights in Washington, DC, bump into each other at a present-day march in Philadelphia.

There are various themes included in the anthology. I had quite a few submissions featuring coffeehouse encounters, but “Husher” is the one I chose for its deft and evocative style. There were also several submissions involving cancer, something I hadn’t seen before, and others referring to trauma from past abuse; I went with “Fearless,” which included both, along with a beautifully uplifting conclusion. Of the several stories I received featuring differently abled or neuro-atypical characters, I settled on “Trying Submission,” with a vulnerable character who lingers vividly in my mind.

On another tack, “The Night Shift” proves to be just the-right time for accidental phone sex. Then the familiar professor/former student theme of “Rules” travels in unexpected directions and gets as steamily entertaining as they come, while the queer bookstore in “Rainbow’s End” provides an ideal place for a hesitant would-be writer to find just what she hardly dared hope for. And in the beautifully balanced “Yin and Yang,” a contemporary ballet dancer and her lighting-technician lover make the perfect team, while the writing, alternating between lyrical and straightforward, makes the perfect presentation of their story.

Yes, all of these stories include hot, intense sex, in its many-splendored manifestations. I’ll leave you to discover those, scene by scene. A word of caution: you may not get jet lag from this journey, but a suitable recovery period between stories is highly recommended. Trust me.

Sacchi Green
Amherst, MA

Now for the important part, the Contents:

1 Ninjutsu • Valerie Alexander
11 Morning Fog • Scout Rhodes
16 Where There’s Smoke • M. Birds
32 Husher • Sommer Marsden
42 Fearless • T. C. Mill
56 The Night Shift • Pascal Scott
67 The Auction • R. G. Emanuelle
82 Rainbow’s End • Emily L. Byrne
94 Oliver: Twisted • Nanisi Barrett D’Arnuk
109 Fuck Me Like a Canadian • Raven Sky
118 Jani-Lyn’s Dragon • Nat Burns
126 Rules • Lea Daley
142 Perfume • R. D. Miller
151 Trying Submission • Xan West
166 Yin and Yang • Mags Hayward
179 Still Marching • Victoria Janssen
187 Sweet of My Heart • Anna Watson


Post Script

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not really all that anxious for winter to come. My tomato plants are thriving, my pole beans are beginning to climb their poles, and my summer squash plants are getting frighteningly lush, although there are no blossoms yet. I want everything summer can offer. But I could do with temperatures just a bit lower than the ones this week.